The house burned until sunrise.
What had once been a luxurious, beautiful mansion was now nothing more than ruins.
Standing in front of the remains were Valorant, Gustav, Aster, Anna, and Suna, all staring silently at what was left. None of them had slept that night; they had spent the hours carrying whatever necessities they could out of the burning house.
'So much money went up in smoke… damn it,' Aster thought to himself.
Overall, because Aster had suffered serious injuries, he was of little help during the fire.
Almost.
His body trembled slightly as he held a small chest in his hands. Slowly, he opened it and looked inside. Gold coins lay scattered within.
'I need to be careful. At this rate, I might have a heart attack,' he thought, his hand shaking as the faint clinking of coins echoed.
He gently set the chest down beside him and looked around. Everyone who had endured the sleepless night sat nearby, resting in exhaustion.
Suddenly, Valorant stood up and said,
"Anna, gather what you need. We'll be leaving soon."
Anna didn't argue. She stood and began picking out the items she needed from among the scattered belongings.
Suna turned to Valorant and asked,
"May I go with you as well?"
Gustav answered in place of the Sage.
"Of course."
Valorant added,
"We must hurry."
After that, the girls began helping one another prepare. Aster and Valorant moved away from them with Gustav.
The estate's steward carried the body of Doctor Fermak—lying near the gate—to a place where no one would find it. Valorant helped him.
Aster… stood watch.
So that the girls wouldn't see.
After they finished hiding the bodies, they returned to Aster.
"Is it done?" Aster asked.
"I'll bury them after you leave," Gustav replied. He and Valorant then departed to handle the rest.
While they were gone, Aster realized something he couldn't quite understand—no, something he couldn't feel.
'The first time I killed snow wolves, my hands were shaking so badly. But now… why aren't they shaking?'
He looked down at his hand.
He couldn't understand the strange calm inside him—as if nothing had happened. That shouldn't have been possible. After all, he had killed someone… almost killed someone… a living being.
Aster searched for an answer for a long time.
Maybe it was because the situation had been so tense. He had needed to protect the girls.
Or maybe because he had stood between killing and being killed—any one of the necromancer's attacks could have ended his life.
No.
The reason was something else entirely.
It lay in the memories he had seen most recently—memories of a past life. When he saw them, he felt as though he were staring death itself in the face. As if merely standing before it was the same as dying.
Thinking about those memories made Aster's skin crawl.
'Better not think about it,' he decided.
While he was lost in thought, Gustav approached him holding something wrapped in cloth. The steward held it with both hands and looked at Aster.
"What is it?" Aster asked.
"Well…" Gustav stopped mid-sentence.
'I don't get it.'
Bringing the wrapped item closer, Gustav said,
"I'm very sorry. During the fight with the skeletons, I broke your sword."
'What sword?'
At that moment, memories flooded Aster's mind.
The sword specially crafted for an Elestar… no, Aster's fifty–gold-coin sword.
'The one I treasured so carefully! You idiot, you could've been more careful! May the hands that broke my sword break too!'
Thoughts like that raced through his head.
Technically, the sword could be considered part of the reward they had been given for completing the task.
But to Aster, it felt like a huge loss.
"It's fine. It was just an ordinary sword."
The moment he said those words, he wanted to bite his tongue.
Hearing that, Gustav let out a sigh of relief and smiled.
"Thank you very much for understanding."
Suna, who had just arrived, joined the conversation.
"What's going on?"
"I accidentally broke Aster's sword."
Suna then asked the most painful question of all.
"How much did the sword cost?"
Sitting on the steps, Aster lowered his head toward the ground.
'Please… don't rub salt into the wound.'
When she heard the price, Suna exclaimed,
"Oh my God!"
At that moment, Valorant interrupted,
"Is everyone ready?"
As always, Aster simply nodded.
"Reaching the Elven Forest will take about a week. First, we need to reach the nearest city with magic gates—Vorkalis."
Magic gates could also be called teleportation portals. They were extremely convenient for traveling between cities.
Once everyone was prepared, they set out. Before leaving, Valorant thoroughly explained everything to them.
The first thing he instructed concerned their clothing. He ordered Anna and Suna to wear warm but plain clothes and to bring only essential, lightweight items.
When Suna asked why, Valorant replied,
"To hide from the organization."
Hearing that answer, Aster didn't understand what he meant—at least not until Valorant explained everything to him on the road.
"So the necromancer was actually Alaris?!" Aster asked, unable to hide his shock.
Valorant smacked the top of his head and glanced back at the girls walking behind them.
"Keep your voice down!"
"Sorry!" Aster said, clutching his aching head.
Irritated, Valorant snapped,
"That's enough. Don't say anything else," and walked ahead.
'I didn't do it on purpose…' Aster thought, watching his master's back.
They walked for another three hours—until they encountered a man traveling by carriage.
It was a simple cart, covered with cloth to protect its contents from rain and snow, pulled by a single aging but still sturdy horse.
Sitting at the front was an older-looking man with graying hair and beard, with graying hair and beard. He stopped the cart in front of Valorant.
"Good day! Where are you headed?"
Valorant returned the greeting politely.
"Good day to you as well. We're going to Vorkalis."
"I'm heading that way too. If you like, I can give you a ride."
Hearing that, Anna and Suna brightened immediately—they were exhausted from walking.
Valorant didn't answer right away.
"But we don't have money to pay for the ride," he said, deliberately lying.
"That's fine. Come on, kids—there's room in the back among the cargo," the man said, gesturing.
Aster, Anna, and Suna climbed into the back of the cart. Pretending to be blind, Aster approached carefully. To make his act seem natural, Suna held his hand and helped him climb up.
They settled in among the crates. Suna sat beside Aster, while Anna sat across from them.
One of the Seven Sages took a seat beside the old man driving the cart. Once everyone was settled, the cart continued down the road.
As the cart moved, the old man chatted endlessly with Valorant—even though the Sage clearly wasn't enjoying it.
"I understand. Walking gets harder as you get older. By the way, I haven't introduced myself. My name is Sven," he said, giving Valorant a sharp look.
"Name's Hamos. This boy is Kallo. The girls are Rouse and Manna," Valorant replied, blurting out the first names that came to mind.
Sven stared at Valorant for a moment—as if he knew he was lying. Then, after a short pause, he continued speaking casually.
"On a day this cold, what brings you out on the road?"
One of the Seven Sages gestured toward Aster in the back.
"Kallo hasn't been feeling well. I'm taking him to see a doctor. Since there was no one to look after the girls, I brought them along."
The cart rolled on, carrying them toward Vorkalis—
and toward whatever awaited them next.