Rin gripped her chain tightly and turned back to Kai. He was behind her and had already taken several steps to the side to clear his line of sight. Towa arrived just behind them, looking at the orange in the sky with new determination.
Nao stepped out and pointed to the hill in front of them. "We're going up. Just enough to see if the path is clear. The others stay here."
Marek added, without looking at them. "Be careful, observe discreetly, and come back."
Rin left first, but the others were not far behind. Even Towa climbed up too, a little too quickly, as if running toward danger gave him a reason to breathe.
Once at the top, the world opened up. There was a water source, far to the right of their path. A small lake or a large pond, surrounded by tall grass, low trees, and a damp clearing. From this distance, everything looked small, almost peaceful.
Except for the movement.
A horse was fleeing north, riders hunched over its neck. Another horse, riderless, was heading in a different direction, panicked, and its trajectory was bringing it vaguely toward them. Near the water, a cart stood motionless, abandoned. Two figures were running south, too small to make out anything, but their movement screamed panic.
And closer to the water, a shape was moving. Slowly, far too slowly for the panic it was causing. But enormous, it was at least the size of two Scalehaulers, maybe three. It moved close to the ground, like a giant crocodile, covered in a dark mass that undulated like seaweed out of the water.
Rin narrowed her eyes. "What... is that thing?"
Nao, standing next to her, seemed to recognize the beast, which strangely reassured him. He spoke calmly. "It must be a Fossegrim. So at this distance, far from the water source, we're safe. Just don't stare at it."
Towa was already staring. But not at the shape, at the movements around it. His breathing quickened.
"We can see them. They're running away." He pointed, his voice tense. "We can help them."
Kai didn't answer right away. He was observing. He was calculating the time it would take to get there.
"We couldn't even get there in time if there's anyone left to save," Kai said soberly.
Towa turned his head, his gaze hard. "Are you serious? You're just going to... watch?"
Rin opened her mouth, already irritated. "What exactly do you want us to do?"
"Go," Towa spat. "Help them. At least try."
Nao remained motionless, but his tone changed. More firm. "It's a B-rank Fairy-type. Even if we wanted to, our caravan doesn't have the power to deal with it. And like I just said, if they keep moving away from the water source, they'll be safe."
Towa exploded, as if that sentence were an insult. "You're just saying that because you want to get your paycheck without any trouble!"
Rin turned to him abruptly. "No," her voice snapped louder than intended. "That has nothing to do with it."
Kai pressed on, without anger, just as a matter of fact. "If a B-rank threat was able to develop here, it's because it had something to feed on. And it certainly wasn't deer."
Towa frowned, confused.
Kai spoke more quietly. "A lot of people must have died here to spawn it. Either the reckless, the unlucky, or the kind souls who wanted to help. We'll just go around it, return to Elronde, and warn the guilds."
Towa swallowed, but his determination did not waver. "So we're letting the others die because... it's already too late?"
Rin intervened, more seriously than usual. "We're not adding any more bodies, that's for sure."
Nao placed a hand on Towa's shoulder, more firmly than the day before. "You want to redeem yourself. I understand that. But dying out there won't save anyone. And it makes the area more dangerous for everyone who comes after. For the farms, for the road, and for Elronde."
Towa looked at the beast. His fist trembled. "But…"
Rin sighed, less aggressive, more sincere. "Believe me, I would have been the first to want to drive my chain into that monster if we could have."
Towa looked away for a second. Then he returned to it. "What about them?" he whispered. "The ones who are running."
Nao replied bluntly. "The only ones who can be saved are already fleeing. If any are left behind, they'll be dead before we get there."
He took a breath. "And if we go, we'll be next."
Silence fell.
Then the beast moved. It had just bent over something on the ground. A movement of dark tentacles emerged, more like seaweed grabbing a silhouette. The silhouette seemed small in comparison, struggling, then disappearing as if swallowed by the mass.
Kai felt a chill run down his spine. Even Rin took a step back without realizing it. Towa took a step forward, instinctively, as if he were about to run.
Nao held him back with his fingertips, just enough. "Don't go."
The beast stopped. Slowly, very slowly, its mass seemed to turn. Not toward the fugitives. Not toward the cart. Toward them. From several hundred meters away, it seemed ridiculous. And yet, the movement was too clear to be a coincidence.
Nao spoke sharply. "Look away! Now!"
But they barely had time to understand.
The fairy's face... if you could call it a face... revealed itself like a crack in the mass of seaweed. A huge mouth. A single eye, huge too, slit pupil, fixed. A goat's gaze, but the size of a shield.
Rin didn't have time to look away. Neither did Towa and Kai. The pressure hit them like a hand to the chest. The fairy seemed to be looking at them from within, and they suddenly felt cold. Their whole bodies seemed to agree on one idea: "I am being watched." Rin stood frozen, her mouth half open. So did Towa, his fingers clenched on his chest.
Kai felt his stomach churn. His throat tightened. And suddenly, he spat.
Water. Cold, dirty water, spurting out violently, as if he had swallowed the lake.
He fell to his knees, gasping, his hands in the mud.
"Kai!" Rin cried out in sheer panic.
Nao grabbed Kai by the shoulder and said sharply. "Don't look anymore."
Kai lowered his head and the pressure immediately eased, as if the creature had grown tired. He continued to cough, again and again.
Towa had looked away at the last moment. He asked, trembling, "What's going on?"
Nao spoke quickly.
"It's the power of this fairy, a shared gaze, and it can literally drown you."
Marek, seeing their reactions from below, shouted:
"What's going on? Come back!"
Nao didn't even answer. He motioned, and they went back down.
Kai staggered to his feet, still wet, ashamed, and furious. Rin supported him without comment. Towa followed them, silent, his face resigned. When they reached the caravan, Marek was waiting, already ready to return to camp. His gaze was hard.
"So?"
Nao replied.
"A Fossegrim. It's territorial, and its watering hole is far from our route. We'll continue on and warn Elronde."
Nao and Marek climbed back into the carriage. The driver, half reassured, set off again. The Scalehauler pulled the carriage and trailer once more, while Rin and Kai resumed their places.
Marek slowly poked his head out from behind the curtain, looking for him.
"Were you properly informed about the level of this escort?"
"Yes, we're only here for E-rank. We've been briefed," Kai replied, still holding his stomach.
Towa clenched his fists.
"What do you mean? Only for E?"
Kai sighed. "If a threat above E shows up, everyone has to flee, without exception."
Towa's eyes widened. "Seriously? Even you?"
Kai looked at Towa, more gently.
"You saw what bodies can do. There's no point in foolishly accumulating them."
Rin also intervened from afar. "And if clients want to ensure their survival, they just have to pay for a higher-level escort. It's common sense."
Towa seemed to have trouble understanding what he was hearing.
Kai put a hand on his shoulder, unwittingly imitating Nao. "Our mission is to prevent danger, not to die for others."
⸻
For a long time, no one spoke. The caravan had resumed its pace, as if nothing had happened. Then Elronde appeared in the distance. As they approached the first farms, they came across a troop on horseback already heading south, kicking up dust and traveling at full speed. They were followed by another, smaller troop escorting a Scalehauler and its two empty trailers. They were quickly left behind by the horses, but they weren't in such a hurry.
Nao poked his head out from behind the curtain when he heard the driver say they were approaching Elronde. His eyes were immediately drawn to the first troop on horseback.
Even from a distance, you could see the difference between simple adventurers and an A-rank party. Five riders were in formation, all on nervous, muscular mounts, equipped for combat, not for parades. No fluttering capes to get in the way. No unnecessary fabric. Everything was tight, fitted, designed to hold at full speed. On the side of the horses, a stiff leather panel was attached to the saddle, like a small cavalry shield. On it, a large symbol was visible without being cumbersome: a stylized iron lantern, simple, clean, painted in light colors.
And in the center, Nao recognized Iline Davern. She had a long, black bow, almost without curve, slanted against her back. She never completely let go of the reins, but always had a hand ready on her bow.
She didn't need heavy armor. What protected Iline was the way the others positioned themselves around her. Two riders ahead on the sides. Two others behind, slightly offset.
They rode past at full speed. The air vibrated. And they didn't even look at the caravan. They looked at the horizon. Toward the water source, toward the threat.
Nao followed the troop with his eyes and sighed. "Iron Lantern..."
Rin frowned. "Do you know them?"
"Not personally," Nao replied. "But they're known. Especially her."
He paused for a moment, as if the name carried weight. "Iline Davern."
Kai, who was walking stiffly behind them, looked up. "Davern? She comes from a noble family?"
Nao nodded. "Yeah. And they have a Providence."
The word fell like a gold coin on a table. Not heavy in sound, but heavy in implication.
Rin clenched her teeth. "Another noble thing."
Towa, who was following behind, asked, "What do you mean, 'they have a Providence'?"
Kai jumped at the chance to talk about his favorite subject, Skills.
"A Providence is a Skill that you can only get after fulfilling its condition," he said.
Rin added, "Like Renewal."
"Exactly. Renewal is the best known," Kai continued. "Because its condition is simple: be exactly twenty years old. And everyone is eligible."
Nao confirmed with a brief nod of his chin. "And because no one can steal it."
Kai continued, still cheerful. "Most Providences, when they activate, give you a dream. Like an extra window. Even if you've already chosen all the Skills you could... the Providence still offers itself."
Towa tensed. His gaze followed the dust left behind by Iron Lantern.
"So the nobles," he said, his voice tight, "they know how to trigger theirs. They keep it to themselves. They become powerful... and the rest of the world dies?"
Rin didn't answer. She seemed to agree. Kai, on the other hand, put things into perspective without defending these nobles. He was just trying to be honest.
"But... most of the conditions are said to be hellish. Things that take you years. Or that cost you something. Many people would spend their lives trying and never succeed."
Towa replied, more abruptly. "So what? If they shared, at least everyone could try."
Nao let out a breath. "Do you really think people who have a Providence want it to become a public contest?" he shook his head. "A Providence is a reputation. It's leverage. Sometimes it's an entire family that stands on it."
Kai concluded, more softly. "And even when someone has one... they don't always know how to explain how they triggered it. Or they lie. Or they embellish the story. Because if they give away the key... they lose what makes them unique."
Towa clenched his fist. You could sense that he wanted to respond, but the words wouldn't come out.
Rin looked ahead to where the walls of Elronde awaited them.
"Anyway," she said curtly. "We're almost there."
Then she looked at Kai and continued. "We have an appointment now..."
Nao then asked, almost judging them. "So, you joined Gilded Fang after all?"
"Huh? Never in a million years," Rin replied immediately.
Kai added. "No, why? We still have to get our rank validated."
Nao was confused but relieved. "So what are you doing on this escort?"
"Fenna is waiting for the camp report to complete the registration," Kai said, pointing to the carriage. "So she offered us the escort to come back with."
Nao nodded, then asked another question. "And then what are you going to do?"
"We're going to find a party!" Rin replied without hesitation, almost excited about what was to come, pointing to the troop that had just passed by. "And climb the ranks so we can deal with this kind of threat ourselves."
Towa, listening to the conversation, finally lit up a little.
"In that case, how about we meet up a little later?" Nao smiled. "I have someone to introduce you to. He's my partner, and we're also looking for people right now."
Kai moved even closer to the carriage and thus closer to Nao. Neither he nor Rin was really watching the road anymore, but the caravan had already reached the outskirts of Elronde, so it didn't really matter.
"Why not," Kai said. "But we don't know the area yet. Do you have a place?"
"Of course," Nao replied.
"Come to Valdo's Naughty Toast. It's pretty quiet, and contrary to what the name suggests, the food is good."
Nao turned to Towa and added, "If you're interested, you can come too."
Towa turned around instinctively, then, seeing that no one was there, simply nodded.
The caravan finally arrived at the southwest entrance checkpoint. And unlike the day before, they didn't have to wait in line. A steward came directly to them. He thanked Rin and Kai and handed them the promised silver coin. Rin quickly took it, then he immediately headed for the carriage.
Rin whispered to Kai. "Let's hurry up and get this guild business over with, otherwise I have a feeling we're going to miss out on the baths again today."
"In any case, we have to wait for the report to reach them," Kai said, then he put a hand on his stomach. "But I'm not against grabbing a bite to eat in the meantime."
Rin agreed. "Let's do that."