The morning sun cast long shadows over the walls of the Ashfen pass.
Kai pulled the reins of his borrowed black horse, bringing the animal to a slow walk.
He did not draw his sword today and spent the entire first day just preparing.
A young local tracker named Finn rode on a brown horse right next to him.
Kai had hired the boy at the edge of the northern woods just to bounce his ideas around.
"You know what happened the last time an army marched through this specific canyon?" Finn said, pointing a finger at the grey cliffs.
"The royal guard tried to hold the line right here. They failed. The pass is just too narrow. You cannot fit more than ten men shoulder to shoulder."
"That is why I like it," Kai replied.
He looked up at the high cliff faces, mapping every shadow, every loose rock formation, and every shift in the wind direction.
His passive skill, Cartographic Memory, worked silently in the background.
Every detail of the canyon burned itself into his mind.
