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Azaela was not only true to her words. She also enforced them, making sure things turned out the way she assured Erin would.

Eventually, Erin regrouped with Aedan and the others safely. No one ambushed them on the way. With such a tranquil mood permeating the group, they left the borders of the valley, but they did not let their guard down.

“Unbelievable,” Lyra muttered while leaning against Erin as if she was her seat’s backrest.

Hours had gone by after they left the fringes of Sephrodia Valley and there was still not a single hint of opposition in sight. At best, only bandits and thugs that had more greed than sense attacked them but these low-lives were swiftly dispatched by Erin and her companions.

“For once, I agree with you, Lyra,” Nivia grumbled. “I didn’t think those zealots would actually keep to their word until the end. The world must be ending.”

“There has to be a catch,” Lyra said. “A catch that has yet to distinguish themself.”

“There’s no catch,” Aedan refuted.

“So this is just pure penance for their failures?”

“Not quite.”

“I knew it!” Lyra shouted.

“Are you simply contradicting yourself here?” Erin asked.

“The trust of the city folks towards the Ruvans is as low as it can be. Aiding the saviours of the city in their endeavours is a good way to regain the faith of the people.”

“Are you saying there’s no goodwill in this gesture?”

“I’m saying that is not all there is to this gesture.” Aedan snickered. “For someone of your… status and position, you can be unbearably naive at times.”

“Is it so wrong that I simply wanted to believe in the best of people?”

“It’s not a matter of wrong or right. It’s just… dangerous. You’re not alone anymore, Erin.”

“I’m aware of the stakes but that is no reason to be a cynic.” Erin clutched her left chest lightly. “I wish to remain an optimist as long as I can.”

“Aww~” Lyra purred. “You’re making me fall in love with you over and over again, Erin.”

Aedan smiled wryly and turned his attention back to the road.

“We should be far away from the Ruvans’ protection by now, but we haven’t encountered any of those zealots,” Nivia said.

“Hmm… that’s true,” Lyra mused. “I don’t see anyone either. Either they are good at concealing themselves or they have distanced themselves very far away from us. If it’s the latter, then it will be very odd.”

“I don’t like this serenity,” Nivia groaned. “Feels like the calm before the storm, a huge storm.”

“Might just be,” Aedan muttered in agreement. “There are monsters out there that wait until their prey let their guard down or exhaust themselves before moving in for the kill.”

“As if we would let our guard down, not when we know what’s out there. Or rather, who’s out there.”

“But they are not monsters,” Erin said. “They are people. People obey their desires more than they obey their instincts. My death means their glory. If they are holding themselves back, it can only mean they found something more important than their glory.”

“Maybe they are not as gullible as we believed them to be,” Aedan suggested. “You did save the city and the people in it. Maybe they are having second thoughts regarding those ancients’ words about you being a… volatile element.”

“For their sake, hopefully, that’s the case. I don’t intend to stay my blade if they attack me.”

“I think we are all in agreement with that.” Aedan smiled—

—but his smile disappeared in the next second.

Erin’s face also hardened.

Lyra noticed the two’s sudden shift in their expression and she sat herself upright, casting aside her flippant attitude. “Are they finally making their move?”

“They’re certainly moving but…”

“No hostility,” Aedan said with a frown.

“No hostility.” Erin nodded. “I don’t sense any bloodlust. Whoever’s approaching us, they mean us no harm.”

“Not yet,” Nivia added as she readied her weapons.

“Regardless, we best prepare ourselves. Be ready.”

Per Erin’s words, everyone readied themselves for battle. They did not stop their carriage but they slowed down to a walking pace.

An old man, dressed in ragged robes, eventually revealed himself, walking out from the trees.

Only then did the carriages come to a halt. Nivia did not waste any moment and immediately trained her bow and arrow on the old man.

“Be at ease, Lady Fae, I am not here to fight,” the old man said with his arms raised.

“State your business or prepare to get winged,” Amyra demanded as she emerged from the back of the carriage with her giant cleaver-sword hoisted on her shoulders.

Erin cast a sidelong glance at Aedan. No doubt the Augur’s yet another strange vocabulary was a result of his influence.

“Milady Erynthea,” the old man turned to Erin. “May I trouble you to ask your companions to discard their hostility?”

“Why should I?” Erin questioned. “They are not in the wrong to be cautious.”

“I’m asking them to throw away their caution, just their hostility. Please?”

“They are my companions, not my underlings. If you want them to discard their hostilities, you should be asking them, not me.”

The old man smiled and turned to Amyra and Nivia. “Would two ladies kindly—”

“No,” Amyra answered. “If you truly don’t intend to do us any harm, there’s no reason you should be afraid. Unless of course, you don’t trust us. If that’s the case, then it would be extremely suspicious that you appeared in front of us unarmed and unprepared.”

“...Fair point, I suppose,” the old man sighed and lowered his arms. “I’ll just get straight to the point. I am here to make peace with you, Lady Erynthea.”

“Make peace? For what?”

“I know you are aware of the many Apostles and Acolytes out there that want your head. They believed you to be an agent of chaos and destruction like your predecessors.”

“I’m not hearing the answer to my question.”

“I’m here to clarify the tortuous state of affairs. Not everyone shares that opinion, Lady Erynthea.”

“Oh, really?”

The old man nodded. “Those ancients may or may not be wrong but the order of my faith had decided on our stance. Be it the words of the ancients true or false, we will not be punishing those who have yet to do any ill, especially when there is no solid proof to the accusation.”

“Huh, that’s new,” Amyra scoffed.

“We don’t intend to punish people based on a future that might or might not happen. If we do, we may as well start a crusade and hunt down all those would-be evil-doers. I hope I have made our stance clear so that in the future, should our paths cross, it will not turn out unpleasant.”

“Is this decision the opinions of all your siblings in faith, or simply a general consensus by a majority vote?” Erin asked, her gaze piercing into the old man.

“...I am ashamed to say it is the latter.”

“And what of those who disagree?”

“We are making sure that they won’t be acting rashly. Please believe us, Lady Erynthea. The Dagon Order does not intend to make you an enemy.”

“We should keep moving,” Aedan said, after staying silent for the entirety.

“Yes, you should.” The old man nodded. “I have taken enough of your time. If the winds fair, may we meet again in the future under more pleasant circumstances.”

The old man then disappeared into a puff of smoke as if his body was composed of nothing but wind.

“How do they keep doing that?” Lyra grumbled.

Aedan pulled on the reins and flicked them against their mount. The horses took off into a sprint and Erin immediately followed suit.

Amyra leapt into the back of the moving carriage, taking Nivia along with her.

“Whoa!” Lyra cried, barely managing to hold on to the rails. “Enemies?”

Erin nodded.

“A lot?”

“Enough to overwhelm us in a narrow path like this.”

“That fucking old man… Was he involved?”

“...I don’t believe so,” Erin said after a brief silence.

“We can point fingers after we weathered the storm.” Aedan took a weapon that resembled a scrawny and miniature cannon. Though miniature, it was as long as the average person’s arm.

“Your Grace, you are going to use that?” Amyra exclaimed after climbing on top of the carriage.

“What is that?” Nivia asked.

“A rifle,” Aedan answered before turning his gaze behind. “Lilian, can you take the reins?”

The Dryad giggled, appearing from the back of the carriage. “I thought you would never ask. And I thought I had been forgotten.”

After leaving the reins to Lilian, Aedan joined Amyra on top of the carriage.

“I-I can take the reins… if you would let me…” Aera said timidly, poking her head out from the back.

“You know how to drive a carriage?”

“Everyone in the village does, except for the young children.”

“Then, I would be grateful if you would take the reins, Aera,” Erin thanked with a smile and left the reins to Aera.

The moment Erin hopped on top of the carriage, an arrow streaked towards her way. She fired a bolt of lightning in swift response but the arrows split into six just before it could be struck down.

Three of the arrows struck Erin but they harmlessly bounced off of her due to her Arcane Armour. Three of the remaining arrows struck the carriage.

“Get away from those arrows!” Aedan shouted just as the arrows began to emit a strange glow.

Erin brandished two swords and cut the arrows in half. The glow died down after the arrows were cut.

The arrows were enchanted with explosion spells but Erin had destroyed the enchantments when she cut the arrows with Mystic Blade.

“We’re fine,” Erin said calmly.

Aedan snorted with a wry smile. “Of course.”

“Ahead!” Aera yelled.

“I see it,” Aedan said and aimed his rifle at the front.

There was a shirtless man with red hair as brazen as a lion’s mane. In his hands were two sabres, each engulfed in flames. There was a ferocious smile on the man’s face and only madness could be seen in his eyes.

Aedan pulled on the trigger of his rifle.

The man swung his sword and the bullet was severed in half.

“Well, that’s unnerving,” Aedan muttered. He pulled and twisted the lever, quickly preparing for another shot. “But how foolish of him.”

However, the man swung his other sword and a blazing wave was unleashed towards the two carriages.

Aedan took out a spell card from one of his many satchel pockets by his waist and tossed it at the fiery wave. A torrent of water was expelled from the card as it glowed brightly, dousing the fiery wave.

Lyra had readied her bow ever since the man appeared on the road but she only released the arrow when the blazing wave was extinguished. As soon as she released that arrow, she nocked and shot another one.

The man cut down the first arrow as it travelled through the steam but another arrow was trailing right behind. He barely cut down that arrow but he wasn’t able to react against the bullet that came after the second arrow.

The man’s head exploded like a fruit.

“Ugh…” Nivia groaned at such a sight.

Aera had a similar reaction but she did not turn her gaze away from the road.

“Good riddance,” Lilian said with her ever-present smile. “That was very stupid of him. What makes him think it wouldn’t end with his death?”

“Their Divine Gifts. Urvan’s Zeal, offers them rapid self-healing. He probably didn’t expect to be killed with a single attack.”

“Rapid self-healing?” Lyra exclaimed. “That’s unnerving. I might need better arrows if we are to kill them with a single attack.”

“Just focus on defending the carriage,” Erin said. “I’ll deal with these ignorant cretins.” Her tails flourished into their true numbers.

Aedan cocked his rifle and an empty casing flew out of the chamber, leaving behind a trail of smoke. “What she said.”