The townsfolk of Onmin kept their eyes fixed on Aetheris as she walked steadily toward the town gates, her sword dragging heavily against the ground. An old man took the initiative to approach her the moment she arrived.
"It is with great honor that we express our gratitude to you, wolf-kin," he said, bowing respectfully. "You have done us a monumental service."
"Hold your thanks, old man," Aetheris replied, scanning the area. "Where is Cirien?"
The old man sighed heavily. "She has been detained. It was discovered that she deliberately murdered many visitors, and even some of our own people. All of this happened before she ever became Moiraxys' oracle."
"Well then, it seems our work here is finished. I'll be taking my leave." Aetheris turned to go.
"Wait, where is your companion? The one with the strange hair color?" the old man inquired.
Aetheris looked back at him with a sorrowful smile. "He's dead."
With those final words, she mounted the horse the townsfolk had prepared for her and rode off into the horizon just as the sun began to rise.
<..........>
Deep within the forest, the three cloaked figures pressed onward, their clothes catching on the sharp thorns of the surrounding brush. Yet, the harsh terrain did little to deter them from their destination.
"Where do you think he is?" the female of the trio asked.
"I don't know," a deep voice replied. "We have to try and trace his velori, otherwise we're just wasting our time."
The third figure chipped in. "Well, I can trace faint traces of the velori belonging to the girl he was with. It leads to a location nearly six miles away."
"That's impossible!" the female snapped, berating him. "A normal elf can only teleport about 500 meters using velori, and even the strongest can only manage up to three miles. Six miles is simply impossible."
"It must be a glitch in your senses," the deep-voiced figure muttered. "We'll follow it anyway and see where it leads… Wait!" He froze abruptly.
The others stopped, looking at him in confusion. "What is it?" they asked almost in unison.
"Look," he whispered, gesturing toward the dense thicket of the tall woods.
To their absolute astonishment, a man stood in the midst of the trees, a sword gripped tightly in his hand as he stared blankly at the rising sun. His clothes were completely tattered, bearing the look of someone who had been standing frozen in that exact spot for a very long time.
"Um, hello there, human," the female figure called out.
There was no response.
Taking his silence as a rude gesture, the female lunged forward in a fit of anger, unleashing a hail of velori bullets.
Before the projectiles could tear into him, the man vanished. In a blur of motion, he materialized directly behind her, driving his blade straight through her chest. Crimson blood erupted from the wound, instantly staining her pristine white cloak. Her eyes went wide with shock as the blinding pain surged through her body.