41 || Chapter 38 || Deep In The Woods

It has been four days since Moulin had left his family's manor. For the first two days, he was quite unsettled as he kept missing his parent's morning greetings and Pola's gentle nagging. A day later, he learned to accept and adapt. He had to live with Snow nibbling on his fingers out of boredom.

They traveled further, passing through valleys, vast plains, a few farmlands, and making a few stops on the way. They entered Loren city, the city farther than Faerim, and somehow Emlen refused to stay for a day there, he insisted to keep going. Moulin was curious about why but he immediately kept all the questions to himself when he saw Emlen's uneasy expression.

Their group finally left the city and they continued to move overnight and entered the known 'Sunset woods".

The orange leaves crunched under the hooves of horses and the turning wheels of the carriages. Moulin enthusiastically dragged a chair by the carriage window and sat there with wonder in his eyes. The sea of orange trees stretched as far as the eyes could see. If the Snow Flower Seas of Zenin were like high wave-like hills then the landscape of the Sunset woods was as flat as the edge of a table. The trees were like firm giant pillars and a cloud of orange leaves sits at the top. It was so high that Moulin had to stick his face on the window and bulge his eyes out to peek at the top of the glass window.

Seeing this Emlen was amused and could not help but blurt out, "If you're so curious about some trees then you can just ask your big brother"

Moulin's head whipped to face him. His eyes sparkling, "Can we stop a bit to look, elder brother?"

Facing his brother's eager eyes pleading at him, he cleared his throat and looked away. His face turning red unknowably. "W-we needed a break anyway."

Moments later, Moulin grabbed a satchel and he burst out of the carriage door with Snow jumping after him. Don't blame him for acting all so childish, he just had to see the humungous towering trees! He had never seen anything like it.

If Moulin was to personally describe it he would say it was so skyscraping tall that it was maddening. He could vaguely see the leaves outline overhead, they were like a flock of orange clouds in the sky giving the forest a very sunset-like color. Even the ground wasn't spared, it was covered with large orange leave, the size of his head. His silver-eyed looked ahead and he very wished to venture deeper. Snow's eyes weren't the least bit eager.

"Moulin" Emlen called out from behind him, a warning in his tone. "Do not stray from the carriages."

Moulin turned to look at him. It seems Emlen was serious about not letting him out of his sight. His shoulders slacked in disappointment, "Okay..."

Emlen glanced at him after he dismissed the coachman in front of him. He wasn't blind to not be able to see his brother's face as it sank in despondency. Truly, he didn't mean to derive Moulin of his excitement, he just wanted him to be safe and well under his watch. Therefore, he sighed in surrender.

The second young master gestured his two guards to watch Moulin before he walked towards Moulin. "You can explore but stay within the path. Don't go too far and do not stray from the guards." He took Moulin's right hand and clasped a silver band with a green gem embedded into it.

Moulin blinked at the bracelet around his wrist and could not help but snort. Of course, he knew this was a tracking device. He swallowed his disbelief and thanked his brother before walking off to the treeless path.

Snow suddenly scurried ahead of his master leaving Moulin a few meters behind. Moulin was muttering curses about being treated as a little kept child. He glanced at the band around his wrist and decided to ignore it.

As he walked, hands clutching unto the strap of his satchel, his eyes stared intently above him. The tiny beams of sunlight flashing through the little gaps of the orange leaves as he walked at a slow pace. His lips were parted slightly as he scrutinized the leaves above him a little too much. How was it that the ground was covered in leaves but he caught no sight of even a single leaf falling above him. Even the ground, he noticed, there wasn't a single shrub present.

"Ao!"

Moulin lowered his head and caught sight of a bratty fox gnawing on a large leaf as if the leaf owed him a blood debt. Moulin only shook his head helplessly. The pair continued to walk as two guards silently watched them.

Moments later, Moulin examined a leaf he picked up from the ground, stopping his steps. It was so large. The veins of the leaf were yellowish and in a swirl-like pattern. Moulin was fascinated. Even the smallest details were so unearthly, so unusual. His eyes glittered with interest.

Snow who was running around his master suddenly stopped, his ears twitching. He caught a sound.

Moulin noticed Snow's movements and curiously looked at him, "What's wrong?"

The little snow-white fox blinked at his master and pointing his snout to Moulin's right. His furry head tilting.

One of the guards had realized that the third young master had already walked too far from the carriages. The man was about to call out to him when Moulin suddenly raised his hand to silence him without even turning back at him. The knight looked at his comrade, confused.

Moulin looked to his right, gazing at the deeper part of the woods. It was so vast that he obviously could not see the end of it. Somehow the scene reminded him of the wintery mountains of the north but he didn't dwell on it, there was something within the woods.

"Young master..."

Moulin looked at the guards behind him, they looked a bit worried. Their expressions were clearly saying 'Please don't go. Please don't go there. We beg you'. Unfortunately, their imploring eyes failed to move Moulin's curiosity.

Out of the blue, Moulin felt a discharge of mana in the air, clipping off the last of Moulin's hesitancy. He immediately sprinted towards the direction without a second thought. Snow happily followed his master.

"Young master!"

The guards hurriedly chased after him, their faces paled. The second young master will certainly give them a beating!

Moulin passed countless trees as the crunch of leaves sounded in every step he makes. His slender figure rushed forward. A little while later, Moulin could no longer hear the sound of the guards following him. He had completely lost himself in the woods but gradually heard sharp sounds and voices.

His steps slowed down and he hid behind a tree, spotting 5 or 6 figures meters away from him. It was a small clearing surrounded by trees. His silver eyes peeked out from the tree, trying hard not to pop out his head too much for his hair was quite eye-catching.

What first caught his attention was a woman. She had dark reddish skin and light platinum hair braided on her scalp and at the end tied to a high pony-tail, her eyes were pale blue akin to the color of the sky in mid-morning. She was taller than most of the people around her and also a bit muscled. A Maeruthan, Moulin thought.

Ghana gnashed her teeth as she glowered at the people surrounding her. She was unfortunate to come across bandits on her way through the woods. They were keen on taking away her bags and a couple of golden hoops she had worn. Anger flashed in her pale eyes, her hands glowing a bright blue as water seeped out of her palms, hovering in the air. The men looked intimidated as they stepped back. She never wanted to fight a couple of powerless humans but she had to keep herself alive.

These bandits weren't ordinary. One was even a maeruthan with fire abilities, specifically the leader, the others had in their hands a great number of enchantment stones. She could not yield like a cowered, who knows what filthy thoughts these people have in their minds.

"Lady, we don't mean no harm." One of them laughed as he sized her up. "You do look quite able-bodied. But clearly, you don't stand a chance against the many of us. Do you realize there's no use fighting? You're quite outnumbered"

"Hah!" She smiled haughtily. "What can a couple of dogs do to me? You're only wasting time. If you don't leave now, I'll gladly take pleasure of your wailing cries"

The leader roared, "You grimy bitch! Let's see how you'll beg me not to sell you off to slavery!"

With a shout, the bandits fiercely lunged at her. Their blades shined against the small beams of light above them. Ghana wasn't a bit intimidated, she had learned to keep her calm a long time ago. Her eyes glowed blue as the droplets of water around her flattened and sharpened into thin water blades. She released them, letting the blades chase the calves of the bandits.

Loud cries could be heard as blood spattered unto the leaves. A couple of bandits had their calves sliced deep into the bone deriving them from movement as their knees sank into the ground.

The leader and a few others had managed to dodge it and continued to attack Ghana with their daggers. Truthfully, she wasn't good at manipulating her ability but her combat skills could be called proficient. She launched herself off the ground, materializing the long sword into her hand, and battled the bandits head-on.

A sacred weapon! Moulin watched behind the tree like an insignificant bystander. Snow had climbed unto his master's shoulder, giddily peeking with his master. Moulin was stunned by the girl's powerful combat skills. She was like a sharp sword roughly cutting on flesh mercilessly, her eyes sparkled with excitement, he could tell.

It wasn't too long when the fight had escalated. The only ones left standing were the leader and the girl.

"You've lost" she smirked.

The leader didn't speak but glared at her. Fire burst out of his hands and he aimed it above the both of them, a large swirling wall of fire appeared above their heads. The heat seeping into their skins. Sweat ran down Ghana's skin as she didn't know whether it was of intimidation or the heat. But it was only a mere firewall she could vanquish it in a snap.

She turned to her opponent and sneered. "You think a little light show could make me scared?"

This time the man didn't stay quiet. He gave a creepy smile on her way, "You think I've lost?"

Out of the blue, a glowing net cracking with sizzling mana bound her. The men that she thought were powerless had scattered binding stones around her as they fell on the ground. Her blue eyes widened when she realized her ability could not manifest. She struggled hard, her skin almost rubbed raw as she snarled out curses. The firewall above her descended, intent to burn her alive.

"I guess a corpse will have to do. There are quite a few clients who would make use of a burnt Maeruthan corpse." He cackled, lowering the firewall even more as he stepped aside.

She was played!

For the first time, Ghana felt powerless. She left her home and dismissed her father's rejection of her dreams as she ran away. Perhaps, her father was right. She was utterly useless and incapable. And as the fire descended from above her, the heat maddening above her scalp, she feared her death.

"Ao!"

"Snow you little brat!"

...?

A cool fresh breeze swept away the heat surrounding her. It was chilly, bringing a sort of comfort.

As the cold caressed her skin, she looked up in a daze. Gone was the wall of burning flames that had sucked away her confidence. What fell on her exposed shoulders were small gentle snowflakes, showering her in a dance. It was somehow relieving.

Her blue eyes focused on the slender figure making his way towards them. What caught her full attention was the dance of silver strands in the air, flickering with an ethereal shine under the light. A frosty mist hovered around his fingers, glittering. Like a deity of the winter mountains in her mother's stories, she had heard when she was a babe. His eyes were paler than hers, a majestic blend of silver, like a blade's body. She swallowed unconsciously.

Moulin had vanquished the firewall without even lifting a finger. His eyes focused solely on the helpless muscled woman on the ground. He disliked the sight of it. He didn't like the sight of a strong powerful woman tied on the ground, she should be standing and glorified. Like how her fierceness had hooked him so.

A wolfish whistle sounded in the air.

"What do we have here?"

The leader who has worn a disgusting smile entered Moulin's view, "Indeed, A fine meat..."