Changes....

I watched the bandit whose throat I had pierced fall to the ground clutching his throat and looking at me with wide eyes. I couldn't help but pause and think.

I just killed two people, well, one with another soon to follow. While I had prepared myself to kill, it was much different from killing.

Standing there looking at the headless corpse with blood splattered everywhere, it's not like in the movies where it's clean, and the smell of copper was assaulting my nose. No one ever said the smell of blood was so powerful, and it nearly covered the smell of piss from the one I stabbed in the throat.

The look of horror on the man's face as he clutched his throat gave me pause. He was looking at me like I was a monster. How was I a monster? I only just defended myself. What would have happened if these bandits had won? What would they have done to Cas and Liz?

If only I could see the look on my face at that current time, then I would have thought I was a monster.

As my mind started to get clouded with darker thoughts, a sweet but soft scent filled my nose, nearly blocking out the smell of blood and piss.

"Ci..." Came the whisper and I felt her hand lightly brush mine.

Watching the light fade from the bandit's eyes, I slowly closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

….

Slowly opening my eyes, a small smile broke from my lips as I looked at Cas next to me.

"Sorry, Cas." I began, "I thought I was prepared, but it still took me by surprise." I finished as I turned toward the wounded bandit.

"Nothing to be sorry about. I'll always be here for you." She paused before continuing in her mind, "I'm your heart, after all."

"Thanks for everything, Cas." I said as I began walking over to the bandit, only to be stopped by Axton.

"Allow me to question him, young lord. No need to dirty your hands." Axton said as he nodded toward Liz.

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(Liz's POV)

Liz watched as Ciaran and Callista stood beside each other, talking after the battle. She didn't know what they were talking about, but she could guess as she could see Ciaran's shoulders slightly shaking.

As she was about to head over, Axton stopped her by lightly grabbing her shoulder.

"Young lady." He said shaking his head. "What the two of them are going through right now can only be dealt with by them." He finished.

"I don't understand." She asked confused.

"Killing changes a person, and if you haven't killed, then you will never be able to understand, let alone help, what the two of them are going through." Axton explained

"But I'm supposed to be his wife, and I should be able to help him." She protested.

Liz wasn't stupid; she could tell that both Ciaran and Callista had feelings for each other, and the only thing stopping them was that he was a noble.

"Young lady. If you go over there right now, you will only end up driving a wedge between the two of you, and that would cause the future you had envisioned to come crashing down." Axton paused before adding "Take it from someone who has experienced this before" He finished as he let go of her shoulder and began heading toward the couple.

As she watched the three talking, she couldn't help but feel despair. The despair that she would not be strong enough to follow him on his path.

But before the despair had started to take root, she shook it off.

No! She thought I will become strong enough to be able to walk alongside him in the future, and as the two started to walk towards her, she saw her chance, and she was going to take it.

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Walking toward Liz, I saw her walking towards me with a soft smile, and as we met in the middle, she took out a handkerchief and began wiping my left cheek.

"You must keep better care of yourself." She said as she finished wiping my cheek

"Thank you, Liz" I said gratefully before adding "And thank you for the buffs you bestowed on me."

"Of course." She paused, taking a deep breath. "This battle showed me what I need to do. I wish to learn a more ranged style of combat." She stated

Taking a moment to think, I realized that she was correct. We have two frontline warriors with no ranged backup, and with her magic being used as more of a support for us, she would be perfect as a ranged specialist.

"Perfect, Liz." I said as I smiled, "I'll see to it when we get back."

It took nearly an hour before we were on the move again. Axton was effective in questioning the bandit. It turns out he and his buddies were at a bar when they were approached by a mysterious figure who claimed that we were merchants for house Maxamus. The bandits thought it would be a good idea to attack us and learned the hard way.

I felt I knew who attacked us, but without any evidence, it would be useless to point fingers. Don't worry, I won't forget this, and I will bide my time.

"Anything, Lucia?" I asked as we headed towards our carriages.

"I just caught a whiff before they disappeared." She responded almost immediately

Shame, I muttered to myself as I hopped into the carriage with Cas and Liz.

After nearly two weeks, we arrived at our destination, Mt. Kilintu.