aether city I

In the outskirts of the forest, tall trees stood at a height of 8 meters, their brownish wood shining beautifully in the sunlight. The grass rustled as the breeze swept through, and the birds chirped, awakened by the human girl rousing her brother.

"Brother, can you stop lazing around for at least ten minutes? We're in a hurry! If the sun sets, we'll be in trouble!" the girl pleaded urgently.

"Anna, please keep it down for now. Your big brother is tired," her brother replied, his voice filled with fatigue.

"I'm not joking, the city is just a short distance away. I can see it clearly," Anna insisted, her eyes fixed on the distant urban landscape.

"Let's stay calm. We can walk there in about five minutes, so there's no need to panic," her brother reassured her.

"Brother, you said it would only take five minutes to walk there, right?" Anna asked, a mischievous grin appearing on her face.

"Yeah?" Apathy responded, feeling like he might have misspoken.

"If it's just five minutes, why don't we run? We can get there even earlier, giving you more time to rest," Anna suggested, her grin growing more ominous.

"Well, I mean, it would take more than five minutes..." Sweat started to trickle down Apathy's face.

Before Apathy could respond, they noticed five adventurers running towards them, pursued by fifteen goblins. They exchanged glances, stood up, and began running as well. There was no way the adventurers could defeat fifteen goblins at once. Goblins might not be smart, but they were not fools either. However, before they could make much progress, three goblins appeared right in front of them.

With no choice but to fight back, Anna unsheathed her rapier and swiftly struck down one of the goblins. The remaining two lunged at her, but just as they were about to strike, Apathy appeared behind Anna.

"Anna, duck!" Apathy shouted.

Reacting quickly, Anna obeyed and dropped down as Apathy swung his sword, decapitating both goblins in a single stroke.

As they turned around, they saw the five exhausted adventurers closing in. It seemed they had no choice but to help.

"Well, it looks like we have no choice but to assist them," Apathy said as the goblins approached the adventurers. One of the goblins tripped and fell to the ground.

Seizing the opportunity, Apathy charged forward, pushing the goblins away from the girl. He swung his sword with force, forcing the goblins to back away and preventing them from attacking.

The goblins growled in frustration as they were pushed back from their intended prey.

"Speeding movements, the feet of cats, give me speed! Accelerate!" Anna chanted, and before the goblins could react, she swiftly pierced the napes of three goblins, killing them instantly. Exhausted and panting heavily, she appeared behind Apathy.

Meanwhile, as the goblins observed the lifeless bodies of their fallen comrades, Apathy launched another attack. He brought his great sword crashing down on one of the goblins, cutting it from shoulder to torso. However, this left Apathy surrounded by the remaining goblins. Just then, an arrow pierced one of the goblin's shoulders. It winced in pain, grabbing at the wounded area.

The arrow had been shot by one of the five adventurers. He was a young man with blueish hair tied back, revealing his eyes and face. He wore a black half cloak and a blue long skirt.

Following suit, the girl whom Apathy had saved launched a fireball, engulfing one of the goblins and reducing it to ashes. She had long yellow hair and wore a torn, long blue dress that she must have acquired from the goblins.

Apathy quickly protected his vulnerable spots as the goblins lunged at him, stabbing him with their stone daggers. Anna saw this and attempted to help, but she was too exhausted from using her acceleration ability.

"As slow as a sloth, lazier than a human, beware of him, the greedy sloth! Sloth Knight Avarice!" Apathy chanted, causing the goblins to fall to their knees, looking tired and yawning. Seizing the opportunity, Apathy grabbed his great sword and dispatched the six weary goblins. The remaining five goblins witnessed this and fled.

Once the goblins had retreated, Apathy collapsed and fell into a deep sleep.

"Is he dead?" the girl with yellow hair asked.

"No, he's just asleep due to the side effects of the magic he unleashed," one of the adventurers explained.

"I see," the girl responded.

"Can you guys help me carry this 'sandbag' of a human into the city?" Anna asked.

"Sure, why not? You two helped us, after all," the man with blueish hair and a muscular build answered

"I'm Serena," the girl with yellow hair introduced herself.

"I'm Deros," the muscular man added.

"I'm Kile," the archer chimed in.

"I'm Duke, and this girl is Lara. Nice to meet you both," the man with blueish hair said.

Anna nodded. "Nice to meet you too."

And so, they began walking toward the city, with Apathy being supported by Duke and Deros, his hands tied around their necks.

Deros asked, "Where did you come from?"

"We came from a distant village called Vierra Village," Anna replied.

"Vierra Village? But that was destroyed ten years ago!" Lara exclaimed.

"Yes, I was only six at the time, and Apathy was eleven. We managed to escape with a stroke of luck and found shelter in an old man's house, where we grew up," Anna explained.

"Come to think of it, what's your brother's name again? Apathy Kinden'na, right?" Lara asked.

"Yes?"

"Now that I think about it, I had a friend with the same name and attitude as your brother, but my memory of it is a bit hazy," Lara interjected.

"Lara, you came from that village?" Anna looked at her with surprise.

"Yes, my family was of nobility. After we escaped, I never received any news from my friend," Lara explained.

Anna looked at Apathy, then back at Lara, and smiled. "I guess my brother's friend is also my friend, right?"

Lara nodded, reminiscing about her childhood friend who had saved them and had now reappeared. "I see. So, Apathy, I wonder how much you've changed in these ten years. And how could I have forgotten about you," she thought to herself.

Finally, they arrived in the city, ready to face the challenges and adventures that awaited them