Smell.

The dark forest began to be devoid of the birds' singing, and soon only the distant sounds of nocturnal animals could be heard. An owl's hoot made Fusain's ears perk up, and he didn't really appreciate having to walk in the dark; what's more, with a dragon walking right behind him.

The young hunter then looked for something in a saddlebag fastened to the horse's side, and pulled out a moon-white stone. One might have thought that it was just a simple quartz, but the purity of the stone and its size made Wynblow realize that this stone was not to be relegated to the rank of simple stones that could be picked up on the path.

Ewan then raised the stone in front of his face, and brought it close to his lips, before murmuring something incomprehensible.

« Lumis na pass eltienam. »

Suddenly, a faint white light began to emanate from the center of the stone, growing stronger with each passing second. And soon, the stone in the young man's hand began to continuously emit enough of a glow to see the path ahead of them for a good five meters.

"What is it?" Wynblow asked, curious that she had never seen such magic.

"That? "Ewan asked, pointing to the glowing stone he held in one hand, the other hand gripping Fusain's reins.

Wynblow nodded in agreement.

"This is an Elvine, a stone that grows in the eastern forests, and is cultivated by the Elves, hence its name. You only need to recite an incantation to trigger the production of light," Ewan explained.

"I've never heard of growing stones. Nor incantations..." Said Wynblow, confused.

"It's true that it's a bit of an oddity," conceded Ewan, "but I'm not surprised by this kind of weirdness at all, after all this time. I mean... a talking dragon, that's still something else... "

He shrugged, and heard behind him Wynblow clearing her throat; a growl accompanied by gurgling sounds coming up to the dragon's mouth.

Maybe she had enjoyed his playful tone, who knows?

"The dwarves used to be very jealous of the Elves for this, but since they themselves found orebodies of Elvines in their galleries, it's become much easier to acquire them," Ewan continued, "As for the incantations, they're pretty basic, and therefore, don't require any specific magical skills, unlike spells and enchantments, which only certain people can master. "

"There are several incantations? Even for such a small object? " The dragoness wondered, while trying not to get her paws caught in tree roots sticking out everywhere in this part of the trail.

"Yes, it depends on what you want to do with it. If I said only the word for light, for example, it would produce a very powerful but brief flash of light," Ewan explained, "And if I said the word for darkness, the stone would go out instantly. "

Wynblow drew his neck a little closer to the horse, and breathed a single word to Ewan's attention.

"Balrug! "

Almost instantly, the stone went out, plunging the trio into complete darkness.

Ewan swore inwardly. He should have kept his mouth shut, instead of giving such useful information to such a stupid reptile.

"Lumis! "Said Wynblow.

The stone reignited in a powerful flash of light, revealing the exasperated face of the young man, and momentarily blinding dragon, horse and human alike.

"Balrug! "Said Wynblow again, causing Ewan's now angry face to disappear into the darkness.

"Wah, it really works! " She wondered with delight.

"Glad you understood the basic principle... " Snorted Ewan, his eyebrows furrowed.

He recited again the incantation he had said aloud a few minutes earlier, which revived the light inside the stone.

He just hoped he wouldn't have to turn it on too often, if the dragoness kept playing with it...

But the main character of his thoughts didn't care at all that she had made a mess in a few seconds, walking slowly behind Fusain.

Moreover, he was also surprised to learn that she obviously knew some elven language words.

"It's quite amazing... I didn't know there was such a thing... Well, I suppose..." She said.

"What do you mean? " Felt obliged to ask Ewan, a little more calm.

"Well, knowing that there is a part of my life that I don't know much about, I can't be sure of anything... I've always had a problem with not knowing everything that happened in the first part of my life" She answered

"Humans don't remember the beginning of their lives either. It's quite natural..." Ewan began.

"I'm not talking about childhood memories... And even if it was the case, dragons have an exceptional memory. They remember everything, right out of their egg," Wynblow explained. "And they never forget anything either. Some are true keepers of the history of this world. "

"They really know everything? "Ewan wondered.

"They know everything they've ever experienced, or been around, as learned. "But in my case, I can only remember the last few hundred years. I have no memory before that... "

"A few... Hundreds of years? "Ewan asked doubtfully.

That was already a lot of time, and therefore memories... What could she mean by 'the first part of her life'?

"Dragons live much longer than humans," she smiled mischievously. "Had you already forgotten? "

"No. I don't have the brains of an idiot, unlike some people," he replied.

A mockery that, once again, did not find its intended target.

They had already gone through a good part of a small trail, and were about to join a road passing through the forest, but Ewan decided that it was wiser not to go too close to the paths frequently used by humans, even at night. It would be better to stay as much as possible under the cover of the forest. Thus, they eventually reached a last small stream, before the tipping point of the trade routes, which allowed them to go south, east, or west.

"It shouldn't be long before we reach the village of Bohr on the Amarante River, where a friend can help me with supplies. But you'll still need to keep a safe distance so as not to be noticed," Ewan said.

"I know that our trip might be a bit hazardous, but if there's one thing I know, it's that we have to head north... " Said Wynblow.

"And?" Ewan became impatient.

"And since we left, we've been heading south..." Wynblow added doubtfully.

Obviously, she had a pretty good sense of direction, even without looking at a map. That's an interesting piece of information to know.

"If I do this, it's because we have no other option. If we had gone directly north, we would have had to cross the Dead's Icy Pass, and after that, the roads would have been too busy..." Ewan explained. "By going around to the south, we'll be there a little slower, but we'll be sure to get there in one piece. "

"Oh, I see... " She said thoughtfully. "But I think there's a faster way... "

"Like what?" Ewan asked, not paying much attention to the reptile's words.

He waited for the dragon to answer, but a few minutes later, she still hadn't uttered a word. And it also seemed to him that he could no longer hear her footsteps behind him.

He pulled on Fusain's reins to force him to stop, and looked behind him.

Wynblow was frozen in place. Not uttering a word, her senses were on high alert.

"What's happening? "Ewan asked, intrigued.

" Don't you smell something? " She asked, her gaze searching in the distance, her muzzle sniffing deeply the air around her.

"No...? " Answered the young man, not really reassured by this sudden change of attitude.

"We shouldn't go any further... " Said Wynblow, inhaling loudly.

"As I told you, I have a friend who lives in Bohr who can help us," began Ewan, before being interrupted by the dragon.

"No!" Wynblow contradicted, tense. "We mustn't! "

" Why the hell is that!? " Ewan got angry.

Wynblow clenched her jaw, her teeth dancing against her scales.

"I smell death. "