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The days spent in the village were certainly interesting to the mage. While Tylo was preparing the journey, Tecwyn helped Mariah out at the inn, cleaning and restocking the larder and doing odd tasks for her.

He had offered to do these himself, just so he wouldn't sit idle all the time, an offer she immediately accepted.

Before long, the villagers had all passed by the inn, wanting to see the strange traveller that worked at the inn, as well as to greet Tylo back. This was more how Tecwyn had visualised how a community would be, and what he had yearned to be a part of, wondering if he should seek one of these to stay at after all is said and done.

After a few days however, he did start to wonder if that was truly what he desired.

Life here seemed safe and stable, and definitely less stressful than at the academy, but he did miss the drive he had back home, when he needed to give his all, the challenge of it all.

It was an interesting realisation to him, that what he desired might not have been what he wanted. This way of thinking made him wonder about what he really desired, so he decided to think it over during his journey, to see as much of the world as he could and how people lived there.

One evening, he was sitting in a corner, reading up on his spells and preparing his crystals with offensive cantrips, when Mariah sat down next to him.

“That boy of mine really is taking his sweet time deciphering the maps, isn't he?"

“He said to me that he was nearly done with that part, and besides, we are still waiting until the new equipment comes in. His old gear needed repairs and I need better traveling clothes for the forest."

“Good thinking of him, for a lazy boy like him, he sure thinks ahead for multiple situations.

Don't worry about the journey, you will be in safe hands."

“Thank you ma'am, while that is not what I am contemplating at the moment, I do appreciate the concern"

She turned directly towards him. “Really? Ah, I guess I must have been mistaken, you had a look of worry about you, so I thought you were concerned with the danger you two were heading towards. Would you mind sharing your thoughts with me?"

“That is very kind of you. I was just reminiscing about life back from where I came, and what kind of life I desire for myself in the future, be it a stable life in a rustic village like this, the academic drive back at the academy, or rather be on the road with all the dangers that come with it."

“It sounds like you think about a lot of different things at once. While they all have their ups and downs, what you want now, might not be what you want later in life. All the better to just enjoy the things that come down your path, and using that experience to decide later on."

“I….see" Tecwyn responded. It was not much different than what he had come up with himself, but still, hearing it from an outside voice made him feel better about it.

“Should you ever need someone to listen, you are always welcome here Tecwyn."

With those words, she left the mage by himself and went back to work.

Shortly after, he was joined by his new guide, who was grinning widely.

“It looks like the location you seek is found in the northern edge of the deep woods. It should be a manageable journey, though I wonder why nobody has found it yet. At any rate, I can get you there safely, so just make sure you are prepared for anything else.

The gear we ordered should be finished tomorrow, so we can start the trip once we got it."

Before Tecwyn could respond, Tylo was already gone.

Having nothing else to do, the mage went to bed, wondering what would await him once they came to the location. Would it be dangerous or even real? What if the passage of time had washed every trace away of the treasure or the mage?

He knew he wouldn't get an answer by thinking about these things, but he still could not close an eye that night.

The next morning, Tylo and him went to the stores, getting their orders. Among these were new robes for Tecwyn, colored in brown and green, for better camouflage in the forest, as well as extra pockets sewn into the insides. Tylo himself had his personal crossbow repaired and outfitted with new strings, making him as excited as a kid holding a new toy.

They set off on foot, no path readily available that would get them there faster, and it became clear to the mage how well Tylo was suited for this.

Even though he had been out of touch with the natural world, the way he moved seemed to come as a second nature to the marten, finding good spots to walk amongst the foliage and dodging low branches without any loss of momentum.

Tecwyn on the other hand felt he was tripping over or bumping into his surroundings, feeling slightly like a burden on his guide.

Aside from walking for long stretches with no rest, the day was rather uneventful, the two travellers barely speaking in order to draw no unwanted attention, and, to a lesser extent, because they had no good subjects to talk about.

Tecwyn was aware that the marten was simply someone that did his job, and to repay him for his help back at Orfe.

Therefore, he didn't feel the need to make more small talk than necessary, knowing they would part ways in a few days again.

He tried to convince himself that this was simple logic, but he didn't feel comfortable with making friends, especially since it wouldn't last.

At the beginning, Tylo had mentioned that the journey would take about three days to the spot on the map, and another two days to go to the capital from there.

Of course, they could not make this journey all in one continuous trek, so when the night had progressed on the first day, they made camp.

For now, they had ample supplies of rations, though the mage ate more than his allotted share due to his body not being used this extended physical exercise.

“Just a small question before you hit the sack" Tylo spoke suddenly, startling the dragon, who was readying his bedroll.

“Can you sleep with noise around you?"

“If you refer to the crackling of the campfire, sure, I have no problem with that."

Tylo just laughed, before pulling out his crossbow and shooting a nearby tree, the distinct sound of the release mechanism and the flying bolt ringing through the air.

“I was thinking to get a little aiming practice in while you sleep. Never have been much of a sleeper myself, and while I keep an eye out for unwanted visitors, could use to relearn my skills once again. Sitting around in a gilded cage does not do much for outdoorsmanship."

“That's a strange thing to hear you say. You seemed quite energetic and able to move around."

“Might be, but at my peak I was better. None of the wildlife is aggressive in particular around these parts, but you never know."

Tecwyn could understand the ranger's reasoning. Often had he himself needed to refresh his own mind with the tomes of the academy, sometimes for what were considered the basics, simply because they were rarely used.

A little noise wouldn't hold him back anyway. He was used sleeping with the background noise of some of the more tedious professors trying to convey irrelevant theorems.

And here he had the advantage of his magic to help him. Drawing upon the energies around him and drawing a modified symbol of sleep should help him become drowsy, speeding up the process.

Soon, even with the racket Tylo was making, Tecwyn fell fast asleep, trusting that the marten would keep him safe.

The next morning, they resumed their peaceful journey, which was interrupted as they came upon a ravine.

“Ah right, I had heard about this ravine, and it looks like we will need to take a long way around."

“If you knew about it, why didn't we head in a direction that lead us to a place we could cross?"

“I guess the documents I used were outdated, there should have been a crossing, but time has eroded it I see."

Looking over the ravine, Tecwyn scouted the opposite cliff, judging to see how flat the ground was there.

“You know, I think I might be able to create a teleportation gate on the other side, would that save us much time?"

Tylo looked at the dragon with a grin “Are you kidding? It would save us multiple hours and bring us back on schedule. What would you need for the spell?"

“Just some preparation time. Make sure I don't get interrupted."

With that, he closed his eyes and let his mind drift, feeling the flow of magic throughout the air. Teleportation magic was rarely used, though the great minds across the lands were striving to improve upon it. The cause for this was that it strained the casters mind and magical capacity to an extreme, expecting him to sense his surroundings and be aware of all details to properly aim his destination.

In its current state, it was slower than walking and could not be used further than a modest distance, though it always proved useful in crossing gaps or climbing steep slopes.

Recreating the opposite end in his mind's eye, he projected his energies towards it and slowly drew the necessary symbols that would bind both locations to each other for a short while.

Once the last symbol was drawn, a rift opened before the two, sucking them in, and throwing them to the other side where they landed upon the soft grass in a rather less soft manner.

Tylo was the first to get up, seeing his mage companion spread out on the ground.

“Are you alright, Tecwyn?"

In response, the dragon just groaned and slowly got up, panting.

“Teleportation is a rather unrefined method of travel, and takes a lot out of the caster, so currently, no, I am not alright."

He took a few moments to take deep breaths, recovering a little, while Tylo had the decency to pretend this was normal.

“Whenever people cross rifts like these, for some reason, their magical reserves are drained dry. You likely experienced it as a light tingle, but to me it was like my insides got torn out."

Tecwyn had expected the ranger to make a snide remark, as many of his classmates had done whenever someone failed to execute an incantation flawlessly, even such unrefined ones as the teleportation spell.

“I admit, I have next to no clue how magic works. In our village it there were only a few adepts when I was growing up, but I never found any interest in that.

Still, it's clear that you put in a lot of effort, and singlehandedly assured we are not wasting any time, so take all the time you need to catch your breath. While you do, I will scout the area."

He pointed to a nearby hill. “Meet me over there when you have recovered enough to continue the journey." And with that, he walked off to said hill while Tecwyn waited for the flow of magic slowly returned to him.

Moments later, the dragon felt strong enough to continue, walking up to his companion, who in turn greeted him with a silencing gesture.

Tylo pointed ahead of them at the woods, and with effort, Tecwyn could see movement amongst the trees. Silhouettes of feral canids could be seen, which spelled trouble if those noticed the travellers.

Next he pointed to their right, signalling to move there swiftly.

Ducking, they moved towards the spot Tylo had shown, towards a small game trail was hard to spot. So they moved forward silently, when something jumped out from the bushes.

It was one of the beasts whose silhouettes they had spotted. Before Tecwyn could react, he heard a sound from his right, as Tylo had released a bolt from his crossbow, hitting the beast in the head. Still, the beasts' momentum was not as easily stopped, and hit the mage in the chest, knocking him back against a tree.

“Crap, can you move? I think his pals are eager to join us" Tylo shouted as he reloaded.

Tecwyn tried to move the corpse of the beast, but he couldn't get it off easily, meaning they had no choice but to defend themselves.

“No, not before they reach us." Steeling himself, Tecwyn removed his claws from the beast, and instead started drawing symbols in the air.

He was unsure if he could get a good hit in with his magic, but he had to try something.

Within moments, the other beasts arrived, hiding behind nearby trees.

“Of course we had to encounter the smart ones, just our luck eh?" The ranger quipped as he was reloading his crossbow.

Tecwyn's first spell was a quick fire spell, used to create a small patch of fire in front of them.

Most beast hated fire, so this would hold back some of them at least. Sadly for the mage, he had been wrong.

They came closer, seeking out the easy prey trapped beneath their brother's corpse, not deterred by the flame, with the bravest of them rushing towards the mage, while two others came closer to the marten.

Using his crystals, Tecwyn managed to shoot out a large icicle, but the beast dodged it and leaped, going for the throat. As best as he could, he tried to push the corpse between the two, briefly blocking the assault, but he knew another was coming, and he only had two charges left with no way to cast a full spell.

Before the beast could strike again, an arrow went through its side and knocked it back.

Turning his head, Tecwyn could see that Tylo was scrambling up a tree after shooting.

This meant however that the healthy ones would come after the pinned mage, so he needed to find a solution and quick.

After his journey through the mountains, he had been charging his crystals with quick offensive spells, but with only two charges and at least three attackers, his chances looked slim.

But what if he did not use it offensively?

Using two crystals, he could likely overcharge his main spell by feeding it the energy of the other spell, amplifying its effect.

A simple icicle spell could be enhanced into a blizzard of icicles after all with more magic.

While they would be hard to aim at moving targets, they could be used to deny an area aimed properly, and since Tylo was safe as well, he had a great idea.

Channelling the magic from the crystals, he summoned the storm, but aimed it around himself.

Soon the icicles started falling diagonally from the sky, interlocking and forming a barrier around himself. After all, he just needed to gather his strength, and the ranger had given him the opening he needed.

In the refracted images from the ice, he saw that the beasts gathered around at the far side, putting the barriers between them and the tree perched ranger.

It was a smart move of the beasts, but it would have been smarter for them to have cut their losses.

Having all the time he needed, the mage started weaving together a mix of volatile words, as well as interspersing the words for center and protection.

So far, he had only read about this combination, but it had a potential for destruction that he needed at the moment.

As the magic converged around him, the space between the icicles started glowing ominously, a warning for those around.

It couldn't be helped with this kind of spell, but either he would hit them or they would flee after seeing what the mage had in store.

Once the spell had reached its peak, the magical energies erupted from the dragon's body, the various elements clashing and causing a chain reaction, creating an explosion with Tecwyn at its center.

The icicles shattered and were flung around as the explosion ripped apart everything near the mage, aside from the mage itself, protected by his incantations.

Once the spell was finished, Tecwyn opened his eyes, and saw that around him the ground was ripped open, trees were blasted away, and a small crater had formed in this neck of the woods.

There also was no sign of the beasts anymore, but now that he thought about it, there also was no sign of the marten.

In the distance he could hear some coughing, and the ranger came out from the bushes.

“Next time, try to warn me ok? I mean, the light show was a good indication, but I could have seriously hurt myself."

“Sorry" Tecwyn apologised “I was in a panic and well…"

“Hah, don't worry, I am just glad we got out of that in one piece."

Tylo made his way to the dragon and helped him get up, giving him support.

“Thank you, I should be recovered soon enough"

The ranger just nodded as they continued their journey.

The remainder of the day was uneventful aside from a few minor obstacles, and once dusk set in, they found a little clearing to make camp.

This time around, Tecwyn spent some time creating wards in the area, even though the marten reassured him that everything was completely in order. He just didn't want to take any chances.

While preparing the food for dinner, the marten was busy writing something down in a small notebook, which intrigued the dragon.

“What are you writing there?"

“I am making notes on what we encountered, both the broken passage and the aggressive wildlife. It's part of a rangers duties, and while I am not officially part of them, it is still vital information for them."

“I see." Tecwyn said while turning his attention back to the fire.

“Hey Tylo? I wanted to thank you. When we were attacked, you could have just left me, but you saved me twice, even though you were in danger yourself."

“Oh that? No problem Tec, I know mages like you need space to do all your fancy dazzling, and I am pretty nimble after all, so it made more sense to aid you and then hide in a tree."

Tecwyn sighed, did he really not get what he meant?

“You make it sound like a logical conclusion, but is helping someone at risk of yourself really that logical?"

“Hey, I know exactly what you mean, but yeah, I would rather help people than run away with my tail between my legs. After all, you are under my protection and I would be a pretty lousy guide if I quit as soon as danger would rear its ugly head.

I know it is hard to believe, but there are indeed people like that in the world"

He added a playful wink at the end, partially slipping back into his persona that he had when Tecwyn had first met him, and returned to focus on his notebook.

The rest of the evening, they spent in silence, though it was not an uncomfortable one.

There just was nothing that needed to be said, as the two rested their bodies from the events that happened.

Both of them took turns to stay awake this night, with Tecwyn taking the first shift.

As Tylo had said, there was nothing around, so Tecwyn took the time to recharge his crystals, this time adding a defensive spell as well, simulating his earlier trick.

Slowly but surely, he was learning from this journey, which was a teacher unlike any he had back in Kriun. Harsh, but if he survived, he would be all the better for it.

Time passed quicker than he expected and soon it was his turn to sleep.

The next morning they resumed, knowing that this day they would reach their destination.

They didn't even have to go far from where they left, only half a day's journey, with most of it being because of impassable terrain and having to take a detour.

Tecwyn compared the area to what he saw within the book, and he knew they had arrived.

Now that he made it here, his heart started leaping in his chest, as he was eager to delve into this mystery.

“This is it Tylo, this is the location we were looking for!"

“Nice, good to hear I was correct with my predictions. Go have fun doing your magic stuff inside, and I will be in the area preparing camp and hunting for some fresh dinner. I think we deserve a treat after all this"

Both travellers just laughed as their journey had been a success, their hardships rewarded.

Now Tecwyn needed to find the entrance, and he took out the tome, hoping to find another clue as he opened the page with the image.

The area reacted to the book, and from the ground, a spire of earth appeared, hidden in the ground.

In the middle of the spire there was a large stone door, glowing with magic.

Tecwyn steeled his nerves and placed a beacon of the kobolds on the side of the spire so that they could find it later, before proceeding to open the door.

The air that came out was not stagnant as he had expected, but still smelled somewhat old, though different from the library he had expected it to smell like.

Stepping through, he knew he was going to be tested, and he was ready for it.