The haggard man stared at Noah in horror, his lips working but failing to muster up even the faintest of noises. His eyes were so wide that his irises may as well have been peas swimming in a white soup.

  Noah tried not to be too impatient. His soul was still shifting as it adjusted to the new runes he’d just pulled into it. While they weren’t all that powerful, they were still Rank 5 runes. It was a good thing he hadn’t taken in the other runes from the Star Serpent. Even though his mindspace had become largely stable, he didn’t know what a rapid expansion would do to him given all the Beyond that was now permanently woven into him.

  It was probably best not to find that out the hard way. There were too many ways it could go wrong — and if Noah wanted even the slightest chance of figuring out where the hell he was going, he really couldn’t afford to go insane again.

  Noah tapped his foot on the ground. The more time he spent here, the more chances that someone else would show up to annoy him. It would be just his luck if the Star Serpent was actually some bigger monster’s wayward son.

  Obsidia is full of side-quests. Every single place is trying to pull you into their own little minigame. The moment I let my guard down, some kid is gonna run up and ask me to clear the rats out of his mom’s cellar.

  There’s only one way to make sure I don’t get side-quested, and that’s to move faster than the quest givers.

  “Tell me where I am,” Noah said again. He jabbed the map. “Or start praying a lot harder. But, if you do, make sure to pray for directions. They’re the only things that are going to save you.”

  “You — this is — Cliffside Valley,” the man whispered, finally finding his voice. He managed to tear his eyes away from Noah to look down at the map. He stared at it for a few seconds before pressing a trembling finger to a mountain range. “You’re here, Lord…”

  “Spider,” Noah said absentmindedly, squinting at the paper. He barely even paid the man’s words any mind. His answer had been subconscious, from all the practice he’d had bullshitting through the Damned Plains. “Are you sure I’m here?”

  “Yes,” the haggard man said. He swallowed. “I’m certain. This is Cliffside Valley, domain of the Star Dragon.”

  “In the Coral Empire?” Noah asked.

  The man stared at him like he’d gone mad. “Yes, Lord Spider.”

  “Good,” Noah said. “That’s good.”

  Then he scratched the side of his neck. “Where is Aqua Terra?”

  That earned him another baffled look. But Noah had managed to terrify the man so thoroughly that no question he possibly could have asked would have been too strange. The man simply pointed to another spot on the map. A point, Noah noted, that was nowhere near him.

  “Here.”

  “Mm,” Noah said. “I see. And the nearest town? Big one?”

  The man pointed to another spot. It wasn’t very close either. Noah was also pretty sure it was in the exact opposite direction than the one he’d been heading in. He’d gone the wrong way.

  Goddamn it.

  “I see,” Noah said. He held the map up, craning his neck back to look into the sky. Then he pointed to the right. “So the town is… this way?”

  His terrified navigator pointed in the exact opposite direction.

  “Right,” Noah said with a sage nod. “Of course.”

  He rolled the map back up and stuffed it into his pocket. Then he drew his flying sword and tossed it to the ground. Noah stepped onto the blade. And, as the rest of the town emerged from their houses to stare in awed disbelief at the massive halves of the Star Dragon, he tore off into the night sky.

  ***

  The world flitted by beneath Noah. Night turned to day turned back to night. The temperature quickly dropped as he left the craggy mountains behind him. Bright, untouched snow-covered hills took their place.

  Their gentle slopes rolled like waves beneath him. It wouldn’t have been inaccurate to describe them as pristine. There wasn’t so much as a single footstep or marring dot upon the pure alabaster snow.

  Unfortunately, Noah was a little more preoccupied with the snowflakes pelting into his eyes like little spears. He was forced to keep his hands raised before him as he flew. It was a little hard to tell if he was still on the right path — but he was pretty sure he’d been heading in a straight line.

  He’d been flying nonstop since killing the Star Dragon, but he’d still yet to catch a glimpse of any other civilization. And Noah hadn’t been dawdling along. He’d been moving just about as fast as his flying sword would let him. Obsidia was just huge. His slightly sub-par directional sense probably wasn’t helping, though.

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  Noah squinted down beneath his arm, scanning the ground for any signs of a city, just as he had been ever since he’d left the mountains behind. He was pretty sure he’d find a city eventually. It might not have been the one he was aiming for, but just about anything would do.

  There was only so long he could fly without fighting a monster to take its energy or getting some rest. And, to Noah’s surprise, he really hadn’t run into many monsters at all. The trip had been surprisingly easy thus far.

  I wouldn’t mind spotting a few beasts to kill just so I can fuel back up on power. It’s not like I’m going to find a city anytime. I’m definitely lost. Again. Goddamn it. I should just pay someone to direct me…

  Noah’s eyes widened. There, near the edges of his vision, was a mote of orange light. And not just one of them. They were all clustered together, but there was no doubt about it. It was lanternlight.

  It was a city.

  Ha! I knew I was going in the right direction!

  Noah adjusted the angle of his flying and shot off directly toward the city without wasting time on another thought.

  He arrived just a few minutes later, lowering his angle to land on a small patch of shoveled ground near the entrance of one of many large gates leading into the walled city. This one was considerably larger than the town he’d been at a day ago. The gray walls weren’t quite comparable to those of Arbitage, but there was no doubt that this was a place of some significant standing.

  Huge ballistae sat atop the walls. There must have been ten of them just on the side of the city that Noah had drawn up to. A faint blue dome shimmered above the city. The falling snow sizzled and dissipated the instant it touched the magical shield, leaving the streets below untouched.

  A large, frozen lake stretched out behind the city. It was enormous and perfectly flat, like a mirror reflecting the moonlight back up at its source. Yoru would have loved it. Noah’s eyes lingered on the lake for a long second before he pulled them up to the horizon. Rising behind the large city was another mountain range, its peaks painted solid white by the snow and frost. It was certainly quite the intimidating sight.

  A pair of guards stood before the thick metal gates that led past the thick walls. Even though the gates were open, the two men had made no move to hide their domains. Noah’s own domain identified both of them as Rank 5 mages, and they were no pushovers.

  They had better combinations than just about everyone in Arbalest. Something told Noah that these two men, though weaker than the Star Serpent, likely would have been able to put up quite the fight against it with their runes alone.

  Both of them wore bright white armor that blended in with the snow perfectly. Pale blue lines crisscrossed across the surface of the metal. The metal was imbued, and it wasn’t the only thing. Everything from the swords at their sides to their helms were covered in the same patterns. These weren’t just guards at all.

  They were soldiers.

  Heavy duty shit. They’re expecting a fight. Nobody posts someone this powerful up just to say hi to random passersby.

  “Hullo,” Noah said, stepping off his flying sword and sliding the blade into its sheath. “Nice night we’re having. I don’t suppose you mind telling me where we are? I’m looking for a place to spend the night.”

  The guard on the left let out an amused snort. “Frostlake. Where do you hail from?”

  “Uh…” Noah scratched his head.

  Shit. What was that place called? I forgot its name.

  “That’s not suspicious at all,” the second guard said.

  “It’s been a long night, okay?” Noah asked. “I’ve been flying for a day straight. I came from somewhere in that direction. I’m headed to Aqua Terra. For—”

  “The tournament,” the first guard said in a tone that made it clear this was far from his first time hearing that answer. “You and everyone else. How long are you planning to stay in Frostlake?”

  “Until the morning,” Noah replied. “Do you have a teleporter or something to help me get closer to Aqua Terra?”

  The second guard snorted. “You’re not from Coral, are you?”

  Noah cleared his throat. “I didn’t say that.”

  “You may as well have,” the other guard said with a shake of his head. “Relax. Travel limits aren’t enforced during the tournament. We’re not idiots. Just stay away from the backwater towns. Some of them are a little overzealous. Leave by this time tomorrow but rest easy until then. Frostlake is safe.”

  Noah gave them an appreciative nod. “Thank you. Anything else I should know about the area for when I set off tomorrow morning?”

  “Yeah,” the first guard said. He jerked a thumb over his shoulder in the direction of the mountains rising behind the city. “Stay away from Ice Wretch Mountain. It isn’t safe. The entire pass has been closed for months.”

  “Oh?” Noah blinked. “Why?”

  “There’s a new apex predator in the area,” the other guard said with a weary sigh. “An extermination squad was called from Coral Empire, but they all went missing. We underestimated it.”

  “That’s because it isn’t a monster,” the first guard said in a conspiratorial tone. “It’s a competitor.”

  “Oh stuff it. Who comes all the way from another kingdom to shack up in a freezing mountain pass?” the second guard rolled his eyes. “Don’t spread rumors. There have been all sorts of legends popping up as of late. Just because there are a lot of powerful travelers passing through the Coral Empire doesn’t mean every single one of them is going around and kicking up trouble.”

  “You’ll see. It’ll come out sooner or later,” the first said. He tapped a finger against his helm. “The signs are all there. That’s no monster. We haven’t heard the last of it.”

  “Just stay away from the pass,” the second said. “It’s forbidden to enter right now, by law of Frostlake.”

  “Noted,” Noah said. “Thanks for the tips, guys.”

  Then he headed into Frostlake in search of an inn. At the moment, the only thing Noah cared about was finding somewhere to rest and then getting back on the road. Still, he couldn’t help but feel at least a little curious.

  Legends, huh? If all these powerful people are passing through the empire right now… how am I going to find Moxie and the others? It’s going to be hard to get their attention.

  Noah blew out a sigh, watching his frosty breath curl through the air behind him.

  I’ve certainly got my work cut out for me.

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