“You really won’t tell me?” Adam asked, eyeing up Crowseer, who tio refuse to answer clearly about his involvement.

  “When it is time for you to know, you will know,” Crowseer replied.

  “As long as I live that long?”

  “Yes.”

  Adam sighed. “Then I’m never going to know.”

  “Would you really die when you have five adorable children waiting for you?”

  “No… I guess not. Am I going to find some uy who is depressed in life and is half dying who will want to join me?” Adam asked, narrowing his eyes.

  “Perhaps. I was here due to sheer ce.”

  “I’m sure,” Adam replied, chug.

  Crowseer exged a look with the Uveil. “You are fortuhat it was the Guardian of the Scales to greet you. If anod had been here, perhaps you would have been dead already.”

  “Why’s that?”

  Crowseer bowed his head, though Maurice, the crow, leaned back so she wasn’t bowing her head. “I should be leaving. It was good to see you again, Adam, and it leasure to see you too, Lady Uveil.”

  “You as well, Crowseer,” Uveil replied, watg as he began to leave. She uood his threat, and wondered what he had to do with Adam, and how much he had to do with slippiween worlds.

  “Speaking of depressed guys who needed me, where’s Jonn?”

  “He must have returo Dunes,” Jurot replied.

  “He…” Adam furrowed his brows. “Yeah. Wasn’t he with Dunes’ group? What? How?” Adam furrowed his brows even deeper, w how Jonn had appeared into the world.

  “He must have slipped through too.”

  “Isn’t that a little out of the ordinary?”

  “Yes,” Jurot replied, simply, befiving Adam a look. It was not a look, but the look.

  “Good point.”

  Once Crowseer was far enough away, he reached down to his heart, wing. He had felt the phantom pain of a knife made of ice pierg through his heart long ago, and had almost let it slip.

  “I beg your pardon, Mistress,” Crowseer said, chug through the pain.

  He was far enough away that Uveil wasn’t paying attention to him, her attention to the entire group. She waved a hand, and light and warmth fell across those kneeling. “I will leave you with my blessing.”

  “Thank you, Goddess!” came the chorus from those prostrating themselves before her. Shod awe filled them as the radiance of her divinity passed through them. Every part of them was full of tent, and as they opeheir eyes, they noticed she had disappeared.

  Mara remaiense for a moment, before pulling her hands away from her navel.

  “Alright, since she’s gone, why don’t we…” Adam gnced around, noting the forest nearby, and the pins behind them. “You know what? Let’s make up camp, and I’ll send word to Duhat we’ll make our way to him.”

  “We should return to East Port,” Jurot said. “Though the hills are dangerous, there is less danger heading through tral Aldnd.”

  “Oh yeah?”

  “It should take us no more than five weeks to get to West Fort.”

  “Then we get there by mid month then…” Adam thought about what day it was. “So it’s what, the sed week then? I don’t really remember…”

  “It is the sed week of the sixth month,” Jurot said.

  “Do you know what day?”

  “The tenth or eleventh.”

  “Alright, so we’ll get to West Fort by the, what, tweh? That’s not bad…” Adam slowly nodded his head. “Their birthdays were what, the seventh of the ninth? Right?”

  “Yes.”

  “Hmmm. We’ll be missing the twin’s birthdays, and Churot’s birthday too…” Adam rubbed his . “Now that I think about it, I didn’t wish Asoyah a happy birthday either.”

  “Let us camp,” Jurot said.

  “Alright…”

  Adam tried to cast his spell ter in the day, only to realise he had no Mana. ‘That’s weird…’ Adam meditated to try and regain his Mana, finding that he could at least regain some of it.

  Mana: 0 -> 3

  “Mnnn…” Adam decided against sending a message, and instead began to summon his tower, so they could bathe in peace.

  “You’ve met with the Divine?” Rick whispered over dinner.

  “Yeah,” Adam replied, casually.

  Rick remained silent for a long while, chewing not on his food, but his thoughts. “Okay.”

  “Hey, everyone,” Adam called out, waving his hand to everyone. “Just letting you know, but you should probably keep all this a secret, for now at least. Best case sario, a couple of people buy you drinks for the story. Worst case sario, you’re impaled for bsphemy, or some such.”

  “We met a Goddess,” Brittany replied, staring up at Adam.

  “Yeah, so I kept my end of the promise, so keep up to yours,” Adam replied.

  Brittany fell silent. Just a few years ago she was a nobody in a tiny vilge he Iyr. Yet, only a handful of seasons ter, she was an Expert, meeting beings she thought were Gods, and a being who was actually a God. ‘…’

  “Ohe business is made, and once your family is safe within its walls, then you start telling them this sort of thing. Until the’s keep everything a secret, so we don’t go about bringing unwatention.” Adam wasn’t sure he wahis to go out just yet, especially sihey had so much attention on them due to the business already.

  “Are you threatening us?” Rick asked.

  “Rick, when am I not threatening you?” Adam asked. “You’ve seen what I do, what madness I bring. If there’s a day I’m not threatening someo’s the day I’m dead.”

  “That’s not what I meant.”

  “I don’t o threaten you, or anyone here. Last I checked, my brother was aive, like me, and he’s not the model of the pany, no matter how handsome he is. I mean, look at him. What a hunk.” Adam raised his brows to Lucy for support.

  “Adam isn’t always right, but when he is, damn is he right,” Lucy replied, sighing as she nodded her head.

  “See? Anyhow, I’m just saying it for your safety. I’m the oh the Iyrman for a brother, not any of you. I’ll try to help you, but if I get word from above I ’t, then…” Adam frowned. “Well, I’ll try anyhow, but the Enter won’t like it.”

  “We will keep it in mind,” Rick replied.

  “A few months ter and the fort should be done,” Adam said. “Oh, wait, no… it’s year for the fort, isn’t it?”

  “Yes,” Jurot replied.

  “Damn.” Adam sighed. “It’s going to take a bit then… well, it’s about half way through the year, so…” Adam wondered if he could give them eaore moo keep them eager for the long journey ahead. “Are you all good with your money? Need any to send bae?”

  “We’re fine,” Rick said.

  Remy nodded. “ay you back too, boss.”

  Adam waved his hand. “You’ve paid me back already, so don’t worry about it.”

  “If you say so…”

  “Anyway, I feel like I o do something in one of the towns in the south. Something about buying some fish.”

  “Sam from River Hill, to buy scale mail,” Jurot firmed.

  “I feel like you told me this before.”

  “I did.”

  “Damn,” Adam rubbed his forehead gently. “How do you even remember that?”

  “You said it.”

  “I don’t like how you…” Adam paused. “Did I say this before too?”

  “Yes. You said I was the best brother ever.”

  “You are a good brother,” Adam firmed.

  Jaygak and Kitool he way Jurot’s ears twitched.

  “Alright. Let’s set up the watches again. We’re no longer iher world, so I ’t go around saving everyone from death for free again. Zeus and…” Adam looked around, realising the giant elk wasn’t about. “Damn.”

  The group slept the night, and once m came, Adam was able tain all of his Mana, and he was able to pick between his spells once more.

  “Dunes. Making our way. Jonn should be back to you. He’ll expin.”

  “I hope everything is well. I wish you good fortune.”

  ‘Yeah, I’m going to .’

  Once Adam was doh summoning his elk and owl, the group made their way back to Life River. With some bother about the wolves, they were allowed to enter, with assurahey would look after the wolves.

  They mao arrive at East Port without any trouble on the road, though at the gate, they had some bother once more due to the wolves. With the Duchess’ silver pque, and Vonda’s word, they mao ehe city, where they could rest in peace.

  ‘Should we take a break iowns every so often?’ Adam thought while tinuing on the road the day.

  Water Ford was the same, with them not allowing the group through due to the wolves, though with the pque, Vonda’s sway, and Jurot and the teen Iyrmen to stay with the wolves, they mao pass through.

  Omen: 12, 17

  “What do you think?” Adam asked. They were midway between Water Ford and River Hill when they came across a rge group, fifty people at least, each heavily armed.

  “They are a band due to the Beast Waves,” Jurot said, eyeing up the group’s ons and armour.

  “Oh yeah. That was meant to be happening this year, wasn’t it?” Adam couldn’t help but wonder if he was the reason why they hadn’t e auch. “Are they going to give us trouble?”

  Jurot he colour of their cloaks, the patterns oabards, and whatever other identifiers the group held. “They could be trouble. They outnumber us three to one.”

  Adam looked back to this group. Almost half of the group were Iyrmen, each at least Experts now. Awo had been trained by Iyrmen, and one was someone only the Iyrmen could hahen came the porters and the farmers, eaear Experts too. Adam checked something, gng aside, before remembering Bell was no longer a floating blue baby.

  “A fair fight,” Adam said.

  “Yes.” Jurot almost smiled.

  Sane person: We're outnumbered three to one.

  Iyrman: Good.