When the new day came, Samuel woke up and found Elesil was speaking with Emma in Celgealish, when he asked about it, Elesil just simply said that he was just check on her condition, Emma also said the same and thanked Elesil for the medicine. So, with her fever had gone, Emma seemed spirited and after breakfast, she finally explained her situation to the men but generally she still stuck to the narrative she’d told the previous day. By her word, she was on her way to visit relative in northern Bricatia, and got attacked by a bang of lizardmen bandit, not alone on her travel she was, accompanied her were also some other family members but after the attack she got separated from them and from that point on wandering the wilderness until Samuel and Elesil stumbled upon her. Thus was the red hair girl’s story, and Samuel believed her, somewhat, but by his hunch he felt like the girl told him only part of what had happened. But if that was what she chose to share, then, he thought it would be best he shouldn’t pry furthermore, “all lady has their secret” so was the saying he’d heard some point in his life. Then to Emma, Samuel offered to help her to find and reunite with her relatives, as for himself was also travel in the same direction. And with great gratitude Emma thanked and accepted Samuel’s offer, soon they were on their way.

After a few days on a dirt road, they then came upon and followed an old cobblestone road about ten lias wide, elevated from the surrounded terrain with built-in drained system and led them due north. When Samuel intrigued about the road they were on, because that was the first time since he came to this world that he’d ever saw such excellently built infrastructure. Easily, Emma quenched his curiosity, according to Emma this road was just one of the many like it, a part of the road network built by the Rumunus empire, a once vast empire from across the Dragon Spine mountains to the east, used to dominated the entire of northern Varlaurea continent, and in fact the entire southern part of Bricatia kingdom was once the empire’s territory, along with Emma’s homeland, Celgealia and a neighbouring kingdom called Teuberii. Even Elesil, who wasn’t much of a chatter also gave a few comments about the topic, as one of his remarked was, if compared to Rumunus empire’s engineering then the true breath-taker in Elesil’s opinion, had to be of the Dwarfs with their grand hallways that tunnelling across Varlaurea’s mountainous regions.

The conversation seemed to broke the ice between them and small-talks soon happened along their way, Emma appeared to be a very knowledgeable and highly educated, from her mannerism Samuel guessed that she might be a high noble or even royalty and not just a mere rich lady. Although, Emma still guarded when the conversation was turned to her, but it seemed she had opened up a little about herself, Samuel learned that she was the youngest child and had a brother, and the family members travelling with her were her cousin-sister and her uncle.

When daylight was dwindling, Samuel breathed a relief breath and thanked that they wouldn’t have to sleep in the wilderness for the night, at the sight of civilisation appeared on the horizon. As they entering the town, greeted their eyes at the crossroad led to the town was a big marble statue haft swallowed by wild brushes and vines, it was skilfully carved, depicting a male Upper in grandeur pose with short cut hair, dressed in a breastplate and draped with a toga-like garment, but neglected and haft in ruin the statue was, with part of hand and face were broken.

“Whoah… who’s statue is it; I wonder” –Samuel marvelled at the marble statue under the setting sun.

“Oh, I recognized it, if remembered right then that’s the statue of Comudalus the handsome, or “the Statue Emperor”, an emperor of Rumunus empire. He ruled Rumunus Empire 300 years ago. Most people think his reign was what stated Rumunus’s decline. He didn’t care about state’s affairs, only indulged in luxurious lifestyle of wine, partying, and women. He had a hobby to erect his statues with elaborate and luxurious decorations everywhere, and had nearly bankrupted the imperium family. Finally, he died in a military coup, and his statues were ransacked by the peoples,” Emma explained.

“Ah, story as old as time?” Samuel commented.

After entered the town, while Elesil registered their veleles at the public stable and rent room at the inn, Samuel brought Emma to the local tailor to buy her some clothe to replace her tattered dress, on the way Emma started to curious about him and Elesil.

“So… Challenger, do you mind if I curious about you and Elesil?” Emma asked.

“Just ‘Sam’ is fine, what do you want to know about?” Samuel said.

“well, how do you know Elesil anyway? Odd company you got there.” Emma asked.

“Odd company? What’re you talking about?” –Samuel surprised as her question- “He’s just my sister friend, that’s all, how is that weird?”

“Well… It’s generally… we Uppers don’t get along well with the Elvas” –Emma perplexed- “So then, how do your sister get to know him?”

“That…” –Samuel paused for a few seconds- “Er… to be honest… I’m not really know.”

“You don’t know?” –Emma flabbergasted- “And you still went along with him?”

“Well… he had very convincing evident about his acquaint with my sister” –Samuel tried to explain himself without mentioned the otherworldly part of him, obviously he had to, if he didn’t want the young lady to question his sanity.

“What kind of evident? Can you tell me?” -Emma put on a sweet smile and tried to get Samuel to open up.

“Oh hey, we’re here” –Samuel changed the subject as they reached the tailor shop- “Come, let see if we can find something to your liking.”

“Mysterious, aren’t you,” Emma mumbled to herself, then followed him into the tailor shop.

Indeed, to Emma’s eye, Samuel, an Upper folk just like her, befriended an Elvas without much of acquainting was, at the least, very odd. Since ancient time, Uppers folk had a prejudice toward Elvas, as they found Elvas were mysterious, strange and dangerous. Due to the Elvas’s reclusiveness, their protectiveness of their territories and their very uncanny attuned to magic and the arcane, with countless tales about feats that no any other mages of any race in the history of the continent could ever achieved, about all the death and destruction associated with the Elvas in the “Hundred Years War”, and how one might turned out if wandered into their mysterious forests uninvited. Mostly the Uppers treated the Elvas, at best, was with disdain or distrust and at worst, with fear or hostility.

After the shopping trip, they quickly settled into their room and their sleep, as the night turned late and the cool air of silent draped over every corner of the street, like a blanket, it snugged everyone into their comfy bed and peaceful dreams. The sounds of footstep of the night patrols, steadily paced through the streets, their lantern light stood against the dark of night, deterrence those who had criminal intention, but even so, shadows still lurked in dark corners.

At the inn where the three travelers were resting they weary body, a scream of a man broke the peaceful of night. The disturbance quickly woke the patrons of the establishment and everybody stepped out of their bed to the hallway. As Samuel still wondered what was happening, until one of the patrons said the sound seemed came from the ground floor. Thus, to the stair led to the ground floor they investigated.

The moonbeams reached through the inn’s windows had lay bare a gruesome scene to everyone’s eyes on the upper-floor, laying on the floor and in middle of his own blood was the inn’s owner, near him was a broken lantern and loomed over his lifeless body were shadows. Uncanny shadows casted on the floor, three of them and were not of human they were. Tall, lengthy, and the most striking feature was the unnaturally long neck. All those who witnessing the crime scene stood in astonishment as one of the shadows look up at them.

“Pieonarm!” –someone exclaimed in Bricatish.

The Bricatish word, foreign to Samuel’s ears as that was the first time he ever heard it. The longneck creature stood on the ground floor bearing an extremely flat face with no visible nose and seemingly somewhat covered in scales, its big yellow eyes seemed uncannily glowing under the moonlight. The creature suddenly lowered its stance and with an amazing strength, its leapt upward to where the witnessing crowd were as everyone yelling in fear and scrambled back to the safety of their room, while those who too slow, trembling in fear watched the creatures leapt and climbed up to the second floor one by one.

“You two, to my room, NOW!” Elesil yelled, and led his companions into his room.

“P… P… please… I… I got two kids at home” –a muffled voice of a man begging for mercy in the common-speech came through Elesil’s room door, quickly followed those words of begging were horrific screams of an innocent man who life was being took away from him, soon after, the only sounds echoing the hallway were footstep.

“Oh no… no, no… I’m very sorry you two got involved in this” –with trembled voice, Emma spoke to her companions once they got to Elesil’s room.

“What the hell are those things, and what the hell are you talking about?” –Samuel stupefied as what he just saw and heard.

“I recognized one of them” –Emma trembled- “the bald one with the scar on his left eye was one of the lizardmen that attacked me and my relatives.”