Verkan then approached her after everyone has left, offering her a handful of bread but she declined. She ate a bit too much last night and has been already looking for a place to relieve herself before their trip. The old priest took more bread slices, wrapped them in a clean cloth, and saved them in a small leather bag that he hung by his shoulder. There was a lot of leftover bread from last night that he didn’t want to let waste. Unlike the everyday bread the clans used to cook, which was hard, and made to last for several days, Nana’s recipe was soft, spongy, and deliciously spiced. Of course, it wouldn’t last for long until it mildewed but since it was cooked just hours before the dinner, it wasn’t a concern.

  He teased her by softly squishing a chunk of bread on her face, which Nina finally accepted. She took a small bite and it tasted just as good as last night. Their next destination was just some miles away; the trip would take just a few hours of walking, if they left the village at noon, they should arrive before sunset. Since the dinner’s leftovers were plentiful, the villagers decided not to cook for the day. Both she and Verkan were served meat and beans that they happily accepted. They had a brief lunch with the villagers, and once they finished, they filled their water skins full, put on their signature Field Priest leather caps, grabbed their wooden staffs, and waved the villagers farewell, leaving the town just a little past noon.

  The weather was perfect for a nice walk. Normally, the highland’s weather was unforgiving; with almost perpetual rains battering the landscape, strong winds blowing their way across green fields, and a thick, ethereal white mist that could come down from the mountain range unexpectedly at any moment. It was a blessing that the weather mellowed considerably just in time for the late Clan Lord’s funeral and the subsequent trials. And for a nice stroll of course! The dark grey clouds threatened to drop their rain on several occasions over the past couple of days, but the Gods showed their mercy and decided against it, apparently. Today the clouds dispersed just enough to allow some sun rays to pass through.

  She delighted herself with the beautiful landscape. Although she thought the endless dark blue sea, imposing white rock cliffs, and clear skies full of seagulls from the Southern Islands she called home more appealing, the hilly green fields and forests covered with a thin white mist, and the perpetually cloudy sky stained with the alternating soft and dark grey that barely let any light pass certainly had its charm.

  She spotted unending herds of different kinds of cattle peacefully feeding on the grasslands in the distance, a number of woolly bisons among them. Even a pair of gigantic behemoths! Nina remembered reading about them before; they were gentle beasts with magnificent fur that fed on grass, that despite their colossal size were mostly inoffensive, save from the occasional frightened one that could level entire villages in its path. They used to be preyed upon by dragons in times past, the only other beast mighty enough to actually kill them, but since most species of dragons in the continent became extinct, their population proliferated through the years.

  Speaking about dragons, the books described several species, among them the once-ubiquitous highland raptor, a small but deadly predator. It became extinct thousands of years ago when the last one was killed by the first clan hunters when they settled in the highlands. Such an animal could very well be the culprit of the theft last night, small, lonely, and probably the last of its kind. Although the size of the tracks would suggest a larger one. How big then? She wasn’t interested in playing the investigator right now, she looked at Verkan walking next to her, already eating the slices of bread he brought with him, taking his time to finish the mouthful of bread before speaking; making a gesture with his fingers in a way that suggested the deliciousness of the slice he just ate.