Morians weren't known to skip meals. Sure, it may have happened here and there, but in every town in Shimori, or even for the ones living outside, they'd have their usual bunch. A light breakfast, soup, satiating dinner and a rather uneventful supper, made from the ingredients found all around Shimori. There were many more options for seeds, fruits and meats, but when it came to the epicentre of all variety, it was Wendigo that had a water trade route to other countries. That's why, if you were hungry in Shimori and had to choose one of the three bigger towns, you'd likely settle on that one.

As for Morio and Jyuzou, they didn't have breakfast this morning... or noon. Everything item they had in their backpacks was consumed in an unsuccessful attempt to stay awake for long enough so that they'd know danger was coming. They settled out 15 minutes after waking up, walking atop the frozen snow walls, which buried any of the bushes with seeds. They had to travel on an empty stomach, unfortunately.

The last stretch from Tilted Hill to Wendigo was rather uneventful, in comparison to their earlier travels. It was filled with empty valleys, decorated by the same trees which grew around Mistwick. You didn't have to step into any of the groves, you could keep following a bendy, white and wide line.

The trees slowly pulled together, creating a straight path, and Morio immediately noticed footsteps in the thick snow. The closer they got, the more dense they grew, and the noises of various people, as well as what they presumed to be animals, could be heard.

The silver leaves shook a bit with the wind's light whiff creating a road that led down a wooden path. On the way, there were stone houses, lit up inside with chimneys pumping out smoke. They were all circular and looked pretty similar to one another. Only when the paths started branching out, some turned taller, while the others were a bit smaller. Morians who looked a little bit different than Morio or Jyuzou stepped out of their houses, carefully checking out the visitors.

Most wore brown hats atop a more saturated outfit, consisting of a big jacket, a hefty handbag and long beige boots. Some of them had animals wandering around the area of their houses, pet sheep, small ponies, and even horses.

"They don't resemble Morians," Jyuzou commented.

"You're one to speak," Morio smirked, as Jyuzou tried punching him, but Morio swiftly avoided the shot.

"I'm just saying!" Jyuzou raised his voice. "They're a little different than the ones from Mistwick."

"Yeah, you're right." Morio noticed, taking a look at the map. "Wendigo isn't that far away, and look how different it feels already. Exciting!"

"Scary," Jyuzou muttered, picking up a Shato seed from the ground, as some Morian gave him a rather suspicious look. Morio ran off somewhere, and the man, spotting a rather big moustache and a beard approached Jyuzou.

"Oi, boya." he pointed. "Put that down where you found it."

"Why?" Jyuzou was confused. "It's just a seed."

"Just a seed? It fell from my juniper." he pointed up. "You think everything here is for free? Absolutely not." he shook his head.

"Ah." Jyuzou took a step back, shocked, clenching the item in his hand. Then, the man's expression swiftly changed.

"This right here is worth only one Silver," he said, taking a shining coin out of a handbag and giving it to Jyuzou. "You can buy it from me if you want."

"H-Huh?" Jyuzou was confused.

"You're from Mistwick, aren't you?" he continued. "Things work a little bit differently over here." he took the Silver coin from his palm and left the Shato seed unscathed.

Jyuzou stood still, a bit addled. Morio suddenly ran back, grabbing him by his fluffy shoulder pads. "Jyuzou! Jyuzou!"

Jyuzou turned around to see Morio pointing at a sign, with the words Wendigo, written in thick, black writing.

Then, Morio pointed to more text, freshly painted below.

"The ones going to the Demonear test, please check in at the Edge Silver Line bar and inn!" Morio read aloud, as the wooden roads changed into stone paths, carved into the snowless ground, that was of a bleak green colour.

In the distance, you could hear the waves crashing into the rocks, but the sounds closer to them consisted of ringing bells, horses stomping around, people talking, animals running around and people loudly sipping on beers, vodka or other drinks which Wendigo was known for.

Precisely, to some, it was described as only that. A wooden paradise, filled with round stone buildings, extending into the skies, filled with the dizzying stench of alcohol, but you couldn't tell that during day-time. People were active, opening stores, and trading foods for Silver and among Morians, there were many Paladians, staying at different inns for the time being, or actually leading quaint lives. They didn't interrupt Morians, and usually, they'd avoid conversations. Not that they had anything bad on their minds, just... Morians, while known to be kind, were pretty self-centred in towns of their own.

Only when night arrived, did the two groups combine and have drinking parties in bars, and even outside, in any warm corner they could find. They'd drink until they'd faint, and when the morning came, they were forced to make up for the chaos they brought, yet that didn't deter them.

Wendigo was a rather calm city, all in all. Some rumoured that because of the alcoholic stench, no creatures came out to try and attack. No goblins, centuras, and only a few demons. Just drunken men.

In general, such was a rule with towns. For example, there weren't many standalone huts or small villages in Shimori, because the bigger the group of people, the less likelihood the smarter demons would try and act upon their urges. There would probably be a Demonear out there hidden in the crowds, but Morio was rather surprised that no one out there would loudly proclaim their status.

The two passed by a windmill, searching for the bar far and wide.

"Very interesting." Morio started sketching something on the other side of the paper he brought.

"The windmill?" Jyuzou asked.

"Pfff, phhh... of course not." Morio moved a bit so Jyuzou would not look at the paper.

"But you're drawing the windmill." Jyuzou pointed.

"Look, okay?!" Morio panicked a bit. "Whatever this thing is, it's a lot more interesting than anything you'd see in Mistwick! They're so round and... boring, but that's what makes them cool!" he turned to him.

"They're cool because they're boring," Jyuzou repeated, giggling under his nose. "Yeah, right."

"Exactly! Mr Bancho wouldn't allow for such monotony back home! Wendigo is so much different! Woo!" Morio raised both fists, before clearing his throat, a little embarrassed. Jyuzou wondered where Morio had heard such a complicated word as 'monotony'. He fixed his glasses.

"I-I think they're just made to house a lot of people. I'm pretty sure that at least a few families live in the same a-apartments." he pointed to the taller buildings, held up by a thick stone structure. "Much less personal than our huts."

"It's different, way different!" Morio explained.

"Worse." Jyuzou grinned.

A Paladian passed by the two, burping, and holding a beer. Morio gave him an excited look, and Jyuzou rolled his eyes, sighing.

"Anyways, the sun is already setting." Jyuzou folded his arms. "Would you mind moving along and finding that bar already?"

"Ah! Of course!" Morio rubbed his hands together. "I'd kill for some cocoa right now."

"I don't think they sell cocoa there," Jyuzou muttered.

"What else would they sell, then?" Morio asked.

Jyuzou stared at him for a moment, before looking away and shaking his head. Morio seemed offended, but nevertheless, the glassy-eyed one continued. "Where do we even start? Brave enough to ask someone passing through to help us?"

"We make a map of this place!" Morio blindly stepped around, and a horse almost bumped into his tiny body. "Oop, sorry!" he waved.

The Morian atop shouted something mean.

"We came from there, followed this turn right here because I saw that thing and thought it was cool." Morio squinted his eyes, sketching something quickly.

"The windmill?" Jyuzou asked.

"Yeah, yeah." Morio pushed him off, before putting the sheet even closer to his face. "Hmm... hmm..."

Jyuzou scratched his head, before turning to a small, wooden pole, with a few papers stuck to the side.

"Hmmm...!" Morio focused.

Suddenly, the other Morian put a map of Wendigo in front of Morio's eyes. "W-Wow! You sketched it out already?"

"They have maps of the town, you idiot!" Jyuzou jumped up.

"Oh. Disappointing." Morio made a sour face, before shaking it off. "There!" he pointed to the bar, which was close to what resembled half a bridge.

The two trod the stone roads, passing by other, smaller buildings, made specifically for entertainment. Bars, places where you'd play board games, rooms for instruments and music, shops with alcohol, normal shops or museums where you can observe how one would make vodka. They were connected in a long line, which bent according to the rocks surrounding the town.

This was what the map referred to as the Entertainment Road, which stretched through half the town's length. In fact, almost every bigger road in Wendigo was named, leading to other areas that somehow didn't find themselves on the Entertainment Road. For example, the Farm Road led to, as you could guess, farms, at the edge of town with only a few conifers and a lot of open, now snowy terrain. The Housing Road led to a big clump of houses, all placed in a sickening, square-like pattern, and the Believing Street led to a small church placed in the middle of a few rocky intersections.

There were many horses, travelling from one place to another. If a person wouldn't want to travel on foot, they could step inside a carriage for five Silver and get to any place around town and even a little further outside of the area.

Wendigo was wider, than longer, but still twice as big as Mistwick, with six times more people. Moving along, Jyuzou would often get lost in the dense crowds, only to spot Morio's shining white hair and that excited smile, leading him further along the way.

Soon, the stone roads changed into the wood that first greeted them.

"Wow. WOAH!" Jyuzou grabbed Morio's hand. He gazed through the cracks in the wood, seeing no solid ground below. There were many thick rocks, with gaps leading into the water below. "Don't look down," Jyuzou uttered.

"Already did. I think we're on some kind of massive bridge, you know?" Morio proposed. "It's connected to the rocks with these long wooden sticks." he squinted his eyes at the mentioned gaps. "They hold quite well, eh?" Morio jumped up.

"DON'T DO THAT!" Jyuzou screamed.

"Scared of heights?" Morio smirked.

"Pff!" Jyuzou huffed. "You're scared of the colour yellow!"

"Okay, okay, common mistake, I'm not scared of yellow, I just hate the colour and don't want to have anything to do with it." he waved his hands around.

Jyuzou breathed in through his nose, taking a decisive step forward.

"Let's continue!" Morio decided.

The boys travelled through the rather empty, dock-like wooden part of Wendigo. Horses still stepped around, but fewer people were present, and after a few more houses, you could see the horizon, stretching into the distance.

Morio quickly ran up to the wooden handrail and gazed, as the sun slowly set. Jyuzou stared at him from a distance, a trembling mess.

Next to the handrail, were wooden stairs, leading down towards the port, with a big boat moved around by the waves. The Wendigo port had a direct trade route from here to Lignoria's Prope Portam, but the way from one town to the other was strange.

Firstly, you'd set out at the edge of the Aria River, which would then transition into the Brown Sea. It would take a rather roundabout route, completely avoiding Magna, continuing through the Crimson, and the Dark Sea, up until it reached the other port.

However, as of the time being, barely any cargo is set out from one place to the other. The waters were rather uncalm in Yule, and there were slim chances of the boats making it to Lignoria. Furthermore, no one would wish to travel even further from the Mainland. Outer Errarion was completely inaccessible, due to a high density of waves in what is called the Third Split.

Back to Wendigo, to Morio's right, stretched a long and straight road, seemingly extending into nothing. A Paladian stood there, dressed in red, staring at the sky the same way Morio did.

"Oh, let's go, Morio." Jyuzou spotted something in the distance.

"Let me enjoy this moment." Morio shushed him, extending his hand and staring at the lights above with a smile.

"Morio. Morio!" he kept tugging his shoulder.

"WHAT?!" Morio turned around, yelling

"The bar is over there!" Jyuzou pointed to his left, as Morio turned around.

"Oh! What are we waiting for, then?" Morio sprinted towards the big open door.

"Ghh!" Jyuzou almost ripped his own hair out.

The two stepped into the bar, and what followed a calm look at the warm and orange inside of the big round wooden hut, was a cacophony of different sounds: Morians, singing in sync with Paladians, playing their guitars, thaduks or cloakies (small drums). Some Paladian tripped, blackout drunk and some other Morian laughed at him. They all sported unkempt, short beards, which wasn't something Morians were well known for, maybe except for Bancho, but it was still a little surprising.

Morio gulped, standing back. "I think this is the wrong place, Jyuzou," he whispered. "There's no cocoa."

"Really?" Jyuzou shook his head, as Morio punched him lightly.

"Shin, oh Shin." the bartender stepped out of his small booth and helped the Paladian up, carrying his heavy body towards a bench near a window and another door, leading to a calmer part of the bar. The other entrance at the end revealed a small flight of stairs, presumably leading to the inn portion, but even one glance at the situation and the bartender's tired eyes led to the two concluding that it would've been such a massive hassle to do even more than he already did. The others kept laughing. The bartender waved his hands around and then stepped back towards the entrance, before quickly looking down at the two Morians.

Jyuzou unsurely waved, and Morio looked a little awe-struck. Again.

"Um, young ones." he crouched, twisting his moustache with his fingers. "I don't think this is the right place for kids like you."