Traverse The Fog

The next day, the two skipped training and breakfast to pack up everything. Once everything was set up, they set off. And strangely enough, it seemed as if Latriaen knew the place, as when the terrain became rougher and the elevation grew higher, he always had a path in mind. At least, that was until they met a craggy mountain wall separating the rest of the mountain from the forest.

"Watch closely," Latriaen said.

Without another word, he held his spear with his teeth and began to explore the rough surface of the wall, his fingers tracing the crevices. Then, as if a gecko climbing a wall, he scaled upwards.

Wide-eyed, Cyrus quickly yelled, "Wait, do you expect me to climb as well?"

"Yes." Latriaen continued his ascent without so much as a look back.

"I've never climbed a mountain wall before! And what about my pack? Should I hide it and come back for it later?"

Cyrus felt it was fair to ask. Despite what he carried on his pack to appear without a spatial pouch, it still included food, storage, books, a sleeping pack, crystals, and a small tent for sleeping.

In response, Latriaen glowered and released his hold, easily landing on his feet.

"Give it," he said, holding a calloused hand out. "But you keep the spear. You might as well learn to climb with it now than when it's too late."

"Oh?" That was nice of him.

In no time, Latriaen was up the wall again, leaving Cyrus alone again.

He looked upwards and took note of the distance to the top. It wasn't as high as he could see the fog rolling off it. So maybe Cyrus would just break his arms and legs on the way down before shattering his neck. Still, there was no other way.

Sighing, Cyrus whistled and pointed upwards. Thankfully, Bird understood his command and flew upwards to the awaiting cliff's edge. Then, he copied Latriaen and clutched his spear between his teeth. And up he went. Cyrus took special care to triple-check each crevice's stability despite mirroring his mentor's path. And yet, wasting too much time was his undoing. What was meant to be a ten-minute climb turned into thirty as Cyrus was forced to make detours because of one mistake that was pretty obvious in hindsight.

Latriaen was tall. Thrice checks became five times, which proved useful as more than once a handhold cracked under the weight of his fingers. At least Cyrus was able to reach past halfway.

Just don't look down.

He paused and looked upwards. The cliff's rolling fog draped down to him like misty tendrils. It felt revolting to be touched like this, like being appraised by the flavor of his soul.

"Hurry up!" Latriaen gruffed from the top, barely visible and appearing like a draped monster. "What? Are you waiting until your muscles give up on you?"

He was right. Cyrus felt his muscles start to strain, and exhaustion began to set in. Teeth clenching on his spear, Cyrus simply grunted and moved. That's when minor annoyances became major, like when his tongue tasted against the metal of his spear or how his finger's muscles ached. Even his hair poked at his eyes or obscured his vision, which was grating beyond measure. All the while, Latriaen and Bird watched him above. There were no words of encouragement or insults. Just silence.

Stop... staring... at... me, Cyrus strained to think, the sound of pebbles and dust crumbling under his weight becoming more noticeable. But Cyrus didn't panic, mainly because he couldn't. One mistake—one error would be his last.

The edge drew closer and closer, the foggy tendrils thicker and thicker. Cyrus was almost to the top and able to rest. But just as when he touched it, the crevices that held him crumbled under the weight.

Cyrus locked up. What wasn't he moving? Just grab onto something, anything. And yet, his instincts went to channeling mana, hoping his flames would somehow get him out of this.

Tsk "...Stupid."

With a quick yoink, Latriaen single-handedly lifted Cyrus into the air and plopped him onto safe ground. Chest heaving, Cyrus remained there as he stared into the cloudy skies. His expression remained listless even when Bird flittered around him in distress.

I died again! Just how many more deaths would he have to go through? It had only been a couple of months. How long would the fall have been? Would it have been painful? Instant? He then looked at Latriaen, who didn't have a single bead of sweat.

"Thank... you," Cyrus gratefully said between breaths.

"What was I supposed to do? Let you fall?" Latriaen said, shaking his head.

Without waiting for a response, he opened Cyrus' pack and sifted through its contents. Then, a red vial emerged that he forced into Cyrus' mug.

"Hurry and drink; we still have more walls to climb."

And Latriaen wasn't kidding. Cyrus was forced to make three more climbs. Although they weren't as bad as the first, they still took their toll. It was only because of the health potions he drank and the activated life runes around his straining muscles that kept him moving.

Finally, they stopped the climb. It was nowhere near the mountain's peak, but Latriaen deemed it good enough. Was it because he was tired of Cyrus' abysmal climbing skills? In any case, the three rested next to the cliff. Beyond them was a large grassy terrace that hugged the mountain, which would no doubt be the path the two would take. But at that moment, Cyrus didn't care.

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He gulped down another potion as if dying of thirst. The red liquid reached his stomach, quickly evaporated, and a soothing sense of vitality coursed through his body.

"How do these work?" Cyrus mumbled. "Was it an enchantment or a mixture of plants?"

Once done, Cyrus wiped the sweat off his brow. His gaze followed Bird, flying into the open sky, and took in the beautiful sight before him. The fog had significantly cleared today, revealing an ocean of dark green and brown leaves waving onto rocky hillocks below.

It was a beautiful sight. And under normal circumstances, Cyrus would have taken a photo. But this wasn't what he came for, not really. Such a sight was commonplace around Edina. No, he wanted to see those crystalline forests and floating islands that compelled him to leave his world in the first place. That's what he wanted to capture, not this.

All in due time, Cyrus.

But it wasn't all bad. A slight sense of accomplishment washed over as Cyrus looked at the cliffs and rocks below. I climbed all of this.

"Come. You have rested long enough." Latriaen said, dropping Cyrus' pack before his feet.

Latriaen moved forward, and Cyrus followed in pursuit. But the sudden familiar sounds of those eerie lion screams stopped him in his tracks. Cyrus frowned and looked down below. And while he couldn't see past the canopy, he knew those beasts were stalking him.

Annoyed, Cyrus scoffed but thought nothing of it. There was no reason to bother about these things.

So, forward they went. The sudden terrain swap brought respite to Cyrus' aching, well, everything. The three kept their march alongside the mountain until stopping beside a natural cave entrance.

"This is where we'll split up," Latriaen said, looking into the cave. "You check this tunnel and search for orichalcum. You're hoping for bronze or green metal veins lining the wall. And don't forget to use your mana sense. You should expect a heavy and dense air around such metal."

Cyrus tilted his head at him, incredulous. What did he say? Walk into a dark tunnel in a world of magic and monsters? Just like that?

"Walk into a cave and search for metals," he mimicked, hoping Latriaen would hear the stupidity in the logic.

The Latriaen nodded without so much as a second thought. "I don't sense any body heat, so there's probably nothing alive in there."

Probably? Cyrus was about to complain, but recalled his promise and suppressed his emotions.

"Where are you going?" he instead asked.

Latriaen glanced toward the next mountain. "I'll head over there and search." He then held out a palm, and a solid, fiery sigil formed above it. "Take this, and should you find something you can't handle, use this. Aim it at them and channel your mana into it."

Cyrus' shoulders slackened. At least the man thought about his safety. Once it was in his hands, Cyrus stuffed it in his pocket. Then, the two stood there in silence for a minute.

"Well?" Latriaen broke it while crossing his arms. "Aren't you going?"

"Oh!" Cyrus stiffened up and quickly nodded. "Sorry, I thought I would wait after you left." He turned to Bird and made three short command whistles to prevent it from following. "Don't get lost, okay?"

Chirp!

Bird flitted around the entrance area but stayed put. And now, there was nothing to hold him back. Cyrus placed his pack beside its entrance and stared deep into the long, deep tunnel ahead.

Strange. Why do I feel uneasy?

Call it instinct, but Cyrus felt wary of the place. Not that it mattered, for he had to enter nonetheless. So, under Latriaen's watchful gaze, Cyrus entered the tunnel ahead, spear in hand.

Even then, Latriaen remained there after Cyrus' silhouette disappeared in the darkness. Slowly, he closed his gaze and channeled his life glamour. There were no other life forms than Cyrus, so he should be fine. With that thought, he turned and left. Meanwhile, Cyrus ventured deep within the tunnels. It had gotten so dark that he used a small flame to activate his light vision.

"Huh," Cyrus muttered, looking at the floor. "The fog seeps even in here."

Was there any safe place save for the city-states? Maybe it didn't matter. Still, Cyrus kept moving. His progress was slow and cautious. Every step was deliberate as he strained to hear any hint of movement. And should anything jump out, well, they would meet a hungry little ember.

There would be occasions when Cyrus would stop. During those moments, he checked for insects and scratched his arms. There were none, but it still bothered him. Still, to Cyrus' credit, he had diligently scanned the walls for any metal veins as he traveled. And when that didn't work, he used his mana sense to search for that heavy feeling he felt back at Úrán's cathedral. Again, nothing. Regardless, Cyrus pressed forward. With his limited mana sense range, wouldn't it take forever to locate something valuable?

"Wait. Don't I have something perfect for this?"

Cyrus quickly reached into his spatial pouch and retrieved his camera.

Click Click Click

Lights flashed, and Cyrus snapped photos from every angle and corner to cover more ground. And, well, it wasn't that helpful. Sure, it revealed earth runes, but they weren't a significant concentration of them.

Which means I have to go deeper. Cyrus sighed. "Spelunking wasn't on my to-do list. Ever."

Being underground felt like a prison. But Cyrus ventured deeper regardless. Time passed. But soon, he furrowed his brows and halted his tracks near a bend in the tunnel. His camera revealed green speckles and even traces of blue. And that meant something living lurked just around the corner.

Taking a deep breath, Cyrus stowed his camera and conjured another hungry ember. Slowly, cautiously, he hugged the wall and stood by the corner.

One. Two. Three! He popped out his head, only to sigh in relief.

The tunnel opened into a vast cavern dotted with small pools of water, surrounded by bioluminescent moss emitting a soft blue glow. One could hear the soft dripping of water landing into the small ponds from the stalactites hanging from the high ceiling above. And of course, the fog remained ever present, silently flowing on the ground's surface like seafoam.

"It's just moss," he chuckled. "What was supposed to expect?"

Was there supposed to be some animal den up here, up the mountains? There was no food for miles on end!

His gaze swept past the small pools and moss to the end of the cave. And what... luck? Four more tunnels were waiting for him.

But Cyrus didn't move forward. No, he stood by the entrance and took more pictures, just in case something was hiding on the ceiling or in the pools themselves. Luckily, there was not. But Cyrus kept his flame and spear out just in case as he crossed the room. Once he stood before the four tunnels, Cyrus revealed his camera and channeled a heavy mana infusion into the camera.

Click Click Click Click

Cyrus smiled at his screen. What's this?

Just at the edge of his power's range, a barely visible but significant amount of earth runes were on the far right tunnel.