The crowd dragged her back, and she struggled in vain. The rest of the mountaineers approached, but Wanis did not budge, and the long stick took a stance.

"Did he touch you?!"

Marsenor scrambled to grab his weapon, finally unhooking the scepter, his eyes glazed and misty.

"Marsenno!"

"I'm fine!"

"Anyone else?" Vanis shouted.

The boy did not answer. He remained motionless, looking down at the dying mage wriggling in the flames. There was a bitter taste in his throat, but he swallowed the rotten taste back and held back his vomiting.

"Boy!"

He finally came to his senses. The fire spread throughout the flower field, creating a wall between them and the mob. He searched through the firelight among the murderous faces, the heat obscuring his perception.

"It's gone."

"Then get on the horse!"

The boy stepped on his pony. Marsenno and Vannis followed closely behind and mounted their respective horses, and the three quickly left the village. The boy turned to look back. The fire was raging, and the field of flowers was wilting.

Vanis urged them to ride until late evening, trying to keep them away from the crowd. It takes three days to get to Lenwall. Vanis plans to assemble a whole team of demon seekers and kill them back. The law must be upheld, he said.

They set up camp soon after dark, and it was dangerous to walk the mountain roads here at night. The boy finally stepped on the ground with his own feet and breathed a sigh of relief. The kid from Ditch Border rarely rode a horse unless he stole it from a carriage dealership, and he was never a thief.

He sat under a tall oak tree for his first shift, his back and butt stiff and sore after hours of riding. He tossed and turned, trying to find a comfortable position. After a few minutes, he stood up and leaned against the ancient giant tree. A lone wolf's howl came from the mountains, calling for the chorus of his companions. Or maybe it was the voice of the Brigg Hound - he couldn't tell the difference.

Thunderclouds flickered frequently in the night sky in the distance, but the thunder did not reach his ears because of the distance. The stars overhead struggled to push away the thin gray clouds to reveal the starlight. A thick fog accumulates above the lowlands.

He threw another bundle of firewood into the campfire. The stirred sparks quickly extinguished in the air.

The ghostly voice filled his still mind. They are pleading, denying a flickering fact. The boy remembered the mage on fire, and that memory danced in the campfire. He shuddered and turned his head.

It was a terrible death. But every time those thoughts invaded his mind, he drove them away and replaced them with the good things he had seen since joining Vanis and Marsenno.

He had been traveling with the two demon seekers for months, and for the first time he had seen the bustling streets outside Goubian Town. He also explored the hills that he once saw from afar on the rooftops. Now he sees new peaks again, and wants to see more.

It's magic that makes this possible.

His plague, which had filled him with fear of being discovered, had become a gift. His plague made him a true Demacian. He even wore a blue coat. Maybe one day he'll be able to wear a half-mask and his own gray mark, even though he's a mage himself.

Sissy Soso's voice interrupted his thoughts.

He turned to find Marsenno muttering. The blanket around him was empty. The boy's heart immediately jumped when he saw this. He looked into the woods, searching for the old demon seeker for traces—

Vanis was standing under a nearby oak tree, watching him.

"You hesitated today." He said, stepping out of the shadows. "You're doing poorly. Is it because of fear or something else? ”

The boy avoided his gaze and said nothing, searching for an answer that would satisfy the demon seeker.

Vanis looked disgruntled, and his voice began to grow impatient. "Hurry up, say what you have to say."

"I don't understand...... What are the dangers of multi-sleeping ginseng? ”

Vanis muttered and shook his head. "If you give in an inch, they will have to make an inch." He said. "It's true on the battlefield, and it's true for mages."

The boy nodded at him. Vanis looked at him for a moment.

"Where is your heart, boy?"

"With Demacia, sir."

Marsenno was terrified again. His muttering quickly turned into a moan of pain, and finally began to struggle in pain in the covers.

The boy walked over and pulled him on the shoulder. "Marsenno, wake up." He whispered.

The young demon seeker twisted his body at the boy's touch. The moans grew louder and louder, and finally turned into a wailing. He shook Marceno again, this time with a bigger movement.

"What's going on?" Vanis asked, his figure hidden.

"I don't know. I couldn't wake him up. ”

Vanis pushed the boy away and helped Marceno turn over. His brows and temples were soaked with sweat, and strands of dark hair were clinging together. Marsenno's eyes were wide open, his gaze hollow, his pupils reflecting a cloudy white.

Vannis pulled back the thick blanket and lifted Marsenno's cloak. Dark, withered tentacles crept up his arm. In the boy's eyes, radiant flowers danced beneath the rotten skin.

Before the first rays of light appeared, they mounted and set off.

Vanis and the boy managed to lift Marceno onto the horse and secure him in the saddle. With a high fever and sleep, the young Demon Seeker tethered Marsenor's mount to himself and set off.

The boy's pony struggles to follow the brisk pace led by Vanis—it's still a day's journey from Renwall Castle.

He saw Marsenno jolting with every step. The wounded man almost fell off his horse on several occasions, but Vwanis slowed down each time to secure Marsenno. Every time the older demon seeker stopped to care for his companion, he would glare at the boy before moving on.

They arrived at the Kovo Mountain Road in the middle of the morning. Their mounts follow narrow and winding mountain paths. The road can save half a day, but the steep road conditions and dense bushes make it difficult for them to walk.

The boy clamped his legs, clenched the reins, and looked uneasily at the steep valley beside him. His pony walked straight ahead, instinctively avoiding his mortal fate.

They broke through the dense bushes and came to a flat clearing. He saw Vannis stomp on the stirrups and let the two horses start to gallop – at which point Marsenno began to lean to his right, and the scrook was much greater than before.

"Vanis!"

The demon seeker held out his hand, but it was too late. Marsenno rolled over and fell, slamming heavily to the ground.

The boy grabbed the reins, jumped off the pony and ran to the wounded. The same goes for Vanis.

A stream of blood flowed from Marsenno's forehead.

"We need to stop the bleeding for him." Vanis said.

He drew his dagger, and without saying hello, he reached out and cut off a long strip of fabric from the boy's cloak.

"Water." Vanis said.

The boy pulled out the water bladder, poured water over the deep incision, and Vannis wiped the wound clean.