The world blurred at the edges when Sif’s eyes fluttered open. The sting of battle still lingered — the distant scent of scorched stone and the metallic tang of blood — but the cavern’s crushing darkness had eased. A soft, golden hue now spilled from the canyon above them, indicating it was around noon on the surface.
"You're awake." Lirian muttered, his voice low but steady as he gazed down at her.
"Yeah..." the woman muttered, furrowing her brows as she glanced at the man — whose face was hanging just above hers — with a rather questioning look. "... why am I laying on your lap?"
"What, is it uncomfortable?" He chuckled, covering his mouth with a bandaged hand, though the laugh soon turned into a slight coughing fit.
"Careful there..." she replied, throwing him a tired yet slightly concerned glance before pushing herself off his lap.
With a quick sweep of her hand, she brushed the strands of hair that had fallen over her face back behind her shoulders.
"Feeling better now? Don’t want to rest a bit longer?" Lirian shifted slowly into a cross-legged position.
"No, I'm feeling a bit better." The woman looked around, but seeing no sign of the rest of the group — everyone except Lirian sitting behind her and Niall leaning against the wall near the entrance to the lower levels of the cave — she realized they had disappeared.
"Where is everyone?" She asked, turning her gaze back to the half-elf.
"They went down to sort out some transport." the man informed her, gesturing to his right leg, which was partially wrapped in bandages. "I can't really walk."
"Ah... was it from the fall?" The woman shifted a bit closer to him, stopping herself at the last moment from reaching out to touch the wound.
"Yeah... I guess I need to lose some weight if even Corym couldn't keep me in the air." he joked, only to be met with a quiet snort from the woman.
"Oh, please, we all know you're just skin-and-bones." She grinned playfully, and at the sight of his — albeit slightly exaggerated — offended reaction, she burst into laughter.
"Ah, you must really be in bad shape if you're spouting such nonsense!" he replied with a grin, placing his left hand on his chest.
"Hey, lovebirds! Wrap it up, they're coming back!" Niall shouted from a distance, waving at them and bouncing slightly on his feet, his left arm was completely bandaged, and a square band-aid marked his cheek.
"Oh shut up!" Lirian shouted back, a smile on his face and a barely noticeable blush creeping onto his cheeks at the comment.
As the woman slowly began to rise to her feet, the sound of a carriage echoed from the cave, accompanied by faint — though definitely present — Mallory's shouts.
"... Looks like someone pissed her off yet again." the half-elf commented as the carriage emerged from the cave, swaying slightly over the uneven ground.
Niall jumped into the carriage while it was still moving, and after a few seconds, it came to a stop right in front of Sif.
"Awake already?" Lukius glanced at them from the front of the carriage, while Corym and Syviis started stepping out.
"She's fine — her sharp tongue's just as dangerous as before!" Lirian chimed in, letting out a quiet groan of pain as the pair helped him up from the ground.
As Lirian steadied himself with their help and Sif brushed the dust from her cloak—her legs still a little unsteady but firm enough to hold her weight—they both entered the carriage, which was at least two times wider than the one they had before.
Lirian lay down on one of the medical beds on the left side of the wagon, finally allowing himself to rest.
"So, are we finally leaving?" asked Vidar, sitting down at the front next to Lukius.
"Yeah, it would be good..." replied Sif, sitting in the back beside Corym.
"Then let’s go!" shouted Zara, jumping in her seat right next to Sylleth, who looked at her with a slight smile.
The wagon lurched forward, the clatter of wheels echoing off the cavern walls as the group settled into a tense silence. The air hung heavy — a blend of stone, distant smoke, and something faintly metallic.
Sif leaned back against the worn wooden frame, absently running a hand through her dark hair. The sting of the battle still lingered in her muscles, but it was the weight in her chest — that gnawing sense of unfinished business — that refused to fade.
She looked out the window, glancing back at the massive, lifeless body of the Wyrm that was bathed in sunlight.
At her gesture, Corym placed a hand on her shoulder. "Relax... this one took care of it." he laughed, nodding his head towards the boy sitting beside him, who flinched slightly.
"Hey! It was the platform that killed it, not me!" Sylleth shouted, turning his gaze away when Sif looked at him with a smile.
"But you're the one who knocked it down... and guess who's getting the bill!" Mallory added, shooting him that all-too-familiar, irritated glare.
After a brief silence, Sif suddenly burst into laughter, momentarily easing the tension that had, just minutes ago, felt thick enough to cut with a knife.
"So, kid, do you know what it's like to be an adventurer now?" she chuckled, leaning her shoulder against the wagon wall.
Corym quickly joined in, placing a hand on the boy's shoulder. "Better get used to it — you'll be dealing with monsters like that a lot more often than you think," he said, his tone a bit more serious this time, though still laced with amusement.
A few words hovered on the boy’s lips, and after a few quick seconds of hesitation, he pointed his thumb toward the already grumpy dwarf. "You mean her?" he asked with a sly grin.
At those words, Vidar erupted into laughter so loud it could've been mistaken for the roar of a wild beast, and the rest of the group quickly followed suit — even Lirian laughed, half-choking on a cough.
"Look at that, we’ve got ourselves a little comedian," Mallory hissed through her teeth, her face red with anger, now glaring not only at the boy but also at her brother. "And you, Vidar — what are you laughing at?!"
The man just kept laughing, twirling a curl in his beard, choosing not to answer her.
Niall sprawled out on the bed on the right side of the wagon, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes while still chuckling under his breath. "That was a good one..."
"I'll show you a 'good one'!" the dwarf snapped, lunging at the boy. In a swift motion, she grabbed his arm and locked it in a joint hold, smirking to herself as she did so.
Niall stiffened, letting out a strangled whimper. "Ow... let go..." He wriggled helplessly, trying to free himself from her grip.
Meanwhile, Syviis yanked Vidar by the ear just as he was about to let out another booming laugh, scolding him from the front of the wagon.
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At that moment, it was Zara who burst into the loudest laughter, bouncing slightly in her seat and knocking her shoulder against Sylleth, who was still grinning proudly at his joke.
"Cut it out! Go fix Lirian up instead of playing around!" Shouted Syviis, still holding laughing Vidar by his flushed ears.
"Yeah, what she said." Lukius added, peeking inside the wagon.
Lirian and Corym both bursted into laughter right after Mallory was forced to let go of Niall by Sif, who—despite being completely exhausted after the battle—separated them without breaking a sweat.
After that both Sif and Corym took care of half-elf's wounds, bandaging them and commanding him a rest.
Minutes of laughter and conversation passed, until thee carriage had finally reached the end of the tunnel, with which came the vast, open space, which—if it wasn't for a mass of stalagmites and stalactites hanging from the rocky ceiling—would be indistinguishable from an ordinary clearing on the surface housed two large, overlapping plateaus.
While the lower one was filled with a mass of smaller villages that were being usually used as a station for adveturers, on the upper one stretched a sprawling city that was rising higher towards the center and along the cliffside.
A vast, illuminating mushroom forest was growing around it. While the fungi's stems were the same grey colour as giant stalagnates surrounding the city, their caps were purple and lively.
That combination was making up for a perfect natural protection, leaving things like walls completely unnecessary.
At the very bottom lay an enormous chasm, filled to the brim with dense fog that seemed almost partially liquid.
Raising his gaze upward, through an open roof, Sylleth saw massive, dark brown branches—surrounded by clusters of shimmering, sprawling leaves—supporting the cavern's ceiling.
The leaves were shedding a bunch of yellow and purple dust, creating colourful waves in the air that resembled an aurora.
"Asteryana...?" He murmured with an expression of awe.
"Yes... a branch of the World Tree... Beautiful, isn't it?" Responded Corym, also looking up with a similiar expression.
"No matter how many times we see it, it's still breathtaking." Mentioned Niall, shifting to his back and watching the branches carefully.
"Alright, just a bit longer and we'll be in Sibashi." Syviis announced from the front of the carriage with a shout.
"Finally... I really need some rest after all this..." Niall muttered, taking his gaze from the ceiling and sitting up so that his back rested against the wall.
"...you're telling me?" Lirian's rough murmur was almost inaudible. The man lay on the mattress on the opposite side.
His entire upper part of the head — save for a few strands of black hair peeking from the bandages — was wrapped, covering even his eyes. The same went for his chest and the part of his right leg that were taken care of before.
"Lirian, stop talking, or you’ll just make it worse..." Sif reprimanded him, and leaning against the wall of the wagon, her gaze fixed on the spot where the elf's eyes should be.
"Hah... funny coming from you... I can't believe I'm the one who ended up in the worst shape..." He let out a soft scoff, slowly turning his head to the side.
"Honestly, I’m not surprised... you used too much mana with that attack on the platform." Corym cut in, sitting down between Sif and Sylleth, his elbow resting on his knee and his head propped up by his hand.
"You're exaggerating..." Lirian muttered again, this time more reluctantly, leaving no room for further conversation.
"Whether he's exaggerating or not, he's partly right," added Lukius, peeking into the carriage once again.
The half-elf's only response was another scoff, and the conversation died down once again.
Listening from the side was Mallory, silently cleaning her hammer, trying to calm herself, while her less-than-approving expression was a prove that it wasn't so easy.
More minutes passed as the wagon moved closer to the massive city, slowly passing the scattered buildings and giant stone structures on its outskirts.
"...Haven’t seen Lavoye in a while... I wonder what our prince has been up to," Corym spoke again, gazing through the wagon’s roof at the towers of the royal castle rising in the city’s center.
"...Oh great, so now we know who gave us this job. Would’ve been nice to hear that earlier," Sif muttered, grabbing her head with a sigh.
"...I didn’t tell you...?" Corym’s gaze shifted to the—baffled by his question—woman. "It's actually pretty interesting how I got to—"
"Get to the point, Corym... just get to the point," Mallory cut in, setting one cloth aside and immediately reaching for another.
"...Alright, to put it simply, the job is from the prince of Sibashi." Corym's words carried a hint of excitement, though it didn’t seem to spread to the rest of the group... except for Zara, who started bouncing with interest beside Sylleth.
"How much is he paying?" Niall responded with the only question that seemed to matter to him at the moment.
"To be determined... it's a rather long-term job." The elf chose not to directly address the boy's blunt question, leaning back against the rear wall.
"... Is it weird if I don't know who we're talking about...?" Cut in Sylleth, scratching the back of his neck.
Corym looked at him, but before he managed to say anything Zara has beat him.
She started pushing Sylleth by his back. "Don't tell me you don't know Prince Lavoye!"
"I really don't know, don't push me like that." He laughed, turning toward her.
"You'll have a pretty good opportunity." Corym added, pulling his bag out from under the seat.
The carriage came to a sudden stop beside one of the city's watchtowers, from which a familiar silver-haired elf stepped out—someone Sylleth recognized immediately.
"Aslesa, have you been waiting long?" Corym stood up, tossing his bag out the window before leaning toward the elf.
She shook her head, picking up the bag from the ground. "Only a few hours... and please, don't throw your things like that," she replied in a calm tone, dusting off the bag.
"Alright, people, time to get off! From here on, we're walking!" Syviis called from the front, jumping down onto the damp ground.
Vidar and Lukius followed, stepping up beside Aslesa.
"Walking?! What about Lirian?!" Zara interjected, pointing at the bedridden man.
"I can walk just fine..." The half-elf slid off the bed, pulling back a section of the bandage from his eyes as he limped toward the window where Corym was leaning out.
"Are you sure...?" Sif interjected, stepping up beside him and offering her shoulder for support.
"Don't worry, I have something that might help," Aslesa said, turning back toward the tower and pulling out a pair of crutches from behind the door. "They keep these here along with a first-aid kit."
A brief silence followed before Lirian resumed his slow, limping approach toward the exit.
"I think I'll manage on my own after all," he sighed, carefully stepping down from the carriage.
"Oh no, take the crutches and stop complaining!" Sif shouted after him, swiftly jumping down and pulling him along with her.
"...Like an old married couple," Niall commented, standing up and turning his focus back to his carving before casually hopping out the window beside the group.
"Alright then… Mallory, what about you?" The blond-haired elf turned to the dwarf sitting beside him.
"What do you mean, me? You don't actually think I'm staying behind, do you?!" she shouted, raising her hammer as if she was about to strike him. However, at the last moment, she turned toward the exit, missing his forehead by mere millimeters.
In contrast to Sylleth, who shuddered faintly, the elf did not react at all, letting out a slight sigh.
"...Told you she’s terrifying," Sylleth muttered from behind the elf, speaking just quietly enough to make sure the dwarf wouldn’t hear him.
"You'd be dead meat if she heard you now." Zara nudged his arm with another smirk, before casually leaping out by the window, the same way as Niall.
"Alright, come on." Corym took a step away from the window, heading toward the door when the boy quickly grabbed his arm.
"Listen..." he began, lowering his head in embarrassment.
"Hmm?" Corym muttered, looking back at the boy with a curious expression.
"The bracelet..." The boy flinched slightly, speaking rather slowly. "... I lost the box..."
"Ah, so that's what it's about." The elf laughed, removing the boy’s hand and quickly stepping out of the carriage. "Yeah, it took me a while to dig it out from under the rubble."
Sending him a calm glance, he pulled a slightly tattered box from the pocket of his coat.
The boy smiled, letting out a sigh of relief as he stepped beside the elf. "I was starting to get worried I lost it."
As the boy stepped out of the wagon, he was met with an uncomfortably cold and damp air—something that hadn’t been as noticeable from inside.
All around, the sound of croaking toads and the buzzing of crickets filled the air.
"Ugh... smells more like a swamp than an underground cavern," Niall commented, standing beside him while covering his nose with a cloth.
"Unfortunately, the last earthquake destroyed the safe routes for carriages, so traveling on foot will be much safer for us," Aslesa added, stepping up beside Corym and eyeing his destroyed coat from top to bottom, but decided not to comment on it.
"Alright, group, let's move..." Sif called out, fastening her blade to her belt and taking Lirian by the arm.
Lukius followed, supporting the man from the other side.
"Let’s get going as fast as possible," Niall muttered under his breath, picking up his pace to follow them.
"Let’s go!" Zara bounced with excitement, leaping over scattered boulders along the path.
"We'll see you in the city." Corym nodded toward Aslesa, who had approached the two horses still hitched to the wagon.
"Alright, I’ll return the wagon to the camp and be back around midnight," she replied with a nod before settling into the driver’s seat and guiding the carriage away, disappearing into the distance.
As the wagon disappeared beyond the rocky path, the group pressed forward, their boots crunching against the damp ground. The air was thick with the scent of earth and lingering magic, and the faint glow of the luminescent mushrooms cast eerie shadows against the cavern walls.
Sylleth's gaze remained fixed on the branches of Asteryana, which were gradually being obscured by the tall buildings of the city with each step forward.
The architecture here wasn’t all that different from that on the surface, except that the buildings were in darker shades of gray and significantly thicker.
With each step, the glow of the World Tree faded behind them, swallowed by the towering cityscape ahead.
