Andy stood next to the wall, flipping through a few letters with a dark expression on his face. He glanced up as the pair reached the door, nodding at the guard before stepping out into the white land beyond. He wasted no time in moving out, barely even letting the other duo catch up to them. Moving a little faster than Elyon, Ange walked stride for stride with him, speaking in a low tone that could barely be heard.
What she COULD make out didn't inspire any sort of confidence. Bits and snippets seemed to point towards some sort of attack, although it was impossible to guess where they were going. She was too busy trying to control her own heavy breathing to focus on anything more than surviving. After some time, Ange fell back into step with her. He didn't say anything as they continued to walk, instead just looking to the side as if trying to find the right words.Elyon, seeing that he was still silent, decided to speak first.
"I really don't mind that we had to leave, if anything I'm still quite thankful for you both for taking someone with as little experience as me out here"
Ange nodded before speaking, putting on his best smile. It was clear that whatever he had talked with Andy about, it had put him in an equally sour mood.
"Yeah, it's a shame we couldn't have stuck around though. The rest of the festival is just as fun, although the first night is always my favorite. The little fire trick of lighting up all the lamps at once is about as good entertainment as you can get this far north"
"It certainly is impressive.."
The pair shared a grin before Ange continued to talk, his voice now more serious. It seemed like only now he had found either the courage, or right words to speak.
"Seems like there's been a series of large fires in some of the towns near the north here. By the time anyone reaches the area, it's been turned to ash. Strangely enough, no bodies, but good reason to believe the fire's so intense that it breaks down even bones. That's why Andy got stuck talking to the officials the entire time. Big talk of a group or a war or something coming soon, but no one's really sure of what's going on"
He gave a peevish shrug, apparently not sure what else to add. Elyon thought on her own for a few seconds before replying. The landscape of rolling hills around them highlighting just how isolated most of these towns were. It wasn't surprising that no one would get to them in time to help. Dark clouds passed overhead, threatening to cover the land with even more snow.
Speaking again, Ange sped up his pace just a little to not fall too far behind Andy. The group continued to move fast enough to outrun the weather that was no doubt brewing behind them.
"Anyways, me and Andy talked it over and once we get you back home we'll warn a few other places and then get you a proper recommendation to Sederra. If you want to, of course. I've been too busy to bother with learning but Andy seems to think you've got the talent to be a real show stopper. No clue how this guy is able to throw around so much influence but I get a free drink out of it so, ya know."
Elyon's face lit up at the mention of Sederra, her eyes growing wide with the promise of being able to go. As just about anyone who had any interest in magic knew, Sederra was by far the best school choice. The school was an incredibly popular destination, and made news headlines every other day with its feats.
"Ah…That's incredibly kind of you Sir Ange, but are you sure? I don't really have any sort of actual training."
"If I recall your earlier conversation with that big hatted girl, she called you 'Magic Smasher'. No clue what that's all about, but with a title like that you'd probably put all those rich bastard mages in their place."
With her face turning a slight shade of red at the rather silly nickname that she had been given, Elyon just turned her face away and nodded vigorously. It didn't seem like her parents would mind too much either, given they had been willing to send her off like this.
The next few hours passed by quickly as the land slowly turned less barren and more green. Despite the weight of the cold sweat she had woken up with and her pack having gained a few pounds of souvenirs, Elyon couldn't help but look forward to the possible future of attending a real school.