Richard's offer of transport was something that shocked Vance, as he hadn't seen any horses or magic-powered means of transportation back at the Palace. But, the horned redhead seems to have some trick up his sleeve, which just reminded Vance how much he still didn't know about his newfound comrade. Unfortunately, that wasn't the only odd thing to happen, as Estrid was now walking in tandem with them. Glancing over, he still wasn't sure why Richard was suddenly okay with her seeing the Palace if he was just about ready to bite his head off when he had found the place. Such questions filled his head, many of them wondering if Richard was indeed a tsundere.

"Tsundere..." Vance mumbled under his breath as they strode through the secret passageway.

"What?" Richard asked, looking back confused.

"Nothing, nothing, just curious what you meant back at the manor when you said you had transports?" Vance said, quickly covering up his previous quip.

Richard, seemingly oblivious to the quip, replied with a smile, "Well, this is something I was supposed to show you but actually forgot."

"You forgot?" Vance repeated.

"Yeah, I forgot. So did the Old Man!" Richard chuckled.

Vance rolled his eyes, "Right, well, there was a lot that happened and..."

Casting his gaze aside, both men remembered the passing of Vilkmar. "... yeah... but, well, the Old Man made sure to set things in order before he left. He was a stickler for duties and shit." Richard continued.

Estrid was lost in wonderment for her part as they emerged from the passage and into the magically maintained mini-world underneath the mountains. Vance paused, realizing Estrid had stumbled, having lost her footing for a brief moment.

"You alright?" He asked, outstretching his hand.

She grabbed his hand, "I... I think? I mean, I'm not sure if I'm dead or alive anymore." She joked as she was helped up.

Vance laughed, tilting his head with a shrug, "I know the feeling, believe me. The first time I saw this place, I had the same reaction." He admitted.

Both laughed amongst themselves while Richard continued on his way, "Come on!" He called out.

Before long, they had reached a vast sheltered manger that looks more like a single vast cave, just comfortable enough to house living creatures. And living creatures were indeed residing within; as the group came up to the mouth of the cave, they came to see a single wyvern come peaking out, its attention focused on the three figures, only stepping out upon spotting Richard.

"Oh, shit..." Vance mumbled, "I wasn't actually expecting that."

Richard looked over, "what?"

"I wasn't expecting dragons to be raised by... well... you know." Vance couldn't help but laugh a bit at the irony.

Richard rolled his eyes as he continued, "Yes, there are many wyvern's that call the mountain range home, and to keep them safe from hunters, me and the old man took to raising and caring for them."

"So, this is the transportation you were talking about then?" Vance followed up while Estrid was still awestruck at not only the massive Palace looming in the distance but also the presence of Wyverns.

"W-wait! Wyverns?! I thought they all died hundreds of years ago?" Estrid exclaimed.

"Not dead, just hidden," Richard answered, "Adventurers had been hunting them for their scales and bones for years, to the point their population started to decline. So, me and my Old Man did what we could to save them, taking and raising them here under the mountain." He explained.

Vance peered into the mouth of the cave, watching as more dragonic beings came walking out from their hiding places. "Wow... how many are there?" Vance asked.

Estrid was still too astonished to ask any follow-up questions while Richard walked up and greeted the first of the Wyverns. Each lesser dragon stood some 18 feet tall and 40 feet in length. They weren't small animals, and nor were they the cute and cuddly type. Instead, they boasted some powerful bodies that looked imposing to even the High Human that was Vance. Just the thought of such a creature taken down by some random adventurers seemed ludicrous, if not impossible, from where Vance stood. Yet, it was a thing that happened centuries ago.

"So... where do you get the food to feed them all?" Vance found himself asking.

"I often hunt. It's a fairly easy thing to do, and there's plenty of game in the forests around Luna." He answered while petting one of the Wyverns. "Like those goblins you killed. Secretly, I transported their corpses into their feeding area." Richard added.

Vance and Estrid looked a bit shocked at the revelation but kept silent, knowing that it was a better means to disposing of a monster's corpse. Either way, the primary focus for the two was the lesser dragons that would undoubtedly give them a fierce advantage against any potential foe that might rear their head.

"So, how do we ride one?" Estrid found herself asking, only to let out a small surprised gasp, "Sorry! I'm... this is all new to me." She apologized.

Vance smiled, resting his hand on her shoulder, "You and me both, if you hadn't asked, I would've."

Richard remained silent for a moment, then pointed towards a nearby storage building with his head.

"Wait... you don't actually have saddles, do you?" Vance asked, a little surprised.

Shrugging, "How do you want me to respond? Say that there isn't a means to ride my kin besides holding on to dear gods?" He quipped, walking past and towards the building.

The building itself was a well-kept stone construction that looked about the same size as a barn. Its thatch roofing was hardly needed, given the location, but it was likely a means to give some semblance of normalcy to whoever managed the Wyvern den before. Stepping inside, Vance would find hundreds upon hundreds of large saddles, each one seemingly custom made for each and everyone Wyvern. Vance couldn't help but glance at Richard with pity, silently thinking how bored both he and Vilkmar were to do all this.

"Well... that was unexpected," Vance muttered as he grabbed one of the closest saddles. "No point wasting any more time than we need to," Vance said, pushing past, only to be stopped by Richard, who places a hand on Vance's chest.

"Or, we take a day."

Vance snapped his head to look at Richard, "What?"

"You haven't slept in two days, Vance. Two days! It would be best if you had some sleep." Richard explained.

"We all do." Chimed Estrid, noting her own shock by pointing at the Palace looming in the distance.

"The mission to the capital can wait a day, and the Wyverns need time to digest their food as well, so I think it'll benefit us all to take some time to rest," Richard stated.

Vance let out a small sigh in defeat. "Yeah... you're right." He said, stowing the saddle back in his place. "I suppose I'll get to test out my new bed then, I guess?" Vance joked, giving a half-smile as he started for the Palace.

Given its close proximity, and after having travelled the path a few times already, Vance was able to confidently find his own way into the ornate structure that was his new home. Pushing through the massive double doors, Vance made for his room, or was, when he heard Estrid call out behind him.

"Where do I sleep?" She asked, gawking at the beauty within the structure itself.

Vance turned, almost having completely forgotten about her in his need for sleep. "Ah... well, I'm sure Richard here could show you to an empty room." Vance replied, "Cause... I don't actually know much about this castle yet beyond where my room is." Vance admitted with a chuckle.

Richard let out a sigh, "Follow me. There's an empty room not far from the main chamber. You can stay there and live there if Vance allows it." He noted, motioning for her to follow him.

Estrid looked at Vance, almost begging to him let her stay, "Yes! You can stay, please... the more, the better. Might be nice to have some more people walking around here, so it's not such a ghost town."

"Thank you!"

Richard rolled his eyes as he continued on his way, flanked by Estrid, who looked more excited than Vance was the first time he arrived. He stood there a while longer, watching the two vanish down a separate corridor before he took the one to his new room.

Thankfully, he remembered the path to his room, quickly navigating the winding corridors and hallways until finally, he was in the large room. Glancing over to where Vilkmar had once stood, he let cast his eyes to the floor, still feeling a tinge of pain in his chest. There was likely a letter or some token left on the desk for him, but for now, Vance had neither the energy nor ability to muster up any further means to read, write, or anything beyond sleep. So, as his body began to grow heavy, weighted by the exhaustion that slowly started to make itself known, he pushed through one of the doors and into the main bedroom. It was impossibly decorative and looked every bit like the type of room you'd see a royal sleep in. White walls with gold trim and painted frescos displaying each of the ten deities Julia ruled over and was a part of, with Julia again taking centre stage with her image lovingly looking down towards a single king-sized bed on the opposite end of the room. Red satin bedsheets, a thick white duvet, and four white feather pillows rest his head. The room itself was also fully furnished to give Vance a welcoming homely sense.

Raising his brow, impressed by what he saw, he took a moment to admire the furnishing until that all too familiar pain of exhaustion made itself known. His body was screaming for sleep, as was his mind. Trudging forward, he reached the bed and barely managed to pull his boots off before collapsing into the sheets, falling into a deep, dreamless sleep.

---

"Ugh..." He groaned, slowly coming to, blinking the sleep from his eyes until he finally managed to prop himself upright with his arms.

Vance looked like a mess; the night's sleep had given him the much-needed rest his body demanded. His hair was dishevelled and greasy, having not bathed in well over four days. Seeing as how he was in a time when bathing was not precisely a daily routine as it was on Earth, there was a reason for his smell and outward appearance, but Vance, upon waking up, was determined to change that. Finding the bathroom, he found it looked like one would expect a palace in the eighteenth century to look. An ornate flush toilet with the water reservoir above and nearby was a gold tub that looked as though it was cleaned yesterday. Another benefit of the ancient magic cast upon this place, Vance thought. Peeling off his clothes, he tossed them aside as he began to do his dailies, doing the three S's; Shit, Shower, Shave-- just, instead of a shower, a bath.

The powerful magic that coursed through the castle was enough to make the whole process as expeditious as it would be with modern technology. And after washing up, he finally just realized how ornate the bathroom was, prompting the look of grimace to creep across his face. He wasn't used to seeing such finery, and nor was he exactly comfortable with the notion of living it up like an Emperor when he wasn't one. Thankfully, he didn't have any remain in the room, so after leaving, he began to look for something to wear... as he wasn't too keen on wearing his previous set, given all the sweat, dirt, blood, and mud that was caked on over the past two days. A quick look found there were a few things, but nothing that fit him naturally save a crimson red silk robe.

After tying tight the robe, Vance glanced down at his dirty clothes, wondering how he'd clean them. "Wonder if there's a magic that washes clothes here?"