The wind raced through the Wilds’ canopy, branches and greenery flogged at Gabriel's drenched clothes. Liz was hiding inside of his soul. But if shit hit the fan, that would mean nothing.

And as the first gigantic leaves of Yggdrasil started slowly falling through the grey sky stricken only by lightning, Gabriel knew shit had indeed hit the fan.

He had barely managed to run through half the field's span when he started seeing them in the distance. Huge behemoths-like creatures, the likes of which he had seen sleeping and already felt the terror of her power, moved across the fields. They sucked the falling leaves through their mouths; such was the suction power their lungs were capable of. Yggdrasil's palmate leaves that had already hit the ground were instead devoured.

Gabriel could not stop, nor could he turn back. He could only abuse his speed and hope he would get to The Cradle before they could pounce on him. But first, he had to prepare.

He evoked the Kata of the Surge, his body covered in water-tainted Ambient Mana, then he corrupted his own Mana to gain a semblance of concealment, and he was met with the brutal reality of his ignorance.

The Ambient Mana and his own Mana met a violent fusion, the glow of it turned violet, then his skin started itching, getting rashes, right away he felt weak, confused.

What the- poison!?

He had poisoned himself by mixing two types of Mana without shifting or mediating the effect. It was what Olivia used, poison-tainted Mana. Gabriel immediately cast Helping Hand, hoping it would cleanse him, at least with time.

There was no such luck, he felt like thrash itself, and the more he moved, the worst his condition became.

Gabriel kept pushing himself, even though the pain, the weakening, the daze were dictating his end. Judging that the creature's speed wasn't something he could hope to beat, he decided to go with concealment. Coating himself in dark Mana and abusing Dash and Meridians. He could feel his heartbeat loudly pump infected blood through his entire body.

He wasn't entirely invisible for the Ygg-dogs, but at least they noticed his passing only after he had moved past them, leaving them confused; Gabriel managed to keep up the speed giving it all he had. Thus, incredibly shortening the time it would take him to reach Yggdrasil. He was at less than a mile from it now, he could see The Cradle's massive arc, even the guards standing at the post; he could make signals, shout at them to come to get him or hope they would notice him, but the first thing would make the Ygg-dogs throw themselves at him, while the second one didn't seem feasible. They were not even looking at him yet.

What kind of fucked up guards are those!? Look at me! It's your damn job! I'm right here! He thought.

But they simply weren't, so he just kept speeding until the world turned upside down.

Gabriel lost his Mana coating, he rolled on the floor multiple times after tripping, and when he finally stopped, he noticed that he had lost control of his body entirely.

He was paralyzed, and when he saw a ygg-dog's massive head enter his sight, he became paralyzed with fear as well.

It's sleek teeth, and golden armored muzzle growled first questioningly, then threateningly.

I can't believe we're going to die like this, Liz. After all that we've been through.

He felt Liz wanted to push through, push out from himself, but he was blocking her with his will; a metaphorical cage he couldn't know he could summon was keeping her locked in his soul. No, Liz! I can't watch you die; it kills me every single time!

Liz moaned, growled, and started tearing down the continually reforming barrier that Gabriel's will had posed around her. She was tearing it up faster than he could generate it, but it was too late.

With a roar, the ygg-dog mouth shot toward the grounded man, then it was darkness.

But only for a second.

A loud noise made Gabriel's eyes open wide.

A figure dressed in midnight leather armor kicking the ygg-dog's face, but sadly it wasn't enough. More dogs, hearing the fracas, came running at them. Gabriel could see her battling the dogs, kicking them around, slashing them with enormous daggers that launched blades of darkness everywhere they moved. Then he felt the distant shouting of the guards and the uproar that followed.

Gabriel's senses grew dim and dimmer. He didn't know what was going on anymore, but he felt a familiar voice, something distant shout something along the lines of, "Take him! I think he's poisoned!"

Soon after, he fell into slumber.

***

"What a shithead," Darte said aloud, looking at the man recovering from self-poisoning on the bed of the hospital.

The guards had taken him to Wallcity hospital as fast as they could, somebody among them administered him with basic poison treatment, but the nature of the poison he had created was unknown.

Specialists from the Outpost had been called in to take a look at his rapidly-growing cellular degeneration; in the end, the one managing to understand the nature of it was Olivia.

After being told the results of a deep Scanning, she guessed in minutes what he had done, while doing so, Darte had noticed her eyes, now only one of them turned green.

If he didn't already guess what had happened, he would have asked her.

"Hey, fuck-tard! Wake up already. You have a damn appointment in two days!"

"Darte!" Gaia hushed him.

"Like he's even listening."

"Well, Liz might."

"If it wasn't for Harper-"

"Aunt, Harper," said the woman, correcting her nephew.

"Sorry, Auntie. If it wasn't for Aunt Harper," Darte continued, "This fuck-head would have died already, and while killing himself on top of it all!"

"That's-" Gaia tried to say but was interrupted once more.

"That's because you feel damn responsible and are giving him too much freedom. School! That's what he should have, a long, intense schooling period. We should lock him up in a cell, peel his eyelids away, seal his regeneration, and fucking brainwash him!" At the end of that vent, Darte was almost heaving.

"My, my… if it wasn't because it's you we're talking about, I'd almost say you are worried about him!" Said Harper Reevers, Darte and Gaia's aunt, with a laugh.

Darte became a shade redder and left with just a snort. Once he was out of the door, he turned away just to add a sentence, "If we don't indoctrinate him, he's gonna be just another Red Tom."

"You know he's partially right on that," Harper said.

"I don't know Harps… that's not something we should do; don't you see what he's capable of accomplishing while on his own?"

"You're talking about the Yggdrasilian princess, are you?"

"Yes, that too. It's… disconcerting that he's the only one that has a Magic Skill capable of spirit-bending and sealing in within The Den-"

"If you do not include the Shamans," Harper said, stopping her.

"-and," Gaia continued, "developing a Power Skill related to the Flowing Disciplines. A Power Skill Harper, not a Stamina Skill… it's incredible. And this is all thanks to that place he's been. His ruin and his blessing." Gaia shook her head while her hand reached Gabriel's.

Harper smiled at that, "Just what do you see in him? He's rather average under every aspect but his ability to find himself at the wrong time in the wrong place."

Gaia left Gabriel's hand when she understood what Harper was hinting at. "That's not what you think, Harps. It's just… he's saved my life from Red Tom's thorn. He should have had his soul sealed, but he hasn't… then I discover that he's the- a Herald. I couldn't have just not obsessed about it, for at least a little."

"You don't sound convincing at all… however, it's the first time I'm hearing about this thorn removal thing. You are saying he extracted Tom's signature Skill thorn from you before he was even Anchored? And the Elder knows about this?"

"Of course he knows."

"And what does he say about it?"

"He said it could be related to their soul lengths, maybe being family, they are so close that the sealing failed to recognize its owner. It's not unheard of," Gaia stated.

"No, no. That I heard before, it is extremely unlikeable though," Harper shrugged, "Well, there are things like luck even here on Alter. Gosh…" she added, "it's so stupid calling it this why, we should just call it by its real name its by far better."

"You talking about Alter?" Gaia asked.

"Yes. Isn’t it better when you call it -------?"

Gaia chuckled. “We can speak it but not hear it, it’s not really fair if we’re speaking with someone who hasn’t had the chance to read the true name.”

"Yes, you’re right, but these days I don’t even get to really speak with anyone apart from my family, so I might as well,” she said. She was clearly frustrated, “There are things I'll never understand about this world. However, I'm grateful," she continued, passing a hand over the side of her body and clapping her own butt-cheek. "I'd like to see anyone reach one-hundred and two years old with such a body."

"You look beautiful like always, auntie. Now, let's go. I feel his Mana rousing. He must be waking up."

"Are you sure you don't want to give him a smooch?"

Gaia shook her head. "Let's just go, please."

***

"Eat everything but that!" Gabriel shouted, waking up.

He was drenched in sweat, his brows arched, and his head hurt like hell.

"Uh?"

However, there were no dogs around him. So, he let himself fall back on the bed.

"How do you fee-"

“AAAAAAARGH!”

"Olive! Jeez! You scared the crap out of me…"

Olivia chuckled. She gave him a few moments before saying, "You are one massive fool, you know?"

"Oh, so you must have been told what happened."

Olivia took a nearby chair and sat by his side, "Yes, I… was told," she smirked, shaking her head. "Not only did you got out with the rain and instead of remaining in the Wilds until it stopped, but you also came back to Yggdrasil and toward the Ygg-dogs, and on top of that you poisoned yourself with magic!" She couldn't help but roar in a burst of laughter.

Gabriel's eyes shot wide in understanding, "There was that option?"

Olivia couldn't help but cry for laughter. She was gasping for air. "You are- you are the most- the dumbest man I've ever known in my life, Gabriel!"

"Oh, come on…" he said dejectedly… "that's going a bit too far… I admit I'm not the smartest man alive… but the dumbest? That's just, mean…"

"Gabriel!" She said, trying to spur him toward seriousness. "You would have died! Do you get that? If there wasn't your… shadow following you everywhere, you would have died today." Olivia had stopped her hysterical laughter.

"Does this shadow follow me when I pee as well? I mean, not that I'm embarrassed or anything, but we both know that I'm a grower and not a shower, so I wouldn't want him to spread false informa-"

"Gabe… you could have died…" She said. "You were dead for thirteen minutes, actually."

It hit him then, and he figured it out from her gaze. She had been there with him when he was dead, probably by his side, "Thirteen minutes, it's a lot."

"It is."

A few moments of silence ensued between the two before Olivia broke it by getting up.

"You should check on Liz. Even a false death like that can shake a Spirit to its very foundations. Expect changes."

"Olivia," he called as she headed out, "You were here with me?"

Olive nodded but did not turn his way.

Gabriel sighed. And now? What should I do?

***

Darte was outside the hospital when Olivia got out. He was waiting with his arms folded, right by the exit.

"You didn't tell him, right?" He asked the moment her foot left the building.

"Holy-! Can't you be more discreet!" she said, evidently surprised by him.

Darte did not react jokingly. He was serious, "You should have told him you are the very reason why he lives; why?"

"Grown-up business," she answered.

"You feel responsible for his suffering. Now that you know your book was wrong too, your witch doesn't wear you with both shoes, am I right?"

Olivia did not answer him, "Why don't you focus your effort on retaking control of that level twenty Dungeon? You have no idea how people are laughing at the Druids right now. You should hear what The Deep has to say about us; maybe then you'd focus on what's really important."

"Us? It's us now? Mermaid-girl? What about the promise done to you?"

Olivia snapped at that point, "Be true to yourself, Darte. Ask the honest question. ' What about the promise done to me?' Is what you really want to ask."

"Yes," Darte said, taking her by the wrist.

However, Olivia was not theTier 2 she once was. She shook his hand away, "You are asking the wrong person," she said to his face.

They both left after sharing an intense gaze.

***

Liz? Lizzy? Are you there, love? How are you?

It took Gabriel half an hour to get in contact with his Spirit, he could feel her being there, closed in his soul, but she was not answering. So he decided to go check.

Reaching his soul had not been a fast and easy process. Gabe had to get back to the state of mind he was while he trod The Memory. And use mind-bending on himself. Enough to say, he was in need of learning some real meditation techniques.

Once he correctly visualized it, he recognized the place immediately. Liz was there, curled up on herself at the center of the empty sphere that he perceived as his core, that thing at the center of his soul, whose surface was instead made of liquid fire Mana.

Hey, pretty lady. Are you still mad at me?

Lizzy just whipped her tail around once. She was clearly frustrated.

I'm sorry, Liz. I couldn't bear the thought of seeing you get ripped to pieces by those mutts. I need you to understand that. Liz didn't answer, so he continued speaking.

I doubt you would have allowed me to leave if our situations were inverted. I believe you would have beaten my legs off before I-

Liz violently turned around and started mimicking something. She brought her hand in the sign of kaput over her throat, fell to the floor, then pointed at herself, and jumped up, mimicking some sort of… happiness?

You come back to life if your body is destroyed, while I don't, and I know that. But Liz. It kills me to see you that way, more than it does in thinking myself death. Can you understand that?

Liz sighed, but looking at him deeply in the eyes, she nodded, defeated. Then disappeared.

After letting go of his focus, Gabriel found himself sitting on the hospital bed; Liz was nearby, pointed at his clothes, and signaled for them to go. There was no more light coming from the windows. And although he might not be in time for his lessons anymore, he had to at least warn his teacher after that. It was time to get back at the inn. The following day he would need to get to the leatherworker and subject himself to the Binding of his new leather armor before it could be taken to the enchanters.

It would be a long day.