As the pair traveled on the cart, the sun slowly sank in the distance before a reddish-orange hue began to set across the land as the sun started to set. After seeing the setting sun, the pair decided it was time to make camp for the evening, Tyrius moving the mules that were pulling their cart to a small flat plain of grass to the side.

Once they were stationary, Tyrius and Leanna started to work setting up camp--Leanna took the tent out of the cart and began to prop it up, while Tyrius began to make a small fire.

It didn’t take very long for their tent to be set up and a small fire in the center of their little camp. Both took a seat and started to open up one of the ration packs that Tyrius had purchased from Irvon. Once Tyrius finished eating, he stood up and stretched before letting out a small yawn.

“I’ll take the first watch, and you get some sleep Tyrius.” Leanna commented as she glanced around at the darkened area surrounding them.

“Ah...well, I suppose that’s fine. You’re better at keeping an eye on things anyway.” Tyrius stated before rolling his shoulder in a slight shrug. “Wake me up when you want to swap out.” he said before slipping inside of the tent to rest for the evening.

Leanna simply took a seat next to the fire and let a small sigh--it was true that she was better at keeping an eye on things, though that wasn’t because she had better eyesight. The real reason was how their mother--when Tyrius learned fire magic and smithing from their father, their mother taught Leanna the basics of wind magic. The thoughts took her back as she recalled the training Neira, their mother, put Leanna through.

“Leanna, focus inward on yourself and feel the energy flowing through you.” A soft, gentle voice spoke--a woman with light brown hair and yellow eyes stated she spoke down to Leanna.

“Feel the energy that permeates through your veins, essence that is magic.” she added on, her yellow eyes focusing on her daughter as she spoke.

After a few moments, Leanna spoke in a somewhat lower voice. “I...feel something. A warm...homely presence inside myself…”

“Mmmm, good, that’s the magical essence that resides inside of you--that resides in all beings. Now, for the next lesson. Do you recall why I taught you about wind and air currents?”

Leanna opened her eyes; her attention entirely focused on her mother once again. She nodded her head. “Yes--Understanding how the natural world works help mages focus and use their magic.”

Neira nodded rather happily. “That is correct. It is tough to use magic innately and naturally. Since we use mana to manipulate the physical world, it was discovered that understanding how the world works--the ‘mechanics’ of the elements, helps mages use their mana to manipulate the world around them. Now focus, again. Try extending your senses outward, feel the wind flowing around you, the gentle vibrations in the air. If you do that, you can tell what’s going on around you--even things you can’t see. Try to focus and see what your brother and father are doing.”

Leanna nodded, and once again as she closed her eyes. Leanna took a deep breath and began to focus on her surroundings, extending her senses outwards into the air. It was always a strange feeling to Leanna, but one she’d grown used to over the past few weeks of their training. She could feel the slight vibrations in the air. She could feel the gentle movements of her mother and herself. She could feel the light breeze of air flowing around them, brushing against the trees, and the grass that existed in the surrounding area. It was as if she had a complete view of the surrounding area, with her eyes closed. Of course, despite her successes, that didn’t stop Neira from treating her like a child and hammering in the basics of sensory mana usage.

Nonetheless, she focused her attention on the air around her and slowly focused her mana--her internal energy into the air around her, linking her sensations to the air itself. As per usual, she could feel the area around her. The ants were crawling in the grass, the gentle thumping of her own heart--and her mothers. Slowly she focused her senses more, extending them outward to cover a general area. Then, once again, she faltered, the senses at the end of her reach lessening--that was when Leanna decided to switch tactics.

Through her experimentation, Leanna learned that she could focus her attention in a single direction--allowing her to extend her reach but lose the ability to sense the surrounding area. Even still, it was a way of spreading her attention further than her average reach. So Leanna began to focus, withdrawing the mana she focused onto the surrounding area and focusing it forward, in the smithy direction. After focusing her attention and extending her senses as far as they could go, she felt something. Leanna felt a firm and heavy swing of what seemed to be a hammer slamming down into another object that vibrates from the strike. She could feel the sensations of the arm’s movements moving upwards, raising the hammer higher, before bringing it down once again.

The one slamming hammer down was a slimmer, more petite figure. That was likely Tyrius. After taking a moment to prod the area, she discovered another object that trampled slightly--it was a more prominent, more muscular figure--their father Burton was watching over Tyrius as he worked at the forge.

“I feel...Tyrius is working at the forge, and father watches over him as he works, mother.” Leanna mused out softly, her attention still primarily focused on the pair working at the smithy, when she felt something bap the back of her head. This surprised Leanna, causing her to jump upwards, her concentration lost. Glancing behind herself, Leanna noticed her mother standing there with a rather cheeky grin across her lips.

“I see you taught yourself to focus your attention--though you shouldn’t focus to the point where you’re blind everywhere else, Leanna.” Neira chastised her daughter--who was currently pouting as she looked up at her mother.

A small sigh escaped Leanna’s lips as she recalled those lessons with her mother--in truth, she missed them. After taking a moment and pushing the thoughts away from her mind, Leanna focused her attention outward, extending her senses outward and to the surrounding area. She could feel the gentle vibration of the world--the small animals skittering through the underbrush. The birds are sleeping and resting in the treetops, the gentle breeze flowing through the air, and rhythmic rising and falling of brother’s breathing inside of the text. After focusing and scouring the area she could sense, Leanna receded her senses back to herself. She couldn’t keep up her long-term senses for an extended period. The more Leanna extended her senses, the more mana she used, so she only occasionally focused on the surrounding area unless it was necessary.

After a few hours, Leanna eventually woke her brother and took the chance to get some rest. The both of them, during the journey, would end up getting less rest than they usually would. However, that was due to how there were only two of them--and they couldn’t afford to sleep most of the day. Regardless they both average a little more than five hours asleep before needing to set forth once again.

Afterward, the pair set out, Tyrius taking the reins and Leanna watching and surveying her surroundings. The rest of the trip was relatively uneventful, and the two simply continued their routine of Tyrius leading the mule’s forward, Leanna watching the surroundings, and then once night came, their five-hour watches while the other slept.

After a few days had passed, in the distance, Leanna saw it. She could see tall stone buildings jutting from the grounding in the space. A flat stone structure seemed to curve around, underneath the tips of the buildings she could see in the distance. “Tyrius--I see it!” Leanna stated in a somewhat excited tone.

It had been years since Leanna had last been to Dufast--most of the time, it was either Tyrius or their father who went to the city in their youth. “Mmm, you see it then? Good, we can finally get a good night of rest when we get there. Or well, after we deliver the weapons and all.” Tyrius said, a small sigh escaping his lips as he snapped the reins to urge the mules onward.

It didn’t take all that long to arrive with the city in sight--and they headed towards the southern gate of the town. After arriving at it, Leanna and Tyrius were stopped by a pair of guards.

“Halt, what business do you have in Dufast?”

The bulkier of the two guards asked, his eyes trailed between the two and cart.

“I was commissioned by lord Isgard to forge him a set of swords--I’m here to deliver the commission,” Tyrius stated as he tugged a small scroll from his pocket and offered to the guard, showing them the lord’s writ.

The guard nodded before glancing at the other. “Fickle, go check the cart.” After speaking, the stockier guard returned his gaze towards Tyrius. “We just need to check to make sure there aren’t any stow-a-ways. There have been some tiding of attacks by vampires up north, and we don’t want any of those bloodsuckers to get into the city. So please bear with us for a moment.

Tyrius nodded--it was a reasonable thing to do. The empire was on shaky terms with the vampiric kingdom. Still, peace had held so far, though the increasing attacks from vampires that Tyrius suspected were migrating through the empire to Sanguinium might lead to a conflict sooner rather than later.

After a few moments, the other guard finished checking the cart and gave the stockier guard a thumbs up. “All good. He mainly has weapons--some rations, but there is not anyone hiding underneath the baggage.”

“Alright, you’re free to go. Head towards the castle in the center of the city; they’ll let you through. I imagine they know you’re coming.” the stocker guard said before waving them past.

With a nod, Tyrius urged the mule’s forward once again, and the cart rolled into the city.

Once inside the city, Leanna’s attention shifted around, glancing at the city buildings of stone, the cobbled pathway that the cart traveled on, and everything else that she could see. It was vastly different in Idlesworth--there the roads were of dirt, and you were lucky to have a stone foundation, let alone an entire building out of stone. To Leanna, it felt like she was in a different world.

As she looked around, Leanna saw various shops and inners, minor wooden signs hanging down from above the shops depicting their names. “Tyrius, can we go looking around before we leave?” Leanna asked, her attention torn away from the signs and the stone walls back to her brother--who let out a small chuckle before nodding. “Sure, since this commission will earn us a decent amount of gold, we should pick up a gift or two as well. It’ll be nice to have a little spending money.”

“Ooo--that’ll be nice...nothing too expensive. Maybe a brooch? Or a ring? Oh, that’ll be so exciting~!” Leanna exclaimed, half to herself, half to her brother.

After a little more traveling, the pair came to the inner wall--the wall that stood slightly higher than the one that surrounded the city--and that circled the lord’s castle.

Upon arriving at the gate that led through the inner wall, Tyrius showed his writ to the guards--and once again, they searched the cart before they were given entrance. One of the guards following, leading them to a small courtyard to the side before departing.

After a few minutes, the guard returned, leading an older man, seemingly in his late thirties, but from his build and the way he carried himself, he was likely an expected swordsman.

“Greetings, I’m Swordmaster Sorven, and I’ll be taking a look at what you brought to make sure it is of reasonable quality,” he stated as he walked around the cart and taking a look at the weapons in the back.

The majority of weapons in the back were spears and swords, as they were the weapons that the local lord ordered. Spears were easy to craft--just need a spearhead and stick on a fine shaft of wood. Swords were more tedious since they needed to be honed into deadly weapons and well balanced.

Sorven reached inside and began inspecting the swords, occasionally taking a sword from the cart and giving it a few practice swings before returning it.

“I can see that you’re a fine craftsman Tyrius--Just like your father. Now he was a fine blacksmith as well--he even forged the lord’s sword himself, though he never accepted the offer to become the keep’s blacksmith. I think he liked the quietness of Idlesworth.”

Tyrius had met Sorven before--since he had delivered weapons and goods with his father before. However, this was Leanna’s first time.

“You knew our father?” Leanna chimed in, an eyebrow cocked upwards as she looked at the older warrior, who let out a small chuckle.

“Of course I knew him--he was a good friend, I’d say. We spared on occasion when he came, though he was never really able to match me. But, he knew the ins and outs of a sword better than I did. I imagine that comes with knowing how to make them.” he said with a small sigh before his attention drifted towards Tyrius.

“Your father taught you how to use a sword, right boy? Seeing as I can’t spar with your father anymore, how about we have a go, and I’ll see how much your father taught you. While you might not be a soldier, being better with the sword is never a bad thing.”

Tyrius, in the past, had seen his father get into his friendly bouts with the swordmaster. Though he never won, they were always exciting bouts. Though, of course, Tyrius knew that he couldn’t match up to the swordmaster--but it would be an excellent chance to learn.

Offering a small, respectful bow to the swordmaster. “I would be honored to spar with you--and to learn a little from you.”

“Good, good! I see your mother taught you manners--that was something Burton never mastered. Come into the center of the courtyard. Let’s see what you’re worth.” Sorven stated, waving for Tyrius to join him.

After taking a few paces to the other side of the courtyard, Tyrius’ hand drifting down towards the hilt of the sword he had. Taking a deep breath, Tyrius clenched his fingers, gripping the hilt of his sword before gently drawing it out, revealing the jet black blade.

“Ah, I see you bear your father’s sword, Tyrius. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen that black blade of his--I imagine he didn’t feel he needed to use it after he retired. It’s a good weapon--though that’s not the only one he forged.”

Sorven carried two swords with him--and during his spars with Tyrius’ father, he only drew one of them-- a regular blade. However, this time, as Sorven reached down and grasped the hilt of one of his swords, he chose the other sword he carried, pulling out his black-bladed sword, though it was a slightly different design.

“Sorven, I didn’t know you had one of those--did my father make more than one?” Tyrius asked, his eyebrow raised in curiosity.

“Yes, he did--he made a dozen of them. How much do you know how your father’s past--before he became the blacksmith in Idlesworth?”

“I never asked him about it. I never really thought about it. I assumed he always lived there.”

“Mmm, no, he moved after that he met your mother--before that, he was the blacksmith of a mercenary band--the Blacksteel. There were ten captains of the Blacksteel--I was one of them because I came into the lord’s service here. Your father crafted these black blades for the ten captains and as the leader of the leader, and they became known as the Black Talons of Blacksteel. Your father, since he has enough material’s also crafted one for himself. Though I’d say his skill with the blade warranted him being considered one--since he did fight with us on the field, but he didn’t lead any divisions.”

Tyrius nodded his head in understanding--though before Tyrius could respond, Sorven lunged forward, his black blade swinging to the left.

Quickly, after realizing that their spar had begun, Tyrius raised his sword upward, using the flat of his blade to block Sorven’s strike.

“Good. It seems you have some decent reflexes.” Sorven stated, before retracting his weapon, before swinging the sword with blinding speed once again.

The moves Sorven used were simple--he didn’t do any extravagant actions or techniques; however, for the moment, all Tyrius could do was a half-hazard block the strikes one after another.

Even though Sorven’s moves were simple, each strike flowed into one another, using the momentum of the last to keep up his pace and speed--unlike Tyrius, who didn’t have the skill to take flow from one block to another--but for the moment he held his ground doing everything within his power to dodge.

Of course, while this was a spar, it was a test of Tyrius’ skills. After it became clear Tyrius couldn’t do anything but defend with the current plethora of attacks, Sorven lessened the spacing between his attacks--giving Tyrius the chance to strike back.

Of course, now that Tyrius was given a chance to go on the offense, he lept at it, his sword swinging left, right, up down--his moves became more fluent. It was clear that Tyrius’ offense was more significant than his defense. But even still, despite Tyrius’ strike, Sorven blocked each move with ease--it was to be expected that a swordmaster was leagues above a novice such as Tyrius.

Of course, it wasn’t long before Sorven went on the offensive again--though he did go as hard as he did at the start, leaving Tyrius enough room to swing back--so that the two could genuinely exchange blows in the spar.

Despite the disadvantage in skill and strength, Tyrius held on to the best of his abilities before using what he considered his trump card. As the black blades crashed once more and sparks arced off the edges, and Tyrius took the chance.

While Leanna learned wind magic from their mother--Tyrius learned flame magic from their father. Since he was a smith, using fire magic made working the smithy easier--but he wasn’t at the level where he could conjure flames from thin air. He still needed a spark.

Once Tyrius saw the sparks arc from the two blades, Tyrius evoked his magic--Tyrius understood that fire needs three things to burn--fuel, heat to make the fuel burn, and air to let the fire breath. There was air everywhere--so that part was easy, the heated sparks that flew off from the impact of the two swords provided the heat Tyrius needed--and he could use his mana as fuel for the fire.

An instant later, Tyrius’ sword burst into flames--causing Sorven to jump back in surprise. Tyrius, though his knowledge of flame magic, also understood how to keep the fire from overheating himself--so despite having a blazing fire so close, Tyriusn didn’t feel a thing.

“I see your father taught you more than just a little swordplay!” Sorven retorted before moving back on and returning to the fray.

While Tyrius was still out-matched by Sorven--Sorven still had to be cautious. Now that Tyrius had a blazing blade, he could manipulate the flame in various ways to gain the upper hand on his opponent. Of course, Sorven’s caution meant Tyrius could take the initiative and attack himself.

While his swordplay was still unpolished, he was a bit better at attacking than defending. At first, Tyrius swung his sword in a downward direction, but when Sorven’s black blocked it, Tyrius quickly retracted and switched to giving an upward swing.

Tyrius swung his sword each time; it left a small trail of flames behind it--but no matter what Tyrius did, Sorven permanently blocked his strike, one after another. Whenever Tyrius made a mistake--which was often enough due to his inexperience, Tyrius compensated with his flaming blade.

When he left an opening, Tyrius willed the flame he controlled to rush into the gap and create a slamming shield--that if Sorven tried to strike through, he’d get burned to a degree. Of course, Tyrius, a few times, Tyrius commanded the flame to extend forward and engulf Sorven. Still, each time he tried, the swordmaster disengaged in an instant--and as such, Tyrius decided it was a waste of mana.

“I see your father has trained you well--you’re not too aggressive, you’re cautious enough. Yes, I think he did a fine job--but you’re still inexperienced, and only time can fix that.” Sorven stated as he rushed in again.

Of course, Tyrius braced himself--but when he hardened his stance, Tyrius slipped, the stone underneath his foot giving away, causing Tyrius to fall backward, his back slamming against the ground. By the time Tyrius realized what had happened, Sorven’s black blade pointed down at him. It was clear who had won.

“W...what did you do there?” Tyrius asked as Sorven reached down, offering Tyrius a hand and helping him stand upwards.

“Mmm, I know a bit of earth magic--so I caused the stone underneath your foot to shift once you took your defensive stance and caused you to lose balance.”

“Aaaaah...that was a dirty trick,” Tyrius stated, letting out a small huff--but Sorven simply chuckled at that.

“Tyrius, there is no honor in war and battle. All that matters is that you survive. Remember that.” He stated before patting Tyrius’ shoulder. “The swords you forged are exactly what we ordered,” he said, as he reached down, tugging a small leather pouch and tossing it over to Tyrius--who promptly caught it.

“I’ll have some men unload the weapons in a bit. Come back tomorrow and pick up your cart. We’ll store it here, along with your mule’s for safekeeping.”

After Sorven finished speaking, Tyrius bowed his head respectfully. “Thank you for sparing me--I learned a lot, Sorven.”

Sorven simply responded by waving his hand. “Anything for Burton’s kid. That man saved my life more than a few times back when we were in the band,” he stated before offering Tyrius a slight grin and tossing another small sack towards Tyrius--who also caught this.

“What’s this for?” Tyrius asked a somewhat confused look spread across his face.

“Mmmm, just think of it as a parting gift. Go buy yourself a pair of flint gloves and flint boots--they’ll help you cover for not being able to use spontaneous fire magic.”

Tyrius nodded in understanding--he knew what they were but didn’t have a pair for himself. Flint gloves were a special kind of gloves that caused sparks when the wearer snapped their fingers--while he didn’t know what flint boots were, he figured they had a somewhat similar function--but why would he need to make sparks around his feet?

“Of course, Sorven! When we head out shopping tomorrow, I’ll search for a pair of each!”

With that, Sorven raised a hand, waving towards Tyrius and Leanna as he walked off.

Once that was done, Tyrius walked over towards Leanna, whose eyes were brimming with excitement--and worry.

“Tyrius--are your hurt at all?” Leanna asked as her yellow eyes trailed up and down her brother’s form, making sure he was hurt.

“Just my pride,” Tyrius responded, his lips curling into a cheeky grin.

This time a small scoff escaped Leanna as she jumped down from the cart. “If you’re able to crack a joke, you’re fine,” she stated, the worry disappearing from her eyes. “And who would’ve thought that dad was a mercenary before he settled down.” Leanna chimed in as the pair started to walk off, leaving the castle.

“I know--I thought he always lived in Idlesworth. Though, I guess that makes sense, though, since we don’t have any other relatives living there.” Tyrius responded, his shoulders rolling in a slight shrug.

“I guess you’re right...but Tyrius, since you got paid--why don’t we have a good dinner tonight? While we’re in a big city, we should take this chance while we have it.”

In response, Tyrius let out a hearty laugh before glancing at his sister. “Mmmm, I forgot, you always enjoyed trying new and expensive foods.”

“H...hey! I’m just curious, is all!”

“Don’t worry, let’s go find something to eat. We can spend a little more than we normally would.”