The forest slowly turned dark while Xixi was leading Nightflash through the trees. They had entered it only a few minutes after they started their journey, but now it was already dawn. While they walked Xixi stopped every now and then to add some items to her necklace. Berries, mushrooms and other wild growing foods got slowly added together with dried grass, twigs, branches and other things that would be used for her campfire. At some point of the trek, she had unclipped the bit from Nightflash’s bridle to allow him to snack on the greenery around them.

Finding a small clearing, they stopped to rest for the night. The tent materialized in the middle of the space, and Xixi brought Nightflash to the shelter and placed food in his through and water in the water bucket. She then proceeded to take off his tack so that he can rest for the night, setting up the small pen with the movable fence before she took the tack with her into the tent. After she placed it on the ground she stepped to the campfire and lit it with now trained moves. Cooking a small dinner for herself she thought about what she experienced today. When she finished her dinner and rinsed the tableware she laid down to sleep.

She woke up when the sun just started to move it’s way into the sky, stretching her body while she stood up. Eating the leftovers from dinner she stepped outside to tend to Nightflash. The stallion was standing silently in the moist morning air, not moving anything except one ear, when Xixi stepped next to him with a brush in her hand. This was the little morning ritual that they started in the cave. Each morning Xixi would come out and brush his fur, clear his mane as well as his hooves. It was obvious how much he liked that, as he visibly relaxed under the long massaging strokes of the brush.

Only when Nightflash was completely cleaned up did Xixi stop and go to his through. Filling both the fodder through and the water bucket motivated the stallion to come over for his breakfast. While Nightflash was eating, did Xixi bring his tack outside and folded the fence again, securing it to the tent. Nightflash had also finished his meal when Xixi turned around. With a wave of her hand did the tent disappear as it was stored in her necklace again. She picked up the saddle and placed it back on Nightflash’s back, securing it while paying attention that nothing was placed wrongly or moved around.

But when she wanted to start the journey Nightflash didn’t move. Surprised she stopped and turned halfway, just to see him step up to her so that she was at the right position to get on his back. dumbfounded she looked at him, and as she showed no other reaction Nightflash pushed her slightly towards the saddle. “You… You want me to ride you?” Xixi asked still surprised at the unusual behavior of her companion. Another light push from Nightflash acted as a response. Xixi had never even tried to get on his back so she fumbled a few times before she had successfully climbed into the saddle.

Nightflash started to slowly walk when she was sitting in a stable position. Surprised by the movement Xixi reached for something to hold onto, while her left hand clamped down on the saddle, did her right intertwined itself with the long black mane in front of her. Though it only took a few moments before she felt her body adapt to the steady pace and she started to relax a little bit. With the long steps of Nightflash, they found their way out of the forest just before noon.

A huge sunny grass field was spread out in her view, showing a rather different scene than the always shadowy forest. Xixi spotted a few figures, but even with the distance that stopped her from seeing them clearly, she was pretty sure that these weren’t humans but rather some kind of animal. Nightflash did a few slight jumps, and the moment Xixi held on to him again he started traversing the grassy field in a calm canter. It took only a few moments for Nightflash to move towards them so that Xixi could see clearly what it was.

Nearly 20 deer like creatures wandered around. Though compared to the deer Xixi knew from the television shows, in reality, these were huge and seemed much more dangerous. All of them had antlers, though most of them only had a pair of antlers that resembled horns more than antlers. One pair grew straight to the sides before it made a slight curve to the back of the deer, while the other pair grew out in the front and curved inside a bit near the end. The antlers were more than a meter long and fitted the size of the nearly three-meter tall creatures. In the group were also a few that had antlers that looked more like Xixi had seen it before, just bigger and dotted with sharp spikes.

Nightflash didn’t go near them but instead moved in a huge arch around them. Soon these creatures vanished from her sight other creatures taking her interest. She had only heard the silence of the trees when she was in the forest, it seemed like no other creature besides Nightflash and her was living in there. But the plains showed her that this world was, in fact, full of life and the sheer amount of different creatures she saw in only a few hours of riding stunned her.

Xixi was really hyped to learn more about all these creatures. And whenever Nightflash needed a break to get his stamina back or when he stopped to eat something, did she think about what she had observed and tried to figure out what kind of creature she had seen.

Repeating this over and over again, the day passed. Nightflash was sweating but still went on, his steady canter not faltering to his obvious exhaustion. Xixi didn’t know how to stop him as he ignored her completely. Just when the dusk gave way to the darkness of the night did Xixi see lights in the distance. The lights grew and she could see the silhouette of a small village. Nightflash slowed down when they neared the settlement, changing into a steady paced walk the moment they could see two humans standing guard at the entrance. He was breathing heavily, his head hanging low out of fatigue. Seeing him this way Xixi jumped from his back to ease his load. She guided him to the entrance and stepped into the light of some torches only a few moments later.

“Who are you?” one of the guards asked her, hand on his sword, the moment they saw her. Xixi was startled when she heard him talking in a language she never heard until now, but what shocked her, even more, was her ability to understand him. Hoping that she would be able to be understood in the same way she answered, “Hello, I’m Xixi a traveler. Would it be possible to find shelter for the night in this place?” she said and was again startled when she heard herself talking in the same unknown language than the guard. “Where are your fellow travelers?” the second guard asked her, he seemed wary of her. “It’s just me and my horse” she answered with a shake of her head and looked to Nightflash for a moment. Only then did the guards take a good look at the horse, and seeing him exhausted as if he had run for his life they naturally misunderstood what Xixi said. “I’m sorry. We will pray for your fallen comrades” the second guard said, now less wary of the duo. “Come I will show you to our small inn. There you and your horse can take a rest for the night” the first guard said and guided Xixi into the village.

The inn wasn’t far from the entrance to the village and while the guard said it to be a small one, the building had two floors and seemed rather big. The guard knocked on the first door they reached, and only a moment later it opened. “Little De, are you trying to get out of guard duty again?” an older woman said when she saw the guard standing there. “Granny Lin!” he exclaimed indignantly. “I’m here because we have a guest” he gestured to Xixi, who was standing half a step behind him, “She needs a place to rest for herself and her horse. She just reached here after losing her fellow travelers” he explained and the old lady looked abashed for a moment when she looked at Xixi. “You are really too young to travel already. Come I will show you where you can bring your horse for the night and then I make you something nice to eat, you look like you starved for days” Granny Lin shoved the Guard, little De, out of her way and took Xixi’s arm to guide her to the stables. “I’m Linette but everybody just calls me Granny Lin. You can bring your horse in there, my husband will come and take care of it” Granny lin pointed to a horsebox right next to the gate. “Thank you, Granny Lin. I will take care of him on my own, I owe him that much as he kept me safe on the travel” Xixi said and started to take off his tack the moment Nightflash stopped in the stable. “Oh… You are really a good girl. Alright, you can take the food from over there” she pointed to a place two boxes over, “and when you finished you can walk through there to come into the tavern. I will make a good meal for you” she pointed to a door opposite of the horse food. Then Granny Lin left through the door she just pointed to and Xixi was alone with Nightflash in the stable. “Thanks, buddy,” she said while she started to rub his coat with a blanket to get him as dried off as possible. She then placed another blanket on his back to help him keep warm in the chilly night before she stepped out of the box and over to the horse food. She took an arm full of hay and dumped it in front of Nightflash before she also brought two buckets over. In one of the buckets, she filled a couple hands full of the food she had bought earlier while the second one got filled with water. While Nightflash started to eat, Xixi rubbed his neck. She was exhausted from all the surprises she had and from the long hours of sitting in the saddle for the first time. Her whole body was sore from it and she really didn’t want anything more than a bed to sleep in.

“Be careful little De. Don’t wake her up” a coarse voice drifted into Xixi’s mind when she was startled half awake. “I know gramps. Just tell me which room Granny prepared for her and I will make sure to bring her there” the voice sounded younger and she had the feeling to know it. Her still half-asleep mind couldn’t place it though so she simply stopped thinking about it. but when she was already drifting off to sleep again she felt herself being picked up by someone. Shocked she remembered that she was right now in a foreign village in Knights of Honor. She heard steps on the wooden ground and the creaking of a door before the smell of food reached her. Slowly Xixi opened her eyes to see her surroundings. The first thing she saw was a leather jacket that was closed over a broad chest. Turning her head she was able to see the face of the guard, little De, who brought her to the inn. Based on her position she figured that this young guard was carrying her, realizing that she felt shy. No male, except for her father, had ever carried her around. She never had a boyfriend as her illness was a huge problem for her, but of course, she had a crush more than once. It just never worked out for her. So being in such close proximity of a well-trained and fairly good-looking young man did have some effect on her state of mind. Just then, as if he had sensed her gaze, did little De look down at her. Xixi felt his body become rigid under her and he stopped moving. “Uhm… Hey… y-you we-were s-sleeping… in the barn.. so gramps got me to bring you into your room” he stammered at first and Xixi couldn’t help but chuckle at seeing him flustered like this. “Thanks. You can let me down now though. I can walk on my own if you show me where it is” she said still amused about his reaction and feeling a little shy herself. “Huh? oh… yeah sure” Little De was stunned at her reaction. He set her down carefully, and only as she was standing on her own did she see an older male behind the young guard. “Thank you for your help,” she said and gave a small bow to the man, obviously surprising him. “No need to thank me. It’s just right that we make sure our guest doesn’t get sick by sleeping in the barn” the man said and gestured for them to start moving again. “Please, Miss, little De will show you the way to your room. Would you like to have something to eat before you go to bed?” he said and Xixi nodded vigorously. “Yes, please. I’m starving” she said and her stomach started rumbling, just like it needed to make sure everyone knew that she was really hungry. Xixi’s face went red and both the guard and the old man tried not to laugh at the situation. “Then Miss please,” little De said amused and started to walk to the stairs.

The room was rather small and sparsely furnished with only a bed, a small table with two chairs, a small wardrobe, and a middle-sized chest. But it was enough for Xixi as she came from a poor background. So in either way she was never accustomed to a life of luxury.

Only a few minutes after the young guard left to return to his partner, Granny Lin did enter with a steaming hot stew and a couple slices of bread. Xixi was happy to eat something and after filling her stomach she went to bed. It took nearly no time for her to fall asleep again.

The next morning did greet Xixi with the sunlight shining onto her face from the open window. She changed her clothes and went down to the ground floor. There she was greeted by Granny Lin, who had already the breakfast ready, and the guard little De, who was currently eating. “Miss, I will bring your breakfast in a minute,” granny Lin said and Xixi sat down in front of little De. “Thank you for helping me out last night” she thanked him again. “Oh no. It’s my duty and I knew that granny Lin and gramps did have some free rooms” he said shrugging his shoulders. “Still I’m grateful” Xixi replied, and seeing that he wouldn’t accept her she added, “I think I never introduced myself right? I’m Xixi.” The guard started grinning, “I’m Dederic, though Granny Lin and gramps call me little De. Oh yeah, Granny Lin is my grandma, she and my gramps are the owner of the inn and the only public stable in the village. So It’s always nice to see traveler that take a rest here” Dederic grinned and Xixi couldn’t stop herself from smiling back. “Alright, kids. Now eat you need everything you can get to grow up strong” granny Lin said, placing Xixi’s breakfast in front of her. Xixi and Dederic grinned at each other before they placed their attention to the food, only talking a little bit in between bites.

After eating up did Xixi go into the stable, Dederic followed her as he had heard from his gramps that the horse is a real handful. “Ohh…. I didn’t realize that your horse is that big last night” he said surprised at seeing Nightflash. “Hmm? Oh yes…” Xixi answered, not knowing how a normal horse here looked like was definitely a problem. She once again thought that she should have listened to Raven when he was explaining the world of Knights of Honor. “You think I can let him wander around outside of the village for a bit?” she asked as she brushed his fur in, now trained, strokes. “Won’t he run away?” Dederic asked bewildered, as he never heard of someone letting his horse wander around on the outside. “Why should he run away? He might take a run but he would return before it turns dark” she replied with full confidence. Dederic could only nod as he knew that disagreeing would be rude and probably wrong as he didn’t know the horse but Xixi should know it as she was the owner.

As he didn’t object anymore, did Xixi take it as a silent approval and guided Nightflash out of the stable and towards the village gate. There he let him go and Nightflash jogged out for a bit before he turned and looked back at Xixi. “Go ahead. I will come and get you in the evening” she said, smiling at his attics, and waving him off. With a snort, he turned and raced off.

Only after he saw Nightflash running off did Xixi turn around, “now can you show me where I can buy some stuff for the next part of my travel?” she asked half-smiling. Dederic didn’t answer but signaled her to follow him. The village was small with less than 200 people living in it, so they soon reached the general store. “Here you find most of the stuff you need, over there is the tailor and if you follow the road to the edge of the village you will find both the tannery and the smithy,” he said and showed her where she could also go. After he made sure that she knew her way around he excused him as he was really tired and needed some sleep. “Have a good rest. I will handle it and thank you for your help” she said with a small bow and then both turned to go their respective ways.