"As I expected", he was heard saying as he glanced through the curtain. The sky announced gloomy times and the wind warned not to be outdoors. It was no wonder anymore at this time of year, because every inhabitant in Sylve was aware of what would await them in the coming days. Only he saw more in what was to come.

After all, he was the only one who remembered.

The presence of two people caught his attention. Footsteps could be heard on the other side of his door and he could clearly feel these two personalities stop briefly in front of each other and then walk in different directions. One of the individuals strode down the creaking steps, while the others grew quieter and were shortly drowned out by running water.

Unmistakably, the next morning had dawned and movement had arisen in the house. With tension in his limbs, he too straightened up.

It was cool, cooler than it had been the last few days. A sign that the storms were about to begin. But he didn't mind, he enjoyed the cold, even if he associated it with difficult times. The memories of being surrounded by snow and ice were vividly burned into his mind despite all the years. Things he could not forget.

After a pleasurable stretch, the man with the shoulder-length black hair now stood in front of his swank and began dressing for his last day of work. In addition to a fresh shirt and a clean pair of pants, he also opted for high boots today before reaching for his well-hidden dagger and making it disappear under his cloak.

As he opened his door, the boy who was in the bathroom a moment ago slipped by.

"Cale...", the voice announced softly. It was Lukas. The son of the family he was currently living with.

"Good morning", Cale replied politely, but matter-of-factly. Glances were exchanged silently for a brief moment before the young man continued and Cale looked down at the inn.

Cale caught a brief glimpse of the hardworking parents of Lukas who were in the process of cleaning up the parlor before striding into the bathroom as well.

The inn 'Reibonlake', where he was currently staying, was one of the most famous taverns in the capital of Bellator. Well located at the northern end of the city, the large house is one of the most popular anchor points for Anuxers from all over the world, whether they are leaving for their missions or returning from them. Currently, Cale was on the second floor of the house, which was part of the family's private property. Therefore guests can't enter this area without permission and only catch a glimpse of the second floor from time to time. In contrast, the hallway from above offered an almost perfect view of the entire tavern, as well as the bar, the main entrance, the entrance to the kitchen and the toilets. The tavern itself was populated with large, round tables that could easily hold up to 60 people. On a good day, the place was so crowded that you couldn't even walk properly between the tables, as everyone was just drinking like savages.

Cale breathed a sigh of relief, washing his hands and face before reaching for a ribbon. As he did every morning, he brushed his mane and tied much of his hair into a high braid, something he had picked up from one of the chiefs in the North. One of the most influential men on the entire continent. Unintentionally, he caught a grin flitting across his face. Today was an important day, so he couldn't help but be excited. Ever since his arrival at Bellator, he had been waiting to finally leave town. Ignoring the almost daily messages from his closest friend was something that was incredibly difficult for him as well.

"Morning, Cale", the friendly voice of Tasha greeted him as Cale emerged from the bathroom and came down to the parlor. Another voice from the kitchen also wished him a good morning. From the tone of the voice, it must have been Marv, who was in the process of cleaning up the kitchen. With a quick greeting, he returned the morning call and moved toward the exit. Lukas was already at the door with his horse and cart. His mother was cleaning the tables in the tavern while his father was at home in the kitchen. The usual routine on such a morning.

Lukas merely nodded distantly when he noticed Cale, only to swing himself onto the cart at the same moment. Realizing his reaction, Cale sighed and sat down next to the boy who had been a useful cover for the past few years.

"Are you going to shut me up all day because of yesterday, or what's wrong with you?", the black-haired man calmly admitted. His eyes were fixed on the clean, almost empty streets ahead. The houses were lined up to save space and the usually decorative plants had almost completely disappeared. The mere sight of the gray stone walls made the city seem almost a little oppressive, so Cale turned his gaze to the east. The bright walls of the palace rose high into the sky, almost seeming like the moon itself. It was a place that triggered a certain degree of homesickness in him every day.

Lukas shuddered briefly at the dry choice of words before snapping the horse's line and the two set off.

"Lukas..."

With a slight emphasis, Cale took the floor again, but the innkeeper's son, 5 years younger, only returned silence. Groaning, the black-haired man rubbed his forehead and looked at the boy. Lukas' short, brown-red hair stood firmly in the wind as he buried his angular face in his coat, almost as if he were cold. He was relatively tall for his age and had put on quite a bit of muscle mass due to his training routine over the past few months. But his mature, outward demeanor couldn't hide what was going on inside.

Cale leaned back and let his gaze wander over the horizon. In the distance, he spotted one of the settlements outside the city walls, and a house caught his eye. It stood a little apart from the rest and was planted with dozens of purple flowers that could be easily seen at a distance, despite the weather. Whenever Cale saw the house, he wondered if the owners owned a flower store.

"When I accepted the offer to work and live with you guys back then, I said from the beginning that I could only stay in Bellator for 20 months", Cale finally said. He had already done his main job for some time, the only reason why he hadn't left yet was today. To be more precise, the transition from this day to the next. Cale's gaze wandered from the sea of flowers back to Lukas, who was visibly trying to suppress his anger and sadness. "You always knew I wouldn't stay by your side forever. I am and will always be an Anuxer, and I have been waiting for tomorrow for a very long time."

Lukas didn't dare look at Cale. Instead, he steered the cart toward the city gates. He was well aware that this day was inevitable, but he just couldn't face it. For the life of him, he couldn't understand why Cale would want to travel alone through the creature infested plains when he had other options.

In the distance, the North Gate could be seen. It loomed mightily in the sky along with the city walls, while some newcomers to the city were just arriving. It was quite possible that they had just returned from the plains, for judging from their expressions, the two men were experienced Anuxers. When Lukas arrived at the gate with the cart, he showed his pass to the soldiers and was met with a puzzled expression. One of the two soldiers looked directly at Cale before nodding inconspicuously. They knew each other, even though neither would say anything. They were following rule of silence that the king of Sylve had decreed. The guards let Lukas' carriage pass. Quietly, he led his horse as the two slowly left the large city behind. The more distance they built up, the fewer the houses became and eventually you were surrounded only by fields.

"Lukas..."

The tall, slender man with the black hair raised his hand, intending to run it through his younger passenger's hair, but Lukas beat him to it.

"Don't touch me!"

The angry yell echoed across the open land, in sync with him slapping Cale's hand away from him. Cale remained silent and withdrew his hand. At the same moment, tears rolled down Lukas' cheeks and fell onto his pants.

"Why..."

Lukas' voice was hard to make out between his heart rending sobs.

"Why now? And why up north? Why alone?"

Lukas dropped the reins, straightened abruptly, and looked Cale straight in the eye.

"Why do you want to travel through the plains alone? Why don't you take the ferries? What's so important that you have to go to Altona?"

Altona and the Kingdom of Sylve. Two peaceful regions separated by a high mountain range, a narrow desert plain and masses of creatures. Anuxers used to go to these regions for various missions, even if the best of them went hunting for the precious magic crystals hidden deep in the plains. However, for the past decade, this area has been expanding and becoming too dangerous for many ordinary wanderers. The only reason the creatures have taken up more and more land is because of dragons. For many years, eyewitnesses have reported that dragons have taken up residence in the mountains of Sylve, even though they have never left the Holy Island for thousands of years. A fact that Cale could confirm as well, because he knew the rumors were true. Not only that, but he knew pretty much how many dragons lived there and what they looked like. More than once he had seen them in the firmament and hid like a scared cat. The problem, however, was that space was running out for all of them and the magical creatures were beginning to expand their territory.

The mere thought of it made Cale angry. His hatred for the creatures and especially for the Dragon Queen was raging like a bonfire. Not least because he owed his current life to her. A life he had never wished for.

"Lukas...", Cale began quietly, breathing in and out deeply for a moment, then smiling at his younger friend and trying not to get lost in thought again. He already spent a lot of time constantly keeping an eye on everything that was happening in the world. Since he always had to be careful of how much he could reveal about himself without seeming strange or even being classified as a threat. "I'm not going to die."

"Don't avoid my question!"

Lukas' roar ripped through the surrounding silence. Usually there were few people out this early, but one or two passersbys have turned their head at this commotion.

"You're always like that...", he added afterwards, but broke off his sentence shortly after. "You just do things without thinking about the consequences, and then you don't even explain to others what's going on in your head."

"Please. Just this one time. Tell me what's going on. Why do you have to go to Altona?"

With hopeful eyes, Lukas looked to Cale after he finished his little exclamation. He tried to keep his emotional chaos in check while his brownish eyes were almost completely stained red and his face was completely soaked. Lukas watched as his counterpart thoughtfully rubbed his chin before that very hand came his way. Before Lukas knew it, Cale was running his hand through his hair and grinning contentedly until he finally calmed down and his gaze wandered off into the distance. In that direction lay the high mountains of Sylve, but due to the cloud cover and resulting fog, the outline was barely visible.

"There are some people there who mean a lot to me. More than my own life. I can't wait any longer" Cale finally gave truthfully, even if it wasn't the full story. The Magistrat would wonder why he still hadn't returned after two years, especially since he almost completely denied contact. But Lucas knew nothing of Cale's connection to the Magistrat. Only the soldier at the gate, who knew him, was awared of this fact. And also King Leonhardt of Sylve himself.

Lucas began to sob and buried his head behind his arm. He didn't understand a word of what Cale was trying to explain to him. But he had to make peace with that, even if he didn't want to. He didn't want the man who had become like a brother to him to leave, and he wanted even less to willingly put himself in danger.

"Can't you find someone to travel with you? At least until you reach the border, then you can go your separate ways."

"You know what?", replied Cale abruptly. This was exactly the statement he had been hoping for from the beginning. One of the main reasons he had gotten involved with the boy in the first place, who to him was nothing more than a minor character in his life. "If you find anyone heading to Altona tonight, feel free to ask if he or she would give me a ride."

"Really?"

Many strong Anuxers visit the tavern daily, so this seemed like a feasible action for Lukas. The sadness and anger were extinguished all at once. With both hands, he wiped the tears from his face as Cale continued.

"Yes, I promise you that. I would travel with him, but only if I am not a burden to the Anuxer or the group. They have to be okay with it."

"Don't worry, I'll be sure to find someone today", Lukas exclaimed, happy that he had managed to persuade Cale. Delighted, Cale removed his hand and Lukas also reached for the reins again. As he did so, he didn't see how Cale put on a deadly serious, somber look and gazed at the road ahead while only one thought flashed through his mind.