Liam woke up, what had roused him from his slumber he did not know. Perhaps it was the warmth emitted by the crystal a few meters from him, or perhaps it was the whipping wind that echoed off the walls.

Quietly he looked around, the first thing he spotted was Ben, who was sleeping like a rock next to him. As he sat up, he discovered Aletta and Philippa sleeping hand in hand a few feet from him. They seemed far more peaceful than Ben, so he couldn't help but smile. Liam let his gaze wander, not spotting Cale.

For a moment, Liam imagined the worst: Cale hadn't made it to the cave. But then he spotted the black-haired mans small backpack before glancing at his hands. Memories formed sketchily in his head and snatches of conversation came back to him. Cale had carried him all the way to the cave and Aletta had healed him. He still remembered the newcomer laying his cold, slightly trembling hand on his forehead before Liam closed his eyes and felt mana begin to envelop his body.

With caution, Liam straightened up and strode past the pale light of the crystal towards the exit, which he recognized through the moving curtain.

, Liam recalled, touching his forehead. However, he was fine. He was no longer in pain, his sense of balance was also completely back to normal and his whole body was as light as a feather. Liam felt as if he had been reborn and he knew exactly to whom he owed this. Aletta and her amazing healing abilities.

Gently, he lifted the curtain aside and was abruptly greeted by the cold air as he trotted barefoot towards the exit. To his surprise, he spotted Cale, who appeared to be sleeping wrapped in a blanket, just outside the exit. Liams steps became more cautious and he crossed his arms, needing a moment to adjust to the sudden difference in temperature. He tried to be quiet, but Cale had noticed him and opened his eyes.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you", the swordsman softly admitted, slowing down as he tried to make out the newcomers face in the half-dark entrance.

"It's okay, I wasn't asleep", Cale replied, turning away from Liams gaze. Slowly, the swordsman came forward and stopped next to Cale to get a good look outside. The winds had died down and the cloud cover had formed gaps, allowing the light of the moon to break through and sporadically illuminate the surroundings with its light.

"Scarry, isn't it? And yet beautiful", Cale added after a while, and Liam could understand what the mage meant by that. There was something mystical about watching the forest in such a state. For a few moments he silently observed nature before he could perceive rustling to his left and turned his attention to Cale. The latter began to unwind his blanket and with his hands stretched both ends wide apart and then looked up at him. "Sit with me, it's cool."

Liam cast a surprised glance at Cale, while at the same moment he realised that the wind was stretching its cold feelers towards him. Actually, he would have liked to object, but after yesterdays events, he had no right to do so. He was aware of how much worry he had caused the others, which is why he couldn't bring himself to file a complaint. Powerless, he took a seat next to Cale and let him wrap him in the large, preheated blanket. With one hand, Liam held his part of the blanket together as he followed Cales gaze into the distance.

It was hard to believe that just a few hours ago they were out in this storm and would soon have to go out there again. Once they made it through the mountains, the storm would no longer be able to follow them, which inevitably relieved Liam. But by then, the first creatures would be waiting for them as well, to take hold of them. While Liam knew that Cale was choosing a path through a region where only weak monsters roamed, it was still as dangerous a situation as it currently was.

"I'm sorry", Cale spoke up quietly, the guilt having by no means subsided. "Yesterday was my fault."

Astonished, Liam turned to the newcomer, whose gaze continued to be directed outward. There was nothing of the usually friendly and happy voice at that moment, which Liam hadn't expected. Typically Cale always seemed so carefree, but at that moment he discovered a completely different side. One that blamed himself for something that was definitely not his fault.

"It's not, what makes you think that? I'm the one who should apologize."

Cale didn't give his comrade a glance. He pulled his hand out from under the blanket, rubbing his face as if the whole situation made him uncomfortable. He then looked down at the floor before sighing loudly.

"It isn't. From the beginning... I should have made it clear to you that I don't need to be protected. I shouldn't have hid myself and made it clear that I'm a mage, then you could have assessed the situation differently from the start."

Cale now buried his face in his knees, which were kept warm by the blanket. He was uncomfortable that he had made such a careless mistake despite his experience and he hated himself for it.

"I really wanted to avoid something like this happening", he added in a whisper, his voice muffled by the blanket.

"You couldn't have known", Liam interjected quietly as he watched the mage. Cale almost wanted to yell out loud and tell him why it was his fault, but he until his lip and clasped his hands together.

"Cale..."

Liam tenderly called his name when no response came from his counterpart. He wanted to make him aware that he was not to blame.

"I am responsible for my own actions. It was my mistake. Aletta was right when she said that I had not been well for some time. I knew that myself and finally my ego put you all in danger. I am... such an idiot."

Cale turned his head to the side and looked directly into Liam's face. The two's eyes looked at each other for some time before Liam began what he had wanted to say from the beginning.

"Thank you for not leaving me behind."

To his amazement, he detected a gentle, almost nostalgic smile on Cales face. Relief spread through him as he looked silently at the man who had presumably saved his life.

And that's when he saw something he hadn't expected. Cales eyes began to change color. It was almost as if the eyes of an animal were staring at him, so much did they glow in the darkness.

"That reminds me... give me your hand, please", the mage quickly changed the subject. Somewhat distracted by the beautiful eyes that looked like gold, Liam pulled his right hand out of the blanket and wordlessly passed it on. Gently, Cale took it in both hands before carefully continuing to speak.

"I'm going to hand you some of my magic. If you get into dangerous situations...", Cale said, as his hands began to glow faintly. Impressed, Liam watched as white lines wrapped around his arm and began to burn into his skin. It didn't hurt at all, rather it was as if Liam had gotten a little too close to the fire. Warmth abruptly spread through him and he felt his mana begin to connect to Cales mana. "...you can use it to summon a powerful shield."

The light went out and Cale slowly let go of him. Silently, Liam watched as the white lines dug under his skin and faded.

"What was that?"

"It's called Igrikum, it's a special form of magic that is quite unique. My Igrikum are impenetrable magical shields, exactly what I just gave you. If you focus your mana on it, you can activate it."

This was the first time Liam had heard something like this. He didn't know much about mages, but a mages specialization to one type of spell was something he had never heard before. Was it something that the mages deliberately kept secret?

"Is it valuable?"

Gently, he touched the Igrikum, which had no outward identifying marks. Usually he would have been cautious and skeptical of what Cale had just done, but strangely he wasn't. Liam couldn't put his finger on why, but he trusted Cale.

Why had he been so skeptical of Cale in the first place? The new guy had shown his friendly and helpful side right from the start. Ben, Philippa, and Aletta had all made friends with him relatively quickly and had shown no reservations about his presence; only Liam had been the exception, as usual. It was idiotic, if not childish. Ben had been right in what he had said to him in the village back then. Cale didn't know them and even if he did, why would he want anything bad? He didn't exactly seem like someone dangerous, more like the complete opposite. Cale had the aura like a man who had to experience a lot of bad things in his life. In a strange way, he and Liam were therefore not unlike each other.

"Yes, very much. My friend will kill me if he finds out about this. Please keep this to yourself and don't use it carelessly."

"Your friend?", answered Liam in surprise. He had never heard Cale talk much about his family or friends. Mostly he just talked about his adventures and those very acquaintances, but never about people who had actual value to him. It was almost as if Cale was willfully distancing himself from people, though Liam was probably alone in that opinion.

"Grischa, also a mage. I'm sure you would get along", Cale declared with amusement.

Aletta, on the other hand, covered her mouth in horror. She had overheard part of the conversation between the two and was trying to fight back tears. What Cale was saying made him sound like a lonely old man who had lost everything important in his life. She had also missed something completely obvious. The reason why Cale got all his adventure stories and why he was able to hide his mana so well. Cale was a High-Magician from Altona and there weren't many young people who made it to the top 13 of the Magistrat. And one of them was Grischa Vonstetten.

The blond-haired mage didn't dare to make a sound after this realization. She had overheard something that was definitely not meant for her ears, though she didn't mean to. To reveal his specialty to a stranger was his own death sentence, that's how precious an Igrikum is to a High-Magician. But Cale had not only given away his greatest strength and with it his greatest weakness, but had also shared it with what appeared to be stranger. This went against all the principles she had learned as a member of her tribe, Cale had violated them in a matter of hours.

A tear ran down her hand as she remembered the lessons back home. She remembered the many times her teacher had made her believe that she should never present her abilities to the public and she remembered the history lessons about the mages past. But most of all, she remembered the stories about the Elder of Altona.

A man more powerful than anyone else in the world and hardly anyone knew what his Igrikum was. Not even his name was known to ordinary people, but thanks to her family, Aletta knew that the Elders name was Raphael Maron.

Cales decision meant everything to her. It was the ultimate confirmation that Cale was a kind-hearted and honest person who cared more about other peoples wellbeing than his own. But equally, she was angry. Angry at herself. She wanted to break free from the chains of her family and become a significant mage herself, but she still couldn't even manage to properly use what little mana she had. Her mana control was not as good as she wished. As a mage, it made her feel worthless.