Kazius led the way for a few more hours until the two decided to get a quick rest on the grass.

He was tired and hungry, but he had survived on almost nothing at The Orphanage… So, he figured he would be fine.

Considering they were on the run; it was not wise to set up any sort of fire. They could probably not do so until they made it to The Wastelands. Thankfully it was Spring, and it was only getting warmer.

Then again, Kazius himself was not sure if the cold could get to him as easily as it did a Human. Something in him had woken up… If his changes and new ability were anything to go by… But what that something was, and why it had been sealed… Or even why he had been left to be raised by Humans… He didn’t know a single thing about who he was.

Kazius would lay on the grass, taking out his necklace from his pocket. This necklace with his name brought him comfort when he needed it most… But now it was also a source of uncertainty. Why bother giving him such a thing? Just who were his parents? What was he? He was a Monster… But that contained so many types of beings… After all, he had nothing in common with the Orcs he saw… Did he even have anything in common with Humans? He resembled one… he supposed…

It was silent as he continued to look at the necklace. The Hooded woman and him did not talk too much to each other… Yet he knew he had more in common with her than with his former friends… Despite how little he knew about her… He felt pathetic once his former friends came to mind.

‘Why did I cling to them? Despite them showing me again and again who they really were… I knew they wouldn’t accept me… I knew The Church lied… I knew there was something wrong with Ratier… But I was never honest with myself about it until it was too late…’

He was brought out of his thoughts by the sound of someone clearing their throat.

Kazius rolled over, confused only to come face to face with a sandwich being shoved in his face. He hesitantly accepted it, looking over to The Hooded Woman in confusion.

She had a small sack she had been hiding under her hood. It didn’t look like it had much in it though. Maybe one more sandwich or two and some water.

The two of them had clearly not gotten adequately prepared for such a journey… She had probably left in a hurry, just like him… But she had been able to have barely enough time to grab at least this.

“Thank you.” Kazius stated in genuine surprise.

It was strange. The Hooded Woman refused to tell him her name or even show her face to him… She even swore up and down she was not kind, but she shared half of the little amount of food she had.

“Don’t thank me… I just… You… You need your energy to protect me… And I figured if I’m hungry, you probably are too…” The Hooded Woman responded. She seemed to hesitate a bit.

“But you’re welcome… I guess…” She stated before laying back down on the ground, facing away from him as she ate.

‘She really is an odd one… The Church swears they are righteous and good, but they only lie and threaten people… Then this girl swears she is not kind, but she showed more care about whether I am going hungry or not than The Priests at The Orphanage ever did…’

Kazius would think to himself as he ate the sandwich. It was a simple sandwich with meat and cheese, but the quality of the ingredients surprised him. They tasted like a luxury even a prestigious Knight like him did not have. It was very good, which made Kazius wonder where she had gotten it from. Still, what mattered most was what they would eat once these sandwiches ran out.

He didn’t think it was a great idea… But they would have to risk it and try and go by a village for supplies… At the very least Kazius had money on him… And while Priests and Knights may be filled in about him being an outlaw… Kazius doubted the story about a Monster that managed to hide within The Holy Knights would ever get told to civilians… The Church would never allow such a thing to become public. It was risky… But it was possible to get what they needed for their trip.

Kazius, with those thoughts in mind, would fall asleep after eating.

The next day the two would wake up.

They got maybe 4 hours of sleep, but for Kazius, that felt like a full days’ sleep … The Hooded Woman on the other hand, she was definitely more than tired.

As they walked and he explained the plan he had come up with last night… He could tell she was absolutely exhausted. Thankfully, she was hanging in there.

“There should be an old village of a decent size up ahead… I can go buy the supplies and meet with you by the outskirts. As long as members of The Church or Knights don’t spot me, it should be fine.” Kazius suggested. As a Knight, he had been taught about many settlements near any areas he may be stationed at. So, he knew a good amount about the sort of places they may pass. As for the reason he suggested for her to stay outside… It was due to how suspicious she looked in her hood combined with his concern for her fatigue.

The Hooded Woman seemed to fidget at the suggestion, not happy with the idea, but she probably understood why it was necessary. “I guess we should do that… It is very risky though…” She agreed hesitantly.

With the plan in mind, they would keep going.

It wasn’t long before they approached the village he had mentioned… The Village of Roses… A very elegant name for such a small settlement. It did have many Rose bushes planted around. The place probably had it’s history though, the more East you went in Ratier, the older the settlements were… As the story goes, Ratier was founded with its first capital of Remus and then expanded West. If they were to reach The Wastelands, they would have to make it past The Fort Town of Remus. The original capital of Ratier, before it had been moved to Layton with a wall that was meant to keep out Monsters.

But that was an issue for later…

First, they needed supplies.

Kazius scouted the area with his companion. The place was indeed a small village. There was a lot of foliage, Rose bushes around as well as many trees.

The mandatory Church every settlement had was even at the edge of the village… Something that would be considered undignified by any Priest from a city.

This was good though, it meant there was little to worry about.

“The Church is small… I will keep an eye on it… If I see any Priests or Knights heading out, I will go find you before they can get to you.” The Hooded Woman stated.

Kazius nodded, smiling slightly. “Thank you… I will try and be fast…” He assured, heading out quickly.

He would eventually find a store with what he needed. The place did not have a lot of places to shop at, so there weren’t that many places to look.

The store he entered was a dainty looking place built with wood and stone… It was really almost incredible… Places like this had to pay tribute to The Church who basked in wealth… Yet buildings where normal citizens lived were almost like an entirely different world compared to the wealth The Church had.

An old woman took care of the store. She looked up there in years, the kind of person that should be resting and enjoying her older years, not working.

Kazius carefully closed the door behind him as he entered, the wooden door feeling quite frail in his hand.

“Good morning, welcome, dear.” The Old Woman stated.

“Hello…” Kazius stated politely, “My squad is being sent to provide support to Marv, but because of commotion, we are lacking supplies. I’m here to buy dried food and water skins… As well as a bag to hold it… Some camping supplies too since the trip is longer than a day.” He stated.

Since he was raised by The Church… As much as he didn’t like it, lying like this was something he knew how to do well…

“Oh! I heard about that… Those disgusting Monsters… Stay right there!” The Old Woman stated, making Kazius quite nervous as she disappeared. Had she recognized him? His heart raced, maybe his lie wasn’t that convincing…

Every second that passed was like an eternity… Kazius was weighing running for it, only for The Old Woman to return with two large bags. She struggled to drag them in.

“Here, don’t worry about the price. I cannot thank you enough for the work you Knights do.” The Old Woman stated with a warm smile. Despite her smile, Kazius felt almost nauseous at hearing her words.

“Of course… But I cannot accept that, I was ordered to pay for these supplies… and I will do so…” Kazius stated, grabbing both bags with ease before dropping a bag of coins on the table. It was actually all the money he had… But he wouldn’t need it after all.

“Thank you! Please come again if you need anymore supplies, dear.” The Old Woman stated, looking surprised at the generous amount he gave.

Kazius nodded with a fake smile on his face, waving as her left. He felt conflicted. He was disgusted to be seen as a Knight now… And he had mixed feelings about Humans and Ratier… He knew if The Old Woman knew the truth… She would behave just like Alex and Leo and every zealous lunatic he knew… With the same disgusted eyes… She only was kind because she believed he was out exterminating others like himself… But Humans were not all terrible… At least The Hooded Woman that was traveling with him seemed alright, at least he believed her to be from her actions so far.

Actions showed who people were, not words.

Still, this whole situation brought forward one thing and that was his desire to get rid of his armor. It felt disgusting to wear it… But that would come later… Buying new clothes right now was too risky and could be seen as suspicious.

With that in mind, he would go find his companion. The Hooded Woman was actually exactly where he had last seen her, but she seemed to be hiding and watching quite the commotion.

As carefully as he could, with the two bags on his back, he would approach.

The Hooded Woman would turn towards him, making a shushing motion before pointing towards The Church.

Upon a second look, it was a small place for sure. Especially compared to The Churches he had seen. The door was left wide open, revealing quite the scene.

There was a Priest pointing at a Priestess accusingly. The Priestess was crying, but what was the most shocking of all was the fact the Priestess was a blonde Elf Woman… Kazius had heard on very rare occasions Elves and Dwarves joined The Church… But he had never seen it for himself.

“You filth! First, I get a report about a traitor Knight, out of all things… And now I learn one of my own Priestesses is a Demon worshipper! I can’t believe such garbage was among us!” The Priest exclaimed, shaking with pure rage. With the expression he gave, he looked like someone that could become quite the good friends with someone like High Priest Jordan.

Kazius would turn to look at the Hooded Woman, his response being a shrug. It seemed she was just as confused as he was as to what was going on.