Two days after our practice spar, our group of four was ready to make our way to the city of Tyros. All of our necessary baggage had been packed and the Bureau personnel were given the notice that Minerva and I would be gone. 

We had decided to leave for the road early in the morning, in order to maximize our travel time. And despite Sekh’s usual sleepiness, she was bouncing around energetically as we were getting ready to depart. 

“Well aren’t you excited,” I said to Sekh as she skipped around humming happily.

“Of course,” Sekh replied giddily. “I get to see snow, go to a big city, and I’m traveling with my favorite people.”

“Well I’m not entirely sure if there is going to be snow,” Minerva warned her. “But if there is, I think that gambesons will be able to provide enough warmth.”

“We can just do a group hug if not,” Sekh added. 

“It’s fine Minerva, I’ll just make sure to bring some kindling and fuel when we get near the mountain passes.” I told the dark elf.

“Reliable as ever,” Zeph commented, though I couldn’t discern any sign of sarcasm in her tone. 

Without further ado, the four of us left the gates of Damask, the morning sun bristling against our back. But instead of going the direct course to Safra, our first stop was the blacksmithing villages. The reason for this route was to pick up an order that I had placed a while back.

Following the paved roads to the village of Camil, we traveled along the plains and wetland that made up much of Damask’s landscape. Little happened along our way to the blacksmithing villages, just a few small hijinks with Sekh and Zeph in addition to Minerva learning how to properly dry herself after washing in a river. 

Eventually, the four of us reached our first destination around the afternoon. And just like before, we were greeted by the lone watchman Aron. 

“So you still haven’t found anyone for this job?” I asked my former guide while he began opening the gates. 

“I prefer to say that I’m just too efficient,” he replied. 

Contrary to his statement, Aron took his sweet time to open the gate. So by the time that we entered the village, Vorn and the others had already gotten out of their houses to greet us.

“Good seeing you again,” the senior smith remarked while putting his hand out for a handshake. 

“Likewise,” I replied with an easy grin. “How are things compared to before?”

Vorn smiled brightly when he heard my question. “Great, the new Katepan in Safra has been giving us fair deals. The Doux also sends his own troops to help protect our caravans that journey to Damask to make sales.”

“That’s excellent,” I remarked. 

“Oh and the mines are working great thanks to the miss over there,” he said while gesturing at Minerva. “So will you four be staying here for a night?”

“We won’t” I said apologetically. “We’re in a bit of a rush to head to Tyros for some business so we could only stop by for a bit.”

Vorn and the other citizens looked a bit disappointed, a few offering arguments about why we should stay. 

“Shame that you can’t stay for long,” Vorn sighed after Minerva and I shot down the last argument. “In that case, we have the materials you asked for and some supplies for you. Just take the supplies as a token of our gratitude.”

“Alright,” I replied while shrugging my shoulders. 

I followed Vorn to a nearby workshop while some other villagers gave Minerva a few loaves of fresh bread. Inside the storage section of the workshop were the items that I had requested from the villagers: 10 kilograms of Damask steel. 

“Are you sure you don’t want us to forge it into anything?” Vorn asked me as I was inspecting the numerous steel ingots. 

“It’s fine,” I waved him off. “I told you before that I have a specialized smith who makes my spears. If I wanted a sword I would have asked you, but I’m not particularly fond of swords.”

“That’s a shame,” he sighed. “Well the total price of the ingots will be 2 solidi.”

“Must be a discounted price,” I mentally remarked, not bothering to voice the thought. 

Still, I’m curious about how much of a discount I’ve received. Although iron is fairly inexpensive, with 1 solidi being equivalent to around 13.5 kilograms of iron, Damask steel is completely a different case. Not only is it made from high quality ore in a tedious and expensive process, the alloy is also sold almost exclusively after being forged into a blade. And although I would estimate the 10 kilograms of Damask steel to be worth around 10 to 15 solidi, I don’t think my guess is particularly informed. 

“How many spears are you even going to have made?” Vorn asked curiously. “Around twenty?”

“Not quite,” I answered. “I need at least three lances, a winged spear, a glaive, and a halberd. I like to have a full arsenal of polearms available. Really helpful when you have to fight large monsters.”

“Makes sense,” Vorn replied. “I hope you put all this steel to good use.”

“I will,” I assured him. 

After my party had finished packing up the supplies from the village, we departed once more for the road. Fortunately, when we set up camp for the night, our surroundings were devoid of people. And this meant that I could assimilate the Damask steel into my spear. 

“Can you crowd around me a little less,” I remarked as the three girls peered over my shoulders. “I need a little space to conduct the ritual.”

“Really?” Minerva asked curiously. 

“No,” I replied. “But it would be more comfortable that way.”

In the end, we settled on forming a circle around the steel ingots. From there, I began to silently pray with my spear laid out in front of me. For around five to ten minutes, I just sat there concentrating while my companions looked on with curiosity at the slightly glowing ingots. Eventually, the soft glow disappeared along with all the metal in front of me. 

“Wait what’s next?” Zeph wondered when the process was done. “Your spear is still regular steel right now.”

“He probably has to change the spear now,” Sekh explained. 

“Yup,” I confirmed before getting ready for another prayer session.

Somehow, everyone still seemed interested in watching me sit still for ten minutes and observed as the spearhead of my weapon slightly changed color. Taking out a piece of smoked ham, I stabbed my lance into the meat, somehow not bothering the people around me. 

“It worked,” I said while bringing the ham to my mouth for a bite. 

“Is it a big improvement compared to regular steel?” Minerva asked.

Instead of immediately answering her question, I took a stance with my lance and began to thrust, swing, and parry against an invisible opponent. “Pretty good improvement I think. It’s definitely a bit light and sharper. But I’m not really making full use of the alloy since the divine arm automatically sharpens and repairs itself.”

“Sounds like a waste if I’m being honest,” Sekh remarked.

“It might be,” I replied. “But I don’t have to worry about my spearhead getting broken in the middle of a fight before it has time to self repair.”

“Can that even happen?” Zeph wondered. 

“Not yet,” I said while simultaneously laughing and shrugging. “But hey, it’s always nice to be safe.”

After even more traveling we arrived at the town of Safra. When we settled down at a suitable inn, I went over to the Katepan’s hall to check on the local administrator that we had installed previously. 

“Welcome,” the man greeted me when I arrived at his office. 

“I’m just here to ask how things are going,” I told him. “No need for a formal report. Just tell me if anything unusual is happening.”

The man scratched his chin for a moment before answering. “Nothing unusual as of now. I guess things are steadily improving, so we don’t need extra assistance from the Doux.”

“That’s good,” I replied. “Well I won’t bother you too much since I’m actually on vacation right now. And don’t worry about having to house me during my night here.”

“Well I hope you enjoy the town while you stay here,” he commented. 

“Thanks,” I said before leaving the building. 

That night, my three companions and I enjoyed the local area to the best of our ability. But unfortunately for us, not all trade towns are suitable for tourists. The food was alright, the bread and meat was fresh, though the culinary skill of the local chefs were a bit lacking.

Since Safra wasn’t the best place to stay in addition to Minerva’s deadline, we quickly left the town the following morning. After around an hour of travel from Safra, we arrived at the mountain passes that lead to the Lycian fortress of Darses. Taking advantage of the nearby trees, Sekh and I chopped up some firewood before our party began the journey through the mountains.

“You think we’ll have to stay the night in the mountains?” Zeph asked while we were leading our horses along the dirt trail. 

“Probably,” Minerva answered. “The pass isn’t very long, but I doubt we can rush through it in a day. However, it’s important that we don’t spend too much time at the higher elevations because of the cold.”

“We’ll be fine,” I commented. “I asked some merchants about the pass between Safra and Darses and they told me it’s pretty safe in comparison to other passes.”

“Compared to other passes,” Sekh pointed out. “Not everyone here is a mountain man, remember?”

“Fair enough,” I admitted with a shrug. “But my point is that we won’t be in any significant danger. It’s not too cold and the only common monsters here are some Bronze-horns, which I would consider to be dinner on legs.”

“Bold last words,” Minerva joked. 

Minerva’s statement proved to be quite incorrect later during the day when we managed to pick off a lone Bronze-horn that had separated from its herd. Although I was also wrong since it turned out to be lunch on legs instead. Of course we had to avoid angering a whole herd, but even regular goats can be scary in such a situation.  

In comparison to regular goats, a Bronze-horn is simply an improved version. Bigger, stronger, tastier, and complete with the ability to spawn from the very earth. The only downside is that their bronze colored horns are not metal, though the horns from a male are 

still worth quite a bit at the market.

Sometime during the afternoon, we climbed high enough up the pass to the point where snow began drifting down from the sky. Naturally, Sekh’s eyes began to glow with joy as she started to play around with the white crystals. 

“Try rolling some snow in your hands,” I recommended to Sekh while demonstrating how to make a snowball.

“Like this?” Sekh asked while mimicking my movements. 

“Yup,” I replied. “Then you can use it like this.”

Before I even finished my sentence, I playfully tossed the snowball at Sekh’s head, the ball of snow collapsing when it made impact. Perhaps picking up too quickly, Sekh immediately retaliated by hurling her own snowball at me.

“Like that?” Sekh asked with a teasingly innocent smile. 

“Exactly,” I answered cheerfully. “Maybe we should get the others involved too.”

“Just what I was thinking,” Sekh replied giddily. 

Being an honorable pair, we didn’t just attack Minerva and Zeph out of the blue. Instead, we issued a formal declaration of war, immediately nailing them with snowballs. 

“C’mon Minerva, we have to take out the lovebirds,” Zeph declared as she began rolling a clump of frosty ammunition. 

“Already on it,” Minerva said before hitting Sekh with a snowball. 

For twenty or minutes or so, we pelted one another with snowballs. It was one of those competitions where we had so much fun that we didn’t even bother keeping score, just indulging ourselves in the moment. So in the end, we just settled by calling it a tie, something everyone was content with. 

“Thanks for drying our clothes, Zeph,” I said while we began our descent from the peak. “I didn’t even know that you could make the air warmer.”

“It’s not that hard if you have enough practice,” Zeph said smugly. “All you have to do is move the air around quickly and it becomes hot.”

“Doesn’t seem that hard,” Sekh chuckled. “Just be a wind mage, no big deal.”

“You have to admit that it’s a good application of her skill though,” Minerva commented in Zeph’s defense. 

Walking over to Zeph, Sekh patted the white haired archer on the head while wearing a big grin. “Yeah, it is pretty cool in all honesty.”

“Odd choice of words,” I commented, though I was too afraid to make the obvious bad joke. 

That night, the four of us set up camp somewhere halfway between the peak and the base of the mountain. And although we met a few travelers along the way, all of them were journeying in the opposite of our direction. 

As I was cooking our mixed meat and grain stew, I felt the familiar sensation of Sekh pressing her body against my back. 

“Warm,” she murmured while snuggling against me. 

Turning around, I began to pat her head affectionately. “Are you cold right now?” 

“A little,” she replied. “It’s a bit windy tonight.”

“Good point,” I conceded. “So are we going through with the whole group hug thing?”

“If possible,” Sekh giggled. 

Around an hour after dinner, it went from a possibility to an outright reality. Since the wind had begun to pick up quite a bit during that time, the four of us were now huddled in a large tent by the fire, our bodies pressed close against one another while draped in our blankets.

“How are we doing the nigh watches then?” Minerva asked while huddled against Zeph and I. “Do we just sacrifice a person to sit by the fire for each shift?”

“I think it’s fine,” I replied. “The fire should keep nearly all animals and monsters away. And I’m pretty sure that the handful of bandits in this area will be content with staying warm for tonight.”

“Sounds good,” Minerva commented. “Now if you don’t mind Azel, I’m going to need you to stay like this for a bit. You’re really warm compared to Zeph.”

“Zeph, you need to get better at being a heat source,” I joked while Sekh and Minerva clung onto me for warmth. 

“You have any special techniques then?” Zeph retorted. 

“I recommend drinking a liter of bull semen per week,” I said with a straight face. “Of course I didn’t have to since I’m just naturally gifted.”

“You can have my shift for the night then,” Zeph replied. “Afterall, I’m not as warm as you are so I’ll freeze out there.”

“What happened to being able to heat air?” I asked with a wry smile. “Or do you need more practice?”

“I’m tired after drying our clothes,” Zeph complained. “I don’t want to get magic intoxication so I won’t push myself.”

“I’ll take your shift then,” Sekh offered. 

“Thanks, you’re a great friend, Sekh,” the white haired archer said, putting particular emphasis on Sekh’s name. 

The night we spent on the mountain was both dull and uncomfortable. Although nothing happened during the night, it also meant that there was nothing to distract us from the biting wind. So the following morning, we quickly made our way down from the mountain towards the fortress of Darses. 

Compared to Safra, Darses was more of a fortress than a trade town. Surrounded by dull grey stone walls, the settlement consisted of a small marketplace and various other establishments which accommodated for travelers such as brothels and inns. The reason for the small size was due to the lack of arable land in the region caused by being on the leeward side of the mountains.

Suffice to say, we didn’t spend much time in Darses, not even bothering to restock on supplies. From there, we continued traveling along the roads that led to the city of Tyros. 

Due to the importance of trade with Damask, the roads from Darses to Tyros were at least paved with stone and guard patrols were fairly common. In contrast to Damask’s slightly wet plains full of plant life, the eastern part of Lycia’s countryside was a mix of dryland and plains full of grass but with very few trees. 

“I’m guessing that the western part of Lycia contributes most of the lumber for ships?” I asked Minerva along the way.

“Close, it’s the northwestern area,” she replied. 

Because of the quality of the roads, we were able to arrive at Tyros within the course of three days. Since the land around the city was at the same elevation as the city, I was unable to make out much of the famed settlement.

As we neared the city, I was greeted by the sight of tall grey walls complete with a number of watchtowers. Compared to Damask, Tyros is a fair bit smaller, though the total surface area would be greater if the port is factored in. However, the most distinct feature of the city was the massive white stone monolith that towered from the port: the lighthouse of Tyros.

“Amazing,” Sekh murmured while looking at the city with starry eyes. 

“It really is,” Zeph added, her face full of admiration. 

“And the interior of the city doesn’t disappoint either,” Minerva commented, possibly referring to a city we’re all familiar with. “Now let’s get moving, I’d like to introduce you all to my family.”

“Aren’t we a bit too early for that,” I said with a lazy smile.