With the last member on board, celebration for a job well done was in place. Amid the elevated mood, the chief pulled Mich over.

Unna was on the front car with Batch. Her soundless exchange with Mich, cut short. She tapped on Batch’s shoulder letting him know of the message from her chief. The two sisters then acted as communication medium between the two men.

“Don’t drop our guard just yet. We don’t know if there would be another group like this on the road.”

“What? Is that possible?”

The chief didn’t need to be present to imagine the shock on Batch’s face. “We don’t know the size of their territory. At least, we should be aware.”

“Ok then.”

“I say we keep this pace for five more minutes, then slow down to regular.”

“Ok.” Batch’s response was immediate.

Rather than road, it would be more suited to call the path they are traversing a desire trail. Generations left their footprints and created this trail. It isn’t maintained, and there is no telling what hazard they could find. If it is not for their circumstance, Batch didn’t want to move at this speed, especially with their current weight during the night.

 

The chief brought a lamp to check on the cantering centaurs. “You’re ok?”

“Yes.”

The centaurs can’t get onto the wagons. They travelled with the caravan because of their heavy baggage. Running in the dark is dangerous, so they kept a close eye to their companions.

“The kid too?” Squatting down on the side, he shone the light onto Altan’s face. The centaur boy had no sight of fatigue or struggling while retaining the pace.

“He is.”

“Ok. Listen.” He returned to Bilguun. “We decided to slow down a bit and continue for some more hours to be on the safe side. We’ll rest late tonight. Are you ok with that?”

“Sure.”

“Thanks. Let us know if you need anything.” He raised his hand excusing himself.

To which, the centaurs followed suit.

---

 

The elves quickly set up their tent and bed. After a day of travel, Rael is only 12 hours away. Before that, everyone needed a good night’s sleep.

It’s especially true for the escort members. They were the only one got to know the talk between their chief and Batch. Professional or not, a day of anticipating and scouting ahead wore them out like anybody.

After preparation for the night was in place, most people were in the mood of shoving themselves into the blanket and forget the rest. Others like Tarrad and Clarinet intended to exploit the lake nearby for a good bath, an idea pioneered by Muffa. They found their obscure corner and enjoyed a nice time of leisure.

The Lost Forest is now some kilometres to the south. Just a small distance but the liveliness of nature was in stark contrast. Insects orchestrated their intelligible call within the vegetation. Birds beat their wings back to the green foliage. Their chatting in the canopy, temporarily crowded out by the cawing of a nearby crow. Fleeting in the chaos were screeching bats, navigating in the dying light.

The twins, on their way to seek a better view of the setting sun, stumbled upon a fox skull. Inhabitants of this part had long cleaned it bone white. Be it ill or hunted or old age, this one couldn’t continue and had returned to the earth. The twins silently bid the dead “good journey”.

Life is a journey. Everything, living, chases after the whim of mother nature. Those that failed ceased to exist. Simple, amoral, and fair. In a way, they are all equal and are all nature’s. It’s just right to pay respect to a fallen sibling.

The twins got back to their tent. Looking at the truncheon they clutched onto last night. Its time to shine would have to wait. It was the same thing Trump got for them two years ago from Balvich armory. The guy there said this steel rod has been sitting there for a long time, so he was happy to give it to Trump. After all, his niece was part of the merchant group that was saved by the siblings and Taka. Trump rejected since he only needed it for one duel, but the guy insisted.

In total, it is 75cm in length. The wooden handle takes 34cm and attached to the 25cm-long cylindrical metallic shaft. It ended with a hexagonal prism 16cm in length. The distance between two flat sides of its hexagon is 50mm. This made the prism much thicker than the cylindrical shaft which is only 37mm in diameter. This weapon weighs roughly 3.7kg. It’s heavier than anything they have ever used (as an elf).

Getting used to it was their first priority. Not that they didn’t spend time with it, but their body didn’t grow enough to use it.

They snatched the handle.

“You, serious?” Randal caught them on the way out.

“We won’t overdo. Promise.” Reassured, Ren.

As if that gave him any ease of mind. Getting lost in their own device was the chronic disease of his masters. Randal got first taste when Trump allowed his twin masters to keep the new toy aka the mace.

One week after the duel with Trump, that day was supposed to be his masters’ rest day.  They had also burned themselves out with that new sandbag running the day before. It was completely beyond Randal's understanding as to why the twins would take the mace for a few round of batting. It’s without saying that that rest day ended with them unable to move a finger for two days. That was also the beginning of Randal’s secret assignment, keeping track of the twins for Taka.

It didn’t take Randal more than a month to know how much the twins abused their body. He got that they have extreme tolerance to physical trauma. It didn’t change the fact that they aren’t immortal.

The human boy trailed closely behind. Much to their annoyance, the twins didn’t tell him otherwise. They did wonder since when did their role reverse. The Randal of before always stuck behind their back like a duckling. Since when did that duckling turned into mother hen.

---

 

Last night, they ran past a group of demon beasts. Fearing retaliation, they camped late and woke up early this morning for the sake of putting distance between them and the Lost Forest. An entire day of running later, and everyone was tired, if not physically then mentally. When everybody finished their meal, it has already turned dark. People either gathered around the campfires or sought comfort on their bed.

Those still awaked entertained each other with stories, humour, or leisure activities. The voices and light marked this site as their territory. The unfamiliar noises and weird brightness were among the best deterrence against predators. In case a curious animal wandered into their camp, the escort company had already had their guards in place.

Randal and the twins approached the lake with clothes and towel in hands. They would have finished their bath before dinner if not for Ren and Gowen’s “just some more swings”.

Elwan planted the torch on the shore. “Ok, boys. I’ll just be around.”

The boys expressed their gratitude and quickly discarded their clothes.

Randal was the first to hit the water. “Maybe I shouldn’t bath tonight. Achoo!”

“Ran, you aren’t sick, are you?” Gowen put a hand on Randal’s forehead.

“Hell if I know.”

Ren got into thinking mode. “I don’t think we saw you being sick before. This could be a good opportunity-”

“Ren!” Gowen heightened his voice.

“I know.” Ren turned to Randal with apologetic eyes. “Sorry. Still, we can’t know for sure. We are in the water. Our body temperature’s also higher than him.”

“Maybe he breath in pollen or dust?” “Maybe.”

 

Plop. Plop.

Someone or something was moving in the water.

 

“Who’s there?” Ren quickly turned to the source of the noise.

 

SPLASH!

The abrupt sound accompanied the water being thrown into the air. There was definitely something moving then dove back into the water.

 

The three sharpened their sense. This distance should be enough to make out its spirit. In the meantime, the elven boys pushed themselves in front of Randal. Randal is the only one that can use magic. If anything happens, he will be the sole support they got.

Gowen was the best with spirit sense. It came at no surprise that he was the first to discern the shape of the hiding one. As such, he exhaled a relief. “Altan.”

Spirit or lifeforce is like flame. It’s fickle. It dances to the body’s condition. Even so, it’s emitted from the body, a firm structure; and retains many characteristics of the body. The silhouette with four thin legs settled on the streambed in a kneeling position. The human torso could be identified with the arms holding onto his head. Based on body size, there is only one person that fitted the description. Ren confirmed this a second later. “Altan. What are you doing there?”

The centaur slowly raised his head above the water. “Uhm. Hello. Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.” Altan’s fidget put a big question mark in the other three's heads.

Before anyone else could act, Randal broke the silence. “No worry. What a coincidence to see you here. Such a shame we couldn’t stay and chat.” The human boy tugged on Gowen’s hand. “We are a bit tired. Please excuse us. Let’s talk another time.”

Not waiting for the twins’ response, Randal led the taller boys out of the water much to Altan and the twins’ confusion.

Randal raised his hand, “good night!” With a friendly smile on top.

The confused young centaur could only put his hand up in response.

Picking up their belongings, the three disappeared from Altan’s sight. In the cover of a tall bush, the naked boys hanged their clothes on the tree branches. Their hands hurriedly swiped the body dried lest they wanted a stray wind to visit.

“Why did you pull us away? We didn’t even bath properly.” Asked for the two of them, Gowen.

“As I suspected, Altan is a lady in disguise.”

“Wait what?” “But he said he is a boy.”

“You are too naive. That’s just an act.” Randal lectured. “Don’t you find it weird that she came to bathe this late? She wanted to avoid people.”

“Aren’t we also late?”

“We are late because of you guys. Nobody wants to practice till late during these trips.” Randal paused for a moment. “Also don’t you see how close she is to shore? She must have wanted to get her clothes and secretly left, but Ren spotted her. This caused her to jump back into the water…”

While not agreeing that Altan is a girl, Ren and Gowen couldn’t find a counterargument.

“…Also didn’t you see that the lady only showed her face above the water?...”

This was true. The spirit that Gowen and Ren saw when Altan emerged showed that the centaur was not standing straight up. Everything below the chin was under water. Still, something was amiss.

Regardless, Ren had no interest in discussing it. “Fine.”

To which, Gowen sighed in agreement.

---

 

When the first light arrived, their travel resumed. By the last light the same day, they have reached the comfortable bed in Rael. After a restful night, the wagons’ wheels were once again rolling. Two couples and a solitary traveller stayed back in Rael. In return, eight more joined the caravan.

From here on, the next settlement is about ten days ahead. The name is Heart of the Jaguar. Their final destination is a city further than that. In total, they got 15 more days on the road.

Heart of the Jaguar, being the second largest city of the former Tezmahuichi kingdom, its wealth and military are formidable, the same for its size. It is one of the many categorised as a major city and managed by a governor instead of a mayor. It’s without saying, the governor has a considerable voice within the governor council, the highest governing power among the many elven cities and towns in this part of the continent.

“…Its outskirt stretches from the Gua riverbank to beyond Kuliel mountain. It may take a day to reach downtown. We will be touring the city for 4 days waiting for the caravan to resupply. There are a lot to visit…”

The boys listened to their teacher’s exposition with excitement.

“…We still have 10 days to go, so don’t exhaust yourself with anticipation. Now let’s go to bed.”

---

 

Twilight arrived on the first day toward Heart of the Jaguar. Things were uneventful until the sound of metal intruded their ears.

“Your form is falling. Fix it!” Wind brought the distant voice to their vicinity.

This voice was not usually spoken in the caravan, but the three knew whose it belonged. They sneaked up to the centaur tents.

“Keep your eyes opened.” Commanded, Batzorig.

Holding against Batzorig’s onslaught appeared to be a challenging task for Altan.

An upward slash attempted to break his guard.

Against which, he barely restored balance, pulling the blade up with difficulty. The 800-gram sword felt like tons in his hands.

The ruthless adult charged up with his full body.

The fatigued fingers surrendered his sword, letting the metal hit the ground.

The dull blade hit like an iron rod, punishing his right arm with sharp agony.

Altan gritted his teeth in pain, gripping at the stinging bicep.

Among the failures Batzorig could count, this acted as a redeeming point. If you have strength to scream, why not save it for something more useful; or so the warriors of old had spoken. “Quick!”

The young centaur obediently retrieved the fallen sword. His muscle trembled, unable to keep the lump of steel steady.

The practice returned anew. Occasionally, fatigue would sway his form, allowing Batzorig to strike. One more time, Altan’s grip failed him.

Many times, Randal assumed they would end or pause the practice. Each time the older centaur would order Altan to pick up the sword, and the horse “girl” would obey without complain.

At long last, Altan slumped down.

“Stand up, Altan! If this was the battlefield, you would be killed. They don’t wait for you to have a breath.”

His legs weakly pushed the body up from the ground. He shook like a newborn foal. Colour, drained from his face. His clothes, sweat-drenching. There’s no need to mention his heartbeat and breathing.

“Altan! Can you continue?”

“No sir.” Shame filled his answer.

“We ended it today.” Batzorig replied with disappointment.

Waiting till the adult had left the place, the boys got out from their hiding place.

“Hey, Altan.” Randal’s feet were quick. “Sorry. We spied on you.”

“No.” He shook his head. “It’s ok.”

“You sure are diligent. You train even on travel.”

Hey. That’s entirely opposite of what you told us. Ren and Gowen probably protested something like that with their glaring eyes.

Randal beamed back with an inner monologue. You guys never know when to stop.

“A ha.” Altan smiled awkwardly.

“Still, shouldn’t you save your strength? I mean you guy have to walk the entire trip.” Ren was curious.

“We are. That’s why uncle Batzorig didn’t go all out. If we train for real, he wouldn’t stop until I pass out.”

“That’s… rough.” Randal was appalled at the notion. “Isn't that, too brutal?”

The centaur shook his head. “He did that because he cares for me.” Altan made a dejected face. “You may not know, but I am weak for those my age. Uncle Batzorig feared that I am too weak to defend myself. That’s why he has to be toughed with my training.”

“I… I get it. But, do you really need to be strong?”

That single question caused the other three wide-eyed. For Ren and Gowen, they have never thought getting stronger is bad. For Altan, the answer was more complicated. Obviously, the centaur was the most baffled. They remained speechless awaiting Randal.

For the human boy, he didn’t expect this outcome at all. Randal struggled to utter some sensible from his mouth. “I… I mean… I, Ren, and Gowen have to be strong to become adventurers but Ren and Gowen have seriously weak magic. They have to rely on me for that part. Mr Batch is a merchant. He went through dangerous place all the times, but he isn’t strong. What I mean is don’t you think you can have someone else to rely on instead of having to be strong yourself?”

Altan smiled sadly. “I think about it sometimes too… It doesn’t work out that way for me.”

Randal, you can’t just generalise. Ran, you are being inconsiderate. Everyone has their own reason. Those were probably my creators’ silent disapproval in detail. I realise that now, but Altan is a lady. She shouldn’t shoulder such a thing. Shouldn’t there be anyone else who she could rely on? Still… “Sorry. I-“

“No. It’s not your fault. If you excuse me, I have to prepare for evening.”

---

 

“Hi Altan.” “Afternoon to you, Altan.”

“Hello Altan.”

Altan's pupils dilated. What are they doing here?

“These young friends said they want to train with you. Having someone your age would be good for your training.”

“Would that be ok?”

“I will deal with Bilguun.” He turned to the boys. “So which one of you goes first?”

“Me please!”

 

“Start whenever you want.”

The first round was between Altan and Randal. Pure swordplay was the rule, so no magic. Win by having opponent surrenders or by decision.

“Let’s have a good fight!”

“Eh?” Altan was caught startled. “Yeah. Let’s have a good fight.”

It didn’t look like Randal want the initiative. If so…

Altan begun with a charge. What a centaur has better than elf and human is their strong lower body. If your upper body is weak, add the momentum of your charge into the attack.

Altan launched a 15-degree downward slash from the right.

There are many answers for this attack. Randal's choice was a horizontal block with his sword. Raising his hands above head, his blade protruded to the left side.

The two swords met at one third of Altan’s blade. Meanwhile, Randal stopped the attack with the point of impact near his sword guard. Despite being knocked back a meter, Randal was still on the ground.

Batzorig was astonished. His stance is firm. 

The twins left a mental note. Good call! 

Altan got the body of a horse yearling, he weighed above 100kg, four times more mass than Randal. That entire weight in motion is very hard to hold back. Had Randal blocked that attack using any part other than the place nearest to his sword guard, Altan's momentum would have bulldozed his guard.

Altan’s vertical blade locked on Randal’s horizontal edge. The centaur realised his precarious situation a bit late. In the current position of their sword, Altan’s sword would harmlessly run along the length of Randal’s to the human boy’s left side. On the other hand, Randal’s blade would strike at Altan’s left arm.

For this reason, Altan desperately shifted the direction of his force to Randal’s right side, preventing his sword to run off and free Randal’s. His sword now sat right at Randal’s guard. Altan too moved up his hands, ensuring both swords would bite at each other nearer to their respective guard. Having four legs, the centaur could afford to use his legs to add the shifting. His human opponent was dead on the ground lest he want to be push off balance by the heavier centaur.

Of course, Randal knew allowing Altan to do as he please is dangerous. While Altan hasn’t properly fixed his position, Randal got one shot. The boy allowed his hands to be pressed down, closer to his chest.

That abrupt movement caused Altan's sword to be shoved forward, far from his control. He has already put a lot of force into his shifting that such move risked toppling his balance.

Randal, as fast as he could, tilted the blade by 30 degrees from the horizontal axis. This coupling with shifting his left shoulder back, created a slope for Altan’s vertical blade to slide down much to the centaur's panic.

Not stopping there, the human raised his hands, changing the diagonal position to vertical. If this continues, Altan’s sword would run off completely. Randal’s would deliver an upward slash to Altan’s left arm (it could reach the shoulder if only Randal was taller).

The centaur moved his hands up from navel height to near his left kidney. His blade changed from vertical to horizontal. In this position, Altan's horizontal blade was better suited at stopping Randal's upward-moving vertical blade. However, this created a problem. Altan's hands moved to his left side.

With Altan’s belly exposed, Randal lowered his posture, turning the slash to a belly thrust.

Altan doubled down on the weight. If Randal pursues the thrust, Altan's suppression has already forced Randal’s blade down too low to hit any part of the centaur.

Randal instead made his best upward slash. His blade departed Altan’s edge and ran unchecked toward his left chest. Due to its length, the sword tip only managed to get as close as a finger length away from Altan’s face. Even so, that was too close for comfort.

“STOP!” Time has come for Batzorig’s duty. It was clear that the victory belonged to Randal, and Batzorig announced as such.

It was a short fight. Most of the time was the initial observation between the two. Their match could be summarised as Altan charged in, Randal blocked, they struggled until Randal landed a hit due to Altan lack of response. Such short amount of time and few events that caused the participants to pant and sweat in the cool afternoon.

“Sorry. Are you ok?”

Altan covered his chest. “I am good.”

The little human was tomato-red when he pinpointed the place his sword touched Altan. “I am very sorry.”

Altan quickly reacted to Randal’s embarrassment. “No, really. I am fine.” The centaur put on his social smile. “You are really strong, Randal.”

“You… You can call me Ran if you like.” Randal was still looking away. “It’s a nickname Gowen got for me.”

“Ran it is then.”