Frontier, the Capital City of the Bellum Empire. The name was less extravagant as Paradise and the Capital of the Northern Diavola Kingdom: Primus Ramus. The status of the North was not currently known by most due to blockades which mysterious appeared around the same time she left the Black Forest.

As for the West – the Apprentice mage named Autumn due to the color of her hair explained that the Bellum Empire was in an awful state. It was completely isolated from both other Kingdoms by massive mountain ranges.

Furthermore, they carried the sole responsibility of keeping the Anids, Insectids, Lizardmen and all manners of monsters from invading Grandis in the first place. Frontier was not just a city. It was a bastion of hope and a cauldron of fiercely powerful individuals who served the Clammoria Royal family.

“It gets super complicated when you get into their factions. Frontier has a lot of influence on Grandis now that Infernis is gone, and the North is isolating itself further. If you’re heading there then you’ll definitely come across a lot of problematic people. Never mind the anomalies outside their gates.” The girl explained.

The group of twelve moved through the misty forest on foot. Normally it was a death sentence to move without a caravan. But it wasn’t like they could snap one into existence. This was partially the reason why caravans moved in groups. If one broke, then its riders could split themselves and join the surviving caravans.

Though in most cases, it was far more efficient to let the straggling caravan be cut off like a lizard’s tail.

That being said, the lands between the Kingdom of Puritas and the Bellum Empire were a no man’s land of sorts.

Civilization was unlikely to flourish in between these lands which Frost could only marginally visualize. Only half of this was true, however.

“The towns and cities over there are still alive and well. But I advise avoiding them. Even the Bellum Empire refuses to deal with them.” A merchant carrying the body of Autumn’s teacher on their back spoke. “Settlements along the western highways haven’t been touched yet. Again, you should avoid them if you’re a denizen of the North.”

“What’s there for me to worry about?” Frost asked, already having an idea of why they were warning her.

Demi-Human slaves; or slavery in general was commonplace in Grandis. They confirmed her suspicion as they found a large clearing to camp for the night.

“Slavery. We don’t mean the Demi-humans mind you. You’ve probably lived a luxurious life with that strength and have a high degree of moral conscience.” A merchant said, removing their garbs down till they were near bare to cool down. “You make an enemy of one, and you’ll be the enemy of all.”

“It’ll be fine. It won’t take more than a day to sort things out if things start to look bad.” Frost said confidently.

An air of arrogance surrounded her. But that was because they did not know of Frost’s true strength. If only they knew who was saying this then they’d realize that she was not speaking for the sake of it.

If it came down to it, then she’d obliterate a city if it meant making things right.

Most of these merchants came from central Grandis in a place called Condordia’s Stand. It was a major city that connected the north with the south. A massive trade city called Concordia Trade City used to exist but fell victim to the Listening Bird – an entity they called the Laughing Bird or the Laughing Owl.

Apparently, remnants of the Screaming Galleries were still out there, lingering in the ruins that were once their homes.

The groups set up a small perimeter around their campsite. A campfire sat in the center of them all, painting their faces a warm orange as the light beyond the foggy canopies died out. They were at first against using light, but when the cold breeze of the evening swept in through, they realized that it was either they died to hypothermia, or to a monster attracted by the light.

“I took on an entire Anid nest on my own. This is the safest place out there. That much I can promise you.” Frost reminded them, her eyes glowing brighter than the flames. “Besides… Any stories about Corrupted you might have heard of? If you’re merchants, then you should have a tale or two.”

“W-We’re sorry. We don’t tend to hear about what happens outside.” One of the merchants uttered, annoying Autumn who stroked the head of her unconscious Teacher.

“Idiots. The lot of them. Can you believe them? Just because we know the Highway doesn’t mean that the people with us have to be ignorant. It’s so stupid. Being blind to the suffering out here while you’re pushing coins.”

She scoffed, taking a small swig from a healing potion.

“Coins, coins, coins… You can’t trust them, Miss Diamond Rank. You know how valuable you look to them now?”

The merchants looked at Frost like hawks, but they were instantly subdued by a light stare. Looking at their general direction was enough to cause their bodies to seize. She needed to be careful in case they were the in the middle of eating in case they choked.

Haaaaah. The question’s finally here.

“Because of the healing? That’s right. I never had the chance to explain it. You see, are you aware of the existence of the Gifts?”

Frost thought up a lie on the spot, intriguing them.

The merchants leaned in closer to the flames as her words chimed like a chest of coins. They smelt money in the air.

“The North has recently discovered an Artefact that allows one to store magic into an item. What I used was a stone holding the [Area Heal] magic from one of our Healers. Be honored that I wasted such precious magic on you.”

“T-That’s why… With that kind of thing…!”

“The blockades make sense now!”

“Impressive. Any Kingdom would go into immediate isolation if that were the case. Storing magic is incredible. To think you’d easily reveal this to us.”

I hope this won’t give them any weird ideas.

The focus shifted from Frost to the North now, leaving her completely in the clear. Of course, she could have just not said anything, but it was better to at least provide some sort of explanation. They didn’t seem like bad people. As matter of fact, the majority had pale flames in their chests.

Few on the other hand were completely red.

“What I told you won’t change anything. I just felt like I needed to explain myself before you got the wrong idea. Besides. When have you ever heard of a black-haired healer?” Frost smiled.

No one tried to refute this. After all, there was no such thing as a black-haired healer.

The merchants began speaking amongst themselves about the revelation. Frost heard their every whisper as though they were being spoken beside her. Meanwhile, Autumn shuffled closer to Frost, albeit carefully to not agitate her.

She cupped her mouth and glared at the merchants before whispering:

“It’s better if you didn’t show your powers like that to people so easily. They’re probably discussing how much you’ll go for. This isn’t the kind of place for women like us, so you should really be careful. You can’t rely on your ties from the North here.”

“I’m well aware.”

Autumn was sincerely looking out for her. She was the only person here that was able to meet her eyes. Strength did not make Frost any better than her.

It had been a long while since Frost had seen eyes that could look at her like that. It was rare for a normal person to disregard power as easily as Autumn.

“You don’t seem like you care though. Lady… Even people as strong as Teacher have been caught because of their pride only turn out as mana or battle slaves. Worse for us. You’re heading into the ruins of Puritas too. You’re not going to be the only one that’s strong enough to do what you did today.”

“Autumn. I’m already aware of that. Grandis is a melting pot for powerful people. The conditions of this place breeds monsters. But it’s funny. Because some gems like you can be born too~” Frost hummed, embarrassing the girl.

“… seriously? Ugh… Do what you want. Don’t blame me when you find yourself in a cage.” Autumn sighed before collapsing onto the ground.

Her arms and hair were sprawled out as she stared up into the enshrouded skies.

“All you wanted for helping us was a map. How does that even make sense? Is what you’re looking for so important that you’re willing to go out there on your own? That’s like wandering into the Black Forest! Only someone stupid enough would try that expecting to come out alive!”

From those words alone Frost could tell that Autumn probably had this same conversation with countless that came before her. She had seen people arrive determined and leave in despair. Autumn remembered a foul memory that caused her face to contort.

Frost hummed to herself before joining her. But unlike Autumn who could only see the fog, Frost stared up as though she could see the stars.

“The thing is, I have to do it because I’m the only one who can.”

The weight of her words was immeasurable. Autumn could not gauge the depth of her experiences from those words alone. They were suffocating, and Autumn’s eyes slowly shut as she realized that this person was not like the dreamers and aspirers she had warned before.

She was someone who had already experienced the worst.

“It’s nice to hear someone look out for you, huh? It brings back some good memories. That reminds me, how is the Black Forest looking?” Frost randomly asked, wondering what the conseses about that wretched place was like now.

“Well, I’ve never seen it, but I heard from my cousin that she met the person who conquered the beast in there. Apparently, they were a feather-coat-wearing healer. I think those Herald cult people have brainwashed her for good.”

… huh? Wait a second…

“Autumn. Who told you that ridiculous story?”

“A Patron of the Highways. She’s pretty infamous for always carrying around that Script of hers. Maybe you’ve already met her.”

Autumn sat up, stretching with a loud yawn before she revealed the name of this person.

“Does the name Via ring a bell?”

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