For Jacob, the first day of traveling had been oddly calm and without any intervention. Not he nor Alexi spoke a single word to each other even when they slowed down to cross rivers and streams, they were both focused on whatever goal they had in mind currently, with Jacob looking forward to the direction of Yarya village and Alexi keeping her eyes on the forest, she had such a close on it that it had gotten to a point that she stared at it on occasion, keeping an eye out even as they blitzed through the plains.

Jacob felt pretty curious and wanted to ask if she could see through the speed but found himself staying silent throughout the journey.

As they stopped to prepare their camp for the night, Jacob found himself staring at the starlit sky, without light pollution, it looked so bright and so wonderful that he couldn't help but feel in awe at what he was seeing, and he wondered throughout the entire night if there's something out there that can both produce light yet also allow for people to stare at a clear night sky because it didn't produce any light pollution.

Alexi sat next to him, reached a handout, and opened the pot in front of him, the smell of stew wafted around and Jacob grinned, "You feeling hungry yet?"

"I'm the one who's supposed to ask that master," Alexi chided, closing the lid of the pot once more, "and to answer your question, I am not." She answered, "Though, can I ask you something?"

"Ask away," Jacob looked away from the pot and back into the sky.

"Do you miss your old home?" Jacob blinked, the question catching him off guard. No one had really asked about it before and all he could do in reaction to it is suddenly blinking as his mind caught up to what he just heard.

"... No." He answered eventually.

After spending God knows how long in... wherever that dark place was- the void? Limbo, maybe? Jacob hummed in thought. - everyone he knows is probably dead anyways, from his father to his brothers and sisters. Really, by this time, there's most likely no point in trying to figure out a way to go back to his original world, "I don't think there's anything left for me back there,"

"Is that so?" Alexi asked, raising her knees and wrapping her hands around them, she placed her cheek against her knees and faced Jacob directly, head placed in such a fashion that it looks like she was tilting it, "do you want to go back?"

"No." Jacob answered again, this time more assured about his decision, "I want to stay here I think,"

"... can you tell me about your old world?" Alexi asked and Jacob turned to her, smiling.

"Sure," he answered, reminded of the time he talked about his old life to the merchants and Asya. Come to think of it, the situation isn't that different from when he was traveling to the city, isn't it? Just with fewer people, "My old world wasn't really anything special, we just had more time to advance and create a larger population," he started explaining.

And as the story progress, Jacob found the night to quickly pass, the story went on even as the two of them ate dinner and Alexi, the girl Jacob thought was content on listening, placed her bowl down and looked up much in the same way as he did, and said, "I... think your world sounds beautiful," she started, "where everything is automated and all you really have to worry about is getting money, where wars and monsters aren't trying to attack you and where people can eat anything they want right as long as they have the allowance for it."

Alexi raised a hand in an attempt to grasp the stars, "Even expensive food such as sweets and cake can be bought, and it'll only take the lowest working class a month of work to get it."

"If you put it that way," Jacob said, "then Earth sounds like heaven,"

"It is, compared to here." Alexi said.

"Maybe." Jacob replied, not really believing it. Having actual Gods out there that want to benefit everyone while having genuine physical presence and influence sounds like there's some sort of order in this world, which is so much better compared to Earth. Then again, when the opposite happens and the Gods are power hungry, then things wouldn't be as good as they are right now most likely.

"In the end, I think," Alexi stood up as the fire crackled to life, casting her shadow across the ground, "we all want what we don't have,"

"Maybe," Jacob repeated, not knowing what to say.

"See you tomorrow," she said and Jacob saw her bow in the corner of his eye, "goodnight, master."

"Goodnight." Jacob returned.

Come morning and the two of them set off, neither spoke as they fixed themselves and stored their tents and the silence continued even as they rode onto their horses and went back on their journey.

Two more days. Everyone would just have to wait for two more days and everything would be going according to his plan, Yavneck hid a smile as he once again gave another reason as to why they couldn't take the village just yet, and Teyen couldn't do anything but glare at him because their new sponsor went along with what he said- see yesterday, he had a feeling when he was inspecting his wand and Yavneck tested it during this meeting, he went on the aggressive, putting out his plan and he wants to delay the attack for two more days in hopes that their sponsor would agree to him ver Teyen and...

... He was right.

"And I'm telling you that the villagers are still wary about everything," Yavneck unreasonably reasoned against Teyen's opinions about them being able to overwhelm the forces of the village, "do you not get it?" He asked, crossing his arms and raising his eyebrow, "They will be prepared for us and what's more, the adventurers that are now arriving within the village because of the Dungeon's renewal two weeks from now would be there to help defend as well."

He ignored the way Teyen's face turned red and walked over to the map on the center table and pointed at the small river running to the side of the village, "and what will you do then when the villagers realize that they are being attacked and move over to the other side of this river so that they can start shooting at us?" He asked, "And need I remind you that me and your scouts confirmed that there has been construction going on there lately? Who knows what the village has cooked up in that haunted plot of land?!"

He did. He knew that his target had somehow exorcised the ghost haunting the decrepit house there and had made the place as his own, and once it was all his, the mage then proceeded to hire workers and buy materials from the Merchant's Guild in order to fix his house and push it up to his- that is to say, a noble's, - standard way of living.

Yavneck held back a scowl, he should've just shoved a stick up his noble ass if he's so inclined in buying logs of wood to fix the damn house!

Schooling himself, he eyed Teyen to see if the large man would react but to his pleasant surprise, he did nothing but give in a slow nod, saying, "Very well, I trust you." He said and Yavneck caught the split second where his eyes quickly moved to the left, where their armored Patron sat.

"I trust you as well," The man... thing? Yavneck had a theory that what's underneath the helm and silver armor is nothing more than a spirit, making it some sort of living armor- which really isn't that strange by Fratenian standards, those people ride Griffons after all, - said, its deep voice causing a tremor to travel across the air and make the tent shake slightly.

More proof that it isn't a man underneath there, but is, in fact, living armor.

"Also," it added, "I am curious about how our [Herbalist] is doing," it questioned, "Any news on that guy yet?"

Yavneck held back a sigh, a yes- the "Herbalist", personally, the Scholar didn't know what came upon their Patrons to accept the fraud as someone legitimate, after all, his talk about creating strength potions out of nothing but herbs is nothing more than a myth created from the south, where apparently, once upon a time, a family there had a recipe for creating potions of strength, in the end, it is nothing more than a stupid tale made by a stupid man to trick stupid children like Cego.

Though the would-be merchant did have guts, Yavneck had to give him that.

After all, killing one's friend without hesitation is a rather bold- if not psychopathic - thing to do.