On my way to the city, I decided to deviate from the main road, fearing being attacked again by that abomination. A feeling of desolation came over me as I remembered that I had not been able to comply with the last order of our leader. The devastating attack of that monster claimed the lives of almost all my companions before we could even retreat.

However, the timely intervention of Matze changed the course of events and saved my life. I owe my life and my future to this brave man. I feel very guilty for having always considered him a coward.

If it weren't for his wind barrier that protected me from the heat wave produced by the attack of that "thing", I would now be one more of the dozens of corpses scattered on the scorched ground of that garden.

Gratitude and the desire to repay his heroic act drive me to keep going, even ignoring the pain in all my muscles. I have to get to the city. With each step I take, my determination grows within me.

Although the path seems uncertain and full of dangers, I cannot allow myself to give up; I could never forgive myself if I did that.

After walking for three days, I think I am almost at the limit of my physical resistance; My vision is blurry, and my legs are shaking. Luckily for us, apparently, that abomination scared away all the monsters in the forest.

I couldn't fight anything in this state; My whole body hurts, and I am very sleepy and thirsty. I struggle not to faint with every step.

"I'm not going to give up, I have to get to the city. I know you will be saved, my friend, I promise you."

At least he's still breathing; that's a relief; there is still hope.

The sun is not too high in the sky. It's morning, but it's still very hot, and I thank the gods for being able to walk under the shade of the trees, or I would have fainted if I lost the little liquid I still have left due to the inclement heat of the sun.

In the midst of my exhaustion, a sound reaches my ears from a distance. A stream, the sound of water are the most beautiful things I have heard in days; they become the most beautiful gifts that my senses can perceive at this moment.

"There is water near Matze; we are saved!"

I had already used up all the water in my canteen two days ago; if we hadn't found this stream, we would unfortunately be doomed.

Using my last strength, I go as fast as I can in the direction of the sound. I walk between the bushes, using my sword to clear the thorny bushes as best I can. Finally, I reached the source of that sound.

It is a small stream, but the water looks clean. Even if it weren't clean, I think I would drink it anyway.

Carefully, I put Matze on the ground under the shade of a tree. He is in very bad condition, and deep down, I know he will not survive another three or four days until we reach the nearest city. I shake my head to ward off those pessimistic thoughts.

"I'm not going to give up now."

I go to the stream and fill my canteen with water. I immediately drink it all; it tastes delicious. Never in my life has water tasted so delicious.

I refill the canteen and try to give Matze a drink. It is very difficult; If I'm not careful, I could even drown him. After trying for quite a while, I failed miserably. There is no way to make him drink water; I can't get him to swallow.

"He's definitely going to die."

I feel horrible; I feel like all the accumulated tiredness falls on me all at once. I failed him; I couldn't save him. I lean against a tree as I look at the stream, lamenting.

Shortly after, my lamentations are interrupted by the sound of footsteps, and I immediately stand up.

In the distance, I see the silhouette of what appears to be a woman dressed in a black dress. it makes no sense to find a woman alone in the middle of the forest; she must be some kind of monster.

I don't have the strength to run; I just have to fight; there are no more options. I fight now or we both die. I do my best to look threatening.

Slowly and completely carefree, as if walking through the town square, the woman approaches us. When she is about twenty feet away, I can see her face in detail.

At that moment, I have it completely clear, there is no room for doubt, she is definitely a monster or an illusion.

Because before my eyes, I see a woman whose beauty goes beyond anything I have seen or dreamed of in my life. She looks like she came from another world, carrying with her divine perfection.

Her skin is white as freshly fallen snow, but it looks healthy and full of life; her black hair flows down her back, reflecting the light as if it were a waterfall of black mithril; her face is something I can only describe as perfect, a masterpiece; if someone told me this is the face of a goddess, I would believe them without hesitation.

Her figure is also not far behind; she has perfect proportions; it is as if she were the personification of the very concept of beauty embodied in this world.

Such supernatural, such sublime beauty cannot belong in this world. She is too perfect, too divine, to be a real human being.

When I finally manage to come out of the trance, I put a hand on the hilt of my sword, arming myself with courage. I speak to her, sounding as defiant as I can. But I barely manage to hide the fascination and fear that reside deep within my being.

"Stop right there! Who are you, and what are you doing here?"

I ask her, wishing she were real and not just a product of my imagination or some kind of monster.

The gaze of her crimson eyes rests on me. I felt my heart skip a beat; for a second, I even feared that it had stopped beating. I find it very difficult to maintain my composure.

"Hello, young warrior, I am just a lady on her way to the city. Why? Is something wrong?"

She answers me without the slightest hint of worry or fear. Her voice sounds melodic and cheerful, totally out of place in a situation like this.

I try to calm down. The fact that she answered me means that she is not a hallucination; now it can only mean that she is a very intelligent monster disguised as a human. I have no chance of defeating it because I am so exhausted; I can only pray to the gods and play along.

"It's incredibly rare to see a woman like you in the middle of the forest, even more so when you're alone, without weapons or equipment of any kind."

I asked her with the vain hope that, by some miracle, she was a real woman. This time her expression changed a bit; she made a little grimace and looked a little annoyed, even though she looked as beautiful as before.

"Oh, I see what you mean, young warrior; do I seem very suspicious to you? Unfortunately, I lost my equipment due to some unfortunate circumstances. Even so, this lady is a fairly competent mage. And as I was told, I am on my way to the city."

Is she a magician? Can such a thing be real? She speaks and expresses herself as if she were a noble lady. It is not uncommon for a noble lady to be beautiful, and it is not uncommon for a noble to be able to study magic, but what is very rare for a noble is to be alone in the middle of the forest.

I am now in a situation of no return; if she is a monster, we will die, but if she is a human mage, and by mistaking her for a monster, I end up offending her, I would have to fight, and in this state, we will also die.

The only option is to leave our destiny to the heavens and cling to the possibility that what she said is real, however unlikely it may seem.

"Excuse my rudeness, we are also on our way to the city. I need to report and attend to my friend, who is seriously injured."

I try to sound as polite as possible. I never had a formal education, and I don't know if this is the correct way to speak to a noble lady or not, but it is the best I could do.

"What could have happened to both of you? Now that I see you in detail, you look very bad. Did a war break out, and I didn't find out?"

Her charm is amazing; My heart almost melts at her words. She seems genuinely concerned about us. Perhaps all my distrust was unfounded? I can't imagine that a lady as beautiful as her could be an evil monster.

"We are the only ones left of the mercenary company. “Wandering Wardens”, a terribly powerful monster attacked the residence of the lord of these lands, we barely managed to survive."

I decided to be honest with her. Finding her may have been a miracle. Even so, just remembering that night makes my body shiver involuntarily and my eyes water.

"Oh my, what a terrible event! I can't even imagine the hell you must have gone through to end up in such terrible conditions.”

She puts her two beautiful hands on her face, she is so beautiful...

“I'm really sorry, young warrior; it was very insensitive of me to have asked you so lightly. Through my carelessness, I must have made you remember terrible things."

My God, I feel terrible for distrusting her. I am sure she is not a monster; she could not be, I am now completely sure of that, her concern is genuine.

"Don't worry, my Lady; it's not your fault. Do you say you are a mage? If you like, you can join us in traveling to the city. This road is dangerous, and I would not want to see you  hurt. Besides, having the help of a mage would greatly increase our chances of survival.”

What am I thinking? As a beautiful noble mage who is able to walk alone in the middle of the forest. She will even need me to protect her? 

I stupidly got carried away by the moment and talked too much without thinking. Even so, my heart still hopes for her help during the trip.

"It would be nice for me to accompany you on the journey to the city. But first, let's introduce ourselves properly.”

“Good day, youth warrior; my name is Victoria Eleanor Nightsun, and it is a pleasure to meet you."

I froze for a moment. I don't know what to say. I never imagined that she would agree to go with us. Controlling the trembling of my voice, I answer.

"It is a pleasure for me too, a beautiful Lady. My name is Eadric, and my friend here is called Matze, unfortunately, he is unconscious. I only stopped for a moment to get water and give him a drink."

Her beautiful eyes rest on Matze with a look full of compassion, regret, and sadness.

"Would it be rude if I asked you why you ended up in the middle of the forest? In my case, I went off the road to see if I could hunt some monsters."

She must definitely be a powerful mage if she is capable of something like that. I was so distracted by her beauty that I forgot what really matters now, if she is a noble, she is very likely to have potions.

"We scattered, fearing that thing would come back for us."

My breath catches, I have no more options. I risk offending her by asking her for something after our first meeting with a complete stranger, but I am sure that such a kind Lady will forgive me.

"Please excuse my insolence, but do you have any potions or healing items? I will pay you triple their value when I get the gold! I can't let my good friend die!”

I hold my breath, waiting for her answer. It's embarrassing but worth a try, even though deep down I feel like crap right now. She raises an eyebrow but then responds with a sad expression and a solemn tone.

"I see; unfortunately, I don't have any options with me, and we are still a few days away from the nearest city."

It's a real shame, even so, I'm glad I didn't offend her… Forgive me, my friend; it seems that I was not able to save you as I promised.

"I'm not very proficient in healing magic, but I know some basics. I could try to help your friend, but I can't promise anything."

When I had already lost all hope, her melodic voice made me lose all composure.