Chapter 5: The Fugitives from Thalonia

Professor Hode made a mistake. As he thought, aside from Ravia, who was more independent, the other girls were obedient. Without encouragement from boys, they would stay quietly in the house, but when provoked—especially by boys they got along well with…
“Knock, knock, knock,” came the sound on the attic floor. Lisa cautiously poked her head out and called softly, “Allen? Allen?”
“Allen? Scott? Thos?”
“Asleep?” The girls’ chatter came from the stairs.
Soon, a petite figure appeared in the attic—Ravia. Holding a candle holder, she glanced at the three beds in the dim light and muttered discontentedly, “These three idiots said they’d go check things out, but they ended up falling asleep themselves…” She stepped forward, intending to wake Jiang Zhe first, but after hesitating, she decided to wake Scott instead.
“Hm?” Pushed gently by Ravia, Scott woke up and sat up. In the dim light from the candle, he reached for his glasses by the bed and put them on before asking, “Has the professor left?”
“The professor left a long time ago,” Ravia replied irritably. “You three are really too much! Didn’t you say you’d go to that village to check things out after the professor left?”
“It’s not our fault,” Scott shook his head and explained. “Obviously, the professor didn’t want us to go. That’s why he used to sense our magical energy to see if we were asleep. Thos and I both sensed it faintly. There’s nothing we can do… We still can’t hide from the professor…”
“I see…” Hearing Scott’s explanation, Ravia was stunned. She had also felt strange earlier, wondering why the professor hadn’t gone to the village yet.
While the two were talking, Allen hadn’t woken up either, thanks to Lisa. Dazed, he was slapping his face to wake himself up.
“Alright, wake up that guy, Thos. It’s already past three in the morning. We’d better leave before the villagers wake up…” Ravia frowned as she listened to Scott’s snoring from the next bed and said irritably, “Hurry up and wake him up! We’ll wait for you downstairs!”
“Mm, okay. If possible, could you step back for a moment?” Looking at Ravia holding the candle holder, Scott felt awkward for once.

Realizing this suddenly, Ravia’s face turned slightly red. She muttered a few words, then left the attic with the girls. Before going, she placed the candle holder on the attic floor.
“Don’t make us wait too long!”
“Of course not! It would be extremely rude to keep pretty ladies waiting!” Allen said with a smile, pushing Jiang Zhe from behind the bed.
“Get up, buddy!”
Perhaps Jiang Zhe hadn’t slept well that day, so he didn’t react strangely when awakened. After a brief pause, he began getting dressed.
A few minutes later, Jiang Zhe and the others were dressed and had descended the stairs. By then, the girls had prepared some bread and water for the journey.
“Too slow!” Ravia frowned and snapped at Jiang Zhe, who was walking at the back, yawning nonstop. In return, she got a rolled-eye from him.
It was the dead of night when the children sneaked out of the house. The entire village was quiet, with only the occasional roar of wild animals coming from the distant valleys—almost no sound at all, as the villagers were all fast asleep.
The group stepped through the snow outside the village, but then they encountered a small problem…
“Um… which direction is that village?” Allen asked, blinking as he held a large knight’s sword.
“East!” Scott replied confidently, but…
“And where’s east?” Lisa asked timidly, looking around in the darkness. Though she had seemed bold enough to threaten Allen when she first met Jiang Zhe and the others, she was actually the least brave of the girls.
“East…” Ravia hesitated, scanning the surroundings before suddenly pointing in a certain direction. “It should be that way!” As soon as she finished speaking, she noticed Jiang Zhe looking up at the stars in the sky and asked curiously, “What are you doing?”
Jiang Zhe shrugged awkwardly. He had subconsciously tried to determine direction by looking at the stars, but after staring for a while, he realized he didn’t recognize a single constellation. After all, this was no longer the world he was familiar with.
Following the direction Ravia indicated, the group walked along the road. The slippery ground made Allen uncomfortable. To be safe, he wore almost a full set of knight’s armor, along with a large knight’s sword, aside from not bringing a helmet. If not for his naturally strong physique, he might have collapsed from exhaustion before reaching their destination.

At around three or four in the morning, when it’s usually the coldest time of day, especially in winter, the cold wind hitting their faces felt like cuts from a knife. In the small group, aside from Ravia and Jiang Zhe, who weren’t feeling the cold due to the dense fire elements around them, the rest were shivering with cold.

The road was narrow, probably wide enough only for two carriages side by side, slippery and bumpy. On both sides of the road stood lush forests, dark and shadowy, which made the girls tense, fearing that a wild beast might suddenly emerge from the woods.

Fortunately, it had been only a day or two since the full moon, so the moonlight casting on the path was sufficient to illuminate their way. No wild beasts suddenly appeared from the forests, though the occasional howl of wolves in the distance was somewhat eerie.

“Are you cold?” Jiang Zhe asked hesitantly, looking at Dia walking beside him and seeing her constantly wrapping her robe tighter around herself.

Dia smiled slightly, pointed to a seemingly unremarkable thin layer of water barrier on her body, and shook her head. “It can’t compare to your fire magic in keeping warm, but it can still ward off some of the cold…”

“Ah, that’s good,” Jiang Zhe said with a smile. Somehow, he always felt a sense of familiarity toward Dia—well, it was probably her occasional gentle and caring expressions that gave him that feeling.

Perhaps bored from the long journey, the children started chatting. Allen, who considered himself a knight, was telling jokes that made Lisa laugh nonstop. Behind them, Lailira seemed to be trying to talk to Scott. She had a good impression of this boy, who was calm to the point of being cold, but sadly, Scott didn’t seem interested in her, merely responding politely in short phrases, which disappointed Lailira.

At the back were Jiang Zhe and Dia, who also seemed to be having a pleasant conversation.

Except for Ravia, who clearly seemed gloomy and hadn’t said much throughout the journey…

Five or six miles seemed a bit too long for these children. They had already been walking for about two hours, yet there was still no sign of any villages. Doubting their direction, Jiang Zhe said anxiously, “Ravia, did you get the direction wrong?”

Surprisingly, Ravia ignored Jiang Zhe. She gave him a slightly annoyed glance, snorted softly, and continued walking forward, muttering something under her breath.

Anyway, the more than two hours of walking left them exhausted, especially the girls like Lisa and Lailira, whose steps grew slower and slower.

Seeing this, Scott turned to Jiang Zhe and said, “Sos, sunrise should be around in a bit. Let’s find a place to rest and continue after sunrise, how about that?”
Before Jiang Zhe could respond, Allen shouted, “I agree, man! I really can’t go on anymore!” Though he said that, his expression suggested he still had plenty of energy.
“I agree too!” Lisa said, panting.
“Then let’s find a place to rest first.” With that, Jiang Zhe called out to Raviya, who was leading the way, “Raviya?”
“Got it!” Raviya replied, looking as if she were deep in thought.
After searching around, they chose to rest under a large tree that could shield them from the wind.
During that time, Allen used his knight’s sword to cut off some branches, allowing Jiang Zhe to start a campfire. The children sat around the fire; although they were still exposed to the cold wind, the burning flames provided some warmth.
“Here! For the beautiful lady!” Allen handed one of the water bags to Lisa with a smile and gave the other to Scott to distribute.
“Thank you!” Lisa said gratefully before unscrewing the bag to drink. Suddenly, her expression froze, followed by shock as she pointed tremblingly at the woods not far away. “Th-there… there’s someone there!”
“Hm?” Jiang Zhe instinctively looked around, but there was no sign of anyone.
Wait…
Was that under the tree in the distance…
It seemed there indeed was someone lying there…
After exchanging glances with Scott and Allen, Jiang Zhe stood up.
“Be careful!” Dia warned softly.
“Mm.” Jiang Zhe nodded and, along with Scott and Allen, carefully walked toward the tree. The girls followed behind them.
Under the large tree not far away, there was indeed a person lying down. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a man in his twenties or thirties, with curly brown hair that was messy, a hooked nose, a pale face, blue lips, and an old black coat covered in dirt. He didn’t seem to have anything valuable on him and looked very destitute.
“A local villager?” Scott murmured, frowning, before shaking his head as if dismissing his own question. This man certainly didn’t resemble a villager.
“Well…” Hiding behind Allen out of fear, Lisa asked timidly, “Is he dead?”
“I don’t know.”

Jiang Zhe shook his head. Just as he was about to bend down to check the man’s breathing, he suddenly heard the man lying on the ground groan, “Who said someone died? You brat!” With that, he opened his eyes and tried to get up, but his movements were extremely feeble.

Even so, the man’s actions still shocked the children, who quickly stepped back a few paces and watched him warily. Jiang Zhe and Scott were especially ready to cast magic at the slightest sign of danger, while Allen drew his knight’s sword and held it tightly.

To everyone’s surprise, the man failed to stand up and instead staggered and fell again. It took a long time before he could barely sit against a tree trunk under the children’s wary gazes.

“Hey,” the man said, seemingly amused by the wary looks in the children’s eyes. “Look carefully—I’m human, not some beast. You brat, could you put away that sword? If you swing it at me, I won’t even have the strength to dodge.”

Hearing the man’s self-deprecating words, Jiang Zhe hesitated for a moment before saying in a deep voice, “Who are you? What are you doing here?”

“Heh.” The man shook his head, his voice filled with exhaustion.

“I think that question isn’t important at all. I’m just a wanderer. By comparison… do you have any food? I haven’t eaten in three days…” As he spoke, he sniffled, his eyes lighting up as he said with a smile, “I can smell bread… It might be a bit dry, but it’ll be enough to quench my hunger. Oh, and if possible, could I have another bag of water…”

“How do you know we have bread?” Jiang Zhe asked, still highly suspicious.

“A hungry person is the most sensitive to the smell of food. Is that explanation enough, brat?”

“…” The man’s words left Jiang Zhe stunned. He examined the man carefully and saw that he was indeed too hungry to stand properly, so his wariness gradually faded. “As for bread, I can give you some, but… don’t call me brat!”

“Wait, Thors!” Seeing Jiang Zhe about to bend down to help the man up, Dia pulled him back. Looking at the man leaning against the tree trunk, she said with deep suspicion, “There’s a smell of blood on him!”

“…” Dia’s words shocked the children, and their wariness returned.

“Kid, do you mean the smell of blood when you talk about it?” The man seemed helpless; he sighed and, under everyone’s wary gazes, pulled off his coat to reveal his bare upper body. On his right chest was a bloody, mangled wound that stretched from his right shoulder down to his ribs. Although the wound was starting to scab over, it was still oozing blood. It was hard to imagine anyone could survive such a severe injury.

But what concerned Dia more was that she clearly saw something very strange in the wound on the man’s right chest, as if his flesh had been corroded.

“Was this wound caused by magic?”

Surprise flashed in the man’s eyes, followed by a light laugh. He said, “If you have many questions, could you give me a piece of bread first?”

The children gathered together to discuss it. Scott, Allen, Lisa, and Lailira all suggested helping the man, while Ravia didn’t offer any advice. After hesitating for a moment, Dia also agreed with Scott and the others, as she couldn’t detect even the slightest hint of malice in the man’s eyes.

As for Jiang Zhe… Strangely, after lowering his guard, he felt an inexplicable fondness for the man.

The man must have been hungry for days, too weak even to stand. In the end, it was Allen who helped him up and guided him to the campfire, which surprised the man. However, after glancing at the large sword standing nearby, he seemed to understand.

Almost devouring the bread in the blink of an eye, the man finished a piece in no time. Licking his lips, he looked at what was left and asked Jiang Zhe with his eyes, clearly realizing that this seemingly quiet child seemed to be the leader of the group.

“Please!” Jiang Zhe glanced at his companions, seeing no opposition, and nodded.

“Thank you!” The man quickly grabbed a piece of bread and bit into it. He then took a water bottle and drank a few sips before saying in a slurred voice, “I’m so lucky to have met you. Otherwise, I might really have died of hunger here… Oh, by the way, my name is Argus PatClanfield. You can call me Argus!”

“Where are you from?” Scott asked, somewhat suspiciously.

“Saronia!” Argus replied while chewing his bread. Then he blinked and said with a smile, “Actually, I sneaked across the border!”

“Why?” Dia asked softly, still wary. “And what about the wound on your chest…”

“There’s no choice but to flee!” Argus burped and shrugged, saying, “It’s my fault for messing with someone I shouldn’t have!” With a teasing look at the children gathered around the campfire, he laughed and said, “Want to know who I messed with? You little brats!”
Dia smiled slightly before saying in a serious tone, “Then Mr.Clanfield, you must not be an ordinary vagrant. An ordinary person wouldn’t survive such serious injuries…”
“Just call me Argus,” the man said, running his hand through his long hair in front of his forehead. After hesitating for a moment, he added earnestly, “As payment for this food, I should answer all your questions, but about this one… I think it’s better if you don’t know. Trust me, kids! Sometimes, too much curiosity doesn’t bring good luck—remember that!”
“Are you a magician?” Jiang Zhe asked curiously, watching as Argus devoured almost half of the bread.
Argus paused, looked up at Jiang Zhe. Perhaps he felt a bit fond of Jiang Zhe as well. He chuckled and joked, “Actually, I’m a great magician…”
“Tsk!” As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Zhe curled his lips. He wasn’t like when he first arrived in this world. The great magicians here were all in their fifties or sixties and extremely famous. Unlike this guy in front of him—who was only around twenty-eight or twenty-nine, whose name he had never even heard of—and claimed to be a great magician?
“If that’s really the case, where’s your magician rank badge?” Dia asked with a hint of teasing in her smile.
“Well…” Argus was stunned. He reached into his pockets and fumbled around for a while, only to pull out two silver coins, causing the children to laugh.
“There’s nothing I can do,” Argus shrugged helplessly, spreading his hands. “Even if I’m not a great magician, I’m still a magician, right?”
“What magic can you do?” Seeing that this man didn’t seem that strange or terrifying, Lisa spoke up bravely. “Is it some advanced magic? Can we see it?”
“Uh, well…” Argus froze and stammered, “I already said—I was chased by some really powerful guys, suffered serious injuries, and one of them was an old guy who specialized in mind magic. That old bastard caused me huge mental damage…” His words stopped as he noticed the same expression on the children’s faces—disbelief!

Allen even whispered to Scott, “It’s possible he actually knows nothing at all…”
Scott glanced at Argus and nodded in agreement.
“Hey, I’m telling the truth!”
“Well…” Looking at Argus, who was arguing but showed no sign of embarrassment or anger, Jiang Zhe asked, “Are you being chased by many people?”
“Hey!” Argus smiled, stretched out a hand, and said, “Nine!”
“That’s five…” Lisa’s quiet muttering made Argus a bit awkward.
“Chased by nine magicians?” Jiang Zhe looked puzzled.
“No, not exactly. Only that old bastard is a proper magician. There are two guys who aren’t very skilled, and the remaining six are quite troublesome—each as strong as a monster. I had no choice but to run for my life…”
As he spoke, Argus had already finished all the bread and drunk three water bottles. After burping, he asked, “You must be students from some magic academy. How did you end up here? Luckily you ran into me; otherwise, if you’d met evil magicians, you’d be in big trouble!”
Amid Allen’s odd grimacing, Dia said softly, “We’re students from Riox. We want to go to a village called Asher. We heard that its residents were attacked by some creature during the full moon two days ago, and all their blood was drained. We think it might be similar to the werewolves described in the records, so we want to go take a look…”
“All their blood drained? No wonder…” Argus was stunned for a moment, narrowed his eyes, muttered something, and shook his head. “This isn’t something you kids should get involved in. If I were you, I’d go back to your lodging and go to bed. Excessive curiosity isn’t a good thing!”
“Hey, we just saved your life!” Allen said, clearly upset by Argus’s tone.
“Hehe,” Argus shook his head and smiled. He took out the only two silver coins he had from his coat pocket and said helplessly, “If you expect me to pay you, I’d be happy to use all my money to repay you…”
“All your money?” The children looked at Argus with disdain.

“Alright, alright, since you really want to go, I’ll give you some directions. You’ve already gone too far; head southwest from here, and you’ll be able to see it in about a mile. Go after sunrise… Before that, I want to warn you—if they’re really the legendary werewolves, I advise you to…” As he spoke, Argus suddenly stopped, lowering his head slightly.
Immediately afterward, howls came from the woods not far away…
“It seems there’s no need for you to go look for them, kids!”