Ahh, Hamel. A word that can strike fear and hopelessness to some, while it was just a random word to others. Needless to say, this word held a significant impact on all of Zemuria both near and far. For what is to come, at least.
Right now, Hamel is but a little tiny village resting on the outskirts of one of the Great House's territories. All the way south of the Sutherland Province. Surrounding it were rolling and windy mountain roads that made it almost impossible to get there unless one was familiar with the pathways.
Its residents didn't even number in the hundred. It was that small of a town. More of a village, really. A simple, backwater village in the middle of nowhere. Totally not inconspicuous, right?
Even the number of houses could be counted with two sets of hands. The closest population to it was Parm Village to the north, and Titus Gate to the south. This Gate was the infamous gate that blocked off its neighboring country, Liberl. Titus Gate wasn't what it would become, it was more of a medieval structure hailing from the Middle Ages presently. Only until after the Hundred Days War would Titus Gate get remodeled from the ground up, as a result of all of the destruction from the war. But that hasn't taken place. Soon, but not yet.
There was one way into Hamel. And one way out. Such a simple village wasn't worth considering to many. But to others, it was the prime target...
It was now April of S1192. A couple days had passed since the tragedy took place on the outskirts of Trista. Many were still reacting to the horror that transpired. It was a far cry as to what was happening all the way south of Erebonia. It was so quiet that even monsters rarely popped out of their nests. Besides a rare orbal car going to and fro to pass through Titus Gate and vice versa, not many humans were out and about travelling the roads here.
That is, except for one man.
The man had already begun his hike on the long, windy road that wraps around itself, eventually leading into Hamel.
This man had neatly combed dark blue hair that was all prim and proper, and not unkempt at all. He had red eyes that complemented his dark blue hair. He presently wore a green earthly overcoat, and had small spectacle-like glasses over his eyes. On top of that overcoat, he wore a mountain due to how chilly it was. Completing the images were some dark blue trousers. He seemed to be a scholar. He even held a little travel notebook with a pen lodged inside it in one of his hands.
But if one had a close look, this scholar wasn't actually alone. A hiker who was familiar with this road could be seen, guiding the scholar along the long path. He was presently guiding this scholar. After arriving at a good spot, the guide turned toward him. The scholar smiled, seeing how much they had progressed already.
"It looks like we're making good pace, don't you think? Perhaps we will make it before sunset after all. I did not think the village would be this far south into the mountains. I'm glad I hired you, haha. You're worth every Mira spent to take me there, haha!", The scholar said, giving the guide a laugh. The guide replied back with a laugh of his own. He too was a man. Much more rough around the edges. Messy brown hair and all. But that didn't deter the scholar one bit. He hired the guide for a reason.
"Haha, ya got that right. Bein' a guide is quite rare 'round these parts of the woods. It pays good Mira when someone puts a request in. Most villagers know how to safely reach our neighbors and are always taught from a young age to do so, seein' we're so far out of reach. You ain't the first, though. Soldiers every so often wander in to check up on us, or merchants from Parm.", The guide said, laughing. He then glanced at the scholar again. "Still, I don't know what this place has to offer for someone like ya. There's nothin'. Ya might be the first scholar to ever show an interest in this village. Still, people here treat each other kindly. I'm sure ya will be welcome with open arms."
"Is that so? I'm a bit of an oddity myself. I like to travel around on foot and check out areas for prospecting minerals. I'm somewhat of an archeologist, you see. But wherever I go, danger always seems to follow. I'm quite unlucky with monsters, haha!", The scholar said, smiling at the guide.
"Unlucky with monsters, eh? Good thing I act both as a guide, and a guard. If we meet some of those unlucky monsters on this road, leave 'em to me!", The guide said, ensuring the scholar that they were safe. "And the name's Jon, by the way. What do they call ya?"
"Professor Alba. I'll try not to cause any trouble during my stay inside your village. It is quite hard to find, even if a map is used. It's called Hamel, isn't it?", Professor Alba said, introducing himself to the guide, still keeping a smile on his face.
"So it's Professor Alba. Just share a bit of that knowledge of yers with the townsfolk, and that'll be enough for us. Got three kids myself. If ya don't mind, I'm sure my wife would love ya to stay with us for the evenin'. Do be on the lookout for a couple troublemakers, though.", Jon said, giving Professor Alba an invitation. He raised his eyebrows at Jon.
"I would hate to intrude on your home, Jon. But note taken. I'm quite good at looking after myself, since I travel around a lot. It's a pleasure to meet your acquaintance.", Professor Alba said, accepting Jon's greeting.
"Likewise. It will be another couple of hours until we reach the village. Ya know, we got plenty of rooms to spare. Yer more than welcome to stay with us.", Jon suggested.
"If you're truly welcoming me to stay, then I do not mind staying with you. I will be in Hamel for a couple days at most. Still, there really is a Church all the way out here, huh?"
"There sure is! It helps us round up the kids around for a little bit of sunday teachin'. Just like with the soldiers, we get travelling nuns every so often to teach the kids.", Jon said. "But seein' as yer a Professor of sorts, ya think ya can fill that role in? Ya know. Hold a class or somethin' for the kids.", Jon suggested again.
"That idea doesn't sound too bad, actually. I might take you up on your offer. Perhaps it was Aidios's will for me to come give a lecture here.", Professor Alba happily responded.
"Then it's settled. And would ya look at that?", Jon suddenly said. The duo weren't idle when they chatted away like this. They had continued along the windy path, only to reach a plateau where the land began to even out. Time had passed right underneath their noses. Beyond that was a small village with a wooden gate. Large boulders could be seen blocking each side, making the entrance rather small. Still, there was a sign on it. Jon then turned around to look at Professor Alba again.
"Looks like we've arrived on time, and successfully avoided any monsters along the way. Looks like yer bad luck with 'em might have turned out for the better, haha!", Jon said, laughing again. "But as ya can see, we've arrived. Welcome to the village of Hamel, Professor.", Jon said, welcoming him.
Hearing that, the shading on Professor Alba's glasses fogged up, and he lowered his head. For a split second, he grinned wildly, and Jon didn't seem to notice it. The grin vanished, and Professor Alba pushed his glasses upward, trying to straighten them. Professor Alba then nodded his head in agreement.
"Thank you, Jon. Now that you've mentioned it, who was it you warned me to look out for while staying here?", Professor Alba inquired.
"Oh just a couple of brats is all. They call themselves Loewe, Joshua, and Johan.", Jon said.
"I see...", Professor Alba responded, not answering right away. He simply observed the small village of Hamel from outside the village gate. He even saw two wooden towers that connected to each other, likely acting as its sole defense system to protect it from monsters. He saw houses mostly made out of stone and wood, as if it lacked any form of technology. On the inside of them, orbal devices were scattered around, which livened things up, just a tiny bit. But overall, Hamel appeared peaceful.
Professor Alba even saw kids running around without a care for the world of what was about to happen. Professor Alba pushed his glasses upward again, and muttered something to himself.
"So this is your spearhead, Sir Arundel...", Professor Alba uttered, keeping his voice quiet. He even saw that the village's sign was misspelled, appearing cute. It read, "Harmel".
Still, Professor Alba held his head high, and with Jon's invitation, he soon found himself walking into the small village, only to be greeted by the other villagers. A certain trio of kids, one of which the three appeared much older than the other two who sported silvery-white hair, watched on with interest...