Sunlight shone on that morning, Dex opened the wooden door, and walked out.
He took a deep breath, while holding the sword at his side.
Ronan stood at the doorway, still with a tired face and old eyes that seemed to have seen too many tragedies.
"Where will you go?" he asked slowly.
"Lumiran, a small town on the border, my mother's hometown"
Ronan stared at him for a long time, then walked inside, taking an old leather bag, He handed it to Dex,
"A few bandages, some food, and a potion to stop infection, I don't know how long you can survive out there, but if fate still sides with you, maybe you'll reach there in 10 days if you use a horse"
Dex accepted the bag without much talk.
"Why did you help me?" he asked softly.
Ronan smiled faintly. "Because if I didn't help you, I would be no different from them"
"Seems like I should thank the soldiers for leaving their horses here" said Dex as he mounted one of the horses
"I hope you arrive safely" said Ronan with a trembling voice
"Thank you" Dex pulled the reins, glancing a little. "Goodbye, I hope we'll meet again if Fate allows"
Then he gently kicked the side of his horse, and the animal began to walk slowly,
Ronan stood in his place, watching Dex's back until his figure disappeared among the trees, swallowed by mist and light.
---
The sun was about to set, Dex departed in the morning but now the day was nearing night.
The road he took was not the main road, but a narrow path between the trees, an old route rarely used because it was dangerous.
Dex chose that path not only because he wanted to arrive faster, but because he wanted to avoid surveillance.
Each step of the horse echoed between the wet trees.
Dex stayed silent, Every time he closed his eyes, his mother's face appeared, The gentle hands that once caressed his hair now felt like fire burning through his mind.
He looked down, gripping the handle of his sword tighter.
"Enough" he whispered.
Dex arrived at the edge of a small river.
He let his horse down to drink, while he himself sat on a large rock, washing his face and wounds.
The water was clear, reflecting a face he barely recognized himself, hollow eyes, pale skin, and a gaze that had lost life.
Dex sighed deeply, then looked at the flow of the slow-moving water.
"Lumiran…" he murmured softly. "What should I do when I get there?"
The sound of rustling leaves behind him made him turn quickly
His hand reflexively touched the hilt of his sword.
But what appeared was only a small deer, looking at him with innocent eyes.
Dex lowered his hand slowly. "You're lost too, huh?" he said softly,
The deer ran away, leaving small tracks in the mud.
Dex stared in the direction the animal went for a long time, then looked at the sky, Clouds were beginning to thicken, It might rain again tonight.
When night came, Dex made a small fire under a big tree.
He ate a bit of dry bread given by Ronan, drank water from a leather pouch, then leaned against the tree trunk.
The wind blew gently, making the fire flicker, Dex closed his eyes slowly, For the first time since that tragedy, he could sleep without nightmares.
---
Days passed without much happening,
Dex passed empty fields, small rivers, and lively villages.
Children ran along dirt roads, people sold their harvests, and laughter could be heard from small taverns.
He only stopped briefly at a public well, took a sip of water, then mounted his horse again.
---
10 days passed, nothing special happened.
Dex patted the horse's neck, slowing its pace.
"Almost there, just a little more"
A few hours later, he arrived at a small town on a wide plain.
Dex looked at the view for a long time,
"Lumiran" he whispered softly.
His mother's hometown, The place that had only lived in stories, now stretched real before his eyes.
Dex slowly got down, leading his horse along the road into town,
Not many people he saw,
A few children ran across, carrying small baskets filled with wild fruits,
An old woman closed her window when she saw him pass by.
The atmosphere of Lumiran was different from what he imagined, calm, yes, but not a peaceful calm, More like calmness that held something beneath its surface.
He patted his horse's neck gently.
"I know, you're tired too" he murmured,
The horse neighed softly as if understanding, then Dex led it toward what looked like a small inn in the middle of town.
A wooden sign reading 'The Silver Lantern' hung in front of the door, swaying lightly in the wind, He opened the door carefully, The smell of old wood and tobacco smoke greeted him.
Dex approached the counter.
"Is there a vacant room?" he asked shortly.
The man was silent for a moment before taking a key from the rack behind him.
"Upstairs, the last room at the end, Water for bathing is in the back, Your horse can be kept in the stable behind this inn, one night 5 Copper coins"
---
Dex lay on the bed in his room, the room was neat, not too big nor too small.
Dex looked out the window of his room
Watching children playing, They shouted out the names of their cards, pretending to be heroes.
'Cards'.
That word was not new to Dex,
Since childhood, People always talked about it,
Everyone in this world grew up with stories of Soul Resonance, when between ages 10-18, a person's soul would reflect the shape of its own power.
Attack, Support, Summon, Trap, Domain,
Five types of cards that determine a person's life path.
People said, Resonance is a blessing, but for Dex, it was only a source of chaos, because of the power given by those Cards, so many evils existed in this world, basically power always came along with evil, card users too were the ones who destroyed his village.
Because not everyone was blessed with a strong card,
Most only got rank E, or even F, Which meant nothing in the eyes of the world.
Dex never hoped for much,
He knew he wasn't a talented person, and maybe, would never become anyone.
"Yeah even so I'm curious about tomorrow"
Tomorrow, he would turn eighteen, receiving his own Card Resonance, which people always said determined one's future.
He closed his eyes, trying to sleep.
---
"arghh" Dex held his chest.
Right when the clock's hand passed midnight, Dex woke up, the air around him began to turn cold, spinning slowly, as if something was alive within it.
Dex opened his eyes, a faint light appeared in front of his chest, forming a soft circle from the breath of the wind.
Something came out of that swirl, a card, floating slowly in the air.
Its surface shimmered bluish, faint letters written in the middle.
[The Wind]
Rank: B
Type: Support/Attack card
The card floated calmly, as if waiting,
Dex stared at it for a long time, wordless.
He didn't know whether to be happy or sad for getting a card that was quite useful.
Even though he had this card now everything still felt meaningless.