86 A Journey

2 years had soon passed and experienced new cultures.

Dean was what most of the people in this world would consider a ripe and mature adult.

He had been stuck with Ellis and Alexander for the same 2 years and had gone about visiting many intricate places.

To the east was the poisonous smog that tyrannized the swamps and desolate lands. Filled with insects that thrived on the competition while predators strike when necessary.

The only reason he held interest was that a mission given to him by the school was to investigate the lair of the Wandering Demonic Poison King.

Revenge was within his grasp but instead it was just a bunch of traps trying to kill him.

Nothing was found within his lair despite having so many deadly traps, Dean guessed that he was very close to finding him but he unfortunately ran.

Fate was playing with him as he had to travel around the continent.

There was barely anytime to study any manuals, so Dean could only sigh at his reluctance to view amazing parts of their continent.

In the middle of the continent was a small kingdom that was made by an alliance of merchants due to the fact that it was one of the busiest areas.

To the slight right and down of that kingdom was apparently where our school was located.

None of our missions allowed us to visit the central kingdom due to the fact that it is apparently managed by their own force that no external faction should take part in.

It seemed like it was more of a tour around the continent when the times seemed relaxing but of course there were many hurdles in our way.

Down to the south was an icy land that was forever trapped with snow.

Such a pretty white sight was new to Dean however he couldn't help but enjoy the experience of building an igloo.

While to Ellis and Alexander they seemed pretty nonchalant about it.

It was only when it was dark and Alexander wanted to become drunk did Dean actually learn anything about them.

Drinking a couple of spirits allowed the teacher to calm down and begin talking his story.

Dean saw that Ellis was asleep and thought that this may be an embarrassing story that couldn't be told in a large audience.

He first started the story that the continent was much larger than it was now however due to an incident that happened a long time ago, a chunk of that continent floated away.

After that shocking fact that Dean was just told, he recalled that he had never once glanced at the older books of geographical location.

If he looked at one of them then it may have been a shock but nonetheless, Dean still trusted the teacher to tell a truth as he had no motive to lie.

Alexander lived in a happy family consisting of himself, a mum and a father.

They lived in a very conservative way in which his mother would prepare rations and food for my father however they tended to get cold as soon as he went deep into the mountains.

His father would go out for hunting and look for sources of food in order to make money for the family while making sure they never starved.

Sometimes his mother would also feel unhappy just staying at home cooking.

To get rid of that feeling, she would tend to take requests that would help the village with any small problems.

She would help gather sticks for a basic fire, tend to the crops to grow food, harvest water to provide the village's thirst.

As long as she had spare time, she was indeed willing to help.

Alexander mentioned that when the times got really tough, both his mother and father would have to leave the house in order to hunt an animal for meat.

They were very stubborn in the fact that as long as they didn't starve to death that they would take the kindness of their neighbors into consideration.

At one point they suddenly brought a child to their house.

He was not a baby and was already mature enough to make his own decisions.

The only name he told to Alexander's parents was Ellis.

To Alexander, this was a great chance in having a brother but each advancement he made would always be rejected by a cold glare.

Nobody was able to get close to him until he started to make stupid mistakes.

Grabbing a sword too heavy for him, Alexander's father would make sure to take it away from him and give him a wooden one.

Trying to reach for a wooden bowl, Alexander would gladly give a helping hand to get even a spoon for him.

They always persisted for the sheer kindness and stubbornness of his father

Dean sighed at how Alexander's voice trembled when he tried to recreate a deep voice while crying

"I-in the d-darkest of nights, w-will one see the brightest stars"

It was an interesting quote but Dean didn't really see the point of what Alexander was trying to get at.

As if striking a chord, Alexander resumed a peaceful composure and took a deep sigh.

Ellis was indeed opening up to his family but an odd thing he noticed as a child was that his neighbor seemed a lot more introverted.

He remembered that this uncle would always like to give leftover jerky made by his wife to all the kids that were hungry, especially children who lost their parents.

Dean thought that was interesting person to give free food to people but although that was a saintly practice, Dean guessed where Alexander was going with this.

He didn't mention any stories about himself meaning he's overlooking himself and looking at the event in a bigger picture.

Whether it was sentimental value or the frustration of reflection, Dean didn't know

"I never how scary human greed could be. Are rumors for unlimited power really that believable and interesting?"