Chapter 129: Heralding the Unconquerable

Chapter 129: Heralding the Unconquerable

Chapter 129

Heralding the Unconquerable

Under the cover of a remarkably dark night, one where the moon elected to hide behind the thick clouds and the sky decided to be starless, Agnes and Sylas snuck out of the castle and headed westward. Both knew that leaving during the day would likely elicit the kind of sendoff that neither was particularly comfortable with, so they decided to simply... go, as it were.

Unlike the last time, however, they were far better prepared--dropping her usual, summer dress fashion, Agnes was draped in thick layers of wool and cloth, with some padded leather acting as a further insulator. Furthermore, she had prepared two shawls and an extra pair of gloves.

In addition to twelve talismans that Sylas decided to bring with him, all of which had something to do with either starting a long-burning fire out of nowhere or neutralizing cold in some other way, he also packed a heavy bag of supplies, and four extremely thick blankets for when the night falls and, with it, temperatures drop to the deadly levels.This chapter is updated by nov(e)(l)biin.com

As far as he was aware, they actually couldnt prepare any better short of trying to bring an entourage and all which that entailed. However, considering that even Agnes and he ended up dying specifically to the harsh conditions, theres likely nobody in the castle, not even Derrek, who could survive, even with all the externals.

Since it was night and was already remarkably cold, they didnt walk far, choosing to set up a tent and have some early practice for it, especially because the conditions would only get worse the further up the mountain they went. For starters, this far down, there was little to no wind--an utter rarity even just a mile up--which meant that starting a fire didnt require any fiddling or extra tools, and that was just one of the benefits.

Having settled in, Sylas quickly prepared a vegetable broth for the two, saving meat for when they would have to expend far more energy per step walked.

How come youre so good at reading people? Agnes suddenly asked, blowing at the bowl in her hands.

Hm? Where did that come from? Sylas asked, not bothering and immediately eating since, even boiling, in his throat it still felt lukewarm.

With Ryne, she elaborated. How you read her.

... really?

What?

Shes a kid, Sylas scoffed. No matter how clever, glib-tongued, and seemingly iron-made, shes still a sixteen-year-old girl at the end of the day. Theres only so many things she can be. Kind of like how I can read you.

You cant read me.

Yeah, sure.

So, what people cant you read? she added.

Theres nobody I cant read, Sylas said. But its in the layers. People like me, for instance, are good at chucking in an occasional lie to muddy the waters and fester uncertainties. The key to reading the people is establishing a baseline--ask em a few innocent questions to see how they react, and then fish for a lie. And thusly compare.

... sounds exhausting, she said, taking the first sip of the broth.

It is. Nothing hairier than trying to dig into someones brain when theyre just asking for some sympathy.

What do you think well find west? she suddenly switched the topic.

Youre fairly chatty tonight, Sylas smiled.

Im always chatty.

He immediately started the fire while Agnes began preparing food, wrapped tightly in a blanket. Neither spoke much, merely going over the plan for tomorrow, as they both knew theyd need every minute of rest to recover their condition. Even still, they were very much aware that theyd never hit their peak again--with each passing day, thered be some diminishing returns to their rest as their overall condition would begin to plummet.

The dawn came yet again, and the two woke up, had a quick breakfast, and began their daily trek. The visibility had dropped to the point they barely saw further than ten feet, causing their pace to slow down as they had to pay attention to any potential pitfalls and dangers. The wind, too, decided to pick up on speed today, and the blizzard became nigh unbearable. And yet, they pushed. Unlike yesterday, however, they had to take breaks every forty-five minutes and rest the equal amount. But they pushed forward.

Another night came and with it even more exhaustion than yesterday--but dinner and rest were still in order, and their moods still chirpy. They rested and awoke to a new day, and a new challenge.

Days passed as such, and soon they hit a ten-day mark. By their calculations, they traveled over forty miles of distance. Though it sounded like a lot, it was actually extremely slow considering they traveled, on average, almost seven-eight hours a day--though those numbers had dropped considerably in the last few days as they could barely make a dent before needing to stop.

In fact, it wasnt even the tiredness that was holding them back, but the weather--the winds were so fast and heavy that even Sylas could hardly root himself without being swayed. As such, they had to move in the few brief moments where the wind slowed down somewhat, but even then they barely made any progress. Still, they did make progress--even in the worst ways. The good thing about it all was that they still had plenty of supplies and that the cold was no longer a bother.

Though it was frustrating to move so slowly, as long as no accidents happened, and as long as the weather didnt take it up another notch, they should be able to make steady progress moving forward. But that was the question--moving forward.

Nowhere on the man could Sylas find any indication of just how large the mountains actually were--for all intents and purposes, whatever was displayed on the map was merely an artistic interpretation of reality. For all he knew, theyve barely made a percent of progress. Just the same, they could be on the doorstep of something else. That was what bothered them the most, not knowing.

Looks like the weather steadied, somewhat, Sylas spoke out on the fifteenth day since their departure, glancing out of the tent into the white nothingness. The winds have been blowing consistently the past few days, the temperature is the same, so it looks like... this is it for the rest of the journey. How are you holding up?

Im tired, Agnes sighed, cupping tightly a cup of warm tea. And I lost it, Sylas.

Lost it? What did you lose? he quizzed.

The last shred of connection I had with the Gods. I cant feel them anymore.

...

Its scary.

You have me.

... did you just equate yourself to not just a God, but Gods? she looked at him oddly.

Hey, a mans only as great as his projected confidence!

Ah, yes, a clever excuse for narcissism.

Its going to be fine, he comforted her. Im sure were almost there.

Oh, I didnt know you had a perfect grasp of where we are. Geez, you should have said that were almost there earlier! I was worried for nothing!

I feel it.

Well, if you feel it...

Hey, when did we switch our roles? he grunted, taking a sip of wine. One good thing about the weather was that the booze never got warm. Im supposed to be a cynic and youre supposed to be a hopeless optimist.

Hard to be an optimist with... well, all this.

Thats true, he sighed. But we endured this far. If we cant make it still even after all this... then it just wasnt meant to be. Lets take a nap. It doesnt seem like the wind will let up anytime soon.

"Yeah, let's," she said, putting down the cup and wrapping herself into a blanket. Sylas didn't know how to help her--as he didn't know what it felt like to lose that connection, especially for someone who's always had it. All he could do was trust that she knew how to handle herself, something he, at the very least, was fairly confident in, all else notwithstanding.