Chapter 154: Aho.

Chapter 154: Aho.

I breathed in deep through my nose, smelling the ocean air. I hadnt spent much time by the oceanfront in my life so far, so this was a welcome change. The salty air, the gentle rocking of the boat and the calm sea breeze It made for a rather calming experience, I thought.

The first leg of our journey had seen us pass through the river that separated the Roa and Ergo from Alterian. The aptly named Argo river was a heavily monitored body of water that Ergo only allowed Roa to use because of a trade agreement. Without it, Roa would be completely landlocked, and the rulers of Ergo knew it.

My thoughts were interrupted by a sudden bout of movement that I noticed in the corner of my eye. A white figure ran by and, upon reaching the railing, leaned over the side of the ship.

Wueeergh!! I heard, the belching sound waking me from my musings.

Are you all right? I asked Emeri. This is the third time in just a few minutes that youve needed to relieve your stomach into the ocean. Are you going to survive until we reach Aho? I asked in jest.

She moved to reply, lifting a finger. Not a wueergh!! she began, before stopping midway through her sentence to puke some more. Not a hah hah word, Arthur. She finished, heaving from the exertion.

Wisely, I shut up. I had a sneaking suspicion that any more japes would result in her dumping my dead body overboard, along with this mornings breakfast.

Still, I felt justified in getting on her case. After the realization that we had only a single bed for the entire 8-days journey, I had been the one forced to sleep on the wooden floor of the ship, with only a sleeping bag to soften it. I could hardly set up my tent inside of a ship, after all.

Emeri had slept well on the comfy bed the first few nights, yet now that we were hitting rougher waves, she would be hard-pressed to get another night of comfortable sleep.

I think I should take the bed tonight, since you might just soak the mattress with your sick. I tried hesitantly, only to be met with a swift fist to the nose, which sent me sprawling on the deck.

Oh well. It was worth a try

Our ship sailed along the coast for the latter half of the journey. The shallow waters meant fewer waves and less puking from Emeri, which was much appreciated during the night-time. That fourth night had left a trauma Id rather not recollect and resulted in a stern talking-to from the captain.

Thankfully, Emeris mood started to improve once we had returned to the calmer waters, which did wonders for my own physical health as well. At this point, she was starting to tolerate my jokes and teasing again, allowing my nose to figuratively recover from the repeated beatings.

On the seventh day, the tropical forest that had been a continuous sight on the coast started to thin visibly. Tall, looming trees were replaced by smaller, wider trees with thin yet large canopies. Eventually, even those started to recede once the ground turned brown, then yellow. The undergrowth became limited to the occasional desert bush or cactus.

I scoffed, yet put one of the concentrators in my pouch anyway, before handing Emeri half of what she had paid.

A few minutes later, we found ourselves at the town square, which looked deserted. The entire town had turned up in force to welcome the trading ship, and nothing was open as a result. Even the local adventurers guild, which you could always count on being open, had a sign in front of its closed door, saying Away for business. Praise Helios.

Strangely, every single shop and inn had a similar sign out front, each praising Helios in some form.

Awfully religious bunch, arent they? I commented idly.

Alterian is the home of the Helios church. What did you expect?

I nodded, seeing Emeris point. Roa was fairly religious. So much so, in fact, that people of different beliefs were scoffed at sometimes. Alterian, however, seemed to take their faith to a whole new level.

So, since were here to do one of those pilgrimage things, why dont you decide on what to do and where to go? Do you want to rest for a night before taking off, or?

Emeri shook her head. No, I feel fine, thank you. She said, blushing as she remembered her state on the ship. The first temple we have to visit at the start of our pilgrimage lies in the center of Caltians scorch. She explained.

Ah, right! The dessert supposedly made by the firebreath of the dragon Caltian, right? I remembered.

Emeri nodded. Indeed, though we wont be facing any dragons if luck is on our side. She said half in jest.

Awww. I was looking forward to the dragon! I joked back.

Shut up, silly. She replied, chuckling, before leading us out of the town. We were at the eastern border of Alterian, which meant that we would need about two weeks to reach the temple on foot. The journey was not only a lengthy one, but also an arduous one. For the sake of proving our faith to Helios, we would be sweating during the day and freezing at night.

Something told me Helios had had a sadistic streak when he was mortal, because no benevolent god would force his followers to trek through the desert just to visit a statue.

That, or someone at the church was the one with the mean streak. Either way, I was not looking forward to this. Not at all.