CChapter 49: The Road to Something New
The forest thinned as morning crept over the horizon. Shafts of golden light spilled between the trees, painting dew on the underbrush and shimmering across the old, broken stones under Isaac's boots.
They'd found a road.
It was half-consumed by moss and roots—worn down by time and weather—but unmistakable. Someone had once carved a path through this land.
And someone might still be walking it.
Lira bent down and touched the stone. "Feels old."
"Feels lucky," Isaac said.
He looked both ways. One direction faded into deeper green. The other—slight wheel ruts. Recently disturbed leaves.
"We follow the tracks," he said, shouldering his pack.
They didn't walk long.
By midday, the rumble of wheels and low calls reached them from around a bend. Lira's hand tightened on her staff, but Isaac raised a hand calmly.
"Sounds like a convoy. Let's not spook them."
They stepped into view.
What met them was a small merchant caravan—six wagons in total, pulled by stocky oxbeasts with flared nostrils and reinforced yokes. Armed guards walked alongside each one, hands near swords but not drawn. The wagons were loaded high with crates, silks, sacks of grain, and several caged chickens clucking irritably.
The lead wagon stopped.
A man climbed down—mid-50s, well-fed but not soft, with salt-and-pepper hair under a wide-brimmed hat. He wore a travel-worn cloak, and his eyes were sharp, but not unkind.
"Well now," he said, voice gravel-smooth. "That's not a face we've seen before. You two from the northern hold?"
"We're travelers," Isaac said carefully. "Headed south, looking for the nearest town."
The man squinted, then glanced toward Lira. Her shoulders were stiff, but she met his gaze.
He studied them more carefully—taking in the worn boots, the dust-caked cloaks, the faint singe marks on Lira's robe, and the fraying edges of Isaac's tunic.
"You two look like survivors," he said slowly. "From the east, maybe? We heard one of the scouting villages was attacked near the river pass. Cult or beast, no one knows."
Neither Isaac nor Lira answered immediately.
Renall didn't press. He just nodded solemnly.
"Well, you made it this far. That counts for something."
Then, almost as an afterthought, he added with a small chuckle, "You related? Siblings, maybe?"
Isaac blinked.
Lira turned toward Isaac and raised an eyebrow. He shrugged lightly. "Something like that."
"Thought so," Renall said, clearly satisfied with his guess. "You've got the same expression—'touch me and I'll break your leg.' You'd make a fine pair of caravan guards if you ever want honest coin."
He extended a hand.
"Renall. Merchant captain, Guild of Threefold Roads. And I hate wasting goodwill."
Isaac stepped forward and shook his hand. "Isaac."
"Lira," she said quietly.
Renall smiled. "Well, Isaac and Lira, how would you like to join us? We've got stew, safe travel, and the good fortune of heading exactly where you're going—south, to Karlune's Rest. It's a small frontier town, but it'll do."
Isaac glanced at Lira. She nodded.
"We'd be grateful," he said.
As they moved to join the convoy, Renall turned to one of the nearby guards—a lean man in light armor with a scar under his eye—and clapped him on the shoulder.
"Rusek, give the newcomers some space near the second cart. And if you're hoarding the pepper jerky again, I'll replace your boots with salted strips."
The man snorted. "You've been threatening that for six years, boss."
"And you've been daring me for seven. Get moving."
The surrounding guards chuckled. There was no barking of orders—just long familiarity and mutual respect.
Renall nodded to another, a red-haired woman carrying a long pike. "Lessa, keep an eye out on the left ridge. That's where we lost a wheel last time."
"Already done," she said with a casual salute. "I trust your memory less than the terrain."
Isaac watched the exchanges with a subtle shift in expression.
This wasn't just a merchant with hired muscle. This was a man who traveled with a crew, not a staff—a man who trusted, joked, and bled with the same people for years.
Renall caught him watching and grinned.
"Don't let the cloak fool you. I'm not rich enough to be arrogant, and too old to start pretending."
They walked alongside the middle wagon. Lira leaned forward on her staff while Isaac kept pace on the other side of the cart, casually watching the guards.
[Soulpiercer Sight – Activated]
He glanced at Renall.
—
[Target Identified: Renall Telgrove]
Race: HumanClass: Merchant (Master-Class)Level: 22HP: 388 / 388Strength: 9Agility: 12Intelligence: 19Charisma: 26Skills:– Appraiser's Lens (Rank B)– Weighted Negotiation (Rank C)– Coinward Contract (Rank C)– Memory of Fairness (Passive – Rank A)Background: Veteran trader of the southern roads. Former apprentice in the Guild of Insight. Refuses to cheat children or refugees.
—
Isaac blinked. A good man. That was rare.
The next few hours passed in easy silence. One of the younger guards offered Lira dried fruit. Renall talked politics with a scholar riding up front.
They learned Karlune's Rest was a town near the borderlands of Avinhar, a minor kingdom locked between several larger powers.
There were whispers of demon cult sightings, and of angels preaching in the west, stirring the churches into quiet panic.
Some believed war was coming. Others believed the gods were waking again.
But Renall? He just believed in delivery schedules and dry roads.
By the second night, they were sitting near the fire sharing bowls of spicy root stew.
"So," Renall said, pointing a spoon at Isaac, "you two trained? You've got the air of hunters."
"Something like that," Isaac said with a faint grin. "We've had practice."
Renall chuckled. "Well, practice or not, folks in Karlune's Rest won't ask many questions. Just watch your step around the guilders. They love paperwork and don't like mysteries."
The next morning, they saw it.
Karlune's Rest—surrounded by wooden palisade walls, guarded by a stone tower, smoke rising from bakeries and chimneys.
Civilization.
Isaac exhaled slowly.
"I forgot what towns even looked like."
Lira smiled faintly. "I didn't. But I missed it anyway."
They walked toward the gates.
And the world opened a little wider.