It had been almost three weeks.
Three weeks since Xander started sticking to my side like a shadow I couldn't shake off. Three weeks since vendors stopped looking at me like I was some lone drifter passing through and instead started associating me with him. The friendly Rogue. The approachable one. The guy everyone remembered.
Almost everyone in the refuge city had seen us together at least once by now.
Which meant I wasn't exactly a loner anymore.
Not with Xander always hovering nearby—walking beside me through the market, sitting across from me at inns, waiting patiently whenever I took too long staring at quest boards. He didn't crowd me physically, but his presence was constant, steady in a way that made it hard to ignore.
And harder to push away.
A few days ago, he'd finally said it out loud.
"I'm coming with you," Xander said casually, leaning against the railing near the eastern gate. The barrier shimmered faintly beyond him, sunlight bending across its surface. "To the big city. East side."
I stopped walking.
"No," I replied immediately.
He blinked, surprised, but not discouraged. "Why not?"
"It's not your business."
That was the first excuse. A weak one, and I knew it.
Xander frowned slightly but didn't argue right away. He just crossed his arms, watching me. "You always say that."
"Because it's true," I snapped. "It's dangerous. The eastern routes aren't like this place. Higher-level monsters. Guild politics. Real hunters. You'll just get in the way."
That one was a lie.
Or at least… not the whole truth.
Xander had changed. Anyone with eyes could see that. His movements were sharper now, less hesitant. His daggers rested naturally at his sides, and his posture no longer screamed newbie. His stats had improved steadily, his skills refined through actual experience instead of blind luck.
He could fend for himself.
I knew that.
Which was exactly why I kept rejecting him.
"Look," he said carefully, voice softer than usual. "You don't have to do this alone."
"I do," I replied flatly.
I didn't even look at him when I said it. I just kept walking, hands clenched, wand heavy at my side. I threw out every excuse I could think of—too dangerous, I don't need help, stay out of it, this isn't your problem—anything to shut the conversation down.
Eventually, he stopped following me that day.
But the silence he left behind felt worse than his questions.
Now, days later, I found myself wandering the city alone again, boots echoing against worn stone streets. The refuge city buzzed with life—vendors shouting prices, System notifications chiming faintly in the air, guild recruiters arguing near the plaza—but it all felt distant.
Something about Xander had felt… off lately.
Not in a bad way. Just quieter. More restrained. Like he was holding something back every time I brushed him off. He still smiled. Still joked. Still acted friendly around others. But with me?
There was hesitation.
And it gnawed at me more than I wanted to admit.
I told myself I didn't need help. That relying on someone else was a mistake. That I couldn't afford attachments when my goal was still so far away and so uncertain.
Because the truth was… I didn't even know if my sister was alive.
Luna.
The name echoed in my mind every time I thought about the eastern city. Every rumor, every scrap of intel, every half-whispered story about trafficking rings, rogue guilds, or failed refuge evacuations twisted my chest tighter.
What if I was chasing a ghost?
What if I dragged Xander into something that ended with nothing but blood and regret?
I stopped near the edge of the city, staring eastward. Beyond the barrier, the land stretched out into unknown territory—roads I hadn't walked, monsters I hadn't faced, answers I wasn't ready to hear.
I clenched my fists.
I couldn't ask for help anymore. Not when I didn't even know if there was anything left to save.
And yet…
Somewhere behind me, I could almost feel Xander's presence. That familiar, steady weight. The one thing in this broken world that had become… consistent.
I exhaled slowly.
Three weeks of company.
And somehow, that scared me more than the monsters ever did.
The days after that passed strangely.
Too quiet.
I didn't see Xander.
Not near the market stalls where he usually hovered, not by the quest board where he liked pretending he wasn't reading every single notice, not even at the inn where he'd grown used to occupying the bed across from mine like it was some unspoken agreement.
At first, I told myself it was good.
Less distractions. Less complications.
I focused on preparations instead.
The blacksmith's forge rang day and night, sparks flying as metal met metal. I'd taken on extra monster hunts—nothing flashy, just efficient. Small packs. Clean kills. Enough to pay my way and earn favors. Eventually, the blacksmith handed me what I'd been waiting for: a reinforced Storage Satchel, enchanted just enough to hold more than it should.
"Don't overstuff it," he'd warned, eyeing me. "Magic has limits."
I didn't answer.
I filled it anyway.
Potions. Rations. Spare clothes. Mana crystals. Monster cores I could sell in the eastern city if I needed coin fast. I packed like someone who didn't plan on coming back anytime soon.
By the time I finished, my route was clear.
The eastern gate.
I moved through the city early that morning, hood up, wand secured at my side. The barrier shimmered ahead, thinner here than at the main entrances, pulsing softly like it was breathing. Beyond it lay the road to the big city. Guild-controlled territory. Real power. Real danger.
And real answers.
I stopped.
Someone was standing there.
Leaning casually against a broken stone pillar near the gate, hands tucked into his pockets like he'd been waiting for a late friend. Black hair catching the morning light. Familiar posture. Too familiar.
Xander.
My chest tightened.
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
He didn't rush me. Didn't wave. Didn't even call my name. He just stood there, watching me approach, eyes steady and unreadable. The silence stretched, thick and uncomfortable, like he was daring me to say something first.
I didn't.
Finally, he straightened up.
He smiled.
Not the wide, easy grin he used on vendors or guild reps. This one was smaller. Determined. Almost stubborn.
"I'm not letting you leave without me, Mio."
The words landed harder than they should have.
He tilted his head slightly, expression oddly confident—no, arrogant—like a kid who'd already decided the outcome of an argument before it even started.
"I don't care how many excuses you've got lined up," he continued lightly. "Too dangerous. Not my business. Blah blah blah. I'm still coming."
I stared at him.
"You've been avoiding me," I said quietly.
"Yeah," he admitted without hesitation. "Figured you needed space. Also figured you'd try to slip out like this."
He gestured vaguely at my satchel.
"You packed heavy."
I clicked my tongue, annoyed. "This isn't a game, Xander."
"I know," he replied, just as quickly. The smile didn't fade, but something behind it sharpened. "That's why I'm here."
The barrier hummed beside us, faint and patient, like it was waiting for a decision.
I should have told him to leave.
Should have turned him away. Again.
But for the first time since I'd decided to head east, the weight in my chest shifted—just slightly. Not lighter. Just… steadier.
I exhaled slowly.
"You're an idiot," I muttered.
Xander grinned wider. "Yeah. But I'm your idiot."
I didn't respond.
But I didn't walk away either.
The barrier rippled as I stepped through it.
For a brief moment, the air felt heavier—like the city itself was resisting me leaving. Then the sensation vanished, replaced by the open road stretching eastward, cracked stone half-swallowed by weeds and time.
Xander followed a step behind me without a word.
Good. At least he knew better than to talk right now.
I reached into my Storage Satchel and pulled out something thin and faintly glowing. Not paper. Not exactly. It shimmered like a translucent pane of glass, runes faintly crawling across its surface.
The map.
I flicked my wrist, and the System responded immediately.
[System Interface — Map Linked]
The world shifted.
A semi-transparent overlay appeared in my vision, lines and symbols layering over the landscape. Roads marked in pale blue. Ruins in dull gray. Monster zones pulsing faint red depending on threat level. The eastern city stood out the most—a massive golden outline far ahead, surrounded by branching paths and territory markers.
Xander let out a low whistle. "Okay… that's not something you get from beginner quests."
"No," I said. "I traded for it."
He raised a brow. "You can do that?"
"System allows it," I replied. "Some rewards aren't locked. Skills can generate items. Items can be exchanged. System-to-System trades."
I didn't bother explaining further. He didn't need to know the cost.
The map wasn't hand-drawn. It was skill-made—a Cartographer-type ability that recorded terrain dynamically. The more the creator explored, the more accurate it became. Roads updated. Danger zones shifted. Even moving monsters left faint afterimages if they were large enough.
Convenient.
Dangerous, too. Information like this was worth killing for.
I zoomed in on the route ahead. The safest path was longer, looping south through collapsed districts and low-threat zones. The fastest route cut straight through a territory marked with a warning glyph.
"Let me guess," Xander said, leaning in slightly. "We're taking the bad route."
"We don't have time for the long one," I answered. "And I don't want to arrive broke."
He grinned. "Thought so."
We started walking.
The refuge city faded behind us, its barrier shrinking until it was just another shimmer in the distance. The road grew quieter. No guards. No vendors. No safety net. Just broken streets, overgrown highways, and the occasional skeletal remains of vehicles half-fused into the earth.
After a while, Xander spoke again.
"You know," he said casually, "most people don't leave refuge cities without joining a guild."
"I'm not 'most people.'"
"Yeah, I noticed."
He kicked a loose stone off the road. "Still. Big city's different. Guilds control information. Territory. Quests. If you walk in unaffiliated, you're either ignored… or targeted."
I glanced at the map again. Several guild symbols were already visible near the city outskirts. Color-coded. Ranked.
"I don't plan on staying unaffiliated long," I said.
Xander's gaze sharpened. "You planning to join one?"
"Depends."
"On what?"
"Who finds me first."
That shut him up.
The road ahead dipped into a shadowed district—collapsed skyscrapers leaning against each other like dying giants. The map pulsed faintly red.
Low-to-mid threat zone.
I slowed my steps.
"We're entering hunting territory," I said. "Stay alert."
Xander's posture shifted instantly. Casual melted away, replaced with quiet readiness. One hand drifted near his dagger.
Stealth, probably already active.
For a second, I wondered if this was where things would finally go wrong.
Then the System chimed softly in my mind.
[Area Discovered — Eastbound Ruins: Outer Sector][Potential Events Detected][Warning: Guild Patrol Routes Nearby]
I narrowed my eyes.
So that's how it starts.