*13 Days later*
"So, what brought you here... um"
"Piera. It's Piera". "So, what brought you here, Piera," Auren asked with genuine curiosity. "Well, long story short my family was decimated during my brother's birthday party"
Auren blinked. That wasn't what he was expecting. "Well that's... absurdly specific. Anyways, this is one vast forest. You've gone in so deep. You bastard, it's already been two weeks and we're only seeing the border now.". Piera let out a bitter chuckle. "Yeah. Well it's all gone. I even fought with..." His voice trailed off as he figured he couldn't tell Auren about Hao Jun. "What's up. You don't wanna tell me about the Entity's vestige that attacked you?"
Croti's voice stirred uneasily in Piera's mind "Careful. This boy isn't just some noble brat with nice hair. If he recognized a vestige's pressure from more than a year ago then he's more than just strong - he's experienced." "Oh, It's black blood that told me about it, I'm just a stage 2 sword trainee, how would I know?" Auren said.
*Sigh*
"You're more annoying than you look" Piera said, a cautious look in his eyes. "And you're more dangerous than you act, let's leave this place, I'm gonna die if I stay here for more than 2 weeks." Auren replied evenly.
"So, what do you want to do after you leave this place?" Auren asked. "I don't know. You're the one that came here, commended me and then forced me to leave. Don't make it sound like I wanted to leave in the first place." Piera scoffed.
Auren laughed. "Right. That's fair."
The corrupted trees began to thin out, the forest thinning out, thinner and thinner until there were no trees or beasts around them. For the first time in what felt like ages, the sky looked open. Clean. The sunlight touched Piera's skin, and it felt... foreign. Too warm. Too peaceful. His instincts stayed sharp anyway.
They didn't talk much after that. Just walked.
By the time they made it to the edge, a sleek black carriage was already waiting. Runes shimmered across its sides, and the horses weren't normal—red-eyed beasts that smoked faintly from the hooves. Piera raised an eyebrow.
"You seriously ride in that?"
Auren smirked. "You'll get used to it." The door opened on its own, and they climbed in.
The ride was quiet at first. Piera leaned back in the seat, tense, like something was about to jump out at any moment. Auren, on the other hand, sat casually, legs crossed, eyes watching the trees roll by.
Then, out of nowhere—
"Fine then, let's get you a family." Auren said, voice brimming with anticipation. "What the hell are you talking about?" Piera questioned with an angry voice. "Well, you're gonna need a proper standing in society if you'll be seen beside me in public. Oh. We're here." Auren said, the sound from the carriage almost overshadowing his own voice. "Um, We're -- Where.. Exactly?" Piera asked as they stood in front of a mansion with a red gate which he felt was unnecessarily big.
"My family mansion, the place that'll be yours soon"