Rolo roused everyone from slumber at the break of dawn. Packing their belongings, they started their journey towards Riverveil.

  “Hold it,” Rolo said after everything was packed. “Onyx, you carry everything.”

  Onyx widened his eyes, although he didn’t think it would be difficult.

  “And fly with it,” Rolo added.

  Onyx raised an eyebrow. “But then I’ll get way ahead of you.”

  Rolo smirked. “That’s the catch. Hover and circle above us so you match our pace. Maintain flight for as long as you can. Your training begins now.”

  Onyx nodded, his brows furrowed in determination. He did as instructed, carrying everyone’s belongings and taking flight, making sure not to fly ahead of the group. Because he had to match their pace, he couldn’t glide often, and had to fp his wings more than usual, which, on top of the weight he was carrying, was bound to exhaust him rapidly. Less than an hour ter, his wings were already sore, but he forced himself to keep going. After fifteen more minutes, he decided to nd before exhaustion could make him crash. He nded clumsily a few feet ahead of the others, on his knees and panting.

  Rolo walked up to him, raising an eyebrow. “That’s it? I expected more.”

  Onyx met his gaze and groaned. “I told you my flight is limited.”

  “Still, I expected more.” Rolo walked past him. “And you should expect more from yourself as well. Unless you’re content with being a subordinary dragon.”

  “Hey!” Raksha growled at the snow leopard.

  Rolo shot her a brief look.

  Ulva grabbed Raksha’s shoulder and shook her head.

  Facing Onyx again, Rolo continued, “Do you know how many Yeagers you’d need to take down a subordinary dragon? None. You don’t need Yeagers to hunt down such a dragon. You can’t use magic–”

  “Yet,” Onyx interrupted.

  “Can’t fly for long–”

  “Yet.”

  Rolo faced him again, his expression still indifferent. “That ‘yet’ implies that you’re either waiting for a miracle, or you intend to push yourself beyond your limits to achieve what you want.” He crouched near Onyx, his face inches away from his. “Which one is it?”

  Onyx shot him a fierce gre, his cws digging into the ground. “I will surpass my limits!”

  Rolo’s lips formed a tiny smile. “Thought so. Now, while you rest your wings, five hundred push ups.” He stood up. “With the weights.”

  Onyx gaped his jaws.

  Rolo turned to Raksha. “And you.” The wolf in question recoiled. “Join him. No doubt you’ve gotten rusty over the years. Time to refresh your training.”

  Raksha composed herself and nodded, joining Onyx in his workout.

  Lily and Ulva were sitting nearby, cheering them on. Suddenly Rolo was standing behind them. He grabbed them both by the shoulder, to which they flinched.

  Lily smiled sheepishly at him. “What’s the matter?”

  “Fifty. Both of you,” he replied with his usual monotone voice.

  Ulva frowned at him. “We told you we didn’t want to become Yeagers!”

  Rolo’s brows furrowed slightly. “Shame. You’re joining them regardless. Even healers and potion makers need to stay in shape.”

  “But...” Lily cleared her throat. “I can’t even do ten push ups without colpsing.”

  Rolo leaned down until his face was level with Lily’s, making her recoil slightly, although his expression was still bnk. “Fifty.”

  Lily nodded silently. She and Ulva obeyed, doing as Rolo instructed.

  Onyx ughed as he watched the exchange, which caused him to colpse.

  By the time they were done, they were gasping for air. Lily had colpsed multiple times but still managed to do it. She simply y there on the soil. Ulva had struggled as well but to a lesser extent. Onyx’s arms, back and chest burned, but he still had energy left in him, and by looking at Raksha, he guessed she was a bit more exhausted.

  “When was the st time you did something like this?” Onyx asked after catching his breath.

  “Oh…you know,” Raksha spoke through ragged breaths. “Around twenty years ago.”

  Onyx chuckled. “Does it feel good to finally shake off the rust?”

  “Somewhat.”

  “Everyone will carry their own belongings now,” Rolo announced. “But with added rocks.”

  Everyone groaned in exhaustion.

  Rolo assigned a certain amount and size of rocks to each one of them. Raksha carried more than Ulva and Lily, and Onyx carried a whole boulder.

  They walked until it was well afternoon before Rolo finally allowed them rest and food. They brought out what food they had in their bags while Rolo and Onyx hunted for more; Raksha started a fire, with Ulva and Lily helping her prepare the food despite their exhaustion.

  Onyx could’t hunt well due to his aching muscles, but Rolo made up for his cking performance. As he should, considering he hadn’t worked out whatsoever.

  “I’ve been wondering,” Onyx said while eating. “Is all of this training necessary for me? I mean, sure, I need to improve my flight, but are pushups and walking with weights really important? I’m already physically strong.”

  Rolo chewed for a few seconds and swallowed before answering. “Of course, there’s a good reason.” He pointed his bowl at Onyx. “Yeagers are fully prepared to take down a dragon that can use magic, and you should assume any enemy you face is the same. You, however, can’t use magic yet. This means you’ll be at a great disadvantage.”

  Onyx nodded. “Mom and dad taught me how to channel mana through breathing years ago. And I can do it, I can feel it flow through me, it’s just that…I can’t put it to use.”

  “That’s a good start,” Rolo continued. “In the meantime, however, the solution is to make up for your ck of magic with strength. First, it’s all you have now. Second, you’ll have the element of surprise. Your enemies will expect a regur dragon, breathing fire or whatnot. They won’t expect you to utilize strength and speed only.” Rolo crossed his arms. “In the end, it matters little your opponent’s magic if you break their bones faster than they can cast a spell.”

  Onyx chuckled, intrigued by the idea. “Sounds solid.”

  “But keep in mind, nothing is guaranteed. Study your opponent and the battlefield as much as you can. Everyone has weaknesses. Understanding your own weaknesses is the first step to victory, and the second step is understanding your opponent’s. Don’t charge in without thinking. If your opponent’s magic can foil a direct physical attack, you’ll need a different approach. And stly–” he gestured at everyone. “–you’re not alone. Don’t force yourself to win on your own. In the end, a victor is a victor and the defeated is defeated, or dead. It doesn’t matter if you need help to achieve victory or not.”

  Onyx rubbed his chin, nodding apprehensively. He didn’t like the idea of having to thrust everyone into battle with him, but Rolo’s words rang true; losing, or worse; dying, for simply refusing help would be foolish and everything would have been in vain.

  “Now, I believe we need a lecture on magic,” Rolo said, standing up. “You mentioned mana breathing, but that’s not all. Let’s make sure no one is missing crucial details.” He regarded everyone. “You might want to sit down.”

  Everyone did, and Rolo proceeded to expin, “The way almost all magic works is fundamentally the same: you use your life energy to convert mana from its pure form into something useful. There are several sources of mana, but the most common one is the air we breathe. Density of mana can vary in all mediums, air included. The way you breathe can also affect how much mana you get and how efficiently you use it. This is called ‘Mana Breathing’. Failing to control your breathing can lead to quicker fatigue and depletion of life energy. Other sources of mana include potions, crystals, water, sunlight, moonlight, starlight and stly…earth.” Rolo’s expression turned slightly more serious. “Never draw mana directly from the earth. It is a different form of mana that isn’t directly compatible with living beings. It can lead to a myriad of horrible results, including but not limited to death.”

  Rolo grabbed a stick and crouched. “Magic is split into different categories. The most common one is elemental magic.” He used the stick to draw a circle in the soil. “Elemental magic, in turn, is split into subcategories.” He drew six small circles along the circumference of the big circle, starting from the top and going clockwise, and in order he said, “Light, fire, earth, dark, water and wind. Each element can vary in the way it’s used as well depending on the person. For example,” He pointed at Raksha. “You have Light affinity, but you mostly use it for shields.” He turned his attention back to the circle. “Moreover, each affinity has the capability of utilizing something either from the two affinities right next to it from either side, or from one affinity that is two affinities away.”

  Onyx was starting to zone out. He shook his head in an attempt to regain focus. “Slow down! This is too much!”

  Rolo sighed. He pointed at the fire circle. “Take this for example. A fire user may be focused on fire only, but it’s also possible for them to utilize some Light or Earth magic, or both, because those two affinities are right next to it. However, in less common cases, a fire user may be able to utilize spells from, let’s say, wind, which is two affinities away, but in this case they’re limited to only fire and wind. These cases also run the risk of spreading one’s affinity too thin. In other words, you may have diverse spells, but they’re all weak or mediocre.”

  Onyx took a while to process the information, finally nodding. “Ah, now I get it!”

  “Good,” Rolo muttered. He cleared his throat and continued. “Other than elemental magic, there’s mutations. People with mutation magic are usually born with it, or they discover it at a young age.”

  Onyx looked at Lily. “Like you?”

  Lily nodded.

  Rolo continued. “Mutation magic can be elemental, but it can also be something else. For example, you mentioned your father, Alexander, using his fur as a weapon. That doesn’t fall under any elemental category. Other than elemental and mutation, there’s also spatial and temporal magic. Time manipution is considered a legend, as there’s no well recorded evidence of its existence. But theoretically, it’s possible, so it’s worth mentioning. Spatial magic is rare, but it does exist.”

  Onyx raised his hand. “Question: what exactly falls under dark elemental magic?”

  “Dark has many uses, but unfortunately a lot of foul and cursed things fall under it as well. Some notable examples: necromancy.” Rolo drew a skull on the soil and immediately crossed it. “Completely forbidden. Even putting aside the immorality of desecrating the dead, using necromancy is simply asking to get cursed or summon a curse into the world. Bleed magic, blood effects and blood sacrifices may seem gruesome, but they can be used the right way.”

  Onyx immediately thought back to the fox, and his expression clouded.

  “This should cover everything,” Rolo said, standing up. “Any questions?”

  “Yes.” Onyx raised his hand. “Could you please go over everything one more time? It’s slipping from my mind already.”

  Rolo groaned.

  After the encore, they continued walking until nightfall. They set up camp once more and rested.

  “So, how many of you know how to use a weapon?” Rolo asked.

  “I do,” Raksha answered. “Obviously. Me and Alexander also made sure to occasionally practice swordpy with Onyx and Bruno, so that’s a ‘Yes’ for Onyx, too. Although he has a habit of blocking sharp edges with his bare hands.” She shot Onyx a disapproving look.

  Onyx scratched his neck, smiling sheepishly.

  “My father taught me swordpy and archery,” Ulva said, scratching her cheek. “But it wasn’t anything extensive. He…passed away when I was young. I have his sword and bow with me.”

  “I always carry a dagger on me,” Lily asked, clearing her throat. “Although I can’t cim to be an expert on how to use one in a fight.”

  “So, in short, all of you could use more practice.” Rolo stood up. “Fair enough.” He grabbed one of his axes. “Raksha, you’re up first. Others, watch closely and learn what you can.”

  Raksha fetched her shortsword and approached the snow leopard.

  “Keep the sheath on so we don’t cut each other,” Rolo instructed.

  “Pity, I was looking forward to that,” Raksha responded, keeping her sword sheathed.

  Rolo scoffed. He prepared his axe, which had its own sheath. “Ready?”

  Raksha took a deep breath, gripping her sword with both paws, then nodded, a fierce look on her face.

  Onyx watched attentively as the two charged at each other. Raksha charged with her sword raised high and swung it down, but Rolo caught the blow with his axe. Raksha quickly followed up another swing, aiming down, but Rolo caught it as well, his face still vacant of emotions. Raksha swung at him several times, to which he dodged and backed off, eventually swinging back with his axe, aiming at her head. Raksha avoided the blow by a mere inch and jumped back, then charged again, keeping pressure on him. Rolo parried one of her many blows and struck her in the waist. She backed off, rubbing the struck spot, but quickly ran back into action. She managed to dodge one of his attacks and strike him on the arm, but he quickly retaliated with another successful strike without recoiling from the hit.

  “Go, mother!” Onyx cheered. “Give him a good beating!” He gnced at Lily and Ulva, suddenly feeling embarrassed. He lowered his voice.“I mean…you got this, mom.”

  Lily whispered something to Ulva while eyeing Onyx from the corner of her eye, and both of them started giggling.

  Onyx felt his face heat up. “W-What?!” He pointed at Rolo and Raksha. “Help me cheer her instead!”

  Rolo and Raksha sparred for a few minutes, and ultimately Rolo nded a lot more hits than Raksha did.

  “That’s enough,” Rolo said, his breathing slightly quickened.

  Raksha, on the other hand, was panting. She took a long, deep breath and exhaled slowly. “That was…intense. Even though you were holding back.”

  “You did well for someone who took Yeager training twenty years ago. But you still need some time to fully shake off the rust.” Rolo turned to face Onyx. “You’re next.”

  Onyx grabbed his sheathed longsword and stood up, just as Raksha made her way back to the log and sat down, letting out a long sigh. “Good luck,” she said. Onyx nodded, making his way to Rolo.

  “Feathers?” Ulva offered, extending her paw to Raksha, a few of her healing feathers in it and a small smile on her face.

  Raksha smiled back, accepting the offer. “Thank you.”

  Ulva’s smile widened in response.

  Onyx stood a few feet away from Rolo, brandishing his sheathed sword.

  Rolo coughed, pointing at Onyx’s weapon. “This is one of the reasons we’re heading to Riverveil. That sword looks like a toothpick in your hand.”

  Onyx chuckled. He was correct. Moreover, it felt light in his hand. “Well, it will have to do for now.”

  “We’ll get you something bigger once we arrive in the city. Now–” Rolo pointed his axe at Onyx. “–face me.”

  Onyx prepared his sword, pointing it forward. “No disrespect, but…are you sure this is fair?”

  “Don’t worry, I’m holding back.”

  “No, I mean…” Onyx sighed. “Nevermind.” He filled his lungs and focused. “Here I come!” Charging forward, he swung his sword horizontally, colliding with Rolo’s axe. His sword slid across the surface of the axe’s sheath, however, and the sheer force of his swing sent the sword flying out of his hand and into a nearby tree, then falling to the ground, the bde leaving a cut in the bark despite being sheathed. Onyx stared at it, his mouth agape.

  “Yes,” Raksha commented. “That’s another thing that he usually does.”

  Rolo stared at the tree while rubbing his throat. “I guess I shouldn’t get hit by that.”

  “Sorry! Sorry!” Onyx said curtly as he retrieved his sword and returned to his spot, ready to restart the match. He made sure to grip the sword’s hilt harder this time. He charged again, swinging downward. He held back out of fear of losing the sword again, and Rolo successfully blocked the attack. Onyx smiled for a moment, before receiving a hit on his leg from Rolo. “Ow!”

  “Focus!” Rolo instructed, charging at him.

  Onyx regained his focus just in time to catch Rolo’s attack…with his hand. He bit his lip as he realized his mistake.

  Raksha, Lily and Ulva all facepalmed.

  “Just so you know, that’s a hit for me,” Rolo said. “And most likely one less hand in a real fight.”

  Onyx groaned, shaking his head, trying to actually focus this time. He blocked a couple of Rolo’s attacks before trying his luck again, swinging several times, but Rolo either blocked or dodged them. Onyx decided to get bolder, increasing the speed and force behind his swings. Rolo dodged and hit him in the leg again, but Onyx quickly swung back, hitting Rolo on the arm and forcing him to recoil.

  Rolo was quick to get back into the fight, his attacks gaining speed. Onyx fell back, keeping up with Rolo’s blows becoming more difficult. Eventually, he received yet another hit, this time on his forearm. He snorted, his blood running warmer. Despite receiving more blows than nding them, he was starting to enjoy the training. It felt somewhat satisfying. He charged at Rolo again, his attacks even more ferocious than before, trying to overwhelm him. Despite successfully blocking and dodging most of them, Rolo was being forced to fall back. Onyx pressed on, his heart pounding with excitement. Suddenly, with a few swift moves, Rolo delivered a blow to the back of Onyx’s knee, forcing him to drop on it, then collided with his side, pushing him to the ground.

  “That’s enough,” Rolo said while catching his breath.

  Onyx blinked a few times, then rose to his feet, rubbing the affected spots on his body, although they didn’t hurt much. He gnced at the others, who were all staring at him in awe. “What’s wrong?” He asked while walking towards them.

  “It was intense,” Ulva replied.

  “That’s putting it mildly,” Lily added. “You looked like you were ready to kill him.”

  Onyx pointed at himself. “I…did? I admit, I was in the flow of the fight, but I didn’t know just how much.”

  “Take it easy,” Rolo said, patting Onyx on the back. “A good fighting spirit will serve you well. But that’s not all there is to a battle.” He turned his attention to Raksha. “You taught him well.”

  Raksha adjusted her posture proudly. “Of course I–”

  “Minus blocking a bde with his bare hand and letting his sword slip out of his grip.”

  Raksha frowned and groaned. “Those were not my teaching.”

  Onyx chuckled.

  “Feathers?” Ulva offered to Onyx with a warm smile, extending a pawful of her pink glow to him.

  “Oh,” Onyx muttered, then smiled. “It’s fine. They don’t hurt much.”

  “Please?” Ulva tilted her head, her paw still reaching out.

  Onyx chuckled. “Alright. These will be enough.” He reached out and only took two feathers; Ulva’s smile widened.

  “Next,” Rolo announced, his axe pointed at Ulva.

  Ulva nodded, fetching a sword from her belongings. From the sheath alone, Onyx could tell it was shorter and thinner than a longsword, but longer than a shortsword. The crossguard was a clean reflective silver.

  Curious, Onyx approached her. “Can I have a look at it?”

  Ulva seemed surprised by his request. “Sure, why not.” She unsheathed the sword, revealing a remarkably clean and brilliant bde, thin just like Onyx had predicted.

  “Beautiful,” Onyx admired. “Even though you’ve had it for years.”

  Ulva smiled. “True. Father always made sure to keep it in shape and ‘treat it like he would treat a dy’, which often made mother jealous.” She giggled. “After his passing, me and mom would occasionally take care of it to keep it clean and sharp.”

  Onyx nodded, smiling. “I hope all of that care will finally pay off.”

  “Thanks.” Ulva sheathed the bde again. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a Yeager to cut down.” She walked past him, preparing to face Rolo.

  “Good luck!” Onyx cheered.

  Ulva stood facing Rolo, her sheathed sword pointed forward, looking fierce. This time, Rolo charged first, and Ulva seemed surprised by that move, but she elegantly dodged his attacks, parted her legs to get lower and put one paw on the ground, trying to deliver a blow to Rolo’s lower body. He barely dodged the hit, but Ulva quickly closed the distance between them, dodging another attack, a quick step to the side, and struck him on the arm.

  “YEA–” Onyx stopped himself before he could shout, sitting down and clearing his throat. “I mean, way to go, Ulva!”

  Ulva smiled. Rolo dusted off the spot he was hit on, and was back in the fight, unching several quick attacks. Ulva barely managed to block most of them, eventually receiving a hit on her side. He didn’t leave her room to breathe, keeping the pressure on. She began to fall back as she blocked and dodged, receiving a second hit. Eventually they moved until they were near the trees. Ulva dodged a high horizontal swing by lowering herself to the ground and stepping back at the same time, her foot nding on a tree and using it to propel herself forward, nding a low attack on Rolo’s leg and forcing him to bend it. She tried to hit him again while he was kneeling, but he blocked it and quickly pushed her back, then he was back up on his feet.

  They sparred for another minute before Rolo called it off. “That was good,” he commended.

  Ulva smiled, rubbing the sore spots on her body. “I aim to impress.” She went back to her sitting pce, applying her healing feathers to her bruises.

  “You did great, Ulva!” Onyx said. “You moved so quickly and made good use of your environment.”

  Ulva blushed and rubbed her neck. “It…wasn’t that great. I still got clobbered by him.”

  “Yes, but he’s a Yeager!” Lily added. “I could tell that you forced him to use more of his power than he had pnned to.”

  “It’s true,” Raksha said. “Take it from an unofficial Yeager.”

  Ulva simply smiled in silence.

  “Lily, it’s your turn now,” Onyx said.

  “Right.” Lily produced her weapon–a rge dagger, smaller than a shortsword– and stood up. She gnced at Onyx, pouting. “You don’t want to see my bde, too?”

  Onyx blinked a few times before responding. “Of course!”

  Lily’s expression flipped to a grin, and she proceeded to unsheathe her dagger, revealing a curved bde with a notched back.

  “This looks…nasty!” Onyx commented.

  “It does, doesn’t it?” Lily said. “But I almost never use it. On the rare occasions I have to defend myself I usually resort to my magic, but I’m sure that won't be enough on its own on this journey.”

  Onyx nodded. “Now go on, show Rolo what you’ve got!”

  Lily obeyed, heading in Rolo’s direction. “I’m afraid that won’t be much…”

  Standing face to face, they readied their weapons. “I hope you understand the advantages and disadvantages of using a dagger.”

  “Somewhat,” Lily responded. “I’m hoping to get a better idea through this.” With that, she charged forward, swinging her dagger at high speed.

  Rolo easily stepped out of the way of Lily’s attacks and struck her on the back, knocking her off-bance and into the ground. Onyx winced as he watched, and he noticed Ulva and Raksha do the same.

  “Ow!” Lily yelped, standing up and dusting her clothes off. She resumed the fight, but Rolo blocked her attacks with retive ease and delivered a second hit, this time to her shoulder. Lily recoiled, rubbing the targeted spot. She didn’t get the chance to attack, however, as Rolo pressed on. She blocked a blow and dodged another, but the third one nded on her side.

  “Come on, Lily!” Onyx cheered on, this time remaining seated. “You can do it!”

  Lily gnced at Onyx for a moment, almost getting hit again as a result. She returned her attention to the fight and tried to attack once more. She ran towards Rolo, and just as his axe was about to connect with her, she slid on the ground and sshed at his ankle.

  “Yes!” Lily excimed, rising to her feet again. She unched a flurry of attacks, keeping Rolo busy with trying to block her. Eventually her dagger connected with his wrist, but he quickly retaliated, striking her on the chest and pushing her back as a result.

  The fight didn’t st long, as Lily couldn’t nd more than those two hits, and Rolo called it off shortly after. She walked back to the others, rubbing her shoulder, her expression speaking of exhaustion. “How did that go?”

  Raksha began to speak, but Onyx interrupted, “You did great if you ask me! You did all you could and didn’t give up!”

  Lily sighed. “I still feel terrible.”

  “That’s a good start,” Rolo said as he approached them. “Now the important part is to let that feeling push you towards getting better rather than giving up. And I have a feeling you’re not giving up.”

  Lily’s expression hardened, her chest puffed up. “Correct.”

  “Feathers?” Ulva said as she offered a few of her feathers to Lily and Rolo.

  Rolo gnced at her, his eyes opening ever so slightly wider than usual. “Thank you.” He took the feathers and used them on himself.

  Lily accepted the feathers too, with a faint smile. “Thanks.”

  Ulva smiled. “Anytime.”

  “Wait, how many of your feathers have you spent so far?” Rolo inquired.

  “I think about half of them?” Ulva estimated.

  “And how long do they usually take to grow back?”

  “Around half a day.”

  Rolo shook his head. “That’s not good. Conserve them for serious situations. You don’t know when we may get attacked and someone may get seriously injured.”

  Ulva’s ears drooped. “You make a good point.”

  “Hey now,” Onyx pced a hand on Ulva’s shoulder. “It’s fine. You meant well.”

  A tiny smile tugged at the edges of Ulva’s muzzle.

  They all sat around the fire, preparing a small dinner and resting. Rolo only ate a little before lying on his back and sleeping.

  “Mom, I’ve been meaning to ask,” Onyx spoke while eating, getting Raksha’s attention, who had just sat down to eat. “How exactly did you and dad meet?”

  “Oh, well, it’s quite the story,” Raksha replied, smiling.

  “I bet,” Lily teased, smirking. “Must be…juicy.”

  Raksha blushed, waving a paw at Lily. “Hush, you!”

  “I would like to hear it, too,” Ulva added.

  “Hey, give us some privacy!” Onyx snorted.

  “Too te for that now,” Rolo said, still id on his back.

  “I thought you were asleep!”

  “Pretend that I am.”

  Onyx groaned.

  Raksha giggled. “It’s fine. Let them listen.”

  They all sat, except Rolo, and gave Raksha all of their attention, Onyx and Ulva’s ears standing up attentively.

  Raksha cleared her throat before speaking, “When I began my training at Jagerheim, Alexander was already a Yeager. He wasn’t the one overseeing my training, but we happened to meet there one day and he decided to contribute to teaching me, sparring with me from time to time.”

  “I can only wonder why,” Lily said, resting her elbows on her thighs and her cheeks on her palms.

  Raksha smiled, shooting Lily a pyful frown. “As you can imagine, one thing led to another, and we grew closer together. Don’t tell him this, but he was terrified when I went on my final exam, although he tried, unsuccessfully, to not show it. Unfortunately, his fears were somewhat warranted. I failed the exam, and that was how I got the scar on my back. Alexander was worried sick about me and spoiled me with his care until I got better. He traveled with me back to my home vilge, and on the way he kept insisting that I don’t try to become a Yeager again. Eventually, he had to confess and propose to me in order to convince me.”

  “That’s adorable,” Lily commented. Turning her attention to Ulva, she said, “Don’t you agree?”

  Ulva blushed, scratching her cheek. “It is.”

  Raksha continued, “We would travel from pce to pce, wherever his hunts took him. He agreed to simply keep my training sharp so I could fend for myself, but refused to let me fully engage in monster hunting. Shortly after, I was pregnant with Bruno. Alexander’s hunts slowed down at that time as he wanted to stay by my side. And as Onyx knows, around halfway through my pregnancy we stumbled upon his egg, and it hatched within days. That was when we picked the safe spot near Lupanville and built our home. And shortly before that, we had befriended Zoey…” Raksha’s ears dropped slightly, her expression a bit more somber. “...and after that, Mira. They both helped us with that endeavor and kept our secret.”

  Onyx nodded apprehensively. “You were right; that was quite the story.”

  “It was sweet,” Lily added. “Except for the part where you got a scar and nearly died.”

  Ulva giggled.

  “Gd you enjoyed it,” Raksha said, looking at the ground, falling silent for a few moments. “I miss him already.”

  Onyx rubbed her back gently, leaning down closer to her. “Me too.”

  Lily gnced at Rolo. “Don’t you have any comments?”

  All she got in response was a snore. Everyone ughed, trying to stifle their voices so as not to wake Rolo up. As they finished their dinner and after some quiet chatter, they retired to their beds for the night.