Morning had not fully arrived when the Lacerians’ gate opened.
The faint light of dawn was passing through the massive roots of the Forest of Giants and falling on the tribe’s walls.
The green and blue night lamps were still not extinguished, and a thin mist was moving along the main path.
Most of the tribe was still not awake. The sound of the craftsmen’s hammers was not heard, and the children were in their homes.
Only the guards on the walls, a few soldiers near the gate, and the small group that had come to see them off were present in that section.
One was standing near the entrance.
Its massive body had taken on a darker color under the weak morning light. Its six legs were firmly planted on the ground, and its long antennae were scanning the environment with slow movements.
Lian had placed all the necessary items in his storage space the night before. He had taken a little extra food and water in case of an emergency.
He had also taken ropes made from the sturdy leaves and stems of the giant trees, just in case they might be needed.
A few extra weapons and some of the resources that Averian had insisted on providing.
He had spent the entire night re-examining the documents related to the Giants’ Graveyard and Glassthorn Forest, and the completed map.
They were about to enter one of the most dangerous areas of this world, and he needed to gather as much information as possible before entering such a place.
But unfortunately, there was not much information. The Giants’ Graveyard was a deadly and abandoned area that no one had entered for years.
The mortality rate there was 100 percent, and anyone who had entered had not been able to return alive, so there was no information either.
Compared to him, Seris carried almost no items.
She wore her light dark armor, and her thin sword was at her waist.
Her appearance looked more like someone leaving home for a short practice session, not someone intending to enter an area from which no tribal group had ever returned alive.
But Lian’s gaze was mostly on the three people standing in front of him.
Ravian.
Sera.
And Nemi.
Nemi had stayed close to Lian from the moment he had come out of his house.
She said nothing, just followed a few steps behind him wherever he went. She had known since last night that he was going to leave the tribe.
But until One was ready to move by the gate, she had not fully felt the reality of his departure.
During the days they were lost in the Forest of Giants, Lian was not just a companion for Nemi.
Every time the roar of a monster was heard in the distance, her gaze would unconsciously go to him.
Every time the path became dangerous, she would move closer to him.
Even when the Black Brood Matriarch had controlled the entire colony and there was no escape left, Lian’s presence for her meant that there was still hope.
During all this time, without even realizing it herself, she had become attached to this outsider, so attached that she could not imagine the rest of her life without him.
Her father and sister had realized this truth much earlier, but there was nothing they could do. The attachment had already formed, and there was no way to remove it.
They could only hope that Nemi would gradually come to terms with it.
For Nemi herself, Lian was a pillar of support, and now that same person wanted to enter the most dangerous part of the forest.
And this time, she was not with him.
Lian was also ready to slowly leave, but when he raised his head, he noticed that Nemi was still looking at him.
The younger girl’s eyes were slightly wet, but she was trying not to cry, and finally, with a quiet voice, she asked.
"Do you really have to go?"
"Yeah." Lian looked at her for a few moments and answered. He was not foolish enough not to notice this girl’s attachment.
"Can’t you go later?" Nemi pressed her lips together.
"If I wait, others will get ahead of me."
That girl did not understand the real meaning of competition among Awakened ones. She did not know why a few days of delay could matter to someone like Lian.
For her, the only thing that mattered was that the Giants’ Graveyard was dangerous, and whoever entered it might never return.
"But it’s very dangerous there."
"That’s why I’m not going alone." Lian said and gave his gaze to Seris.
Nemi also looked at the silver-haired girl.
She still did not like her. The image of her father’s severed hands and the blood on Averian’s body had not faded from her mind.
But she also knew Seris’s power. She knew that if anyone could enter that valley with Lian and survive, it was probably that cold and emotionless girl.
Nevertheless, her anxiety did not completely go away. Nemi reached her hand into her clothes’ small pocket.
She brought out a thin blue band. This was a band that, in their tradition, meant that whoever had it would be protected by the Forgotten Tree.
It was a kind of tradition, not a magical item or anything like that.
She held the band out to Lian.
"Keep this."
"What is it for?" Lian took it from her hand.
"So that you come back." Nemi lowered her gaze.
Lian looked at the band for a few moments. He did not make any jokes or light comments. He tied it around his left wrist and tightened the knot so it would not come undone on the path.
Then he raised his hand for Nemi to see.
"Thank you. With this, I’m sure nothing will happen." They were simple sentences.
But Nemi needed that. She blinked a few times to keep the tears from falling and nodded.
Sera was standing a little further away. Unlike Nemi, she did not show her feelings openly.
She was standing next to her mother and pretending to be more focused on checking the guards and the exit path than on saying goodbye.
But when Lian went to her, before he could say anything, she said.
"You better not think that because you survived the Ants Queen and the Sky Giant Bird, this path will also be easy." Her tone was a little sharp.
But Lian had gotten to know her well enough to understand the hidden worry beneath it.
"Father said no group has ever returned from inside the Giants’ Graveyard." Sera continued.
"I am not normal either." Lian answered.
"I know that." Sera gave a brief look at Seris.
Then she was silent for a few moments, her antennae made a short movement, and finally her voice became a little softer.
"Just... take care of yourself." For Sera, this sentence was almost equivalent to an open admission of worry.
"You too, take care of yourself and Nemi and Ravian." Lian nodded.
Sera then turned to Seris. The hostility between the two had still not completely faded.
Three days of shared travel had made Sera understand her better, but that understanding did not mean forgiveness.
"If something happens—"
"It won’t." Seris cut her off. She didn’t understand why everyone was making such a drama out of everything.
Was it really necessary? This was just a normal trip, nothing more and nothing less. She couldn’t understand why these lizards were so emotional.
Besides, it wasn’t like this was her and Lian’s first trip together.
"I was going to say take care of him." Sera frowned.
Seris looked at her for a few moments, her eyes remained on Sera’s face without any obvious emotion.
"He doesn’t need protection." She then said and paused briefly.
"But okay."
For a moment, Sera had no answer. Maybe she had expected Seris to ignore her words, but that short answer made her feel a little more at ease about Seris being with Lian.
Ravian was the last one. He stood straight in front of Lian.
He had brought his spear and was holding it with both hands. His body was still aching from the three days of training.
His palms were blistered, dark bruises could be seen on his shins, and his shoulders were tired.
But his stance was different from three days ago. His legs were no longer too wide apart.
His weight was better distributed, and the spear’s tip was exactly in the center of defense.
"Three days was too short." Ravian said.
"For you to become stronger? Yeah." Lian answered simply.
"You said you would help me, but you’re leaving so soon." Ravian gripped the spear’s shaft tighter, as if trying to hide his real feelings.
"I did help you."
"I didn’t mean just three days of training." Ravian frowned, frustration was clear in his voice.
But beneath it, there was another fear, perhaps the fear that Lian might never return.
The young Vorhelm looked at him for a few moments, then pointed at the spear.
"What I taught you was not for three days. Every day, a thousand Returning Points. Every day, Rooted Step on the narrowest root you can find."
"And once a week, fight three people at the same time."
Ravian listened carefully.
"Keep your gaze separate from the real target. Every strike must have a way back. And if you feel the training has become easy, that means you’re doing it wrong." Lian added in the end.
"When I come back, if you’re still making the same mistakes as before, we’ll start your training from the beginning."
"Will you really come back?" Ravian’s eyes sparkled.
"Maybe one day I will." Lian said without hesitation.
That sentence alone was like a promise for Ravian. His shoulders relaxed a little. He separated his right hand from the spear and placed it on his chest; the same sign of respect of the Lacerians.
"When you come back, I’ll be much stronger."
"I hope so. Otherwise, I wasted all those three days." Lian smiled.
Ravian was upset for a moment, but couldn’t hide his brief smile.
Averian did the final checks and then came forward. The complete map was in a sturdy and resistant tube.
He handed it to Lian.
"This must stay intact."
He took the map and placed it in his storage space.
"According to the map, the path to the graveyard takes about a day and a half." The tribe leader added, his gaze becoming more serious.
"But after the broken pillar, there are no more tribal signs. From that point on, even the forest beasts don’t enter the path."
This sentence caught Lian’s attention more than the rest of the warnings. The forest beasts did not decide with maps and stories.
They smelled danger, they felt it. If even the monsters of the Forest of Giants avoided crossing that path, there was a good reason for it.
Meaning there was something in that graveyard that even the monsters were afraid of!