Going down the Florentine proved to be more of a challenge than climbing the tops yesterday. This wasn't because the road from the village was easy to follow up and harder to move down from, but simply because this last long stretch was specifically known for its difficulty.

Unlike the naming scheme, this place was dubbed The Paths, and it featured a wave of multiple roads going into small caves, between the beige canyons and sometimes above or below arches naturally forming above red trees and cacti growing beside bigger rocks.

Now, that wouldn't be a challenge if the five didn't have burdens named yunduls carrying them through the surroundings. Admittedly, it would've taken them much longer to arrive in the village if it wasn't for the animals, but now they understood that most positives in life eventually come with drawbacks.

Koyote's yundul fell to the side five times because it was afraid to cross a bigger gap with a cactus below. When yunduls were afraid, they went flat because they thought that would be their saving grace. After a while of annoying interactions and Ingo angrily telling Genni to stop giggling, Koyote dragged the animal to a different road and met up with the Morians halfway down a cliff.

The noon lights shined in from above, with the clouds still permeating the area, alas, a great flat stretched before them, and the first signs, as well as obvious signals of the Windlands, were visible.

The five stepped through even terrain, marked with small coniferous bushes, dry grass and cacti that were abnormally large in comparison to everything in the area. After moving forward, the ground shifted hues to more of a beige instead of the coated green, and these strange small trees started appearing. These were one of the many sources of the shishka, but not every tree was filled with fruit that could be eaten.

Genni explained that some were purely poisonous, and there was one way to differentiate them. No, it was not trying and seeing if you'll live, but there was a small mark on the bark. Yellow meant it was safe to eat, but Morio wasn't entirely convinced.

"I don't want to try that shishka." he shook his head.

"It's a unique taste if it isn't steamed!" Genni added.

"I can try." Jyuzou raised his hand.

"It's sour," Ingo uttered, rolling his eyes.

"I bet it's still tasty." Jyuzou gave her a thumbs-up.

"You sometimes act more like Morio than Morio!" Genni said.

Jyuzou breathed out, stumbling about.

"Agh, the damn wind!" Ingo yelled out, fixing his hair. "What the hell?"

"Wonder why it's called Windsdale, Ingo," Koyote said, fixing her hat. "We're rapidly approaching, and I think it's only an hour away until we see that oasis and the mountain in the middle. If we hurry, we'll catch today's ship." she turned to Jyuzou, who didn't exactly look amused.

"Is the wind the reason why we're standing around doing absolutely nothing?" Ingo asked.

"Just a hunch. Have any of you seen a demon ever since we stepped into Harabara?"

"A demon?" Genni tilted her head. She nodded a few times before her eyes widened. "N-No."

"S-Shouldn't that be a good thing?" Jyuzou asked.

"Probably, but not necessarily." she scratched her head. "The mountain range is usually safe, but I especially took the risk of this open road just to test something out. Lo and behold, we weren't attacked since we stepped out of Galliath. Like every demon outside of that island went and disappeared." she shook her head. "It's strange."

Jyuzou turned to Genni, and Ingo glanced at Morio who furrowed his eyebrows, one hand resting around Gloria's sheath.

"I might dwell on that later. Ingo's right. We'll only catch a cold if we stand instead of moving." Koyote uttered, however, her words weren't particularly true. The closer they were to Windsdale, the more intense the wind became.

The town was known for its extreme conditions, such even deterring most visitors or people from moving in. Of course, the port was half the reason, because Windsdale was situated at the very edge of the Blue Sky Sea, with an intricate water path leading towards the Visula River and into Saphrith.

The Three Warriors Sea was particularly known to be one of the hardest to tread, but if one knows their routes, they can easily outmanoeuvre and battle the tides.

As for its history, everything concerning hunters stemmed from the villages around and leading into Windsdale. It'd be more wise and obvious to talk about the massive mountain in the middle.

It was recognized as one of the key elements that made up the town, because of the two statues that rested atop, being giant recreations of the first two Harans that became hunters and brought the idea of unconventional animals and attitude towards religion and belief of why something should be hunted.

The father of hunters, as they call them. Some Harans even speculated that the two were half-responsible for the domestication of wolves and yunduls, but those were more than witchtales at that point. Some thought the two were in a relationship, even back when Harans weren't necessarily open to such thinking. Times have changed obviously, but even if hunters greatly differed from those two, respect was always sent their way, in the form of a seasonal thoroughfare up to the mountaintop or stories written about their tales.

As Koyote mentioned, only an hour or so of tremendous battles against wind separated the five from seeing the oasis, and much like she described, the place presented itself as this rather strange phenomenon, alas, the Winsdale mountain could be seen in the distance. Moving back to the oasis, the five took this opportunity to refill their water supply, as this was one of the few sources outside of the mountains with fresh water pouring in from the ground.

No one knew how the oasis came to be, some even speculate it to be witchmade, but then again, the palms surrounding the green invading the browns extended towards the rocky path leading into Windsdale.

Passing the bigger formations and winding up between a few tops, the five approached the town from the side of the port. The area itself didn't indicate that, but a sound in the distance rang a bell in Koyote's mind.

"It's already setting sail?" she asked.

Jyuzou was taken aback, and all the yunduls simultaneously sped up at Koyote's command.

Most of the town was composed of, however, the same rocky buildings but coated in a white shell. All of them, much like most village architecture were separated into basement and upper floor, with green double doors and windows of the same colour. The roof was a copper red, and the road, if it wasn't filled with palms and small bushes, was made out of neatly laid stones.

Passing by a few churches, the wind picked up again, deafening the sound of strange birds chirping in the distance. Koyote stuck her head out beyond a couple of trees and palms before seeing wooden platforms, a few street lamps and a lighthouse resting on a rocky island. Hastily stepping off the yundul, she signalled for Jyuzou to do the same, and the other Morians soon joined.

"I thought we still had some time." she squeezed her pocket watch in one hand before swapping it for a small pouch.

Koyote turned to the Morians who looked just as confused as she was. Atop that confusion, Jyuzou seemed stressed out of his mind. He stared back and forth, exchanging glances with Morio and a few people who stepped around the port area.

"You three. Hide your Guardian Demons." Koyote announced. "Cloth, whatever, even stuffing them halfway into the backpack could work."

"Wait, why?" Genni asked.

"Screw me for keeping things too quiet." she fixed her hat. "You'll learn, okay," she said. "You're out in the real world now."

"You're already leaving?!" Morio stepped closer.

"I said what I said yesterday," she uttered, turning to the port again. The same ship horn sound made itself very apparent. "They're about to set off."

Jyuzou sucked in air through his teeth, looking at the other Morians. While Koyote was already well on her way down the street, Jyuzou waited. He gulped, clenching his fist and furrowing his eyebrows.

"What now?" Ingo asked.

"I d-don't know." Jyuzou gulped. "I don't know..." he repeated, gritting his teeth.

"Jyuzou!" Koyote raised her voice.

Jyuzou sighed, turning to the side. "Morio. Wait for me here. It's just a few days after all. I don't want to go to Mistwick by myself."

Morio opened his mouth before his eyes shrunk. He recalled Koyote's words again. Maybe the path he was supposed to carve was with someone by his side. He didn't have the time to think, ask or understand, though.

He took a hesitant step, before nodding with a determined expression.

Jyuzou forced a smile, before running off and following Koyote's footsteps.

Genni moved forward, turning to the corner and seeing the two fly off against the blue sky and the sea of the same colour. The ship in the distance matched the hue of the wooden platforms, contrasting the stone roads next to big walls and narrower stairways, and as more and more people appeared on the streets, one stood not too far away from the Morians.

He bore a dark outfit, covering most of his body, only leaving his face and hands exposed. Atop his head, rested a hat, which failed to hide his braided, colourful hair.

He was holding something in his hands and spinning it around while focusing on the Morians. He turned to the side and disappeared behind the town's clock tower.

***

Alfredo came around the dimly lit corner holding a vase with water in his hands. Tempest, as he referred to himself, sat on the bedside.

"T-The prayers must've worked." the Beastman uttered, with a small beam permeating through his rough, animal-like features. Quickly, he put the object down on a nearby wooden table and poured some in. "Drink. It'll make you feel better."

Tempest's eyes were focused on something else entirely. He clenched a compass in his hand, staring at an arrow calmly pointing towards the south. He eventually glanced up and took what he offered him.

"Holy water?"

"Yes." he nodded. "Our leader told us of a source in the Kiki Forest. My wounds have mended better since."

"It's bitter."

"Haven't you drank the other portions?"

Tempest didn't answer. One slow twitch of his hand led to a tap at the side of the compass. The arrow changed course, weaving towards the west instead, before moving sporadically, as if something was quickly approaching.

Alfredo focused, gulping.

"My sacrifice points to two options as if it can't decide." he gulped. "But I wouldn't want to repeat a past mistake. I feel like I know a little more than I can chew."

Clicking the side again, he put the glass on a nearby shelf. Alfredo tilted his head.

"Tell me, Alfredo. From what lakes did you pick up the water?"

"Most were full of..." Alfredo gulped.

"That's why it's so bitter."