So… now I had to figure out where we were. Unfortunately, there were no rivers in sight to help confirm if this was still the holy land or not. Figures. That hateful Lyssandra dropped us in the middle of nowhere.

One night had passed since the incident. We decided to stay in the same spot, letting our nerves settle after everything that happened. But now, with the rising sun slipping through the branches and warming my skin, the urge to move grew stronger. I needed to head north. I needed to begin that journey as soon as possible.

Just one little problem.

I had absolutely no idea where north even was.

I rubbed my temples, trying to summon the basic wilderness lessons that my former life had pushed into some dusty corner of my mind. How did they teach us to determine north again…?

Right. The shadow test!

I stood up, pressed my feet into the soft earth, and angled myself toward a patch of sunlight that broke through the trees. I placed a small stick into the ground, making sure it stood upright. The early morning sun cast a faint shadow across the dirt.

"That should point west…" I muttered to myself. "So east is opposite… and north should be…"

I watched the shadow patiently. Within a minute, it shifted slightly. I marked the second position with a pebble, then drew a small line connecting the two marks. My body remembered even if my mind was slow to catch up.

"Alright. First mark to second mark is west to east…" I exhaled, feeling a spark of satisfaction. "So north is right there."

I turned toward the direction opposite the sun's arc, the air growing cooler against my skin as though the world itself acknowledged the path I had chosen.

"What are you doing here?" Elira came to my side and crouched beside the stick and pebble I had arranged on the ground. She studied them with a thoughtful tilt of her head. "Are you trying to find north?"

Oh. Was she actually familiar with this? I mean… I guess the author of my world had written this place, so the rules should apply the same.

"Yeah, and it's right there." I pointed confidently in the direction I had determined.

"Ohhh, good job!" She clapped her hands like an excited child. "But you didn't need to go through all this trouble. If you needed direction, you could have just asked me."

She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small round object. My eyes widened.

"You… have a compass?" How? This world was practically medieval. Why would she have something like that?

"Compass? This?" She blinked at me. "No, I don't know what that is. We call this magical device the Northern Star. If you infuse mana into it, it shows which side is north. Look, if I turn it like this you can see east, and—"

"Enough. I know… I know…" I covered my face with my hand as heat rushed up my neck. "Let's just go."

My pride was dissolving faster than snow in a volcano. Why was I even trying those primitive methods? Why? I wanted to hurl myself into the nearest river and let the current take me downstream until the embarrassment drowned itself. My face burned so hot I felt like the sun had relocated inside my skull.

"Let's… just go," I repeated, already walking away before she could demonstrate anything else.

Time slipped by quietly as we walked. Beelzebub padded beside me on the ground, his tiny paws tapping softly against the earth. He looked unusually cheerful, nose twitching at every leaf and root as if this forest reminded him of some forgotten home. I still didn't know whether he came from a distant land or if the system had simply created him for me. Some questions were better left for later, when the world made a little more sense.

Elira and I talked for days as we traveled. Well… she talked. She would not stop recounting the stories of her journeys across the Ashvale lands with her father. Sometimes the memories made her voice soften with sadness, but she always bounced back with the same bright energy moments later.

She even told me about the time she crossed into demon territory—only once, and only to slay a notorious goblin that had been terrorizing a nearby town. Listening to her describe it so casually made something warm spark in my chest. This girl… if she ever unleashed her full strength without holding back for my sake, she would be a terrifying war machine.

Honestly, a small part of me wanted to see her fight at full power one day.

After two days of moving through endless trees, the soft rush of running water finally reached our ears. Relief hit me so hard I almost sprinted toward it. I knelt by the stream and scooped some into my palms. The surface shimmered gold for a heartbeat, then shifted into a faint purple hue.

Holy land water. Good. At least now I knew what waited ahead… somewhat.

"Elira, you should drink. Replenish your strength."

"What about you and Beelzebub?" she asked, worry settling in her eyes.

"We'll be fine. I'm alright, really."

The moment the words left my lips, heat crawled up my face. Ever since Lyssandra's… that… thing she did to me, my hunger had been unnervingly quiet. No gnawing thirst, no sharp cravings threatening to take control. Whatever she forced into me, it worked. It helped me hold myself together.

Beelzebub didn't complain either. For reasons beyond me, the little fluffball was perfectly content stuffing himself with nuts and berries. Watching him munch away made me wonder what kind of vampire he even was. Mythical class or not, he behaved more like a woodland squirrel than a creature of the night.

No wonder he was mythical… nothing about him made sense.

"Wait, can you hear that?"

A faint tremor rippled through the ground. I stilled, focusing on it until the vibration grew clearer. When I turned my head, shapes began to form in the distance: horses pulling wagons, moving steadily along the northern road.

A crazy idea shot through my mind the moment I saw them.

Perfect. It was time to try out my body control skill, mask myself properly, and catch a ride. It would save us a good chunk of travel, and honestly… it sounded fun.

Hehe.

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