A few weeks had passed since Harwin had been awarded with his new title. Things had changed for the young mage, people respected him everywhere he went. Some adventurers stopped in their trek to catch a glimpse of him, and possibly ask for advice. Most of all, the guild administration treated him like a celebrity, even giving him a separate room in the main building.

  Some looked at him with dissent, though. The older, more experienced fellows did not appreciate the growth of Harwin. Well, mostly those veterns who had not participated in the expedition. They were also frowned upon by the rest for not standing up when it mattered the most, so they had to direct their anger somewhere. Fortunately, the hate was only in the form whispers and back bites.

  The most important news during this entire duration was of a wedding. Yes, a wedding between Harwin's party members: Winston and Eiza. There were already signs that the two held some feelings for eachother. However, after having a near-death experience in the last battle, they had decided to finally confess.

  The proposal was awkward as well, with Winston trying to take advice from Harwin who was just as clueless as his comrade. In the end, the former just had to muster up as much courage as he had gathered to fight against S'kaal — possibly even greater.

  As for Eiza, she accepted almost instantly. It was as if she had been waiting for ages.

  The two had already been together for years, so it was only natural that they skipped the first few steps and immediately moved on to the last phase. Of course, their profession played a great part in it as well. Adventurers never knew if their next hunt would be their last one, thus they tried to make the best of their time.

  In a few days the ceremony was held. It was the first time that Harwin had seen a wedding after coming to this world. The bride and groom visited the shrine for the blessing of Alomos from a priest. It was very rare for the saint himself to officiate a marriage pact.

  Surprisingly, it was also recorded by the guild which held various other admin related documents as well concerning all of their members.

  After the blessing, the newly pronounced husband and wife held a feast for their loved ones. The two had accumulated quite the sum from their ventures, so it was not a burden on them to indulge in a little extravagant celebration. Neither of the two had any blood in the town, and were orphans from a young age as well, so it was basically their party and a few others who made the guest list.

  Harwin, Daren and Ava secretly gifted a great amount to the two so they could help the couple save for their future. Otherwise, it was a wonderful day filled with joy. Harwin had not enjoyed this much since his outings with Alisa and Landel. They ate and drank till the later hours of night.

  Technically the celebrations were only held for a day, but the bunch celebrated for a few days. They had seen a great deal of difficult times, so this holy union was a bliss

  Now, they could not have stayed in the same shabby little room anymore. So, they bought a small cottage in the outskirts. It was not anything fancy, but was much larger than their former residence. Everyone had put up their fair share. In the end, it costed them nearly two gold lion tooth. A grand amount, but not anywhere close to buying even a single room in the town center.

  Next order of business was something the young mage had been avoiding for sometime now. He had already made up his mind of leaving for the capital soon enough. Before he had thought of taking his party with him, but the road to Guilmeshan was a dangerous one. Not only the journey, but the city itself was notorious for being punishing to outsiders as well as anyone perceived to be weak. This would have been cruel and selfish on his part to basically create new hurdles for his already tired companions.

  However, he could not have just left without saying anything, either. His first course of action was to take Winston in confidence. The latter was the de-jure leader of the party, even if majority of the decision were made by Harwin. Wins was a head-strong individual before, but after experiencing the almost fatal events in the last few months, he had come to accept guidance from others as well. At least, to some degree that is.

  It was a bittersweet conversation. Winston first tried to convince the young mage to stay, but ultimately gave in. It was as the two had agreed before Harwin had joined the party.

  After that, the two visited the guild for Harwin's next plan. They were to meet Lyam who agreed reluctantly after much persuasion. The mage-sword — Harwin — held a meeting in the room he had been assigned.

  The room itself was just as grand as the guild building. It was furnished lavishly and was spacious enough to hold a large party.

  The two sat face to face with the new leader of the Mortis. Silence loomed for sometime. Lyam looked at the two with a frown and a constant grinding of teeth.

  This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  "Um, I am grateful that you agreed to talk." Harwin said.

  Lyam just looked at him with disdain.

  "I have always respected you, ser. The respect has not faded even the slighest." The young mage tried to calm down his former master.

  "What do you want, 'Ser Harwin The Valiant'?" Lyam replied with a sarcastic tone.

  Wins was about to lash out, only to be stopped by his comrade.

  "Your party has suffered a great deal in the last battle. You have lost your former leader and others still. However, that is common for almost everyone who participated in the expedition." Harwin spoke.

  He was over explaining himself which annoyed the inferno mage who finally asked:

  "What is your point, huh?"

  "The point is that you need more members to venture in the ashen lands. Have you found anyone yet?" Harwin replied with a question of his own.

  Winston was enjoying the complimentary refreshments — brought in by the guild receptionist — while the room had become heated with animosity.

  "Do you not think that I know that? Are you implying that I am fool?" Lyam grew frustrated by the second.

  "Not at all, ser. It was a simple question which I would appreciate if you answer." The young mage insisted.

  This was only welcomed by an awkward staring competition by Lyam. Harwin knew better than to add fuel to the fire so he stayed quiet as well. Finally the former took a deep sigh and decided to reply:

  "I have not found anyone. All thanks to you, that is."

  "How is it Harwin's fault?" Wins finally paid attention to the matter at hand.

  "People talk. I do not know if you lot were behind this, but Mortis has been basically boycotted by every adventurer whether old or young. No one wants to join us. Us, who are the most powerful group in the whole region."

  'Were.' Harwin refrained from saying it out loud. Instead he replied with:

  "Mortis has suffered heavily after the battle, just as others. It is true that we could not have won without ser Kaith and you, but people tend to overlook your accomplishments for the slightest of mistakes."

  Lyam knew exactly what his former student was referring to, and understood that it was true as well which was why he did not argue.

  "We need to move past our small differences, ser." Harwin added.

  "How so? It appears you are finally coming to the main point." The infero-mage asked.

  "A mutual partnership. It will bring benefit to the both of us...."

  "Go on." Lyam leaned in.

  "Your party's reputation has been tarnished, yet it remains powerful. Our party has earned respect from a lot of fellows, but we have still not grown entirely. If we can form a greater party together, then none would even come close to us. Mortis might even return to its former glory." The young mage explained.

  "Why not recruit others? Surely, you can do so while being the talk of the town." Lyam said with a suspicion.

  "It is best to approach the strongest before going after the rest. Besides, I have a selfish reason."

  "What reason?"

  "You ask a lot of questions, ser—" Winston finally lost his cool. However, one gaze from the infero-mage was enough to quiet him down immediately.

  "What reason? I ask again." Lyam repeated.

  "I am leaving for Guilmeshan. But, I want to leave my comrades in the hands of capable men. I do not consider myself their leader, but I still worry about them for partaking in something dangerous." Harwin explained without hesitation.

  It did earn him a scowl from his companion, but the latter did not speak out.

  As for Lyam, he was deep in thoughts. The man despised Harwin and his group, but he was not immature either. He understood that they were wrong in the first place. Besides, without more members, their party might have had to disband all together. After much consideration, he finally stated:

  "Ever since Kaith died, I have hated you lot..."

  Winston tried to speak again, but Harwin signalled him to remain silent. Lyam then continued:

  "However, it is true that each man values their lives and their loved one's lives more than some random person who declared himself the leader. Kaith was arrogant. His plan was terrible and selfish. I knew it as well, but I did not stop him. It is only rational to hate us."

  He finally opened up his heart. It was a surprise for Wins, but the young mage had known that his former master was a good fellow in the end.

  "Very well, I will accept your proposal, but do not think that I will adhere to the commands of this dim-wit." Lyam pointed towards Harwin's companion before continuing:

  "I would have accepted you in the position. Their party is nothing special without you, either. Well, except for that priestess. I heard she even managed to cast an expert healing spell. It is a wonder that she ended up in a party with this fellow."

  Winston looked both furious as well as proud at his insult but his wife's appreciation respectively. Expert mages in any art of magika were just as rare here as anywhere else in the world. It required not only hardwork, but a great talent and magika capacity.

  "There is not need for leadership, ser. As I mentioned already: it would a partnership. Both of you will coordinate with eachother and head your parties in your own right." Harwin stated.

  Lyam nodded to this arrangement. The two shook hands. The former even furthered his hand towards Wins who only accepted it after a bit of a delay.

  After their meeting, the two made their way back to their newly established headquarters. Harwin broke the news of his plans to depart from the party. It certainly turned the atmosphere gloomy. Everyone in the room had been saved by the young mage one way or the other, so they felt a close connection to the man. Eiza as well as Wins had already known that the day would come, as their comrade had only agreed to be part of the group for a certain time-frame.

  None the less, they held farewell party for their friend. There were not many laughters this time, however. All of them ate in silence with a few words from here and there. In the end, none of them could truly bring themselves to accept Harwin's decision.

  The lad knew it as well. He had created a strong bond with them throughout the last few months. It was the very reason that he had doubts in his heart in the first place. Yet, the memories of his family as well as his elfin friends always glimpsed right in front of him which made his resolve rekindle.

  At dawn-break, Harwin left for his journey. He did not wake up his friends, but left a letter for each of them along with small gifts before leaving. With that, another chapter in his life closed....