Winged Race

The fourteenth day of the adventure.

Rhode and Serie encountered the Winged race.

They were a race created by the Goddess of Life, humanoid in form with wings on their backs, somewhat like the angels of legend.

She had been flying overhead, but after spotting Rhode and Serie on the ground, she flew straight toward them. Rhode was so startled that he thought they were under attack and nearly hurled an attack at her.

Fortunately, Serie stopped him.

After all, in theory, the Elf race and the Winged race were allies.

White wings cut through the clouds as a Winged race woman lightly landed before them.

She wore close-fitting silver soft armor, and her pale golden hair and azure eyes carried a trace of curiosity as she looked at them.

"An elf?" Her voice was pleasant, but when she saw Rhode, she frowned slightly. "And a... human? What a strange combination."

The fact that she actually knew he was human excited Rhode.

He eagerly stepped forward half a pace. "Hello, we're travelers. May I ask where you saw other humans?"

"Human and elf travelers? That's rare indeed."

The Winged race woman muttered a few words. Rather than answer Rhode or even look at him, she first folded her wings, sunlight gilding the white feathers with a golden edge.

"I am Messenger Lia. Have you seen a Dwarf Village? Its chief is named Amuro."

Rhode and Serie exchanged a glance, and Serie answered, "Fly east for half a day, and you'll reach it."

"Thank you."

After saying that, Lia spread her wings and prepared to take off. Rhode hurriedly looked at Serie. Seemingly understanding the meaning in his gaze, Serie asked, "May I ask why you're looking for those dwarves?"

Lia thought for a moment, deciding there was no need to hide it from allies.

"Apparently, you don't know yet. The Winged race, the Elf race, and the dwarves have joined forces and are preparing to launch a thorough purge of the monsters. This time, we're assisting the new Dwarven King in gathering the dwarf clans scattered across the world."

There were simply too many monsters in this world, and they had seriously affected the survival of every race.

They had been forced to temporarily set aside their conflicts with one another and instead deal with monsters, the common enemy of every race in the world.

Serie frowned slightly. She had not expected something like this to happen so soon after she left the Elf Forest.

However, it would not affect her journey with Rhode. From the very beginning, her target had not been those monsters, but the gods.

"Then, regarding the Human Race you mentioned earlier, where did you see them?"

Lia pondered for a moment before saying, "About ten years ago, I saw them in Gremir Forest to the west. But it was a very small tribe, perhaps only a few hundred people. I'm not sure whether they're still there."

In Lia's eyes, humans were simply too weak.

So weak that she had never cared about them at all. If she had not seen Rhode, she probably would not even have remembered that such a race existed.

"Gremir Forest," Rhode repeated softly. At last, he had heard news of humans from this era, and it made him somewhat excited.

Lia spread her wings. "If you're going there, I suggest avoiding Death Swamp. Demons have been active there recently."

There were very few members of the Demon Race in this world, but each one gathered a great number of monsters around them. They could even control those monsters, making them a great threat to any living creature.

Serie nodded. "Thank you for the warning."

Lia flapped her wings and rose into the sky, her white feathers glittering beneath the sunlight. Before leaving, she did not forget to say, "May the Goddess of Life bless your journey."

Both the Elf race and the Winged race worshipped the Goddess of Life, so there was nothing wrong with her saying that.

As for Rhode, a human, the goddess would not begrudge him her blessing. Besides, humans did not seem to worship any gods. Even if they did, Lia would not care, since they were merely weak creatures.

One had to know that during the Mythical era, one could not casually say, "May you receive the goddess's blessing." It could only be said between races sharing the same faith.

If you said it to a race that worshipped another goddess, they might think you were trying to corrupt them, and it could very well bring trouble.

Once Lia's figure disappeared beyond the horizon, Rhode turned to Serie. "Let's go. Gremir Forest is to the west anyway."

Serie looked at Rhode's expectant eyes and said evenly, "Gremir Forest is only a month's journey from here. But if we detour around Death Swamp, it may take another three months."

"A month's journey..." Rhode rubbed his chin and looked toward the western mountains. "Three more months really is a bit too long."

When he had no goal or direction before, he had traveled alone in this world for so long without feeling anxious. Yet now that he had heard news of his own kind, he had instead begun to feel impatient.

Serie lightly kicked away a pebble by her feet. "Or we could pass straight through Death Swamp."

"Didn't that Winged race woman say there were demons active there?" Rhode looked at her in surprise.

Subconsciously, Rhode did not want to take risks, even with Serie beside him.

"So what?" A dangerous curve formed at the corner of Serie's lips. "It's the perfect chance for you to witness the terror of the Demon Race in advance."

"Please spare me. I don't think I can defeat a demon."

Every demon was born from who knew how many monsters, and their strength was probably absurdly powerful. Rhode truly had no confidence in himself.

"Don't worry. Isn't there still me?"

Rhode gave the supremely confident Serie a sidelong look. If those words had come from Serie thousands of years later, he might have believed her. But this Serie was only a few hundred years old. She should first get past the famous violinist, Miss Aura.

Suddenly remembering something, he pulled a yellowed piece of parchment from his pack. It was the map Amuro had given him before he set out, though the information on it was rather ancient.

"There's a small path beside Death Swamp." He pointed at a blurred mark on the map. "If we go around from here, we might only need another half month."

Serie leaned in to inspect it, her golden hair brushing Rhode's cheek and carrying a faint fragrance.

She frowned slightly. At first glance, she noticed the traces of time on the map. "The information on this map is already more than a hundred years old."

"Ahem, it seems to be a map Amuro used when he went adventuring back then. But it should still work, right?" Rhode's tone was equally full of doubt.

Serie turned her head. "As you wish. But if we encounter danger—"

"I know, I know." Rhode smiled and slung his pack over his back. "I'll immediately hide behind Lord Serie. When the time comes, I hope Lord Serie will save me for the sake of my diligent service."

Hearing Rhode's somewhat comical words, Serie smiled faintly. "Mm, I understand. When the time comes, I'll protect you properly."