Mist surged, and Mona stumbled as Ruger tugged her robe.
Not far away, a child crouched by the roadside, playing alone with a twig. He also seemed to be idly tracing lines on the ground as he pondered something. The drifting mist veiled his small figure, which then changed abruptly. The silhouette behind the mist grew extraordinarily tall, and the sound of hooves rang out as it ran, like a knight riding an Underground Beast, charging at Ruger and Mona just as they regained their footing.
In the silence, the thunder of galloping hooves was especially unnerving, and the knight's charge sent the mist churning violently.
With his previous experience, Ruger naturally knew this fellow could actually charge out of the mist, but he paid it no mind.
A tall knight whose helmet concealed his face raised his lance, then tucked it against his side and charged straight at Ruger, as though intent on skewering them both. Beneath him was a six-legged beast of burden, nothing particularly rare.
Ruger shielded Mona behind him and raised the Weighty Book in front of him with one hand.
Boom!
The instant the Weighty Book left his hand, it collided squarely with the knight's lance. Ruger had merely tossed it without putting any force into the throw, but once it left his hand, the book's own weight made the knight in the mist seem to have struck a stone wall.
Knight and mount went tumbling, and the lance shattered.
Before Ruger and Mona's eyes, the shattered lance and fallen mount dissolved into mist, merging with the wisps drifting in. They floated about, now near, now far, before gradually drifting farther away, as though nothing had happened.
When the mist retreated past its previous position, it revealed a small figure sprawled on the ground.
Ruger