Chapter 104: Road to Home

The morning sun hung low over Veldra as Neo made his way toward the gathered knights and horses waiting near the edge of the territory, his father standing quietly beside the lead mount, giving him one last stretch of time to say whatever needed saying before they finally departed.

A small crowd had gathered to see him off, far smaller than the overwhelming mass that had cheered for him outside the hospital the day before, though the warmth behind their expressions carried just as much weight. Diana stood near the front, her arms crossed, her usual guarded composure softened considerably by everything that had happened between them over the past ten months. A few of the hunters he’d sparred with raised a hand in farewell, and several of the villagers he’d helped carry grain sacks and mend fences for offered small, grateful bows as he passed.

Then there was Mira.

She stood near the front of the gathering, already sniffling loudly, her arms wrapped tightly around herself as though physically holding back the tears threatening to spill over at any second.

"You’re really going to leave?" Diana asked, trying to keep her voice steady, but failing.

"I have to. My family has waited long enough."

She lowered her gaze for a moment before looking back at him. "But you’ll come back if we need you, right? You promised."

Neo paused, then nodded. "Yeah. I did."

That seemed to be exactly the wrong thing to say, because the moment the words left his mouth, Mira’s careful composure shattered entirely, and she threw herself forward, wrapping her arms tightly around his middle and sobbing openly into his chest, her small shoulders shaking with the force of it.

"I don’t want you to go," she wailed, completely unbothered by the fact that half the village was watching. "You’re the only interesting person in this whole stupid village, and now you’re just leaving, and I’ll never get to hear about flying mounts or cities ever again, and—"

"Mira, you’re going to be fine. You’ve got Diana, you’ve got your mom, and you’ve got an actual World Tree now. Things are only going to get better from here." Neo tried to convinced her as he tried to pushed her away.

She quickly wiped her tears with her sleeve and shot him a watery glare. "You’d better not forget us after you leave."

"I won’t... I promise."

She sniffled one more time, then, apparently satisfied, stepped back and let him go, though her eyes remained red and puffy as he turned toward the waiting horses.

Cassian swung up onto his own mount with easy, practiced grace, and Neo climbed up onto the horse beside him, taking one last glance back at the small crowd still gathered to see him off before finally turning forward toward the long road ahead.

With a final farewell, the small army of knights began moving, the hooves of their horses kicking up small clouds of dust as they left Veldra behind, the newly rebuilt territory slowly shrinking into the distance until it finally disappeared entirely beyond the terrain of the Desolate Land.

The journey settled into an easy, familiar rhythm after that, the knights maintaining a respectful distance behind father and son, clearly understanding without being told that this particular reunion deserved a bit of privacy.

"Ten months, huh? Seems like you’ve had quite the adventure." Cassian glanced at Neo as their horses trotted side by side along the road.

"Wasn’t exactly planned."

"Clearly, Single-handedly fighting those dark-looking peoples, getting adopted by an entire elf settlement, fighting off a Grandmaster-rank dark elf. You’ve been quite the little troublemaker." Cassian’s lips twitched into a small, amused smile. "Let’s see... fighting those dark elves on your own, getting taken in by an entire elven settlement, and then picking a fight with a Grandmaster. You’ve certainly kept yourself busy, haven’t you?" Cassian said, a small grin tugging at his lips.

"I’d prefer to call it being resourceful."

"Of course you would. Your mother’s going to lecture you for hours once we get home. Hope you’re ready for that." Cassian shook his head, a warm smile still lingering on his face.

"Worth it," Neo replied without hesitation.

They spent most of the day bickering, exchanging playful insults and half-hearted complaints. For Neo, it felt strangely comforting. He hadn’t realized how much he’d missed these ordinary moments with his father until he finally got to experience them again.

By the time evening fell, the knights set up camp a short distance off the direction where they were travelling through, tents rising quickly under practiced, efficient hands, a few of them taking up watch positions around the perimeter while the rest settled in for the night.

Neo found a small flat rock near the edge of the camp and settled onto it, close enough to the bonfire to feel its warmth but far enough from the knights to avoid their polite, careful distance. Thankfully, the journey so far had remained quiet, no monsters, no devils crossing their path, though several of the knights still kept a watchful, alert eye on the surrounding darkness regardless.

After a while, Cassian walked over and settled down on the rock beside him, the firelight flickering warmly across both their faces.

Neo remained quiet for a while, watching the flames dance in the darkness before finally speaking.

"How’s Mother? And Evelyn?"

"Worried sick, both of them... Your mother barely slept during the first month you were gone. Evelyn asked every single day if we’d found you yet. And Yuki... She barely ate properly for almost two weeks."

Cassian glanced at Neo, his expression softening. "They’re going to be overjoyed to see you again."

Neo nodded slowly, a small, relieved smile tugging at his lips, before another question settled in the back of his mind.

"How did you even find me? All the way out here, in the middle of the Desolate Land? That shouldn’t have been possible for any normal tracking method."

Cassian paused for a long moment, staring into the fire, before finally answering. "Your mother told me where to look."

Neo tilted his head, genuinely confused. "How would she know that? There’s no way any ordinary mage could track someone this deep into the Desolate Land. Not without some kind of direct magical connection."

Cassian reached over and patted the top of his head, the same way he used to when Neo was small enough to still fit comfortably in his lap.

"I asked her about it too, but she never gave me an answer." He chuckled, though there was something else in his voice that was difficult to make out.

Neo frowned slightly at that, turning the strange answer over and over in his mind, though before he could press further, another question surfaced, one that had been sitting heavy and unspoken in his chest since the moment he’d woken up in the desolate Land.

"How’s Nora? Is she okay?"

Cassian’s expression shifted instantly.

The easy warmth that had been resting comfortably across his father’s face only moments earlier faded away, replaced by something careful and guarded, a brief, uncomfortable silence stretching out between them before he finally forced a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes.

"Everything’s fine. You don’t have to worry about a thing."