"How long till we can rest again?" Lyra groaned, her hands swinging with her posture bent down.

  "There's still daylight left. We have to reach the mountain as soon as possible," Tarin said, gazing at the sun and shielding his eyes with his hand.

  "It's already been two days since we left the village, and we still haven't reached it. Agh…" She paused, then continued, “We also hunted plenty of those small rabbits, so let's rest for today."

  "We'll reach the river first. And what about her? Is she going to keep following us?" Tarin pointed behind him to Meilie. Everyone stopped and turned around. Meilie halted as well, staring back at them.

  Meilie was following them from a few steps behind, holding her staff with both hands.

  "She is strong. We can use someone like her," Arix said, walking toward Meilie. "Do you want to travel with us?" he asked.

  She nodded.

  "But why?" Arix asked again.

  She glanced around her, trying to find something so she could explain, but she failed.

  She sighed and closed her eyes, pointing her staff toward the ground.

  A white circle appeared on the ground. Arix's eyes widened as he took a few steps backward, trying to be safe.

  Then an image appeared. Tarin and Lyra came toward the circle and examined the image.

  It was an image of a castle. Its massive thick walls were white, and narrow windows were carved into the walls. A wide gate of iron and wood marked the only entrance.

  "Whoa…" Lyra said in awe. "So you want to go here?"

  Meilie nodded.

  "Why don't you go by yourself?" Tarin looked at Meilie, crossing his arms.

  She shook her head.

  "Maybe she wants our help with something here," Arix said while he looked at the tall towers on each corner of the castle.

  She nodded again, bringing her staff close to her.

  "Well, you were right. We can use her help." Tarin turned around, facing the mountain, indicating they should move forward.

  Arix straightened and took a deep breath when a sound reached his ears—the babbling of water from the direction of the mountain.

  "Can you hear it, guys?" Arix cupped his hands around his ears, focusing on his hearing. "A river. Come on, let's go."

  Meilie erased the image with her staff and they all went forward. Not long after, they came face to face with the river.

  It was a clean river. Sunlight reflected off the surface, and the gentle current carried the water forward, its clear water moving smoothly over the stones.

  "These are so clean." Lyra bent toward the river on her knees, watching the current. "And look here," she said, calling everyone by making a gesture with her hand.

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  When Arix reached the river—he'd been walking behind—he saw small creatures gliding with the flow of water. Their bodies were smooth and narrow. When startled by Lyra, they vanished in quick flashes.

  "So these are called fish." Arix sat on his knees close to the water, putting his hand in the flowing water to feel its smoothness.

  "How do you know?" Tarin asked, standing behind him.

  "I read about it in a book," he answered, waving his hand in the water. "I wonder how these books described these creatures so easily, how the writers knew about them."

  "I heard from my grandmother that a few people told stories about a different world, where the whole world was filled with different creatures. It was so big that it would take years to cross it completely," Lyra answered, waving her hand in the water, just like Arix.

  "How does your grandmother know?" Tarin asked Lyra.

  "She said that her grandmother told these stories," Lyra said. Meilie came and sat beside her, staring at the fish.

  "The books I read are at least two or three hundred years old, and these writers lived at that same time. Who knows what type of world it was back then," Arix said.

  There was a long silence. Arix could only hear the flowing river and birds chirping.

  “I guess we can eat these fish,” Tarin said, breaking the silence.

  "But how will we catch them?" Arix asked, when suddenly something caught his attention. He turned left to see Meilie standing there with her staff pointed toward the river.

  A large gust of wind appeared, circled her, and traveled toward the river. The fish caught in the wind flew onto the shore. The fish suffocated and went still.

  A smug grin spread across Meilie's face when Arix gazed at her. He got up and started collecting all the fish.

  “Well, we can rest for today, I think,” Tarin sighed.

  A wide smile spread across Lyra's face as she turned toward Tarin.

  That night, stars shone brightly and the moon was full. In front of Arix loomed the huge mountain he would soon climb. When he inspected the mountain, he saw that most of it was covered in ice. He knew the ascent wouldn't be easy. But the weapon he'd find there would help him on the rest of the journey.

  "What are you looking at?" A voice came from behind. When Arix turned around, he found Lyra. She walked toward him, and when she reached him, sat down beside him.

  "Stars and mountains, I guess," Arix answered.

  "We will reach the mountain in a few days, and then we can find the weapon." She stretched her feet out, putting her hands behind her for support.

  Arix didn't say a word. He sat there silently. Tarin and Meilie were already asleep. Arix had a habit of sleeping late, and so did Lyra.

  Arix turned sideways. "Tell me, why did you leave the island?"

  "I wanted to explore this world, see everything I could." She paused, then continued, "I know it's a foolish reason. My father opposed it, but since I was a kid, the only thing I could think about was what lay outside this island. I don't want to be trapped there forever."

  "I see," Arix said. "I know it's a foolish reason compared to yours and Tarin's. You both are trying to find your fathers and also trying to fulfill our mission of finding a new home. But for me, exploring this world is enough." She took a deep breath and lay down on the earth.

  Arix sat silently for a moment, then replied, staring at the stars, "Dreams are dreams. It doesn't matter if they're foolish. You should fulfill them no matter what."

  Lyra watched Arix as he spoke. "I guess you are right," she said, closing her eyes and smiling.

  They stayed there for a while longer, then returned to the campfire to rest before tomorrow.

  At the far peak of the mountain, a snowstorm was raging. Suddenly, glowing eyes appeared in the snow, with two large horns stretching from its head and blue light shining from its eyes. With no fur, only skin, it looked like a deer—but far more frightening.

  It had four legs and a thin body, at least twice as big as Tarin. It held a small prey in its mouth, a white snow rabbit. The creature glanced down the mountain toward where the group was sleeping. It could not see them because of the distance, but it definitely felt something far below.

  After glancing for a moment, it walked off into the distance, holding the prey in its mouth and making a soft, haunting cry.