A black-haired young man, a white-haired young woman, and a black-furred cub marched under the shadows of the branches and leaves of old oaks, hiding from the scorching rays of the mid-morn sun.
Hal and Liora had spent the entire previous day preparing, investing in a month's worth of rations and drinking water, along with a special Manatech marking device commonly used by wizards during expeditions.
With this, there was no need to rely on pebbles, as the Manatech Expedition Pro Mark 7, which cost them ten whole silver coins, could both set a mark that was nearly undetectable even to high-ranking creatures and locate it using its built-in tracking function.
This would make navigating the tricky Luminous Runeforest considerably easier.
The young maiden's heart ached at the mere thought of the expenditure.
So, she froze when Hal paid for everything, then handed her five more silver coins, saying it was repayment for what he had borrowed.
