Chapter 35: Cards.

A single word appears in her mind.

"Moric!"

Neya scream aloud, her hairs begin to glow an orange hue same as her eyes, and hand that is trying to reach her butler. Nesto notices the bright orange light is covering his master hand. The orange light causes the Wyvern queen to be distracted and giving time for Nesto to evade. He lay down to the ground as fast as he can, missing the beast mouth.

Instead of a regular spell that conjures light, what happens was the orange light that's covering Neya hand brighten to the point of turning the light into a stream of burning ray, that pierce through the Wyvern's mouth like a blade. Her hands tremble as she felt the light begin to heat up her own, she panics, and redirects the ray upward; cutting the Wyvern queen in half.

Destroying the rock formation above the cave entrance, causing rock slides, and burying the cave maw again. Nesto coughs out a tar black substance out of his mouth as he laid down on the ground. Neya felt the burning pain in her glowing hand, she wanted to stop, but have no idea of stopping it.

"Neya! Calm your mind!" Nesto yell.

"I can't!!" She screams while her hand trembles and smoke begin to rise as her glove catch on fire.

"Nesto help me! Please, It's painful!" She screams.

Nesto rolls away from under the ray of burning light and lifts himself up into a run toward his master. There was a terrified expression on her face as she looks at her butler that is trying to get to her, then a sudden head pain crawls over her brain, and knocking her unconscious.

There was darkness.

*

She opens her eyes, seeing her butler worried face above her and the familiar wagon wooden ceiling behind him. Underneath her head, she felt the firm yet soft feel of her butler lap. Her head feels fuzzy and throbbing, she notices Nesto is holding one of her hand, but the other hand felt something wrap around it.

Neya raises her other hand and found that it is covered by bandages. She gazes at her butler's face, "What happen?", and lower her hand back down.

"You overuse your magic, and fainted as a result of it," Nesto answers while his grip tighten.

"What's wrong, Nesto?" Neya ask.

"You were screaming for my help, and I fail you. Your hand is proof of my failure," Nesto voice shaken as he felt guilt overwhelm his heart.

She lifts her bandaged hand, "Can I see it?" Neya ask.

"Are you sure, Miss Neya?" Nesto ask.

"Yes, I'm sure," Neya reply.

Nesto let go of her hand, and begin to unwrapped her bandaged hand. The bandage rotates around her hand, loosening the cotton when it finally undone. There it was, her skin has thickened with a red color covering it, and a few numbers of small blisters on her palm.

Neya notices her butler looking away shameful of his failure to protect her. Despite the moderate damage looking hand that will eventually leave a burn mark, there was no pain, her hand feels numb. She looks closely and sees a cream of mix herbs is rubbed over her hands.

Her butler must have rubbed the medicine on her hand to keep her pain at bay, she looks down at the floor and notices the small mortar beside him. Her guess was proven, she let out a smiling sigh, and place her other hand on her butler's cheek.

"Thank you for treating my injured hand," Neya said.

"It's going to leave a mark, I'm sorry," Nesto apologizes.

"One more scar among the collection I had, It doesn't make any difference except learning from its mistake," Neya said as she let go of her butler's cheek.

The wagon shakes as it a small rock on the rock, Neya notice while her butler is covering her injured hand again.

"Is the wagon moving?" Neya ask.

"It is," Nesto reply.

"Who is steering it?" Neya ask.

The wagon slowly stops, then Vizrez head pops out between the curtain with a giant smile and said: "We have arrived."

Vizrez pulls back her head and jumps off the wagon causing the wagon to wobble. After finish covering Neya hand with bandages, Nesto helps his master get off the wagon. Sunlight once again laid rest upon her face, She looks back at the path they took, and see the thick fog covering it with the dead trees around it.

"Thank you for guiding us through the mountain pass," Neya said to the cyclops woman.

"No, thank you for saving my ass," Vizrez reply.

"What are going to do now?" Neya ask.

"I have no idea, the Wyvern queen is dead. The infestation will surely be gone in a few months unless it finds another queen to reproduce their number. The Wyvern species will go extinct or migrate to other places to find other queens," Vizrez said.

Neya let out a smile when a brilliant idea pops into her heads, "What about you come with us?"

"Follow the Queen killer? Tempting..." Vizrez comment as she laid her hand on her chin.

"Queen killer?" Neya ask.

"A title I gave you for killing the Wyvern queen, a feat that even I can't achieve," Vizrez said.

Neya let out a giggle after hearing the ridiculous title that bestows upon her, "What about this, you follow me and Nesto will provide you with every kind of delicious food you want."

"That's certainly sound good since we have tons of Wyvern meat that I can use to prepare a feast," Nesto comment.

"A feast?" That word alone makes her stomach grumble with anticipation.

"I'm all in for the feast!" Vizrez said excitedly.

"Okay then, our next stop is Hardersfield," Neya said.

*

A day has passed.

Somewhere in the small town of Hardersfield, a tavern is filled to the brim with jolly cheers by the town residents after a long day of work and despite the heavy rain pouring outside. In that small tavern with all the cheers and merry drunken townspeople; a table is holding a card game in the corner of the room.

A large number of coins laid on the center.

People gather at the table to witness the intense battle of cards that's been happening from the earlier evening. The battle consist of four people, a Satyr from Materna, an elf from Rochia, a local elf, and a hooded young girl with gloves on her hand.

The hooded girl doesn't come alone though, with her a tall woman with hooded cloak is enjoying her meal with a mead in her hands while singing songs with others drunken patron. The other one is a hooded male vigilantly stand beside the young girl.

"As I was saying from before, the queen is certainly better than the greed king. She cares for her people despite her strict nature, her people love her," The elf from Rochia said.

"Her people love her? Even though there is a rumor about the queen throwing out her only daughter," the Satyr ask from Materna,

"It's not a rumor, it did happen," the local elf said.

"How do you know that?" The Satyr ask.

"Haven't you heard about the bounty that she placed on her daughter's head?" The local elf said.

"What bounty?" The Satyr ask.

"10,000 gold coins for her to be brought to the kingdom alive," the local elf said.

The elf from Rochia whistle, "that's a lot of coins."

"It certainly is," the Satyr comment.

"Speaking of Elven kingdom, have you heard of the new law enforced by Targia," the elf from Rochia said.

"I heard, the new law is absurd, I tell you," the local elf scoff.

"Too many problems already rise from that law. Slaves are starting to run away, thinking they could be free," the local elf said while shaking his head in a disapproving manner.

"I could agree the new law has put the realm in a bind spot, losing our slave mean losing almost our entire workforce," the elf from Rochia agrees.

"I disagree with you on that. This new law, I could certainly see an advantage in it," The Satyr said.

"Advantage?" The elf from Rochia said.

"New business will rise from the free slave and improvement in our economy, but I will say that it won't be easy to make it work in a short time," the Satyr said.

The hooded girl pushes all of her coins to the center of the table, "all in."

"Bold move, I call," the elf from Rochia said as he pushes his coins to the center.

"So do I," the Satyr said.

"I fold, my wife is going to kill me if I lose any more coins," the local elf said.

"Straight! Lass, better pay up," the elf from Rochia reveals his cards.

"It will be you that will pay me, Straight flush," the Satyr reveal his cards.

"Royal flush," the hooded girl said, revealing her cards with a small grin under her hood.

The crowd cheers, the mysterious girl has just won 100 gold coins. The local elf laughs his ass off, while the elf from Rochia facepalm himself, and the Satyr also join in the laugh while impress by the hooded girl skill.

"You got skill kid, but this is it. My last game, better head soon or my wife will murder me," the local elf leave a couple coins for his drink and walk away from the table.

The crowd around them begins to disperse, each heading to their own table, and continue to enjoy their drinks.

"I'm heading out too, got a delivery tomorrow straight to Sanestria," The elf from Rochia said.

"Wolics kingdom, the land that bleeds. Good luck old friend," the Satyr said.

"I don't need any luck, but thanks anyway," the elf from Rochia said as he walks away from the table after leaving coins for his drink.

"I'm heading out too, I have a business errand at Rochia," the Satyr said.

"Wait, sir. Do you know where I can sell Wyvern skin for a good amount of coins?" the hooded girl ask.

"Wyvern skin, Hmm... You certainly won't find other places that offer as good as The Kingdom of Iron," the Satyr said.

"Materna?" The hooded girl let out.

"Yep, I may sound a bit like I'm bragging about the place, but I'm sure that you will certainly find a price you want at Materna," The Satyr said leaving coins for his drinks before walking away.

The other hooded woman sits at the table, her body sways from left to right because of the mead she drank earlier, "Did you found what you're looking for, Chief?" Vizrez ask.

"Materna is a good place to head, If mom put a bounty on my head then we need to be as far away from the elven kingdom," Neya said.

"Materna, I have never been there before," Nesto said.

Neya let out a smile, before saying "Materna is our next destination then."

Vizrez continues to sing, joining the other merry bands of drunks in their inappropriate song about a beautiful Strumpet. Neya let out a laugh knowing full well that Vizrez knows what the meaning of the song is. Nesto let out a grin as he stays beside his master.