Chapter 50: Minor Sect
Kivara led to where the initial catacomb was found to check if it was still active and if her master was still around, but the place was silent and deserted.
She cursed her master for leaving her behind like that, and then she told Riven to try his best to keep up with her. At first, he thought she was joking.
Why wouldn’t he be able to keep up as a rank two?
They ran, and Riven learned that she wasn’t joking. She was like a dotting shadow, here now and gone the next instant. Even with his speed increased, Riven couldn’t catch up or keep up.
But she left enough trail for him to follow her. By the time the sun was higher up in the sky, they had long left Shadowwood and the surrounding forest far behind and passed lots of villages and small towns.
When they stopped by a town to rest, Riven’s shoe had been worn so smooth there was no reason wearing it at all, so he took them off and walked barefoot into the village.
The only thing that let him keep his dignity was that Kivara stopped four times during their trip for resting, and even she had to acknowledge his stamina that his Sigil provided.
Now, standing in a town barefoot and staring at everything and everyone like a kid from the backwater that he was, he felt like he’d stepped into a new world.
"...this...is so advanced!..." Riven thought as he swallowed the saliva that had gathered in his mouth. Of course, his measurements for advancement were because he saw food of different kinds being sold at the open stall, and the smell kept his eyes wide.
Also, everyone was dressed in clothes that were neat and not torn and dirty. In his village, they were so poor they had to starve sometimes, and clothes? Some clothes had been passed for generations, getting patched over and over.