One could call it a cat-like habit that Raymond should be so compelled to pace the width and breadth of Terrastella as soon as possible after arriving. The land held no enchantment for him - he had passed through many great kingdoms and, after a time, seeing oneself as more than an outsider grew difficult - but it didn't matter. He wanted (no, needed) to find out where the bodies were buried, where the posh illusion of civilization fell away to reveal the wild and toothy flesh beneath.
So, begging Asterion's leave, he had turned north and entered Tinea Swamp alone.
Perhaps it was not the wisest thing to be peeking one's head into unknown places with a fresh injury, but however tight the red stallion's chest felt it was not the worst he had ever been forced to endure, and his confidence in his own ability with his blade overrode any prudent pleas for caution.
The swamp was velvet-soft and close, shrouded in a thin fog even in the height of the summer day. Picking a dry path through the mire was a task in and of itself, and Raymond's stiffness made his slow going look a bit more like imperious distaste than the swordsman preferred. He was more comfortable sleeping on hard ground or rolling with pigs than he ever would be in the polished trappings of royalty. Unfamiliar sounds bubbled up through the stillness: alluring songs, the chittering of swamp creatures, the scrape and click of things he could not yet describe.
A secret kept here might stay secret forever.
Definitely something to keep in mind, he thought.
and at his feet they'll cast their golden crowns
when the man comes around
@Auru; this is set after Ray's fight with Asterion and before his trip to the festival. Sorry is bad.
aut viam inveniam aut faciam
