"...And that's all he told me."

Once Ophilia finished telling the story of what Bartolo had related to her, the table fell silent. They had all received their food since Ophilia began, but even so, nobody dared to reach for their utensils or food for a few heavy beats of quiet. Ophilia herself swallowed dryly, desperate for somebody to break the silence. Her heart was screaming in her ears, and she couldn't help but think that it was a miracle that nobody else could hear it.

"So... Morlock," Therion muttered. "I've heard a few things about him over the course of my time as a thief. He's not a pleasant man as far as I can tell. I haven't been to Quarrycrest many times, but I know not to get involved with anything that could attract him."

"I'm glad we won't be spending much time in Quarrycrest since that should drastically reduce our chances of running into him," Primrose said. "I don't know if I would be able to hold myself back from fighting if I was met with the sight of him. After all the people he's hurt... He doesn't deserve even the slightest ounce of sympathy. All of this was caused by his greed. He's well past the point of redemption."

"I don't know how people can be so willing to sacrifice others in the name of profits," Tressa confessed. "Human lives will never be less important than money. If you think that gold is a higher priority than other people's survival, then... You're too far gone and have been for a long time."

"If all goes well, we shouldn't have to even think of seeing him while we're in Quarrycrest," Ophilia told everyone. "I'm personally counting on us not crossing paths with him. I don't want to get revenge for what happened years ago, but... I don't want to have to face that man either. In fact, the less time that we spend there, the better. It's going to be odd setting foot in that place knowing that its leader was responsible for the deaths of everyone in my village." She didn't finish that thought, but she knew that everybody else understood what she meant. If Aelfric hadn't intervened, she would have died that day too. How could the thought not hang heavily over her shoulders with all that she now knew?

"There is one thing that I wish to do while we are there," Cyrus announced. "I have an old friend who moved out to Quarrycrest after leaving Atlasdam behind, and I would like to try and catch up with her for a short while... If anyone is going to know where I should be searching to find the missing tome from Atlasdam's archives, it would be her. She has fine knowledge of the academic world, and I have no doubt that she would be more than happy to see us for a few hours."

"Do you think it's going to put us behind schedule at all?" Primrose questioned. "I'm not trying to rush you and your conversation with her or anything. I just think it would be for the best if we planned ahead a bit for Quarrycrest, that's all. We don't know what we're going to run into there, and we'll need to stay on our toes to make sure we don't find any unsavory characters there."

Cyrus shook his head. "You have nothing to worry about. I'll speak with her easily, and we won't be set back at all. We'll be able to set out from Quarrycrest in two days' time. I'm certain of it," he assured her. "I wouldn't want to linger there any longer than we already have to as long as we know this about Morlock."

"I don't think that he would know that I was from Creek even if he saw me, and honestly... Part of me doubts he even remembers what he did all those years ago," Ophilia murmured. "I just don't want us to find any trouble, and that means handling ourselves carefully. We have to go to Quarrycrest to investigate the shrine location there, so we don't have much of a choice in the matter. We'll simply need to play our cards properly and carefully."

"We'll be in and out before you know it," Tressa promised Ophilia. She reached for her journal where it rested in the bag sitting at her feet, flicking through the pages with a small smile. "The traveler who owned this journal before me went through Quarrycrest, and I want to try and see a bit more about the town before we have to leave, but I think that Ophilia's right about us needing to be careful. We can take care of everything over the course of one day, and after that, we'll be able to leave without any problems at all."

Ophilia nodded at that, hoping with everything she had that Tressa was right. She still felt awful about the idea of having to be in the same general vicinity as Morlock at all, but she knew that there was nothing she could do to change it. This was the best way for them to get to Victors Hollow on top of them needing to investigate a shrine along the way, and going around Quarrycrest because Ophilia didn't want to be around Morlock was only going to set them back. She was going to be alright. All she had to do was power through, and she knew that she could do it as long as the rest of the group was at her side.

"You know... In some ways, I'm kind of relieved that we're going to be spendin' a day in Quarrycrest," Alfyn admitted with a weak smile. "I was really hopin' that we wouldn't be trying to go to Victors Hollow from here in one day. It was tirin' enough when we came all the way from Stonegard to here in one day, and the Cliftlands are much harder to navigate than the Riverlands. It would probably just end with all of us exhausted."

H'aanit nodded her agreement. "Thou speaketh true. The Cliftlands are difficult to navigaten at best, and I wouldst hardly wanten for us to be caught up in any sorte of trouble as a result," she announced. "We can taken our journey from heren as carefully and slowly as we must. It may not be what was originally intended, but sometimes, sacrifices muste be maden."

"Either way, we'll spend as little time in Quarrycrest as possible," Tressa confirmed. "From there, we can head to Victors Hollow and see what that place has to offer. I've heard all sorts of great things about Victors Hollow, and I'm looking forward to exploring it when we arrive."

"I've heard that they hold a tournament at this time of year," Cyrus smiled. "Many powerful warriors gather together in Victors Hollow with intentions of winning the competition to obtain the gold prize. Perhaps we could stop by and see what the tourney is like while we're in town."

"That sounds perfect," Alfyn beamed. "All the more reason for us to blow through Quarrycrest as fast as we can possibly stand. Victors Hollow is a great town to travel to from what I've heard, and I bet we'll have tons of fun there while Olberic is taking care of his search for information about Erhardt."

Olberic, who had been silent throughout the conversation, nodded when he heard his name. Ophilia could still see something dark in his gaze though, and she decided that she was going to approach him to ask what was wrong as soon as they were finished with dinner. She could make a pretty good guess of the depth of his problems, but she still wanted to hear the truth from his lips. "Yes... That sounds like a fine plan," Olberic said, choosing each word carefully but doing his best to hide it. Ophilia wasn't fooled though, and her resolve to speak with him only grew stronger.

"We can worry about Quarrycrest tomorrow though," Tressa pointed out. "First, we've got a meal to enjoy, and I think it would be criminal for us to not celebrate fighting off the most terrifying dog in the known world." With that, she took a bite of a roll to punctuate her point, immediately smiling when the taste hit her lips.

Ophilia couldn't help laughing to herself a bit at that. Tressa did have a point though; they deserved to relax and celebrate after all that had happened that day. The fight against the wolf in the Murkwood felt like it was a lifetime ago now after all that Ophilia had heard from Bartolo, but she was more than happy to congratulate herself and the rest of the group on their accomplishments of the day regardless. They could worry about Quarrycrest after they finished their meal and got a good night of sleep. For the time being, they had many things to be grateful for, and Ophilia refused to let that go to waste.

After the group left the tavern behind, they moved back to the inn as was to be expected. Ophilia followed Tressa into their room, watching as the merchant dramatically collapsed onto the bed she had claimed as hers. "Well, I'm beat," she announced. "Doing inventory on all of our stuff after a massive fight like that tired me right out. I can already tell that I'm going to sleep well tonight."

Ophilia chuckled to herself vaguely as she sat down on her own bed. "I think today was most certainly productive," she announced. She picked up her bag and began to sift through it, remembering belatedly that she had been meaning to patch it up before the group left town. She was glad that she had left to speak with Bartolo earlier, but that unfortunately left her sewing duties for that night. Ophilia could only hope that she was able to keep herself upright long enough to take care of it.

However, when Ophilia went searching for the hole again, she let out a gasp, realizing that a white strand of thread had stitched it back together. That certainly hadn't been there when she last was in the room, and she glanced up to Tressa in confusion. "Tressa, what-"

"I did it," Tressa replied. "You seemed so worked up about going to talk to the bishop, so I decided to take a little bit of weight off your shoulders. My ma taught me how to sew things in case I ever needed the skill, and while I'm not great at it, I still wanted to try. I think it turned out pretty well though."

Ophilia examined the patch with a small smile before she nodded. "It looks great," she murmured. "Thank you for that, Tressa. I really appreciate it."

Tressa shrugged as she sat up, swinging her legs over the side of the bed in the process. "It's no problem. I'm glad I could help," she grinned. She was silent for a moment as Ophilia set her bag down on the floor once again, simply watching the cleric move quietly and carefully. When Tressa did eventually speak again, something about her tone was sobered and softer. "Is there anything else you want to talk about from today? With talking to Bishop Bartolo, I mean."

Ophilia thought about it for a moment before simply shrugging. "I hope we don't run into Morlock while we're in Quarrycrest," she said simply. "I have no intentions of pursuing revenge for something that happened so long ago, but... I still don't know how I would respond if I had to see him again knowing what he did in the name of his own greed."

"He's disgusting," Tressa frowned. "Using all of that power to do nothing but step on other people in the name of profit... That's not right. If you ask me, those who have power should be using to to help and protect others, not hurt them. If you give up your humanity in the pursuit of profit, then... You deserve nothing but the greatest punishment possible."

Ophilia nodded. "But... It's not my place to punish him regardless of how I feel towards him. The church already got involved with that once, and that was what led to the war that destroyed Creek to begin with," she murmured. "No matter how much I hate Morlock, I can't do anything to prod him again. I don't know who else he would try to make into his victims."

Tressa hummed at that, understanding but still hating the circumstances they found themselves in. "You know, if Primrose was the one hearing all of this, she would probably suggest that he just... Die," she commented.

Ophilia let out a wet scoff of a laugh. "We can't just do that. Primrose... She has her reasons for acting in the way she does, but that's not the path I'm choosing to follow. I want to complete the Kindling in the name of the people who are still alive. I'm not about to bend over backwards to kill those who are responsible for the deaths of the past. The cycle of revenge is an endless bloodbath, and I refuse to allow myself to be caught up in its center," she declared.

"Yeah... That sounds more like you than going after him," Tressa agreed. She fell silent for a moment before offering a small grin in Ophilia's direction. "No matter what happens in Quarrycrest though, we're all going to be here for you. There's nothing you need to worry about with that."

"I know," Ophilia softly smiled in response. She stared down at the lanthorn where it rested beside her on the bed before sighing to herself. She could feel herself getting more and more tired as the minutes passed by, but she couldn't drift off quite yet. Olberic needed her, and she refused to back down until after she had spoken to him. Ophilia used this as her motivator as she rose to her feet and moved towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Tressa asked, her lips twisting into a frown. Ophilia could hear the pout in Tressa's voice even if she couldn't see the merchant's expression in full.

"You all will be there for me no matter what... And that means that I should return the favor," Ophilia began. "Right now, there's somebody else who needs me, and I'm going to do what I can to help. I'll be back later tonight."

Tressa nodded vaguely at that, but she didn't get up to try and stop Ophilia. Instead, she leaned backwards onto her bed, exhaling slowly through her nostrils. As soon as her cheek hit the pillow, drowsiness began to overtake her, and within a matter of minutes, she had drifted off to sleep. Perhaps the day had been more exhausting than she had been willing to give it credit for initially.

Ophilia found Olberic in the same area where the travelers had searched for Derryl's brooch a short few hours ago. The warrior was sitting on a bench as he stared up at the night sky, his expression unreadable but caught up in some indecipherable tempest of the past. He didn't move even as Ophilia sat down beside him, the nighttime wind blowing through the area. Below them, the river of Saintsbridge shuffled along at the same gentle pace as ever.

"You've certainly got a lot on your mind tonight," Ophilia commented. She didn't want to start the conversation off by being too forward about Erhardt, knowing that would serve no purpose but catching Olberic off guard. She wanted to take this at his pace, and for the time being, that meant easing into the subject as slowly as he wished to handle it.

Olberic hummed in response before looking over to her, his eyes conflicted and tempestuous. "I'm glad you were able to find the answers you were looking for," he replied, dodging the question blatantly. They both knew why; neither of them mentioned it.

Ophilia nodded. "Me too," she said softly. She paused for a heavy moment before continuing. "I was afraid of what I might find when I spoke to the bishop about it. I feel better now that I know, and I'm sure that I would have spent the rest of my life regretting it if I decided to not ask him, but... It's heavy knowledge to bear."

Olberic's eyes fell closed. "The most difficult things in this life to understand are often the ones we need to know the most," he remarked. "It's a cruel twist of fate, isn't it?"

"Yes... It is," Ophilia agreed. "But... I'm feeling better now that I know what happened. It might not sound like much, but... It feels like there's a weight off my shoulders now. I'm afraid of running into Morlock in Quarrycrest, yes, but I've been wondering what happened to my parents for a decade and a half. As much as it hurts to hear about the greed that led to their deaths... I know that this is closure I needed to get. I couldn't just ignore it the way I had been previously."

"Once you get a glimpse of that truth, it's impossible to let it go," Olberic commented. "You want it more than anything else, and you need to understand no matter what it might mean in the future."

"Exactly," Ophilia confirmed. "But I'm going to be alright with time. Even if it's a lot for me to grapple with, this is something I needed to do. It's not easy, but the most important things in life are often the hardest to begin with. Now... I feel like everything has changed, but I know that this had to happen. I've been waiting for this forever, and I'm glad that I decided to take the step and finally let myself understand."

Olberic nodded, and once again, silence closed in around them for a few long, heavy beats of silence. He took a careful breath before exhaling through his nose. "I have no idea what to expect when we arrive in Victors Hollow," he admitted. "The only clue that I have as to what happened with Erhardt years ago is in Victors Hollow, and I may not even find it. Still, I have to try. I've spent ten long years running from my regret and failure, but I can't keep escaping it forever."

Ophilia nodded, and Olberic looked down at his hands with a solemn, striking gaze. "I need to know what happened to him. It's not going to be easy to go back to that time in my life after all that he did, but I still can't let it go forever. If I don't take this chance, I'm going to spend the rest of my life wondering what could have happened if I had reached out to discover what really happened that day."

Ophilia stared at the ground in front of her feet. A gentle breeze rustled through her hair once more, and she reached up to correct the way her tresses fell. "I'm sorry that it ended that way," she murmured. "With Erhardt... I know it might not mean much, but I'm sorry."

Olberic thought about her words for a long time, rolling them over in his mind, before he shook his head. "It's not your apology to give," he whispered. "I don't even know if an apology from Erhardt would help this at all. The day Hornburg fell, my world broke. Everything that I have ever given my life to crumbled right before my eyes, and I could do nothing to fix it. Anything he says now will still fall short in terms of fixing what happened back then. Nothing can repair the damage that was done a decade ago. But... I still need to hear what he has to say."

"After all, once you get a glimpse of that truth, you have to reach it no matter how difficult it is to endure," Ophilia finished for him, and Olberic nodded. She stared at the ground for another moment, wanting to reach out and take his hand in hers but not finding the courage needed to bridge that gap. "No matter what happens though... We're going to be here for you. Regardless of what information you find in Victors Hollow or how much you learn about Erhardt... All of us are going to be there at your side no matter what. We'll have your back."

"Thank you," Olberic murmured, the words coming out soft and sacred. Anyone who was even an inch farther from him than Ophilia would have missed the sentence entirely. "I don't know what it is that I'm trying to find in Victors Hollow. After so many years of empty nothingness... I suppose I'm searching for anything. If there's even one small thing that I can latch onto there, then I want to find it."

"You just want to find a sense of purpose after all these years," Ophilia said for him, and once again, Olberic nodded. "I understand. If there's even the slightest chance that you'll find it in Victors Hollow, you have to do what you can to grasp it."

Olberic let out a dark laugh. "For many years, Hornburg was the only purpose I needed. I was certain that it would be all I ever needed. I was happy as a knight, and I was willing to do anything to defend my home. Now though... There's nothing left. Hornburg has fallen, Erhardt is gone, and everyone I cared about from those times has either died or scattered to the wind to grapple with the collapse of our home," he confessed.

"I guess we're a lot alike in that way, huh?" Ophilia questioned. "I lost everything in Creek fifteen years ago when Morlock mounted the attack against Saintsbridge. Now, I carry on the memories of all the people who perished. It took me a while to finally come out of that husk state too. All I wanted to think about was the past, but... We can't live in our histories forever. There's always going to be something calling us back to the present, and we must face it."

"You're right," Olberic said firmly. "I've thought about the past and feared it for much too long. The time has come for me to find something new, and... That can only happen once I've made my peace with what happened when Hornburg fell. Bishop Bartolo was able to help you resolve that issue here, and... Erhardt... I believe that he's the only one who can help me now."

Ophilia nodded silently, shifting her focus back down the stony ground below. A leaf blew in front of her, and she watched it fade into the darkness of the rest of the town. "What was he like?" she questioned. "Erhardt, I mean. He must have made quite the impact on you for you to want to chase him down this way, but... You don't talk about him much."

Olberic didn't know how to respond for a long while, and when he did finally answer, he shifted his attention to the skies in somber silence. "Erhardt was..." He paused for a long moment, contemplating his words once more. "He was my comrade in arms. He was someone I always knew I could rely on. He was... Everything to me."

Ophilia listened in silence as he found the resolve to continue. "We met when we were training to become knights in Hornburg's employ. It was like everything simply fell into place for both of us. We hadn't been happier," he began, a small but sad smile starting to form. "We both fought earnestly for our home and king with everything we had. I loved him the way I had never loved anyone else before, and I know that he felt the same way with me. But... Tragedy forced us apart, and now... I haven't the slightest clue what could possibly be going through his head."

"He was the one who caused the tragedy too," Ophilia murmured into the silence. "I can't even begin to imagine how awful that must have been for you..."

"It took a long time for me to pull myself back on my feet after that, but... I don't believe I ever truly recovered," Olberic admitted. "Even when I returned to fighting, it was never the same as it once was. Erhardt had made his choice, and in the end, it sealed the fate of everyone in Hornburg. My parents died in the attack on the kingdom. Just about every member of the guard was slain as well. I was lucky to escape to Cobbleston, and ever since then, I've simply been trying to survive. Erhardt... Even after all we went through together, he had destroyed everything that I had ever known."

"It sounds like you two were really close," Ophilia commented. "That must have only made it harder for you."

"It did," Olberic confirmed. "Most others saw our relationship and never quite knew what to make of it, not that I could blame them. It was... A complicated endeavor, but we loved one another. Erhardt changed my life in ways that I never thought possible. He and I... I don't know what I would have done without him before Hornburg fell. He helped me through countless hardships, and I did the same in return. He was everything to me, and now... I still wish that I understood the reason why he acted the way he did all those years ago, but I don't know if I'll ever truly be able to comprehend it regardless of what we find in Victors Hollow."

"But you still have to find the truth," Ophilia finished for him. "Because if you let this chance slip away now, all you're going to do is spend the rest of your life regretting it and wondering what could have happened."

Olberic nodded. "It's a curse in some ways... But I'm willing to do what I must in the name of uncovering the reason behind it all. This won't be easy, but it matters little. I know what must be done, and if it means confronting Erhardt again after all this time... Then so be it."

There was something about the way that Olberic's face had twisted and gone strained in the silence that left Ophilia staring. She knew that she should have left the subject where it was, but she couldn't bring herself to abandon it. "You loved him," she said against the better judgement of her mind.

Olberic let out a dark chuckle. "I did... But that was a long time ago now, and people have changed the same way that the times have. These days, all I wish for is to understand him... Though the gods themselves may not even be able to say if such a thing is possible anymore."

Ophilia stared down at his hands, already knowing exactly what was going through his head. Deep down, Olberic still cared about Erhardt even after that stab of betrayal so many years ago. The treachery couldn't erase all of the time that Olberic and Erhardt had shared when they still loved one another so completely and endlessly, and the truth stung almost as much as the care did. No matter how much they had once hurt each other, they still loved one another in some twisted way that was well beyond recognition, but it existed regardless. Such was the truth of love in all of its ugly, beautiful glory.

"No matter what you find there... You won't be alone in facing him," Ophilia promised Olberic when she could finally bring herself to speak. "We're going to be right here at your side regardless of what comes next. The truth is a difficult thing to face, but you don't need to grapple with it alone."

"Thank you, Ophilia... Truly," Olberic said softly. He smiled gently as he glanced over to her, and the two locked gaze for what felt like the first time in an eternity. "I don't know what I would do without you and the other members of our party, but... I'm glad that I have you no matter what."

"This is something that will never change," Ophilia assured him with a smile of her own. "We're going to be alright. No matter what you need in Victors Hollow, we'll all be there to help you through it. I swear."

Olberic nodded, and the two finally locked hands as yet another breeze blew past them. Olberic stared down at the cobbled grounds of the street below before he rose to his feet, helping Ophilia up along the way. "We have a lot waiting for us in the next few days, and we had best be ready for it," he pointed out.

"You're right," Ophilia agreed. She wasn't looking forward to going to Quarrycrest nor was she looking forward to seeing the consequences of Olberic's search potentially backfire on him in Victors Hollow, but she wouldn't be able to hide from the future forever. Nobody could outrun the future nor could they escape the past for the rest of their lives. She would simply have to face it the same way Olberic would.

Olberic stood still for a moment before he looked over to Ophilia carefully. "Thank you... For all of this," he finally choked out. Ophilia could see the anxiety and worry written all over his features, but he did his best to hide it for those five sacred words.

Ophilia simply smiled back to him with a light nod. "Of course," she murmured in response. She started to walk back to the inn, Olberic beside her all the while. Their hands remained intertwined all the way, and Ophilia was more than fine with that. They deserved this. They deserved peace.

When the morning arrived, the travelers would have to bid farewell to the friends they had found in Saintsbridge and make their way towards Quarrycrest. None could say for certain what they would encounter there, but regardless of what crossed their paths, they would endure together. Afterwards, it would be off to Victors Hollow, and the truth would finally find Olberic after ten long years of waiting.

The future and the past were both waiting, and Ophilia knew they were ready to rise to the call.

Wow. That was certainly a heavy chapter, huh?

This ends our adventures in Saintsbridge for now, and I absolutely love how this chapter turned out from the travelers supporting Ophilia after her conversation with Bartolo to the inn scene to the ending. Wow. This chapter is full of small little details that I absolutely adore, and in my opinion, it ends with one of the best written scenes in the story up to this point. I love this chapter a lot more than I thought I would, and I hope you all enjoyed it too.

Also, yes, this is my way of confirming that Olberic and Erhardt were in a relationship before Hornburg fell. They weren't open about it to others, but they were together and ultimately parted ways when Hornburg was destroyed, and that only made Olberic feel worse about it all. I think that Ophilia was the perfect person to talk to him about all of this because of the way that her subplot with Creek's history so perfectly parallels his thoughts towards Erhardt and Hornburg. It's been a while since we've seen Olberic's perspective for a long time, but we're going to remedy that soon, and I'm very excited to see where that leads us.

Next week, we'll get ready to travel to Quarrycrest and finally reach shrine number seven if we're lucky. Until then, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Feedback is appreciated as always. Have a nice day, everyone!

-Digital