After a few hours of traveling, Feye, the horse, exhausted all of her stamina and couldn't push her body anymore.
It was already nighttime, and Kael knew that Aksa wouldn't be able to keep walking all the way to the nearest town with his weak body, so he decided it would be best to rest for the night and then continue tomorrow.
He guided both of them towards a small forest that wasn't far away under the guidance of the blood moon's light, which was still hanging in the sky, coexisting with their world's moon even after the sun set.
Once they reached the edge of the forest, Aksa helped Kael pick up some of the dry leaves and sticks that were scattered on the ground.
Once they set up the fire, Kael snatched one of the sticks that had already burned a little before he walked a little away from the fire.
Aksa sat on the fallen log that Kael dragged close to the fire and watched as he started drawing a circle around the entire place.
Aksa looked at Kael with puzzlement filling his face as he pulled out his knife and cut his palm. He then squeezed his hand, forcing the blood out as he let it drip roughly on the circle.
Once he covered the entire circle, Kael pulled a piece of cloth before wrapping it around his hand. Then he uttered calmly, "This should do for tonight."
"What are you doing?" Aksa asked, tilting his head slightly to the side and raising his eyebrow.
"Setting up a barrier," Kael replied as he sat next to Aska. "We can't just sleep in the open without protection, especially with the state of the world right now."
"How does that work?" Aksa tilted his head slightly.
"Focus on my blood," Kael pointed at some of the blood that dripped close to them, "Notice how it is glowing?"
"Yes, but... What does that do?" Aksa curiously asked.
"It attracts the blood moon dust that is nearby and mixes with it," Kael explained. "Then, it mixes with the ash of the burned wood and creates a seal that works as a barrier against creatures with blood moon essence."
"But, how can you go inside and outside it whenever you want?" Aksa asked.
"Because it's my blood," Kael replied. "It can recognize me since there is some of my essence in it"
"Ah, I see," Aksa nodded slightly.
Then, an awkward silence filled the place, so Kael decided to ask, "Kid, do you know how to use the bow?"
"Uh, no. I've never used one before." Aksa quickly shook his head before asking, "Why do you ask?"
"Since the journey is going to be long, we will need a lot of food, so I want you to help me with hunting," Kael answered. "I will teach you how to use it."
"Huh? But we didn't bring any bows with us." Aksa looked at Kael, confused.
"Don't worry, I'll make you one," Kael replied as he messed with Aksa's hair. "For now, go to sleep. We need to continue our journey early tomorrow."
"What about you?" Aksa asked.
"I'll stay awake. Keep our backs safe, you know."
"But—"
"There is no buts. I'll rest when we reach the next town, but now, I can't just sleep and let my guard down."
Aksa opened his mouth to argue, but he quickly closed it as he knew there was no convincing that man.
Kael went and grabbed a thin cover from the bags and tossed it to Aksa. "The night might get cold, but this is all we have to work with for now." He added.
Aksa nodded before lying close to the fire. However, before he closed his eyes, he suddenly uttered, "Hey, Kael."
"Hmm?" Kael glanced over at him as he added more sticks to the fire.
"Why are you helping me?" Aksa threw a question that he didn't expect.
Kael remained silent for a bit, staring at the fire as he sat on the log. Then, without looking over at Aksa, He answered calmly, "You remind me of my daughter."
"Your... daughter?"
"Yes."
"I see," Aksa wanted to know more, but he saw the pain in Kael's face and realized he might have reminded him of some painful memories, so he didn't press him any further and slowly closed his eyes.
Early in the morning, when Aksa woke up, he found Kael still sitting in the same place from last night. He was holding a short and thin bow with both hands, turning it around.
Once he noticed that Aksa was awake, he threw the bow at him before saying, "Morning, kid."
Although his eyes were barely opened, he moved to try and catch. Although it was quite simple in shape, as it was just a simple arc, it was surprisingly sturdy.
"When did you make this?" Aksa questioned.
"Last night." Kael replied, "There weren't a lot of things happening, so I made it to pass the time."
Aksa was a little surprised, since Kael said that it would be dangerous for him to sleep, so he turned his head around to look at the surroundings.
However, his eyes immediately widened as he suddenly saw a pile of dead podies stacked to the side. Some of them were those of mutants, but most of them were abnormalities.
Feye didn't seem to be panicking or afraid either, as she was still lying on the ground sleeping.
Aksa quickly shifted his gaze towards Kael, who was stretching his body as if killing that many monsters in one night was a perfectly normal thing.
Kael noticed the surprised look on Aksa's face, so he asked, "What's wrong?"
"No, it's uh- It's nothing." Aksa shook his head slightly, letting out a heavy breath.
Kael looked at him, confused for a moment, then just shrugged his shoulders before adding, "Get ready, we'll continue moving after Feye wakes up and I get her ready. I will teach you how to use that bow after we reach the town."
Aksa quickly nodded as he pushed the cover off himself before standing up while rubbing his eyes.
Once they got ready, Aksa tried to hop on Feye, but Kael stopped him. He moved his finger in a circle, signaling him to turn around and face him.
Aksa looked at him in puzzlement, but Kael remained silent and kneeled down, opening his coat.
In there, a few knives were put into small pockets that were close to his hip. The knives looked to be handmade, with the blades having a rough edge and being stuck into a small piece of wood and held together with a few wraps.
He pulled one out and handed it to Aksa before saying, "Here. If things get rough, you should use it."
Aksa quickly nodded with a slight smile on his face. As Kael helped him get on the horse, he asked, "Why do you have so many knives, though?"
"An old habit that I never stopped doing. You never know when you need an additional pair" Kael replied. "Anyway, you ready?"
Aksa nodded before Kael started turning Feye, leading her back on the road to the town.