Eight Intertwined

119 - Dreisang

When morning came, the travelers awoke early in preparation for the upcoming journey to Duskbarrow. Tressa stretched her arms high above her head as she let out a yawn before allowing her hands to fall back to her sides. She was feeling significantly better about everything now that she had something to take to the Merchants' Fair. That was one thing she wouldn't need to worry about anymore, and considering how much had been happening recently, she took that as a massive victory. All she had to do now was get to the Fair when it happened. That would be a while off, yes, but it was the easiest part of her plan at the end of the day. Patience had never been Tressa's forte, but she could figure out a way to negotiate a deal with her own anticipation now that she had something she could take to the auction.

For the time being, Tressa decided to set her sights on Duskbarrow. The travelers had two potential shrine locations to investigate there. On top of that, they could go to Duskbarrow once so they would be able to return in case it was ever necessary. Tressa wasn't entirely sure of what they could need from Duskbarrow in the future, but she knew better than to come to premature conclusions about something like that. Before her travels began, she never would have thought she would have a reason to come to Victors Hollow, and yet, there she was, and she was beyond relieved that she decided to come. After all, if she hadn't, she never would have found the eldrite, and Olberic wouldn't have gotten the answers he was looking for from Gustav.

The next step after Duskbarrow would take the group to Stillsnow, and Tressa was looking forward to going back. She could only imagine how much the town had changed since she was last there, and she was excited to see how far the people had come since Rufus had been defeated. Without Rufus to keep the people trapped in their own agony, everyone would have the room to thrive, and Tressa couldn't wait to see it. She could only hope it lived up to her expectations even though only time would be able to tell what was waiting for her there.

Of course, returning to Stillsnow would have to wait until after the Duskbarrow investigation, so Tressa reached for the map among her things and unfurled it as the other travelers followed her to the front of town. Cyrus would be the one to lead the group to the first of the two potential shrine locations, but Tressa was happy to take charge until then. She glanced over the paths they would need to follow with a small hum on her lips and a skip in her step. She couldn't stop thinking about how excited she was to see the road ahead, and Duskbarrow was only the beginning.

Tressa had been thinking a lot about what Cyrus told her the day before. He didn't have any ideas about what his one true treasure could be in physical form, but he still wanted to help Tressa to uncover hers. For him, what he valued most was the collection of knowledge, but that was hardly something palpable. It made a lot of sense when he said it out loud, though Tressa had no idea what she was meant to do when it came to finding her own treasure. She loved Cyrus a lot, but she would never be able to follow the path of gathering knowledge being her treasure. There was something more waiting for her out there. All she had to do was find it.

Unfortunately, that was going to be the most difficult part of this journey. Tressa wasn't going to let the idea of her goal being challenging stop her, of course, but she still worried about where this was going to take her next. The best thing she could do was follow the path set out for her and see where it led. The aimlessness bothered her in a few ways, but as long as the other travelers had goals, would it really be completely aimless? Tressa was happy to keep traveling with them for as long as they needed it. She couldn't have asked for a better group to explore the continent with. They meant everything to her, and Tressa would make sure they knew it when she found the words to express her feelings in full.

As long as she was stuck on finding the words though, she would focus on the path to Duskbarrow. She stopped at the entrance to Victors Hollow before turning around to face the rest of her team. "Are you ready, everyone?" Tressa asked. "This is going to be our most dangerous escapade yet. Venturing so far from the Central Sea is bound to lead us into the den of countless terrifying monsters."