Striped Horse?: neighs
Yenisei: No way ...
Turning around, she finds that her companion has transformed in an instant from a human on two feet to a strange hoofed animal on all fours.
As the only person to have witnessed the entire process in detail, with every aspect too difficult to comprehend, she can only turn her puzzled gaze toward her elder.
But Bessmert is also in the dark.
Bessmert: What's this noise? Mr. Krolik?
The only answer she receives is the impatient stirring of the odd-toed ungulate as it tramples the grass.
Bessmert: Mr. Jurien?
Striped Horse?: neighs
Bessmert: Strange. I heard animals. What happened?
Yenisei: Emm ...
Bessmert: Yenisei, I can't see. I need your help.
Yenisei: Oh dear, give me a minute ... Emm, looks like they turned into ... I don't know, striped horses?
Yenisei: I ... Sorry, I'm not sure. I've only seen similar animals in books.
Yenisei: They look a bit smaller than horses, but taller and bigger than donkeys. And they have yellow stripes on their skin.
Bessmert: Perhaps some local species on the temperate steppe? Are you certain they're transformed from Mr. Jurien and others? Not the livestock of nearby herders?
Bessmert: I didn't cast any violent arcane skills on them, nor did you. Besides, I didn't sense any fluctuations of arcane energy ...
Yenisei: I'm sorry, Madam. I have no idea.
Bessmert: I think ... if this wasn't because of us, there must be someone else around.
Bessmert: Stay close to me.
The importance of rallying together and remaining vigilant has already been proven to them.
The sound of raptor wings rapidly slicing through the air rushes towards the two travelers and their horses.
Bessmert: It's here. Watch out!
Yenisei: What is it?!
Bessmert: Some bird of prey? It's fast, judging from the flapping sound of its wings. We must go up front to protect Mr. Jurien and the others. They might be its target ...
Bessmert: Oh, yes, the flint! Take out the flint! Kindle the sand rice to drive it away!
Yenisei: No, wait ...
Yenisei: I don't think that's a bird of prey, but a human with wings!
Yenisei: And it's not coming any closer?
The girl hesitates upon hearing the sound of music.
The music had been playing for only a short while. When those huge wings stirred the air into a violent storm, it was totally drowned out.
It wasn't until it gave up on advancing that the slow flapping of wings was covered up by the music.
But the tune of the music is unknown to all present.
The music starts from the bird and spreads around, like a torrential rain, enveloping the restless brown animals on the ground below.
The horses look up in search of the source of this melody, as do the two other listeners.
It is a simple and repetitive melody, but more than enough to consume Bessmert's full attention.
???: ...
Yenisei: Madam! That thing is a creature with a human's head and a bird's body ...!
The fierce steppe winds carry off her cries.
Bessmert: What? What did you say? I can't hear ...
Yenisei: I said, that thing looks like a human with wings!
Bessmert: A human? You mean it has the face of a human? Is the music also coming from it?
Yenisei: Yes!
Bessmert: The music-playing winged creature with a human's face. Sounds familiar, don't you think?
Yenisei: ... An angel?! You are not serious!
Yenisei: But angels blow trumpets! That stick it uses to play music—I'm not sure whether it's a wand or some instrument.
The girl's voice cannot conceal her doubt. She grabs Bessmert, wishing to step back, but remembers not to stray too far from the horses.
This conflict between her instinct and reason is revealed in her fragmented words.
She tries to understand the current situation, but finds it strangely difficult.
Yenisei: Madam, we, I, we ...
Bessmert: Calm down, child.
Bessmert: Look closer and tell me. What does it look like? What about its wand?
Yenisei: It ... It has a human's head, dressed in gray, with black wings instead of arms. Looks … looks like a huge bird of prey ...
Yenisei: While the wand, I don't know how to describe it ...
The girl hurriedly lifts her head again to confirm, and add a supplementary defense to that which she still cannot clearly express.
Yenisei: But that thing is not even holding it! It's making the sound in mid-air.
Bessmert: Sounds like a Harpy, if there wasn't a wand.
Yenisei: But it doesn't quite fit the descriptions in the book ... Neither the color of its feathers nor the environment does.
As they're trying to figure out what's going on, the horses, effecting a brisk piaffe, look up to the source of the sound.
After a brief moment, the "Harpy" turns around, flapping its wings and slowly flying away, with the horses following closely behind as if compelled.
Yenisei: Mr. Jurien ... They are leaving after that thing!
Bessmert: Stay calm, Yenisei.
Bessmert: They must be under its control, but I'm not sure if ... if a Harpy can manipulate its subjects from a distance.
Bessmert strains to extract something useful from her mind, hoping to find anything that might explain the absurdities before her.
In the end, she gains nothing, and the doubt strikes at her head again like a well-paced hammer.
Bessmert: Err, alright, let's hope that ...
Yenisei: Hope that "Harpy" doesn't eat horses? Madam, we can't just stand here and hope ...
Bessmert: Nonsense. Hope that this is just a mind-controlling arcane skill, and they're just affected by it.
Bessmert: That's right. We must follow that creature and break the spell on them.
Bessmert: Now you need to ...
Bessmert grabs Yenisei, while her other hand points firmly upstream toward the herd of horses.
Yenisei takes only a moment to understand her intentions and calms down.
Yenisei: Alright. I see what you mean.
Yenisei: I'll go first. Please listen carefully to my footsteps and find us as soon as possible.
Unfortunately ...
They quickly realize the creature doesn't need to look back to know what's going on behind it. It merely raises its talons to deftly parry Yenisei's attacks.
That is to say, they realize soon enough that its power is far beyond what the two of them had imagined.
Yenisei: Hold there! What on earth do you want!
Yenisei: Answer me!
???: ...
Perhaps it is because of this disparity in strength that the "Harpy" seems not to feel any need to pay attention. It whirls around in midair.
However, Yenisei struggles to see any discernible expression on its human face.
???: Turn thee back.
???: Seek what thou desire elsewhere.
Yenisei: What?
???: Turn thee back, there is naught to find here.
Bessmert: What is this sound? Speaking or singing? Sounds like a young man, how so?
Bessmert: Well, at least it's definitely not a Harpy.
Yenisei: Perhaps it's talking, but the tone sounds strange. I've never heard any language like this.
Yenisei tries in vain to continue forward, but the "giant bird" shakes its head in the air as though issuing a warning.
???: Thine pursuit will cost thee greatly, and yet little will be thy reward.
???: Tread not one step more.
As the wings of the "giant bird" rise and heave, in addition to the strange instrument, the horses also turn around.
Their unhinged companions stand in the way as the music suddenly shifts from a melodious tone to a piercing frenzy.
It paints the scene of a hopeless conflict.
COMBAT
The striped horses are driven by the giant bird, turning their heads to block her path.
Yenisei can only lift her hands against the encirclement and continue launching her attacks upward.
Striped Horse?: neighs angrily
Yenisei: Ugh!
Yenisei: Ugh ... Gentlemen ... Get out of the way. Out!
Yenisei: And you, hey, the flying one! You can talk, right? I don't know your language, but ...
Yenisei: If you are going to eat them, you'd better think twice.
Yenisei: Horse meat has a bad smell.
???: ...
The bird remains silent. Yenisei notices a slender, white stick poking out from his feathers.
Like a bone, but yet also like a wand.
Yenisei: No ... Madam, watch out!
Bessmert: What? I don't sense any hostility ...
This "attack" indicates that it is, in fact, a wand.
However, the two individuals supposedly subjected to this attack seem unchanged. Both physically and mentally, they are exactly as they were before.
Yenisei: Hmm?
Bessmert: Don't worry. I'm fine. It wasn't an attack.
As the two of them begin to explore their uncertainty, the figure flapping its wings in the air speaks once again.
This time, though, something is different.
???: Those whom you chase are no longer related to you once they walked in here and moistened their throats with the flowing water.
???: They are the Zhící's concern.
???: No more chasing.
Yenisei: What is a Zhící? I don't understand ...
Yenisei: No, wait, I-I understand his words now. What?
Yenisei: But ... What is happening? Am I seeing illusions again?
Yenisei: Madam, what about ...
Bessmert: No, it's not an illusion. I can understand it, too.
Yenisei: Unbelievable. Is he able to speak different languages, or can he learn from our conversation in no time?
Bessmert: The "attack" he just made could be his arcane skill.
Bessmert: I can sense the fluctuation of his arcane energy. It's a wondrous power that allows people to communicate.
???: Speculation is unhelpful to your situation. Go back ...
???: ... To where you came from.
This time, its meaning is clear. But neither these words of advice nor its tone of refusal can shake their resolve.
Turning back had never been a consideration before, so of course, they wouldn't consider it now.
Yenisei: No.
Yenisei: First, you must turn them back. Second, to go back or not is our decision to make, not yours.
???: That was not my doing.
Yenisei attempts to understand the true meaning hidden in the giant bird's words. Her mind spins rapidly, and countless questions clamber up, desperate to leap from her tongue.
Yenisei: You stopped here and cast that arcane skill for us to talk, which means you think communication is an available choice between us.
Yenisei: You just mentioned "the flowing water." Do you mean the river we passed by?
Yenisei: And you said these striped horses are "Zhící's concern." I need to know where that place is because they are my teammates.
Yenisei: Besides ... who on earth are you?
???: ...
???: What you ask, I have no answer.
Yenisei: Then what do you know?
???: The Four Books and Five Classics, Geomancy and Feng Shui, Chen-Wei Divination.
Yenisei: What are you talking about?!
???: Mm? The answers to many questions, naturally.
The doubt in his tone seems to come straight from the bottom of his heart.
Bessmert: Yenisei, listen to me. We might be asking the wrong questions.
Yenisei: But we need to collect more information or buy more time. Whatever we are going to do, we can't just let him go.
Yenisei: He will take Mr. Jurien and the team away from us!
Bessmert: But clearly, he is reluctant to answer these questions.
Bessmert: Perhaps he'd be willing to exchange them for our supplies?
Bessmert: He is trying to take them away, perhaps because they are carrying the supplies he needs.
Yenisei: You mean food, or what? Let's ...
???: Stop, there's nothing else for you here.
???: And I need nothing ...
???: What I yearn for is beyond even my own grasp.
Bessmert: Wait, good sir ...!
The bird turns around and flaps its wings, flying away much faster than before.
This time, there is no music. Yet the odd creatures follow closely in the wake of the wind raised by the motion of its wings.
Yenisei: Hey!
Yenisei: Darn. He flew away!
Bessmert: ... Did I say anything wrong?
Yenisei: Don't blame yourself, Madam. He appeared to be the unpredictable type.
Yenisei: Do you still have the strength to walk? We need to hurry up and go after him ...
Bessmert grabs Yenisei's arm and quickly chases after the piercing sound of the wind.