Two days later, in the early morning, everyone gathered in the front courtyard of the Rellios royal palace. They had spent the last two days exploring the capital city while waiting for the travel permits to be finalized. Now, Ard, Eva, and the rest of the group were ready to depart for the home of the Dragon God, Bedryt.

Brutus saw them off at the palace gates, handing Ard a scrolled document. It was an official permit for the guards at the mountain pass. They were only allowed to fly as far as the border outpost high on the mountain, which was patrolled by Dragon Knights; from there, they would have to continue on foot to avoid disturbing the Dragon God's sanctuary.

After handing over the letter, Brutus glanced at Beatrice, who stood right between Ard and Adeline.

"Are you sure you want to go, my daughter?" Brutus asked.

"Yes, Papa, I have to go. My destiny is with them," Beatrice answered, taking Ard's hand and pulling Adeline into a hug.

"Alright, I understand. Please look after her, Ard," Brutus said.

"I will, Uncle. I'll make sure she's safe," Ard replied.

"Very well. Safe travels," Brutus said.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," Alicia, Milia, Mirea, Rosalind, Claudia, Geoffrey, Ainsley, and Irwin said in unison.

"Thank you, Uncle. I'll also help Ard keep an eye on Beatrice," Eva added, throwing such a sharp look at Beatrice that the girl actually flinched.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Beatrice asked spontaneously.

"It's nothing," Eva replied, smiling while keeping her sharp gaze locked on Beatrice.

"Alright, Uncle, we're heading out," Ard said.

Without a second thought, Ard called for Ace, Eva summoned her griffin, and Adeline called her pegasus. Rosalind brought forth her green dragon while Irwin summoned his black dragon. Ainsley and Geoffrey immediately jumped onto Ace's back with Ard. Mirea and Milia climbed onto the griffin with Eva, Alicia and Pyria mounted Rosalind's green dragon, Claudia hopped onto Irwin's black dragon, and Beatrice climbed up behind Adeline on the pegasus.

Moments later, they shot into the sky, banking around to wave at Brutus, who waved back from below. They all soared toward the mountain peaks looming behind the Rellios capital, bypassing the steep, winding forest trails entirely. As they flew, Ard and Eva kept glancing over at the pegasus flying between them; they were keeping a close eye on Adeline, who was still getting the hang of riding her familiar, and Beatrice, who looked just as shaky clinging on behind her.

"Relax, my prince. They'll be fine. Beatrice already knows how to ride a dragon," Alicia said from behind Ard.

"Yeah... but still, it's worrying. Adeline just learned how to do this, and Beatrice... well, we all know what she's like," Ard replied. "Even though I now know she's actually the same age as Adeline," Ard muttered to himself.

"Don't worry, we're all keeping an eye on them," Alicia assured him.

Ard glanced back and saw Irwin on his dragon and Rosalind on hers, trailing just behind. Both of them seemed to be focused on Adeline, who was flying directly ahead of them.

"Looks like they're worried too!" Claudia shouted from behind Alicia.

"Everyone is worried!" Ard shouted back.

Eva kept turning around to check on Beatrice, who was chatting away with Adeline. The two of them looked incredibly cheerful, as if they were just out on a fun joyride.

"Hey, stop worrying, Eva," said Milia, who was sitting behind her.

"How can I not worry? The pilot just learned how to fly two days ago, and the person behind her is completely unreliable. I think we messed up the seating arrangement; those two shouldn't be on their own," Eva said.

"Take it easy. I'm ready to jump if anything goes wrong," Milia added.

"And if you get hurt because you decided to jump, who's supposed to save you?" Mirea cut in.

"Oh... good point," Milia replied.

"Just drop it and relax. They're going to be fine. Besides, flying like this is going to get us to the top in record time," Mirea replied.

"I hope you're right," Eva muttered.

They continued their steady pace, keeping the pegasus guarded in the center of their formation. About fifteen minutes later, the guard post blocking the path upward finally came into view. Adeline and Beatrice's eyes lit up the moment they saw it. Without warning, they broke formation and bolted toward the outpost, leaving everyone else in a state of total shock.

"Hey!" Ard, Eva, Irwin, and Rosalind—all the riders—shouted in unison.

They immediately gave chase to the pegasus as it bolted ahead of them. Ard and Eva quickly pulled up on either side to flank it again, while Irwin intentionally flew higher and dove down to land directly in front of the pegasus to force it to slow down. Rosalind held her position in the rear, effectively boxing the pegasus in from all sides. Adeline looked around, seeing Ard and Eva beside her, the black dragon in front, and Rosalind behind.

"Hey... why are we being surrounded?" Adeline shouted.

"Don't go so fast!" Ard shouted back.

"Yeah, and don't go off on your own, got it?" Eva added, her voice raised over the wind.

"Ugh... fine. I thought something was actually wrong," Adeline replied casually.

Eventually, they synchronized their flight and landed together right in front of the guard post. Two guards, both high-ranking Dragon Knights, approached the group. Ard and Eva handed over the scrolled letter from Brutus, and they began to read it immediately. Looking past them, Ard noticed two dragons tethered in a stable behind the outpost that was built to hold only two mounts.

"Very well. You may pass, Prince Ard, Princess Eva. However, please proceed on foot from here," the guard said with a smile.

"Understood, sir," Ard replied.

A guard pulled open the outpost gate, revealing a set of stone stairs that climbed sharply upward, flanked on both sides by dense trees. The staircase looked incredibly steep, and the gap between each step was wide, making the ascent look daunting. Ard let out a long sigh, his face clearly saying "this climb is going to be a real workout." With that, they all began to hike up the stairs together.

"Whew... looks like this trek to the top is going to be a long one," Geoffrey muttered.

"Do you want me to store that greatsword for you?" Ard asked.

"No need. This sword isn't heavy," Geoffrey replied.

"Why do we have to climb a staircase this high anyway?" Beatrice asked.

"Please stop complaining, Princess. Don't embarrass yourself; you are a princess of the Rellios Kingdom," Rosalind answered.

"Uuuugh... alright. But... it's cold," Beatrice said, rubbing her arms.

"Hmm... she's right. I'll get our jackets out," Eva said.

Ard and Eva immediately pulled several thick, fur-lined jackets from their dimensional storage and handed them out to the others. Once everyone was bundled up, they continued their climb in silence, helping one another along the way. When they reached the halfway point about twenty minutes later, they took a short break to eat before resuming their journey up the stairs.

After hiking for nearly another hour, they spotted a pavilion tucked away in the middle of the forest. Deciding it was time for a second break, they all took a seat inside the structure, which seemed specifically built as a resting place for pilgrims.

After walking for nearly another hour, they spotted a pavilion tucked away in the middle of the forest. Deciding it was time for a second break, they all sat down in the structure, which seemed specifically built for pilgrims to rest. Once they were settled,

"Whew... finally, another break," Claudia said, stretching her legs out.

"Is it still much further, Ard?" Mirea asked.

"Quite a bit. We aren't even halfway there yet," Ard replied.

"Seriously? Wow... that is a long way," Ainsley added, huffing as he pushed his glasses up.

"Well, if it were easy, anyone could just go meet the Dragon God," Ard said.

"Hmm... that's a fair point. Does that mean we'll need to camp overnight?" Pyria asked.

"It looks like we'll have to," Ard said.

"But it's fun, right? Come on, let's see some spirit! Isn't that right, Peggy?" Adeline said, petting her pegasus. She had named the creature Peggy, and it had shrunk down to a small size to perch on her shoulder.

The pegasus, now dubbed Peggy, seemed thrilled and nuzzled its snout against Adeline's cheek in pure delight.

"You named her Peggy?" Milia asked.

"Yep! Isn't she cute?" Adeline replied.

"The name actually fits... pegasus to Peggy," Rosalind added.

"I'm the one who picked it," Beatrice said proudly.

"That's right, Beatrice is the best," Adeline added.

The two girls immediately dove into their own lively conversation, lost in their own little world. Ard and Eva just looked at each other, watching the pair play around with Peggy. Seeing them so close—acting like real sisters—gave Ard and Eva a strange, complicated feeling. Having heard the truth from Brutus and promised to keep it a secret, they couldn't help but see the bond between Adeline and Beatrice in a completely different light.

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