She first saw them in the distance. Four individuals, each wearing a blue article of clothing walking towards them. They seemed to be apart, strangers walking to the same place but not necessarily together but the bits of blue clothing they wore made it obvious they were together. One of the two boys had on a blue jacket vest, the other had a blue jacket and the third, a bald girl, she first mistook for a boy from afar had on a blue scarf and the one who was walking before them had a blue overcoat on.

“Hello,” the woman said when she was before her. “My name is Lao, this is my team.”

“Ah, you are from the Blue Swallow Guild. My name is Xiu Fen-Fang, this is my father…” Lu gestured to her elderly father, sitting on a bench.

“Most call me, Old Man Xiu,” the man said. “But you guys can call me sir if you want.” He smirked.

“Thank you for joining us on this mission.” La clasped her hands and bowed.

“No need to thank us,” Chun said. “The pleasure is all ours.?” He looked at the woman in a way that made her feel uncomfortable.

“Behave!” Dandan said.

“Ms Xiu, Mr. Xiu, are there any extra details you can give us about this mission?” Lao said. “Why do you need escorts?”

Xiu took out a red storage stone and touched it, in a flash of light and scroll appeared in her hands. She unfurled it and showed it to Lao. Lao stood beside her while the rest of the team leaned in.

“We’re heading to our homeland in just beyond the Fang mountains.” Xiu said, pointing to a red circle she had made earlier, just beyond two pairs of mountains. “It is a small village. It is where I was born, where my father grew up. We could take the main roads, by there are many bandits there and on top of that, we don’t have enough money for a carriage which would make the journey safer. So I suggest we go by the woods.” Xiu traced a red line going through the woods with her finger. “It would be faster to travel on foot through the forest. Hopefully, the only thing we would be dealing with there is wild beasts.”

“Now, Ms Xiu, is there a specific reason why you would need an escort for this?” Lao Chen said.

“Well… I’m not much of a fighter and my father is getting on in his years.” She said. “He could not protect us.”

“Bah! I can!” the old man said.

“He can’t,” she whispered.

“Are you sure that’s it?” Lao said.

“Y-Y-Yes,” she said.

“There are other solutions to your problem you could have taken, that were much cheaper.” Lao said. “So, I am going to ask again. Are there any details about this escort mission you are not telling us?”

“No, nothing!” she said.

Lao nodded but did not look convinced. “We are ready to leave anytime,” she said.

“We are ready now.” Xiu said, helping her father to her feet.

“Alright, Team Lao, let’s go!” Lao Chen said.