Kalil's legs felt as though they were on fire with how long he'd been traversing the countryside, the wind biting at his face as he breathed in the heavy air of the plains--a scent he had all but resigned to embracing in the hours he'd spent in his aimless wandering.
The blue-haired youth couldn't help but curse his hastiness as he peered into the satchel slung across his shoulder--the food his grandmother had packed him he'd already eaten most of not long after he'd departed from the forest--leaving naught but a single apple...
For the dozenth time, his stomach tightened and growled, a painful reminder of his gluttony; and one he bore with a frown as he continued on, holding off the exhaustion which had begun to weigh upon him.
His eyes lay fixated on the horizon, now no more than a brilliant blaze of orange--the last moments of daylight glimmering against the backdrop of the soft orange-tinged sky.
Thankfully, his wandering was no longer without aim. By some form of miracle, he'd been blessed with a path to serve as a semblance of a guide, one which wound through the plains, going ever northward toward the setting sun. As for whether it would lead him to civilization… he could only hope, considering he had yet to come across anything of the sort in his time following it.
The agony assaulting his calves had faded to a dull aching, though every continued step caused Kalil to wince with the knowledge he would not be able to walk much further before he'd need to pause for rest.
...Not that he would, of course. Stopping to rest would leave him exposed and open for attack by whatever creatures roamed the plains once dusk settled. So long as he had an ounce of strength, he would keep walking.
Yet, for once Kalil felt his prayers had been heard--for not long after, upon reaching the crest of a hill the path ran through, he found himself pausing--a sense of relief filling his mind as in the distance he spotted...