Early judgment

'This wasn't supposed to end like that,' Kaya thought grimly while following the elder through the bushes. 

Their group decided against going to check the sect out. 

There were too many risks and the consequences of being found out were simply too great. And even in the best-case scenario, they would be at most a burden and most likely an extremely troublesome topic. 

And yet, Kaya was out in the forest, following in the relative safety of the elder's steps. 

As it turned out, they never really had a choice. 

'But it was all for the better,' Kaya thought. She squinted her eyes and looked down. 

"I can't guarantee your safety here," the elder said only about an hour ago. "And I can't really complete my mission on my own, it's too risky," he stated. 

Then, he looked down at Kaya's group before sinking deep into his thoughts.