A small crowd has gathered to see the would-be heroes off, amoug the crowd are some of the town's militia, as well as Gidie the farmer, and several children who want to see heroes, and mostly seem satisfied with what they see, metal glinting in the sun and one of them is even mounted on<em>"A warhorse!"</em>a tiefling child explains excitedly, while a young girl shouts<strong>“Call a wolf!”</strong>to none of them in particular. Leaving Yelmed behind them, they head off down the western trade route.<br/><br/>The going is uneventful, the pleasant weather holds and the news of bandits has thinned the usual crowds you would expect to see. For those that do brave the road, many have taken to hiring mercenaries, human for the most part, though one farmer has hired an elf, which must have cost them a few extra coin for the well polished armour and elegant weaponry. He smiles to Lyara as the cart passes, clicking his tongue in appreciation of what he sees. For others is it business as usual, no guards, trusting that bandits will avoid the open terrain, clinging to the forests and hill to the north. Sure enough, after about two hours on the road the travellers reach a fork where the Frax-side Trade Road will take them north towards the Calamb Mountains.<br/><br/>So named for the elven name for the pale trees that line the way, this route has never been one for big volumes of traffic, but has reliably seen a modest amount of traffic between the Royal Court and the farming villages to the south. It is no stranger to bandits, keeping them in check is a large part of the Snow Ranger's duty. No doubt losing two has spooked the Court, leading them to seek outside help before they risk more of their own against this Grey Eyes. A few hours later, the land has risen into a series of hills, and the clumps of trees are quite thick. If someone wants the ambush travellers, there will be plenty of good spots from here on out. The group still have a good 4 hours of daylight left to travel under, and need to decide now if they will follow the road and willing walk into a trap, hoping that their preparedness will ultimately work to their advantage, or travel off the road, and hope to find the bandits when they aren't ready for a fight.