The door opened.
Behind it stood a man with shoulder-length hair, streaked black but mostly white. He wore thin eyeglasses, and his beard mirrored the color of his hair—aged. He was tall and broad, his build still muscular.
"Who are you?" He looked at the three of them.
"Are you Neron Dunnivar?" Ardyn asked.
His eyes scanned the three of them again.
"You three are Cirrans?"
Ardyn glanced at Mirae and Elari.
"We just wanted to ask for some information," Mirae said.
"Sorry." The man shut the door without another word.
"It's about the Four Breathers," Ardyn said, just as the door closed in front of him.
A moment passed. Then the door creaked open again.
The man glanced around the area, checking the path behind them.
With a small nod, he stepped aside, quietly inviting them in.
Inside, the house was simple. A small fireplace sat unlit in the corner, and a single table occupied the center of the room, surrounded by mismatched chairs.
He motioned for them to sit.
"Yes, I am Neron," he said. "What do you know about the Four Breathers?"
"My name is Mirae," she said, "and this is Ardyn and Elari." She gestured toward them.
"We are Cirrans, just as you expected. All of us, in some way, know how to read the wind, to listen to its whispers."
"Most of what we've learned came through research. That's how we found fragments about the Four Breathers… and the calming of the winds below the sky. But as you probably know, the Council forbids anything related to it."
She paused, then added, "That's why we came to you. You might know things we don't."
Neron straightened in his seat, eyeing the three of them carefully.
"Which isle are you from?" Neron asked, looking at Mirae.
"I'm from Orriven."
"Eastern isle." He nodded, then turned to Elari. "You?"
"Cindralune," Elari said.
"Southern isle." Neron looked to Ardyn. "And you?"
"I'm from Windmere," Ardyn replied.
Neron's eyes lingered a moment. "So we're both from the south."
"Why does that matter?" Ardyn asked.
"The Four Breathers," Neron said, "are from the north, south, east, and west."
Ardyn hesitated. "Wait… I'm from Windmere, but according to my grandfather, we lived in the western isles when I was a child."
At that, Neron stood from his chair.
He glanced at them, something shifting in his expression.
"Follow me."
They followed Neron as he stepped outside.
He walked toward the old windmill and opened its weathered door without a word.
They followed him in.
Dust floated in the air as they entered, carrying the faint scent of old grain. Against one wall, several burlap sacks and empty barrels were stacked, as if untouched for years.
Neron walked over without a word. He pushed aside two of the barrels and dragged a sack away, revealing a faint outline of a square panel set into the floorboards.
He knelt and gripped a small iron ring flush with the wood.
With a quick pull, the trapdoor creaked open, revealing a narrow stairwell descending into shadow.
"Down here," he said.
They followed him down the narrow stairs. Halfway down, Neron reached to the side and flicked a small switch set into the wall.
A row of dim lights blinked on, casting a soft glow down the stairwell.
He glanced back, waiting as the others filed in behind him. Once they were all inside, he reached up and pulled the trapdoor shut overhead.
They descended the narrow stairs, and at the bottom, the space opened into a small, windowless room.
It looked like an old storage chamber. Along one wall stood a shelf with old books, spines cracked and faded. An old table sat near the center, its surface cluttered with scattered notes and bits of worn parchment.
"These books are what I managed to keep before I was imprisoned," Neron said, glancing at the old shelf. "Most of what I know came from there."
"The Four Breathers are symbols of the northern, southern, eastern, and western winds," he continued. "Chosen by Ruenar."
"Ruenar?" Ardyn asked.
"The wind itself, from the myths," Elari said.
"It's said in those books that in ancient times, the Breathers lived among the sky isles of Lioratheia. Until, one day, they were corrupted by Veydris."
"I would guess that Veydris is Ruenar's counterpart," Mirae said.
"You're right," Neron replied. "It's believed that there is a good wind and a bad wind—one that heals, and one that kills."
"When the Breathers were corrupted, they were cast down by Ruenar," he added, motioning downward with his thumb. "Sealed beneath the wind."
"So that's why the Council fears the Breathers," Ardyn said.
"The Four Breathers, as I said, were chosen by Ruenar," Neron continued. "They are the keys to unlocking the winds below the clouds."
"Before I was imprisoned, all I knew was that there were Four Breathers. I didn't know about the corruption," he went on. "After my release, I continued studying in secret. That was when I learned the Council may have had good reason to be afraid. I stopped searching for the Breathers after that."
"But if Ruenar is the good wind," Ardyn said, "why would he choose the Four Breathers? Why not just seal the winds below the clouds forever?"
"That, I don't know," Neron admitted.
He looked at each of them in turn. "But I imagine you're wondering if you are one of the Breathers?"
The three nodded.
"As I once was," Neron said.
Neron walked to the table and picked up an old rag across its surface. Then he moved to one of the nearby boxes, rummaging briefly before pulling something out, carefully wrapped in the cloth.
The three watched, curious.
He unwrapped it just enough to reveal a small Aerolith, yellow in color, with faint lines pulsing through its core.
Without a word, Neron stepped in front of Ardyn.
"Your hand," he said.
Ardyn hesitated, then opened his palm.
Neron placed the Aerolith onto it. The stone pulsed and shifted to a glowing blue.
The old man smiled.
He took the stone back with the same cloth and stepped toward Mirae. She held out her hand, and again, the yellow Aerolith began to glow blue as soon as it touched her skin.
Finally, he approached Elari. The moment the stone touched his hand, it responded—shining bright blue.
Neron stepped back, tossed the rag onto the table, and took the stone from Elari's hand. It glowed blue in his own.
He looked at the three of them.
"We are the Four Breathers," he said.