Most of Balthus's debts vanished in the chaos after the war, and those few that remained were paid off with what he had earned in the fighting. Free to do as he pleased, he sought out Hilda, and the two of them went on an adventure around the world. Crossing Fodlan's Throat, they journeyed through and beyond Almyra, where they are said to have found a kingdom of gold in the far east. Though the details of their adventure are largely lost, one anecdote firmly remains. To win Holst's blessing to take his sister out of Fodlan, Balthus had to beat him in a duel.