Chapter 25

"Rui told me I'd find you here," Malik said as he approached Keira, who was brushing Sora's hair as she stood in her new, lighter armour.

"Well, we are getting ready, and I don't like leaving Sora alone for too long. Even with other horses around, she still gets lonely." Keira put the brush away and pulled out an apple for Sora to eat.

"You take such good care of her."

"And she takes good care of me, too."

Malik stroked Sora's mane. "What I wouldn't do to be as close to her as you are," Malik whispered.

What in the world is he going on about? At least Sora doesn't seem to hate him... "Are you ready to go?"

"Yes, of course, as soon as you say the word. The others are getting ready as well. I came to make sure you're well enough to go."

Keira raised an eyebrow. "How many times do I have to say I'm okay before people will believe me?"

"My apologies, it appears I've hit a sore spot, but we ask because we care."

"If there's anyone to worry about, it'd be Fiona and Aki. Surely you realize that to get to Suikara in a timely manner, we'll have to go through the mountain pass rather than around it. And then who knows if they'll let us in? They tend to be protectionist and distrustful of outsiders."

"I am aware. I also know it's quite a bit farther than going from Matsu to Tanten. At least the temperature should ease back as we head farther north, and we can travel further in one day."

"True, trying to hide from the heat is limiting."

"I wonder if it would be better to move the capital to a cooler spot," Malik mumbled to himself. "Not an easy thing to do, though."

What's he going on about now?

The others filed out of Asher's house alongside him.

"I apologize again for what transpired while we were away." Asher bowed to them. "If you should stop by my place again, I'll make sure there are more guards."

"And I'm sorry for how harsh I was with you, my friend," Malik said.

"Think nothing of it. Given the circumstances, it was understandable. Is there anything else you require before you leave?"

"No, we're good." Keira hopped up on Sora. "Thank you for allowing us to use your residence, and I'm sorry it got attacked because I was there. Goodbye."

The others got on their horses and into the carriage, and they took off.

---

"It's been a few days, and nothing more than a few bugs have attacked us," Rui said as they stopped into another town.

"Why does that sound like a complaint?" Keira asked as she packed fresh supplies into the carriage.

"I'm not complaining; I'm just surprised."

"At least we're away from the heat," Fiona said, enjoying the slight chill in the breeze as she stretched.

"Could've always used your magic to make your own breeze if you wanted." Aria stared up at the mountain nearby before taking her spot in the carriage box seat.

"But we never know if we'll need our magic supplies, considering an attack can come at any time. Now that we've passed through, though, I can say it would've been worth it to use my magic. Oh well, we survived the scorcher."

They've been holding up surprisingly well for people unaccustomed to travelling. I guess they'll think they're experts once this mission is done. Keira stared off into the sky, back where they came from. And no sign of the archdemon... I wonder what he's up to. None of the other towns had been attacked, either. Where did he go?

"Something wrong?" Aki asked, breaking her out of thought.

"Nope." She glanced at him and couldn't help but notice the circles under his eyes were darker than normal. "Having trouble sleeping?"

"N-nope."

"He's probably tired because he's been trying to make a potion with his magic every time we've stopped at a town," Malik said.

"You've been what?!" Keira glared at Aki. "What if we needed you? Would you have had the energy for it?"

"I... Well..." He swallowed hard.

"Give him a break." Rui patted Keira on the back. "He's doing it for us. Quicker to use his concentrated potion in a pinch."

"So, you knew about this?" How come I didn't notice?

"Well, we share a room, so it's kinda hard to miss. Since he wasn't passing out while riding after it, I figured it wasn't a big deal." Rui glanced at Malik in wonder. "Did you really need to mention it?" he whispered.

"Yes, I did." Malik smiled. "Keira needs to know what's going on in her troop."

Don't tell me they're going to start again.

Aki bowed to her. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

"It's fine this time, but who knows in the future. I don't suggest you keep making them right now." Though they might come in handy.

"You're right. I should've made them before we left, but I didn't really have time."

"Blame Shun; he didn't give us much time before setting off."

"I'm sure our king thought it best not to wait for things to get worse."

"Hmm, so she even calls her own king by his first name?" Malik stroked his chin.

"Yeah, Keira doesn't like ranks and whatnot. She forces herself to use titles sometimes, but I swear it makes her twitch." Rui snickered.

"I see. Good to know."

"Please tell me we're stopping to sleep at an inn this time. I'm tired of sleeping in the carriage." Fiona pouted, looking around for an inn.

But there's still more time in the day for travel. We could probably make it through the mountain pass... but we'd end up camping on the other side. At least we're getting close to Suikara. Keira crossed her arms, head tilted to the side as she thought.

Malik wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "While it is early for us to stop, I think it might be good for morale. Fiona and Aki are a bit worse for wear, and wouldn't it be nice to have some time to breathe out of that armour of yours? That said, I'll follow your order, regardless."

I barely even notice it with this light armour. "Fine. I doubt there's much to do in this town for us, but we can rest here for the day. We'll set off early in the morning."

"Yes!" Fiona cheered, jumping into the air. "Thank you." She bowed to Malik and Keira before grabbing Rui's hand. "This inn right here, right? We'll be back for a full night's rest."

Rui gave her a little wave as he was dragged away.

When did those two get close? Maybe he's her bodyguard.

Malik frowned and closed his eyes, tilting his head to the side. "Is it me, or do you hear music?"

"Faintly," Keira said, looking around.

"Let's go check it out." Malik took her hand and pulled her along.

"W-wait!" Aki watched them go and looked back at their carriage and horses. "I guess we'll stay here... Aria? Oh, she's gone too. Maybe I should get us signed in." Aki sighed and stared at the forever rose with Sora. "Do I really want to leave them alone together?"