Dagger and As'rya pushed on, making their way through the forest. Though dawn was still an hour or so off, the man decided to call it a day and set up camp. The princess, despite doing her best, was bedraggled and exhausted. Even so, she had never once complained, soldiering on in silence. Dagger had been surprised multiple times already by her tenacity and grit.

"Let's stop here," he said, setting his pack down in a grassy spot that deer had used recently to bed. The grass was well trampled in the middle, but high enough on the sides to keep them out of sight when sitting or laying down. Dagger also knew this area well, but they were approaching the furthest extent to his normal areas of camping. The woods beyond this got more sparse and more populations popped up around the river that ran through the area ahead.

One of those towns was Harlouve. He had brought them around the settlements, as near to the town as they could while being a safe distance away. He would wait until the sun was up. Then, while the Princess was sleeping, he would kill 'Bernerdo Queltian', the man running the inn. He would go to Harlouve.

Dagger repeated this to himself over and over, trying to drown out the insistent call of the Beast.

After portioning out some dried meat and hard bread, as well as a handful of shredded coconut and dried fruit, As'rya sat across from Dagger, expectant. The dawn had arrived, rays of light piercing through the chilly morning air.

The vigilante had half hoped that the girl would fall asleep right away, like yesterday, too tired to ask him anything.

With a steadying sigh, Dagger pulled his cloak over his head and told her, "Go ahead and tell me what you know."

The princess launched into her explanation, meager as it turned out to be. As it was, she knew even less about this journey than he did. The Queen had told her she would wed the Prince of Lysima to join the countries politically, and that it might be dangerous. Gods, she didn't even know the name of the Prince!

Groaning and rubbing his facial hair, he considered how to approach this. While he was contemplating, the girl spoke up.

"May I ask some questions of you, Sir Dagger?" As'rya spoke up. Her keen gaze was trained on Dagger.

"Sure," he agreed warily. Maybe it would be better this way; he could lie or change the answers if he thought it necessary.

"Why did you agree to this job?"

Umm...huh. That wasn't what he'd expected. Deciding honesty was the best approach for this one, he told her what the Queen had agreed to give him. She nodded, but didn't look convinced.

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"Were you a knight from another kingdom at one point?" the princess asked seriously. Dagger scoffed out loud at this one.

"No, I've never left Raizakar Kingdom. Many parts of this journey will be as new to me as to you."

"Oh," As'rya replied, surprised. After a moment of contemplation, she asked him, "Can you tell me about your abilities?"

Dagger's face went stone cold in an instant. Eyes dark, he glared at the princess, causing her to flinch back.

"I don't think that's necessary. I don't see how it matters."

"Well," As'rya tried, "I thought the knowledge might help-"

"Look," Dagger snapped, interrupting her. "Its not your business. The only thing you need to know about my 'curse'," he emphasized the last word, "is that it's incredibly dangerous."

The silence stretched out awkwardly.

"Since you don't have more questions, I need to go scout the area," Dagger muttered before leaving in a cloud of shadow.

*****

As'rya definitely did have more things she wanted to ask the mercenary, but after their last discussion, she had clearly offended him. It would be best to give him some time first, she decided. She felt bad; it had been impolite and she'd known it. But her curiosity had gotten the better of her in the moment. It wasn't behavior fit for her station, and she chastised herself for it. They were going to be travelling together for a while. The last thing she wanted was to get off on the wrong foot this early on.

Instead, she once again unpacked her bag, removing the dress to let it air out and smoothing the fabric carefully. Once satisfied with that task, the princess opened one of the books and began thumbing through it. Titled 'The Royal History of Raizakar', As'rya set about studying the tiny text, head bent low to the page. She had her maid swipe the books from the Royal Library before she'd left, hoping to try and fill in her meager education before having to meet the Prince. The other two books, 'Etiquette and Temperment of a Noble' and 'Customs and Traditions of Lysimian Empire' she would pore over as they continued on their journey. Taking advantage of the light dawn brought, the young woman settled in to read for a while.

*****

Dagger shook his head, struggling to focus on what he had claimed he would be doing.

He hadn't meant to get so angry at the princess. It had happened faster than he could think. But even now, when he thought about it, the rage rose up in him again. He didn't want her to know. He didn't want her to ask.

He refused to let her get close. One of the few people who didn't know all about who he was, about all the evil he had done, all the lives he'd ruined. And it should stay that way. Dagger wanted to keep his dark life hidden as long as possible.

This was becoming less and less of an option though. As though it could sense his agitation, the Beast hissed, uncurling from the corners of his mind. It whispered ideas of things he could do. Things he should do, it told him. They were just people, just humans. Lifespans like ants, they're bugs beneath your feet. Disdain and contempt ruled his mind, his lip curling in disgust.

Dagger punched a tree, hard enough to split his knuckles.

"Get out of my head," the man growled, fists clenched. He focused his energy on something else, imagining the heat of a sunny day. The heavy sunbeams, overbearing and bright, the heat that threatened to smother him, the sweat dripping from his forehead. He clenched his fists tightly, blood dripping down.

Taking several deep breaths, he managed to center himself again, closing off that dark part of his mind and trying to once again concentrate on patrolling the surrounding area.

After double checking the forest around them, Dagger took his time getting back to camp. When he arrived, the sun had peeked over the horizon, heralding the new day. As'rya was still awake, reading one of the books she'd brought. Personally, the mercenary felt that they would be a waste of space and heavy as well, but he didn't have to carry her pack, so he said nothing. Instead, he stopped just outside the grassy area, staying quiet to let her focus. Well, that's what he told himself. In reality, he didn't want her to ask him anything else. The less she knew of him, the better.

After all, once they got to the Kingdom of Lysima, they would never see each other again.

Instead, he found a sturdy tree to lean against and began to keep watch.