Dagger could feel that the sun was going to rise soon. In roughly twenty minutes, daylight would begin to lighten the horizon. The Beast growled as it sensed the approach of the sun, far off as it was. Behind him, the princess was walking. Barely. The pace had slowed to a near crawl, and at this point it was time to set up camp anyways. Searching for his landmarks, he finally spotted the oak sapling and broken boulder that told him he'd arrived.

"Alright, we're going to set up camp now," Dagger said. Before he'd finished his sentence, As'rya sank to her knees, digging her water out of her pack. No doubt she was tired; she had probably never walked so far in such a short time before.

"This way," he pushed aside some shrubs and it took As'rya a moment to stand slowly, following after.

A small clearing lay ahead, not large enough to call a proper campsite but big enough for the two of them to rest for a few hours. It was hidden by dense shrubs and Dagger had used this spot often when he camped in these woods.

"You can go ahead and rest," he told her, setting down his own pack. "There's a spot under that tree-" Dagger gestured to a prickly looking pine, "that is comfortable enough. We will be heading back out at sunset."

As'rya crawled under the lowest branches and laid down. It could have been a cold slab of rock; she would have still been asleep in seconds.

Pulling out a blanket from his own pack, he carefully laid it over her torso and legs.

When he was done, he sat back against a tree and sighed. Doubt crawled into his mind.

Maybe it had been a bad idea to agree; he wasn't fit for this job. He definitely wasn't the one to protect others, let alone escort them across three territories. And the princess...she'd made it through the night, but this was probably the easiest part of their journey. Would she make it there before giving up, even if she didn't get hurt?

Well, Dagger mused, pulling out the maps and his notebook, he'd better get to planning if he wanted to try and get through this.

*****

When As'rya woke, the first thing she felt was confusion. The second was the pain of her sore muscles. With a groan, rolled over and remembered the arduous journey yesterday.

Oh gods, there was no way today would be as bad...right?

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Taking a moment to reorient herself, As'rya stretched her arms carefully, dodging branches above her. When she finally felt a little less stiff, the princess rolled out from under the tree and rose to her feet.

Glancing around the small clearing, she saw Dagger on the other side, standing and facing away from her. He seemed to be standing watch; As'rya wondered if he'd slept at all.

"Good morning," she called to him, pulling pine needles from her hair. The beautiful braid it had started as had quickly deteriorated into a raggedy tangled half braid throughout the past grueling 12 hours.

The stoic man didn't answer, but he did turn slightly and nod in her direction.

As'rya continued to stretch her aching limbs before taking her hair out and brushing it with the hairbrush from her pack. Once her hair was no longer matted, she pulled out the contents of her pack; Three books, which she laid carefully on top of the pack itself to keep them clean, a few more travelling clothes items as well as the dress from yesterday, her notebook and pen. Finally, rolled carefully in her pack, As'rya removed an ornate garment. It was a beautiful dress, the nicest gift the queen had ever given her. Tiny jewels encrusted the neck, flashing blue and green in the sunlight like tiny dewdrops. The material was soft and silky, a deep emerald green representing the Kingdom of Raizakar. Embroidered along the long sleeves were silver swirls and waves, intricate designs that took months of dedication to create.

This dress was the most important thing As'rya carried with her. It was the dress she would wear when she was greeting the Prince of Lysima. It was essential that she make her best impression as a representative of her Kingdom.

She hung it carefully on a branch, making sure it didn't snag on any loose twigs, letting it air out so the material didn't get too wrinkled.

The next order of business was breakfast for As'rya. Well, was breakfast the right word? Looking at the sky, the sun was already descending from its zenith, a handwidth from the horizon.

"I was wondering what the food accommodations would look like," As'rya approached Dagger, trying not to sound presumptuous or rude. "I'm not expecting much; I understand our situation..." As'rya fell silent under the man's stern gaze when he turned towards her. Every time he looked at her, it felt like he was looking through her instead. Despite her discomfort, the princess held his gaze.

The man gestured with his chin to his pack.

"For today, we'll use the rations I bought in the capital. Those should last us two or three days. Once we reach our campsite tonight, we will talk more about the situation and how we will proceed."

"I understand. Thank you," As'rya told him. While he wasn't very talkative and definitely gruff, the mercenary hadn't been outright rude or unkind to her as of yet.

The rumors about the Demon of Raizakar stretched far, but it seemed that most of the talk had been just that; rumors.

She began pulling things out of Dagger's pack. The food rations were easily found, resting right on top in neat bundles.

"You should also drink the bottle," Dagger called to her from his spot by the tree. After finding a clear bottle filled with a murky brown liquid, she glanced up, dubious. "This? Are you sure?"

"As much as you can stand," he replied, a hint of the smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

Once As'rya took a whiff, she understood why he said that. The concoction was bitter and pulpy, the strong herb flavor overbearing.

"And...you're sure this is safe?" As'rya asked with trepidation.

"It's an herbal remedy to help your body heal faster, as well as help your stamina," Dagger told her. "It would be safe to drink the whole thing, but it will also be effective if you drink it over a week."

Ugh, a week! A week of drinking this swamp water? But if it did help with being so sore, As'rya supposed she had to at least give it her best shot.

Pinching her nose, As'rya downed several swallows at once. She didn't unplug her nose until she had rinsed her mouth with water. Even then, she shivered in disgust at the feel of the viscous liquid.

Quickly grabbing some of the dried fruit and nuts, the princess set to work getting the awful taste out of her mouth while Dagger stifled a snicker.