It didn’t take long before the rest of the group appeared with their gear. Not only that, but Mimiki had two carriages brought to them to help transport the group.

“This should be enough to transport all of us,” said Mimiki. “Of course, these are merely to get us to the town, so they won’t be joining us once we begin the actual hunt. It’ll mostly be walking, but we’ll have everything set up in a base camp. Any questions?”

None of them said a word, prompting Mimiki to nod.

“Alright! Let’s pack up then head out.”

Nobina was surprised to see that most of them wanted to sit with her for various reasons. Fay wanted to sit next to Nobina because of so many reasons. Helios wanted to continue to read her special book. Mimiki wanted to chat about a few things, both mission-wise and otherwise. Lila just wanted to be next to Fay to chat about Fay. As for Nia, Cain, and Marve, they were content in the other carriage.

“One of you should join them,” said Nobina, looking at the other four.

“I can do it,” said Mimiki. “I know you’d like to chat more with Fay, and Lila is extremely stubborn about these things. I rather she gets a chance to speak to her as well. We’ll get a chance to talk later anyways.”

Nobina gave a nod.

“Thanks, Mimiki. Really appreciate that,” smiled Nobina.

As Nobina left to join the other carriage, Fay smiled as she gave a nod.

“You two appear close. You must have some stories to talk about,” said Fay.

“Yeah… though I think if I told you everything that happened it might cause you to freak out,” chuckled Nobina.

“Certainly not,” laughed Fay. “Are you going to tell me she hurt you or something?”

“Nope,” smiled Nobina with a fake innocence. The moment she did that, Fay immediately covered her face with one of her hands.

“Please… save it for later then. I really don’t think I’ll contain myself if you told the story now,” said Fay, already trying to hold back prying into Nobina’s past.

Nobina knew Fay well. If she had told the full story, they’d have had so many problems during the trip that it wasn’t worth the effort. Of course, Fay would desperately try to hold herself back, but it would likely fail immediately as long as Nobina wasn’t actively trying to defuse things.

With the carriages set, everyone boarded their respective rides, and the drivers set off. Nobina felt herself relax as she finally knew she had a moment to breathe. With so much happening, not having to do anything else but wait and chat was a nice change of pace.

As they rode through the city, Nobina absorbed the sight of it into her mind. People casually walking down the streets going about their day. The occasional adventurers at various stores buying the equipment they needed for their quests. Common folk just chatting about their day-to-day lives without a care in the world.

Soon, they started to reach the outer edge of the city. The folks there were more travelers going to and from the city. Some of them were merchants. Others were adventurers. The variety reminded Nobina of how many kinds of walks of life went to and from the city. It made her worry how a dragon’s wrath would devastate so many lives. It was the reason their mission was so important. If not for politics and self-interests, she had no doubt everyone would be on the same page to stop this dragon. Instead, it was just a smaller group that had a particular interest in stopping the dragon.

In this case, it was the eight of them who had immediate interests, with those around them working at a slower pace.

“We are heading out of the city,” called the driver.

Nobina looked forward, seeing the north gate with people still coming into the city. Perhaps not surprisingly, barely anyone was heading out of the north gate. Considering that people were evacuating, and that news of the dragon being sighted north was becoming widespread, it was expected that this side of the city would only see an influx of people. Not only that but there were adventures standing by to protect the city in case the dragon was sighted.

As they finally left the city, Nobina’s bag glowed once again.

“Fascinating,” said Helios, his attention not the bag itself but the book he was reading. “So many things to think about. I can’t wait to begin experimenting with spells again.”

Nobina gave a sigh, turning to Fay, who nodded. She was at the ready once again when Nobina went for the bag. To her surprise, there was a plant inside the bag this time.

Taking it out, she gave a good look over the potted plant. If she had to guess, it was probably around 30 cm/11”. It had small leaves and buds sprouting from its edges and thorns. Attached to it was a note from someone Nobina knew all to well at this point.

“Please take good care of her until she can do so herself. I’m sure she’ll be of use.” – Naglfar. Next to that was the symbol of her potted plant.

“Now a plant,” chuckled Fay. “Man… What’d I give to have a nice peaceful chat with you Nobina.”

“Same,” she smiled back. “But honestly, this nice moment of peace we have traveling is great. It’s so peaceful that I just want to lay back and relax.”

As she said that, a snore could be heard from her right side. Nobina turned to Lila, who was peacefully sleeping in her seat.

Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

Initially, Lila swarmed Fay with questions, but Fay said they’d chat more later since she wanted to relax for a bit. Hearing that, Lila merely nodded and sat there before falling asleep midway through their trek out of town.

“I wonder if she’s gotten good sleep,” said Nobina. “I’ve never seen her do something like this.”

“I’m guessing she was training all night,” said Helios, still looking at Nobina’s special book. “She must really want to be the one to take down the dragon. After all, there’s a lot of fame behind being known as a dragon slayer, but also an equal amount of infamy towards the dragon themselves. Though, I have no doubt Lila does actively want to fight dragons to get stronger.”

Fay gave a chuckle, shaking her head.

“She’s certainly something. If not for that tiny bit of contempt I saw, I’m sure we’d get along just fine,” smiled Fay.

“I know you mean well Fay, but please don’t let people having tiny issues with me turn you hostile against them,” sighed Nobina.

“No worries,” said Fay, nodding her head. “I’ll keep it in control for you.”

With that being done, Nobina’s focus once again turned to their surroundings. She enjoyed seeing the beauty of nature as they got closer and closer to the western forest. The trip itself was set to take a few days to reach the Town of Wistern. There was still no report of it being burned to the ground, but it should have been a ghost town at this point. Only a few people might have stayed behind, but a majority would have listened to the evacuation order. Especially since the status of the massive forest fire hasn’t been reported yet.

“What do you think Helios? Do you think the team sent out to handle the fire handled everything?” asked Nobina.

“I cannot say unfortunately,” said Helios, turning his attention to Nobina. “The group was sizable, but if the dragon attacked the group, it wouldn’t survive. Luckily, no one has reported any more villages or towns being destroyed, so we can just hope nothing has indeed happen and the fire is finally out.”

Nobina gave a nod.

“I could have asked Greogory to scout out the spot with me riding with him,” said Fay, snapping her fingers. “It’s probably something to consider right now while we are in range of town.”

“If you think you should, go for it,” said Nobina. “As much as I’d love to ride with you, I rather the best choice be made.”

Fay gave a nod before a frown formed on her face.

“Actually… Never mind. I remember that Elina gave me explicit instructions not to put Greogory in any danger. We’ll have to go at it on our own.”

“Really?” said Nobina in surprise. “Is Greogory important?”

“Well… Yes,” said Nobina. “Greogory is one of the few people Elina considers a friend. It’s the reason why he’s her personal Royal Griffin Rider.”

Hearing that, Nobina began wondering how exactly the two of them became close. However, it seemed that Fay was reading her mind.

“It’s funny how the two of us came to meet each other,” chuckled Fay. “When I met Elina, she wanted me executed for destroying her favorite dress. It was a freak accident as well, but that wasn’t a good enough reason for someone like Elina.”

“My god,” said Nobina, covering her mouth. “What happened after that?”

“Well… I spent a few days playing cat and mouse with her. She sent so many people after me, with even the Grand Guild Master refusing to help me out. It seemed so grim, and I thought I’d have to leave, but then I had a grand idea. I began making a dress that would replace the one I destroyed. It took a week of running, but eventually, I managed to defeat her personal guard, someone a bit stronger than even me, and present the dress. And… the rest is history,” she smiled.

Nobina really wanted to know the full story of what happened. Considering everything Fay mentioned, it felt as if it would be an amazing read.

“I can tell you about everything in detail if you want,” smiled Fay.

“We got time to burn I suppose,” chuckled Nobina.

For the rest of the day, Fay began explaining the story in detail. Listening to it was fascinating, with Lila eventually waking up and listening to it in detail as well. She was particularly interested in the people hunting Fay, which made sense since she loved fights.

Eventually, the group stopped for lunch, where everyone had one of the pre-prepared meals. Nobina and Fay shared a bit of food, with Lila offering to share as well. The rest of them mostly kept to themselves, but Nobina did notice that the other carriage was eating with each other. Helios, on the other hand, was merely reading and eating.

“You really do like that book,” said Nobina, chewing her food.

“I got to make the most of it,” said Helios. “This book has so many ideas flowing in me. If you excuse me.”

Helios went back to reading Nobina’s special book, causing both Fay and Nobina to chuckle.

“You’re quite funny Helios,” said Fay. “I’d love to learn more about your drive someday.”

“If fate demands it,” he replied back, his eyes on the book.

The three of them went back to eating and chatting. After a bit of time passed, everyone got back together, and the trip continued.

A lot of it was listening to Fay’s story, with Nobina, Lila, and even Helios having many questions for Fay. Most of it wasn’t a secret, but Fay did have a few things she couldn’t discuss. This was, after all, information regarding the third princess. She was still someone important to the kingdom, and a lot of the information regarding her directly would be considered somewhat classified. The more general stuff was fine to say, especially what the princess was fine being mentioned.

“You two must have so many stories together,” said Nobina, giving a nod.

“A good amount, though its mostly limited. A majority of my time was spent in the Nation of Arren.”

Lila gave her the biggest grin.

“You must have fought some amazing monsters, right? What’s the biggest one you’ve fought?” asked Lila.

Fay put a finger under her chin, giving it some thought.

“I think it would be the Magical Stone Colossus. Those things do not go down easy, no matter what you throw at it?” nodded Fay.

“How did you defeat it then?” asked Lila, eyes sparkling.

“By running,” laughed Fay. “Those things are extremely deadly and probably would give ancient dragons a run for their money if not for the dragon’s range and flying advantage. Not to mention that even the golem’s magic isn’t too effective against dragons.”

Lila nodded, taking a mental note of everything.

“You’ll have to tell me more about the monsters you fought later,” said Lila, practically drooling to know more.

“If I get the time to, for sure,” smiled Lila.

The rest of the party got back together to set up camp for the night. During this time, Nobina took a step to the side as everyone else had it mostly handled. Joining her was Fay, who merely stood next to her as they watched everyone else work.

“So,” said Fay. “How’s the trip been for you so far Nobina?”

“Honestly? Heavenly,” she replied back, her gaze on the fire the group set up. “After all the chaos of the last few days, I’m glad I have a peaceful moment to relax.”

“You should definitely cherish these moments Nobina,” nodded Fay. “When I was in Arren, there was no days of rest. It was constant training, dealing with politics, and so much stuff being done. All so I could meet the obligations required to become an S-rank in Arren.”

“But look at you now,” smiled Nobina. “So strong after how long being here?”

“Like a year-ish,” Fay responded back.

Neither of them said a word as they let the moment seep in. Listening to the night noises, Nobina was caught off guard by Fay’s next comment.

“Nobina… Thank you for being you,” said Fay, looking towards the fire.

“And thank you for being my best friend,” Nobina responded back.

The two spent the rest of the time silently staring at the fire before rejoining the group. The next few days would be relatively peaceful, but soon, the real hunt would begin.