“I love them.”

“Uh-huh.”

Mouse bit into a fresh peach in his left hand. He had another in his right, with a few chunks already missing. He swung his feet out the back of the wagon they sat in. Sweet Bun slithered a few meters away, cautious of the brown Finch linlao and the two children riding him.

“She said they have sweet breads and weird camel things, whatever that is.”

“Caramel.” Taiga shrugged, “not sure what that is, though. Something from Monx or Sashume maybe?”

“These people are the best.” Mouse took another bite from the peach on his right. It was sweeter than the left one, though less juicy.

“And you’ve dealt with demons before, you said?” A man dressed in finery came up next to them riding a tan, well-tempered horse. It even let Mouse pet its mane before they started moving. It was such a nice horse, despite the human looking like he belonged in the annoying courts of Lanria’s capital.

“A few times. There’s been some outbreaks,” Taiga nodded, “out at Hase,” where they killed the first Guardian Spirit Grhaanfjes, “and Leonold, near Applegate.” Where Mafgnesn had invaded Mouse’s mind.

The man processed this with a simple, “ah.”

“Oh those were bad, I heard. Remember, love, about what that fur trader said?” The loud woman rode up beside him. “He said they’ll have to rebuild from scratch. You were there, huh? You’re some of the lucky ones.”

Mouse paused. Lucky? What was lucky? The deaths of hundreds of humans? The loss of two of the most ancient beings that treaded their earth? That protected their lands, and homes, and ways of life?

As heat settled over him, Taiga squeezed his leg. Though a smile showed on his face, the tightness in his grip melted Mouse’s anger.

Taiga, more than anyone, hated ‘luck’.

He said that the ignorant use the term luck when they don't want to know the truth. Taiga had been called ‘lucky’ many times growing up, and even more in knighthood upon discovering who he was.

The last of the Ganakri. The last Child of the Forest.

There had been no luck that day.

“We really were, weren’t we?” Taiga laughed, shaking Mouse from his thoughts. “We saw our fair share of action, but we can only thank the stars for keeping the corruption from us.”

“Right? When I heard what happened…”

Mouse listened no further. Taiga still squeezed his leg.

He said nothing until midday, and Mouse took the break to walk out any stiffness. He wandered to Sweet Bun, flashing her the friendliest smile he knew how to muster. She stomped her foot and puffed air at him. He paused, but stayed ready for any sign of acceptance. When she snapped her beak in threat, he slunk away.

“Here,” Taiga held out a small cloth pinched between his fingers with something nestled within. He held his palm out, and Taiga gently placed it down.

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Mouse unfolded a corner of the cloth covering the contents, confused at the weird brown cubes inside. “What is it?”

“Caramel, apparently.” He shrugged, “I don’t care for it. I think you will, though.”

He picked a cube up, surprised at its slight gooeyness, and put his tongue to it. A heavy sweetness surged from the tip of his tongue, across it, and spread through his mouth. He pulled away as it zapped him.

“It’s so sweet!” He plopped it onto his tongue, trembling slightly as the caramel melted itself. “Kind of like honey.”

“Yeah, it’s too strong for me. You can have them all.” Taiga smiled at him, chuckling a moment. “It’s a Sashume sweet, apparently. They got some down south at the port and have been giving out samples to regional nobles to test the waters.”

When they began moving again, Taiga opted to walk, and Mouse leapt off the wagon to join him. A kid jumped from the driver’s seat to the back, digging through a bag to find himself a piece of bread. He plopped down and chewed while watching them.

“Hughe,” Taiga called to the old man Mouse guessed was the leader of them. “You mentioned seeing demons before. Is this common? We’re from the west, but thought demons stayed in corrupted zones.”

The old man nodded, touching his beard a moment, “I grew up hearing them in folklore. Bedtime stories to scare us kids away from areas devoid of life. You know, where the plants die and whatnot?” He shooed his hand at something Mouse couldn’t see.

“It really wasn’t until a few years or so ago that I saw one in the flesh,” he flicked his walking stick towards Taiga, alarming Mouse before he realized it was simply for dramatic effect. Humans and their confusing ways. “From afar, of course. A very safe distance away. Some mercenaries like yourselves took care of it.”

“Nothing until a few years ago?” Taiga delved for more specifics.

The loud woman nodded, “Never! And it was weird at first. Demons existing? It really shook a lot of us.”

Mouse gazed at her, vaguely curious as to why she spoke so loudly. Taiga wasn’t loud, and people heard him just fine. But she’d given him fruit and caramels, so he shrugged off his annoyance. Instead, he just walked on the opposite side of Taiga, occasionally checking the ground for any nice looking rocks.

“I know a few people who stopped their travels altogether,” a different woman added, walking ahead of them. She slowed to keep pace with them. “They found a nice place to set up shop, and do all their trade from there.”

“I’ve never heard of this.” Taiga replied seriously, “even in the capital, Pall, there’s no talk of this.”

This was true. Demons weren’t some creature roaming the plains like animals. They existed through the over abundance of corruption or purity, though the former was far more common. And without that over abundance, demons couldn’t maintain their forms long before slinking back to the shadows of the Beyond, of the so-called demon realm.

If demons were suddenly free to wander as they pleased in Lanria, Pall and the royal courts would be in uproar. At the very least, knights would be dispatched to investigate the claims, whether true or false. But they, as knights, never heard of this.

“Sounds about right. From what we’ve seen, no official Lanrian investigation has looked into it.” The woman added, “nothing from the queen, the nobles, or anybody.”

“Why not?” Mouse ventured, and caught Taiga glancing at him.

The woman looked at the old man, who shrugged before he spoke. “We hear more than most, because we’re traveling merchants. It’s our business. A lot of people would tell you that’s why Pall doesn’t know. Word hasn’t reached them yet.”

Mouse didn’t quite get it. Maybe he wasn’t the best at learning stuff, but it didn’t make sense to him. How could this go on for years, and somehow no nobles have told any officials who in turn would inform the courts?

He at least knew one thing; the royal courts loved gossip. The local nobles would send word, and officials would spill to their bribers. This is how the courts worked, from what Taiga had shown him.

After a long pause, Taiga spoke. “Who’s cleaning up?”

The old man smiled, “I like you. You’re a thinker.”

Apparently Mouse wasn’t, because he still didn’t get it. The woman who had slowed for the conversation now broke away and returned to her place. The loud woman and her husband started their own conversation, whispering to each other. Taiga’s face hardened.

“The mercenaries.” He grinned, showing a few gaping holes where teeth once were.

Taiga stared down the old man a moment, before making a few small nods and turning to Mouse. He said nothing, instead taking a deep breath. Mouse tugged at Taiga’s sleeve, but only received a small smile in response.

Whatever it was he didn’t understand, Taiga did.