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> Going on a journey alone is calm, but it is a lonely one. But having a friend with you, it can lead you to interesting paths in life. Discover more things in the way, get to know more about them, and perhaps get to know more about yourself as well.
- Taro Naoko
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After the happy resolution with my friend, Garett, I finally reported to Taro about his explanation for the ambush and the information about the Mysterious Woodcarver. I then requested his permission to go on the sole mission to get more information from the strange man the following day. And surprisingly... he immediately granted it to me with no hesitation. I was thankful, but still in doubt about it all at first. It was very unusual for him to just suddenly allow me to take on a risky mission without him worrying, stopping me, or babbling some excuse for me not to go. It then made me think of the possibility that he might have followed me secretly. But regardless of it happening, I didn’t mind that much as I continued to work the rest of my day.
Right. I almost forgot that I needed to learn to trust him more and doubt him less…
Time then flew by so quickly that I ended up forgetting that it was already the following day. I guess I got distracted by the preparations. I was now standing at the entrance of the bailey with my sword in its scabbard hanging on my side. I was also wearing a long, brown cloak with a hood over my head. At first glance, people can mistake me for being a fugitive. I decided to leave a letter for Garret outside his prison cell earlier as well.
Despite how he already knew about my departure, he was still behind bars after all, and I much preferred to leave without anyone seeing me off... or so I thought.
"Seems that you are leaving early today, General," I heard her say, and that made me stop my tracks, slowly turning around to face her. It’s rude to ignore a lady after all. "Though, I must say, this is... truly a bit surprising for me, and the first time that you would choose to leave without saying goodbye to any of us…"
It was Lady Lucerne. I kept myself quiet as I let her continue. She had a worried look on her face and asked, "Is there... truly no way for me to change your mind on leaving?" I was hesitant to answer as I looked away for a bit before taking a glance.
Unknowingly, my legs and feet started to move on their own as I gently held her hand and gave her a sincere smile when I apologized, "My apologies, Lady Lucerne, but those are the orders from the King… And I must do this alone. However, you should not worry too much, I’ll return as soon as possible after gathering the intel we need. I’ll be safe and I will keep in mind what you said before. "
"I will trust your word on it, General. But please, take these with you as well. " She said as she started to smile a little. She then gave me a small crossbow along with a small long brown box, and inside of it were a couple of small arrows made of ice.
The crossbow is small enough to hide away easily, and the ice arrows seem to be made of magic since, even in this heat, they don’t seem to melt at all. Upon closer inspection, there’s a needle inside each of the arrows. Overall, this could be useful when you’re going to shoot someone through the head in just one shot.
Though I find it a bit strange for someone like her to have these with her since she doesn’t use these kinds of weapons but instead often uses her tomes and staff… But of course, who am I to judge? I thought before bowing and said, "Thank you, lady Lucerne… I am truly grateful for this kind gift from you."
"Of course. You are very much welcome, General." She replied, as she continued to give that sincere smile.
After putting the crossbow and the small box away, I got on to my horse, looking at the balcony of the king’s chambers. However, no one was up there. I expected Taro to see me off, but given it’s still early dawn, he would probably be asleep.
Though perhaps I should have left a letter for him too, as I did with Garett… Hmm?... My train of thoughts suddenly came to a halt as soon as I noticed how Lady Lucerne placed her hand on mine, which made me look at her for a moment. Our eyes met as I could feel my heart beating fast as she gave my hand a squeeze.
I could see from her eyes, she didn’t want to let me go, she didn’t want me to leave... And somewhere deep down in my heart, I would have wished for the same selfish thing. In a different timeline, I would probably have done it— or I would have told her something differently, but alas, I can’t.
"I… I supposed I should be going now..." I began as I saw her nod slowly after she sighed under her breath.
"Yes— Right— I know… And I am truly sorry for trying to hold you back here, and wasting more of your time… I was just…" she paused as he bit her lower lip, and slowly took back her hand. After a few seconds of silence, she slowly shook her head before looking up at me once more and said, "If you… arrived at your destination safely, Please… remember to be careful with your choice of words when talking to him."
Hearing her say those words immediately brought chills down my spine as I suddenly remembered what Garett had said about how strange and dangerous a man I was going to meet once I arrived at the place. It did take me aback and made me hesitate a bit, but he couldn’t be that worse, could he? Garett could just be exaggerating when he told me about it… But her eyes, full of worry, seemed to tell me otherwise.
"A-Ah, I see." I said in a reassuring tone as I nodded. "I will keep that all in mind."
She was silent as she stared at me for a short moment before we both looked at the portcullis that began to slowly lift itself up. In a loud voice, the gatekeeper from above then soon after called out to me, reminding me that I should take my leave now and that I shouldn’t waste any more time. One last time, Lady Lucerne and I exchanged glances. No more words came out from either of us as I began to ride off into the distance, finally leaving the kingdom of Ivory Moon without looking back…
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The sun slowly began to rise on the horizon as it beautifully unwrapped the hues of the sky above me. As I head to the east, I can feel a bit of warmth from the golden rays of sunlight, blinding me slightly as I hold on too tightly to the reins. I could see flocks of birds flying by in the distance as the cold, gentle breeze began to blow. This journey was peaceful and relaxing. It was completely new to me. Something I’ve never known I could experience despite my many travels.
For so long, I thought that my eyes could only see gruesome battles— very long ones, burning houses, rivers of blood staining the unsoiled ground, along with decaying bodies. Those were nothing like this— not as beautiful or captivating as nature. And my hands… I assumed they would always tremble and be stained in bloody red because they only know how to use something sharp like a sword against others, such as enemies. I've been fighting in this war for so long, too long, that I've forgotten I once had a life outside of battle... but still…
"Huh? What the— Hold!" When I noticed a crowd of men forming on the path, I immediately pulled the reins of my steed, preventing it from proceeding any further. Looking at the situation closely, it seemed that the men were burglars, threatening a poor old woman and a crying little girl. And I know that I could just go around them, turn a blind eye to the situation as it’s not my business, but instead…
"Oi! "What do you think you're looking at, freak?" exclaimed the leader of the burglars, pointing his finger at me, but none of it bothered me.
After all, I've been called far worse than that. He and his thugs just stood there watching me get off my horse and slowly approach him. And without any warning and no sudden urge of rage, I suddenly delivered a powerful fist against his cheek, causing him to fly away and even lose a tooth.
I still believe that I’m no one’s hero, but I’m no bloody monster either…
"Huh… I never thought that these hands could punch that well as well." I said to myself as I looked at the knuckles of my hand before slowly looking at the goons, who seemed shaken up at what had just happened to their boss. "... Though, now that makes me wonder how much my feet can kick you all to sleep in less than a minute..."
They all gritted their teeth in anger as they soon began to circle around me with their swords in hand. I stared at the two who were in front of me as I took a deep breath and cracked my knuckles before they all charged at the same time. Then, before the two men at the front were able to reach their blades at me, I immediately grabbed both of them by their wrists, jumped and kicked the man who tried to come from behind, and kicked the next one as I landed on the ground. Their screams of pain and sounds of breaking bones were quickly followed as I twisted the wrists of the two men I was still holding on to before throwing them both on the ground at the same time.
And they all still keep coming. I wasted no time and continued to block and attack them all with only my hands and feet. Even though I’m able to dodge their attacks, one was able to stab me on the shoulder. Still, that does nothing. I immediately took out the blade and hit his wrist, making him lose the hilt of his sword, then hit him on the chest and quickly followed it on the side of his neck to finally knock him off.
As I prepared myself for the others, I heard a galloping horse coming in my direction. There I saw the horse knocking out the remaining two men who were just standing on their feet. What surprised me the most was the man on the horse. He was wearing a brown cloak with a hood above his head; underneath was a white tunic with long and puffy sleeves, black pants, and a pair of long brown boots. As he approached, his hand was extended to me.
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I was hesitating at first, but at the second, he was already in front of me, and no matter how surprised I was to see him at that moment, I immediately grabbed it and he lifted me up to sit on the back. In a happy tone, he then said, "My apologies for my tardiness, but I’m here now!... Let’s go to the house of the woodcarver together!"
"Are you crazy?! Why did you come after me— Do you want to die?!" I shouted.
"Heh… I just came here for you. Now hold on tight, Al!" he said to me before we both looked at the old woman and the little girl, who were both already in my steed. "And you two follow us immediately, alright?... And never look back and slow down kid."
The little girl nodded, and soon we both left immediately.
Though there were some of the goons who tried to chase us, we never got that far and ended up giving up on them. And despite all of my questions about how he, Taro, was able to catch up with me and get out of the kingdom without alarming the people there—especially her mother and Lady Lucerne—I kept my silence for the time being, until we could arrive at the nearest village where the old woman and the girl could be left safely and without worry.
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Arriving at the nearest village we could find, we stumbled upon a crowd making us get off of our steed. And as soon as Taro and I had both our feet on the ground, the old woman walked up to Taro, grabbed his hand, and shook it vigorously. "Thank you! Thank you so much!... Both of you! For saving us from those horrible men in red…" she said in such a joyous tone as tears started piling up in her eyes. "T-They always come to our little village to steal, and sometimes even kill the people here if we don’t comply with their demands… W-We all began to flee from our small and poor village to bigger ones to be safe and have a new life, but still…"
Taro then took a quick glance in my direction before looking back at her. "Oh, I see… And you don’t need to thank us ma’am. And we just did what we could to help people like you…" he said to her in a reassuring tone.
"... I-I’m sure that my men— I mean— the King of Ivory Moon would send his men to come here soon and protect your village from those men. Or even better, if they would be able to help to flourish the place…"
The old woman began to smile a little. "T-That truly sounds like a lovely idea, young lad…" She then looked down at the ground and shook her head slowly. "... B-But even if help comes one day, I don’t believe that it will make it… The men in red have been looking for more new villages and lands to conquer for several days now..."
The men in red… Is the kingdom of Helio Vermillion truly that desperate nowadays?
As the two of them continued talking, I soon noticed the little girl who was clinging to the side of my cloak. I blinked twice in confusion before soon kneeling down on one knee in front of her. "What is it, little girl? Do you need something?"
Surprisingly, she gave me the reins of my steed. I looked at it for a moment before looking back at her. She had her head lowered while holding tightly on her clothes. "I’m sorry for… trying to steal your horse while you were fighting off the bad guys earlier…" she said. "I-I thought maybe I could use it to take us away to a different village… to have a new life… But grandma told me that it was bad… And if we left you, no one would help us again because we took your help for granted… I’m so sorry, sir…"
I gently placed my hand on her head, rubbed her messy and ashy hair before noticing the star clip on the side. I then carefully removed it and placed it properly in her hair. "It’s alright... And don’t worry, I’m not mad at you… Honestly, I’m actually surprised and glad that you still came here with enough courage to tell me the truth, despite knowing that what you did was wrong. That’s not something everyone can do..."
The little girl’s eyes widened before tears began streaming down her face.
Did I just make a little girl cry in public?! I thought in a panic, but suddenly the girl ran to me and embraced me. She was still crying, of course, but it was a bit of a relief to me that I didn’t make her cry on purpose. And honestly, it reminds me of my younger sister, Endellion, when we were younger, like this little girl. She was a crybaby…
"Come now, we should better get going…" the old woman said to the little girl.
The little girl soon breaks the hug and wipes away her tears immediately. She then smiled with such determination and confidence as she said, "Mark my words, sir red eyes… I will grow up to be a great fighter like you one day!... I-I promise you that!"
Taro and the old woman laughed under their breath, but I believed in her words.
"Oh? Alright, then..." I said as I soon carefully stood up and crossed my arms with a smile. "Well, I suppose I’ll meet you in the kingdom of Ivory Moon, after perhaps a couple of years or so? That is, if you’ll still be able to recognize me after that long…"
"I-I believe that I can do it. Not unless you’re the one who can’t remember me…" she said. "But oh, right. I haven’t told you my name, haven’t I?... It’s Neeja… Nee—ja!"
"Alright, I got it, Nee—ja. And you can just call me by the nickname you gave me… I’m fine with it, for now at least." I said before looking at the old woman then back at the little girl, Neeja. "Well, I suppose until the day we meet again, may you two be safe, and may you always be there by your guardian’s side and help her with things..."
She gave me a quick nod before sprinting to the old lady's side. The two of them then began walking away as Taro and I bid them farewell before he soon looked at me slowly with a goofy grin and said, "You know, Al… I never thought that you were that good with kids. I do wonder now… if one day you and Lady Lucerne would have a chil—"
"Don’t tell me you already forgot that you still owe me an explanation… did you?"
Taro slowly puts down his hand as he chuckles in a very, very awkward tone.
"Oh, right… I almost fully forgot about that one…" he said as he scratched the back of his messy white head as his gaze looked away from me for a short moment. "Hmm, how about we leave the town for now to catch up on lost time, then I’ll tell you my explanation on the third night, when we’re almost there at our destination... Deal?"
I stared at him for only a very short moment before sighing in defeat.
"I won’t argue with you…" I said before I began walking to my steed.
"O-Oh? Is that a yes?... H-Hey! Where are you suddenly going?... Al?... Al!"
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There were no other problems we encountered during our journey ahead after that. I didn’t have that many issues with Taro either, since this wasn’t the first time we went on a journey together after all. Just like before, when we first met, though I lessened the coldness and rudeness towards him now, he’s not a picky eater nor did he have problems sleeping anywhere. Sadly, that part of him that is easily distracted by everything he sees in every shop we visit, in every town we pass through, no matter how simple it is, is still there. Just like when we went to a blacksmith earlier, he tried to carry a giant knife-like sword that was displayed there, but ended up causing a big ruckus that I had to pay for and apologize for on his behalf.
Regardless of how very disappointed I was with him at that time, after a day or two that passed, we were able to get further than I anticipated. Arriving at the huge forest area that’s connected to the Emerald Forest, where the house of the Mysterious Woodcarver is.
And, while we won't have to worry about thieves and bandits bothering us tonight because the towns are so far away, the forests are the home, or used to be the home, of the half-humans and half-animals, or Erankos, as I believe they're called. Though I don’t believe they’re like actual wild animals who would fight us for no reason, it is better to be extra cautious after all.
"You’re… "You've been honing your sword for a while now, Al," he said hesitantly. "You’re still not mad at me for the mess I caused last time... are you?"
I keep my silence with my eyes on my sword, continuing to hon it. Loudly.
"A-Alright, I suppose... I do deserve that silent treatment from you… And I also believe that I still owe you an explanation for my sudden, and reckless plan to follow you here. Though I don’t think that you would like it any better, here it goes…"
He then took a deep and long breath before he began his very long explanation in an unexpectedly quick way. "I switched places with Sir Klein, then he used the same mask your sister wore used to disguise as him last time but this time he used it to disguise as me then I made letters to both Lady Lucerne and my mother just in case they found out about the reckless plan we did in less than a minute and I released Garett to help me escape too!" And after he finally finished explaining with no literal pausing, he ended up sweating a lot and was breathing heavily.
There were still some questions I had in mind, despite understanding what he did, and listening to it somehow stopped what I was doing, and finally looked at him. But the only words that came out of that time were: "... But why did you do it though?"
He looked surprised by my question at first, looking at me before looking down.
"Well… I suppose there was a part of me that says that I want to be free for once... as free as a bird that is able to fly away to anywhere they want, and not just be stuck in the cage forever..." He then looked at the night sky as he reached his hand out.
"And I don’t believe I have told you this before, have I?... The day before I was crowned King at the age of sixteen, my mother, who wasn’t drunk at that time, told me that I could have anything I wanted. May it be fame, fortune... power, but never could I ever have friends— or even just a friend like you, and love, like any couples do…"
He chuckled a bit before slowly looking down at the ground once more. "But realizing and seeing how truly fortunate I am, and how many other people suffer with a much more terrible life than mine, I couldn’t help but feel... selfish... I have everything that I need every day, too much even, and I could have given them away to help those who call out for them. But... I wasn’t able to do anything or not enough…"
I stared at him in silence before looking down at his reflection on the sword of my blade, and the first words that came out of my mouth were: "You're not her, Taro." He then looked at me immediately with a surprised expression before I continued with, "Despite everything that has happened— and the heavy burden they put you through, you haven't given up on your kingdom and your people. You haven't given up on me. And you've done more than you could, and what they could. Isn't that enough?"
He didn’t respond. He suddenly went silent for a while. And the next thing I heard from him was... sobbing? And to my utter surprise, when I finally looked at him once again, he immediately greeted me with a warm embrace. My eyes and mouth widened, not knowing what to do— or how to react to any of these moments at all.
"H-Hey! Taro— my sword is still here— you might get yourself stabbed with it!"
"T-Thank you, Alessio…" he said as his hug became tighter. "Thank you…"
I became silent. Still not knowing what to do, I ended up sighing quietly. Closing my eyes and gently patting him on the back, "You’re welcome, Taro… My friend…"
Truly, sometimes I don’t know what to do with him. But I must say, he did somewhat make this journey a little bit more interesting and worthwhile for the both of us…
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