They walk a good time down the foothills of the mountains, on the way you will find streams, KEKI tells them to store water for later, it is said that the mountain has changed, it is not safe if there will be water.
Everybody fills their bags with leather.
After one of the mountains, in the distance, you can see a huge castle, which is attached to a mountain, the front is wide, has double wall, is fortified, KEKI announces that this is the KINGDOM OF KIRO.
The place is dangerous, she warns that it has been besieged for a decade.
So it won't be easy to get close.
Everyone sees each other, TOIRE smiles, sees his companions.
INKU following the attitude, says yes, they are ready.
They're starting to move forward.
KEKI and TOIRE go to the front, followed by ESU, WAPURO, OKE and back, INKU watching.
The strange thing is the way to get there.
The whole place is scarce in trees, when it should be the opposite as it is a forest.
As they intern within the terrain, they realize that there is less and less vegetation, also remains that the trees were felled, some ripped from the root.
Although they have walked cautiously, they have not encountered mercenaries or beasts.
There aren't many trees to hide in, it's a walkable road.
Unexpectedly, KEKI and TOIRE who went to the front, fall underground, due to a very well camouflaged trap, the others rush to approach, a second trap is activated, when one of the branches they stepped on is released.
WAPURO and OKE jump dodging a net that falls on ESU and INKU, which tried to get the girl out of the way, the net catches them and closes, the branch climbs leaving them captured aloft.
They notice that something moves in the tree where they were captured, as, some leaves fall off.
KEKI is angry, because the walls are slippery, previously moistened and sludge.
With his bare hands, from the hole, he throws bursts of air ripping off all the leaves of the tree and is exposed, an old man who wants to get down from the tree, stumbles and falls as, lacked grip on his hand.
Seeing that it doesn't seem like a serious threat, they don't rush to react. INKU looks inside the hole, tells TOIRE to get them out of there, they're a little tight in the net.
OKE is upset to see INKU and ESU so close together.
He doesn't like to see them together and less so stuck given the circumstance in a net.
ESU feels uncomfortable, he's in contact with a man, though, he tries to calm down so he doesn't panic, he's a friend.
OKE partes the top of a thick branch of a tree.
WAPURO touches the tree and this branch finishes starting when the branch is dry, the branch falls into the hole and in this way, KEKI and TOIRE begin to rise.
OKE climbs the branch that binds INKU and ESU, she doesn't like to see them together and less so stuck.
WAPURO has gone after the man, who has run to nearby trees, she arrives next to the man, threatens him with his cane.
She can see that this sloppy man, wearing clothes from the kingdom of KIRO, with a sloppy beard, bald on top, clear eyes, he is confident, he is certainly a master in his own art, his attitude is wary.
He can only see a woman who, despite being older, has a lot of energy and his seriousness makes him uncomfortable.
At a time when WAPURO turns to see that they have already come out of their traps and run towards them.
The old man throws a smoke bomb, on contact with the ground activates, contains a gas that stuns them a little in the mist, the old man escapes.
When the mist leaves the smoke, they look at each other.
The old trick worked for him, OKE says, that made them confident, they let their guard down when they saw he was an old man.
INKU completes the sentence: a very agile old man. In an instant, KEKI, TOIRE and INKU perceive something and run in the same direction, others follow them closely.
There is a large tree not far from there, the 3 climb easily and when they enter the tree they realize that inside there is an "improvised house".
Very well made of various materials.
(shields, pieces of wagon, ears, etc.)
From within you hear the voice of the old man, who says: well... Well, they got me, but I won't give them my whiskey!
The others also climb and see the house, a small door opens, you can see the old man lying on one of the walls, on a mattress taking from a bottle.
END OF CHAPTER 26