"What's the situation over there right now?"
"The others arrived and there wasn't a single trace of that sinister thing we detected."
"How unusual..."
"Well, I should get going now since I have to report this incident to the higher-ups."
"Ah, we'll go with you, I have to possible new recruits!"
"You strikes again! Why are you always the one bringing in new recruits whilst I cant!"
"I guess it's just my charisma?"
I guess these two colleagues really get along, as Nanako said we should probably hop on with them if they're heading for Rayonaird.
"I'll be preparing the carriages then!"
"Where are we going to meet up?"
"Maybe by the north gate?"
"Let's meet at noon then!"
"Alright!"
He left the Inn and proceeded to go elsewhere, Nanako came back to our table and we proceeded to finish our breakfast.
"What a weird guy."
"Are all the people in the association like that?"
"I think so..."
"Well let's finish eating so that we can prepare to go to the capital."
After finishing breakfast, we got back to our rooms and we headed out to shop for some new clothing. We went ahead to the merchant's district in the west part of Esthel. I got two brand new sets of formal looking clothes that Nanako bought for me, they look like what nobles would wear, with the long-sleeved top with some belts that go around my shoulders, they look more like black and white overalls, Nanako also bought me a long sock with a brand new pair of shiny shoes! I headed to the fitting room to try it out, I finally removed the black armor I've been wearing this whole time, it's full of scratches here and there, since it's connected to the Nemax I reverted it to its crown fragment form.
"Wow, I feel kinda refreshed wearing brand new clothes, it's also loose and not as tight as that armor I was currently wearing."
"Good for you then!"
"Is Celene finished?"
"She should be out about now!"
The Curtains moved to the side and me and Nanako we're surprised to see Celene wearing another dress similarly looking to her old tattered one, this time instead of red and white, she went for a pink and red combination and she also has a new head tie.
"Surprised?"
"Very surprised!"
"How about you Nanako? Where are your new clothes?"
"I just bought a new pair that looked similar to the assassin looking clothes I'm currently wearing."
"How did you even find that?!"
"Never underestimate my searching skills!" she claimed proudly
"It's almost noon and we spent some time shopping for clothes, let's eat shall we?"
We headed for the nearest restaurant and we ate some fish and bread for lunch. I let out a sigh of relief as we made our way to the north gate.
"You guys sure took your time!"
"Shut up! We got hungry!"
"Get in the carriage then, we need to hurry and we must get there by sundown tomorrow."
We got into the carriage that looked so fancy as if it was made for nobles. The carriage is driven by two white horses and one coachman, the seats were very comfortable and I felt like I could sleep anytime.
"So are you two kids the ones who were recruited by Nanako?" the eyeglasses person asked
"What about it four-eyes?"
"Hey now don't be so rude!"
"Nanako told us to call you that."
"Nanako! Anyways, I'm Caiso, and you guys are?"
"I'm Celene!"
"Tarus."
"Nice meeting you two! I look forward to the results of the aptitude test!"
"Oh, about the aptitude test, only Celeen will take it since Tarus is a crown user."
"YOUR A CROWN USER AT THAT AGE?!"
"Hey don't shout!"
"Yes, yes I am."
"Did you like, get a permit?"
"No, I'm from the other side."
"The oth-other side?!"
"Let's keep it confidential, since your Nanako's colleague, I'll be trusting that you won't tell anyone?"
"I pr-promise!"
"I have a bad feeling about this..."
"Can I ask you a question?"
"As long as I can answer it."
"How's the situation on the other side?"
"It's infested with demons, the people I lived with fought for their lives on the line just to live peacefully."
"Then how did you get here?"
"It's still a mystery for me, but I have a way of breakthrough the border."
"That would be perfect! We've sent expeditions to the border for the past five years to no success."
"I guess I'll be joining that."
"You need a certain rank to join the expedition and you have to be highly skilled."
"Thanks for the info, you seem to be trustworthy."
"Leave it to me!"
We have a long road ahead, during the evening we stopped and set up camp, they grilled some meat over the fire and they slept outside. Nanako kept guard outside as I and Celene were sleeping inside the carriage, I was awoken by weight around my shoulders and to my surprise, Celene was there sleeping peacefully whilst leaning on my shoulder...this feels somehow nostalgic...as if it has already happened. Dawn came and by the time I woke up we were back on the road, Celene was still leaning on my shoulder and sleeping.
"We should be arriving soon."
"I can see it!" Celene suddenly jumped to the window
There it was, the marvelous city of Rayonaird, the royal capital. The city walls were magnificent to look at, the walls were at least thrice as high as the walls of Esthel.
"What a beautiful city!"
"It's more marvelous on the inside."
"I can't wait!"
"I'm finally back...huh."
We passed through the city walls easily as the guards knew that the one's inside were from the crown association. The stunning city of Rayonaird was even more astonishing on the inside, houses were very humungous, and the districts were bustling with people and light. In the middle of it all there lies the royal castle, it has floating roads connected to it for easy transportation.
"Wooooooooow!" Celene couldn't keep her excitement in
"Here we are at the headquarters!"
"This building sure is huge."
"It's even bigger inside since it has a huge facility underneath it."
The headquarters of the crown association, such an impressive building as it was fortified to the brim, it's already huge but considering the houses here it was small. We went inside and cold comfortable air enveloped me and I wonder if it was similar to those things called "AC" back on the other side...my thoughts were interrupted when suddenly a person bumped into me, he or she fell down to the ground.
"Are you alright?" I extended a helping hand to help the person get up
The hooded person touched my hand and their hands were so small and fragile...the person then got up.
"Thanks." the hooded person whispered in a light voice
I couldn't see the person's face but I have a feeling that we were going to meet again as this might not be our first and last encounter...