"Hello again, Madam Witch. Leaving already?"
It was the following morning, and the older guard I'd met the previous day was standing at the border gate. It seemed that he remembered me, and he greeted me with a cheerful smile.
I returned his smile and said, "Yes. It wasn't a very large country, so I saw everything I wanted to in a day."
"Yeah…this place isn't the most exciting."
"Not at all. It was very enjoyable."
"Ha-ha, thanks for the laugh." He saw right through me.
"By the way, what happened to the young guard from yesterday?"
"Hmm? He's off today. He left the country last night and hasn't come back yet. Did you have unfinished business with him?"
"Just another joke." I asked because I'm trying to avoid him.
"Anyway, he said he would be coming back this evening, so you can wait if you want to see him."
"It's fine."
"Mm. So you're going, then?"
"Yes. I'm not in any particular hurry to get to the next place, but if I don't leave the country where I'm staying in the morning, I can't usually reach the next one before sunset." Plus, there's a stop I want to make.
I was more concerned with that place than anything here.
"Is that so? Well, take care of yourself."
"Will do. Thanks."
And so I stepped through the gate.
Then…I could see the forest in the distance. I looked toward the area I had come from the day before and took off on my broom.
A few scattered trees led the way, as if they had been flung from the forest, lending a different hue to the sea of green spreading out before me. The cool wind blew wildly, twisting me around and chilling the earth. Clouds hung in the air, blocking out the sunlight.
The gray sky had already begun to turn the color of lead.
It's going to rain soon.