Selena slowly opened her eyes. Her head was aching, and her vision was blurry. She could feel the warmth of a burning fire nearby. The sound of rain reached her ears, but she wasn't getting wet:
-"Where am I?"
She tried to sit up but immediately felt a sharp pain in her arm and couldn't manage to move. As her memories started to return, she heard a familiar voice:
-"Selena-san, are you awake? Don't worry, we're safe for now. Stay calm."
It was Kenma's voice. Hearing him brought Selena a small sense of relief:
-"Kenma, you're alright! I thought we'd been captured."
Her vision began to clear, and she realized they were inside a small cave. Her arm was wrapped in a piece of cloth:
-"Kenma, what happened? I can barely remember anything..."
Kenma explained calmly:
-"When I woke up, we were out in the rain. Your injury was serious..."
At that time Selena started to remember. Kenma continued:
-"... I don't remember too, about what happened before, but I knew I had to find a safe place, so I carried you to this cave."
Selena was surprised:
-"What do you mean, you don't remember too?"
Kenma averted his gaze:
-"It might sound strange, but the last thing I remember is leaving the library and saying goodbye to Nilou-san. After that, I have no idea how I ended up here. Where are we? And… why are you so calm even though you've lost your arm? I searched for it but couldn't find it."
After a short silence, Selena suddenly burst into laughter. Her laughing so hard made her arm hurt again, she said "ouch!" to that but kept laughing. Kenma watched her in silence, confused, as she laughed harder and harder. Finally, when Selena started to calm down, Kenma, confusedly asked why she was laughing. After catching her breath, Selena replied:
-"I'm sorry. I was just imagining myself in your position..."
Kenma was more confused and was a bit annoyed:
-"What's so funny about that?"
Selena smiled, she answered while trying to hold her laugh:
-"I mean, think about it. If I were walking through a city and then suddenly find myself in the middle of nowhere, in the rain, lying unconscious next to a critically injured friend, I'd probably lose my mind. How are you so calm right now?"
Kenma shrugged:
-"You're right; suddenly finding myself here is strange. But in situations like this, we need to stay calm and try to understand what's happening. Besides, I've seen plenty of people suffer severe injuries or lose limbs in battle since I was a child. So I did what had to be done: stopped the bleeding and regulated the temperature around us. And, also, you are so calm even though you lost your arm too, what about that?"
Selena sat up, her laughter faded into a more thoughtful expression:
-"I see. Thank you for saving me. Yes, my arm is gone now, but there's nothing we can do. At least it didn't go for no reason, I sacrificed for my country and for you, my ally, what else could i ask for? It's a honor for me, as a knight. But I guess I will have to retire now, I can't continue my role without my dominant hand."
For a while, neither of them spoke. The crackling fire and the sound of rain filled the silence, and the shadows it cast danced on the cave walls. Eventually, Kenma broke the silence, his voice filled with concern:
"Selena-san, what exactly happened? Why can't I remember? And where are we?"
Selena gave him a faint smile:
-"Kenma, I don't know what happened to you when you were in the city, but I have a theory. First of all, we are one day later of that moment. Do you remember leaving our house that morning after breakfast?"
Kenma, thoughtfully:
-"I do. You were heading to meet the King of Breton."
Selena continued:
-"That's right, but the King wasn't there. He left Terranova for a trip. Instead, we met with the Commander of the Royal Army, Zhou Liang. After the discussions, we decided to set out for Skaldmara to explore, in the following morning. Zhou-dono and I stayed at the palace to discuss strategies and to do some paperwork, while Yuuji and Ichika left. About an hour and a half later, Ichika came back, out of breath, saif that you took the holy medallion and gone to Skaldmara alone."
Kenma was shocked:
-"I went alone?"
-"Yes, we were just as shocked. Yuuji was worried and left immediately to follow you. Zhou-dono, Ichika, and I prepared ourselves and used teleportation magic from Breton's royal mages to arrive near the Skaldmara mountains. From there, we traveled on foot and eventually came across an inn where Yuuji had left his horse just thirty minutes earlier."
Kenma was connecting the pieces:
-"Wait a second. Are you saying we're in Skaldmara right now?"
Selena continued explaining:
-"Yes. We assumed Yuuji would wait for us, but he had already passed through and went to mountains. He was faster than we expected."
Kenma, complimented his friend:
"Well, that's Yuuji. He probably used some magic techniques to enhance the horse's speed."
Selena agreed:
-"Most likely. Anyways, knowing we were behind, we quickly began to climbing. When we reached the first plateau, we split up to cover and explore a bigger field. I climbed to the second plateau and, by some stroke of luck, found you there. I don't know what happened to the others after we split our ways."
Kenma, still connecting the pieces, asked:
-"What was I doing when you found me?"
Selena sighed and continued:
-"You... were in the middle of a massive battle. There were dozens of dead akaldar around you, and you were fighting two skaldar guards: the one with the medallion and... the one with wings. You were exhausted and slowing down. You were losing. At one point, you lost your balance and fell to the ground. That's when I joined the fight to save you."
-"Oh..."
Kenma immediately understood everything. Because of him, the whole team had scattered, plans had fallen apart, and everyone was put in a dire situation. Selena Laurent had even lost an arm because of him:
-"I... I'm sorry. I don't know why did I do something like that... I truly don't even remember..."
But Selena didn't look she regrets, nor she was angry:
-"You don't need to worry, Kenma, and you don't need to apologize because I'm not angry or upset."
Kenma rejected this kind answer:
-"You should be angry or upset! I'm the reason you lost an arm!"
Selena choosed to ignore this and talked about something more important:
-"Do you remember when I said earlier, 'I have a theory'?"
"Y-yeah?"
-"My theory is this: 'Finding yourself in a completely different place while doing something and then not remembering what happened in between' seems like some sort of illusion or mind control. There's someone among our enemies, a skaldar, who can do exactly that."
Kenma thought about it for a moment:
-"The holy armor. Mind control and manupilation ability."
-"Exactly. My guess is that when you discovered where the medallion was, he used it to make you retrieve it. So this isn't your fault, Kenma. It's something that could happen to any of us."
Kenma still couldn't accept the situation and insisted it was his own failure:
-"But if I had gone with you instead of to the library, none of this would've happened!"
-"If you hadn't gone, we'd never have gotten our hands on that book. None of us even knew there was a publicly available copy of it in Terranova. Liang and Ichika were shocked when they saw the book for the first time. Liang even said, 'I thought it was stolen or lost, but apparently it's not!'"
Kenma was atill insisting:
-"But if I'd gone with you, we could've gone to the library together later."
Selena didn't want to continue this conversation. She took a deep breath and dropped a bombshell to end it all:
-"Listen, Kenma. If I hadn't lost my arm, you would have lost your life. And I'd much rather sacrifice my arm than watch the man I love die. Do you understand? If you insist on 'feeling indebted to me,' then you can spend the rest of your life taking care of me to repay that debt." (She raises her half-arm and waves it.) "Look, I'm a disabled person now; I need someone to look after me."
For a while, neither of them spoke. The sound of rain and the crackling fire filled the silence once more. Kenma, completely thrown off by what he thought was a serious conversation suddenly taking such an absurd turn, struggled to find words. Eventually, he stammered:
-"D-d-did... did I hear that right?"
Selena sighed again:
-"I don't know, I said, the rain doesn't seem like it's going to stop anytime soon. I wonder if the others are okay?"
Kenma, shocked by this absolute blazing U-turn:
-"No, no! You said something else just now!"
Selena giggled:
-"Well, you heard it then, didn't you?"
Kenma averted his gaze:
-"I mean, I did, but... uh..."
Selena put on a sad expression, as if she was disappointed:
-"Is it a no?"
Kenma was blushing:
-"I-I guess... it's a... yes..."
...
After crossing paths in the forest, Kageyama Yuuji and Yachi Ichika continued their journey together, in the silence, moving through the shadows of the moonlight. Yuuji, his arms resting behind his head, gazed up at the sky. It was Ichika who broke the silence:
-"I wonder if Kenma-kun is doing okay."
Without changing his posture, Yuuji replied:
-"We're talking about Kenma here. I'm sure he's fine."
After that short conversation, it was all silent again, and they walked on for a while like this. Suddenly, clouds began to gather, veiling the sky. The darkness thickened around them. Yuuji pulled out the torch he had taken from the inn out of his bag, and Ichika lit it with her element of fire;
Yuuji remarked:
-"The fire element is really handy."
She agreed, but complained too:
-"I mean, yeah, it's useful in moments like this, but if you spend most of your time in the city, it's not really that practical."
-"True."
Ichika continued:
-"Yeah, that's actually why I joined my family's trade business, to have more opportunities to use my fire element on the road. I don't even like trading. It's just the travels I like."
Yuuji:
-"Oh, so you mean it's for using it when needed during your travels?"
Ichika nodded:
-"Exactly! Practicing on a training field can get boring sometimes, but getting to use it in real-life situations always feels satisfying!"
Yuuji, as a mage, knew what she was trying to say:
"I know that feeling, using something you've worked hard on in a real scenario!"
Ichika smiled, as he got approved:
-"Right?"
Suddenly, it began to rain. The raindrops quickly extinguished the torch in Yuuji's hand. Ichika, covering her head with her hands from getting wet:
-"The weather's really unpredictable tonight. It went from clear skies to heavy rain in no time."
Yuuji, caught off guard by the sudden rain, made a suggestion:
-"How about this: instead of traveling through the rain at night, we should set up camp and rest for a bit. What do you think?"
Ichika seemed unsure:
-"Wouldn't it be easier to keep moving at night?"
Yuuji had excuses:
-"Yeah, but I feel like I could use a bit of rest. My mana feels like it's running low."
Ichika chuckled slightly:
-"Even Yuuji-kun runs out of mana, huh? Why don't you just use your Nourishing Healing Technique?"
Yuuji stopped walking and turned to Ichika, stared at her for a moment before replying:
-"Well, how should I say... If I use my mana to replenish my mana, it kind of doesn't make any sense, does it?"
Ichika, realising that her idea wasn't very bright:
-"R-right. So... I guess we're camping, then."
Yuuji chuckled at Ichika's flustered response, and Ichika looked away, embarrassed. Kneeling down on one knee, Yuuji placed his hands on the ground. Wooden planks grew up vertically from the earth, forming a square frame. The wood twisted and curved, creating a roof over the structure. Yuuji asked proudly:
-"Ta-da! This is where we're staying tonight. What do you think?"
Ichika's eyes widened in amazement.
-"Wow! This is amazing!"
Yuuji drew a magic circle on the ground and set up a barrier around the small shed to ward off skaldars and wild animals. He then turned to Ichika:
-"I'll make a trench from the earth in front of the door, can you light a campfire under it? If there is a trench, the fire won't go out and even if it rains, we can warm up."
-"Good idea. Leave the fire to me!"
As Yuuji created the trench and placed logs underneath, Ichika ignited the fire and commended Yuuji:
-"You're really amazing, Yuuji-kun. Being able to shape any element however you want like that… I spend weeks just trying to get my fire techniques into specific shapes, but you make it look effortless, even though you just learned them recently."
Yuuji responded humbly:
"Well, controlling solid elements like earth or nature is actually easier than shaping elements without a fixed form, like fire, electricity, or water. I struggle more with water techniques compared to these two."
-"Hmm... I see. But still, what you do is amazing."
After the fire was lit, Ichika took out a small package from her bag:
-"Since we're here together, let's eat! If we don't eat, we can't get stronger, and we can't beat our enemies!"
Yuuji laughed:
-"You sounded just like my mom."
Ichika smiled and giggled:
-"Hehe."
Yuuji also took out a package from his bag, and the two of them shared a meal by the fire inside the small cabin. Then they chatted in front of the campfire for a while. When it was time to sleep, they prepared their sleeping bags. Yuuji's sleeping bag, however, was torn to shreds from the attack with thorns from that skaldar. Ichika, seeing the sleeping bag, asked Yuuji:
-"Are you sure you'll be okay sleeping in that?"
Yuuji glanced at the sleeping bag, then at Ichika.
-"I think so..."
Ichika averted her gaze, her cheeks turned red:
-"If you want... you can sleep in mine."
Yuuji asked:
-"But then where would you sleep?"
Ichika's face grew even more red:
-"Well... I-I'll sleep in mine too. I mean… my sleeping bag is a bit wide, so I think it's big enough for two people. I'd feel bad if you had to sleep in a ripped one while I was comfortable, so… yeah. Look."
Ichika opened her sleeping bag to show him. It was indeed large enough for two. Yuuji, surprised by the size:
-"Wow, it really is big! Isn't it heavy?"
Ichika, in a soft and slow voice, responded, she was still red and was avoiding eye contact:
-"No, it's as light as a regular one. My dad said it's made from a special fabric."
Yuuji hesitated for a moment, then looked at Ichika:
-"But… wouldn't it be weird for two people to share the same sleeping bag?"
Ichika looked at Yuuji's confused face, and she quickly averted her gaze again:
"-Well, you might think that, but… I-I'm just trying to make you comfortable!"
Realizing her sincerity, Yuuji decided not to make the situation more awkward. Smiling, he shrugged:
-"Alright, if you're sure it's okay... then why not? I just don't want to make you feel uncomfortable, that's all."
Ichika nodded quickly, her voice trembling but firm.
-"Of course it's okay! It's a wide sleeping bag, so don't worry!"
Carefully, the two of them squeezed into the bag, lying back-to-back.
For a while, they lay in silence. Yuuji was listening to the soft crackle of the fire and the sounds of the forest, and was thinking about everything happened in these one week. It was unreal. He was about to end his life, but he meet someone and that person changed his mind, and now they are together in an operation to save Terranova's future. While thinking to these, his eyelids were slowly closing. But, he felt Ichika straightening up. Yuuji slowly turned his back to Ichika to see what was happening. Before even being able to ask anything, Ichika climbed on Yuuji and and lie down slowly. Their faces were so close that they could feel each other's breaths. Ichika's cheeks were as red as an apple. Yuuji was shocked, he stuttered:
-"I-I-I-Ichika-san?"
Ichika got her face even closer to Yuuji:
-"Shush... It will be our little secret."
She softly connected her lips with Yuuji's lips.
...
At the first light of morning, Yuuji woke up. He glanced at Ichika, who was still fast asleep, and quietly slipped out of the sleeping bag. As he got out of the drowsiness, he remembered what happened last night, and smiled:
-" A little secret..."
Stepping outside, he saw that the rain had stopped, and sunlight was breaking through the clouds. Thanks to the barrier he had set up, the area was peaceful, with no animals or enemies nearby. Feeling refreshed, Yuuji washed his face with water from his bottle, drank a little, and did some warm-up exercises.
After preparing a small breakfast, he went back into the shed. Ichika was still asleep:
-"Hey, sleepyhead, time to wake up," Yuuji called softly.
Ichika didn't stir. Clearing his throat, Yuuji tried again, a little louder:
-"Ahem! Hey, sleepyhead, time to get up!"
Ichika turned over, mumbling,
-"Five more minutes, please..."
-"We don't have five minutes, Ichika-san. We need to eat breakfast and get moving."
-"Five more minutes..."
Yuuji rolled up his sleeves and approached her:
-"Well, you asked for this."
Ichika sleepily turned toward him.
-"What do you mean I aske—"
Before she could finish, a splash of water hit her face, making her yelp and jump up in shock.
-"Yuuji-kun!"
Yuuji burst out laughing, while Ichika glared at him, clearly annoyed:
-"That's not funny! Don't use water element techniques for stuff like this!"
Yuuji was still laughing as he said:
-"Come on, it's breakfast time!!"
Ichika placed her head back on the pillow:
-"I'll sleep a little longer!"
Yuuji replied firmly:
-"Nope, we need to go. Did you forget we're searching for Kenma and the others?"
-"Uhh…"
Without warning, Yuuji grabbed Ichika by the waist and lifted her into his arms. Ichika was shocked:
-"W-w-what… are you...??!!"
Carrying her out of the small shed toward the spot he had prepared for breakfast, Yuuji said:
-"Quiet down! We're wasting time, and what if something happens to Kenma and the others while you're sleeping?"
-"Y-you're right, but… don't do things like this so suddenly…"
Yuuji, reminding last night:
-"You are the one telling that, miss little secret?"
Ichika blushed:
-"Okay! Okay! You won."
…
After the breakfast, they packed up their belongings and started moving through the forest. As they walked, Ichika wanted to talk about the current situation:
-"Yuuji-kun, where do you think Kenma could be?"
Yuuji thoughtfully responded:
-"Hmm, well, i don't know."
Ichika, correcting her question:
-"I mean, try to look from his perspective, where would you go if you were him?"
Yuuji didn't change his mind:
-"Well, I can't imagine what he would do, I don't know about him that much yet."
Ichika was surprised, as she thought those two were old friends:
-"Huh? I thought you two were like childhood friends? You give that kind of vibes..."
Yuuji:
-"No no, we just meet one and half week ago."
Ichika was more surprised now:
-"What? How can you trust him so much then?"
Yuuji looked like he was okay with it:
-"I mean, we met and he saved my life once. And this is his plan after all, to research skaldars and their suspicion actions."
Ichika seemed suspicious:
-"But what if he is a traitor?"
But Yuuji didn't have the same idea:
-"No, I don't think so. I trust him. And we can't just declare him as a traitor even though we get suspicious, if we don't have any proof."
-"I understand. If you say so..."
The morning cold was surrounding them, seeping into their bones. Yuuji shivered, unable to hide his discomfort. Ichika noticed:
-"Are you cold, Yuuji-kun?"
-"Y-yeah, a bit. I'm not really used to weather this cold."
-"I see."
Though Yuuji was shivering, Ichika seemed completely unfazed. Curious, Yuuji asked:
-"Aren't you cold?"
Ichika shook her head with a smile:
-"One of the perks of being a fire element user, I can warm my body from the inside. It's great for cold weather!"
-"Wow… that's pretty useful."
Suddenly, Ichika stepped in front of Yuuji and stopped him. She reached out and gently pressed her warm hands against his cheeks. Yuuji was startled:
-"It's w-warm!"
Ichika smiled:
-"Hehe, if you want, I can keep you warm like this!"
Yuuji blushed slightly, feeling her hands on his face:
-"B-but… like this, we won't be able to keep walking…"
Realizing this, Ichika pulled her hands back quickly and turned away, slightly embarrassed. She nodded and began walking again:
-"Y-you're right."
After a brief silence, Ichika hesitatingly reached out and grabbed Yuuji's hand. She said softly:
-"B-but if I hold your hand like this, we can keep walking… and I can still keep you warm."
Yuuji felt the warmth of her hand envelop his hand and he looked away. Ichika's face turned bright red, but she stubbornly kept holding his hand:
-"I-it might feel strange, but… this is the easiest way to keep you warm! A-and… there's no problem, right?"
Yuuji gave a small smile and replied:
-"It's not a problem… I guess I'll get used to it. But your hands really are warm. I guess having fire-elemental abilities is pretty handy."
Ichika seemed a bit more at ease now, though her blush remained. She smiled shyly and looked away:
-"I told you, fire element always comes in handy. Plus… walking like this isn't so bad…"
Yuuji looked over at Ichika and noticed how flushed her face had become. He said teasingly:
-"Ichika-san, your face is turning red."
Ichika quickly turned her face to the side, avoiding his gaze:
-"Sh-shut up! It's just… it's just too hot, that's all!"
They continued walking. Moving deeper into the forest, small paths began to appear on the ground. The silence was almost intact, except the light wind rustling the leaves. As the two walked, they came across a skaldar camp. Quickly, they hid behind the trees.
Yuuji whispered:
-"A skaldar camp. They must be guarding the paths ahead. Conceal your mana, Ichika. You might feel a bit cold, but... we need to stay hidden."
Ichika hesitated:
-"U-uh, I don't know how to conceal my mana…"
Yuuji sighed:
-"Ah, right. In that case, I'll seal your mana. It'll have the same effect as hiding it, and I'll release it when necessary."
-"A-alright."
As Yuuji sealed Ichika's mana, his focus shifted momentarily. He reached into his pocket with his left hand and pulled out the green stone that tracked the medallion. Standing to his right, Ichika noticed the stone and gasped, both surprised and thrilled:
-"The stone is glowing! That means we're getting closer to Kenma-kun! If you hold it, it should guide you, do you sense anything?"
Yuuji nodded:
-"Yes. Beyond the skaldars up ahead, I can sense where the medallion is. Whoever created this stone was a brilliant magician. I'd love to meet them someday; it's such a practical technique."
Ichika asked:
-"What do we do about the skaldars ahead?"
Yuuji replied, his voice turned serious:
-"We've come too far. Since they're guarding this area, I'm guessing the path beyond leads to Skaldmara's main settlements. If my guess is correct, we should avoid engaging here for now. It's not worth exhausting ourselves."
Ichika agreed:
-"You're probably right. Besides, if we meet up with Kenma-kun later, it'll make things much easier… but wait, what if he is in trouble?"
Yuuji turned to her, his expression was tense:
-"It's possible. Let's hurry."
Using the trees for cover, they silently navigated around the camp. Once they were far enough away, they began running. With his mana suppressed, Yuuji couldn't sense his surroundings, but as he dashed between the trees, only one thought consumed his mind, as they got closer and closer to Kenma:
-"Kenma, please be safe."
Ichika's words were echoing in Yuuji's head. What if Kenma was here because he had already ran into trouble? What if he had been captured? These thoughts ate away at him as they moved forward. But then, Yuuji noticed the stone's signal growing stronger. They were close. He slowed down, and a few moments later, Ichika, who had fallen behind, caught up with him.
Ahead of them were some thick bushes. Together, they carefully approached and peered through the foliage. What Yuuji saw made his eyes widen in shock.
Beyond the bushes there was a wide open field, and at the center was a skaldar guard with the holy medallion hanging around his neck.
Yuuji's voice trembled:
-"K-Kenma… isn't here. Does this mean he lost the medallion?"
Just then, a familiar voice startled him from their behind:
-"You guessed right. Kenma lost."
The voice belonged to winged skaldar guard, who was directly behind Yuuji and Ichika.