For the first few hours, I barely spoke a single word to Jurian. It was getting late, the sun was slowly setting behind the horizon, and the rays were forming a picture together.
"We'll camp here," Lasin commanded. Jurian built a fire. "We'll take turns on guard every two hours," she paused. "I won't be on guard," she added. I shot her an angry look.
"We all need to get some sleep, not just you," I said in a tense tone.
"We'll manage," Jurian decided. I also shot Jurian a displeased look, but I preferred to let it go.
"How many tent canvases do we have?" I asked.
"I have one," Jurian said. Lasin looked at me. From her expression, I could tell she didn't have one and wanted to borrow one. The canvas I had was quite small, so I left it with Lasin.
"I'll take the first watch," I said. I didn't want to ask if I could sleep in Jurian's tent afterwards. I stuck a few sticks into the ground and stretched the canvas over them. It was quite dry and stuffy, so it was possible that rain would come. Lasin handed out pieces of bread.
"Why are you so tense?" she paused. "We're just on our way to town, and you guys are all about to kill each other." Our response was silence. "We should be in town tomorrow morning, so please start hanging out together." She could tell we were desperate. A part of me suddenly wanted to make things better, but I didn't know where to start.
"You look like a Detruisian soldier to me," I said to Jurian.
Detruisian soldiers are some of the most feared on the continent. There are certainly many strong units in other countries, but as for Detruisia, their regular soldiers would be considered elite in other countries.
"I was once a long time ago, but six years ago, after the assassination of the royal family, the armies disbanded," he replied. "What are you?" he asked.
I never talked about my past. Lasin looked at me curiously.
"I come from a family of farmers, where a few soldiers traveled after the fall of Detruisia, from whom I learned to fight, and a year later I ran away from home," I paused. "What about Lasin?" I raised one eyebrow to emphasize the question. Her gaze grew serious.
"I lived only with Mother, when I was sixteen, some higher power suddenly decided to eliminate us, because my mother found out something, so I just ran away." She took a deep breath. "How old are you? We all look the same age," she added.
"I'm thirty-two," Jurian said.
"I'm twenty-three." I replied.
"So I was right, I'm twenty-one."
Pure-blooded Ming live longer, so in human years it's pretty similar.
"Why are these runes about the past so important to you, Jurian?" Lasin asked.
"Why should I tell you?" he replied with a sting in his voice.
"If you wanted to, you could kill us right there," I pointed out.
"Just because I'm traveling with you doesn't mean I trust you, okay?" he said angrily.
"Calm down, I didn't mean to upset you." She tried to calm the situation down, Lasin. "I just want to know something about you," she added.
"Maybe it's better to know as little as possible," I suggested. Lasin frowned at me. She probably hoped I would support her. "Why are you going to Endton anyway?" I said to Lasin.
"I need to meet some friends," she paused. "To sort out a few things..." She took a deep breath. "I need help with this..." We looked at her curiously. "Of course I would pay you or repay you somehow," she added.
"I don't want to stay in the city too long," I said. Jurian looked at me.
"I would just make some arrangements while I'm at it, then I would be happy to help," he offered.
"Thank you," she said. "Well, I'm going to bed, so good night." She got up from the fire and moved to the tent.
"I'll go too." Jurian mentioned.
After more than an hour, my eyelids began to feel quite heavy. I hoped that it was almost time to change, because at this rate I wouldn't last another hour. The fire was no longer burning, but the moon was bright enough for one to make out various objects. It had started to drizzle lightly. Winter was approaching, so the night was slowly starting to cool down. A slight rustle came from one of the tents. I couldn't even react when Jurian suddenly appeared and sat down next to me. For a long moment there was only silence.
"Join us in Endton, Lasin needs it," he said calmly.
"I have no reason to help her, she's nothing but one of many people who need help."
Jurian looked me in the eye. "Don't try to hide behind a mask, no matter what happened to you, I still sense a good heart in you," he paused. "You want to help her, so what's the problem?" he asked.
"I swore to myself that I wouldn't return to the people again," I admitted.
"I understand that, but let it go through your mind anyway." There was a simple silence for a moment, broken only by the impact of drops on the leaves. "Go rest in my tent, I'll take the rest of the patrol," he suggested.
"I don't need your help," I said clearly.
"I won't carry you if something happens to you overnight."
Scrap, we thought. I got up from the tree and climbed into the tent.