The Malayas

After seeing his father and Karlo's death in the humongous fangs of the Guardian Snake, Riko started asking himself if it's all right for him to live. The young knight started asking himself if it's all right for him to continue living while the ones who died could not.

Lyrica wipes the corner of her eyes with her hand, removing the salty liquid as she stands back up.

"Sorry, I ended up saying a lot." She sniffled before letting out awkward laughter. "Mila must be waiting for you. Go, I'll stay here for a bit."

The more he thinks about Lyrica's story, the more Riko thinks that he and she are indeed similar. However, there's one thing that sets him and Lyrica apart from one another. Riko found the answer to his question from within himself. Lyrica's answer also lies within herself, but she's struggling to decide whether it is the right answer or not. That is why...

"You want the answer to come from someone else."

"Huh?"

The girl looks down at the young knight sitting on the ground, making an expression that looks as though Riko correctly guessed what's in Lyrica's mind.

"I can give you the answer to your question." Said the young knight towards the girl. "But you know, everyone else's answer doesn't really matter."

Saying that Lyrica remains silent. Her face darkened.

"In the end, the one thing that truly matters is the answer you want to hear."

Or in other words, the answer to Lyrica's question can not come from someone else but only to herself.

With that being said, Riko asks the girl, "What answer do you want to hear?"

"What answer I want to hear, you ask?" Lyrica looks down to the ground with a troubled expression on her face. "I don't know."

"... I see." The young knight responded after a short pause. "Well, no rush. You have plenty of time to think things through, so take your time. I'm sure you'll find the answer to your question."

Lyrica quietly sits down on the grassy surface once again. And although she didn't say anything to the young knight in response to what he told her, the girl took the words of the young knight and imprinted them in her mind.

The young girl has plenty of time to think things through and she has no reason not to do that.

And just like that, the silence begins to seep through the river park. Where nothing but the sound of channeling waters and creatures could be heard.

It goes on for a while. Until moments later, the silence starts making them feel kind of awkward.

"Aren't you going back to Mila?"

"I already said she needed space. So now I'm here."

"Huh."

Longer and longer, the awkward silence becomes more and more unbearable. That said, the two tries to find something to talk about.

"There's something I want to ask you."

"I want to ask you something."

"Ah."

"Ah."

The young knight and the young girl both found something to ask one another. Knowing that they can't answer each other if they both ask one another at the same time, the two start inviting the other to speak first.

"You can go first." Said Riko.

"Are you sure?" Lyrica replied.

"Yeah."

"All right then." Lyrica proceeds to clear his throat. "It's about the wounded group of people in white armor back in the Forest of No Return."

"The Malayas?"

The group of wounded knights in white armor. The ones who Lyrica saw as they try to get away from where Riko and the others are confronting the Guardian Snake.

"So they're called Malayas, huh." Said Lyrica. "Can you tell me why your group and theirs are in the dangerous forest?"

Right then, the young knight's expression turns serious.

"I can tell you about what happened, but this conversation needs to stay here. Is that all right?"

The young knight kindly asks the girl to which she nodded, followed by a resounding yes. As he received Lyrica's affirmation, Riko clears his throat and begins to tell the story of the time before they meet Lyrica.

***

It all started around in the morning. It was around the same time where Lyrica is busy dealing with a mob of slimes in a flower field. Underneath the warm sunlight is the north entrance of the town of Takkot.

Outside the north entrance are two guards who are trying to kill time with their weapons in hand when they saw the silhouette of a group of knights clad in white armor approaching them and the north entrance. The knights in white armor are the soldiers of the Kingdom of Reilaea—The Malayas.

One of the guards came rushing inside the town to inform others about the white knights' arrival. That time Agario's squad and Riko, who are dispatched around the northern section of Takkot, were the first ones to receive the news. And so, they went to meet the Malayas outside the entrance until the high commander arrives.

"State your business!"

Agario uttered towards the Malayas.

"We are here looking for the missing Malayas the kingdom of Reilaea sent to the kingdom Kruule." Said the white knight who appears to be the commander of the Malayas. "We came here to cross the town and reach the capital city of Kruule."

"The Hari has forbid foreign visitors from entering the Kingdom."

***

"The Hari forbids people from entering the Kingdom? Why?"

Lyrica curiously asked Riko. But to her dismay, the young knight doesn't have much information.

"The ones that receive information is the high commander. While I and everyone else is only tasked to do what we are told. However..."

"However?"

"From what I know, the Hari made an order to forbid foreign visitors and trades in the kingdom, on the same day he forbid everyone from talking about the four heroes. Four days ago."

'So the Hari forbid visitors from entering the Kingdom at the same time he forbids rumors about the four heroes from spreading around. Huh.' Said Lyrica in thought. "What happened then?"

"The Malayas insisted on entering Kruule, but we also told them that they cannot enter time and again." Said the young knight. "Eventually, they gave up trying. But before they left, I heard the Malayas talking in a group. I heard them talking about missing Malayas and the four heroes who they are looking for."

"Ha? The four heroes?"

Lyrica learned that the rumored four heroes originated from the capital city of Kruule. If outsiders know about it, then they must have learned about the rumor from someone in Kruule. But then, Riko said that the Hari forbid foreign visitors from entering the Kingdom, as well as forbidding the people from talking about the rumor four days ago.

"So why do they know about the four heroes? Why are they looking for them along with the missing Malayas? Aren't they supposed to be just rumors?"

"I don't know," Riko replied to the curious Lyrica. "I don't know how they know about the heroes and I don't know why they were looking for them, so I went and asked them. And that's when–"

"... Hey. Riko? What's wrong?"