Chapter 51: The first day (2)

With Kibadios flying by his side, the gang flew away from the airship aimlessly for about fifteen minutes on Ryuu's back before he finally slowed down and allowed the group to disembark before transforming back into his humanoid form. Since they knew the three mercenaries would be tracking them down, flying on a huge, easily identifiable target was the least wise decision they could make.

「Ryuu kun. I did not know you're a dragonkin.」After checking on Kyles to ensure he was unharmed, Yllaner turned around and leaned in to take a closer look at the dragonoid.「...Forgive me for asking, but who are you really?」

「That's...」Ryuu turned to his master, asking telepathically for Kibadios to help him out.

「You're the "Ryuujin", aren't you?」Yllaner smiled.

「I'm...」

「Yes. How did you tell?」acknowledged Kibaidos, knowing that denying any further would be pointless.

「I'm fairly observant, Kibadios dono. Before, I did not know Ryuu kun here is a dragonkin so I wasn't so sure but now that I know he's one, him being Ryuujin is the only logical explanation since after all, he only showed up by your side right after the Ryuujin incidence.」She chuckled. 「and then there's that mysterious summoned spirit that was able to purify the miasma and take down the Prime Minister, which means you could also have cleaned off the miasma that radiated from the "Ryuujin" … and last but not least, if you want to hide the fact he's not Ryuujin, maybe calling him a different name would help, haha..」

「You're not afraid of me, Yllaner dono?」

「How come? You just saved me and carried me on your back all the way here.」Yllaner shook her head. 「If anything, I have to thank you. Having you, Kibadios dono, and everyone here is really assuring.」

「And you don't have any question for me, Princess?」Kibadios grinned.

「I'm sure you will confide in me when you deem the timing is right.」

「Yllaner sama...」Ryan interrupted, his voice slightly shaking. 「Where should we go from now? It seems like our only ally had abandoned us.」

「I know.」Yllaner frowned.「But even so, I don't think the situation is as grim as I thought. Right now, we all have to get moving though, before they catch up to us.」

「But where are we going?」Maia asked. 「We can't go to the Fyeran's capital anymore, can we?」

「No, Maia chan. We're going to our hideout to regroup with Thomas dono.」

「Hideout? How do you know they'll be there?」Rowan was curious.

「You see, Rowan kun.」Yllaner started to lead the way while explaining the whole situation to the group.「Like I have told you, before I left for Vernys, His Majesty had informed me that he had asked Thomas dono and Amber dono to help me in this conflict. If they agreed, they were told to come to Fyeran and await my arrival. Given the time, I'm sure they would have arrived here a few days ago, before the Clan decided to side with my brother and if that's the case, they would have for sure met with Lord Uran.」

「Who's Lord Uran?」Kibadios asked.

「He's the grandson of the head of the Fyeran Clan, Easlyn dono… He's acting as my "spy" in the Clan.」

「Spy?」surprised the group, though only Kibadios, who knew her intimately from her previous incarnation, was acting casually.

「Yes. You see, I am the apparent heir to Shilna Clan Head and effectively, heir to the head of the Vernys Confederation, so for years, I have been acting behind the scene, building up my extensive network of like minded individuals and sympathizers to my vision of a strong and unified confederation. Since factions arguing for dissolution of the confederation and full autonomy have always existed in all of the Clans, it's my job to keep them in check. To do so, I need to have influential "pawns" to act as my eyes and ears. Lord Uran is one of them and he's also one of my most devoted supporters in the whole of Vernys Forest.」explained Yllaner. 「And had Thomas dono met with Lord Uran, then I'm sure he would be aware of the secret hideout location and that's where we would be able to rendezvous.」

「But then why would Lord Uran ever disclose such important information to someone who is essentially an outsider?」asked the hybrid.

「Because after Kyles fell into a coma, I had written back to inform Lord Uran about my decision to stay in Lorian for a while. In that letter, I have also told him about Thomas and Amber dono and how we teamed up to deal with the Catastrophe Class creature. I also told him about you, Kibadios dono.」Yllaner gave the hybrid a warming smile. 「Given what I have told him about the group, I think Lord Uran would be able to trust Thomas dono… besides, Lord Uran is now in prison so it makes sense for him to entrust my safety in the hands of someone reliable. And that's why I think Thomas dono was present back there to help us out. Of course, all of this are just my conjectures.」

「Pretty solid conjectures if you asked me.」Kibadios nodded.

「So where is this hideout, Yllaner sama?」asked Ryan. 「Are we close?」

「Actually, yes. It's about half an hour walk from here. This "hideout" was an abandoned ritual site that no one uses anymore. Even in Fyeran, only the highest ranked individuals would probably have a chance of knowing it exists and asides from me, only Lord Uran and Lord Easlyn would know the exact location.」

「... So that clan head also knows?」Ryuu grew concerned. 「He had decided to betray you and side with your brother, Yllaner sama. Don't you worry he will lead others to check out the place?」

「Dont worry about Lord Easlyn. He won't do that.」

「What do you mean?」Ryuu was curious.

「He is an old mentor and a dear personal friend of my mother, I'm sure he won't be leading the mercenaries to our hide out.」

「But he did side with your brother, didn't he?」Just like Ryuu, Maia was also confused.

「What else could he do? Even if he's loyal to us and the Vernys Confederation, even if he's willing to die for the preservation of the forest, in the end, he's still a Clan head that is responsible for hundreds of thousands of lives.」The elven princess sighed.「As leaders, sometimes, we can't be selfish… Which is why... brother's actions are despicable...」Yllaner's voice was breaking up due to her anger.

「Yllaner sama...」Ryan faintly called out.

The group continued to follow the Princess deeper into the dimly lit forest. Vernys forest was much older than the forest Kibadios was dwelling in before, with the tree's roots weaved deep into the land, mixing with one another into an unending matrix. It has been in existence for hundreds of millenia. Even during his first reincarnation as Zaeryn, the Vernys forest, at the time called a different name, was already ancient and covered a landmass almost 5 times its area at present days, much of which was cut down by the surrounding countries as they expanded. Just like the Amazon forest back on Earth, there were native inhabitants there 10000 years ago but their numbers were few. That seemed to have changed ever since a large population of the wood elf, then called merely "elf" migrated from the west due to the theocracy's discrimination and made the forest their home some 2500 years ago. Because it is located right next to the largest inland mass of water called the Operon Sea, the forest was extremely wet and full of moisture, which allowed green mosses to thrive on the old tree barks and the forest ground. As the group walked through the uncharted path, Kibadios could easily detect countless of unseen animals lurking along them in the thick shadows, curiously and nervously studying the suspicious outsiders. At some points, a group of a dozen reindeer-like creatures, with giant antlers covered in red mosses, would hop out from behind a large tree. Its leader paused, then looked at the group, like how the Forest Spirit looked at Ashitaka, before he turned away and leapt forward on their predetermined path. The sudden intrusion quickly elicited a fiery response from the hybrid mutant, who would put up his guard and start hissing like a wild animal, his fingers formed into claw shapes, ready to strike. This unusual habit was because when he was hiding in the forest, he had to be vigilant against any other beings, whether they were wild hungry animals or merciless slavers, since had he let his guard down, he could either be attacked and eaten or caught. The group continued traversing further, with Kibadios intentionally walking at the back since he was busy controlling his shadow tentacles to carefully rearrange the fallen tree branches and withered leaves after they had walked past it so that they could not be tracked.

「Here we are!」Yllaner exclaimed while pulling a screen of thick vines to the side, revealing a large enclave. 「Our hidden rendezvous location!」

「「Wow...」」The group simultaneously made the same astonishing sound. And who could blame them since in front of their eyes was a large and unusually still lake. Its water was crystal clear, acting as a natural mirror that reflected the sunlight off of its surface. The access to the lake was blocked off from almost all of the directions due to thick tree trunks and rigid vines growing and expanding against one another. The only way to enter the lake vicinity was through the screen of soft vines that Yllaner had just led the group through. Kibadios reckoned that the best and possible the only way to notice the lake would be by flying over it. As he walked closer to the edge of the water, he noticed that the unusual silvery reflection emitted from the lake was not simply due to the sunlight above, but mainly because of the abundant small crystals that could be seen lying at the bottom and on the side of the lakes. Hovering above the water in groups were small fireflies, which either emitted bright green or cyan fluorescent lights, further transforming the lake into a beautiful and mystical place. In the middle of the lake was a small, circular landmark, where a large and lonely tree withered. Having arrived at their intended location, the group finally let down their guards for a few moments and started enjoying the scenery. Rowan and Ryan quickly walked around the lake and soon found themselves on the opposite side looking back at the entrance while Ryuu and Maia stayed close to Nu. Kibadios found himself sitting at the edge of the lake, hanging his feet down into the cold water to relax. Soon, without saying anything, Yuusei would slowly make his way toward the hybrid, then comfortably snuggled in between Kibadios' laps like a house pet.

… What is this sensation I'm feeling… it feels like the lake itself is calling out for me… Kibadios thought to himself as he leaned on the mutant sitting in front of him, his chin resting comfortably on the mutant's head, though Yuusei did not seem to mind his master weighing down on him.

「Isn't it wonderful?」Yllaner walked to Kibadios after spending some time caring for Kyles' body. 「I personally think this place is the most beautiful place I have ever been to. Too bad we're not here for sight seeing.」

「"Suteki da ne…"」Kibadios spoke softly since what the Princess just said and this tranquil lake reminded him of the lake in Macalania Woods, except that this lake was much more brightly lit with sunlight. Maybe the lake where Mononoke nursed Ashitaka back to health was more like it , he thought.「Indeed it is… Even I did not know such place exist in this forest… 」

「Even you?」Yllaner noticed Kibadios again was speaking puzzlingly. 「... You're just an enigma, aren't you, Kibadios dono? 」

「Ha, you're not the first person to tell me that.」

「Let me guest… Both Lance dono and Gilga dono had also claimed so?」

「Yes.」 Not Lance though, he already knew everything about me , Kibadios thought, but he rather kept that a secret.

「I can't wait for the day you explain everything to me, if it ever comes.」

「I'm just curious, Yllaner dono. Why do you still trust me then? 」

「Because you're strong?」Yllaner laughed. 「At this point, having you and Ryuu kun by my side is much better than not having you guys assisting me at all. I'm already backed into a corner, what else can I lose? But if you really want to know why I trust you even though I don't know anything about you, I guess there are two main reasons: First, it's just a gut feeling. It's funny because I rarely do anything by gut feeling but like I told you before, somehow, I feel like I have known you for a long time and that I can trust you with my life… probably because you saved me more than once already.」She laughed. 「I wonder, Kibadios dono, do you have that same feeling?」

「What feeling?」

「That we have known each other before?」

「... Truth to be told, yes, I do!」grinned Kibadios. 「That would explain my eagerness to help you, wouldn't it?」

「Hmm… Maybe we're acquaintances in our past lives!」The princess teasingly suggested.

「That's probably it!」Although he knew it was true, Kibadios agreed in a joking manner. 「I didn't know you believe in past lives, Princess.」

「Well, I don't really but then how else we can explain this weird feeling, right?」

「Hahaha, true… and what's the second reason?」

「That'd be because of Ryan.」Yllaner revealed.「During these past three months, seeing how Ryan kun was head over heel whenever I mentioned your name to him, I figured you can't be a bad person.」

「... He was?」

「Yes. He kept going on and on about how great you were. It's actually adorable.」Yllaner smiled. 「I'm not going to lie. At first, I was afraid you were just using him and somehow you tricked him to be part of your harem.」

… Shit, she did figure me out , Kibadios was sweating, wait, did she say… 「You know about my relationship with...」

「Yes, Maia chan, Rowan kun, and most likely, Ryuu kun, right?」Yllaner smiled.「I mean, just look at them, they all blushed beet red whenever I teased them with your name. If you guys want to hide it, I suggest better acting. But anyways, I really don't mind the fact that Ryan had to share you with others, as long as he's happy… and it seems to me he is truly happy.」The princess paused, chuckled to herself, then continued. 「You know, there's one time I pointed out a visible hickey on his neck and he was exploding with embarrassment. Seeing how devoted he is to you, I have decided to place my trust in you, just like Ryan did.」

「Thank you, Yllaner dono. I really hope one day, I can tell you everything about me, but then, I really don't want to burden you with such knowledge.」confessed Kibadios.

「That's fine. I can wait. No matter what, I really appreciate your help… I know that you're just here to protect me and you don't want to insert yourself into his conflict, but if you don't mind, can I "borrow" Ryuu kun for one job?」

「Haha, of course, I don't think he'll mind. He's the one who suggest we should just barge in and take care of your brother on our own, saving you the trouble.」

「Really? That's nice of him but the job I'm thinking of only requires his presence and nothing more.」

「Who's there?」Ryuu suddenly shouted the moment he heard rustling noises coming from the entrance, disrupting the conversation between Yllaner and Kibadios.

「No need to worry! I'm here to help Princess Yllaner.」A man replied.

「Oh.」Maia, who was close to the entrance, quickly recognized the person. 「Thomas dono. It's really you…Amber dono and Floria dono too!」Behind Thomas was Amber and her partner, Floria.

「Hello Maia. It's been a while.」Amber grinned and waved her hand.

「Thomas dono! Amber dono! Floria dono! I'm so glad you guys have come.」The princess rushed to greet the group.

「Of course, Yllaner dono. After what Kyles dono did to protect us during the battle against the Prime Minister back in Lorian, even if I have to sacrifice this old man's life, I promise I'll protect you from harm in his stead.」Thomas gave Yllaner a warm hug.

「That's right. During that moment when the creature released its deadly attack, it was Kyles dono's Arte that saved us by flying around and reflecting the energy beams away… Had he not done it, maybe he would have been able to...」Amber's voice started to break.

「Please don't blame yourself, Amber dono.」The princess turned to the sleeping hero. 「I'm sure he wouldn't want you to.」

「... Besides, Yllaner dono...」Thomas' warm face turned serious. 「Thanks to coming that I was able to find him.」

「Him?」

「Erik, my adopted son… and the person who gave me this.」Thomas reached up to the scar that mutilated his eyes. 「I guess this mission King Lance asked me to take has become a rather personal one, too.」