"False reports," Olivia answers curtly.
"Hm?" Rose murmurs.
"They spread false news, claiming they had found the crystal—more precisely, your father," Olivia continues, a faint smile forming at the end. "They traveled the world, facing trials and obstacles. My father respected yours greatly, Hiro."
I lower my gaze.
"So fate turned it into reality after all?" I say.
"Your father is a hero, Hiro. He saved the world," Olivia replies. "If fate made it real for him, then why shouldn't it be the same for his child?"
I don't answer. Silence hangs between us.
"Then… will you help us?" Rose asks. "Like Uncle did for Hiro?"
"That was always my intention, Miss," Olivia says. "I didn't leave Quenstown because I was uncomfortable. I left to prove the stories my father told me."
"And then?" Rose presses.
"To go far. To grow strong at an early age. To follow my father's path—if those stories were true."
"Will you come with us, Olivia?" Rose asks.
Olivia shakes her head.
"No. But I can help you cross the sea."
"How?" Rose asks.
"Do you know," Olivia says calmly, "that I became one of the magi's operatives? I was assigned here to guard the land routes."
"W-What?!" Rose blurts.
"As I said, Miss. To prove my father's story. But fate brought us together at the right time. You've found an exit—both of you."
"How?" I ask.
"Can you ride a horse?"
---
"We're using your horse?" Rose says, startled.
"Yes. You won't be able to enter without a ticket, and getting one means waiting in line for over a month," Olivia replies.
"That strict?" Rose mutters.
"That's why Oliver chose not to cross by sea," I say. An image of him standing alone in the night flashes through my mind.
"Exactly. Sea mines," Olivia adds. "Experience doesn't lie. My father was your father's navigator—and his musician—back then, Hiro."
I nod.
"Don't tell me you're going after your father, Olivia," Rose asks quietly.
"That's how it should be," Olivia answers. "If the story is real, I'll go to him. And when I do…" She hesitates, then looks at me. "May I become your traveling companion someday, Hiro?"
I shake my head.
"E-Eh? Why?!" Olivia blurts out, shocked.
"No. Not unless Oliver comes back with you," I say. "Besides, doesn't Santiago's pigeon need you more?"
"…Right," Olivia replies slowly. Then she looks around. "Wait—where are they?"
"At the village barrier. Pigeon knows better, Olivia." Rose says.
"The barrier? I'm getting more curious about who's behind all of this," Olivia says.
"One of the Vanguard. The second Vanguard who came for me," I reply.
"I see. That helps," Olivia says, inhaling and exhaling slowly. "I've decided. I'll dig deeper for information on that agent. They're one rank above me."
"So… we're parting ways for now?"
"Of course. We'll meet again someday—with Oliver by my side," Olivia replies, her face bright with determination.
"And if not?" I ask.