The soft sunlight seeped through the trees, illuminating the dew-soaked leaves. The morning air was filled with the fresh scent of soil and the grateful sighs of the people welcoming their children's return.
Now the Exone group began to leave the city of IARES quietly without the citizens knowing. Previously, they had said their goodbyes to the new ruler of the city, and Arya handed over a paper containing how to rebuild the city to Zeni.
A few minutes later, their vehicle moved calmly on the rocky road, leaving the city of Iares in the distance.
"Ar, I want to try driving this thing too," said Dina, half teasing.
"Don't, sis! You'll get lost," Gamma quickly replied, making Arya laugh.
"What?!" Dina was surprised Gamma said that.
"Hahaha, Gamma is getting better at teasing people!" Arya laughed loudly.
"You're so mean, Gamma-chan," said Dina with a pouty face.
"But Gamma was telling the truth," Venus grinned.
"Whatever. I'm going to sleep," muttered Dina annoyed, then turned away and pulled the blanket.
"Hehehe, big bro, where's our next destination?" asked Gamma.
"Zeni said there's a city in the east that's supposedly a business partner of his father. If I'm not mistaken, its name is UTERI."
"He gave that kind of information?!" asked Gamma.
"Yeah, he's starting to know what's best for his city."
Venus yawned lazily and leaned on the room door. "Hey kid, get me a beer…"
"It's still morning, sis!" said Gamma.
"It's okay, Reisa-chan! Beer is a vitamin for the body!" Venus replied casually.
"Don't teach Gamma bad things, Venus!" Arya scolded.
"It's not bad, come on, hurry up and get it!"
"Yeah yeah." Arya reluctantly took out the beer. "Just drink it in your room so Gamma won't smell it."
"Okay, fine." Venus slowly walked away. "Bye Reisa-chan." She strolled into her room holding a bottle of beer.
"Yes, sis!" Gamma answered cheerfully.
Arya's vehicle resembled more of a moving house than just a means of transportation. Inside, there were private bedrooms, a small kitchen, a toilet, and a cozy living room.
Glancing toward the window before asking, "Gamma, aren't you going to sleep?"
"Later, big bro."
"Go to sleep, look, Dina is already asleep." He glanced at Gamma.
"But I want to enjoy the view, big bro!" Gamma said pleadingly while looking at the trees.
"The view? You like watching the trees pass by?" Arya asked while glancing at her.
"Yeah, it feels calming." Gamma's cheerful face stared out the window.
"Hahaha, if you get sleepy don't force it, okay!"
"Okay, big bro!"
"We're here," said Arya, trying to wake them up.
"Hooaam~ We're here, big bro?" asked Gamma with a sleepy face.
"Yes, we are." Arya handed a towel to Gamma.
"The bath is ready, you guys go wash up, okay."
"Aren't you going to bathe, Ar?" asked Dina, still half asleep.
"I already did."
"Ara~ why didn't you bathe together, kid?" teased Venus from under the blanket.
"What?! Come on, I don't mind bathing again with you, Venus," Arya replied casually.
"Pervert!" shouted Dina with a blushing face.
Venus giggled. "Ara~ why are you the one getting shy, Dina? Don't tell me you want to bathe with Arya too?"
"N-No!" Dina quickly went to the bath.
"Hahaha! So mean, Dina, rejecting me like that!" said arya dramatically.
Inside, Venus smiled. "Dina's shy, Arya is clueless. An interesting pair."
Gamma looked innocently. "Sis, why can't men bathe with women?"
Arya patted Gamma's head. "A woman's body is sacred, Gamma. It shouldn't be shown carelessly to the opposite gender."
"Sacred? Why?"
"Because everyone has boundaries they want to protect. That's why it's called a sacred part."
Gamma seemed to think, then said casually, "But I don't mind showing mine to you, big bro."
"W-What?!" Arya panicked.
"Hey, Venus, please teach Gamma…" Arya quickly left.
Venus approached Gamma, gently holding her hand.
"Reisa-chan, don't think too much about it. When you grow up, you'll understand."
Arya continued tidying up their things and put the vehicle into storage.
"Hey, I'm going to the city first! Let me know when you guys are done!" shouted Arya from outside.
"Yesss~!" answered Gamma and Dina in unison.
And in the bath:
"Dina-chan, you like Arya, don't you?" asked Venus with a teasing tone.
"W-What?! Like?! Who would like him!" Dina immediately blushed. "I mean, he is amazing… so there's no way I'd be a match."
"Ara~ it's okay to like someone. Or… should I be the one to get Arya?" teasing tone.
"What?! You're old already! Know your age!"
"What?! Who are you calling old?! Look, it's still firm!" Venus pointed at her chest.
"I like big bro arya too!" said Gamma suddenly, casually.
"Eh? Gamma too?!" Dina and Venus in unison.
"Yeah.big bro Arya is so cool! I like him! I want to be like Arya who helps many people!" said Gamma while looking up.
"Haah... So that's how it is." They were relieved.
Meanwhile…
"Achoo!" Arya sneezed outside. "Why did I suddenly sneeze? The weather is warm though…"
Upon arriving in the city of Uteri, the first impression that came to Arya's mind was... emptiness.
"This city is like the one in the Kingdom of Belmera... many citizens are starving, trash scattered around, no children in sight, and... why are all the women here old?" Arya thought silently, walking through the empty streets.
His eyes scanned every corner. Suspicion began to grow in his heart.
"So it's not just children, but young women are also kidnapped. Yeah... kidnapping spares no one."
He decided not to linger there. There was something he had to prepare. Something for the journey and... for the plan ahead.
"Alright, I need to find some materials first."
He walked toward a fairly large store in the corner of the city.
Kerchak. The sound of the wooden door creaked as it opened.
"Welcome," greeted the shopkeeper with little expression.
"Excuse me, Sir. Do you have paper, stationery, and some types of paint?" Arya asked politely.
"Yes. Please find it yourself on the rack over there," the shopkeeper replied without getting up from his seat.
"Alright. Thank you."
Arya looked for the items he needed: several stacks of blank paper, pens and ink, and paint in several different colors. He gathered them and brought everything to the cashier's desk.
"How much is all this, Sir?"
The shopkeeper observed the items Arya placed. "That's a lot of stuff. If I may ask… what for?"
"Oh, I was just told to get these. An assignment from my boss, Sir." Arya smiled slightly, choosing not to reveal anything.
"I see? That'll be 1 gold coin."
"Alright." Arya took out two coins from his pouch and placed them on the table.
"Thank you very much. But… how are you going to carry all this? It's quite a lot."
"Oh, I have a storage bag." Arya opened his homemade bag and showed it briefly. He intentionally designed it to be usable in public without raising suspicion.
"Wow, that's expensive stuff!"
"Hahaha. It's an heirloom from my grandmother," Arya replied casually while putting all the items into the bag.
"Come again!"
"Definitely, Sir. Thank you very much."
Arya exited the shop and continued walking through the gloomy city streets. Briefly, he looked at the stack of papers in his bag.
"This paper and writing tools are for planning the reconstruction of the cities I'll free next. And the paint... I want to make a game. So the three of them won't get bored."
He walked slowly toward the city's exit. His mind kept spinning.
"Hmm… chess? Mahjong? But mahjong seems too complicated for Dina and Gamma. Maybe a custom-made deck of playing cards from paper pieces would work."
Beep! Beep! The communication device beeped. Signal active.
"All done?" Arya asked.
"All done," answered Dina's voice.
"Alright, I'm coming now." Arya closed the communication, then used Teleportation from the city to their camping site.
Upon arriving at the bathing place they had dug earlier, Arya saw them packing up.
"Nothing left behind, right?" he asked while checking.
"No, Big bro!" shouted Gamma while lifting up bath tools.
"Alright. Earth Craft Cancel! Earth Vacuum!" With two short spells, the man-made bath disappeared just like that, merging back into the earth as if nothing had ever been there.
Dina approached him. "Heading straight to the city, Ar?"
Arya shook his head. "No. We'll stay here first. The city is too quiet, not only are there no children, but there are no young women at all."
He opened his storage bag and took out all the materials he had just bought.
"Eh? What's that, Ar?" asked Dina curiously.
"These are materials to make something," Arya replied while arranging the items on a flat patch of ground.
"Make what?" asked Venus, folding her arms while observing from a distance.
"A game. So we won't get bored during the journey," Arya replied, picking up a block of wood and slowly carving it.
"A game? From wood?" Gamma also came closer, full of curiosity.
"Yeah. It's called chess. But it's not just any game." Arya looked at them one by one.
"Why's that?" asked Dina.
"Because this game trains thinking skills, strategy, and the ability to read the opponent's moves. Very suitable for all of us—so we don't act rashly."
With great patience, Arya scraped the wood surface, starting to shape the board and chess pieces one by one.
The sun began to shift westward, but beneath the shade of the calm trees, the sound of carving and soft laughter accompanied their afternoon.