It was a few hours before Cilia left to go and sit by the orchard. Earlier in the day just after the girl brought them the lineup and schedule for their time there and the brown skies festival. At that sliver of minutes, a hidden purpose for their summon to Gart village was revealed. Hidden to the other three other than Karin of course.
"Listen you three, we are not here for the festival." She said her voice falling into a stern one. "Mr Kisharu told me this before we left. I'm sure you understand the current standing of our family, Himo. "
"Other than the festivities we were given another task. That is to guard and protect this village during our stay here. Hence in cooperation with the other Harmatia families present here we are going to take turns in doing that."
"Kento and I we'll take the day while you two will watch over the night."
Her words were final. No room for question or discussion. It was also at this point where Cilia left the cabin for the orchard. Karin hadn't even dared to consider her for a teammate, something they had done for as long as she could remember during their time in the Himo house.
She unenergetically left the cabin and wandered of to the edge where Lozo found her.
***
"Hey Cilia," Lozo called as the two crept up behind one of the buildings. "What did she mean by the current standing of the family?"
"And come to think of Mr Kisharu also said something like that if I remember correctly."
Their conversation was punctuated by a quick dash from the shadows of one building in to another adjacent one across the pathway. Lozo lead with Cilia not far behind him. Though the distance was growing rapidly with every shadow they stepped into.
All that pie had started acting up.
"I can't walk anymore." She said falling to the ground, knees bent from exhaustion. "Maybe I shouldn't have…"
The sentence was barely complete when suddenly she felt Lozo's fingers stretch across her mouth.
He looked tense as he peeped across the pathway from the slight crack between the logs of the building they were hiding behind.
With his other hand he held his index finger vertically across his lips prompting her to keep quiet. "they've stopped."
For the past few minutes the two have been quite busy. Right after the pie supper with granny Metti, they noticed two shadows looming building to building, brandishing out floppy slim rectangular like slips, that kind of resembled talismans, then pasting them onto the walls of the buildings. For them this was strange. Maybe to the residents it wasn't, evident by how most of them stuck to their homes no one daring to look out let alone come out.
With this Lozo was about to dismiss the two shadows but was convinced otherwise by a sudden change of character in Cilia. Her dazed eyes from all the eating had grown sharp with a distinct sense of urgency in them. Her voice, childish and whinny most of the time, had grown a slight authoritarian demeanor, shocking Lozo with the sudden change.
"Let's follow them." She said.
And since then, the two had stepped from one shadow into another shadow tailing the two other silhouettes of the night. Adding to their odd choice in time for strolling the two shadows had another thing odd about them.
"What are they doing?" Cilia whispered into Lozo's ears.
"I don't know. I can't see."
She groaned and stepped back from him.
'What could they be up to?' Lozo wondered. His wonder was silenced for a while with the sudden feeling of ease on his back. While peeping at the shadows Cilia had fully taken the liberty of resting her entire body mass on Lozo. She was quite—
"What are you doing?" Lozo asked after turning to find Cilia standing behind him with her eyes closed.
"Breathing." She answered.
"Breathing?"
Cilia sighed shaking her head in surprise of how little Lozo knew of common terminologies.
Breathing is the process of taking in Natural Energy from the environment and into one's body where it is stored.
"I'm trying to figure out what they are doing by sensing any slight changes in Natural Energy around us." She said explaining as why her eyes were closed. "Now shut up I'm trying to focus."
Her eyes were closed for some seconds before she suddenly opened them.
"Nothing." She said in disappointment. "Don't seem to be doing anything that's upsetting the natural energy here. They are clean."
"But what are those things they keep putting on the walls?"
This was the other odd thing. In every shadowy corner the two went Lozo and Cilia followed. Slipping into them unseen and trying to uncover why the two were creeping in the dark. But once they got to the building the shadows had just left, they found nothing. Just dried up wood with nothing but algae growing on them. At every building it was the same. Whatever the shadows were putting on the walls was somehow disappearing at the instant they placed it.
"Probably Protection Talismans."
Again, Lozo had no idea on the meaning of the terms.
She sighed. "Protection Talismans are a variation of a talisman called the Barrier talismans. They are used to keep away domain and domain beasts from a certain area. Once placed on an area the talismans protect keep them out or in of the area they cover."
"You should really learn about these things. Ask Kento, he usually has all sought of books. "She commented.
Their chatter was briefly interrupted by the sound of crunching. Lozo peeped but even before he could map the area he shot his head back into the shadows, like a turtle into its shell when it sees danger.
"They are coming." He said.
On the path the two could see the shadows grow bigger as they headed in their direction. They didn't seem in a hurry or, by their gestures, not as tensed as before. They strolled closer and closer to where Lozo and Cilia were engaged in odd chatter.
"Hide, hide…" Cilia panicked.
The crunching got louder as the two shadows walked by. Luckily their eyes didn't wander from the path or they would have uncover the two standing in the cover of the building just on the other side. Their backs were pressed against the wall forcing each to seep deeper into the dark with their breaths held tightly. The only thing that worried Lozo was Cilia silver hair that might have stuck out due to its close to white complexion.
Luckily the two men walking past them didn't notice.
"That's it, [sigh of relief]. Those were final talismans." One of the men said.
The other nodded and joined in with a question. "Yeah, but it took a lot of time though. Do you think they'll hold their end of the bargain?"
Suddenly the other man stopped. His eyes narrowed as he schemed the dark corners of the village. No one was there.
"They should or we would have waisted precious resources in making those talismans. Grandmother won't be happy if she finds out."
The second man added in an optimistic tone. "Yeah, but look on the bright side. If it works then we'll be able to get more land and with more land means more money from the fruits. Then we can finally get out…"
His joyous banter was suddenly interrupted by heavy footsteps. They came from a building behind them yet their owner obscured by the building.
"Tch. We better hurry before anyone sees us." The first man said as they picked up their pace before disappearing into the night.
***
On the other side of the building a tense standoff crippled the air. It was between two obviously shady teens and one stoic looking man.
The man's hands rested on the twin short blades dangling on his waist. The hilt was wrapped by dark bandages with the blades themselves hiding in the leather carrier they were in.
The man spit the twig in his mouth then looked into the two's eyes. Hazel and green with a slight quiver in them. These two were obviously up to something. And to top it all off, the two seemed to be…
"Hey you two? What are you two doing here? Don't you know where you sect is?" The armored man, now with his hands tight around the hilt of one of his short blade, asked.
There was a slight shimmer on the blade he held. His glare never rested, making sure that the two knew.
"Your kind is not needed in the part of the village."