"Your name was Draxil, right?"
Ivan turned toward him, eyes bright with curiosity.
"So, Draxil, tell me something. Why do you think those Valen dogs aren't cowards anymore?" He asked it almost eagerly, like a man expecting a good story.
Draxil's expression tightened. He wasn't frightened. He was angry. The humiliation of the armistice signing at Farham City was still fresh, and Ivan's question had dragged it straight back to the surface.
Still, he kept his composure and answered.
"Your Highness, I say that because of something their representative told me during the signing." A pause. "Commander Lopel, commander of their naval forces. He said something I haven't been able to forget. It's bothered me ever since."
Ivan leaned forward, his excitement plain. "And what exactly did he say, Draxil?"
Draxil looked at him directly. "He told me that if Velkyria made any mistake after the armistice, any move they considered a threat to Valenford, they would declare war on us themselves."
The room went still. Every face turned toward him, surprised.
Every face except Ivan's. And the Lunaris King's.
Draxil continued. "They would cross the border."
The words landed heavily, one after another, like stones dropped into water. For a moment, no one spoke.
Then, "Ha, ha, ha, ha!"
Ivan burst out laughing, leaning back in his chair, entirely unable to contain himself. "Those dogs have forgotten their place." His laughter tapered off, but the light in his eyes only sharpened. "Still." A grin spread across his face. "This will be fun."
He turned to the Lunaris King. "I want to see whether they're actually capable of backing up words like that." He could barely keep the excitement out of his voice. "My Lord, I have another request."
The Lunaris King's gaze settled on him. "Hmm?"
Ivan leaned in slightly. "If you'll permit it, leave the Valenford matter to Noctenvale." His smile widened. "I assure you, My Lord, I will destroy that kingdom." A brief pause. "And besides, the Empire won't be able to help them anymore." His confidence hardened into something more certain. "I'll make sure of it."
The Lunaris King said nothing for a long moment, weighing the request carefully. No one at the table dared to interrupt.
Finally, he spoke. "Very well, Ivan." His gaze hardened. "That kingdom's problem is now yours." A pause, deliberate. "But make sure you finish what you start this time. I don't want that obstacle standing in our way again."
Ivan's smile only widened. "Thank you, My Lord."
The Lunaris King turned his attention to the rest of the table. "You will all assist Ivan, should he require your support." A pause. "And per our plan, begin preparing your respective nations for what is to come."
The room answered as one. "Yes, My Lord."
The Lunaris King looked over the table one last time.
"This meeting is concluded."
]
Back to Present
Our procession was still on the road, the first day nearly behind us. We were searching for a place to camp, somewhere good, and somewhere safe.
Pristin had sent two guards ahead to scout for it. In the meantime, I found myself just watching the scenery pass. It probably sounds strange, staring at nature like it's going to do something, but I liked it. Couldn't help it. The world outside the capital hadn't stopped surprising me yet, not once since we'd left the gates.
The two guards didn't take long to return. The moment they got back, Pristin leaned in to hear them out, voices low enough that I only caught fragments. Wonder what they found.
Pristin came back over a moment later, a smile already on his face, which told me everything before he opened his mouth.
"Sire, there's a bend up ahead, close to a river. We could stop there. Given the hour, I'd recommend making camp there for the night." The sky was already starting to shift toward evening, that long, golden hour before dusk properly settles in. We'd been on the move since morning.
"Sounds good, Pristin. Let's head there."
We were about to move on when a voice rose up from below, near the carriage.
"Sire, is anything the matter? Why have we stopped?"
Syyra. I hadn't even noticed her get down. I blinked, genuinely caught off guard.
"Nothing, Syyra. Pristin was just telling me there's a river up ahead. We're going to camp there tonight. We're heading over now."
Syyra glanced toward Pristin. "Did you check the area? Is it safe?"
Pristin didn't so much as flinch. "Yes, Madam Syyra. My two guards scouted the entire area. No threats reported."
"Then it's fine. I'll inform my lady."
"Right..."
The procession turned and started toward the river. It didn't take long to reach it, and when we did, the view was worth every step. Genuinely breathtaking, the water catching the last warm light, the banks lined with tall grass swaying slowly in the breeze.
Pristin got the camp underway right away, calling out instructions while guards unloaded supplies. While it was being set up, I figured I'd take a short walk along the riverbank, just to look around before it got too dark to see any of it properly. So I slipped away, following the water downstream a little.
The view alone was enough to justify it. The sun sinking low, the breeze moving steadily across the water, the faint smell of wet stone and grass. Nothing quite compares to nature left completely alone.
"Going somewhere, Arin?"
I recognized the voice before I even turned. Elisa.
"Yeah, the view's just too good to pass up. Figured I'd walk the riverbank while camp gets set up. You know. Sightseeing."
"Ah, I see what you mean." She considered it a moment, glancing past me toward the water. "You're probably right. Mind if I join?"
"Why not. More the merrier."
"Thanks."
We walked together along the water, taking it in. The sun dipping lower, the cool air moving through, the river carrying on beneath it all, unhurried. Exactly the way nature's supposed to look, when nothing's interrupting it.
"You seem to really be enjoying this."
"Obviously. It's my first time outside the capital." I glanced at the horizon. "So while I've got the chance, I'm going to get everything out of it I can."
"Fair enough. We don't leave the castle like this very often."
"Yeah. Honestly, sitting in that castle every day was starting to wear on me a little. Before I came to Valenford, I was never like that. I was hardly ever home. Always outside, somewhere."
"Hm... now that you mention it." She paused, slowing her steps slightly. "I never actually asked you what your life was like before. Your family must be worried sick about you, wherever they are." Her expression shifted, something like guilt creeping in. "I'm sorry. We pulled you away from your world, from everyone who knew you, just to help us."
"Huh." She'd lowered her head slightly as she said it.
"No, no, there's no need for that. None of this is your fault."
"But..."
"It's true that when I first got here, none of it sat right with me. But the longer I've stayed, the more people I've met, the more this has started to feel like home."
"...Really?"
"Mm. As for my old world, honestly, there's no one there worrying about me. So, in a way, I'm free." I let that sit a second, watching the water instead of her. "There's no one."
"No one at all?"
"When I was two, my parents died. An accident. My uncle adopted me after that, but he passed too, about three years before I ended up here. A disease." I shrugged lightly, keeping my voice even. "So I've been on my own for a while now. No one's waiting for me back there."
"That's... I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up again. I know it might've hurt to talk about."
"It doesn't, actually. That's all in the past. I got used to being on my own, life kept moving the way it always had. Until I ended up here." I looked at her properly now. "And honestly? Since I came here, I think I've started to like this place."
"Huh..."
"You made me part of your family. Which means I have one now, one I intend to keep. And I'll do everything I can to protect it."
Something shifted in Elisa's eyes, the beginning of tears she hadn't quite let fall. She looked away, toward the river, as if the water might explain it for her.
"Which means I need to bring this country back to where it should be, first. There's a lot riding on it. I don't want to lose any of it." I met her eyes again. "Same as you, right?"
"...Yes." She said it with a smile, small but real.
We stood there a moment, letting the quiet settle before I remembered the other thing that had been sitting in my head since that morning.
"Hey, Elisa."
"Yes?"
"Can I ask you something?"
"Go ahead."
"This morning, on the way through the capital streets, I could've sworn I saw you look upset. Like something had actually bothered you." I hesitated, then went ahead with it anyway. "If it's not a problem to talk about, what was that about?"
"Me?" The way she said it, you'd think she'd never been anything but perfectly composed her entire life. Her face, though, told a different story entirely, a flicker of something crossing it before she caught herself.
Then something shifted, quick and deliberate. "It's nothing. I wasn't upset with you."
"Huh? If it wasn't me, then who?"
"Um... um..." She hesitated, clearly scrambling for footing. "I was upset with Syyra. That's all it was."
Why is she this flustered over it?
I studied her for a second longer than I probably should have, half tempted to press. But there'd be time for that later. I had a feeling this wasn't the last chance I'd get.
"Well, if you say so." I let it go, mostly. "Honestly, I thought maybe I'd done something wrong without realizing it."
"No. You didn't do anything wrong."
I let my gaze drift toward the horizon, where the sun had started sinking properly now, the sky catching fire at the edges, deep orange bleeding into something closer to violet at the very top. The question slipped out of my mind entirely, chased off by the view.
"Hey, look at that."
Elisa followed my gaze, and for a moment neither of us said anything.
"It's beautiful," I said.
"Yeah," she agreed softly. "It really is."
We stood there a while, just watching it fall, the color deepening across the water, brushstroke by brushstroke, until the first real hint of stars started showing through. Whatever tension had been in her voice a moment ago had quietly dissolved into the same stillness that had settled over the river.
"Sire, my lady, sorry to interrupt." Syyra's voice broke the moment gently. "The camp's ready. Please, both of you should get some rest. Dinner won't be much longer."
We turned to find her standing a short distance off, hands folded, patient as ever. "We're coming, Syyra," I said.
Before we left, we both took one last look at the sunset, letting it finish without us, and then turned back toward camp.
At the campsite, Pristin was watering the horses, murmuring something to them that I didn't quite catch. "Hey, Pristin. Camp's already up? That was fast."
"Yes, Sire."
"I'll head inside," Elisa said. "You two can finish your conversation." And with that, she slipped off toward the tents, Syyra trailing a step behind her.
"Sire, you should rest as well," Pristin said, patting the last horse before stepping back. "You've been in the saddle all day. You must be exhausted. Food will be ready shortly."
"Yeah, that's fair. Although." I paused, glancing around the camp properly for the first time. "Who's actually cooking? I don't remember us bringing a cook along."
Pristin looked briefly startled, then laughed, shaking his head. "Pardon me, Sire, but I do think it might help to know your own people a little better sometimes."
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Over there." He gestured toward the fire. "Madam Syyra happens to be an exceptional cook. She's handling the meal, and a few of the knights are helping her with the rest."
"Wait, the knights know how to chop vegetables?"
"Of course. Knights, soldiers, all of them are trained across the board. You learn to survive on your own out here, not just fight."
"Huh. I see." Come to think of it, I used to cook for myself all the time back home, so it probably shouldn't have surprised me that anyone picks it up eventually if they need to. But Syyra? I guess the maids around here really are good at everything.
I settled down near the river, not far from Pristin as he went about his work, and waited. The smell of something good was already drifting over from where Syyra was cooking, and for the first time all day, I let myself just sit there and do nothing at all.