Green meadows, lush forests and a barely maintained gravel road. Birds chirping and the occasional critter peeking out of the woods. A scenery you could find just about anywhere in Lafria and seemingly in Aldreigh as well. Honestly, it might be a calming sight but…

“Haaa…”

I let out a small sigh as I watched the scenery pass us. In moments like these, I missed the convenience of my old world the most. There were so many ways to pass the time there that you would never run out of them. But here? Being stuck on the driver’s bench meant your only way to pass time was to talk with the other person. However, that was only possible if said person had the leeway to talk. And Karen, basically a complete beginner, didn’t have that leeway.

Even though I only see her staring at the waroxen without doing anything in particular…

From my point of view, she was far too nervous and stiff. The waroxen were smart enough to not require her attention most of the time yet Karen watched them without a break. But, well, it was easy for me to talk as an uninvolved person. And it was the first time she was driving the wagon without Lily supervising her. Her being nervous wasn’t so surprising.

But that doesn’t change the fact I have no one to talk with…

I suppressed another sigh. No point in dwelling on something I couldn’t change. Rather,  should find something I could do in this situation. Reading… was unfortunately an out. I had voiced my intention to read something just before we took off but Lily warned me about feeling sick. Karen overheard that and immediately started to worry about me… so I gave up on it for now. I didn’t want to add to her worries today. I’d explain motion sickness another time to her.

What else to do, though… Should I take a nap?

That might not be a bad idea… but I wasn’t sleepy at all.

Nn…

As I leaned back in my seat, my eyes unconsciously wandered to look at Karen. Her silver hair was gently moving in the wind and her similarly silver eyes were fixed on the road in front of her.

You know, the scenery is no good but I could look at her all day.

Just looking at her made me feel warm inside my chest and a smile naturally surfaced on my lips.

And to think this pretty girl is my girlfriend. Hehe, I’m really blessed.

I watched her for a while before I moved a little closer to her until our shoulders nearly touched. Karen finally noticed me staring, turning around in surprise. But just a moment later, she smiled at me and moved toward me.

I really am blessed.

With those thoughts in my mind, I leaned against Karen. Maybe… this quiet and otherwise boring time wasn’t so bad after all. Just being this close to her made me this happy.

“Nn?”

Something smooth coiled around my arm. I looked down, only to find her tail having found its way over to me.

Well, hello there.

I poked it, then scratched it gently. The tail shivered slightly… as did the owner. As sensitive as ever.

A tail, huh…

I was reminded a little of our earlier conversation. Karen and Rina’s devil-like tails or Lily’s fluffy wolf-like tail. I had to admit, I felt a little left out. Not that I could even remotely imagine how life would be like if I had a tail of my own.

It might be not that unrealistic, though…

Maybe I really would be able to grow one? I… could try it out? It wouldn’t hurt… would it?

… Not like I got anything else to do.

Apart from enjoying Karen’s warmth, of course. Which was a very important pastime of mine, mind you.

Either way, I was a little curious if I could do that. My body was constantly changing but most of the time I had no clue what exactly had changed…

Let’s see… If I wanted to grow a tail, it should be a little bit above the butt…

I closed my eyes, concentrating on my body in the same way when I usually went through the transformations. My instincts would usually tell me very quickly what things I could… and as expected… they didn’t kick in this time.

Guess that’s not going to work.

I opened my eyes again and peeked behind me. Sure enough, there was nothing. I could only see Karen’s tail behind us.

Maybe it’d be possible to do it without just relying on my instincts? Mmm… but I have no idea where to start there even…

In the first place, I had barely any idea how my body as a whole worked. Or, to be precise, how that crystal in my chest worked. It was the centre of everything that I was. Not even Ria, who usually knew so much about magic, could help me there. And the only person who likely could, Yumias, didn’t plan on telling me.

Can’t change it… I’ll have to figure this one out myself.

Though, for now, I was still a little busy acclimating to this new life. Or rather, we all were busy with the fort. And we probably would continue to be busy with it for the foreseeable future.

“Oh?”

As I was lost in thoughts, I could suddenly hear Karen gasping in surprise.

“Nn? Something wrong?”
“Well… We’re slowing down.”
“Huh?”

The wagon in front of us had indeed come a little closer due to slowing down… and it didn’t seem to speed up again. Karen pulled on the reins a little and the waroxen followed suit, slowing down as well.

“We’re… not at the border yet, are we?” I asked.
“No, I don’t think so. We should arrive in the evening at the earliest…”

In other words, there had to be another reason. I saw Karen pulling on the reins once more. The wagon in front of us didn’t stop slowing down, now moving at a crawl before finally coming to a complete stop, forcing us to stop as well.

“... Weird.”
“I wonder what’s going on…”
“Nn…”

Reasons for why we would have to stop…

“Maybe bandits?”
“... Yumi, why is that the first thing you can think of?”
“... Dunno.”

Karen shook her head in exasperation.

“Nn, I’ll take a look to see if it’s bandits.”
“I very much doubt there are any. We would’ve heard that by now.”
“Probably, yeah…”

Either way, I slid over to the edge of the driver’s bench, peeking past the wagons to see what was going on. Unfortunately, there wasn’t much to see for me there.

“See anything?”
“No, nothing. No bandits.”
“Didn’t expect any…”

There wasn’t anything in sight that could be a reason for the stop. I couldn’t see what was happening at the very front, either. Our wagon was too far in the back.

“Oh? Something’s happening.”

A man was jumping down from the frontmost wagon. He seemed to talk with someone before making his way down the road.

“Nn… I guess something did happen, after all. Someone’s coming towards us.”
“Maybe to inform everyone.”
“I think so.”

The man seemed to stop shortly next to each wagon, saying a few words before continuing on. It did take him a short while, but before long he also reached us, calling out to Karen and me.

“Hey there. We’re taking a break, Cap’s orders.”
“Did something happen?” I asked in response.
“Some travellers with a bit of a problem. Nothing too serious.”
“Huh…”

That was… almost boring. No, it was a good thing that it wasn’t any serious matter but…

The man didn’t wait for a response and continued past us, leaving us alone again.

“Well, looks like we’re stopping here.”
“Yes, looks like it.”

But travellers, huh? That was a possibility too.

“... Maybe they’re actually bandits in disguise?”
“Yumi…”
“Sorry, I’ll stop.”

It was better if they weren’t bandits anyway.

“Really… If you’re so curious, we can go and take a look.”
“Nn… It’s not like we have anything else to do anyway.”

And the bandit nonsense aside, I was curious why we stopped for a few travellers. Wouldn’t we normally just pass by them?

“Yumi, we should ask Lily and Rina if they want to come along as well.”
“That’s fine by me.”

I jumped down from the bench and stepped aside, allowing Karen to come down as well. Right after coming down, she stretched her arms and legs.

“That’s way better… Sitting for so long is a little uncomfortable.”
“Nn…”

Karen being all tense was probably not helping her either.

“Are you fine, Yumi?”
“Me? I am… I mean…”

I pinched my arm with a wry smile. Not feeling stiff was one of the comforts I very much welcomed… However, it also made me feel a little lonely since I could only relate due to my memories. Well, what was left of them…

“... You have it good. You don’t feel stiff, you aren’t bothered by the heat or cold all that much and you don’t get blisters or similar.”
“Oh, are you jealous, Sis?”
“... A little, maybe? But you’re also pretty weak so not all that much.”
“...”

That one sure hit close to home…

“One day, Sis, one day I’ll be stronger than you.”
“I am eagerly awaiting that day.”

Karen put her hand on my head and ruffled my hair, laughing amusedly.

“Anyway, let’s go and ask Lily and Rina if they want to come along.”
“Nn…”

A little deflated, I followed Karen as we walked to the back of our wagon. Lily and Rina’s wagon was right behind ours, so we didn’t need to walk for long.

“Lily, Rina…. Oh, are we interrupting?”
“Mh?”

When the two of them came into view, we saw Rina sitting in the driver’s bench, giving Lily a lap pillow.

“Yumi? Karen?!”
“Sis, I think they’re busy.”
“You’re right.”
“Hey, wait! Wait!”
“Lily, don’t move so much!”
“Gah!”

Lily desperately called out to us, trying to sit up. That, however, wasn’t quite what Rina wanted, so she forced Lily back into her lap. Emphasis on ‘forced.’

“Rina… A little more… careful… please…”
“Mh? Okay?”
“...”

Rinia just tilted her head in response… unable to understand the reason.

“Your sacrifice shan’t be forgotten, Lily.”
“Don’t you dare kill me off, Yumi. I’m still alive for now.”
“For now?”
“For now.”

Somehow I had a bad feeling… Did this mean that Rina did these things occasionally?

“Sis, maybe we should teach Rina how to hold back a little?” I whispered to Karen, just quiet enough for Rina not to hear us.
“That might be a good idea. I don’t want her to break Lily’s neck by accident.”

Yeah… Wasn’t Rina supposed to be pretty weak currently? Like me? She was just as quick out of breath… But she was the same kind of manakin as Karen was…

“So… What did you two want?”
“Err… We wanted to ask if you want to come along to take a look at what’s going on.”
“Ahhh… I think we’re good on that… It’s just a few travellers, right?”

Wow, what a casual dismissal.

“Do things like this happen often?”
“Once in a while, I guess? People often get their carriages stuff… or need help with directions or some stuff.”
”I see… No bandits then.”
“Yumi…”

Oops, I probably should drop that one.

“Bandits? Well, those happen once in a while, too, it seems… But what kind of bandit would be dumb enough to attack a mercenary caravan?”
“... That’s a really good point.”
“We did have a few that tried, though…”
“...”

Probably their final ambush.

“I see… Then, I guess you two should enjoy yourselves?”
“Thanks. You too.”
“Thank you, Lil’ Sis!”
“Nn.”

After her initial surprise, Lily didn’t seem embarrassed anymore, being seen like that. Well, it was best if she could enjoy herself, so that wasn’t a bad thing.

We left Lily and Rina to their flirting and walked towards the front of the caravan. We were pretty far in the back so we had to walk quite a bit. Many of the mercenaries were similarly preparing to take a break. When we passed them, quite a few of them greeted us. Some of them had even brought out alcohol already and were inviting us to join them.

Too bad I’ll have to abstain… I don’t think Sis would like me getting drunk again and having a hangover.

For all the weird changes this body brought to my life, just why… just why did it have to keep the hangover? That really was one thing I didn’t need in my life… Though, I’d probably drink way too much if it wasn’t there as a deterrent. Maybe it was good it was still there…

“Oh, they’re coming into view, Yumi.”
“Nn? Oh?”

Just as Karen said, we finally could see the supposed travellers. It was a relatively small group travelling on a carriage drawn by two large animals. They looked a little like a waroxen but less… muscular. And most importantly, smaller.

“They look like normal travellers.”
“Nn…”
“...”

Karen stared at me for a few seconds for some reason… After she had her fill, she nodded to herself and directed her attention back to the travellers in front of us. Okay… What was that about? It wasn’t because I mentioned the bandit thing one too many times… right? Oh well…

“I wonder if they are merchants.”
”They don’t seem to be carrying any wares so I don’t think so. Maybe it’s a stagecoach?”
“Nn… Maybe.”
“Ya pretty close with that one,” answered a voice from behind us.

When I turned around, there stood a man, wearing the Black Guard’s customary black armour. I had seen him before a few times, as well as just earlier when he was informing everyone of the break, but I forgot what his name was… Actually, I don’t think I ever heard it in the first place.

“It’s close… so it’s not a stagecoach… but people travelling?”
”That’s right. At least, that’s what they say. Seems they were hired to work in Melfin.”
“In Melfin… Don’t tell me…”
“Yeah… Their workplace blew up.”
“...”

Somehow… My condolences.

“So, workers for Melfin… They hired people in Lafria for that? Is that… fine?”
“Mm? I would guess it is if they come here, no?”
“I mean, sure but… Nn…”

I couldn’t imagine that working in a different country was such a simple matter for a citizen… but apparently, it was.

”I wonder what kind of work those people were supposed to do though if they hired them specifically from Lafria,” muttered Karen.
“Maybe the cap can tell ya when he’s done talking. Or ya can ask them yourselves.”

The man turned around to look a little closer to the side of the road. Greyward as well as two other people stood there, talking with each other. One of them was a man wearing simple sturdy clothes. The other one was… how to say it… a little more peculiar.

“Uhhh… Is that person wearing full armour?”
“Yeah, they are.”
“...”

Grey armour from top to bottom. There was barely any spot left uncovered. On their back, they were carrying something like a halberd. Even their face was covered entirely. I couldn’t even tell if they were a man or a woman.

“Shouldn’t they at least show their face?” I asked.
“Probably cautious. And they got all the right to be. Probably the escort. Now, think about it if a heavily armed group of mercenaries crosses your way.”
“I see.”

From their perspective, it probably was everything but good.

“Nn? I think they’re looking over here?”
“Are they?”
“I think so.”

The armoured person was facing in our direction now… or at least that’s how it seemed to me. It was hard to gauge when all you had to go off was a metal helmet covering the entire face.

“Oh, now they seem to say something to Mr Greyward… and he’s looking here, too.”

Maybe that armoured person was asking about us? Hopefully, we didn’t get in their way… Greyward seemed to be talking to the armoured person now. The latter nodded a few times, maybe satisfied. As for Greyward, he was continuing to talk with the other man now. After a few more words, however, they finished their discussion and the man, as well as his armoured companion, returned to their group.

“Guess they’re done…. Oh, Mr Greyward’s coming.”

Having finished his talk, Greyward made his way to us. I was wondering if he was going to say something about us coming here but contrary too my expectations, he was looking at the mercenary with us.

“Cap! Everyone’s been informed!”
“Good work. Go and take a break, too.”
“Will do.”

He saluted before promptly leaving.

“Haaa…”
“Mr Greyward, is everything all right?”
“It is, Yumi, but thank you for asking. It’s just a little exhausting.”

Greyward walked towards the wagon he used, fetching a waterskin and taking a long sip.

“Haaa…”

Was really everything okay when he kept sighing?

“Is really everything all right?”
“Yes, yes… As I said, I’m just exhausted… There’s been a lot going on today, after all.”

Well, if he put it like that… He did have a rather eventful day… First the problems in Melfin, then his fallout with Lily and now this. He really was in need of a break, wasn’t he?

“And… Most importantly…”
“Nn?”
“... who in their right mind walks around in full armour all day?!”
“...”

Bold words of the person wearing all black in the middle of summer, no? Very bold… But really, the weather was rather comfortable, no? It shouldn’t be too bad in full armour…

“Is that a problem?” asked Karen.
“It’s hot. It’s sweltering. You can’t relax and you get stiff immediately if you don’t. It’s all-around a pain in the a— the behind.”
“I see…”

If he put it like that, it did seem like it was rather uncomfortable.

“Well, maybe they aren’t wearing it all the time but just now…”
“Because of us?”
“Right. But it seems like the others haven’t seen their face either.”
“Huh?”

They hadn’t seen the face of their escort?

“Isn’t that… a little suspicious?”
“Right? Well, it’s not my problem who they hire. And they did seem like the serious sort.”

A serious person, huh…

“By the way, you looked over to us earlier. What was that about?”
“Ah, that? That escort asked if you were also with us. Seemed like they thought you were children forced into mercenary life so I had to explain that. Not sure if they believed me, though. They’re still staring.”

Wait, they were? Oh… They really were looking over here…

“I mean, technically speaking that’s not completely wrong.”
“Yumi, don’t you dare say that out loud in front of them. I have a feeling that’s only going to turn into a pain in the ass!”
“I won’t, I won’t.”
“Good.”

But really, it wasn’t like we had much of a choice in this. Mind you, it wasn’t like I was complaining. I liked everyone here and I could be together with Karen nearly the entire time. But it was undeniable that our situation more or less forced us into this.

“Haaa… Anyway, did you two just come to play spectator? Or did you need anything?”
“No, we were just curious about the travellers and why we were stopping… Speaking of which, why did we stop?”
“They wanted some information. Also, take a look at their carriage.”
“Nn?”

I followed his gaze to look towards the carriage…

“... They don’t seem to have a broken wheel. Or anything else broken?”
“Where are you looking? The oxen, of course. The oxen.”
“Oh… Nn… Is something wrong with them?”

I wasn’t an animal expert…

“They look exhausted,” commented Karen.”
“That’s exactly it. They pushed them too hard. A regular ox isn’t as resilient as a warox. They pulled a heavy carriage without a break. Oxen have a lot of endurance but there is a limit.”
“I see… Then, shouldn’t they be fine after some rest?”
“Yes. That’s what I told them as well. But they were in a hurry to reach Melfin. Well, not anymore.”
“Ahhh…”

Right, he probably told them about the situation in Melfin. No wonder some of them looked so deflated.

“Nn? Mr Greyward, that armoured person’s coming over.”
“Ugh... Let’s hope it’s nothing troublesome.”

Wow, he sure wasn’t enthusiastic about this.

“Excuse me,” came a surprisingly high-pitched voice.
“Is something else the matter? I believe we talked about everything necessary?”
“Yes. I simply wanted to have a… personal talk with you if you would allow it.”
“A personal talk?”

Greyward furrowed his brows in annoyance.

“I’m very sorry but I am certainly not in the mood for any personal talks right now.”
“Is that so… That’s unfortunate.”

The armoured person slumped their shoulders slightly, seemingly disappointed. Right when it seemed like they were going to return to their group, however, they turned to us.

“... May I talk with these girls for a spell then?”
“... Who they talk with is none of my business. But harm them and you will regret it.”
“I will keep that in mind.”

The person turned to us again.

“Would it be all right to exchange a few words?”
“Nn? Well…”

Karen and I exchanged a gaze before nodding to that person. Greyward was right beside us so I wasn’t very worried about our safety. And just like Lily said, who would be dumb enough to start trouble with a band of mercenaries? Even if it wasn’t about bandits now, the point was still that it wasn’t a very smart thing to do.

“That’s okay.”
“Thank you very much.”

The person bowed their head, a gesture I didn’t quite expect.

“Err… So what do you want to talk about?”
“I was hoping for some information. I am looking for someone.”
“... I’m not sure if we can help with that.”
“I’m aware.”

As long as they knew.

“So, who are you looking for?”
“Family. My brother. We were separated many years ago.”
“Ohh… That must be hard.”
“Yes… But I am sure he is somewhere out there. That’s why I am searching.”

Somewhere… huh…

“How does he look like?”
“Mm… He looks similar to me.”
“...”
“...”
“...”

Silence…

“Err… Mister…” Karen began, stammering.
“Thea.”
“... Miss Thea?”
“Yes?”
“... We can’t see your face.”

So there was a woman beneath that helmet. I mean,  expected it from the high-pitched voice but you never knew for sure.

“Oh, you are right. My apologies.”

I expected her to take off her helmet but… she didn’t.

“Then I will describe him if that is acceptable.”
“... Okay.”

Karen glanced over at me, her eyes full of confusion.

“He is… Human. About my height. Short hair, a normal face. Average build.”
“...”
“...”

I wasn’t quite sure why but I had this feeling that this person was going to spend her entire life searching for her brother without success.

“I’m sorry but that’s not very helpful. That description can fit many men.”
“Mhm… I see… That’s troublesome.”
”Don’t you have something like… I don’t know, his name?”
“... Unfortunately, I don’t.”
“Huh?”

She was looking for her brother, her family, yet she didn’t even know his name?

“This might sound weird but… the memory of his name… of many things regarding him… was taken from me.”
“Taken?”
“Yes… The result of a very powerful curse, I fear.”
“I see… That’s… I’m sorry to hear that.”

That couldn’t be easy. To think there were curses like that out in this world.

“It’s fine. After so many years I arranged myself with it.”
“Yet you’re still searching for him.”
“Yes. He is my beloved brother, after all.”

Even covered by her helmet, I had the feeling she was smiling right now.

“... I have to say, I’m a little jealous of your brother. To have such a loving sister.”
“Mmm! Yumi, I’d search for you no matter how long it’d take, too!”
“Sis, this isn’t a competition…”

Really, that wasn’t something you should compete in either.

“Well, I guess I would do that too…”
“Hehe, you two get along well.”
“Ahh, sorry about that. We were talking about your brother yet…”
“No, it’s fine. I just pray you two never have to face a situation like mine.”
”.... Nn, that’d be for the best.”

Really, I would probably go crazy if Karen was suddenly gone from my side. It wasn’t a situation I wanted to be in.

“But if looking for his looks or by his name don’t work… What about the person who cast the curse?”
“...”

Thea slowly shook her head. Apparently, that wasn’t an option. Maybe the caster was already dead… or there was some other reason she couldn’t.

“I see… Sorry, but I don’t think we can help after all.”
“It’s fine. I didn’t expect you to. However, if you ever find out something, no matter how small, please contact me.”
“That’s fine with me but how would we even contact you?”

Thea froze again. Really, this person was all over the place, wasn’t she?

“I… am going to stay in Melfin for a while.”
“Nn… And after that?”
“... I will have to think about that.”

That’s great and all but not very helpful.

“I might go back to Auria for a while?”
“Well, we’re staying in Auria as well for the foreseeable future. Nn, how about you just inform us when you move on? That should be plenty of time to figure out a way to contact you.”
”I see… That’s certainly possible. How can I reach you in Auria?”
“Do you know the abandoned fort in the forest? Our band is going to take that fort over.”

She jerked up a little when she heard me mentioning the fort.

“... Weren’t bandits occupying that fort until recently?”
“Yes, but not anymore. Well, even if they still had I don’t think it would have posed much trouble…”

I couldn’t imagine a group of bandits holding up against a large mercenary band like the Dragon Knights.

“The fort then, I understand. I apologise for all the trouble.”
“Nn, it’s fine. I hope you will find your brother.”
“Yes, thank you very much.”

Thea once again bowed her head to us, then to Greyward as well before returning to her group of travellers. Sure was a strange person, that Thea.

By the way, did the news about the bandits already spread around? I thought it wasn’t even that well-known that bandits were there in the first place…