Chapter 42

"Where is she...? I think we should be catching up with her by now."

Riding his horse along the road near the fort, Grail carefully looked ahead.

Cromwell, Kicks, Tina, and Gauss were also looking ahead, searching for the white kit fox, but Gauss was leisurely controlling the reins, muttering, "There really is nothing around here."

Mil had left the fort before them, but she couldn't be walking that fast.

It was about time they should have caught up with her, and he was starting to worry.

Surely, she couldn't have been kidnapped in such a short time or drowned in some irrigation ditch, he hoped.

"Should we go back and search the road we just came from?"

Tina said, looking anxious.

"There shouldn't be any bandits around here, but just in case..."

Kicks, unusually serious, and Cromwell, who looked a bit pale, were being patted on the shoulder by Gauss, who was riding next to him.

"Alright, let's split up. Some of us will go forward, and some will go back—"

Grail, who was leading the group, stopped his horse and was about to turn around when he cut himself off.

Next to the road they were on, there was a large pasture for the fort's horses. Among the brown and black horses galloping around, a small white creature could be seen.

It was undoubtedly Mil, happily jumping around on the grass.

"There she is."

Grail pointed to the pasture with a bemused smile, and the other four quickly turned their heads.

"There she is!"

"That's a relief, we found her..."

Kicks and Tina said, relieved, and Cromwell secretly sighed in relief.

It seemed that Mil had been playing with the horses instead of doing her errand.

She was racing with four or five horses and was far behind, but she seemed to be enjoying herself.

Mil continued playing with the horses for a while, seemingly unaware that Grail and the others were watching her. Eventually, she seemed to remember her original purpose and headed back towards the fence along the road where the fairy was waiting.

This meant she was also getting closer to Grail and the others.

"Damn, she's coming this way."

Kicks said this before even putting his cloak over his head, as Mil hadn't noticed their presence.

"She's not even looking this way."

Cromwell muttered, and Tina chuckled.

"We're following her pretty closely..."

The distance between them and Mil, who had started walking on the road, was about fifteen meters.

In a city, it would be a sufficient distance for tailing someone, but here, it was a straight road with nothing but grasslands and fields around, offering no obstacles.

If she turned around, she would immediately notice they were following her, but Mil didn't seem to care at all.

"Even if the wind is in her favor and she can't smell us, shouldn't she be able to sense our presence? And it's not unusual for her to hear our voices or the sound of the horses' hooves. I thought spirits had sharper senses than humans..."

Gauss said, puzzled, and Cromwell replied:

"Maybe it's best to temporarily forget that Mil is a snow spirit."

Kicks also frowned, jokingly.

"Still, she doesn't have the attention span of a regular fox. Those ears are just cute decorations, I guess."

To match Mil's pace, the five of them dismounted and started walking.

"So, when are you going to call out to Mil? Do you plan to follow her from behind forever?"

Grail turned his head to Kicks.

Snowlea had asked them to "follow Milfia," but the meaning was not to tail her without being noticed, but to "go to the capital with her."

Grail had intended to leave with Mil, but Kicks and Tina had stopped him.

"Because, it's fun to secretly observe Mil's actions, isn't it?"

"Especially the view of a kit fox with a shawl and a rabbit backpack... It's great to be able to admire her back, her tail, her butt, and the back of her head..."

Tina said dreamily, following Kicks.

Mil's luggage was prepared early this morning, and when Grail was looking for a bag to pack Mil's lunch and jerky, Cromwell silently handed him the rabbit backpack.

He wondered where Cromwell had gotten such a thing, but Grail accepted it without a word.

As expected, a kit fox with a rabbit backpack was adorable.

He could understand why Kicks and the others wanted to follow her for a bit.

It would be dangerous in a crowded city, but on this open road, there was no risk of losing her.

"Oh, Kugarug!"

Tina suddenly exclaimed with excitement. A small flame had appeared next to Mil and turned into a young black panther.

Although there were no wild leopards in this country, Grail and the others had met Kugarug many times and were used to his appearance.

Mil, who initially seemed reluctant to interact with Kugarug, the fire spirit, now seemed to have given up or trusted him.

She didn't resist when he headbutted her or marked her with his scent.

"Ho, a child of the southern flames. What a rare sight."

"We see it quite often at the fort."

Kicks said to the amazed Gauss.

"Milfia. Hm? ...Where are we?"

Kugarug looked around and quickly noticed the five people behind Mil. Unlike Mil, he seemed to have good attention.

He showed some caution towards Gauss but looked puzzled at Grail and the others, as if wondering why they were so far away. However,

"Kugarug, I've been waiting for you!"

Mil welcomed him happily, and he seemed to lose interest in them immediately.

Mil usually only showed a mild reaction when Kugarug appeared, so this was the first time she had welcomed him so enthusiastically.

Kugarug's tail was trembling with emotion.

They started walking together, but soon stopped when they spotted a rabbit.

"She's not making any progress at all."

Kicks laughed.

Mil and Kugarug tried to outsmart the rabbit but eventually let it escape.

Thinking they would finally start moving, it seemed Mil was tired and started rummaging through her backpack, apparently about to eat lunch.

Grail and the others had packed food for Mil in their horses' luggage, so it was fine for her to eat her own supplies early, but it showed a lack of planning.

Kugarug occasionally glanced at them but didn't say anything to Mil, as if he didn't want to be disturbed.

—

"Aaaaah!?"

Mil suddenly screamed in terror, pulling something out of her backpack.

Grail and Cromwell almost ran over, but they stopped when they saw the purple, strange, poisonous mushroom plushie and looked back at Tina.

"What was that for?"

Grail's simple question was met with Tina's embarrassed smile.

"Well, I thought it would be a good companion for Mil's journey..."

"A companion? A poisonous mushroom?"

Kicks gave Tina a look that said, "Are you crazy?"

"It's not poisonous! It's a plushie!"

"I know it's a plushie, but why did you choose such a terrifying creature? Where did you get that dark purple fabric!?"

"That's mean! It's cute!"

Tina blushed and hit Kicks, who was laughing next to her.

(No wonder the backpack looked fuller than when I prepared it. When did she put it in...?)

Grail thought, impressed by her thoroughness.

Mil and Kugarug were quite shocked by the mushroom plushie but eventually regained their composure and started eating.

After finishing their meal, they began trying to create a fairy themselves, and once that was done, they finally started preparing to leave.

Mil and Kugarug returned to their animal forms and followed the fairy down the road.

"Come to think of it, we shouldn't be taking it so slow! It's a long way to Outo."

Mil seemed to be getting a bit anxious and started walking faster.

Her small, short legs moved quickly and diligently.

"I might have eaten a bit too much jerky... It's a long way, and I should have saved more. Maybe I should have eaten lunch a bit later, what should I do..."

Now, she seemed worried about the amount of food she had and kept talking to herself.

"We won't die if you don't eat, so it's okay."

"That's true, but I might get hungry, and being hungry makes me sad."

"Then, let's get to Outo before you get hungry, Milfia."

"Oh, right!"

Mil agreed with the suggestion and said, "Let's hurry!" and they both ran off.

Grail and the others, watching them, also mounted their horses. Kicks, while saying, "‘Oh, right!’ isn't the right response!" kicked his horse lightly to signal them to follow.

Perhaps because they were spirits, Mil and Kugarug ran for a surprisingly long time, and soon the next town came into view.