Chapter 62

As the petals of cherry blossoms danced in the wind, Misaki opened the old diary and read the words of the promise written there.

According to the information from Hailiris, the men in black did not seem to intend to move until we approached the capital, and that day passed peacefully without incident.

Occasionally, Hailiris flew up to check if there were any suspicious people around, but it seemed we were not being followed by anyone.

We took breaks every few hours and arrived at a town called Chedas around sunset.

It was a large town with a similar atmosphere to the town of Gorda, but by the time we arrived, most of the shops, except for inns, taverns, and restaurants, had started to close.

Before we entered the town, Hailiris warned us.

"Those suspicious men are probably waiting for you in this town. They don't seem to intend to cause a commotion in the town, but be careful anyway."

If they follow our plan, the second attack will likely happen in the forest just outside Chedas.

In other words, we won't move from the town today, so the decisive battle will be tomorrow.

The one-eyed knights dismounted before entering the town and hid us, the spirits and fairies, in their luggage.

With a fox, a leopard, a snake, a colorful bird, and a ball of light, we would be too conspicuous.

We would also attract attention from people other than the men in black.

Kugal and I hid in the large backpack carried by the one-eyed knight and held our breath.

While listening to Kugal's contented purring as he clung to me, I swayed for a while.

"Shouldn't there be a garrison facility for the knights here? If the enemy has increased in number, we should ask the knights here for help to protect Mil and the others, right?"

"...If Sarell is the mastermind behind this, there's a possibility he has already laid the groundwork with the knights here. He is very thorough. I've been impressed by his meticulousness several times and even praised him for it, which is why we should be suspicious of everything now. Not all the knights here will follow Sarell, but if even one of them is on his side, they might pretend to cooperate and try to kidnap the spirits."

The leader explained sternly and rejected Tina's suggestion. It seemed painful for him to have to doubt his subordinates, including Captain Sarell.

Tina nodded in understanding, and it was decided that the five of us, who worked well together, would head to the capital.

After walking for about five more minutes,

"We've arrived."

The leader's voice echoed. It seemed we had reached the inn where we would stay for the night.

"Are they staying at a different inn?"

The leader seemed to be addressing the luggage Tina was carrying, where Hailiris was hiding.

After a rustling sound, Hailiris probably peeked out of the luggage to check the inn and replied, "It's fine. Probably."

"Oh, are you knights? Welcome. Would you like to stay at our inn?"

"Yes, that's right. But first, can you take care of our horses while we go to eat?"

"Of course."

The innkeeper came out just then, and the one-eyed knights entrusted the care of their horses to him.

The innkeeper seemed to realize they were knights when he saw their uniforms under their cloaks.

"Kugal, shh! You'll be heard by the people around us."

I whispered to Kugal, who was purring, but he couldn't seem to stop the sound.

However, after a few seconds, the sound gradually faded.

(Huh? Did he fall asleep?)

Kugal had closed his eyes contentedly and was now snoring softly.

Cats feel safe in small, dark places, and Kugal might have relaxed and fallen asleep in the luggage.

Everyone started walking again to have dinner, and the vibrations made me drowsy too.

But I was hungry, so I decided not to fall asleep until we had dinner.

The one-eyed knights seemed to have found a suitable restaurant and entered, the bells jingling.

I couldn't see, but it seemed the place was bustling with many customers. Maybe a noisy place like this was better for not standing out.

"Shut up, it's all your fault..."

"What did you say? I'm telling you..."

The drunk men continued their argument, completely unaware of the knights entering the restaurant.

Kicks muttered, "I'm so hungry," and sat down noisily. The one-eyed knights were led to a table at the back of the restaurant, and the backpack containing Kugal and me was gently placed on the floor.

A waiter came to take their order, and everyone ordered food and drinks casually.

"Mil's portion will be taken back to the inn."

The one-eyed knight said through the fabric of the luggage.

So I couldn't eat here.

Before long, the food we ordered arrived. Everyone seemed to toast modestly before starting to eat.

Someone was eating meat. The smell of the sauce was fragrant...

I sniffed in the luggage. Kugal was sleeping soundly next to me.

I made a small, high-pitched sound in the luggage, but it was drowned out by the noise around us. So I timidly scratched the inside of the backpack with one hand.

I wanted to eat with everyone. Eating alone in the inn didn't sound fun.

This time, I scratched the backpack more strongly with both hands, one after the other.

"Mil's portion is saved. You have to wait until we get back to the inn."

The one-eyed knight said apologetically, but I didn't give up.

I scratched the backpack violently and silently.

"Alright, alright."

The one-eyed knight gave in and opened the backpack slightly, putting a piece of meat on a fork inside.

Yay!

I ate it in the luggage, and another small piece of meat was offered.

"Is Kugal sleeping?"

"Yeah."

I nodded and bit into Kugal's portion of the meat. Kugal didn't feel hunger, so it was fine for me to eat it all.

"Is Hailiris hungry?"

Tina seemed to be peering into her luggage.

Hailiris has lived at least five times longer than Tina, but she's so childlike that it doesn't feel strange to call her "chan."

"What does being hungry mean? Spirits don't eat like humans."

"There's a spirit here who's eating human food."

Kicks laughed.

"Milfia is different."

Hailiris, I can hear you!

After the meal, I was full, and the one-eyed knights left the restaurant.

"Are there any suspicious people?"

I asked nervously in the dark luggage.

I had forgotten Hailiris's warning and got absorbed in the meal while hiding in the luggage.

The one-eyed knights were silent, but I could sense they were exchanging looks, asking, "What should we do?"

"I'm not scared."

I was a little scared, but not knowing was scarier.

"We've been followed since we entered the town. It seems to be one of the men in black."

The one-eyed knight said in a casual tone, perhaps to reassure me.

He continued,

"But there don't seem to be any others, so they probably don't intend to do anything now. They're just monitoring our actions."

As Hailiris said, they don't seem to intend to attack in this town.

But the thought of being followed made me uneasy.

I wanted to catch those suspicious people and solve this problem quickly, but I also didn't want the one-eyed knights to fight.

"Hmm..."

While I was grumbling in the luggage, we seemed to have arrived at the inn we visited earlier.

The orange light from the lamps filtered through the fabric, and I could tell we had entered a lit building from the dim outside.

The inn was probably run by a couple, and the innkeeper welcomed us warmly.

"Oh, welcome, knights!"

Her bright voice made me imagine her smiling genuinely, probably feeling safer with knights around.

The one-eyed knights understood this and didn't try to hide their identities. It was the same in the towns we had visited before.

Perhaps they also wanted to give the impression of patrolling the area.

"Are there any rooms available?"

"We have two double rooms and two quadruple rooms available tonight."

The one-eyed knight asked,

"Then, we'll take one quadruple room and one double room."

The leader seemed to answer and pay the money.

The sound of a few coins being placed on the counter echoed.

"Is one double room enough?"

"It's fine. I intend to share a room with you."

The leader said cheerfully, but Kicks muttered, "Ugh," from behind.

It seemed the four men would share one room, and Tina would use the double room.

"Rooms 4 and 5 on the second floor. They're next to each other, which might be better."

"Thank you."

They received the keys and went up the stairs. The one-eyed knight opened the door to the room.

"Kicks, where are you going? Come in."

"Ugh..."

The one-eyed knight seemed to pull Kicks by the hand. Kicks answered reluctantly, like a problem student forced to share a room with three teachers on a school trip.

Especially since those teachers were the principal, the vice-principal, and the physical education teacher in charge of student guidance—basically the leader, the deputy leader, and the one-eyed knight—Kicks's low mood was understandable.

"Sorry, I'll use the room alone... Mil, Kugal, I'll brush you in the morning."

Tina patted us in the luggage.

(Come to think of it, I haven't talked to Tina much today.)

During the journey, we had changed "seats" several times, riding with the deputy leader, the leader, and the one-eyed knight, but not with Tina and Kicks.

"See you tomorrow—"

"Wait!"

I poked my head out of the one-eyed knight's backpack and looked around the empty corridor, then tried to land gracefully on the floor.

"Oof...!"

I failed the landing and did a forward roll.

But maybe it was graceful in its own way.

"Are you okay? That must have hurt."

"I'm fine..."

I got up, pretending the roll was intentional, and ran to Tina, who was standing in front of the next room.

"I'm sleeping with Tina tonight."

"Really? I'm happy to hear that."

"Me too!"

When Tina opened the door, Hailiris, who had flown out of the luggage, followed us in.

"Let's sleep together, girls!"

"Sure!"

"I want to hear about Hailiris's love life."

Just before the door closed, Hailiris's fairy mother rushed in through the gap.

It seemed the fairy was also a girl.

"Good night."

Tina said goodbye to the one-eyed knights and closed the door.

A moment later, the leader's lonely voice echoed in the corridor.

"Make sure the doors are locked."