We hadn’t been able to see the village for long.
A handful of small stone houses stood scattered along the road.
Too small to really be called homes.
The streets were clean.
Ordinary.
Quiet.
Too quiet.
The moment we turned the corner, I froze.
They were there.
Soldiers dispatched from the capital.
The real kind.
Light armor. Short cloaks. The crest on their shoulders.
They were stopping villagers one by one, questioning them.
There was no time to think.
One of the soldiers was already starting to look our way.
That’s when Nael stepped half a pace forward.
He twisted his ankle on purpose and cried out dramatically.
「Ah—! Not again…!」
He crashed into a cart and collapsed.
The soldiers’ attention snapped toward him.
「What’s your problem?」 one of them asked, clearly annoyed.
Nael braced himself on the ground and answered desperately.
「I—I’m sorry, sir! I’ve been harvesting apples all day and my legs just—!」
The soldier snorted.
「Move along already. You’re in the way.」
「Yes! Sorry! I’m really sorry!」
While Nael kept up the act, Sera and I slipped away, circling around to the other side of the village.
We didn’t need to exchange words.
We couldn’t stay here.
—
We entered the forest.
The trees cast long shadows, pulling the night in early.
We walked on in silence.
When we were far enough away that the tension finally began to drain, Nael pointed to a small clearing.
「Here,」 he said.
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
I nodded.
Sera did too.
Without a word, we started preparing camp.
Nael gathered dead branches.
Sera cleared the ground.
I stacked the firewood.
When the fire crackled to life, the world felt warm again—just for a moment.
We ate dried bread and fruit in silence.
Afterward, Nael collapsed and was asleep almost immediately.
I stayed by the fire.
I couldn’t sleep.
If I closed my eyes, something felt like it would fall apart.
I heard footsteps.
Soft. Careful. Short strides.
It was Sera.
She sat down near the fire, hugging her shoulders, keeping a respectful distance.
Silent.
I stayed silent too.
But there was something I had to say.
「This isn’t your fault.」
Sera lowered her head, hugging her knees.
Only the fire filled the space between us.
After a while, her voice came back, faint and rough.
「…No one at the castle ever explained anything about the ‘Staff.’
I thought it was just a tool. Something you use to walk.
I never thought it could mean a person.」
Her fingers pressed tightly into her knees.
「…But now, I think I understand a little.
Maybe things like that do exist.
Maybe it’s not an object… but a bond.
What it really means for a king and a staff to walk together…」
I stared into the fire and muttered quietly.
「A staff, huh…
Honestly, I don’t really get it either.」
I shrugged.
「But we are walking together like this.
That much is true.
So maybe that’s not so wrong.」
I felt her smile, small and quiet.
I didn’t need to look.
「If I ever go back to the castle,」 I continued, 「it’ll be to settle things with that regent… and his lackey.」
The fire popped.
I poked the logs, as if to hide the words I didn’t know what to do with.
「Hey. That magic back then… what was it?」
A long pause.
Sera clenched her hands and finally spoke.
「…That time was different.」
「The mana… didn’t hurt.」
「Usually it goes wild and breaks everything.
But that time…」
She added softly, eyes on the fire.
「…It flowed. Properly.」
I narrowed my eyes.
I see.
I smiled faintly.
「That spell… saved the three of us.」
Saying it hurt.
…Three.
We couldn’t call it that anymore.
「Let’s get some sleep.
We still have to walk together tomorrow.」
Sera nodded.
「…Yeah.」
She curled up near the fire, clutching her blanket.
「…Good night, Ren.」
「Good night, Sera.」
The night wrapped around us quietly.
The fire burned down in silence.
And when morning came, we would walk again.
We weren’t finished yet.
There was no path left for us
but to keep moving forward.
