"Rudy, we're getting close."
Sylvia's voice pulled me from my thoughts. She walked beside me, her pace slightly quicker than usual, almost bouncing with each step.
We'd been traveling for about a day since the last town. Ever since we'd left that place and freed the slaves, nearly two weeks had passed in a blur of roads and small villages. Town to town never staying too long.
And now we were closing in on the Shirone Kingdom.
"Why are you so excited?" I asked, glancing at her from the corner of my eye.
She'd been talking about Shirone nonstop for the past few hours. Every other sentence was about the kingdom's architecture, its culture, its history. The way she went on, you'd think we were approaching some legendary paradise instead of a minor kingdom soon to be ruled by a spoiled brat.
But the thing that confused me most was how little she actually seemed to know. Everything she said was surface-level at best, the kind of tourist information you'd get from a street vendor trying to sell you a map.
"Because," Sylvia said, her eyes practically sparkling, "this is the place where my dad met my mom before they moved to the Sword Sanctuary.
When I was little, my mom talked about it all the time. She said it was the most beautiful kingdom she'd ever seen, with markets that stretched for miles and festivals every month."
She clasped her hands together, her expression dreamy. "I've always wanted to see it for myself."
I wasn't particularly impressed by the story. The Shirone Kingdom wasn't really anything to write home about. Sure, it was stable and relatively prosperous, but it lacked the cultural richness of other places. If anything, I thought the Dragon Kingdom was far more interesting, with its beast-people demon kind and unique magic traditions. Well that's what I heard at least from Roxy.
"Still," I said, keeping my tone casual, "I haven't really heard anything interesting about this place. Far as I know, their prince is a little dickhead who can't get one up."
Sylvia's head whipped toward me, her eyes wide. "Hey! Keep those types of comments to yourself, especially when we get there. I don't want you to be imprisoned again because you couldn't keep your mouth shut."
I didn't respond, just hummed
noncommittally. She had a point, I supposed. Getting arrested for insulting royalty wouldn't exactly help my plans.
"Anyways," Sylvia continued, her excitement returning as quickly as it had been dampened,
"think about all the new things we'll see! The people, the food, the culture!" She gesured expansively with her hands. "I heard there's this amazing mage who's the general of their military. She's supposed to be one of the only king-ranked water mages alive. Can you imagine? A king-ranked mage!"
Her voice rose with each word, and she started walking faster, forcing me to match her pace.
"I definitely have to talk to her about healing magic. Maybe she could help me with my dream of becoming of helping people. Do you think she'd be willing to teach me? Or at least give me some advice? Oh, I wonder what kind of spells she knows. Maybe she's developed techniques that aren't even in the textbooks yet—"
I tuned her out. What she was describing wasn't even possible. Roxy should have left Shirone ages ago because of the Mana Calamity. The teleportation incident had scattered people across the world, and from what I knew, Roxy had ended up somewhere in the Biegoya region. She definitely wasn't here serving as some military general.
Sylvia must have heard outdated information, I thought, watching her continue to chatter away obliviously. Or maybe she's just mixing up different rumors.
Still, going to Shirone wasn't entirely bad for me. My plans had nothing to do with sightseeing or meeting famous mages.
Lilia and my sister Aisha were supposed to be here. Captured by that Prince Pax and held as bargaining chips. To capture me in the future.
I'm definitely not going through all that nonsense with Pax to get them back, I thought. I'll just sneak in, break them out, and free the other prisoners while I'm at it. The plan was simple.
I shrugged to myself. I could care less about Pax and whatever storyline he thought he was the protagonist of. Once my family was safe, I'd continue my journey. The destination hadn't changed. I needed to get to Eris.
"Rudy? Rudy, are you even listening?"
Sylvia's voice cut through my thoughts again. I blinked and looked at her.
"Yeah," I lied smoothly. "Something about markets and festivals."
She narrowed her eyes at me, clearly not buying it. "You weren't listening at all, were you?"
"I was listening enough."
"That's not the same thing." She sighed dramatically and shook her head. "You're impossible sometimes, you know that?"
"So I've been told."
We continued through the forest in relative silence after that. The trees were starting to thin out, which meant we were getting close to the kingdom proper. Sylvia occasionally pointed out interesting plants or made comments about the landscape there, and I responded now and then with noncommittal sounds.
But mostly, she did the talking.
And mostly, I was lost in my own thoughts, planning the extraction down to the last detail.
The gates of Shirone came into view just as the sun reached its highest point in the sky.
Sylvia gasped.
"Look at that!" She grabbed my arm, practically vibrating with excitement. "It's even more beautiful than I imagined!"
I had to admit, the city was impressive from a distance. White stone walls stretched high, gleaming in the sunlight. Colorful banners hung from the ramparts, and I could see the tops of towers rising above the walls, their spires decorated with gold and blue.
The gates themselves were massive, carved with intricate designs depicting what looked like the kingdom's history. Guards stood at attention on either side, their armor polished to a mirror shine.
"Come on!" Sylvia tugged on my arm, already moving toward the entrance.
"Let's go in!"
I followed at a more measured pace, my eye scanning the guards and the flow of people entering and exiting the city. Security seemed relatively light, at least at the main gate.
We joined the line of people waiting to enter. Merchants with carts full of goods, travelers on foot, a few nobles in carriages. The guards were checking papers and asking questions, but the process moved quickly.
When it was our turn, a guard with a thick mustache looked us up and down. "Purpose of visit?"
"Tourism," Sylvia said brightly before I could answer. "We've heard so many wonderful things about Shirone, and we wanted to see it for ourselves."
The guard's expression softened slightly.
"First time here?"
"Yes! I'm so excited. My mother used to tell me stories about this place."
He smiled, clearly charmed by her enthusiasm. "Well, welcome to Shirone. Just keep your weapons to yourself unless you're adventuring while you're in the city, and stay out of trouble."
"Of course! Thank you so much!"
He waved us through without even asking for identification papers.
That was easy, I thought as we passed under the gate and into the city proper.
The moment we stepped inside, Sylvia's excitement reached new heights.
"Oh my god, look at that building! And that fountain! And is that a magic shop? We have to go there!" She was spinning in circles, trying to take everything in at once.
The city was certainly lively. The main street was wide and clean, lined with shops and stalls selling everything from fresh produce to enchanted trinkets. The buildings were a mix of architectural styles, some old and traditional, others newer and more elaborate. People filled the streets, a constant flow of activity and noise.
"Where should we go first?" Sylvia turned to me, her eyes shining. "The market district? I heard they have the best food in the region. Or maybe we should find an inn first and drop off our things?"
"Inn," I said firmly. "We need a place to stay, and you need to calm down before you give yourself a heart attack."
She pouted but didn't argue. We made our way through the streets, asking for directions twice before finding a decent-looking inn called The Silver Deer. The building was three stories tall, well-maintained, and the prices posted outside were reasonable.
Inside, the common room was about half full, with travelers eating lunch and conversing in small groups. The air smelled like roasted meat and fresh bread, making my stomach growl despite my preoccupation with the mission ahead.
"Welcome!" The innkeeper, a plump woman with a friendly face, greeted us from behind the counter. "Looking for a room?"
"Two rooms, please," I said, pulling out my coin pouch.
"Actually," Sylvia interrupted, "one room is fine. Two beds, if you have it."
I shot her a look, but she just smiled innocently.
The innkeeper didn't seem fazed. "One room, two beds. That'll be fifteen copper pieces per night. How long will you be staying?"
"Three nights to start," I said, handing over the coins. We might need longer depending on how the extraction went, but three nights was a safe initial estimate.
She counted the coins and handed me a key. "Room seven, second floor. Breakfast is included, served from dawn until mid-morning. Dinner is extra if you want it."
"Thank you."
We climbed the stairs to the second floor and found our room easily enough. It was simple and clean two beds, a small table with two chairs, a washbasin, and a window overlooking the street below.
Sylvia immediately dropped her pack on one of the beds and rushed to the window. "Look at the view! You can see all the way to the market from here!"
I set my own pack down more carefully, I had recently just acquired this it only held a tent though. My mind already moving through the plan. The castle would be on the other side of the city, probably in the noble district. I'd need to scout the area first, identify the best entry point.
"I'm going to explore," Sylvia announced, already heading for the door. "Want to come with me?"
"No, I'm tired. I'll rest here for a bit."
She hesitated, looking back at me with concern. "Are you sure? You've seemed distracted all day."
"I'm fine. Just need some time to decompress. You go have fun."
She studied me for a moment longer, then nodded. "Okay. But if you change your mind, I'll probably be at the market. Don't brood too much while I'm gone."
"I don't brood."
"Sure you don't." She grinned and slipped out the door, her footsteps quickly fading down the hallway.
The moment she was gone, I moved to the window and looked out, getting my bearings. From here, I could see the general layout of the city. The market district sprawled to the east, the residential areas to the south and west.
And to the north, rising above everything else, was the castle.
White stone, just like the city walls. Multiple towers, a central keep, all of it surrounded by what looked like a secondary wall.
That's where they are, I thought, my hand unconsciously moving to rest on Ghislaine's sword. Lilia and Aisha.
I stood there for a long moment, staring at the castle and mentally preparing myself for what came next.
Then I turned away from the window, checked my weapons one more time, and headed for the door.
Sylvia thought I was going to rest.
I really don't want to lie to her but it's better like this.