CH 53

The next morning.

Seto and Satis left the guest room at sunrise.

They were on their way to Osiris’ office, hoping to say hello to him before leaving the barracks, when they stumbled upon him.

[Is that… Osiris?] (Seto)

[Oh, you’re right. Did he come specially to see us?] (Satis)

Osiris was coming from the other end of the hallway.

Illuminated by the morning sun, a white glow floated over the black gear he was wearing.

When he saw Seto and Satis, he greeted them with a smile and a light wave of his hand, arms folded.

[Did you come all this way to see us off?] (Osiris)

[Obviously. I owe you guys for your contribution to our last battle, after all. …But it’s still a shame. I would’ve loved to fight alongside outstanding talents such as you two.] (Osiris)

Osiris sighed while still harboring a smile.

Although their stay here was extremely short, Osiris and the duo were mutually drawn to each other.

Seto smiled surreptitiously, secretly thinking that this might be the sort of human relationship that could be described by the words “fate” and “bond”.

Satis also expressed her gratitude to Osiris, saying that thanks to him, they were able to enjoy their time in the city.

[Thank you for looking after us. Please continue to protect the public order of this city.] (Satis)

[Of course. This city is my pride. …You guys can visit us whenever you want. Next time, we could eat sushi together at my favorite place.] (Osiris)

[Sushi, huh… Yeah. We’ll come back to eat some, Osiris.] (Seto)

[Yeah, you have my word. …Come on, I’ll walk you out of the building.] (Osiris)

After saying that, Osiris turned on his heel.

The duo followed him as the sound of his magic gear rubbing against itself and the distinctive sound of his footsteps echoed.

Then, when they were out of the building, several of his subordinates were already lined up and waiting for them, and the moment Osiris and the duo appeared, they quickly saluted them.

This was the best they could do to see them off.

[Sorry about this. Even your men are seeing us off.] (Seto)

[I don’t mind. …Were you planning to go to Hopi Mesa on foot? If so, we could give you a horse…] (Osiris)

[It’s fine, we’ll walk. We’re not in any hurry.] (Seto)

[I see. …Seto, Satis. Once again, you have my thanks for helping with the war, as well as that first incident in the sushi restaurant. Thanks to you, the public order is safe.] (Osiris)

Osiris slowly saluted them.

Likewise, Seto saluted back, and showed him his respect as a former child soldier.

[If you ever run into trouble, don’t hesitate to call for Osiris the embodiment of Justice, and I’ll come flying.right away.] (Osiris)

[You’re a dependable ally. When the time calls for it, we’ll definitely rely on you. …So be sure to come to our rescue, hero.] (Seto)

[Of course! After all, I am… Justice. Osiris!] (Osiris)

Osiris struck one unusual pose at every point of his exclamation, with his men standing behind him.

To conclude, they all struck a pose together, and showed their full smiles to the duo.

[Ooh!] (Seto)

With his eyes litting up, Seto clenched his fists at Osiris’ signature pose.

There was no doubt that the latter looked really cool in the former’s eyes.

Satis, however, was only smiling affectionately at Seto.

I wonder if he’s a fan of this kind of thing… (Seto)

Secretly, she felt that Osiris, his men, and Seto had very questionable taste, but she decided not to mention it.

She thought that perhaps Seto needed this kind of sparkling existence in his life to grow.

[Well, we’re off. Thanks for everything, Osiris.] (Seto)

[No problem. See you next time.] (Osiris)

Osiris waved his hand, and his men saluted them as they set off on their journey.

Seto and Satis also waved back and walked to the city gate.

This continued until both sides could no longer see the other.

[They’re gone now, huh…] (Osiris)

Osiris lowered his hand back down, and went back into the barracks with his men.

Today, they had another long day of work ahead of them.

Back to their regular routines, they returned to their posts and went about their business as usual.

Osiris, too, was back at his desk and dealing with a mountain of paperwork.

As for Seto and Satis, they also began hitting the road once again, like they had done before.

After leaving the gate and walking along the street for a while, Seto stopped.

[The city of Ulaine Donagh, huh. It was a pretty fun place too.] (Seto)

[Indeed. We had a bit of a setback, but it was still an enjoyable experience. …Would you like to go to the beach again, just the two of us?] (Satis)

[Wha-?! Q-Quit teasing me like that…!] (Seto)

Satis smiled mischievously at Seto, who panicked when she mentioned the time they spent at the beach.

The boy’s reaction to that was amusing to her, but more than that, she was happy that he found her attractive.

Then, as if she just remembered about it, Satis handed something to Seto.

[This is… the necklace accessory you made from seashells, right?] (Seto)

[Yes, the one I made for you… I wanted to give it back to you sooner, but there was the war and everything else going on back then.] (Satis)

Saying that, Satis bent down a bit and put the necklace around Seto’s neck.

The surface of the seashell glittered in the sunlight, giving Seto a different kind of beauty from that of jewels.

[It suits you very well, Seto. Making you more fashionable really is worth it.] (Satis)

[Thanks, Satis. I’ll take good care of it. Definitely.] (Seto)

Seto smiled happily as he lightly stroked one of the shells with his finger.

Seeing this, Sati swinked joyfully, and gently extended her hand to him.

Seto smiled and held her hand without saying a word.

The two of them walked north, hand in hand, and stood so close to each other they seemed to be cuddling.

Their destination was the city built on the ruins of Hopi Mesa.

They had a feeling that perhaps they would run into trouble again over there.

However, they did not hesitate to continue on their path, illuminated by the rising sun.

The warmth they felt in each other’s hand increased even further along with the sunlight.

[You know, thinking back on it, it’s kind of strange. Here we are, two people who used to be on opposing sides, going in the same direction.] (Seto)

[You’re right. Not to mention, we’re trying to overcome the same hardships. …Somehow, this makes me rather nervous.] (Satis)

[Same here.] (Seto)

They looked into each other’s eyes, laughed, and kept walking on the same warm path.

The sea wind was gradually feeling more distant, and the wind from the mountain range had blown their way.

The key to overcoming their hardships lied in their next destination.

Moreover, since it was the site of ancient ruins, they could not help but anticipate something grandiose.

Seto suddenly wondered if this was what people called “romanticism”.

No doubt Satis would investigate the area with sparkles in her eyes.

[I don’t know anything about ruins or history… So I’m going to need your knowledge for that, Satis. Will you help me?] (Seto)

[Leave it to me! …Still, Hopi Mesa, was it? I know that we should ruins related to the

Wendigos over there, similar to the ones we found when we went on that picnic back then, but… For more details, we’ll have to conduct on-site research.] (Satis)

[Research, huh. Alright, let me know if you ever need me for anything. I’ll help you however  I can.] (Seto)

[Fufufu! I’ll be counting on you, Seto.] (Satis)

As they proceeded on the long road, time was ticking away, and it was about noon when they felt hungry.

They decided to take a break, and sat down side by side under the shade of a tree that stood alongside the road.

As they were sharing dried bread, cheese and ham that Satis took out with spatial magic, they saw someone walking in their direction from across the road.

It was a young woman who seemed to be heading north, just like the duo.

She walked up to them under the shade of the tree, with her eyes closed and a cane.

[Oh, excuse me. …Is this spot under a tree?] (???)

The woman called out to Seto and Satis.

She was dressed in a red and white kimono they had never seen before, and had wavy bobbed hair that looked like a mixture of black and brown.

Her pure white tunic and red skirt that reached just above her knees was an unusual sight to them.

With her eyes still closed, and a cane seemingly made of fine wood in her right hand, she spoke to them.

[Yeah, it is.] (Seto)

[Ahh, thank goodness. I was thinking of taking a break, seeing as it’s lunchtime. Ehehe!] (???)

Saying so, the woman moved to a spot where she could feel the dark and coolness of the shade with her whole body, and sat down carefully.

[Apologies for the trouble. My name is Chiyome, a traveling shrine maiden. Though I may be visually impaired, as you can see, I’m a vagabond who still works as a shrine maiden. …Are you good fellows on a journey as well?] (??? → Chiyome)

[Yes, we’re heading north to Hopi Mesa…] (Satis)

[Ohh, Hopi Mesa, you say? What a coincidence. I was planning to go there myself… This must be some sort of fate. What do you think? May I accompany you there?] (Chiyome)

[Sure, no problem.] (Seto)

[Then it’s decided. Oh, I’m sorry. Please wait a moment while I eat.] (Chiyome)

After saying that, the woman smiled, took out a lunch box from the small furoshiki wrapped around her waist, and began eating in a well-behaved manner.

Seto and Satis also enjoyed their meal while thinking that their trip was going to be entertaining.