Author's Notes: Wow, I have been gone for a REALLY long time. But, well, I have some good news and bad news for you all. The good news is that I'll be updating more often pretty soon, so expect more chapters in the near future (some eventually being requests that I've already received.) However... the bad news comes with regards to Rekka No Ken in general as well as Chapter 20. As some of you may or may not know, a few months ago, my old computer completely crashed on me and was unusable. Luckily, my files were able to be recovered, so I never lost all of the previous chapters I had worked on. However, during that time when I was waiting to get my files back, I got lazy, and once I tried to get back to writing Rekka No Ken, I realized something as I stared at my screen; I lost the touch and spark I had for it. Don't get me wrong, I still love the story and I WILL finish it, but don't expect an update soon. I'm going to need time to regain that spark, and putting it off of my plate without a deadline on it will help with regaining it I hope. I'll make sure to try and go back at it every now and again behind the scenes as I do other stories, but I don't want my lack of presence with Rekka No Ken to influence the other stories I'll have going. For those of you that are disappointed, I apologize, and thank you for waiting patiently all this time. For those of you that read all my content, I hope to fill your plates with many other stories in the meantime. This is by no means an end for Rekka no Ken, just a chance for a new beginning and hopefully, an even better product than what I had in mind to begin with not just Chapter 20, but chapters beyond it as well.
Chapter 1: Footsteps of Fate
Bulgar, one of the largest, if not the largest of all cities in Sacae. Its location in the southern center of Sacae made it an ideal meeting place for both merchants and consumers alike. Truly, in the land of Sacae, where most, if not all, of its inhabitants were nomads, the goods that could be found here were of the utmost rarity and novelty. Considering that those goods were coveted by many nomads was a fact that the citizens of Bulgar held in high esteem. One could even say that their personal pride was staked in making their wares something to be coveted and envied by every single person in Sacae, regardless of age, tribe, or station. In this way, the city truly lived up to its reputation as the commercial center of Sacae.
The streets of Bulgar were bustling with life as it always was. People flooded the pathways as they shopped and socialized. Merchants called at people walking by to visit their stalls as their assistants advertised their wares or services as loudly as they could to be heard above the noise of the people and the competition from nearby vendors. In fact, it could be said that any savvy merchant changed their prices based on rival announcements. Because of this unique relationship between business rival and customer, everyone somehow made some sort of profit from it. The consumers were assured low prices that fit their budget and the merchants sold all of their daily wares while still making a profit. Admittedly, this unspoken system didn't form overnight. Merchant pride was a strong sentiment, and it took many decades for the merchants that did business here, especially those that lived within Bulgar, to let go of such nonsense and adopt such a system as their motto.
The buildings where people lived stood stories into the sky, possibly the largest buildings in the entire region. While the typical nomad housing consisted of tents made from animal furs and the occasional ones made from cloth, most nomad groups slept out in the open sea of grass unless the weather wasn't permitting. Here, the building of Bulgar were made from slabs of smooth stone stacked on top of one another with clay used to meld the slabs together. It was a practice of construction that was adopted from the foreign lands of both Bern and Illia. However, while the building themselves were simple and straightforward, the city's roads were anything but simple. All the merchant stalls, branching and winding pathways, and alleyways throughout the city made navigating a literal walking nightmare. Even those fortunate enough to be born in Bulgar found themselves frustrated and confused by its layout at times. Though the people had a certain pride in not admitting to it. It would prove very easy for one unfamiliar to the city's layout to become lost.
"This might take more time to navigate through than I thought…" Michael said as he observed the ocean of people occupying the streets by the city entrance. Just thinking about all the people he would be butting shoulders with made him frown in annoyance.
"At least we won't be short of merchants to buy from," Lyn pointed out as she scanned the view in front of them with little more than a look of curiosity. It was probably her first time in Bulgar, if at least in her recent memory.
"I guess that's one way of looking at this situation," Michael admitted, "Of course, now that I think about what we need and how much of a budget we have… I don't feel so safe about the contents of my coin purse…."
Michael's eyes wandered painfully onto various merchant stalls nearby. One in particular he found was selling single sets of three vulnerary for seven hundred gold. Even if you were to assume that this merchant had specifically set up shop to swindle first-time shoppers out of their hard earned money, this was still too much. There was an art involved in merchants making people willingly separating themselves from their gold, but apparently this merchant didn't care about subtlety in the slightest.
"Hey, what kind of game are you playing here?!" Michael angrily asked the head merchant, who happened to be manning the storefront himself, "Any idiot can see that your goods are overpriced!"
The merchant looked up to Michael with an angry expression as his mustache twitched in anger, "Don't like the prices? Beat it!" After saying his piece, he looked away and began to ignore Michael, taking up more of an interest in his shoes.
Michael was about to give the merchant the best retort he could think of but Lyn pulled him away, "Don't antagonize the merchant; he might have friends at other stalls."
"Listen to your lady friend, child," the merchant spoke up again in a tone that easily carried the impression that the merchant thought he was far beyond Michael, "Don't make adults angry."
At that point Michael was filled with anger, "Look here-" He stopped himself. This piece of trash wasn't worth getting all riled up on. At the end of the day, when his shop was in the red because of better competition, Michael would have the last laugh as the merchant cried himself to sleep at night.
"Good point," Michael conceded to her Lyn with a nod. He then settled with giving the merchant a dirty look before the two departed.
"Condescending idiot…" Lyn muttered into his ear as they walked away. Michael couldn't help but smile to himself.
With that at and end, the two began to carefully navigate themselves throughout the city, going from merchant shop to merchant shop. They were able to find many of the supplies needed from their journey, but not all bunched up together in a single store. Unfortunate, but not unexpected. As the two fought both other customers and merchants for their supplies Lyn discovered a talent neither would ever thought she would've had; haggling. Lyn managed to not only procure an entire set of kitchen utensils but also several sets of clothes for only one fifth of their original asking price. Michael was just as stunned as he was pleased. Though not as much as the merchants were upset to have their wares sold for an even lower price than before.
It seemed their pride was hurt by Lyn's superior bartering skills even though this was her first time.
"Remind me to never go shopping without you around," Michael told Lyn jovially as he counted up their remaining resources in his head. Sure, they had spent around half of their savings, but Michael had braced himself to be completely tapped out.
"That was fun!" Lyn admitted with a laugh as she stretched her arms around the back of her head, "What else do you think we'll need?"
"I'm positive we're done here," Michael said without a second of pause, adopting a frown in place of his smile from just a moment ago. Just because they had extra money didn't mean they had to spend it. And Michael hated excessive spending.
"You think so?" Lyn asked him skeptically, "Not even a dagger to keep under your cloak just in case?"
"I've done just fine the way I am now," Michael told her sternly, "And how would you know I didn't have a dagger with me?"
"I didn't see one on you when I was stripping you earlier," Lyn told him with straight face and even tone.
"Could you…elaborate please?" Michael asked her, not enjoying the way she had chosen to word that sentence.
"Ah!" Lyn winced as she realized how she had said what she had said, her face growing slightly red, "What I meant to say was that I didn't see one on you when I had taken off your cloak earlier to check you for injuries. Better?"
"Much," Michael admitted with a wince. This girl had a way with draining him mentally. "Look, how about we split up and browse around?" Michael suggested, "If you find anything we need, just come back and find me. I'll be sure to stay around these stalls and catch a break."
"Are you sure?" Lyn asked him as she tilted her head slightly, "Wouldn't it be better for the two of us to stay together? What if one of us gets lost?"
"I'm positive," Michael assured her with a slight sigh, "But if we do get lost, how about the both of us meet up by the plaza center? You know, the place with the fountain?"
"I remember," Lyn nodded in understanding, "We walked by that place when we first got here."
"Good girl," Michael nodded.
"Creep," Lyn frowned at him as she went walking off to go who knows where.
Michael watched Lyn walk away for a short time before she blended into the crowd of people. Immediately he made a beeline for a nearby wall and leaned his back against it as he allowed himself to slide down to the ground. This was the most tired he had ever felt in a long time. It wasn't so much physical fatigue that was ailing him so much as it was the mental fatigue of traveling with someone, a young woman at that, for the first time in well, ever. Michael looked down to the sack filled with their newly bought supplies and let out a loud sigh.
'This is so unlike me…' Michael thought to himself. He always had his guard up around people as much as possible, never staying anywhere for more than a few days at most. Of course that didn't leave much time for making any personal connections, but Michael was rather glad that he didn't. Michael opened up his cloak and took out a small pouch from the back of his robe and held it in his hand. Unraveling the rope keeping it firmly closed, he took out a small locket.
The locket was small, made of pure silver that as molded into the shape of an oval. On its surface was a small, but complex etched image. Well, maybe an image was a better word. From it's left was dragon that looked vaguely angelic in nature. It had long, graceful looking wings and a halo over its head. The dragon looked to be flying skyward as its long snout breathed a small flame from its nostrils. On the right however, was another dragon, but more demonic looking. The dragon had two sets of eyes, with a much for ferocious looking jaw, with several rows of razor sharp teeth. It wings were battered and heavily damaged. The dragon looked like it was falling, as if it were being cast out from somewhere. In the middle of the two was a single sword. From the direction of its pommel, which was sticking upwards like the angelic dragon, it looked as if it were being planted in the ground. Michael always thought that the two dragons must have been fighting each other. Obviously the angelic dragon was the victor. However the appearance of the sword intrigued Michael. Was there a third force that aided the dragon and tipped the balance of power? At any rate, Michael tore his eyes away from the image and more to a little switch on the side of the locket. That tiny little switch was all that kept a small picture that Michael hadn't looked at in years safe. It was probably faded beyond all recognition now. Michael didn't want to risk finding out if it was or not. He frowned as he looked at it. He always felt like a pair of eyes were staring back at him whenever he looked at it. No wonder why he never took it out much.
As quickly as he brought it out, Michael dropped the locket back into it pouch and retied it shut. If anything, Michael felt like he was resealing it more than anything. As soon as he put it back in his cloak, he found Lyn coming to his mind once more. What was it with that girl and her worming her way into his head?
As he thought about their last conversation on the way to Bulgar, Michael couldn't help but feel like he had offended her. Of course, reviewing his behavior in mind, he found several instances of him being ruder than he was allowed to be. He winced at himself as he remembered his actions. Lyn wasn't exactly joining up with him for no reason either. If they were going to be traveling for long, it would be best to patch things up and at least create a somewhat cheerful atmosphere between each other.
"Damn it…" Michael sighed to himself as he picked himself up from the ground, "Now she's getting me all overly conscious as well…" Hopefully a small trinket would be a suitable peace offering for her. And so began Michael's trip along a long line of stalls to look for the perfect peace offering. Eventually, one managed to catch his eye.
The stall wasn't one that had any supplies that the duo would ever need for their journey. This stall was selling jewelry and small toys. There were all kinds of accessories ranging from rings to earrings to glasses. While the toys were such things as little stuffed bears and toy swords. Some of the things on sale were quite cute in Michael's opinion and he found himself smiling to himself before he could realize it. Cute things were dangerous.
"See something you like?" a cool female voice called out to Michael as he looked up from some of the wares to meet the merchant who had asked him, making Michael jump slightly in surprise.
"Oh, no," Michael mumbled to her as he looked away, "Just browsing…"
The merchant was silent for a moment as she gave Michael a quick look over. This made Michael a little uncomfortable. He couldn't help but notice her long, fiery red hair that seemed to go down past her neck, which was tied in a single neat ponytail. Her eyes were a ferocious shade crimson, but there was also a small warmth to them as well. She wore a simple red shirt that matched her eyes and hair, but it was a colorful shade compared to them and long, white baggy pants that completely hid her long legs. Over her back was a gigantic backpack fit to bursting with what must have been other wares for the stall. Michael could only guess how many toys and accessories that they needed at this little stall. Even if Bulgar was busy, there surely had to be a limit on how many people came here each day. She also wore wooden sandals with black straps that ran over her foot and in-between her big toes and index toes. She was actually quite attractive in Michael's opinion. Then again, he hadn't had much contact with women aside from Lyn and even then, Michael still held the opinion that Lyn was slightly above this woman in terms of beauty.
"Alrighty!" she said with a smile as she began to walk over to another part of the stall, "But if you change your mind, just holler, okay?"
"Weird…" Michael said under his breath as nodded to her as she walked away. Talk about the exact opposite of a pushy seller.
"What are you looking at?" Lyn voice asked as she suddenly appeared behind Michael's back, making him jump in surprise.
"Nothing much!" Michael told her, not allowing himself to look as surprised as he felt. When did she get behind him?
"Jewelry?" Lyn asked as she took a look for herself, looking over the necklaces and rings Michael had been absently looking at, "Why would you be looking at that? I never pegged you as the kind of guy that would wear jewelry…"
"I was just browsing," Michael told her as he felt himself sweat, "And I don't wear jewelry either. Never had a liking for the stuff. This stall just happened to catch my eye is all… Did you find something?"
Lyn looked around the stall until her eyes fell upon the merchant, then quickly went back to Michael. "Well, no. I was just coming back here to check on you just in case… You sure it wasn't the beautiful merchant running the stall that has you browsing?" She was going to make this painful, wasn't she?
"Oh, don't even start!" Michael partially yelled in annoyance, "Do you think I'm that dumb to just be attracted to a pretty face?"
Lyn was silent for a while, her face slowly turning from one of curiosity to one of annoyance and even indifference, "…"
"What?" Michael asked as Lyn just looked at him.
Unbeknownst to the both of them, the merchant from before had heard their bickering and was silently listening while slowly turning to face their direction.
"Honestly?" Lyn asked him as she put her arms on her hips as her lips formed a frown, "You should really start taking a look at your attitude. I was just asking a question and you just blew up at me."
"So?!" Michael shot back at her, "Don't assume things about me!"
"Fine," Lyn sighed with an air of finality, "You obviously don't want to talk to me. You obviously want to be alone. Fine. I'll leave you to your own devices. Good day." With a huff, Lyn departed from the stall and ran back into the sea of people from before.
Michael watched Lyn walk away completely flabbergasted. He slowly covered his face with his hands and slowly dragged them down as he slowly let the consequences of his actions sink in. What could have been a real chance for them to talk and even things out turned into a complete disaster. Michael cursed himself underneath his breath.
"Little fight with your lady friend?" the merchant asked as she walked back up to him, her smile now a frown.
"What?" Michael asked, not truly listening to what she said, "Oh… maybe? I'm not so sure myself. Friend? We weren't close to begin with and I think any chance of that just blew up in my face."
The merchant gave Michael an understanding smile. "Say no more," she laughed, "My boyfriend and I were a little like that before we got together. I know exactly what you're going through."
"I should probably get going now," Michael announced as he began to leave. "Thanks for letting me browse for so long. Your wares are quite… wonderful (Would that be the right word)? It's almost a shame not to buy anything…" He had to go chase after Lyn and properly apologize.
How did one properly apologize again?
"No, thank you," the merchant told Michael. "…But don't you want something to help smooth things over with your friend?"
"Excuse me?" Michael asked, slowly stepping back to the stall, his interest piqued.
"If I know how a lady thinks−and I think I know pretty well−she probably thinks you're either a complete ass, or you've got crippling emotional problems. Either way, that doesn't excuse your behavior-"
"Were you spying on us?" Michael asked with a slightly threatening tone.
"-Nor does it excuse cutting people OFF…" the merchant added with a venomous look that instantly shut Michael up, "You'll need something of the incredibly cute and heartwarming variety of gifts to appease her. Preferably something fluffy and huggable."
"That's…a good idea?" Michael asked, slowly being sucked into the merchant's sales pitch, though trying his best to resist.
"If I might make a suggestion," the merchant continued, picking up a hand-sized teddy bear from one of the farther racks, "Girls love cute things most of all. Anything small and furry especially. And this little guy here happens to be the best of the best! How fast these little guys fly off the shelves and the fact that even I keep one with me at all times should tell you all you need to know!"
"I don't know…" Michael resisted as he attempted to take a step back.
"Excuse me!" another customer called out towards the merchant as she came running up towards the stall.
"Yes?" the merchant asked, "Is there anything I can help you with?"
"I just wanted to thank you!" the customer said to her, "This adorable little bear my boyfriend bought for me the other day is simply to die for!"
"Glad to hear you like it!" the merchant giggled, "It's my best selling item!"
"With good reason!" the customer agreed, "Well, I have to go do other shopping! I just wanted to say thanks! Bye!" the customer left in the blink of an eye as she got lost in the crowd of shoppers in the streets.
"Sorry about that," the merchant apologized, "Where were we again?"
"…How much for the bear?" Michael asked with a sigh. That woman was most likely an employee that was supposed to come over when the merchant was talking up a storm for a sale. Normally, this wouldn't get through to Michael, but the situation was a unique one and the glint of happiness in that woman's eyes wasn't faked.
"For you?" the merchant asked as she thought to herself, "Fifteen gold. It's usually thirty, but I like you. You seem like a good kid, minus the outburst and such, so I'll give you the employee discount."
"Deal…" Michael sighed once more as he put the gold in the merchant's hand.
"Pleasure doing business with you!" the merchant thanked Michael as he grabbed the bear and began to depart.
"Oh, yeah. I almost forgot!" Michael said just as he left, "What's your name, if you don't mind me asking?"
"My name?" the merchant asked, caught by surprise. She let out a little smile before responding, "Anna."
"Anna. Mine's Michael," Michael responded, "Thank you very much for your assistance, Anna."
"Good luck!" Anna called out as Michael left. Anna made sure Michael had left before she spoke to herself. "Wow! That was an easier sale than I thought! Hook line and sinker! I hope everything goes well for him. The look on his face when she walked on up behind him? Priceless! He must have jumped a whole foot in the air!"
After trying his best to search for Lyn while not getting lost, Michael was just about ready to give up entirely. With so many people, even someone as distinct as Lyn wouldn't be easy to find. With a long sigh, Michael began to make his way towards plaza. At least there was a fountain he could sit by and try to listen to the sounds of the water if the sounds of consumerism didn't drown it out. However, Michael was in luck to find Lyn sitting right by the fountain looking off into the clouds. Now all he needed to do was think of a good way to approach her and explain himself before apologizing…
However, before he could even have a moment to think, a voice shouted out from the middle of nowhere, grabbing Lyn's attention, "Oh, my heart! What a dazzling vision of loveliness!" the voice belonged to a man, though obvious by the deepness of his voice, though it was slightly high pitched. And what soon followed the voice was the man it belonged to.
"A fair maiden all by her lonesome? How cruel! She must have been abandoned by some no-good ruffian. Who would leave such a beautiful flower out where an animal could step over it?"
The man had long, somewhat light-green hair, a color akin to dying grass, or more likely, dry grass that fell down halfway past his neck and was his locks were kept from falling over his eyes with a black headband. His eyes were the same shade as his hair with a hint of mischievousness and a light that seemed to radiate good cheer. His body armor, while also green, was of a much more natural and darker color, resembling the color of vibrant forest of evergreens with white inlay around the edges of his breastplate, shoulder, elbow, and knee guards. Underneath his armor, he wore a black long-sleeved shirt and long white pants. Attached to his side was a single lance, its tip glimmering in the sunlight. It was well taken care of. A large grin was plastered onto his face which gave Michael the impression he didn't possess a care in the world. He was a man with his head in the clouds.
"Wait, O beauteous one!" the man pleaded as he made his way over to Lyn and bent down on one knee, "Would you favor me with your name? Or better yet, your company?"
Lyn looked back at the knight with a quizzical look. Evidently she didn't think the knight was speaking to her as she looked around to see if anyone was around her. There wasn't. "Excuse me, sir knight," Lyn began politely as she looked back to him, still holding onto his glorious pose, "Where are you from that allows you speak so freely to a stranger?" Her tone cordial, but there was some slight annoyance mixed in. She was probably still angry about the argument from earlier.
"Ha!" the man laughed as he flicked his hair back and out of his eyes. He should invest in a new bandanna… or a haircut. "I thought you would never ask! I am from Lycia. I hail from Caelin canton, home of men of passion and fire!" From the way he was posing and waving his arms around, Michael thought he would truly catch on fire at any moment.
"Ah," Lyn nodded with a forced smile, "It seems like they have horrible standards if you allowed you to join their ranks…" That last part was muttered softly enough that the knight didn't pick up on it.
"They must have really lowered their standards for knights if you're one…" Michael responded, his voice dry with sarcasm from where he was observing the scene play out. He couldn't help but feel like a fool since he was talking to himself.
Evidently, the two could agree on one thing, even if they weren't close enough to hear each other.
"Milady," the knight continued, "Would you do me the honor or a luncheon rendezvous? There was this fabulous little restaurant I happened to pass by that looks absolutely divine!"
"I'm afraid I will have to decline your generous offer, sir knight," Lyn told him flatly, her patience quickly coming to an end, "I would also like to ask you to leave me be. My impression of Caelin knights is falling by the second, and you have yourself to blame for that."
"Such cruelty…" the knight shuddered in ecstasy as he smiled still, "You're even lovelier when you're cruel…"
"This just stopped being funny and just got really weird…" Michael winced as he heard the knight's line. Only a person with no shame and boundless self-confidence could utter such a line without bursting into laughter.
"Sain! Hold your tongue this instant!"
Michael jumped. Right next to him was another man. How he managed to sneak up to him while in armor, Michael would probably never know. Michael instantly knew that the two knew each other from the way the man next to him had called out.
The man then quickly made his way over to the green knight. He had bright orange hair, trimmed short enough so it didn't trouble his vision. His compatriot could learn from his example. His eyes were a light but deep red, thankfully not being the same color as his hair. His eyes held a serious look to them, vastly different than his comrade's. His armor, while much like the other knight's, was red instead of green, but he had the same white inlay around the pieces of his armor, just like the green knight. Underneath his armor was a deep tan colored shirt and long brown pants. Kept in a sheath on his left thigh was a sword, while a lance was kept behind his back. His tone was rigid and his voice was stern. It was obvious that this man was the leader of the two. A no nonsense fellow. Someone Michael could probably get along with for five minutes before getting into an argument with.
"Ah, Kent!" the knight called Sain called back with a smile, "My boon companion! Why so severe an expression?"
"Your conduct gives me such an expression!" the knight called Kent told Sain through clenched teeth, "If your manner were more serious, I wouldn't have to be so severe! We still have a mission to complete! And here you are, flirting with yet another maiden!"
"But Kent," Sain whined, "How can I keep on such a mission when there is a maiden as beautiful as her that's caught my eye!?" Sain pointed towards Lyn, as if Kent would agree with him if he only took a look at her beauty. "She must have been abandoned by some foolish knave! I'm never wrong about these sort of things, you know!"
"Must I remind you of the time in the last town with the noblewoman?" the red knight named Kent replied with a tired sigh and tone, "Or in the town before that with the farmer's daughter? We can NEVER set foot back in there, thank you very much."
"Those were flukes at best, I assure you," Sain laughed before adopting a somewhat serious expression, "I was merely having an off day."
"Honestly," Kent said as he massaged the bridge of his nose, "What am I to do with you?"
"Excuse me?" Lyn asked politely, making sure to address Kent instead of Sain, "While this might be a riveting conversation for the both of you, would you be so kind as to stop blocking the way? I'm in a hurry."
"Ah, please, milady, accept my apologies," Kent began as he bowed to Lyn and ushered for Sain to move out of her way, "I hope my friend didn't cause you too much trouble."
"Not as much as he's caused for you, I'm sure," Lyn laughed as he began to walk away.
"Excuse me, miss?" Kent asked in a split second as Lyn walked on by, his expression turning both serious and confused, "I apologize for stopping you and I'm sure what I'm about to ask you will seem extremely strange but, is there a chance me and you have been acquainted before? Perhaps at some sort of event?"
"I… don't remember meeting a knight such as yourself before," Lyn answered with a polite tone after pondering for a short while.
"Kent!" Sain finally spoke up once again, this time with a hurt expression, "Have you taken a fancy to this young lady? And not even to tell me of such a development?"
"I beg your pardon?" Lyn asked, almost scandalized.
"What?!" Kent asked Sain as he turned around to face him.
"Kent!" Sain whined, "While I support you as both friend and knight, I must say one thing; no fair! I saw her first! Don't I have the right to strike out first?"
"It seems there are no decent men in Lycia's knights after all," Lyn huffed with a frown as she began to walk away.
"Wait!" Kent called out to Lyn in vain, "It's not like…that…"
By this point Michael had had enough of standing around listening to their conversation. With quick and furious steps, Michael broke through both of the knights and forcefully grabbed Lyn's hand. Lyn looked behind her in surprise before making a shocked expression when she found Michael grabbing her. Turning his head, Michael looked at the two knights and shot them a deathly glare, "Excuse me, gentlemen, but I'm afraid this young lady is taken. Allow me to thank you for keeping her company and driving away any riffraff while I was attending to my errands. Good day!"
While still storming off, Michael dragged Lyn away as fast as both his legs could carry them. Or course, as they made distance between the two knights, Michael felt some gazes from the crowds of people intensify.
"Sain," Kent said once again through clenched teeth in a barely controlled rage as the two disappeared into the crowd, "YOU LOUT! Last time I remembered, I was not you! I can control myself!"
"So you weren't…" Sain began, only now realizing his friend was not thinking the same way he was. "Oh…a thousand pardons." Sain bowed his head and scratched the back of it as he let out a forced laugh.
"Hold the apologies for later!" Kent frowned at him, "For now we must find that maiden! I think she might be our mission!"
"Truly?!" Sain asked in complete shock, "We must act fast then! They were certainly quick on their feet when they left!"
"And who do you think was the cause of that, hm?" Kent asked as he began to retreat to where they had left their horses.
The two knights began to scour the city, but soon realized that they had lost the duo within minutes. Desperate to find them, they decided to make their way to the entrance of the city. Eventually, they would have to pass through to leave.
"Wait," Lyn told Michael calmly as he continued to pull her along, "I said wait!"
"What?!" Michael asked her in exasperation as he stopped and turned to look at her, "The longer we stay standing around the more time those knights have to find us again if they so wish!"
"I don't care about them," Lyn scoffed as she flicked her wrist in agitation, "What I'm more concerned with right now is you. Why bother helping me? What, did you want to argue with me some more?"
Michael took a deep breath as if he were about to explain himself, but soon stopped himself from speaking, with his mouth left open like a slack-jawed idiot. Why did he intervene between Lyn and the knights? From the look of things and from the words being tossed around, Lyn wasn't too keen on them herself. Surely there wasn't a need for him to come storming in and take her away by the hand.
"I… I don't know why I tried to help you," Michael finally answered after thinking for a moment, "But… I do know I wanted to apologize to you about earlier."
"Huh?" Lyn asked in complete mystification as she looked at Michael with a cautious gaze.
"Look, I'm sorry!" Michael sighed at her in frustration, "But I can't help it if you just seem to sweep me along in your pace and put me on edge! It's a reflex I have around people. I know I was in the wrong and I am trying to at least apologize and take responsibility for my actions. Besides, you also saved my life, you know. So there's another reason to not want to make you angry for too long. I'm sorry, this must sound odd. I'm bad at these kinds of things."
For a moment, Lyn simply looked at Michael with a straight face before breaking out into a laugh, "That was a horrible apology! Come on, at least sound sincere when you say you're sorry! Otherwise the other party will think you're just spouting meaningless words at them."
Michael felt his face burning with embarrassment, "I-I'm sorry. T-The argument earlier was all my fault. I am to blame." Michael bowed his head as he finished, awaiting for Lyn's approval to raise his head.
"Wha?!" Lyn gasped in shock, "Come on, Michael, and pick your head up already! Do you know how strange this looks right now!?" Michael picked his head up to see Lyn frantically waving her arms around in embarrassment as a crowd of onlookers stopped to stare at them. Some were whispering to each other about things better left forgotten.
"WHAT ARE YOU ALL LOOKING AT?!" Michael shouted out at the crowd, "THERE'S NOTHING TO SEE HERE! LEAVE BEFORE I GET ANGRY!" The crowd began to disperse and mix back in with the sea of people at Michael's words with little more than an angry glance or two.
"Let's just leave already…" Lyn sighed as she rubbed her forehead, "Since we have all our supplies, we don't have a reason to be here anymore. Plus, those knights might be looking for us. Let's make haste."
For the duo, however, the two knights quickly became the least of their worries, as they soon discovered that they were being followed almost immediately after mingling into the crowd. What was originally one pursuer soon became two. If it weren't for Lyn looking over her shoulder earlier to double check on whether the knights were following them or not, they would have never known they were being pursued until it was too late. Even as they ran, Michael was dedicating everything he had to formulating a winning strategy for Lyn.
"We have to get out of the markets!" Michael told Lyn, "It's too suffocating for any of your sword techniques."
"You're the tactician!" Lyn answered him as they ran out towards the entrance of the city and towards the wide open fields.
Surveying the area, Michael was relieved to find that the area had many more little thickets of trees than the last battle. This would prove useful both as a means for Lyn to more easily avoid attacks, but almost presented more areas for him to hide so he could continually relay commands and strategies in order to keep Lyn battling effectively. The entire area was split into two sides by a river running through it, with two bridges serving as the only way to cross from one side to the other.
"I hear something!" Lyn spoke up as they both froze in silence. "Horses! Are those knights after us?!"
"Can't be," Michael reassured her, "There's no way they would be able to track us once we got in that crowd. There were too many people we passed through for them to keep an eye on us."
"But we were being followed before!" Lyn pointed out, "What's to say they don't have others with them that have been watching us?"
"I think this is a little different right now," Michael said as he tried to explain their situation, both to Lyn and himself, "Someone definitely had their eyes on us since we were talking to them. Unless−"
But Michael never got to finish that thought, for at that same moment, a bandit walked up to them.
He was aged, with gray hair and an equally gray stubble. But his body had many scars, testaments to the battles he had been a part of. The axe he carried over his shoulders was stained in dried blood.
"Well aren't you a pretty thing!" the bandit laughed as he gave Lyn a once over. "I assume you're Lyndis?"
Lyn's eyes widened in shock in a way Michael had never seen before. She looked truly disturbed that the bandit had called her by that name. "How do you know that name?!" Lyn demanded in a commanding tone, "Who are you?!"
"That shouldn't matter to you dearie," the bandit answered. "But still… It's such a waste… The things I do for gold," the bandit shook his head as if disgusted by himself. "Come on out boys! It's time to earn your coin!"
At the bandit's command, several bandits emerged from cover in the thickets Michael had been thinking of using for cover.
"There goes that plan…" Michael muttered as he let out a sigh and rolled his eyes.
"This might be more than I can handle…"Lyn decided to inform him, adding to the general decline of this situation, "But that doesn't mean I won't try!"
Just as a battle was about to commence, the sound of horses galloping, now clearly close by, filled the air. On those two horses, were the knights Kent and Sain from earlier.
"You two!" Michael exclaimed. This would either get a whole lot worse or a whole lot better for them.
"Finally caught up…" Sain managed to say over the loud gasping of his horse. "We were looking everywhere for you."
"Great," Lyn said in annoyance as she cocked her head to the side and crossed her arms, "Just what I need. A knight to flirt with me as I get an axe through the head."
"You wound me, fair maiden!" Sain responded as he covered the spot where his heart would be with both his hands, "We're here to help! You there!" Sain addressed the bandit leader with a loud yell, "Why so many numbers against one girl? Cowards!"
"Why are you−?" Lyn began, but she was cut off by Kent as he put a hand up.
"We will explain all later," Kent assured her as he looked towards the bandits, "Once the battle is done."
"Wise advice," Michael agreed with a dry smile. At the time being, they looked like they would be allies. But the probability that they would turn hostile on them later was still high.
"Very well," Kent nodded as he addressed Michael, "We shall be under your command! Direct the both of us as you see fit."
"I think I'm about done giving you all the time to chat!" the bandit leader announced as he made way to attack.
"Get on the horse!" Michael told Lyn as he jumped onto Kent's, leaving Lyn to get onto Sain's. "Ride down south towards that small thicket! We'll form a strategy there and make some breathing room!"
Dutifully following Michael's instructions, Kent rode his horse as commanded, with Sain and Lyn following close behind.
"Damn!" the bandit leader shouted as he looked towards his grunts, "Don't just stand there you half-brained idiots! Go haul them back here!"
As they got to the thicket, Michael, rather ungracefully, got off Kent's horse, earning a few bruises for his trouble from the tumble down. He muttered a few choice curses as Lyn got off Sain's horse as if she had been around horses her entire life. Though being from both the Lorca tribe and the Sacae Plains, Michael couldn't expect anything less from her.
"What will our plan be?" Lyn asked, while ignoring the little embarrassing show Michael had just put on. Personal opinion notwithstanding, she appeared to have complete trust in him coming up with a perfect strategy.
"Give me a minute," Michael told her as he peaked around the trunk of a tree.
Two of the bandits from the group were attempting to pursue them, but their speed and ability to cover ground were nothing compared to Sain and Kent's mounts. All the other bandits were waiting patiently for their comrades to bring back their quarry. It was a mistake to assume they were trapped and helpless animals. Then again, given their situation until Kent and Sain's arrival…
"Alright," Michael said as he turned back to face the other three, "Here's the first part of our attack; Sain, on my mark I want you to engage the bandit on our right side. He looks to be slightly faster than the other one since he's covering ground more quickly. But I want you to wait until he gets closer. We'll have an easier time fighting them if they've tired themselves out just getting to us."
"I will be as swift as the wind itself!" Sain pledged as he took out his lance and thrusted it into the sky.
"Whatever," Michael told him as he looked to Lyn, "Meanwhile, Lyn, I want you to go after the guy on our left. You'll be leaving after Sain engages his opponent. That guy will probably want to help his buddy while Sain is dealing with him. While that's happening, that's when you can get the jump on him."
"Leave it to me!" Lyn told him with a nod.
"What about me?" Kent spoke up.
"Kent," Michael began, "…You'll be carrying me over to our next little hideaway so I can direct our next course of action. After that, you'll be joining Lyn and Sain on the front lines."
"Understood!" Kent nodded.
"On my mark, Sain," Michael motioned as he peaked his head back out to see the two bandit's progress, holding his arm in the air as he did so.
As soon as Michael could clearly see their faces, he gave Sain the signal to move in. True to his word, Sain engaged them almost as quickly as Michael had given him the signal.
With a gasp of surprise, he bandit soon found himself with a knight atop a horse coming after him. Just as predicted, the other bandit then began to rush in to assist his comrade, with Lyn appearing from out of nowhere behind him. He quickly stopped trying to help his comrade as he gave Lyn his full attention, with her dodging every sloppy swing with his axe he could muster.
Unfortunately, Sain was not doing as spectacular as one could hope. His lance wasn't connecting with its target, the bandit dodging every thrust before they were completely followed through. That was the weakness of lances though. Unless your opponent wasn't being observant or if you weren't in close quarters, the lance's telegraphed attacks could easily be evaded. Of course, a weapon was only as weak or strong as the person behind it. Sain, for whatever reason, was either not fighting to his true potential, or was attempting to show off.
"Sain!" Kent yelled to Sain in frustration, "What is this foolishness?! Take out your blade and be done with him!"
"A blade?" Sain answered as he pulled his horse back from an attack, "But the lance is a far nobler and more heroic weapon!"
"You forgot it, didn't you…?" Kent asked through clenched teeth.
"…Yes!" Sain responded as he dodged another attack.
Michael's hand collided with his forehead, "You have got to be joking… Of all the BONEHEADED— wait, why do I care? I don't even know the guy!"
From Kent's own reaction, Michael wasn't alone. "He forgot to bring along a sword…may I?" Kent asked Michael politely as he waved his hand over to the embarrassing scene of Sain and his little bandit buddy.
"Are you going to help him out?" Michael asked in return.
Kent gave a nod.
"By all means, go," Michael said to him.
In two blinks of an eye, Kent was at Sain's side, where he produced an iron sword and threw it over to Sain.
"A thousand thanks, my good friend!" Sain thanked Kent.
"You're just lucky I have a spare," Kent chastised him, "Otherwise you would be on your own."
"I don't believe you would leave me out to die for one minute," Sain quipped back as he ran the bandit through with his newly acquired sword as if he were a fly to be swatted away.
"OK, the knights are done, how about you Lyn?!" Michael asked as he looked over to where she was last engaging the bandit. But all that was left was his corpse.
"I've been done for some time now," Lyn explained as she suddenly appeared out of nowhere and sat down next to him.
"That was fast!" Michael noted as he suppressed another reflex to jump.
"That oaf of a knight was just slow," Lyn responded as she motioned to Sain.
"I'll have you know I was just playing with him before he would be dealt his horrible demise!" Sain desperately tried to defend himself as the two of knights made their return.
"Your orders?" Kent asked, eager to serve. And to keep Sain from talking.
As Michael peaked around the tree once again, he saw that the bandits had decided to converge on the bridges rather than attempting to engage the two knights on horseback.
"It seems they've changed their plan from just running at us to blocking the bridges so we can't get by," Michael informed the others.
"A mistake they will learn soon enough," Kent mentioned.
"You know it!" Michael agreed. "But first, let's make our way closer to where they are. I want to see how many of them are left."
Being sure to tread carefully, the group made their way to another thicket. On the short ride they were spotted by the bandits, but they didn't try to engage them in combat. There were three bandits left in all. The leader from before, and two underlings. Each of the underlings was guarding one of the bridges, assuring that no one would be able to pass through without going through them first.
"This is almost too easy," Michael announced to the others, "Kent, I want you to keep the bandit on the bridge to the left of us busy for a while."
"I shall commence with my task as soon as you give the signal," Kent told Michael as he prepped his horse.
"Meanwhile, I want Sain to take the guy on the right. Think you can handle it?" Michael asked Sain, remembering the fiasco that was Sain's first brush with the other bandit.
"It seems I'll have to outdo myself in order to repair my image," Sain huffed, obviously sore from Michael's little comment.
"Fine," Michael told him, not wanting to play his little game for even a moment, "Lyn, you g−"
"WAIT! I never said I wouldn't do it!" Sain yelled.
"Please treat them seriously this time," Lyn advised, "It wouldn't be very heroic to wind up on the wrong side of an axe."
"If it shall keep the lovely maiden from fretting about my well-being, consider the bandit already dead," Sain bowed as he looked Lyn directly in the eyes.
"Nice to see you still have some fire left in you…" Michael noted in a dry tone as he gave Sain a scowl. Must he continue to act flirty even during times like these?
"What about me?" Lyn asked.
"You'll be staying back this time," Michael told her, "From the look of their leader, he has a lot of battle experience. I want you to stay back for a while and catch your breath. Since you aren't on a mount, you'll be a more likely target than either of them. However, once you're properly rested, you'll be a force to be reckoned with."
"But I'm not that winded," Lyn noted as she took a deep and calm breath without any rattling or breaking in her airflow.
"But I know your movements a little more than Sain's or Kent's," Michael told her, "Your style of fighting relies on you being as quick as you can while also stepping into your opponent's blind spots. Which also relies on you being in their attack radius. Ergo, I want to you be as close to peak condition as possible."
"Didn't realize you watched me so closely…" Lyn muttered as she averted her eyes and scratched her head.
'Please don't try to make this weird…' Michael thought to himself as he just sighed.
"And I want you two to be careful," Michael warned, turning his attention to the two knights, "You'll be fighting on the bridges. Your horses won't have the luxury of maneuvering you out of danger as well compared to the few enemies. You'll have to finish off your bandit as soon as possible."
"I shall keep that in mind as I approach," Kent acknowledged Michael's words of advice.
"Those two look like they are expecting us. They probably won't give us an opening to exploit, so I think you guys can just rush in whenever you feel like you can—but be careful! Actually…" Michael began to rub his chin as he looked at Lyn.
"What?" Lyn asked innocently.
"How many vulnerary do you have on you right now?" Michael asked her.
Lyn took a moment to pull out the pouch from before and counted its content. "Five."
Michael's mouth fell open as quickly as Lyn cut down bandits. "I'm sorry, I think I misheard you. Did you say FIVE vulnerary?"
"Yes."
Michael massaged his temples as he let the information sink in. "Is that a problem?" Sain asked him.
"No," Michael let out in a long sigh, "I'm just…thinking about how nobody tells me important details like these. But anyway, please give Kent and Sain a vulnerary."
"I told you last time that I had several!" Lyn told him.
"I know…" Michael sighed, "I thought you were just joking though…"
"Sure, keep your tactician in the dark about what he has to work with. Make his job HARDER why don't you…"
With the two each packed with a vulnerary, they each set off to dispatch their respective bandit. They each did well considering they were on the losing end in terms of maneuverability, but after some time coaxing the bandits away from the bridges, they fell quite easily. Though, both Kent and Sain did receive their own wounds during that dangerous game of cat and mouse. Michael was wise to give them each a vulnerary in case things went awry.
"Nicely done guys," Michael commended them as they drank some of their medical potions. "You pulled that off very well."
"Ha!" Sain laughed, "It will take far more than a few measly bandits to defeat Kent and I!"
"Indeed," Kent agreed, "With your tactical prowess, there should be no enemy we cannot defeat if we work together."
"All that's left is the leader of that little force," Lyn pointed out.
"He's smart," Michael thought aloud, "He's not engaging us on his own. Rather, he's waiting for us to come to him."
"Why so?' Sain asked out of curiosity.
"If we all came in to overpower him all at once, we risk the threat of harming each other because of the lack of space to maneuver," Michael explained, though this was mostly theory and assumption on his own part, "While the same holds true for him, because we are all going for him, we allow him to dictate who makes the first move, and who in turn can capitalize on it. With a bandit that looks as experienced as him, he's probably been in his own fair share of fights where he's been outnumbered. With that in mind, he would be the most comfortable with fighting in those conditions. Considering he is an enemy, this is a bad thing. This last fight is strictly going to be on a one-on-one basis. If someone is taking too much damage, they'll have to simply tag out and let someone else finish the job."
"That's why you wanted me to rest!" Lyn guessed, "So I could be ready to fight him and bring him down in one fell swoop."
Michael gave an affirmative nod. "But just because you're rested doesn't mean he'll be easy. Remember last time; don't underestimate your opponent."
"I was careless once," Lyn said in a serious tone, "And that was the only time I ever shall be."
"He's all yours," Michael told her, "Take him down in one strike."
"Good luck!" Sain called out as Lyn walked toward the bandit leader.
"I hope your sword brings swift judgment down upon him!" Kent called out.
As Lyn walked over to the leader, Michael sat down in the grass, his eyes trained on Lyn.
"What do we do now?" Kent asked.
"It's simple really," Michael said as he motioned for both of them to take a seat on the ground, "We wait for Lyn to win. Or stand on edge ready to get her out of there if things start to go sour."
"Ba!" The bandit leader spat, "Damn knights. They never know when to keep their noses out of our business!"
"You don't have to die here," Lyn told the bandit in an even tone, making an attempt to avoid further bloodshed, "You can walk away right now and be done with it. You don't appear to be the Taliver, at least from what I can see."
As much as Lyn wanted to avoid further fighting if she could, she had her arm was resting firmly on the sheath of her sword. She wasn't ignorant enough to just assume her opponent would surrender peacefully. Or surrender just to get her to drop her guard. She was going to be prepared just in case the bandit wouldn't listen to reason. Or course, that hope was fragile at best.
"I think you know as well as I do girlie!" The bandit leader scoffed, "That this here day isn't going to end unless one of our head's is rolling down the river!"
"I tried…" Lyn muttered sadly to herself as she quickly drew her iron sword.
With a ferocious roar cry, the bandit leader, with more speed than one of his age would let on, delivered a deadly horizontal slash with his axe aiming for Lyn's stomach. Lyn quickly put up her sword in a defensive position in order to block the blow. His axe met her sword, and the two were locked in a struggle to push each other back, each hoping to create an opening as they did so.
As far as strength went, Lyn was outclassed. Lyn was slowly seeing herself being pushed back against the overwhelming force behind the leader's axe. It would only be a matter of time before her guard gave out from her arms cramping up. In a wise move, Lyn jumped back and out of the axe's range, just as the leader put in a large thrust of force behind his axe.
As the bandit leader delivered another blow, this time a vertical slash, Lyn bounced out of the way and attempted to stab at him through his side, but the bandit's strike turned out to be a feint as he drew his axe back to deflect Lyn's blow.
"Sorry girlie," the Bandit leader laughed, "Last time I was stupid enough to let somebody do that, I got this here scar on my face and almost lost me right eye."
"Damn!" Lyn muttered under her breath.
Away from the fight, Michael was analyzing both combatants fighting styles. Lyn's style, like he had observed previously, focused greatly on grace, both evading attacks and striking back with using quick reflexes and abusing their blind spots. The bandit's was more akin to the typical run and attack style. Overwhelm the enemy with superior physical strength while relying on your own stamina to keep you moving until your enemy tires. Clearly, it was strong enough to keep the enemy moving, but hardy enough to keep up with their own movement. Neither Lyn nor her style were made for prolonged battles. Michael would do best to remember that for later engagements.
"She's being pushed back," Kent observed. "Let me take her place."
"She's not finished yet!" Sain reminded Kent.
"I agree with Sain," Michael said in a moment of fascination even for him. Agreeing on something with Sain was something he never thought he would do, "Lyn still hasn't shown her trump card yet."
"Trump card?" Kent asked curiously.
"Keep watching," Michael recommended, keeping his eyes firmly locked onto Lyn, "You might just see it soon."
The battle between Lyn and the bandit leader had devolved into Lyn just keeping out of his attack range as he slowly advanced his way towards her. Lyn's breathing was beginning to become haggard, a telltale sign that she was becoming fatigued. This battle would be decided in just a few more moments. Michael clenched his fists tightly. This was beginning to look like a repeat of the last battle.
"I think we're nearing the end of our little game here, Lyndis," the bandit leader said mockingly.
"Michael was confident enough to let me take you on all on my own," Lyn told him in between breaths, "I would hate betray his trust and expectations."
"Thick-headed to the bitter end," The bandit leader mused as he shrugged his shoulders, "That's youth for you…"
As the bandit readied what was surly meant to be his killing blow, Lyn took a new stance. Instead of keeping the blade low like she usually did, she bent closer to the ground as she pulled her sword in close to her chest, putting her front foot out while she took a long breath.
"Here is comes…!" Michael announced. He didn't properly see this technique last time. He would be sure to view it completely this time.
Almost as if she was moving at two different speeds at once, Lyn slowly, but somehow at the same time quickly disappeared before everyone's eyes. A shock went through everyone but Michael when Lyn vanished.
In his shock, the bandit leader lowered his axe as he surveyed the area, but it was a wasted effort. The sound of a blade cutting through flesh echoed in the air as Lyn tore through the bandit's body with every strike. The final slash cut open his neck. His last sounds were him gargling on his own blood as he fell down in a single heap to the ground where he died shortly after as his body connected with the ground.
"So that's what she did last time…" Michael muttered to himself as him, Kent, and Sain ran to meet Lyn. 'But I still couldn't see everything she did. I only saw the first and last strike. Curious…'
"That was marvelous technique!" Kent said, truly awed.
"That bandit didn't know what was coming!" Sain gushed, "The look on his face as she disappeared was to die for!"
"He was definitely more skilled than the last one…" Lyn stated with a stern expression, "If it wasn't for him leaving an opening from getting cocky, my technique wouldn't have worked half as well."
"All part of the battle though," Michael reassured her as he got up and walked over to her, "You were on your guard. He wasn't. It's obvious who the victor would be. The same situation like the one you were in before. Except this time, you were the one being underestimated."
Lyn gave him an affirmative nod to show that she agreed. "Now," Lyn said as she turned her attention towards the two knights, "Let' hear what these knights have to say."
"But of course," Kent began almost immediately, "We have ventured from Caelin, in Lycia, in search of someone."
"Lycia," Lyn said as she looked at Michael, "Isn't it that the country beyond the mountains in the southeast?"
Michael gave her a confused shrug in response. Geography wasn't his forte. And he didn't plan on that changing anytime soon.
"You are correct," Kent told her. "We came as messengers to lady Madelyn, who eloped with a nomad some nineteen years ago."
"Madelyn?" Lyn asked, the name ringing a bell.
"Our lord, the Marquess of Caelin's only daughter," Kent continued, "He was heartbroken that she would abandon him. Eventually, he simply declared he had no daughter."
"And then wouldn't you know," Sain jumped in, "This year we received a letter from lady Madelyn. It said her, her husband, and their daughter, were living happily on the Sacae Plains. The marquess was ecstatic to discover that he had a granddaughter of eighteen years. Why, the smile he had on his face when he announced he had suddenly become a grandfather went from one end of the castle to the other! Especially so when he found out the girl's name was Lyndis. It was the same name as the marquess's wife, who passed away at an early age."
"Lyndis?" Lyn asked once again.
Michael was fully absorbed into the conversation to make any comments. The same name the bandit had called Lyn previously. If you put two and two together, even an idiot would be able to know whom the two knights were searching for.
"You can certainly believe that little tidbit melted whatever was left of the ice around the marquess's heart. Now, his only wish is to meet his daughter's family at least once," Sain went on. "That's why we are here. But… we didn't know that lady Madelyn died a few days after sending her letter…We only learned this shortly after arriving in Bulgar."
"But we also learned that all was not lost," Kent began anew, "Her daughter yet lives. We heard she was living alone on the plains… I knew immediately that she was you."
"Why would you think that?" Lyn asked.
"Your resemblance to your departed mother is remarkable," Kent explained.
"Did you know my mother?" Lyn asked again, now interested in any information about her mother's life before meeting her father.
"I am sorry to say I never met her directly," Kent told her, "But I often saw her portrait in Castle Caelin."
"To the rest of my tribe," Lyn began, "I was always Lyn. But when I was with my parents…When it was just the three of us, I was Lyndis. It's so strange. Before, I was all alone in the world, and now I have a grandfather. Lyndis… I never thought I would hear that name again."
Silent tears swept down Lyn's cheeks as she spoke. Everyone was silent while she wiped them away.
"Wait!" Lyn yelled as she opened her eyes in revelation, "That bandit! He called me Lyndis, too!"
"Thank you for reestablishing previous information…" Michael sighed as he rolled his eyes.
Lyn gave him a dirty look, "No, I mean—"
"What?" Kent asked, "But how could he have−"
"…He was a henchman of Lord Lundgren, wasn't he?" Sain spat.
"Lundgren?" Lyn asked, "Who's that?"
"He's the marquess's younger brother," Kent began to explain once more, "Everyone assumed that lady Madelyn was gone forever. This made Lord Lundgren the heir to the marquess's title."
"To be blunt, milady," Sain stepped in, "Your existence is an obstacle to your granduncle's ambition."
"That's─" Lyn angrily began but cut herself off, "But I have no interest in inheriting ANY title!"
"I'm afraid your granduncle isn't the sort of man to believe that," Sain told her as he shook his head. "I believe the attempts on your life will persist."
"What should I do?" Lyn asked, clueless as to how to act following these new revelations, "This just made things much more complicated."
Michael scowled, "Matters dealing with nobility often aren't anything BUT complicated…"
"Accompany us to Caelin," Kent beckoned her, "Continuing on this way with only yourself as an able fighter is dangerous."
Michael looked over to the bodies of the bandits that they had just finished putting to the sword. No doubt regardless of the choice Lyn made here, there would be no end to these kinds of attacks until either she or Lundgren was dead. Call it favoritism, but Michael would rather have Lyn continue breathing.
"But I was traveling with Michael," Lyn explained to the knights, "I can't just leave him alone and go with you! Can't I?"
This presented an interesting situation for Michael. He could both bow out here and leave Lyn to the protection and service of two knights sworn under oath to her supposed grandfather and go back to his solidary lifestyle or… He could continue to travel with Lyn, see her through this journey to Caelin or die in the attempt. Considering that their journey was only going to be filled with more dangers, the choice seemed to be painfully obvious to make. However, there was the matter concerning Michael repaying Lyn for saving his life. He still owed her that much at least.
"It's alright," Michael told her as he had finished processing everything Kent and Sain had said and put his own thoughts into order. "Besides, my original plan was going to involve us just wandering from place to place. Now, we have a destination and a goal in mind."
"You're coming with?!" Lyn asked in surprise. This wasn't simply two wanderers on a journey anymore. This went beyond just a travel partner.
"Yes," Michael nodded his head, "Do you have a problem with that? I could leave if you want me to."
"Will you continue to be my master tactician?" Lyn asked. Her face was light, free from any anger or annoyance she had shown him earlier during their arguments. It was quite a sight for Michael to behold once more. He felt a warm feeling in his chest spread throughout his body. No doubt the work of her mysterious power to make him go with the flow again.
"Will you continue to be my peerless warrior?" Michael asked her in return.
Lyn let out a small smile. "Very well," Lyn said to Kent and Sain as she faced them, "The both of us will go with you."
"I love it when things go our way!" Sain laughed as he flashed his teeth.
"Then we make our way for Caelin," Kent announced as he bowed his head to Lyn. "Our swords are now your own."
The four have banded together on their way towards Caelin. However, on the way lies a shrine famed for its mystical sword. Their next stop is the temple where this sword is enshrined. Since this sword is said to bring luck to those who touch it, it is a stop not just for sightseeing, but for morale as well. But there Lyn will discover her most steadfast ally and her most trustworthy of weapons.
Author's Notes: As before, this chapter was beta'd by the incredibly punctual Hoennmaster96. No one is going to get this aside from Hoenn XD
Also, be on the look out for the next "chapter" of Rekka No Ken: A Story Retold 2. There will be a "B" story happening and updating alongside the original story that'll be introducing... well, i'll leave the surprise for when it comes. ;)
See you guys next time with Dragon Quest V Chapter 2!