Chapter 2: Fool's Dwelling
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(Gnar's Cave, Imperial Year 1024, Day 1, 8:00 AM)
It was dark.
That's the first thing Sayo realized, when she had entered the cave and managed to take in her surroundings. Gnar looked at her and smiled brightly, before walking to the side of the cave.
"So, would you mind telling what you two are doing in these woods because if you were trying to go sightseeing, then I'm gonna have to tell you here and now that you picked the wrong forest" Gnar asked with a cheerful and casual smile as he picked up, what Sayo assumed were, two random stones on the ground.
"We weren't sightseeing or anything, we actually came here from our village" Sayo replied as she watched as he walked to the cave's wall and proceeded to flick the two stones together, creating a spark.
Her eyes widened when a torch lit up and illuminated the dark cave.
"Like I said, this is the last place you want to find yourselves in, not that I don't appreciate you being here or anything, it's just that this place tends to have a...surplus of S-class danger beasts" Gnar said casually as he started lighting up the row of torches.
"Yeah, well we didn't exactly plan on ending up in this forest, it's just that this goofball got us walking around in circles for the past three days" Sayo said a little irritatingly as she gestured to her still unconscious friend.
Gnar laughed heartily at that and Omen, the Diamondback, placed his winged foreleg on top of his skull. He managed to look like he was facepalming, which made Sayo snicker a little. Gnar started tugging on the rope he was pulling on earlier, dragging whatever was on the other end of the line into the cave with them.
"Word of advice: When traveling to foreign places, always make sure that you're either with someone who actually knows how to navigate or someone who knows their way around" Gnar said happily with a wide heartwarming smile.
"Isn't that more like commonsense" Sayo deadpanned.
"Hahahaha, yeah, probably" Gnar conceded as he continued to pull on the rope. "So, if you came from a village and if you two were lost, then where were you planning on going?" He asked curiously.
"Well, originally, there were three of us, but we got separated by bandits, while we were traveling. We planned on heading towards the Imperial capital to meet up, since that's where we were going in the first place" Sayo said casually, before her expression and tone turned serious.
"We're on a mission to bring fortune back to our village. We were running low on supplies and winter was about to come rolling in, so they sent us to earn money in the capital that we would bring back to the vill-"
"The capital isn't what you think it is"
Sayo blinked at that sudden declaration and she turned her attention to Gnar. He was still pulling on the rope, but he wasn't smiling anymore, he had a serious frown on his face as he continued without looking at her.
"If you think that the capital is a safe haven where you can peacefully and easily earn a fortune for your village, then I'm afraid you got the wrong impression. The Imperial Capital has been a cesspool of crime and corruption for as long as I can remember and it's not showing any signs of changing in the forseeable future" Gnar said with a grim expression. "I'd stay far away from that place, if I were you"
Sayo didn't know what to say to that, she hadn't expected their casual conversation to take such a grim turn so suddenly. Part of her knew that he could be lying to her, but another part of her felt like he was telling the truth and that he believed every word he was saying.
He was speaking out of concern for both of them. To think that he only just met them not 30 minutes ago. Still, she didn't like being told off just because she was a country girl, who may not understand certain things about the capital.
"How would you know that?" Sayo asked suspicious with crossed arms.
"Because I've already been there, one day was all I needed in order to find out just how vile that place actually is" Gnar said before he staryed untying a bundle of giant evil birds, which was in the end of the rope. "I make my way back there sometimes, but only when its absolutely necessary. Otherwise, I wouldn't get within ten miles of that cesspool"
"That may be true, but it doesn't really change things much" Sayo retorted somewhat harshly, while averting her gaze from Gnar. "Our village practically scraped up what little money they had, just so we could get to the imperial capital. Finding out that its a cesspool of corruption doesn't really change the fact that we still need to earn a fortune to save the village and were not going to let their efforts go to waste"
She didn't feel right arguing with him, especially since they practically saved their lives, but still...it was the truth. Even if she saw how corrupt the capital really is, it wouldn't change the fact that they needed to earn money to save their village.
Not to mention, Tatsumi was probably on his way to the capital now, if he wasn't there already. She couldn't leave her best friend to wander that supposed cesspool all by himself, right?
"I see" came Gnar's hollow response as he started setting up the firewood for roasting the evil birds.
After that, an awkward and tense silence ensued for what felt like hours and in that time, Gnar managed to clean and skin an evil bird, skewer it on a spit and roast it over the roaring fire. Sayo envied him, at least, he had something to keep himself busy and distract himself. The silence was practically deafening and the sound of the heavy rain outside, Omen's heavy breathing, and the fire's crackling did nothing to break the tense atmosphere, if anything, it just made things worse.
Sayo looked at Gnar, who stared at the fire with a passive expression. She didn't mean to sound and act ungrateful and harsh to him, especially since he showed a great deal of concern for her and Ieyasu's well-being, not to mention the fact that he practicallu saved them from being potential prey to some random danger beast and gave them food and shelter, but it was the reality of their situation.
They couldn't turn back now, even if they wanted to or if the capital was a vile cesspool, because if they did then they would practically be shooting down their village's hopes and dreams for a bright future.
Sayo shook her head in frustration. Why was she thinking so much about this and why was she feeling so bad about upsetting him anyway? They just met a few minutes ago and he was acting like he could dictate their decisions.
Sayo looked at Gnar who stared at the fire distantly.
Maybe...that's the reason why she felt so bad. Gnar had showed nothing but genuine hospitality and kindness to them, despite their brief time together, and Sayo rewarded that kindness by basically telling him to mind his own business and to f*** off.
"If you'd like to freshen yourself up by taking a bath or showering, then you're free to use the pool deeper in the cave" Gnar broke the silence with an offer in a casual tone. "I'd have to guide you, though"
Sayo subconsciously and subtly eyed the knocked out Ieyasu and the sleeping diamond back blocking the cave's entrance, mentally weighing the pros and cons of leaving her best friend with seemingly sleeping Diamondback.
"Omen has no intentions of eating your sleeping friend, if that's what you're worried about" said Gnar casually as he plucked a torch on the nearby wall.
The delivery was very casual and Sayo couldn't detect any double meaning or accusation in it, but she still winced as if his words were physical blows. It made her feel terrible.
"If you still want that bath, follow me" At that, Gnar started walking further into the cave, living the his roast behind.
Coming to a decision, Sayo followed after him.
Being alone with him would give her an opportunity to apologize or at the very least clear the air between them.
Hopefully.
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Silence.
The cave was filled with nothing, but silence as they made their way towards the pool, where Gnar was leading her.
Sayo knew that this was her opportunity to clear the air between them because of their prior conversation and she didn't want to waste it, which is why she has taken to thinking through her words carefully, so she wouldn't sound too harsh and ungrateful.
Unfortunately, thinking over her words throughly seemed to be taking more time than she expected. She didn't know what she should say first or how she should say it for that matter.
Sayo mentally sighed in frustration. If she kept this up, then she'll miss her chance altogether.
Coming to a decision, she spoke.
"I'm sorry"
Gnar stopped infront of her ans she stopped as well. He turned to face her and Sayo could see confusion wrinkling his features. She knew that he was playing dumb, though.
"What for? It's not like you did anything wrong." Said Gnar as he eyed her with furrowed eyebrows, before he sighed. "And besides, your decisions and reasons for wanting to the capital were none of my business to begin with. I shouldn't have meddled in your personal affairs and have crossed a line, so there's nothing for you to be sorry abo-"
"You showed us nothing, but hospitality and kindness and even gave us shelter and protection. And all I did was snark at you for showing your concern." Sayo interrupted him, before averting her gaze to the side. "that was an awful thing for me to do, so I'm sorry" Sayo bowed at that, which seemed to catch Gnar off guard, if his uneasy shuffling was any indication.
"It's okay" said Gnar genuinely, which prompted Sayo to rise from her bow. She saw that he had a small smile on his face now. "It's just that...when you said you were going to the capital...I had to say something, I had to try, at least. I've seen countless countryfolk lose their lives in the capital after just one day, I wouldn't be able to live with myself, if I didn't say anything to warn you"
Sayo smiled at him. "Thank you, I appreciate your concern, but we have a friend, who's headed there now, we can't just leave him to face that 'cesspool' alone, right?"
"No one gets left behind, I always say" Said Gnar with a heartwarming smile as they resumed walking into the cave. "If you want I could take you all to the capital after the storm passes, I was actually headed there for my weekly activities."
"That'd be great" Sayo said honestly. The last thing she wanted was to get back in that forest with Ieyasu as her only hope of navigation.
Gnar chuckled heartily at that.
A moment later, Gnar stopped and gestured to a large on the left side of the cave's wall, which was emitting a luminous blue glow.
"We're here" he said with a wide smile. "Welcome to the underground oasis"
Sayo walked up to him and looked inside the cave, only for her eyes to widen in surprise.
When Gnar offered a place for her to take a bath, this was the last thing she expected.
The hole on the side of the cave led to a a very large and spacious enclosure that was well-illuminated by what appeared be glowing blue crystal stalagmites that grew on the sides of the enclosure and a very high ceiling. At the far edge of this spacious area was a very large pool that seemed to glow with blue luminescence and had three mini waterfalls that filled the pool seperately and seemed to flow from a hole on higher up the enclosure's wall. All in all, the combination of the atmosphere, ambiance, and scenery created a sight that was quite relaxing, peaceful, tranquil and beautiful. Sayo definitely wouldn't mind spending an hour or two here, that's for sure, she hadn't had a decent bath in days.
"I assume that you like what you see, then?" Gnar mused happily as he walked towards the pool, while casually gesturing around the enclosure.
"I found this place, when I ventured further into this cave a few years ago and its been my personal bathing room ever since. The pool is really shallow and it gets deeper the closer to the waterfall you get, but it will only be deep enough to submerge you up to your thighs, so I don't recommend that you go swimming in it nor do you have to worry about accidentally drowning. The waterfalls aren't really tio harsh in terms of force and can make for a very decent substitite for a shower. Hopefully this will satisfy all your bathing needs" Gnar continued in a tone that made him sound like a tour guide and salesman as he gave her his wide heartwarming grin.
Sayo managed to regain her bearings in the time it took for Gnar to finish his eccentric little speech. She walked into the enclosure and looked around her surroundings in awe. It was even more beautiful when you get a closer look.
She kneeled down by the edge of the lake and marvelled at the flat glowing crystals that comprised the floor of the shallow pool. No wonder it looked like it was glowing from the entrance.
This was more than what she had expected, when the opportunity to clean herself up was offered to her, but for all the pros that this bathing room had, Sayo still had one primary and instinctive concern that came first and foremost, as far as a place for her to bath in went.
Privacy.
Sayo wasn't exactly the biggest in term of...bust size, but she definitely wasn't small either. She liked to think that she had a rather well-balanced physique that she appreciated and took pride in. However, just because she had a...slightly curvy figure, doesn't mean she liked showing it off. Whatever clothing she owned was designed so that it wouldn't restrict her movements and show any unnecessary skin. Her clothes were conservative, but weren't a hindrance. Having said that, she couldn't help, but think that this whole enclosure was a bit too...open and exposed for her tastes.
She looked at Gnar with narrowed eyes, who looked at her with genuine innocent bewilderment.
"You don't like it?" He asked confusedly, albeit sadly.
"You better not be planning on peeping" she said warningly with a fierce glare, which Gnar only responded with another wide heartwarming grin.
"It never even crossed my mind" was what Gnar said before casually walking back to the doorway. "I'm gonna give you some privacy now!" He cheerfully declared, before her turned to her, when he was already at the door. "You know your way back, right?"
Sayo nodded as she kept her eyes on him.
"Alright then, I'll leave the torch by the wall, so you can light your path." He added happily, before disapperaing from sight.
Sayo looked at the doorway for a few more seconds and strained her ears to hear Gnar's footfalls getting farther and softer with each second. She stared at the doorway for a bit longer, before she deemed thaf it was safe to strip her clothes now.
Hospitable and kind or not, she wasn't going to let some guy that she just met a few minutes ago see what she looked like naked.
She slowly walked backwards towards the edge of the pool, keeping a trained eye on the door and looking for any signs of any peeping tom. She managed to make her way under the mini waterfall, before she finally deemed that the cost was clear and allowed herself to enjoy the water flowing down her body.
And enjoy it she did.
Regardless of how good it felt to be bathing after days on end, she had to keep in mind that she couldn't stay here for long.
No matter how much she wanted to.
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Once Sayo got back from her bath, Ieyasu had aready woken up and was currently eating a slice of meat from an evil bird that he had lying against the cave wall right next to him and judging by the blissful look on his face, it must've been really good. Then again, Ieyasu hadn't really been a picky eater and they were pretty hungry these past few days.
Off to the side, Gnar greeted her with a wide smile and cheerful wave as he continued to turn the spit on the fifth and final evil bid that he had roasting above the fire. He gestured casually to his right and there she saw a whole roasted evil bird waiting for her.
Sayo looked at him with a raised eyebrow as if asking: "Do you really expect me to all of that by myself"
As of to answer her own question, her stomach growled hungrily, causing Gnar to burst out laughing and for Sayo to glare at him and Ieyasu fiercely, while silently daring the latter to say something or make a wisecrack at her expense. Her best friend wisely stayed quiet, but that could be just because he was too busy eating his meat.
Sayo quietly made her way to the untouched evil bird on the cave wall near Gnar and sat down, before cutting off a piece of meat from the evil bird and taking a bite.
"This is really good" Said Sayo to Gnar, once she swallowed, before taking another bite. She amd Ieyasu had been nothing, but plants, rations, and a couple of wild critters here and there for the past few days, so she was really savoring the meal that she now had.
Gnar simply smiled at her widely, before puffing his chest out in pride as if this was a major milestone in his life.
"At last, I've accomplished one of my life goals; for a girl to commend my culinary skills!" He exclaimed happily, before laughing heartily.
Sayo rolled her eyes at this display. She had a smile on her face though.
"What kind of life goal is that?"
"The kind of life goal that every young man longs to accomplish, having a cute girl commend your cooking is harder than you might think" He declared happily without losing steam.
Sayo rolled her eyes again with a smirk at his enthusiasm. "Don't you think your getting a little too worked up about this?"
"Not at all" he said heartily.
Sayo turned her attention back to eating her meal, when her something suddenly occured to her the previous conversation.
Did he just call me cute?
By the time she turned back to Gnar to confront him, he had turned his attention back to the rotating evil bird with a hungry gleam in his eyes and an eager grin spreading across his face.
As Sayo looked at him, while eating her meal, she found herself wondering about the boy in front of her. It was like he had numerous sides to his, admittedly, eccentric personality. There was the side of him that was hospitable, kind, experienced, no stranger to this forest and its inhabitants, tamed/hunted danger beasts, and did a very good impression of a tour guide/salesman
Then there was the side of him that he showed to her a few minutes prior; the one that showed disdain and anger for the imperial capital and concern and sympathy for the people, who live there, as well as, those who are planning to live there, like her and Ieyasu. Not to mention, his persistence to convince her not to continue on their current plans.
Then there was the side of him that she was looking at now, he looked genuinely innocent and vulnerable, like a child, who knew nothing about the cruelty of the real world. He looked so childish and clueless, like he was still learning about the world around him.
"Well, it looks like the storm is just about to clear up" He said cheerfully, bringing her out of her musings. "I'd say we can all head out to the capital in less than an hour or so"
"Wait, so you're gonna come with us to the capital?" Ieyasu asked with wide eyes, which was only responded with a wide smile.
"That's correct" he said happily. "No offense or anything, but judging by the direction you were going before and your planned destination, I think it's be best that I accompany you both, since you were not only headed the wrong way, but are still a good 60 miles away from the imperial capital" Gnar said with a wide grin, completely oblivious to Ieyasu wilting under Sayo's fierce glare.
"We're grateful that you're doing this" said Sayo as she turned to him with a smile.
"It's no trouble at all, it's always handy to have a tour guide when you're in this forest" Gnar proclaimed happily, before continuing. "Now, would you all prefer take the long way via hiking for several hours through a danger beast-infested forest or would you like to take the short cut via soaring through the stratosphere on Omen's ba-"
"We'll walk!" Sayo and Ieyasu shouted together, before he could even finish.
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Okay, so just to clear things up these first two chapters are set when Tatsumi was already staying with Aria's family, so currently, Tatsumi is currently helping the guards with Aria's shopping and the night raid invasion will happen tonight of the same day.
Another thing is that these first 2 chapters are just introductory chapters, as well as, the first half of next chapter. I just wanted to elaborate on how Ieyasu and Sayo can be alive in this AU.
Also, expect longer chapters that range from 5000-6500 words after this chapter.
Next time: Fools in the Capital - Sayo, Ieyasu , Gnar make their way to the imperial capital via hiking and other...means, before they embark on a search mission for Tatsumi, as well as, other activities. Also, Tatsumi, Sayo, and Ieyasu are introduced to the harsh reality of the imperial capital, while Night Raid recruits four new members, if only for secrecy purposes.
See you next time. :-)