I do not own anything from Danball Senki/W/WARS

Muraku's pov

Long after we had left the meadow, I could not shake off the feeling that someone was watching us the whole time we were there. I really did not give it much thought as I trust Hikari when she said that no one could overhear us there...yet, something about Hikari has been troubling me the whole time we came to Misora Town.

Once we got back to town square, I looked around the place, hoping to catch a glimpse of Hikari.

"Muraku, are you alright?" Vanessa asked me concernedly. "You have been distracted since we left the meadow."

I looked at her for a moment and shook my head. "I was thinking about something." After some thought, I turned to Mikhail. "Can you and Kageto follow me to the blacksmith's shop? I have something to ask the blacksmith."

Mikhail blinked in surprise but slowly nodded. "Alright...I will get Kageto."

Vanessa looked at Mikhail and back to me. "Muraku, can I follow too?"

I thought for a moment and considered to tell her to stay but changed my mind seeing how worried she was for us...well, mainly Mikhail, but I knew that she cared a lot for me and Kageto too. So I nodded. "Sure. Just stay close to us."

Vanessa's lips turned up a bit. "Thank you."

"Muraku, why do you need to see the blacksmith?" Kageto asked when he and Mikhail returned. I could hear a hint of jealousy and annoyance in his question and nearly smirked.

"I just need to ask him a few questions about the rebels." I calmly explained.

They looked at me in surprise. Mikhail frowned for a moment and it turned into a look of confusion. "Wait, did you find out something when he bumped into you earlier today?"

I nodded with a smirk and gestured for them to follow me. "When he was bowing down to apologise, I saw that he had a medallion with the old symbol of Aradia, the one that was used before grandfather took over the kingdom."

Vanessa frowned in confusion. "But what does the old symbol of Aradia has to do with the rebels?"

"I'm curious on that too." Kageto added.

I came into an abrupt halt in my tracks, just in front of the blacksmith shop. "That symbol is believed to be Aidara's symbol."

XXXXXXXXX

"Welcome, can I...oh, you are the person I bumped into earlier!" Takeru exclaimed when he saw me.

I nodded with a small smile. "Yes, Takeru, is it?"

Takeru gave us a beaming smile. "Yup, so, do you need anything that needs forging or sharpening?"

I shook my head. "Actually, I am interested in the medallion that you are wearing. Can you tell me where you bought it?"

Takeru blinked in surprise and for a moment, I saw panic and fear in his eyes. But he gave us a pleasant smile. "Sorry, but my grandfather gave it to me before he died nine years ago. He said that he made it himself." He told us proudly, no doubt filled with pride for his grandfather.

"I see." I smiled. "It is nice to keep something like that as a memento."

Takeru grinned and slipped the medallion off his neck. "Do you want to have a look?"

I took it and had a close look at it. Although it did have Aradia's symbol on it, it was a bit rusty and worn out. I handed it to Kageto who fingered it carefully.

"So, what do you think about it?" Takeru asked us. "My grandfather said that it will forever be the symbol of Aradia no matter what because it is the symbol of the peace , just like how Aradia means 'harmony' in the ancient languages."

My head shot up. "That is something I never heard of."

Kageto nodded in agreement and handed back the medallion to Takeru. "Now all they talk about is how the Kaidou Empire came to existence."

Takeru's features darkened for a moment but quickly straightened up when the door opened.

"Takeru, I'm back!" An all to familiar voice called.

I spun around and saw Hikari at the door looking just as shocked as we were.

"Muraku...mina..."

"Oh, welcome back, Hikari." Takeru greeted her. "You know them?"

Hikari snapped out of her daze and nodded nervously. "Yes, they are my friends."

"Souka." Takeru grinned although I could see that it was being forced. "I need to take care of some things at the back. Can I leave them to you?"

Hikari slowly nodded. "Sure."

"Thanks. I owe you one." Takeru picked up some of his tools and went to another room at the back.

Once Takeru closed the door behind him, Hikari rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "I guess I forgot to mention that I am staying with Takeru."

Vanessa shook her head. "You didn't."

I studied her for a moment and noticed that her boots were slightly muddy. "Hikari, where were you just now?"

For a mere second, I noticed that her eyes had a flicker of fear before it fade. She laughed. "I was at the market."

"...Souka." I gave her one last look. "We should be going now."

Hikari nodded. "I will see you in the morning."

I nodded and left the building with Vanessa, Mikhail and Kageto following me. I could tell that they are wondering what have I gotten out of this trip.

"Muraku, do you think Takeru was lying when he said that the medallion was given to him by his grandfather?" Mikhail asked once we were back in the inn in the room that was shared between me and Mikhail. Vanessa and Mikhail had taken up one of the beds, Kageto was leaning on the wall beside the door while I was sitting on my own bed.

I closed my eyes and nodded at Kageto. "How old do you think it is?"

Kageto rubbed his chin in thought. "Based on its looks and texture, I would say twenty years."

"If it is twenty years old, I think we can rule out the fact that he is a part of Aidara for now since his grandfather made the medallion with Aradia's symbol long before Aidara was founded." I told them.

"So in the end it was a false alarm." Vanessa slumped her shoulders. Mikhail patted her shoulder to encourage her. "Cheer up. At least we know that Hikari is living at the blacksmith's place now."

I looked up a bit at that statement. "Vanessa, when you were in the market earlier this afternoon, was there any places where it is muddy?"

Vanessa eyed me curiously but shook her head. "No, I don't think so. Kageto, what about you?"

Kageto shook his head too. "There isn't."

I frowned at that. "In that case, Hikari was lying that she was at the market."

The three of them looked at me in shock.

"Muraku, what do you mean Hikari was lying?" Mikhail immediately asked me.

"Her boots." I simply said. "There was mud on them."

Vanessa frowned. "But couldn't she have gotten the mud from somewhere else before going to the market?"

"The mud was still fresh and have not dried up yet." I explained. "Also, her eyes betrayed fear when I asked her where she was."

"But that..."

"Anyway," I cut her off, "although Takeru is currently off our suspect list, it does not mean that he may not be a rebel. The same goes for Hikari. As much as I hate to say it, she is now one of our suspects and we cannot show that we suspect her or who knows what she would do."

Vanessa's face fell and I could not blame her. Out of all of us, Hikari is probably the only person she spends the most time with other than Jessica. Mikhail squeezed her shoulders reassuringly.

"Don't worry. If Hikari is innocent, then nothing will happen to her."

"I hope so." Vanessa whispered softly.

Normal pov

Ban looked up from the book he was reading when Asuka barged into his tree house. Her dark blond hair was slightly messy and sticking out at various places, indicating that she just woke up. But what scared Ban was the panicked look in her blue eyes.

"Ban, you will not believe this!" She panted. "Takeru and Hikari sent me a message. The younger prince is on to them!"

Ban shut his book and frowned. "What else did they say?"

"Apparently, Takeru bumped into the younger prince this afternoon and he spotted the medallion our grandfather gave Takeru." Asuka rushed to explain. "Later, when Hana was in the woods with the older one, the younger prince visited the forge with his friends and also found out that Hikari was staying there too. Also, the prince seem to notice that Hikari was lying about her whereabouts after she left them."

"This could be serious." Ban mused. Finally, he got up from his chair and patted Asuka's shoulder. "Don't worry, Arata and I will make our move soon and they would focus less on Hikari and Takeru."

Asuka gasped. "You're really going to do it, aren't you?!"

Ban nodded. "Yes."

Asuka pursed her lips and nodded. "Alright, what should I tell Takeru?"

"Tell him and Hikari to remain calm and continue their roles no matter what."