Lucina left after she finished re-bandaged Eisso's arm, and he expected to have dreams full of blood, violence, and chaos.

Instead, he slept dreamlessly. The only bit of dream he could remember was a quiet, understanding whisper, but when he woke up, he couldn't recall what was said.

Eisso was awake earlier than everyone else. The four on guard were switching out, and the sun would be up in about thirty minutes. He figured that he could start making breakfast for everyone so they could start leaving quicker.

Kenzie came in soon after he was done.

"It's been a while since I've had breakfast just after it was made," she said.

"Don't think I did this all for you; I just want to get going." Eisso replied, sitting down. Kenzie sat down beside him after getting a little bit of food. "I'm hoping that we can end the war in the next month. And the confidence boost should be enough to get us home in half the time it took us to get here—if we're lucky, we can get rides back and make the trip even shorter. I can't understand how anyone can handle this for years."

"Some people like drawn-out wars," Kenzie replied. "Others aren't as fortunate as us. I don't know much about this stuff, but we've had a pretty good campaign so far. We've fought and won three times, with few casualties. The odds are one to five—maybe even one to ten. But we're still winning. At least we can be glad that we're the only ones fighting this war; I don't even think that a lot of people know it's a problem."

Eisso nodded. They sat in silence for a few moments, then Eisso spoke up.

"Do you think Mother was an ex-Grimleal like Malin thinks?" He asked, a bit quieter than he intended.
"No," Kenzie replied. "Because Malin also thinks she ran away and was hiding. But a woman in hiding from her old family and friends wouldn't start a new family and put them in danger. Mother was cautious, yes, but she wasn't stupid. Just because she never shared personal details about herself doesn't mean she has a dark past." She paused for a few moments. "Why do you ask?"

"Loralis mentioned it," Eisso said. "She didn't mention Mother directly, but she knew that…that Mother and Father were both dead. 'You will die and join your family.' That's what she said."

"Empty threats," Kenzie said. "Mother and Father didn't have public funerals; they were buried in the forest, and it took months before anyone realized they were dead. Robin only knew because she overheard Father talking to a friend about Mother's death, and she learned of Father's death through us and Ocielle. Loralis wouldn't know, especially if she's always been in Plegia. The news wouldn't have gotten outside of Ylisstol, let alone across the border."

"…right," Eisso replied. "So you're saying she was just trying to scare me?"

"Like how Ocielle says things to purposely make you falter," Kenzie agreed. "If she truly knew, then she would've said 'parents' instead of 'family,' since you still have me—and, if you count friends, almost everyone else here."

"That might make sense. Just a little bit."

"Just a little bit?"

"Not that much, but it isn't complete nonsense."

"Would you like me to explain it in more detail?"

"No, no…I'm fine."

"Suit yourself."

Kenzie continued to eat her breakfast, but Eisso stood up.

"I'm going to get everyone else here so we can start marching sooner," Eisso said.

"Alright," Kenzie replied. "I'll start packing up when I finish eating."

"Sounds good," Eisso said, offering a smile. Kenzie returned it, and he waved goodbye-for-now and left.

…

They were ready an hour later. He had to admit, everyone was pretty good at packing up and setting up camp after they figured out how. The longest part was waiting for everyone to eat—and that was only because most of them talked instead of eating. But nonetheless, they were able to leave fairly quickly.