"We ended up not asking. What will you do when the escort arrives?"
It was the day of parting. They had decided to leave right after lunch, and both Noel and Flare were currently just outside the village entrance. Their eyes were red, proof of the many tears that had been shed while saying their goodbyes to the villagers. Currently, only the Shirogane Knights, who were nowhere to be seen, and the village chief hadn't said their final words, the latter of which Noel's question was addressed to.
"Oh, that? We'll just tell'em you suddenly died." casually replied the elder.
"Huh?" Noel raised an eyebrow. "Will that really work? Won't they ask to see the body?"
"Ah, don't worry. I told the stonemason to make a gravestone."
"A fake grave, huh."
"Exactly. Surely they won't demand that we dig it up."
"I'm not sure I like the idea of Noel having a burial site…" complained Flare.
"Neither do we. It's a necessary evil, sadly." the chief shook his head. "Incidentally, will a single horse really be enough?" he asked.
To help them arrive faster to their destination, the village's groom had given the two girls one of his horses as a parting gift. While it wasn't used to long trips, the animal was on the larger size, with its torso standing as tall as Flare and Noel's heads, and should have no problem carrying both of them at the same time.
"Please, elder. We've already been given the strongest one the village had. Asking for more would be too much." answered Noel.
After the celebrations of the previous day, they had taken a look at the plan in more detail. It would take around a week to arrive at the port town if they kept a steady pace. However, due to only having one horse, the provisions they could carry were very limited, so it was imperative that they made daily stops at roadside villages. Noel received a stipend from the kingdom every couple of months, and her savings should be enough to cover any food and lodging, but the problem was what to do after arriving at the town itself. Finding someone willing to take them to a land as far out as Hololive would be a problem in of itself, and even if they did, the price would likely be exorbitant. After some deliberation, they had ended up deciding to sell the horse at the seaport and then using the profits to convince a sailor to ferry them to their destination.
"I guess so… I really have gotten too sentimental with age, heh. We'll miss you two." admitted the village head.
"What are you talking about, old man? Weren't you the one who came up with this plan?" teased Flare.
"Well, the village just won't be the same. You know, when Noel here first arrived, I was damn scared. Those knights of yours gave the impression that they could kill someone without even trying! I must have looked idiotic, talking as if I was in the presence of a king."
"Oh, I remember that." smiled Noel. "You tried to speak all formally, even though you were clearly not used to it."
"Indeed! And here I am, all dejected from seeing you go. And with the half-elf Flare, of all people! Sounds like a tale you'd hear from a wandering bard looking for coin. The knight and the elf..."
Their idle chat continued for a while until two figures coming from the village approached the trio. A tall, attractive woman with long, chestnut brown locks, walking next to a shorter, burly man with short hair the same color as his companion. Both were of pale complexion, but their confident and steady walk showed that they were certainly not unhealthy. Their clothes were ordinary, if a bit higher quality than expected in such a remote place.
Flare and the village chief stared at these two unknown figures with looks of confusion and caution. Noel, however, drew a big smile, immediately going near the strangers.
"I had almost forgotten what you looked like!" she exclaimed.
"Noel, who-" started Flare.
"We're sorry, captain." said the man, looking bashful. "We just didn't see a good opportunity for it."
"Yeah…" continued the woman, averting her eyes. "It's really been a while, huh. We got weird looks from all the villagers we passed by."
"Well, I would think so! You never show your faces, after all, and- oh!" The knight suddenly looked back, noticing the perplexed faces of Flare and the elder.
"That's right, you wouldn't know who they are, would you? You two, these are my Shirogane Knights!" Noel clasped her hands, introducing the newcomers with an exaggerated grand gesture.
"What?!"
The village head was the first one to recover from the shock, as it quickly turned into laughter.
"Bahaha! Without your armor, you might as well be different people!" he cackled.
"I suppose that is the case, yea…" replied the woman.
"It is nice to see you, though. You oughta do this more often! I'm sure the villagers would appreciate it."
"Taking off our armor while on duty is a bit... " excused the man, scratching his head. "We're just so used to it, you know?"
Flare, her eyes still wide as saucers, leaned to Noel, whispering in her ear as the others chatted.
"Why do their personalities change when they don't have armor on?"
The knight captain shrugged, suppressing a laugh.
"They're just really professional." she whispered back.
"By the way, weren't there four of you?" questioned the elder after a while.
"They should be getting here any moment now. We didn't want to leave all at the same time, lest we scare the villagers." replied the male knight.
And indeed, just a minute later, another duo composed of a man and a woman passed by the village entrance, their features very much alike the other two with the sole exception of their hair, which was instead light in color.
"There you are!" exclaimed Noel. "You know, you're all good-looking. You really don't need to be always wearing helmets."
The blonde man and woman shared a shy smile.
"We just wanted to offer our final farewells to you in this way, captain. It's been an honor to have you as our leader for this long." the man bowed.
"Exactly." continued the blonde woman. "We're incredibly grateful for all you have done. From sparring with us back in the capital and giving advice whenever we lacked something, to making sure we didn't overexert ourselves and were comfortable with our new lives in the village, I don't think we, as knights, could have asked for a better captain."
"You guys… You'll make me start crying again." sniffed Noel.
"It is true, though." the black-haired woman smiled. "Even if you are gone, I don't think we'll stop calling ourselves the Shirogane Knights. It'll be our way of thanking our Lady Shirogane."
"Hey, you're getting all formal again! Call me captain, at least!"
Everyone shared a laugh. A warm, pleasant evening wind was blowing, filling all present with a mellow bittersweetness. This moment was full of this odd quality of melancholy, one that only those that have had to leave a place they love, knowing they could never come back, have experienced.
"I think it's time for us to go." Noel was the one to break the silence that had fallen upon them. It felt right to her. She had, long ago, made the decision to come to this place, and now she spoke the words that would allow them to leave.
"I see." replied the elder, a pensive smile on his face.
The knight hoisted herself up the large horse, who barely seemed to notice the weight. She extended her hand to Flare, who was carrying their bags. As she sat on the saddle behind the knight, the small fairy Kintsuba appeared, hovering slightly above her shoulder.
"Ohh, you don't see him often." commented Noel.
"I think he also wants to give his goodbyes." smiled Flare.
Noel held the horse's reins, steering it in the right direction. With a deep breath, she took a good look at the village chief and her four knights, vowing to never forget them.
"Thank you for everything! Please be well, everyone!" she yelled.
"Our time here was the best! Thank you for everything! Farewell!" Flare shouted at the top of her lungs.
With a mix of goodbyes from the five figures behind them, the horse trotted, and the pair waved until they couldn't see the tiny village anymore.