Onyxia did not beat around the bush.
She withdrew her previous lazy smile and said seriously, “I discovered something very unusual. On the outskirts of the town, I saw traces of a Human Knight Order.”
“There aren’t many of them, but they’re acting in an orderly fashion, clearly searching for something with a specific goal in mind. This is the Border Buffer Zone where the territories of the Elves and Beastmen intersect. Theoretically, organized human armed forces shouldn’t appear here.”
“A Knight Order?”
Celia and Ilyas spoke almost at the same time.
The relaxed expression on Celia’s face vanished instantly, replaced by gravity, while Ilyas turned pale.
Celia pressed further, “Did you see them clearly? Was the crest on their armor or flags a Silver Rose Crest — a rose with a red center on a silver background?”
“That was exactly the standard,” Onyxia nodded certainly, her gaze shifting between the two of them.
“What? Do you know them?”
“We do. Of course we do. Their appearance here means they are likely… coming for us.”
Onyxia’s face filled with confusion.
“For us? Why? Is there something… I don’t know?”
Celia’s tone slowed and grew heavy.
“This… is a long story. I’m afraid it starts from when I first met Iliya… and then later, we met you.”
“I see,” Onyxia tapped her fingertip lightly on the table.
“I didn’t expect our Little Iliath to have such a special background. To think she’s a Saintess. So, what now? A detour? Or shall we meet them head-on?”
Celia frowned deeply and shook her head.
“To be safe, we detour. We don’t know how many people they’ve deployed here. A frontal confrontation would be unwise.”
“Then a detour it is.”
Onyxia took over the conversation as if she had expected this.
“I happen to know a small path that avoids the main roads and their usual patrol range.”
Hearing this, Celia looked at her suspiciously.
“Wait, didn’t you say before… that this was your first time coming to the heart of the Elf Kingdom?”
“Yes, it is my first time,” Onyxia spread her hands.
“But that doesn’t mean I couldn’t do my homework in advance.”
From somewhere, her fingertips produced a worn roll of a Leather Map, which she spread out on the table.
“This is a special guide I spent a great deal of money to get from a well-informed black-market merchant. It has many interesting routes marked on it that can’t be found on official maps.”
As she spoke, her finger traced a winding dotted line on the map, and the corners of her lips curled up.
“Well? Trust me once?”
“Fine. We’ll wait for it to get dark and then set out immediately.”
—
Night arrived as scheduled, draping a layer of natural cover over their movements.
The three of them quickly packed their necessary gear, extinguished the lights in the house, and left the town without a sound.
Following the hidden route on Onyxia’s Leather Map, they plunged into the dense and unfamiliar mountain forest outside the town.
The path beneath their feet was less a trail and more a track beaten out by wild animals — winding, rugged, and hidden beneath tangled ancient trees and thick shrubs.
The moonlight was fragmented by the heavy canopy, casting only a few stray rays of cold light through occasional gaps to illuminate the slippery moss and coiled roots at their feet.
The only sound in the silence was the noise of their footsteps.
After walking for a while and confirming they were temporarily safe, the tense atmosphere loosened slightly.
Onyxia walked at the front, leading the way.
Suddenly, she turned her head and looked at Celia by the faint light.
“My dear Celia, where do you think is the best place for us to camp tonight?”
“Let’s walk a bit further.”
“Alright, a bit further then. Celia, don’t you think that even though the conditions are a bit crude out here in the wild, it has its own unique flavor?”
Celia was focusing intently on the surrounding movements, and her footsteps paused slightly at the remark.
She responded in a low, annoyed voice, “Onyxia, we are currently fleeing for our lives, not on a picnic. Please be serious. Just find a safe place that’s sheltered from the wind. Don’t think about useless things. Besides, didn’t you enjoy yourself enough last night?”
“Celia, I can never get enough of you. And you say it’s not okay while we’re fleeing? Can I interpret that as… as long as we aren’t fleeing, my proposal can be considered?”
Celia was choked up by this distortion of her words and was momentarily speechless.
In the darkness, she could almost hear her own heart suddenly accelerating.
She glared in Onyxia’s direction, and even though she knew the other woman couldn’t see her expression clearly, she still felt a burst of shame and annoyance.
“You! That’s just sophistry!”
“I’m being wronged,” Onyxia leaned in closer.
“Is it possible that in your heart… you aren’t looking forward to it at all? Celia, don’t always suppress yourself.”
Celia’s ears burned at these blunt words.
She almost scrambled to push against the shoulder leaning toward her.
“I — I’m not looking forward to it at all! Give it a rest!”
As if trying to find a point of comparison, she subconsciously blurted out, “Iliya is never like you…”
Before her voice could fade, a weak but clear voice came from behind the two of them.
“Actually, I — I am also looking forward to it.”
The air seemed to freeze instantly.
Celia’s hand, which was bracing against Onyxia, froze in mid-air.
She snapped her head back, looking toward the person behind her in disbelief.
It was as if she were getting to know Iliya for the first time, leaving her unable to speak for a long while.
Onyxia was the first to break the silence.
She could no longer suppress her laughter.
She reached out to pull the stiff Celia toward her while casting an appreciative look at Ilyas.
“See?”
She whispered into Celia’s ear, her warm breath brushing against the sensitive curve of the other’s earlobe.
“Isn’t it better to be honest, Celia? Our little Saintess is much more frank than you.”
Celia’s face flushed a deep red.
“I don’t care anymore. Do whatever you want.”
Onyxia knew when to stop and let out a pleasant, muffled chuckle before refocusing her attention on the path ahead.
“Alright, I’ll stop teasing you. There’s a clearing not far ahead. It’s marked on the map and is suitable for a temporary rest.”
The three of them quickened their pace toward the direction Onyxia had pointed out.
After pushing through the last patch of dense shrubs, the view ahead suddenly opened up.
A flat clearing surrounded by tall trees appeared under the moonlight.
The ground was covered in a thick layer of fallen leaves, making it look like an ideal camping spot.
That is, if you didn’t count the fact that there were already people in the clearing ahead.
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