II

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  Arc II Chapter 4

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  12th Anima Lunar VIII AAC 753

  Aurora commenced her grand journey. Despite her diminutive stature, she made significant progress. Her body was frail, her steps short, which made her tire easily, which in turn convinced her to take a few naps in between. A little pause here and there did not hurt. She was not in much of a hurry. A girl of her tender age required her pauses. And she required her beauty sleep. Nevertheless, progress was achieved. It just took longer than expected ...

  “...” Her ears registered a noise in the distance. The sound of trampling hooves shook the ground. It was the sound of horses. And they were coming closer. They were approaching her position.

  Aurora quickly sprinted to the nearest tree to hide, her eyes peeking from behind her safe cover. Observing, analysing, gathering information was the best course of action.

  A cart appeared on the horizon, far away. Its silhouette was vague, distorted, but it was definitely a cart driven by two figures. A group of people accompanied them. They served as an escort, probably.

  “Humans?” Aurora furrowed her eyebrow. Apparently. What was she supposed to do? Initiate contact? Ignore them? Rob them? Difficult choice, but fortunately, her little head had an idea.

  “...” Her lips formed a mischievous smile. Aurora and her doll exchanged looks, plotting and scheming together. “Are you thinking what I am thinking, Dolly?”

  ...

  ...

  ...

  “...” Her doll nodded, or rather, she made her doll nod by moving her doll’s headsie up and down. Her doll agreed with her, was that not wonderful? It made Aurora smile. “Then it is decided. Time for us to strike~.”

  Leaving the safety of her cover, Aurora sprinted towards the middle of the road. She grabbed some dirt from the ground and smeared it all over her clothes and face. It was important to distribute the dirt equally. Even her doll also got her fair share. Her doll had to make sacrifices too.

  Aurora ruffled her hair. Her hair was far too perfect to fool them. Not sufficiently unkempt. Not sufficiently messy. Her appearance had to be believable, otherwise nobody would buy her little act. If she intended to play the abandoned, pitiful girl card, then she had to look like the lonely, abandoned, pitiful girl. First impressions mattered, after all.

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  Resting on the ground, Aurora made herself comfortable, hugging her doll and closing her eyes. Now she just had to wait for her guests to arrive. She was a little, innocent girl. She was innocuous and cuddly. She was just sleeping. Take her in and provide her with ample nourishment.

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  “Arwing, why do we need to rely on these ... ‘humans’? I fail to understand why we had to hire them in the first place. In fact, I am sure we would be better off without them.” Nelaeryn snarled. He did not even bother to hide his disdain. The humans were not needed. Their presence was not welcome. And yet they were essential in order for their expedition to succeed, as paradoxical as it might seem.

  “...” Arwing sighed in irritation, significantly fed up with Nelaeryn. As usual, her companion and his elven pride caused her nothing but trouble. Why could he not just shut up? Everything could be so easy, but no. His attitude aggravated every human they met, which made things complicated to the point that his smugness endangered the success of their mission. His family descended from old elven nobility and were well known elven supremacists for centuries.

  Unfortunately, Nelaeryn was her esteemed colleague and a fellow noble. Thus, she was forced to put up with his antics, although it was not always easy with him. He was an indisputable expert in the field of ancient magic and ancient history. Having him at her side was a gift of heaven, yet he made her life miserable at every opportunity.

  Arwing clicked her tongue. “Nelaeryn, I am aware that you are dissatisfied with their presence ...”

  “Dissatisfied? Dissatisfied does not even begin to describe my indignation ...” Nelaeryn interrupted her.

  “...” Her glare shut him up for good, reminding him of his position. “Nelaeryn, I warn you, even my patience is limited. We are not warriors. We are scholars, Nelaeryn. I hope you realise that we cannot clear the ruins on our own. We need their help, Nelaeryn.”

  Nelaeryn protested, his arms crossed. “But ...”

  Arwing narrowed her eyes, annoyed with his stubbornness. “No buts. If the guild reports are to be trusted, the place is a monster infested hellhole. Valentia is a dangerous place. That is why we have no choice, we need their help. Whether you like it or not, Nelaeryn, we need these adventurers.”

  “...” Nelaeryn grumbled, but he swallowed his pride, at last. They were indeed forced to rely on humans. A minor disgrace, admittedly, but a necessary one.

  “Hehehe ...” An amused chuckle resounded from behind. Arwing did not need to guess twice who the perpetrator was. It was Lambert, a seasoned adventurer and leader of the human party accompanying them, a man with avaricious eyes sparkling with the glint of gold coins. Watching them argue among themselves clearly entertained the human.

  The human wore a broad smirk, clearly amused by her and him arguing. “So this is a taste of famed elven politeness? To be honest, I’ve expected more, but I understand now why you two had such a hard time finding a party. I can imagine why.”

  “...” Lambert’s cold glare hit Nelaeryn. Little love was lost between the two. “After all, we’re only mere ‘humans’, while the murderous, bloodthirsty, cultured elves of Alfreik are obviously the pinnacle of civilisation.”

  The dislike was mutual. Neither humans, nor elves, thought highly of each other. Centuries of bloodshed and war had soured the relationships between their races, with both sides constantly at each other’s throat, which was unlikely to change for the foreseeable future. The seeds of hatred proved far too potent.

  Nelaeryn gritted his teeth, unable to tolerate Lambert’s open provocation. “Human, what did you say?”

  Lambert ignored her companion. Instead, he turned to her, offering his most charming smile. “Rest assured, though, Lady Arwing, we won’t abandon you two because of a few minor disagreements. We’ll see this mission through. We’re adventurers. After all, we’ve to defend our honour and reputation.”

  “...” Arwing was hardly entirely convinced, but it was enough to make her trust him and his party. “I hope so, Lambert. We have paid you good coin. You are better worth your money and do your work.” Lambert and his party were expensive, even by adventurer standards. The man demanded a considerable sum of money for their services, to the point that some people might consider his prices daylight robbery.

  Lambert flashed a grin. “Lady Arwing, I’ve never claimed that our services are cheap, but times are hard and professionals don’t work for free. I’m well aware that we’re pricey, but we’re gold rank adventurers for a reason. We’re the best adventurers coin can buy, and you know that.”

  “That might be true, Lambert, but the fact stands that we can only afford you once. I sincerely hope for the sake of our modest finances that we will never meet again ...” Arwing pulled the reins, forcing the cart to a sudden halt. Her eyes blinked in confusion and surprise. There was a girl ... There was a girl lying on the road.

  Lambert and Iris

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