“…Walking around the city to show our presence to the Lotus clan, and other potential enemies, while also gathering their traces, and trying to find out what their next move might be… Quite a good plan, I must say.”

  “…That is all that I could think of on the go,” Alnea said, scratching the back of his head, as he wandered the streets with Yuri. “And it did the work. So…”

  “I never said I was against the plan, did I?” Yuri said, turning towards him, with her hands behind her back, and tilting her head to show her confusion. It was all just a show though. She could not stop her grin for long.

  “In fact, I quite like this plan… Hiding from everyone… It feels so thrilling…”

  “…You have been hiding from everyone for years…”

  “That is different. I…”

  Yuri paused, and shook her head, before continuing the sentence directly inside his head.

  “I have been hiding my identity from everyone… But this time, we are hiding our trip…”

  Yuri paused once again, finishing her words out loud.

  “It is almost as if we are having a tryst.”

  “…Who is to say that we are not?”

  “Oh? Are you learning how to tease me now?”

  “Maybe…”

  “…Then shall we kiss? It is a tryst, after all, right? And how can a complete a tryst without a kiss?”

  Alnea hurriedly backed away from Yuri, as if she was some kind of great enemy, out to take his life, prompting her to burst out in laughter.

  “You are a hundred years too young to tease me.”

  “You were leaning so close to my face…”

  “What? Are you afraid of my face now?”

  “…I was just caught unprepared.”

  “Right…”

  …Could she not say that without the grin on her face, or the condescending look in her eyes?

  “…What if Cecilia and Vestia saw us like that…”

  “One of them has gone to the Southern District, while the other is roaming the Eastern District… Besides, so what if they see us? Am I so unbearable to you? I—

  “Stop! I give up. You win.”

  “…So soon? Tsk. You were not so weak yesterday. Where has your wit gone now?”

  …Probably lost in between his short breaths, and his racing heart. Could she blame him though? The way she was moving… the way she crept closer to him… the way she was smiling… and most importantly, the way she was pushing her bulging chest against him… He had not paid much attention to them recently, and they had already grown so much… And they seemed so soft…

  “Speaking of wits, I am still a little surprised how you managed to make Vestia and Cecilia agree to your plan so easily… You have not promised them any extra benefits, right?”

  “Of course not,” Alnea said, shaking his head. Although he had overcome his fear of his Oaths, he was not going to take them so recklessly just to prove himself. He did give a few hints of how he might compensate them, but he made no promises. At best, it was just a promise of a promise.

  “…I don’t believe you.”

  …People specialising in fate were always so hard to fool. Though he was not exactly fooling her. After all, he had reserved the greatest benefit for her…

  “Don’t focus on those little things,” Alnea said, grabbing her hand. It was so soft and warm…

  “Today is about just you and me.”

  “…Now that is the Alnea I know,” Yuri said, with a hint of mirth in her voice and eyes. “Bold and slick.”

  “…Bold maybe, but slick…”

  “Do I need to remind you of how you hooked Vestia with your words?”

  “…I never did such a thing.”

  “…Let’s see. On the day you won your bet against her—

  “Why are we talking about Vestia anyway? Are you trying to shift the topic away from yourself?”

  “…Stop overthinking—

  “Are you afraid?”

  “What would I be afraid of?”

  “…Being alone with me…”

  “…I don’t know what you are talking about. Why would I be afraid of being alone with you?”

  “Huh? You really are afraid of being alone with me…”

  “I am not.”

  “Are you afraid that I will say or do something?”

  “…You are an idiot.”

  “Or you afraid of yourself?”

  “…Fool.”

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  “Your fool.”

  “…Sometimes, I just want to beat you up.”

  “Like when I promised Vestia to spend a day with her?”

  “…Like right now.”

  “I am all yours for today,” Alnea said, shrugging his shoulders. “If that is what you wish to do… then go ahead.”

  “…Forget it. You win this time.”

  “…I truly meant what I said,” Alnea mumbled, before glancing around himself. “Isn’t this like the third time we are passing by the same buildings? Are we lost?”

  “Those are not the same buildings. They just look similar. But you are right. We seem to be lost…”

  “This Optah stained city… What should we do now?”

  “What else can we do? Let us roam around, and try to find our way back.”

  “…That’s what we have been doing…”

  “So?”

  “…Do you want to try something fun?”

  “Like?”

  “…How about racing?”

  “Without using Martial Styles?”

  “…Or how about competing in who can find the Blood Hall first?”

  “You do know that the only reason we are lost is because you were leading the way.”

  “…Then what should we do?”

  “Let us try a guessing game.”

  “A guessing game?”

  “Do you see the Wanderers around us? Let us try to guess their background. Their stories… About the reason why they are still struggling… At the end of the day, whoever makes more correct guesses will win.”

  “And how are we going to check who guess was true?”

  “…What Fate Scholars can do with their Glyphs, I can do even better with my Arcanas.”

  “…Have you created another unreasonable Arcana?”

  “…It is not unreasonable. It just lets me peek at a few things about a person’s fate in their past. And I did not create the Arcana. I picked it up from my clan’s library.”

  “…What price will you have to pay for using it?”

  “Other than a hundred units of Spirit Power? A slight headache, I guess.”

  “…You know what I am talking about.”

  “Relax. Not all Arcanas of fate consume life. Besides, someone has already reserved all the days of my life… How can I use them up without his permission?”

  “…You still remember that?” Alnea said, trying his best to not show his embarrassment on his face. Back then…

  “Of course, I do. You had me make a promise. And you also said that you will be responsible for your words.”

  “…I think it was the other way around. You just unilaterally declared to have me be responsible for my words.”

  “It is the same thing. Or do you not wish to take responsibility anymore?”

  “…I will never run away,” Alnea said, pausing in his steps, forcing Yuri to stop as well, and looking her into her eyes. “Never again.”

  “…What are you talking about?”

  “…Nothing,” Alnea said, letting out a heavy breath, before resuming his smile, and his steps. “Guessing game, right? Let’s see… Do you see the brown robed man over there? The one with the limp… What do you think is his reason for struggle?”

  “…The emblem on his chest says he is from the Brown Finch clan… A decent clan, with a little fame in the Lightning Region. But that was in the past. I heard that they lost most of their Grand Wanderers in the Grand Chasm around four thousand years ago. Though it was not just them. Quite a few clans suffered heavy losses during that period. And not just in the Grand Chasm. Other defence zones also suffered similar losses. Even my clan…

  “In any case, as I was saying, the Brown Finch clan has not been in the best shape for the past thousand years or so. They may have retained their status as a Grand clan, but that is it. Even their deep foundation cannot support their rise back to their old status. Not with all their enemies hindering them at every turn. Quite a few of their promising heirs have suffered from assassinations. And not just from Heterodox Wanderers or Thralls. The blood feuds left by their ancestors…

  “In short, experience has taught the Wanderers of the Brown Finch clan to stick to each other. Rarely do they travel alone. Especially when they are injured. Given his limp, he should be surrounded by his clan, and heading towards the Blood Hall for treatment. Yet, here he is, all alone… Either he has made some mistakes, or he deliberately chose to stay away from his clan. The cold look on his face is telling me that it is the latter. Though he is probably regretting his actions right now, and is just too shy to admit his mistake.”

  “…Will you leave something for me to guess?”

  “…You can make a completely different guess. Or you can just give up.”

  “…Since you said that he chose to stay away from his clan, then I will bet on your former guess. If what you have told me about the Brown Finch clan is true, that is.”

  “It is.”

  “Then I am sure that he made some kind of mistake. And a grave one at that. At the very least, it should have caused a considerable loss to his clan. Nothing else could explain why his clan would exile him. Or punish him. Otherwise, if he had left on his own, his clan would not have let him fend for himself in his state. Even if he was being stubborn, they could have just sent a few people to guard by his side. But given that he is all alone… He is probably trying to o atone for his mistakes…”

  “That makes sense,” Yuri said, nodding along with his words, before grinning at him. “Shall we confirm who is right, and who is wrong?”

  “Nothing else we can do at the moment anyway.”

  “Let’s see,” Yuri mumbled, before following it with subdued chants of her Arcana, prompting a white light to flash in her eyes for a few moments. “His fate is strong… Although he had a moment of weakness in past, his fate still remains strong… Coupled with how he can live in the city without getting harassed despite his injuries, it can be seen that his clan has been helping him secretly… What do you have to say?”

  “…Is this really what you saw, or are you just making it up?”

  “…It makes me sad to know that you do not trust me—

  “Stop! I believe you… You win this time. But I have not given up. Let’s try again.”

  “Alright then. That blue robed woman over there, the one who just walked out of the building. Why is she glancing around every few steps? And why is she walking so timidly?”

  “…I guess it is because of…”

  “In that case, I guess that…”

  “Fine, let’s check…”

  “…looks like I won once again.”

  “It is not fair…”

  “…Did you say something?”

  “I said this is fun. Let’s try again. Do you see that yellow robed man? Why is…”

  Hours later, having lost every single round of their game, Alnea was sure that Yuri was cheating. If only he had proof… He still would not have done anything. Looking at the smile on her face, and the bounce in her steps, as they weaved through the streets of the city… As long as she was happy…

  “…And that makes it my hundred consecutive wins,” Yuri said, taunting him with a mocking smile. “It is as if you are deliberately trying to lose…”

  “…What can I say,” Alnea said, shrugging his shoulders. “I just cannot bear seeing you become sad.”

  “Keep bragging,” Yuri said with a scoff. “Win me once, and I will believe you.”

  “…I was trying not to show my prowess, but if you insist…”

  “…Forget it. Winning every time is not fun. Let’s just—

  “Just one round. Let’s play just one more round. If I still lose, then I will listen to one of your requests unconditionally.”

  “…And if you win?”

  “Then it will only be fair for you to listen to one of my requests unconditionally, right?”

  “…This is interesting. Alright. Let’s do it. I will even let you choose the Wanderer yourself. Which one should we pick? The red robed one, or that Wanderer in tattered green robe? Maybe—

  “Me,” Alnea said, pointing to himself. “I pick me.”

  “…What—

  “Can you guess what I am thinking right now? What is the reason that I am fighting for? Why am I struggling so hard to learn everything… even how to deal with other Wanderers… Or why am I making new friends? Can you guess those things, Yuri?”

  “…How would I know those things? I…”

  “It is because I…”