Chapter 115

Now, Go Forth

“I’ll try talking to them a little . ”

“Talk? To them?”

“Yeah . ”

So saying, Chiharu and Maki sat down heavily on the ground . The elves stirred when they saw this, but the two could not be concerned with such things . Their skirts spread out as they sat, and the Mandragoras gathered around them .

“They kind of remind me of the gazers . ”

“They do . So cute . ”

However, this was no time for that .

“You guys don’t really know why you’re here, do you?”

She didn’t know why, but she felt that they had just come because they wanted to . The gazers didn’t speak with clear words either . However, they could somehow tell what they were feeling .

“But, don’t you have to go out and multiply?”

Chiharu asked . Oh, that’s right . They seemed to realize . And then they spread out like waves, with Maki and Chiharu in the center .

“Now, do your best and go out as far as you can . ”

“If you take root too close to each other, you’ll have to compete, and won’t be able to grow as much . ”

No, we’ll grow big and leave again next year . That’s what it sounded like they were saying .

“Okay, then you should start your journey now . ”

Chiharu’s voice spread out to the Mandragoras . And the sea of Mandragoras began to move . By the time the last one moved away regretfully, the sun was already starting to set .

“Ooph . ”

“Phew . ”

They stretched their stiff bodies as they stood up .

Sauro and Saikania, who had been watching the whole scene, let out a sigh of relief .

“Now, since the fluff also flew away, we should go and rest . ”

“Ah, Sauro, Saikania . Aeris and the others will be leaving . But we’ll be staying near the castle . ”

Chiharu said . Maki put her hands behind her head .

“The elf princesses are going to show us around . ”

She explained .

“Hmm . Well then, we will stay here in order to play with y-…in case something happens . ”

“We can carry you any time that you want . And that includes the heavy princesses . ”

Sauro had every intention of playing, and Saikania seemed like she was provoking the princesses . They were already getting angry . Damn it .

Chiharu just shrugged her shoulders as if it couldn’t be helped . In fact, she was actually glad they were here .

“Now, you must be tired . Let’s return . ”

Aeris called to them, and so they said goodbye to the birdfolk . Apparently, an inn had been prepared for them, so there was no need to worry .

That night, they had dinner in their room with just Aeris, Edwy, and Aaron, and then retired for the night . However…

“As Edwy will be gone tomorrow, we should do it tonight . ”

“Yes, we don’t know what will happen, and it could be bad if Aaron was the only one here . ”

Maki and Chiharu were in Aeris’s room now, and they said that they would search for the presence of gazers, and if needed, return them to magic stones .

“In the first place, what will you do if someone sees you doing that?”

Edwy asked worriedly . However, Maki said,

“Well, the elves already saw all those Mandragoras moving . They now have a very strong impression of the Saintesses . Unlike the dwarf lands, I don’t think there is much point in hiding it . ”

And Chiharu continued .

“About the Mandragoras, even we’re surprised . Though, it wasn’t exactly the first time something like that has happened . I think it was the same with that fluff that stuck onto Maki . I’m sure everyone in the castle knows about it now . ”

Then she looked out of the window . The others followed her gaze, but they didn’t see anything .

“Don’t surprise us like that, Chiharu . I thought there were gazers out there . ”

“Sorry . But…”

Chiharu said to Edwy before looking towards the window again .

“I can sense them, but they’re still far away . ”

“Can you feel it too, Maki?”

Aaron asked, and Maki nodded . Chiharu had a faraway expression on her face . As Maki and Chiharu were normal people, they could not read each other’s minds . However, they could hear the gazers . While they hadn’t reached the castle yet, they sounded tired and like they wanted help . Not only that, but Chiharu then sensed that the gazers were happy now that they were getting closer . And so she told them to wait just a little longer .

While Chiharu focused on the gazers, Maki did what she had to . She turned to the others .

“There are a lot of them . Maybe the ones that came out of the dungeon are headed here too . While Chiharu is telling them to come slowly, you must tell the elves to have their guards ready, as they might need to fight them . ”

While Maki’s words brought up several other questions, there was no time for that . The castle would likely move if Aeris gave the word .

“Will it be in the garden?”

“Yes . There’s more space there . ”

And with that, Aeris quickly left the room . Chiharu looked a little dazed, perhaps because she had been trying to talk to the gazers .

“Chiharu, let’s go to the garden . And I will talk to them now . ”

“Mmm . It’s fine . But if you could just lead me by the hand . ”

“I will . ”

Edwy took her outstretched hand .

“Then I will lead you . ”

Aaron said as he opened the door . Edwy then guided Chiharu through and out to the hallway . Maki also listened to the voices of the gazers as she followed from behind . She could guess at what Chiharu was saying from sensing their reactions . Since it was quite late, there were not many people awake in the castle, and so this odd procession did not attract much attention .

When they reached the entrance, Aeris rushed back towards them, along with the future king, Toul .

“For now, I’ve gathered the castle guards . We’ll station them in places where they won’t stick out . Is that fine?”

“As we won’t be harmed even if the monsters touch us, they must not attack them unless Edwy or Aaron tells them to . However, that doesn’t include situations where someone else is being attacked . ”

Maki said to Toul .

“Um, is Chiharu really fine? She seems dazed . ”

“She’s fine . ”

Maki answered for her, and Aaron nodded .

“Let’s go out into the garden then . ”

And so the group walked out of the castle and stopped near the center of the garden . They stood on the stone path that led to the gate .

Lamps that used magic stone were then set in a circle around Maki and Chiharu . Like that, the royal palace was illuminated by a soft light in the middle of the night .

And then soldiers with bows were placed around them in the shadows . There were likely others lurking in the darkness with swords, but Maki could not see them .

Chiharu gently let go of Edwy’s hand .

“Maki-chan . Let’s hold hands and call them together . There are a lot of them this time . ”

“Yes . Are you ready?”

“Yes . ”

Chiharu’s left hand went inside Maki’s right hand . Then their voices rang together .

“Come . ”

“Come . ”