"So, tell me, why a gunman like you is so casually hanging out with Moon here and why did you bring that girl here with you?" Luta asked Gustav bluntly, as he pointed to Lilith.

"Ahaha, well, uhm..." Gustav scratched his head awkwardly before answering Luta. "Well, you see, I think she might know something about that Secret Organization problem, both of you are so concerned about."

Luta raised an eyebrow upon hearing what Gustav said.

"Secret Organization...? How do you know about it?"

"Oh, that's because, this lovely Moon here, told me all about it. That's how much trust and confidence he has in me," Gustav replied happily.

The two men turned around to look at me. Their gazes seemed to be piercing through my body. I gulped down nervously.

"Uh, yeah, I guess I told Gustav about it. Hehe~... That is..." I tried laughing it off, but ended up sounding nervous instead.

"Really? You really trust him that much?"

"Yeah, I don't mind saying anything to anyone, especially someone like Gustav. Besides, strong and dependable, and he even saved me once or twice."

Hearing my words, Luta looked at Gustav with a strange look and nodded.

"I see. Then..." Luta looked at Lilith, who was still munching away on her food, and continued speaking. "...then, please allow me to ask you about it, Miss Lilith. About the Secret Organization issue."

Lilith stopped chewing on her chicken leg and looked at us curiously.

"Eh? Uhm, sure, I'll answer whatever question you want. Just say it." She answered matter-of-factly, without any hint of hesitation.

Gustav took a deep breath and cleared his throat.

"Uhh... The thing is, there's this secret organization that seems to be doing quite a lot of bad things lately. They're targeting people they consider enemies one by one and killing them mercilessly. And our lovely Moon and his friend, Mr. Lufas here, were targeted too!"

He explained everything to Lilith. There weren't many details given, though, only enough for Lilith to understand what happened. But judging from her expression alone, I could tell that she understood most of what Gustav said. I think. Maybe? I mean, her expression didn't change at all!

She listened carefully while taking another bite of her chicken.

"Hmm... That's terrible. Why would someone target innocent kids like this one?" she asked with a deadpan face, as she looked at me.

"Huh? Hey! I'm not a kid! I-It's just my height is on a lower side. B-Besides, you aren't exactly all that big either, right?!" I retorted back angrily. "Aren't you a kid yourself!?"

Lilith rolled her eyes at me.

"Of course, I am not a kid. What are you even talking about? Are you blind?" she exclaimed exasperatedly.

That woman...!

"Anyway, I've never seen such a small guy in real life before. Your voice sounds very cute though, but your appearance looks way more feminine than most women in reality. Are you sure you are not actually a girl?"

I glared at her. This woman is so rude! How dare she insult me when I'm clearly a boy!?

But apparently, Lilith couldn't care less about my anger. Instead, she looked at Luta and started explaining what she knew about the secret organization.

"... They seem to have been hiding somewhere near here for a long time now. At least since last year. There were rumours going around a certain people, that there were mysterious figures lurking around the area northeast from Sunnyrise, but no one ever saw them themselves. Everyone thought those rumours were nothing but tall tales until recently, when we found out that several places were ransacked. All these incidents seemed connected somehow."

Lilith explained everything she knew and returned towards her meal, as if the rest of the conversation was of no importance to her.

The story made sense to me, considering how I was attacked a lot of times not that far from Sunnyrise. However, I still felt uneasy hearing something like this happening nearby. Especially after having met so many suspicious characters myself until today.

"So, what do you plan to do next?" Gustav asked me and Luta. "It seems that we mind find something if we head northeast."

I nodded silently. That was true. If we went northeast, we might end up finding clues or evidence pointing us to where the secret organization. Or maybe, it would lead to a place filled with traps waiting to kill us. I hope not, though!

"It all sounds sketchy to me..." Luta muttered quietly, as he pondered about Lilith's words. "... But, I guess we don't know anything else anyway. I will go and take a look at that direction soon. And Moon will stay here at Sunnyrise. We'll meet again once I have investigated further into things."

"What?! No way!" I objected loudly. "You're going to leave me alone again?! I'm going with you too!"

I grabbed his arm forcefully and pulled him along.

"Hey! Don't pull me by force, okay? Let go already... Sigh."

"Nope! I'm coming with you, got it!?"

"Argh... It's dangerous, you know..."

"I'm not listening! I will never let you disappear on me again! Ever!"

Luta sighed heavily as he tried to pry away my grip from his arm.

He really didn't want to listen to me at all. But I wouldn't give up just because he said so.

"Sigh, fine," he grumbled as he finally managed to escape my grasp. Then he turned towards Gustav.

"And what are you going to do? I just can't picture someone like you going out of your way to help others. I'm still suspicious of you, you know?"

Gustav gave Luta a bemused smirk before replying.

"Well, I of course I am planning to accompany you two on your journey. You did say that it would be dangerous, right? So, I'd rather make sure that I'm there to protect Moon from any harm should he run into trouble."

Luta looked at Gustav with cold eyes while saying nothing.

Luta: (Are you aiming for Moon or something? Because I've been thinking that ever since meeting you...)

Gustav laughed softly, but he too didn't say anything. Hmm?

Gustav: (Moon is such a cute and lovely boy, isn't he?)

Luta: (You think I will let you touch him!?!)

Why are they just staring at each other? I thought as I watched them. They were both just glaring at each other without uttering even a word.

I felt as if there was an invisible tension between them.

Gustav: (Don't think, just because you are his childhood friend, that you can act superior to me.)

Luta: (No one has the authority to talk down to me, you piece of shit!)

Gustav: (I will make Moon mine, whether you want it or not. I'm the only one capable of protecting him. And I will never let anyone else lay a finger on him except me, got it?)

"You bastard! How dare you?!"

Luta shouted angrily, then took a step forward.

"H-Hold on, Luta..."

I quickly stopped him.

"Uwahhh~! What are you doing, Luta?"

I tried to stop Luta's hand, which was about to reach for his bow.

"How scary, huh...?" Gustav muttered as he looked at Luta. "I think you should work on your anger management skills, though. You are scaring Moon, again."

The moment Luta heard those words, he immediately lowered his arm and looked away.

"Sorry, Moon. My bad."

"It's okay. Don't worry too much over it. I was just a bit surprised by your sudden outburst."

After that, we said good bay to Lilith and left Sunnyrise.

***

We were on the road once more, travelling in a direction of northeast. The sun shone brightly above us as we continued our journey through the plains. We could hear animals running around nearby, probably grazing on grasses. I rode on the Donkey, while Luta and Gustav rode on their own horses, respectively.

As always, Luta was carrying his bow and quiver slung across his back. He wore a black leather jacket with a dark-grey shirt underneath, and black trousers. In contrast to these, Gustav wore a dark-brown coat with silver buttons, a light-brown vest, with light-beige shirt under it, and long grey pants.

Both men looked strong and reliable. But what made them stand out most was how handsome they were. Their faces were sharp yet gentle; their bodies well toned, but still soft enough to give off a sense of gentleness. Both men also had beautiful smiles, although Luta was better at hiding it than Gustav.

"So, how long do you think it will take us to find anything in this place?"

Gustav asked Luta after a while.

"Well, judging from the size of the area, I'd say we'll have to search for another day," Luta replied.

"That seems like quite a lot. Do you really think they are here somewhere?" I wondered.

"Who knows. If that girl, Lilith or whatever said was true, then yes, we might find something soon. Although I have a bad feeling about all this."

"Yeah, I know exactly what you mean..." Gustav added as he sighed heavily. "You never know what to expect or who to trust in these lands. Well, whatever comes, I will be sure to make sure Moon won't be hurt no matter what. No one would ever lay a finger on him if I can prevent it."

"Tch. I hope you are saying the truth about that. Because otherwise, there wouldn't even be any point in you coming with us."

Luta glared at Gustav, obviously annoyed. However, Gustav did not seem fazed in the slightest.

"I can protect myself, you know?" I tried to protest.

"You can't." Luta snorted dismissively. "If someone tries to attack you, I am going to stop them."

"Hey, don't say that. Moon is plenty strong himself!" Gustav exclaimed.

"Sigh. I know he is. It's just...he is a little too trusting. That's why he gets into trouble a lot of times. And when people try to trick him, he ends up getting hurt because he doesn't understand how much of pieces of bastards people can be sometimes."

"Oh come on! You're overthinking things again. I'm not... sniffle..." I tried to argue with Luta as tears started forming in my eyes.

"Eh? Sigh. Please don't cry, Moon, I didn't mean it in a bad way..."

"Maybe you just don't believe in him, huh? That he is just some helpless guy that can only rely on others." Gustav was being awfully blunt today.

But I couldn't deny what he said either. Luta was indeed saying too much.

"I hate you, Luta. Why do you always have to be so bad to me? Sniffle... sniffle..."

"Ah! No! That is! Sigh... I guess I was a bit harsh on you there. Sorry."

As Luta was apologizing, he directed his horse closer to me and patted my head comfortingly.

"D-Don't think I will forgive you with just this, okay? I swear to god, I will never forgive you if you don't treat to me something delicious when we come back to Sunnyrise!"

"Just forget about that bastard, Lufas. How about going with me on another date, Moon? I will definitely treat you to a grand feast afterwards." Gustav grinned evilly.

"EH?! You will?! I will, I will!" I replied excitedly.

I felt excited about the idea of eating something like a 'Grand Feast'. The words alone made my mouth full of saliva.

"Hey, don't get fooled by that trash bastard. Don't worry, Moon, I will definitely treat you to an amazing meal. I will make it myself." Luta assured me.

"Eh?! Luta's homemade cooking? Yay! Let's go then!" I shouted happily.

Gustav seemed rather amused. "Heh, I see. So you two are quite close after all. Well, I suppose that means I should prepare my best dish as well. We'll eat together, alright?"

***

We travelled quite some distance before the night came.

"Okay, let us camp here for tonight. There is no point pushing ourselves further than necessary. Besides, I want to take care of our horses properly." Luta suggested.

"Yeah, good idea. Poor Donkey looks exhausted already." I agreed.

Gustav also looked tired, especially his face, which looked like he was really concerned about something. It made me worried, although I could feel nothing wrong with him at first glance. I hoped he wouldn't collapse anytime soon. I looked at him with concern. But he just smiled at me.

"Are you alright, Gustav? Do you need anything? If you do, tell me straight away. Okay?"

"Nah, I am fine. This has been such a long journey. My body feels a bit tired right now."

"Are you sure? What about your health? Maybe you shouldn't push yourself too hard, okay?"

I put my hand on his forehead with worry. It wasn't hot, just warm.

"No worries, I've got enough strength left to continue walking. And besides, I'm still young, aren't I? A little travel isn't going to hurt me. Hahaha."

He laughed out loud. His laugh sounded cheerful and light-hearted. For some reason, I felt relieved hearing it.

"Alright, let's eat and rest up for tomorrow."

After setting up tents, we prepared food for everyone while talking among each other.

Luta cooked something called 'Pork Stew' which smelled delicious. We ate it happily, except for Gustav, who kept complaining about how bland it tasted.

After the meal, we were preparing ourselves for bed, but then...

"Hm?" I heard someone whispering behind me. When I turned around, Luta was looking into the darkness with a suspicious expression.

"What's the matter?" I asked him with concern.

"It sounds like there is someone sneaking towards our tent." He said. "Prepare yourselves!"

I listened carefully, but didn't hear any footsteps. However, when I tried to turn back to look at Luta in question, I heard multiple gunshots coming from outside. Then everything went into chaos.

The next thing I knew, we were surrounded by numerous Secret Organization members.

"Eh?!"

Between them, I saw three people I knew.

"Aren't you that pervert I left tied up at the cave some time ago? Also, Angelika, so you are a part of that organization. And finally... why... why are you there too, Lilith?"

They weren't alone, either. Behind them stood around twenty men and women dressed in black clothing. They all carried guns as well. Their appearance was intimidating.

"Well, what an unexpected surprise! I never thought we would meet again, you pathetic little girl~" Angelika giggled. She seemed very happy seeing us all surrounded. Her smile gave me goosebumps.

But she suddenly stopped laughing and stared at me with a cold gaze. It made me jump in fright.

"Hyah, hyah! I finally found you, my beautiful wife. You're mine now!"

A tall man stepped forward with a cruel grin on his face. The way he spoke made me feel scared.

"I-I'm not your wife!" I screamed with fright.

"You bastard..." Luta glared at the perverted man with hatred.

"Ohh, don't be scared, my dear wife. I'm not going to hurt you. I will just make you scream in pleasure until your voice breaks down. Hyah, Hyah!"

His words sent shivers through my spine. How could he talk like that?

"Hii! Luta, Gustav..."

Gustav was staring with intense eyes at Lilith, who had that unconcerned expression on her face. Then she looked at me.

"It seems our 'Leader' is quite concerned about you, you shorty," she said matter-of-factly. " He wants to see you right away. So don't resist and come along."

After her words, all hell broke loose. Everyone started shooting wildly, aiming for both Luta and Gustav. While I was facing Lilith. Donkey tried to fight too, but I ordered him to run away.

In the end, we have lost. Lilith captured me, while Gustav and Luta were overwhelmed by enemies, with Gustav loosing consciousness.

After that, we were dragged to their hideout and got thrown into a cell.

***

"Gustav! Gustav! Please wake up!" I cried out desperately. But it didn't seem like he was listening. His body was motionless on the floor.

Then I realized something important. My hands were trembling with fear, while my tears were falling on Gustav's face. What happened?! Why did they attack us!? Why, Lilith was with them?!

Suddenly I felt someone touching me gently on my shoulder. A hand which was warm and gentle.

"Moon, please calm down. We'll do everything to make ourselves free and beat those pieces of trash, alright? Just stay still and wait for an opportunity. Don't worry, Gustav isn't dead yet. He's only unconscious because of his injuries, nothing else."

The voice belonged to Luta. He sounded tired and worried. After all he took a lot of beating during the battle. I knew he was strong, but I wasn't expecting him to take such heavy damage.

"Luta..." I whispered.

"Yeah... sorry. This time I couldn't protect you properly..."

"No, no, there is no need for apologies. I know you've done your best. It's me who should be sorry for being so useless. If it weren't for you, I would already been killed by those people. And then what about Gustav?"

Then a bunch of men came running inside the room. They aimed at us with their guns and were ready to fire.

"Don't move! Or I will shoot!" One of the guards shouted angrily.

They got closer to Gustav and took his unconscious body into custody.

"Where are you taking him? Where are you taking Gustav?! Leave him alone! You can't kill him! Let him go!" I yelled furiously as I jumped forward, but I was stopped by Luta.

"Calm down Moon! Calm yourself! There's no point in panicking now."

I calmed myself.

Soon the men took Gustav and left the cell.

***

We were alone again. Just me and Luta. We were sitting next to each other, leaning against one another. Both of us sat on the ground, covered in dirt and sweat.

"I hope they won't hurt him much," I muttered softly.

"Hmm... I don't think they will."

"What do you mean? How can you be sure?"

"It's nothing. Just a hunch. Anyway, let's just focus on escaping first. Then we can discuss things later."

He turned around towards me and smiled. The smile made me feel better instantly.

"Okay. So how exactly are we going to escape from here?" I asked. "Are you planning to break out or something? Because I really doubt it'd work if you're trying to do that with our current condition."

"Well... maybe... Maybe not. Depends on the situation, right? For now, let's rest and recover ourselves. I am pretty exhausted after all."

After saying these words, Luta closed his eyes and fell asleep immediately.

Damn him. Just falling asleep in such a situation like this. Now I had no choice but to sit back and wait for him to wake up.

I turned around and looked at him. His face was covered in bruises and wounds, making him look more ugly than usual. But despite all the pain he must have felt, he didn't even try to cover himself. Instead, he kept lying down and sleeping without any care.

I sighed and leaned over to pet his head.

"Luta, you dummy..."

As I was patting his head, some strange feeling got over me. A sense of nostalgia. My mind started wandering through memories. Memories of when we were just kids together.

I remembered how I used to always follow him everywhere, no matter where he went. Whenever he ran away, I would chase him. And then he disappeared, just like that. He never told me why he disappeared, though. All he said was, "We will meet again". That's all he ever promised. Until one day, he suddenly showed up again and shoot an arrow at me.

I stared at his face and saw the same boy I knew since forever. Same green eyes, same short black hair and slightly tanned skin. Everything about him remained the same, it's just he became more mature. He became a handsome young man, with muscles and scars.

"Why did you disappear?" I cried softly. "Why are you making me feel so strange inside?! You know what? I hate you!"

But, Luta was just sleeping there, peacefully. He wasn't listening to anything I said.

Suddenly, I felt heat spreading throughout my body. Heat coming from somewhere deep within. What was happening? Why was I getting hot all of a sudden? What is this feeling?

Whatever it was, it made me snuggle closer into Luta's arms and hug him tightly as I whispered to him.

"Luta, please stay by my side forever. Don't leave me alone any more, okay? Please don't run away from me again, okay?"

Then I kissed him gently on his cheek. The kiss tasted salty, from all the tears I spilled. The warmth spread across my entire body and filled me with joy.

"Luta... I think... I think I like you... No, I... I... I love you. I love you Luta! Stay by my side forever, alright?!"

And so I confessed everything to him. How much I loved him, how important he was to me.

And then I hugged him even tighter. I couldn't stop myself from crying. Not because of sadness, but rather happiness. Then I fell asleep right next to him, hugging him tight.

***