“So, this is Daybreak County…” Dia looked around the border that divded Farah County from Daybreak. The grass wasn’t greener on the other side, but rather, golden.

Like the sunrise itself.

It seemed like its name, but again, many territories were named in a particular fashion because of certain traits. Some of them, of course, retained ancestral names, but it was customary for territories to be renamed when they were wrested from their original owners. Nightfall and Daybreak were counties that had changed hands multiple times, as an illustration, while Farah County had been renamed to highlight the titular leader’s contribution in spearheading reforms.

Of course, one key reason why Daybreak County was named Daybreak was due to the mass cultivation of sunrice, which was a popular staple in her home itself. Legend had it that the plants producing these soft and fluffy grains were a brilliant gold, and from the look of the wild grass here…

“Isn’t this grass a bit too fantastical?” Risti asked, rubbing her knees. The three of them had mana-walked all the way here from Farah itself after they arrived there, at which point they got one of the inns there to take care of the carriage and the horses that came with it.

“It’s all glowy and everything,” Nero muttered. “I wonder if it’s a natural light source…do you think Schwarz would like it?”

“Grass as interior decoration?” Dia pondered on how it would look like in the Moon Mansion, and then shrugged. “I don’t know about him, but if you want more wine from him, I’m sure handing him a bottle of Daybreak County’s specialties would be a better idea.”

“True.” Nero took a deep breath. “Let’s go, then!”

Other than vast pastures of golden grass, there were multiple built-up areas visible from even the border; these areas were probably the three baronies that helped to administer small regions.

Farmers ploughing the fields noticed their approach, glancing at them curiously.

“Why are they all looking at us?” Risti asked.

“We’re clearly foreigners in a land without many foreigners,” Dia replied. “Remember, our task is rather problematic. We need to trouble the count without bringing things to a head.”

“Like I said, don’t worry about this,” said Nero. “I’m the professional at stirring unrest, with skills tailored towards the mind.”

“Are you sure it works? Like you said, you haven’t done anything for a few years.”

“Don’t worry. After all, the Lord’s Gaze is always a potent tool in frightening the weak of heart.” Nero grinned. “Let’s hurry and check in. Between you and me, we’re going to rock this place and harass Count Daybreak until he cries for his mummy.”

One had to admit that the owner of Skyward Eye and Black God’s Gaze was an incredibly potent one. Dia could still remember how someone had killed over and over again with a mixture of Clairvoyance, which allowed one to view things from afar, and Black God’s Gaze, which frightened anyone who the user looked at. The murderer at Nacht would follow up by hurling a spear across the walls of the city, killing the frozen, rooted target.

Shivering at her own memories, Dia followed the others as they approached one of the built-up barony capitals.

“Dawn Barony,” Risti muttered. “Probably renamed too, I guess. It seems that something violent happened here decades ago, changing the landscape irrevocably.”

“Yeah. It’s too…in sync with the naming style here,” Dia observed.

“Can I raise a point?” Nero asked. “I think you guys are very, very weird when it comes to names. I’ve been thinking about it ever since I settled down at Moon Mansion, but what’s with all these abstract names? For instance, everyone knows that the sun is but a derivative of the Moons. Why is there an entire county dedicated to it, then? Might as well just call themselves Moonset County, right?”

“Tourism, probably.” Risti paused. “Besides, there’s a lot of places and names that glorify the Moons. It’s a bit boring.”

Dia nodded, thinking about some counties under the Lustre Dukedom. “Something has to break the mould for people to remember it well.”

“Is that so?” Nero had a puzzled look on his face. “Ah well, whatever.”

The three of them continued on cautiously, attracting the attention of the farmers along the way. Like Farah County, this place was also quite the agricultural territory, and forests had been cut down in favour of more farmland. In fact, no matter where she looked, there weren’t many trees, other than the ones that seemed to surround the endless fields of old.

Dia ran through the plan with the others one last time. It was a rather simple one, something that had been tailored to their plans after Dia remembered that Nero was a Holy Son of the Black God…well, an abandoned one, anyway. No one had news about Nihal, so whether he was still a Holy Son or not was quite up the in the air.

“Still, booking a room and relying on you two makes me feel a bit pointless,” Dia muttered. “Not going to complain, though. It sure beats watching two workaholics gaze at my idle self every so often.”

“Then start doing more work,” Risti replied.

“You’re also slacking off, now that the Moons are roaming the lands here,” Dia replied. “Pot, kettle…”

“True,” Risti acknowledged. “Still, I’m glad we got here without incident. I’ve been receiving reports about the Moon-Touched stopping travellers and trying to abduct them or something.”

Dia thought about the tri-coloured fellows that the little babies might grow up into, and then cupped her chin. “Are the Moon-Touched different from the little babies in our cities?”

“I think so. I hope so, anyway. It’ll be sad if those adorable little fellows turned into pricks that bar our way or something.” Risti looked around. “But we won’t be disturbed for now.”

“Most of the Moon-Touched are in the county and dukedom capitals, after all,” Nero replied. “That’s why we chose to operate out of a barony to begin with.”

The three picked up their pace as night began to fall. Darkness, however, had been largely expunged from the place; moonlight and sunlight took turns to illuminate the Istrel Sovereignty, constraining shadow and darkness.

Risti let out a sigh as the three of them stopped to line up for entry into the Dawn Barony. “I can’t wait to find a bed.”

“You and everyone else,” Nero replied, before lowering his voice. “Anyway, we can go all out with our spending, so we should pick the best rooms. No one’s going to suspect the three guests who ordered the best rooms, right?”

“Sneaky, but true.”

“Do we actually need three rooms, though?” Dia wondered. “I can bunk in with Risti just fine, and I think it’ll be better if fewer of us are left alone unattended. You’re a tetra-folder, so you should be fine alone.”

Nero twitched. “I heard that Claud and Lily bunked in together…”

“Well, they liked each other or something,” Risti replied.

“No, no. When they went out for their first mission or something,” Nero replied. “Schwarz was complaining about the, and I quote, ‘lucky fellow who found a good partner by sleeping in the same room’.”

“…I think there’s more to that than sleeping in the same room, really,” Risti replied. “Anyway, I’m inexperienced at this sort of thing, so don’t ask me.”

“Me too, me too.” Dia looked at Nero. “Just stay in your room and come over when we’re going to start our operations. That should be fine.”

“F-fine…but I do get to go out, right? I’ve been thirsting for alcohol, ever since you guys told me about the concept of scarcity,” Nero asked. “Or at least let me order some and bring them into my room.”

“Both’s fine, really. Besides, do we look like evil people to you?” Risti asked.

Dia wanted to question Risti’s portrayal of people who restrained others from drinking as evil, but it didn’t really fit the atmosphere right now. Rubbing her nose, she ignored the comment and let Risti continue her gentle persuasion of the person who could already be described as a slave to Schwarz’s brews.

“Anything to declare?” the guard asked as they moved to the gate.

Nero smiled. “None, guard.”

He turned his eyes to the other guard and smiled once. “Do let us through with all due haste, if you please. Time runs against us on this fine night.”

“Yes, of course,” said the first guard. “Please, sir and ma’ams, this way.”

Waving them through, Dia followed Nero and Risti as they entered Dawn City without even being searched. Neither she nor Risti said anything, however; they had already arranged for Nero to use his skills to make their lives a bit easier.

As the Holy Son of the Black God, the skills he had were far stronger and far more subtle than most other mental interference skills. If one weren’t prepared to resist them, they could be very devastating in the right hands.

“So, which inn should we go to?” Nero asked.

“We’ll go with the biggest one. I’m sure the bar there is better, right?” Risti asked.

“Words of a sage, truly.” Nero nodded at her. “Onwards, to the largest inn in town!”

Dia watched him move forward in high spirits and smiled.