Leona and Krieg were met with everyone lined up at the training grounds. Both Yuna and Setsuna were the first ones to bid farewell with a synchronized bow.

  “We bid you safe travels. May your strength and conviction stay true throughout the end.”

  Phoebe and Miyamoto were up next with the high elf flashing a confident smile despite being forced to use a walking cane to stay standing.

  “Finish what we started, both of you. Show that filthy Alexander who’s stronger.”

  Leona and Krieg nodded in unison before the swordmaster approached his son and looked him in the eyes.

  “Hold your head high, my son. You’ve become a fine swordsman and a shield for your liege.”

  The knight nodded firmly as he answered.

  “Thank you, father.”

  Lastly, Kaeli walked forward. She was wearing clothes meant for work, but she still held a dignified look on her face as she looked upon both of them. There was a brief pause before she stepped between them and hugged both tightly.

  “Thank you, for everything you two have done for me and my sister. I pray for your success in Arcadia.”

  Although surprised, Leona and Krieg returned the hug with quiet smiles on their faces. As Kaeli let go, there were tears forming in the corners of her eyes as she forcibly swallowed the urge to cry while stepping back.

  Robert looked at both of them and asked.

  “Are you two ready?” The tactician and knight nodded firmly. “Very well.”

  He extended his left hand forward before closing his eyes and raising his right hand—ready to snap his fingers. Leona placed her hand onto the sage’s and Krieg did the same, placing his over hers.

  “Goodbye my friends.” She spoke with determination and confidence. “May we meet again someday.”

  Robert let out a quiet sigh before uttering softly.

  “True Teleportation.”

  A snap of Robert’s fingers was all it took to get both Leona and Krieg back to the Arcadian continent. The trio landed with their feet on solid ground just outside the coastal city of Astera. Although it felt strange, the sun was just above the treelines in Nara, while the light was still dawning on the horizon for the western city.

  Leona and Krieg staggered off balance as they experienced a dizzying bout of nausea. The princess caught herself with Avalon’s help and the knight powered through with sheer force of will.

  Robert watched them with an amused expression on his face and waited until they recovered enough for him to speak up.

  “Leona, Krieg.” He looked at both of them with a serious expression on his face. “All the pain and suffering you two went through in your training was for this very moment. Do not squander it.”

  “Hah, as if you’d need to tell me.” Leona adjusted her Londrian uniform before glancing at Krieg. “We’ll be victorious.”

  “Hmph.” Robert smirked before letting out a quiet sigh. “Princess Tactician, Leona Crossford.” He then looked at her knight. “Knight Commander, Leonard Krieg Louvre.” He then placed each hand on their shoulders. “We’ll leave Arcadia’s fate in your hands.”

  They nodded in unison.

  “Farewell, Robert.” Leona spoke firmly. “May we meet again someday.”

  “Hopefully not.”

  He leaned back and snapped his fingers, vanishing as quickly as he had brought them.

  The quiet morning breeze, brushing foliage, and salty scent of the ocean were different from the eastern country. But somehow it still felt familiar.

  Leona’s first order of business was to head over to the gates leading inside the city. They were guarded by two men, one of which was a very familiar towering old guard. His short, gray frizzled hair was a sign the princess almost instantly recognized.

  As they came into the guard’s view, the grizzly old man came running with a rifle slung across his shoulder.

  “Oi, oi, oi. Princess Leona?! What are you doing out here?!”

  “Ah, hello… Gregor, correct?”

  “Oh, you remembered my name!” The old man was almost blushing before he snapped back with a booming voice of surprise. “But wait, you weren’t on the ship when the young lady came back! When did you come back?!”

  ‘Just a few minutes ago.’

  Would’ve been the true answer, but Leona had other plans in mind to not waste any time.

  “I had some things to discuss with Charlotte. Could you call her here?”

  “Eh? Rather than call her, wouldn’t you want to head inside? I think she would be rather pleased to see you again.”

  “Oh? Would that be okay?”

  “Of course! You’re a friend of the young lady, I’m sure she wouldn’t mind.” He turned around and pointed to the other guard. “Open the gate! Young lady Charlotte has a guest!”

  “Huh? Lieutenant Gregor isn’t that a bit-”

  “I’ve said open the gate!”

  “Y-yes, sir.”

  Gregor then turned back at Leona and smiled warmly.

  “While I’d love nothing more to bring you straight to where she is, I can’t leave my post unattended—but, the young lady is probably around the pier. She always loves to fish after coming back home.”

  “That’s great to know, thank you, Gregor.”

  “Think nothing of it, Princess Leona.”

  He bowed while both Krieg and his liege made their way through the opened gates. The other guard, while looking at them with a raised eyebrow, didn’t stop them from entering the city.

  The streets, the people, and the bustling fish market. It was all still just the same as when she first left the continent, but deep down it felt oddly sentimental.

  “I’m surprised you’ve remembered his name.” Krieg spoke with genuine astonishment. “I personally find myself forgetting people’s names after a while.”

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  “Honestly, it’s a bit hard to forget peculiar individuals like him.”

  “Oh? Whoever else do you remember?”

  “Hmm… Cecile, Percival, Luka and Khalid, I think? They were the soldiers that helped us clear the Kobold nest—or rather, to defeat their former leader.”

  “Ah, I just remember that kobold.”

  “Which one?”

  “The one who mentioned Lady Ravness. Hahzi.”

  Leona smiled quietly as she lowered her head.

  “To think my mother did the same journey we are about to make now.”

  “I’m sure she’d be proud.”

  “Haha, I hope so.”

  As they walked along the docks, Leona noticed a peculiar sight. A trio of kobolds were lugging around a handheld cart and loose bags across their shoulders with a variety of merchandise, from tools to foods. One of them was smiling through its fangs and long wolf-like snout while it conversed with a merchant that was selling dried meat.

  “I’m glad they were able to make progress.” Krieg had a quiet look of admiration for Astera’s newfound traders. “Hahzi has really been putting in the effort.”

  “Indeed. It’s good to see our efforts paid off somehow.”

  “Princess Leona?”

  A female voice from the middle of the crowd caught her off-guard. She turned around and noticed an elf carrying a rifle slung over her shoulder as she waved at her. The elf in question wore a dark mask covering her nose and mouth, a thick green overcoat that went slightly past her knees, padded trousers of the same color and a pair of high leather boots.

  “Oh, Cecile.” Leona gave a discreet wave with her right hand while holding Avalon. “Hello.”

  The soldier approached the two of them—adjusting the sling on her shoulder as she stopped moving and lowering the mask under her chin.

  “How- or rather when did you come back? We just got here ourselves a few days ago.”

  “Well… it’s a long story.”

  “Was it Sir Miyamoto? Lady Charlotte mentioned how he is a quite skilled and ‘eccentric’ mage.”

  Leona and Krieg looked at each other briefly before nodding in unison.

  “Yeah.” The princess chuckled. “You’d be right to think that.”

  “Haha, but it’s good to see you two back. Are you looking for the young lady?”

  “Yes, do you know where she is?”

  “She’s probably resting at the inn.”

  She pointed to the building beside the orange painted orphanage building.

  “Oh, we’ll pay her a visit then. Thank you, Cecile.”

  “Think nothing of it. I’m glad to see you two again.”

  She pulled her mask up on her nose and bowed slightly before continuing her patrol. Leona watched her go before walking towards the inn. She paced her steps along the pier where she gazed one last time at the vast blue ocean while breathing deeply and sharply.

  ‘This world… we will protect it from the void and everything it throws at us.’ She turned towards the building and her eyes sharpened. ‘One step at a time.’

  They made their way to the inn where they were greeted by another soldier. He didn’t have a firearm, but he had a saber sheathed on the side of his hip.

  “Hm?” His hand moved from his hip to the pommel of his sword once she approached him, but the moment their eyes met, the soldier flinched in surprise. “Princess Leona?!”

  “Hello.” She greeted him with a faint smile. “Is Charlotte inside?”

  “Y-yes, the young lady just came back.” He stepped to the side of the door. “Please, go ahead.”

  With a curt bow, Leona walked into the establishment with Krieg in tow.

  The interior remained the same ever since she left about a month ago, but the staff seemed a bit more lively as they were eagerly serving each customer with bright smiles on their faces.

  “Welcome!” One of the waitresses wearing a white red kimono approached them and bowed slightly. “Would you like a seat for two?”

  “Oh we don’t need a table, I’m looking for Charlotte.”

  “Ah, the young lady she’s-”

  “Upstairs.” A male voice came from their side and upon turning around, Leona noticed Murakano walking towards them holding a wooden cane. There was a slight gait to his stride, but the swordsman seemed more or less better than the last time they had seen him. “I’m glad you made it back in one piece.”

  “I’m surprised you haven’t asked why I am here.” Leona chuckled shortly. “Everybody else seemed so shocked by it.”

  “Well, it’s not that odd when you stop to consider you were at Nara.” He started to walk towards the stairs. “My homeland is a place where just about anything is possible to happen.” He turned when he was halfway up the staircase. “Come, I’ll take you to that drunkard.”

  “Drunkard?”

  Leona turned at Krieg, who also shook his head slightly as if he wasn’t sure he heard Murakano correctly. The two walked upstairs into the private room where they conversed with them for the first time. Once the sliding door opened—a strong scent of alcohol hit the princess’ nose and she recoiled her head from it.

  The enclosed room had a thick stale air, as if it had been like that for a few hours. Across the room, Charlotte could be seen laid on the ground with her limbs sprawled on the floor as if she slept the moment her head hit the tatami mat.

  “Charlotte I swear…” Murakano removed his clogs and stepped inside the room before shaking the sleeping guildmaster. “You have visitors for goddess’ sake.”

  “Uuugh…” She groaned as her eyes slowly opened one after the other. “What do you want…?”

  “Princess Leona is here, you damn drunkard.”

  “Huh?!” Her groggy eyes suddenly became alive as she forcibly pushed herself off the floor. Although her vision was slightly blurred, she could clearly see a worried Leona staring at her. “Ah! Leona! When did you come back?!”

  “Just now.” She chuckled nervously. “If you need some time I can go somewhere else while you-”

  “No, no, it’s fine. I just need some water.” She looked at Murakano, who upon seeing her expression—was about to complain, but she simply said it anyway. “Get some water for me.”

  “You…”

  As he went away grumbling, Charlotte leaned backwards against the wall before opening the windows behind her.

  “Sorry about that.” The guildmaster smiled wryly as Leona and Krieg sat down across the table from her. “I had this very good wine ready for my return so I ended up indulging myself a bit.” Several empty bottles cluttered the table, which she began to put away. “But I digress. It’s great to see you two back here. This one month… it really changed you two.”

  From her eyes, both the princess and knight were on a whole different level from when she first met them. Leona had an unspoken confidence in her eyes and Krieg had an even more formidable presence.

  The princess however, simply smiled before continuing their conversation.

  “This city changed as well. The people walking around the market seem a bit more happy and I also saw kobolds trading with a local.”

  “Hahzi really held his end of the bargain.” Charlotte smirked as she settled the last bottle on the floor beside her. “We managed to trade the ores they mined for fruits from Arivaul.” Her shoulders slumped in relief. “Akrapocalis also contacted us in my absence. My brother managed to secure grains and other staples.”

  “Akrapocalis? What about ‘Death’s Pass’?”

  “They came here with a flying ship of their own. I also heard some distressing news from my brother.” Charlotte leaned over the table as if trying to maintain her eyes focused. “Arcadia is gearing itself up for war. They started to massively import metals and craftsmen from Akrapocalis.”

  “Huh? And the dwarven kingdom complied?”

  “Yes. Apparently they didn’t have a choice in the matter, that being said, one of the merchants that came from there did imply they wanted to mount up a resistance against the new Arcadian king.”

  “So Alexander must have oppressed them somehow. I see…” The tactician’s eyes glanced at the table in front of her before returning her gaze to Charlotte. “Did they inquire about my own flying ship?”

  The guildmaster shook her head.

  “No, nor did they show any interest in it. At least it was what my brother said.”

  “Good, good…”

  “Leona.” Krieg spoke which made her look up at him. “Do you think we could enlist some of the dwarven soldiers to fight for us?”

  The tactician paused for a bit before eventually shaking her head slightly.

  “No, I’d rather not rely on another kingdom’s army to fight my own war.” She straightened her back while slowly trailing her finger alongside Avalon’s claws. “As long as we cut the snake’s head, the whole body will fall.”

  “Understood.”

  “Speaking of your flying ship.” Charlotte spoke clearer as if she was sobering up. “We moved it to the back of the city on our private property. Or rather, my brother did.”

  “Oh?”

  “We didn’t want any outsiders to be able to see it at a glance after all.”

  “Ah… that makes sense, thank you.”

  “You’re welcome. But I must say, it’s hard to believe we have flying ships.”

  “You can thank Londria for that.”

  As they conversed more about the new technology, Murakano came back with a waitress holding a tray with water for the sobering Charlotte.

  “Thank you.” She spoke with a faint smile as she unceremoniously gulped the water down in one go. “Now, shall we go? I’ll show you where your ship is.”