Chapter 238 - Vol. 4 - 37

"Sinneah, can I talk to you?"

"Hm? Sure." 

It was the morning after Ash had taken the day off, and in that time she managed to learn the  Burst Heal spell and was beginning to learn Energy Siphon. However, now that she'd allowed herself some rest, it was time to get back to work. 

And, what Ash had in mind was another of the ingredients needed for Keiko's potion. The dragon eyes. She and the others were in a high-class restaurant, as Metsumi wanted to eat some breakfast in the city and everyone went along with that idea. After they'd ordered for themselves, Ash asked Sinneah to come with her, away from the rest of them. 

Now, as some local nobles snuck glances at them on occasion, Ash talked to the draconic woman. 

"Okay, listen," Ash clapped her hands, as she began to explain, "do you know where I can find more dragons?" 

She'd received the tip before that they could be found at the peaks of mountains, but if Sinneah had any useful guidance to offer, then Ash wanted to be aware of it. 

"... No," Sinneah shook her head. "My father explained to me many times that dragons tend to live in isolation. Throughout my life, I have only come across a few of them. Why do you ask?" 

"Ah, gotcha," Ash sighed. "Nothing, I just needed something." 

"What do you need?" 

Ash looked back at her.  Hm. If I tell her I need a dragon's eyes, would that make her uncomfortable or something? It would pretty much be the same as saying, "well, I want to kill one". Then again, if they lived in isolation, they probably don't care much about each other... Right? Eh, it probably would be best to just leave out the whole part about killing them. 

On that note, Ash decided to just tell her. 

"I need to find one." 

"I am sorry," Sinneah replied. "I do not know how to help with that." 

"Nah, it's alright," Ash replied.  Just means I need to go look around on my own. 

With that short talk done, the two of them returned to the table where the others were, and Ash sat down next to Keiko as she took a bite out of her breakfast. 

"Ash, these eggs taste fantastic!" Keiko told her. "Try some!" 

"Sure," Ash replied, piecing together her plan as she got started with her own plate, which she'd left sitting there as she spoke to Sinneah. 

As they ate, surrounded by clean and golden decorations that looked nothing like the usual dirt-covered messes that could be found all over this city, Ash overheard a few ongoing conversations at the other tables. She tuned out the voices of her own group to focus just a little on those nearby civilians.

"Did you hear?" One middle-aged woman asked another. "About the Arcane." 

"Everyone has," her friend replied. "In the middle of the strangest and most dire times in the world, the Arcane passes away. What a tragedy." 

"It feels so sudden," the first girl stated. "Why it's been at least a few years since the Arcane has left his home, and now, suddenly, he dies and all the city hears about it comes from random criers on the street? Ugh, the lunacy of it all!" 

"I'd say they have just a few days to tell the city where we're going now before things fall into absolute chaos. Part of me wants to leave while we still have the chance." 

Hm.  Ash thought as she stopped eavesdropping.  So, everyone's pretty much catching onto how weird this is. 

Admittedly though, Ash's interest in the matter didn't run any deeper than just an acknowledgment of how strange the event was. As long as no one tried to create problems for her and the others, whatever happened in Amber happened. It was of no concern to her. 

She and the others finished up after that, walking out of the restaurant and beginning to head back for the Manor. The streets were buzzing, with so many people out and walking that Ash almost felt like she was in a different place. Still, most of them kept their heads low, only raising their eyes on occasion to look up at Ash's group. 

But, as soon as Ash would return a glare onto them, they'd cease, and she'd calm down. 

... Maybe I'm going crazy, but I feel like more people are looking at us now than before. 

She thought about this as she felt their gazes sliding on and off their group, the entire way back to the Manor. 

Once they arrived, Ash quickly got to work piecing together what she'd be doing next. She went back to her room, spread her map out on her drawer, and put her brain to work. 

Okay,  she thought, while Keiko and the others talked to each other outside,  let's see. First, the smartest thing would probably be to go back to Gurron's body and take one of his eyes out. Definitely won't tell Sin about that, but, yeah, if I can do that, it would save me a lot of time. The only issue would be that, well, the chances that a monster has already found his body and already ate him could be pretty big. Aside from that, I don't know if that alchemist needs a fresh dragon eye or if one that's damn near rotten can work. I guess I'll have to ask. 

So, she organized these things in her mind, and eventually, she came up with the following plan: 

First, she'd go back to the alchemist's shop and see if an eye from a currently decaying corpse could work. Then, she'd take a trip west, where one of those old churches was marked, and after that, she'd go back to the mountain northwest, where she'd met Sinneah, and where Gurron hopefully still was.

Her hope was that she could get through all of this in just one day, which she'd save for tomorrow. The rest of this day, though, would be spent trying to learn that  Energy Siphon  spell, and continuing to clear her head, as best she could. 

"Okay," she said aloud. "Seems good enough. All I've got to do now is do it, I guess." 

With that plan made, she put her map down and went outside her room. As soon as she walked out the door though, she nearly ran someone over. 

"Oof," she stopped herself, grabbing onto the woman's wrists to prevent her from falling back. "Sorry, I-" 

"..." As she and the woman looked at each other, Ash paused. 

Yumi's silver eyes were looking back at her, as the two stood so close that Ash could nearly see herself in Yumi's pupils. Neither of them said anything. Instead, Yumi's eyes went down, to Ash's hands, which were still gripping her arms, and Ash's eyes did the same. Realizing this, she let go. 

"... Sorry," Ash replied. 

"You have nothing to apologize for," Yumi muttered. "It was clearly an accident." 

One thing Ash learned about her attraction to Yumi, and maybe this could be said for anyone she felt attracted to, due to her natural lust, was that her desire for the woman lurked just underneath the surface of Ash's thoughts. 

Simply put, she could ignore it most of the time. Sometimes, she'd even forget she was genuinely attracted to her altogether. But, then, something like this would happen, where all Ash could do was focus on the woman's fair portrait, confident eyes, and elegant frame, and that desire would instantly come out to remind her that it was still there, lurking in the back of her mind. 

"... Yeah, sorry," Ash said, turning away but then Yumi caught her arm, wrapping her hand around Ash's biceps. 

"Did Keiko speak with you?" Yumi asked. 

And, of course, the half-demon quickly knew what she meant. 

"... Yes," Ash said firmly. "She did." 

Yumi nodded. Almost reluctantly, she let go of Ash's arm and took a shuddering breath. 

"I-I see." 

Whatever they were going to do about this though, Ash was definitely not ready yet. So, she walked away from the Zayama then, heading out to tell the rest of the group what she'd be doing tomorrow. 

---

Kasumi

"Okay, everyone," one officer at the front of the caravan said to the people in the first cart, before indicating to other officers that they were going to need to spread the message. "We're hopping off for a bit, letting the horses rest and all. Stretch your legs, everyone. Grab a bite of whatever food you brought, and enjoy the sights!" 

The trip was around one-third of the way done, as the combined lack of harsh weather and the calmness of the roads had allowed for moderately quick travel. It was speculated that, if things stayed the same, they'd arrive in around two or three days. Of course, the food the passengers had brought wouldn't last till then, but that was why a few hunters quickly got off the carts and went out, looking to gather some meat to bring back for everyone. 

Kasumi had spent the majority of this trip in her own little world, with the only interruptions in that coming in the form of Mizaki, usually saying something to shake her out of her daydreaming. 

Like right now, for example. 

"You can already see how different everything is!" She told Kasumi, who then opened her eyes and glanced over at Mizaki. 

"What?" 

"Look!" She pointed out the cart. "Enough sand to make you think you were on a beach down south. Giant, sprawling trees and barren wastelands everywhere else. Even if you don't like it, you have to admit it's unique!" 

Kasumi blinked as she analyzed the landscape. It certainly was a lot drier, but it also had a certain aesthetic to it that was hard to pin down. Still, it reminded her of the tourists who would often come to Pearl, wearing clothes that often featured these very colors, as if they were wearing their land on their bodies. 

As she watched it, a statement came to her mind, so naturally that she didn't pause before letting it slip out from her lips. 

"Nozomi might have liked this." 

Mizaki visibly winced when she heard this, but Kasumi's face remained the same. 

Hm?  She surprised herself. The statement didn't bring the usual tears that would come with the mere mention of her daughter. It was just a simple acknowledgment. 

"Is that so?" Mizaki asked as she laughed awkwardly. 

As she remained quiet, Kasumi took that as a sign that she could go back to her daydreaming, and so, she closed her eyes and let her mind drift away.