When Liu heard what Deana said, his brows furrowed, but couldn't find the right words to say.

"What did you say?" Aleph asked instead. "That place was what?"

"It's what I just told you—that place was dangerous for both humans and animals. Many have already died or got hurt there," she said. "Haven't you noticed that for a forest, there isn't any animal to be seen around?"

Liu just realized that, too. Even though he noticed from the start that the village and the forest were eerily quiet, but except for this weird-looking horse-bird they are riding on, he hadn't seen a single fauna around. Not even a squirrel.

Also, the merchant's cargo and the stuff lying on the ground.

"Aleph noticed that, too! But Aleph didn't think it was weird then," Aleph said. "Now, Aleph is freaking out! What's happening over there?"

"It's a long story," Deana sighed. "But first—"

"You took off on your own again, didn't you?"

Liu, Aleph, and Deana all turned to their side, surprised to hear another person suddenly speaking. A tall, muscular man walked towards them, with an stern expression. Along with him are three other people, all wearing mail and leather. They all looked pissed off.

"Chief Serra!" Deana said with a gasp. "Why are you here?"

"I should be the one asking you that question, Miss Lady Knight," the tall, muscular man called Serra, putting an emphasis on the last three words. His male companions sneered, while the only woman in the party snorted.

"Of course! It's my duty as a Knight of Ardainia to oversee the situation and protect the people in this island," she said, beaming a confident smile. "That's why I advise everyone to be--"

"May I remind you, Miss Lady Knight, that Ignalia has its own authority and militia?" Serra said sternly. Liu narrowed his eyes on him. "If you wouldn't mind, allow us to take care of everything from here on now. And if you want, you can safely return to Ardainia and tell them that everything's under control here, and they don't need to stick up their noses in places they don't belong."

Deana looked flabbersgated, her mouth hung open with disappointment. Liu and Aleph both stared at Serra, and his party who had an obvious look of superiority. Aleph was about to say something, but Liu stopped her for now. Thankfully, Aleph got the hint and instead just looked at Deana sadly.

Meanwhile, Liu didn't avert his gaze at Serra. The latter noticed his staring that at last, he turned to him, too.

"And who are these?" Serra said, jerking his head towards them.

"Oh," Deana said as if those words waked her up from her daze. "These are--er--"

She looked at Aleph and Liu awkwardly. Liu resisted the urge to smile, given the situation. She forgot to ask their names.

"I'm Liu, and this is my little sister, Aleph," Liu said. That's right. From now on, it seemed that's how they are going to introduce themselves to others.

Aleph smiled and waved. "Pleased to meet you!"

Serra eyed them suspiciously. "What are you doing outside the walls?"

"Walls?" Liu repeated.

"I-I found them wandering in the woods, so I thought to bring them here for interrogation. They said they're foreigners, and drifted into this island," Deana said. "Plus, it's really dangerous for them to--"

"I believe the chief is talking to the outlanders, Miss Lady Knight," the thin woman cut her off. "Really, speaking without even asked."

The other people in the party expressed their agreement, and gave Deana a look of disgust. Liu was really starting to feel bad for her.

"It's just as what Knight Deana had said. We've spent the last few days in the outskirts after we drifted here," Liu said.

"That's right! Aleph and Liu were at the seaside, and we had no idea what's going on in the island," Aleph said. "Our fishing vessel sunk weeks ago, and the next thing we knew we were already here. It was so hard and we've been starving for days."

"Don't overdo it," Liu whispered. Aleph stopped and laughed nervously.

"Is that so? You oughta be careful around here. You're lucky you weren't swallowed and digested alive by those creatures while you were loitering outside the walls," Serra said. Then, he turned to his companions: "Let's go."

Serra and his party passed them by. Deana, walked after them and said, "Is there any urgent business I could help with, Chief Serra? I could also accompany you."

The tall man turned to her and gave her a tired look. "No. In fact, you could very well rest inside the walls. We can do everything on our own."

Just like that, he turned his back on Deana. The rest of his party walked alongside him, but not without giving cutting remarks against the knight.

"Seriously, what could she possibly achieve by coming here and forcing herself on this island? Man, these knights really get into my nerves," one of them said.

"As if being an Aventine wasn't bad enough," the thin woman spat.

"Leave her be. She'll get bored soon enough and return to Ardainia," Serra said.

"Ardainian Knights really are a spoiled bunch."

They continued talking to themselves as they walked farther away. Liu and Aleph just stared at their backs until they vanished into woods. He glanced at Deana who had downcast eyes.

Aleph balled her tiny fists and screamed. "Argh! Those people! Why were they so mean to you?"

Deana looked up and heaved a sigh. Then, she gave a practiced smile.

"Well, t-those people can be quite a handful, but they are reliable. At least, they didn't question us too much about you two," she said, putting her hands on her hips. Liu didn't respond to that, and instead just looked at her grimly. "Let's go!"

Liu, Aleph, and Deana walked towards the direction of Ignalia again. He was still thinking how could those militia people and their chief were so dismissive of this girl, who, despite everything, was working hard. It seemed Aleph and him thought the same.

"Come on! Those people really are jerks to you, Knight Deana," Aleph said. "Were they always like that?"

"Hmmm, a little. But I'm used to it," she said brightly. "And it doesn't matter, because the important thing is, I'm doing my duty to keep the people of Ignalia safe."

"But still, they shouldn't be acting towards you like that. Aleph thinks it's a bit too much," the little girl said. "By the way, where are the other knights in this island? Do they act like that towards them, too?"

"No. I'm the only Ardainian Knight in Ignalia right now," she said. "And I wouldn't know for sure how they would treat them."

"You're the only knight here? Why?" Aleph said.

"Well, because as the Chief said, they have their own well-trained militia here," she said. "Plus, I was the only one from the Guild who took up the assignment."

Aleph nodded slowly. They continued walking, and soon enough, they found themselves in a grassy plain, with fewer trees in between.

Liu then looked at Deana.

"If you don't mind me asking, what's really happening on this island?" he said.

Deana's face turned grim. "There's a crisis going on here. This island is currently under attack."

Aleph's eyes widened. "Under attack? From what?"

"From slimes."

Liu and Aleph almost burst out laughing. Deana turned to them with a confused look.

"Slimes? Aren't those just cute and bouncy jelly-like creatures?" Aleph said.

"Yeah, how could the slimes cause so much threat?" Liu agreed. Of course, in his previous world, there were no such thing as living slimes. However, slimes enjoyed a popular treatment from fantasy video games and animes he used to watch. Most of the time, they were just level one monsters.

"It's not a laughing matter," Deana snapped. "Everything's really been terrible the past few months."

"Months?" Liu repeated. "That's how long the people there are--what, fighting the slimes?"

"Correct. That's why you better take it seriously. I don't even know how could you be on this island for a long time and yet have never heard about the slime problem?" Deana said. Neither Liu or Aleph responded to that. "Well, I guess they really were just attracted to where there are lots of people, eh?"

However, Deana said that as if she was just talking to herself. She put her hand under her chin.

"What do you mean?" Aleph said. "Slimes aren't aggressive, are they?"

"Usually, they aren't. But now they attack without even being provoked," Deana said darkly. "Civilians who were just passing by the forest or gathering woods get hounded by slimes. Then, they became bold enough to loot people's homes. And then, livestock start to get missing, as well as valuable objects like gold, silver, and jewelry."

"Whoa! I knew slimes especially jellopies and mellorines loot travelers all the time, but they only usually go for fruits or random items!" Aleph exclaimed. "How could they even think of stealing treasures like those? Like really, what are they going even to use it for?"

Liu stayed quiet and listened to the two. He knew so little about this world, so it was best for him to keep his mouth shut. Moreover, so to avoid Deana's suspicions.

"I don't have the slightest idea," she said. "I thought they were just attacking to steal valuables and antiques. But then, the other day, something even more strange happened."

"What?" Aleph asked. Liu just looked at Deana.

"People vanished. Not just one--an entire village," Deana said.

Aleph gasped, while Liu's eyes widened in shock. "What? Seriously? But how could that happen? Did those slimes--did those slimes--?"

The little girl whimpered. Liu had to tap her to calm her down, while he continued to listen to Deana. "That's what we suspected. Or rather, that's why I think," Deana said.

"Why?" Aleph said.

"When the slime attack worsened, Chief Serra decided to have everyone on the island temporarily relocate inside the city walls. He organized the Ignalia militia to convince everyone in the island to evacuate to the city center for a while. But when we came to that village, we found no one. Not a single soul. When we investigated the village, I found evidences of slime secretions all around the place. It's drying up, but there were no mistaking them. They're on the streets, on the trees, and even inside the houses.

"Chief Serra and the others assumed they must have escaped and hid somewhere in the island. But, the weirdest thing was--there was no evidence they did leave the village. Sure, there were signs of struggle everywhere, but there wasn't any proof they walked out of there. More importantly, I already searched the island, and I couldn't find them," Deana finished.

Liu's eyes narrowed, while Aleph covered her mouth. "That's terrible."

"Yeah, it is. And if that's what really happened, then who knows if those people were still alive," Deana said. She sighed and looked at them. "But now, thankfully, I got new leads."

"Really? What's that?" Aleph said.

She pointed at them. "You guys."

Liu and Aleph were taken aback. "You're still on that?" the kid exclaimed.

"Hey, I thought we've already proved our innocence?" Liu said.

"Not yet. That's why I'm bringing you inside the city walls, am I not?" she said. "That, and to take you to safety. It's the duty of the Ardainian Knights to protect everyone. But after I cleared you, then you're free to go."

"Alright. Fair enough," Liu said. "But what do you mean 'we' are your leads?"

"Well, as I've said, there wasn't supposed to be any human outside the walls, right? But to think that you've survived outside for weeks and without even knowing there's a crisis going on, then that should somehow offer some clues, isn't it?" Deana said brightly. Before Liu could say that there was nothing they could help her with, she stopped short and looked up. "Finally! We're here!"

Both Liu and Aleph turned around to see a fortified gateway of the city. Liu's mouth hung open. It was the first time he'd seen a medieval-like town in person. On the top of the archway, familiar symbols were engraved, but Liu still tried to place where he had seen this language.

Deana turned to them with a smile. "I welcome you two to Ignalia, the satellite town and main port of Ardainia!"