Part 1: High above

Almost a month has passed since they started their journey, and they find themselves in lovely streets once more. A large marketplace, filled with people trying to sell various things from potions to weapons. Small children playing tag, cat gently sleeping under the different umbrellas. 

“Fish! Fresh fish!”

“Roasted meat! Get it while it’s still hot!”

“Young lady, would you like any of the jewelry?”

“Um, no thank you,” she holds her hood, her curly hair keeping through and covering her face.

“Today is finally day,” Nexus also wore a cape to hide himself from the public eye, “We just need to cross through here and the city is within our reach! Aren’t you excited?”

She held the necklace tightly. “I wouldn’t use that word-”

His gaze left hers. “Fair enough.”

It’s already been a month, but the memory of his life disappearing in her arms is still fresh within her. Only a few hours left and she can go find them. 

You may not know me, but I have horrible news to deliver. No, I am this and that and I have something to give. No, they’d just refuse to listen. Your relative died a horrible death-nope, that’s the worst one.

She spent the last few days mulling inside her mind the various ways of telling the accident to the poor family, disgusted by every possible outcome she’d come up with.

She keeps looking back at the pictures. They weren’t giving her comfort. She was unable to tell what the three’s hair colors were like. She could only tell that the boy had darker hair than the two girls. The younger girl especially, she was barely able to tell what her face was like. Parts of the picture burnt and her dirty hand picking her nose.

Things seemed hopeless.

“Oh, fiery empire of Ashenwood,”

Her flow of thinking was interrupted, hearing someone singing

All the things that you withstood

All the beasts, and all the gloom

You will never fall to doom

In the distance she saw a bard playing on his lute on top of a dry fountain, long dark hair flowing on the wind. A large crowd formed around him, mostly of young kids singing with him.

Oh Agnia, goddess of fire

Do you hear my lyre?

All I wished for my son

Is to find joy under your sun

“Oh, I heard this song before,” Nexus said. “It’s called Your lyre, it’s one of the many songs people made to express their grief and joy after the war was over. But anyway, we should head in that direction.”

“Wait!”

Shouting at her companion, Alice grabbed his arm before he could make another step.

“Miss, is something wrong?”

“I-”

Everything was wrong. She stood still, gripping his arm, unable to let go of it. All she was able to think about was Miroslav’s death. The salesman and the bards, all what they said, became nothing but jumbled noise in the midst of an inescapable flood that were her thoughts. And the giant crowd in front of her did not help her.

She slowly let go of his arm, rubbing the back of her neck, “I’ve…never been to a big city before, so seeing so many people over there is-overwhelming, I guess?”

“Is that it?”

“Yeah,” it wasn’t.

He quietly stared for a bit before answering, “Heh, I understand. There was a time when I was a country bumpkin myself. I see an empty bench nearby. Do you want to sit there for a bit?”

“That'd be nice.”

Cut off from the singing crowd, Alice takes off the necklace on her neck, gently rubbing it. She could see Nexu reaching out his hand to her, but he pulled it back. 

“Too soon. Am I correct?”

She didn’t feel like answering.

“Miss, remember what I told you that night? I want to go through this too, so there’s no need for you to carry all this burden on your shoulders.”

“Easy for you to say. I can barely even think about it without feeling guilty. How am I supposed to tell these three what happened to him. I tried so many ways to say it, but they all sound so wrong! I don’t want to mess this up. I can’t mess it up!”

Clutching her face against her hands, she could hear Nexus stand up.

“How about this?” down on one of his knees, his eyes met her. “I can tell them what happened, and you can just give them the necklace.”

“Huh?”

“When the war ended, I, alongside other knights, went and visited families who lost their loved ones during the battles, so I already know what to say for the most part. Plus, there’s the fact that I’m the Knight of Miracles. My position should hopefully be enough for them to give us a minute of your time. So, my kind lady, will that be enough for you?”

“I-no, no no,” she quickly stood up, stepping away from him, “I know you’re trying to help me, I do, but I need to be the one to do it.”

“I’ve lost so much. My village, my teacher, my mother, I were unable to do anything to save them. And then I met him, only to lose him just as well. Every time something terrible is about to happen to someone I care about, I’d fail them one way or another, and I hated myself for it. But now, now that I have a chance to at least give his family peace, I don’t want to waste it.”

“Miss,” he simply stared at her as she spoke.

“What I’m trying to say is,” she removed tears from her eyes, “Thanks, but no.”

“Fine then,” he smiled, “If that is your wish, I should do my best to fulfill it. It is a knight's duty to help a beautiful maiden such as yourself, after all.”

He had a reassuring smile, which was surprising because he smiles more often than he doesn’t. 

“Heh, I wouldn’t call myself that.” 

“Are you ready to go, young beauty?”

“Young beauty? Really? Aren’t we the same age?”

“I just thought you’d be tired of being called ‘miss’ at this point.”

She couldn’t help but chuckle. “And you really thought that’d be better?”

“Well, it wouldn’t be a problem if you were to actually tell me your name.”

“Hm,” she saw in him a good acquaintance, but revealing her name would still be too risky, “Try something else.”

“Hm, what about…Velvet!”

“That’s…not what I meant.”

“Collette?”

“You’re really doing this?”

“Could it be, Natalia?”

“Pfft, nope!”

As she laughed, she realized how, at the moment, she was walking through the large crowd. 

She thought it’d be hard for a country bumpkin like her, but now they seem like a falling leaf passing through the wind. Albeit, she also noticed how her hand was holding onto Nexus’s cape. Embarrassed, she immediately let go and held her hands behind her back. He simply giggled.

“Oh boy,” he stopped midway, making her bump into him.

“What is it?”

“Look ahead.”

In front of the two of them, lies a large queue of people, carrying various sacks and boxes as they patiently waited in line.

“What in the-how many people are there? It’s going to take weeks for us to get through. Jeez, I can’t even see the city from here. Didn’t you say today we’d reach that place?”

“Well I-wait,” he tilted his head, “You can’t see the city?”

“No,” she looks ahead, seeing nothing but dry lands and waiting people scorching under the sun.

“Can you give me the map? I just want to check if we’re in the right place.”

“Here it is-Oh,” she clapped his hands, “Oh, you didn’t know?”

“Didn’t know what,” she tried to reach for the map.

“Oh-oh, I should have thought so. It’s been only two years, after all.”

“Two years of what? Just give me the map.”

She took it by force, snooping her face into it.

“Miss-”

“Let’s see, we started here, and now we’re..exactly where we need to be?”

“Miss-"

“What’s going on? It should be right ahead???”

“Miss-”

“How old is this map??? They wouldn’t have moved an entire city somewhere, right?”

“Well…they did.”

“Huh?”

He pointed his finger upwards, so she looked up.

The city of Ashenwood, lying across a giant clump of land, was surrounded by mighty walls. Its towers were tall enough to reach the burning sun. The average person would struggle to get there, had it not been for floating mechanisms that would carry the citizens millions of kilometers into the sky.

Nexus closed her jaw. “I should have mentioned it sooner.”

“You think?!” 

She scratched her head, taken completely aghast by what she saw. “I-what-how? None of the books mentioned that?! How long has this been a thing?!”

“For over two years now to be exact.”

“Two years! How does it do that?”

“Oh, it’s quite simple really, you see-”

“Get out of my way.”

Before he could finish, Nexus was pushed to the ground, his hood falling off.

“Nex,” she helped him get up, “Are you alright?”

“Haha, I’ll be…fine.”

As his silver hair shined under the sun’s light, thousands, if not millions, of people stared at the traveling pair. They dropped everything, their boxes, crates, food, all to get a closer look at the fallen knight.

“It’s him! It’s really him,” the crowd cheered. “Call the guards! The knight has returned!”

More and more people gathered around him.

“My knight! It’s so good to see you! Can you come and heal my daughter? She’s been sick for days!”

“Mister, my grandma’s back is hurting. Could you come and heal her pretty please?”

“Knight of Miracles! Haven’t seen you in ages! Could you be kind enough to come a look over my arm-”

“Grow back my teeth, brat!”

More requests came in as more people gathered. What were harmless requests are slowly turning into demands.

“Come on! Why won’t you help me?” a man began pulling his dress.

“Sir,” Nexus pushed the man away, “Manners please! I will tend to your requests after I finished my business at the castle! So please, if you could-”

“Don’t go!”

One of the citizens came and grabbed his arm. “You must help us! Please, you’re the only!”

“That’s right! We don’t have another choice!”

“Don’t you dare go!”

As he tried to remove himself from the crowd, they just piled more things for him to do. They began to push him around. Several people grabbing onto his arm, desperate for help.

“Shoot,” Alice used the smallest of flames to give her a boost to her speed.

“You all,” she blazed her way to the troubled knight, dragging him away from the crowd, “Give him some space!”

“You little.” they’ve gotten furious fast. “Are you trying to kidnap the knight?”

“What?!”

“After them!”

“Miss.”

“What now?”

“Run.”

Going in the opposite direction, they tried their best to escape the desperate horde. Nexus tries to put back his hood on, but it was too late. Everyone already realized who he was. Like escaping from a flood that’s reached one’s doorstep, the crowd grew larger and larger.

They were back in a corner when they reached the fountain, unable to find a means to escape.

“Everyone, please calm down. As I said before, I’ll tend to your requests soon enough. Please leave my-maid out of this!”

“Wait,” Alice noticed his word choice quickly, “Your what-”

“Enough is enough!”

Someone yelled out as a giant ring of fire came blazing through around the fountain.

It pushed the traveling duo and the citizens to the grounds, the flame’s height almost reaching the height of local dead trees.

“Listen everyone,” a voice appeared behind the fountain, “Anyone who decides to disturb the Knight of Miracles will be arrested-have their tax pay increased! I recommend leaving at once unless you want to cause some trouble.

Hearing him loud and clear, the crowd slowly dispersed alongside the flames.

“Phew, that was wild,” Alice fell to the ground.

“Milady,” a boy came from behind the fountain, his dark red hair tied in a nice bun, “You shouldn’t be sitting here! The ground is dirty.”

He pulled out the scabbard of his sword. She thought that’s what she was supposed to hold to get up, but she did it on her own.

“I’ll be fine. Thank you for this. The crowd was really-”

“Jakob.”

Alice turned back to Nexus, his hands gripping his skirt, taking a step backwards.

“Sir,” ‘Jakob’ bowed down, “I assume you realize how your absence caused everyone a lot of worry.”

“I-I quickly realized. But do not fret. Rest assured that I am completely fine. ”

“Tch, of course,” Jakob scoffed. “This was nothing but a waste of time and resources, you realize thar right? The emperor ordered every single recruit to come looking for you, when we could have done practical things. And here you just coming back out of nowhere, acting like nothing happened, like you always do!”

“You’re,” he straightened his back, “You’re right. My apologies, it was not my intention-”

“Whatever it was, which I doubt was anything worth all this trouble, you still wasted everyone's time. Not like you'd give it a second thought.”

Alice felt awkward. She simply stood there watching the strange argument take place. Nexu aslo wasn't refuting anything he said, he simply stood still holding his hands behind his back.

“Hey,” she tried to calm down the situation.

“Nexus!”

A familiar voice came through. In a blink of an eye, Nexus was embraced tightly.

“Where have you been?” Lady Scarletborn held his face. “We’ve been looking everywhere for you, and who is she?”

---

And chapter 7 has begun! Sorry for the sudden hiatus. I had my finals last month so I had to prioritize them for a bit but now I'm back baby! It's been over a year since I started this rewrite and I'm really excited to write what's coming next! Thanks for reading and goodbye!