As promised, I halted our advance before sunset to allow everyone to enjoy their evening meal leisurely since I wasn’t sure I could afford them the same luxury further into our journey. The soldiers accompanying us had broken into small squads around their cookfires and were now chatting lively. A few started horsing around, but a single glare from Tetora was enough to curb the more violent shenanigans, earning him the unofficial title of Enforcer.

“Why didn’t you just say no?” Nora replied to my report of the day with a long sigh as she threw some more wood onto our fire.

“I didn’t want to hurt his feelings…” I admitted to her quietly, keeping my voice down. The two of us had volunteered to prepare dinner for the Order of Gold, though it wasn’t as much cooking as it was simply reheating a few packed provisions. “Besides, it’s my fault for asking what he wanted to do. And it’s not a big deal. Maybe he'll give up once he sees how bad I am at dancing.”

“Uh-huh,” she replied flatly. “Good luck with that.”

“Do you want to learn how to dance with me, Lady Nora?” I asked hopefully.

“Oh! That would be so co—wait. I see what you’re doing!” she admonished, wagging a finger at me. “You got yourself in this mess; you get yourself out. And by the way, it’s bad manners, trying to invite me along as a third wheel.”

“No, I…” I was at a loss for what to say, realizing she was right yet again.

Thankfully, she let me off with a warning, switching back to our other topic of the day. “If you want to know about Chairo’s logistics, you should talk to Aleph and Vernie. I checked with the soldiers; none have been inside the city in years.”

“Really?” I blinked several times. “It’s gotten that exclusive?”

Nora shrugged, poking at a few glowing embers with her stirring stick. “No reason to go there was their official response, but they made a few faces that indicated they weren’t happy with recent rhetoric. King Saulus might support the Church, but that doesn’t mean his people forgive them for advancing their agenda.”

I frowned. “What about the annual donations from His Majesty? None of them were part of the entourage?”

Nora shook her head. “No… rumor has it those who accompanied him in years past found ways to decline a repeat invitation.”

“It’s going to be even more complicated than I thought…” I scratched my cheek. “Oh! Did you ever get a hold of the map of Chairo’s sewers?”

Nora nodded furtively, pointing discretely to her cloak pocket as Prince Mito and Tetora approached our campfire. As they neared, she raised a hand and waved enthusiastically.

“Right. Later,” I murmured.

“What’s taking so long?” Tetora demanded as he flopped on the ground, stirring up a bit of dust. “Everyone else is already eating!”

“Mind your tail, tiger,” Prince Mito snapped, sitting across from him. “I do not wish to eat dirty fur because of you.”

Tetora leaned forward and sneered at the prince. “Keep talking to me like that, and you won’t be able to eat at all!”

“You dare threaten me?” Mito replied, folding his arms as he drew himself up haughtily.

I scrambled to my feet quickly, selecting the bo staff from my pile of weapons. “I swear to the Goddess, if you two start fighting, I’ll spank you both in front of everyone here!”

His Highness grinned at me wickedly before casually asking Tetora, “Well, did you time it? I forgot to count.”

“Eh, let’s say it took twelve seconds,” Tetora replied, his accompanying laughter shaking his entire upper body. “I wasn’t expecting the threat to involve a public spanking, though!”

“You’re messing with me!” I gasped.

“Rite of passage,” Tetora explained bluntly. “Congratulations on your first day as a true leader, Captain!”

Prince Mito nodded. “I have no doubts in your abilities now, Chosen One.”

Realizing I had a bad habit of grinding my teeth when irritated, I exhaled slowly and released my jaw. I had ranted about the idea of hazing before, but only Vernie had borne the brunt of it. And with these two, I was sure my words would fall on deaf ears. Things might not be out of hand yet, but I didn’t want further escalations.

“So then… you’re telling me you’re getting along?” I asked as calmly as I could.

“My continued existence is thanks to Tetora’s effort to keep me safe from that demon,” Prince Mito admitted while staring at the ground. “Not just anyone would do that for me.”

“Feh!” Tetora waved off his apparent admiration, his cheeks reddening slightly. “No big deal.”

I nodded my head several times in satisfaction. “Hmm-hmm. That’s just wonderful to hear! No doubt you’ll enjoy your night watch together tonight.”

“You seem to have me confused for one of the soldiers,” Prince Mito objected. “I know nothing of—”

“Grandmaster Tetora will teach you. And since I’ve been assured of his dedication to your continued existence, you’ll have no better bodyguard for the rest of the trip.”

“I’m used to taking watch with Aleph!” Tetora groaned in protest.

I shrugged. “Best to get used to different people and different situations.”

Prince Mito wrinkled his nose, his eyes darting back and forth wildly as he looked for a way out of responsibility. “Wouldn't the night watch be too dangerous for me? I have no way to defend myself against a demon…”

“Ah! Which reminds me!” I grabbed my old sword from the pile. “You may borrow this blessed blade for now since I’m currently responsible for wielding Holy Celestia until further notice.”

Prince Mito glowered at Tetora. “This is all your fault!”

“You agreed to my idea!” Tetora snarled, his ears folding back.

Somewhat satisfied they wouldn’t pull such a prank again, I smiled smugly. “Now, now! I hate to see such good friends squabble! So… I’m going to walk away!”

As I resolutely turned my back, I heard His Highness mutter, “Since when does a captain outrank a prince?”

“You are worried about an ambush,” Aleph concluded, stroking his beard. “It is theoretically possible in the Periphery, with its narrow and winding streets. Not so much in the Sanctum, however. The streets there are quite wide.”

“I don’t think I’ll be able to see Pravum’s private army first,” I admitted. “I see a faint glimmer of silver off to the southeast when I shut my eyes and concentrate hard enough, but nothing so much as red.”

“King Saulus’s private army,” Aleph corrected. “They’re not officially our enemy yet. I doubt that any of them would be willing to ambush us however, even if in the unlikely event that Pravum would attempt it.”

“Are you saying you think Pravum has at least a minimal level of battlefield ethics?” I asked, surprised.

Aleph shook his head. “He has a reputation to protect. Ambushing Relias, no matter who is accompanying him, would paint Pravum in a very poor light. He will likely surround us and begin a long list of denunciations instead. It is the… priestly thing to do, especially to other priests.”

I imagined Relias in his adversary’s role. “Haa… Perhaps.”

Relias spoke suddenly from behind, startling me. “His army would most likely be called upon to witness my reaction. Their testimony before the General Assembly supporting Pravum would be worth their weight in gold.”

“Ah! Hello!” I responded awkwardly as I turned around.

Relias stood with a pout, his arms lightly folded. “You are taking your responsibility quite seriously… so seriously that you seem to have stood me up for our first lesson.”

I covered my mouth as my eyes widened, realizing how late it was. “It was an accident!”

“I did not set a specific time,” Relias chuckled softly. He slowly smiled and offered his hand.

As I took it, he turned to Aleph. “Will you join us, Old Friend, for propriety’s sake?”

My first lesson felt a bit tedious at first. However, it was one of the few times I could hardly blame myself. Even with the flattest patch of ground possible, there was still more resistance to be found than on a smooth dance floor. We were forced to pick up our feet to combat the uneven surface. Since I was a beginner, we worked on a simple set of steps after a few warm-up stretches, with Relias taking the lead. Aleph counted in a pattern of fours, and I tried my darndest to step opposite of Relias.

“You’re watching your feet too much,” Aleph noted. “You know the pattern; he will not deviate from it until you have mastered the movement.”

I sighed, trying to remember the finer points of good posture, like standing straight and tall.

“It would be permissible to meet my gaze,” Relias reassured me with a small smile. “Rest assured, I harbor no intentions of harm.”

That comment only made it harder for me.

“Ahaha…” I blushed.

It took a while, but I eventually got the three sets of four steps down pat, surprised to find it began to grow on me.

“We can just do that over and over for a whole song, right?” I asked hopefully, thinking I had unlocked some figurative cheat.

Relias frowned slightly. “Don’t you think it a little… boring?”

“Not yet…”

Relias laughed. “You will eventually. Come, let’s try another type of move before the sun fully sets.”

No, he didn’t dramatically dip me or pull me close in a tender embrace. We tried to glide our feet instead, which was basically impossible on the uneven ground. However, we did talk about the theory behind the move, which was intended to show off grace and poise more than anything flamboyant. I also learned having multiple partners during a dance was quite common.

“However, I don’t recommend it in our case,” he added at the end of his conclusion. “For safety reasons, I recommend you not dance with anyone you do not know or trust. You should just dance with me.”

“Alright,” I agreed, unsure what he was getting at.

“Old Friend,” Aleph started with a light laugh, “You almost sound jealous, advising something like that.”

After the realization gradually dawned on him, he quickly let go of me. “No, I didn't intend it that way! It's just that in Chairo, numerous individuals will seek your favor, and…”

“You’re picking on him,” I declared, pointing at Aleph. “He’s not possessive like that, and you know it!”

Both turned their startled gazes toward me.

I met their look directly and returned it in spades. “What? Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Thank you,” Relias said, his voice filled with gratitude as Aleph lowered his head, one ear flicking back and forth as though irritated by something.

I finally broke off my stare, rubbing the back of my head. “I didn’t do anything…”

Relias smiled warmly. “Regardless... I truly enjoyed our lesson today. I can't help but feel that I've gained precious insight from it.”

Eh?

“Oh, uh, me too…”

“Let me see to warding your tent, Dear One.” He bowed to me, then smiled at Aleph as he patted his shoulder. “Thank you for your assistance as well.”

Aleph and I watched him stride away purposefully, his robes flapping in the westerly breeze.

“Okay, so tell me how I did,” I instructed Aleph. “Don’t hold back.”

After a moment of reflection, Aleph noted, “You’re… very stiff with him…”

I nodded. “Maybe once I’m more comfortable with my steps—”

“No,” he interjected, shaking his head. “I mean in general. But I can see you’re trying your hardest to meet him where he needs you. I also believe your hard work will be rewarded, so I applaud your efforts.”

I flinched guiltily. “Is… is it that obvious?”

“Not to everyone, Little Dragon. Not to everyone.”