POV: Yoshiya
The Korvath War Hall still hummed with the echo of tense voices when Nogare stepped forward. His movements were calm—too calm for a man standing before commanders and knights brimming with battle intent. He inclined his head slightly toward Guildmaster Kouki.
"Guildmaster," he said, his tone steady as stone. "Apologies, but this mission will take more days than you might expect. Yet this girl will learn much on this… vacation."
The choice of word earned him a few confused glances, but Nogare continued before anyone could interrupt.
"Day one—travel and gather tools.
Day two—execute the plan.
Day three—secure the loot.
Day four—return to you with good news."
A Dargath officer snorted. "Too good to be true. As if that will happen."
Nogare's eyes found him in an instant. Not cold. Not angry. Just piercing—like a blade reflecting the officer's doubt back at him.
"Yet," Nogare said quietly, "it will happen."
The words settled like smoke in the air, sharp and thin.
Omina, standing beside Yoshiya, puffed her cheeks, clearly annoyed that she had been ignored for the entire exchange. "Heyyy!" she called out. "I'm standing right here, you know!"
Kouki raised his hand slightly, his patience half gone. "Then you may depart now."
Nogare bowed again, nothing more to add. Behind them, Kouki and the council resumed their discussion on the Bustleburg raid—bigger plans, louder ambitions. But this group, Yoshiya realized, was moving in another direction entirely.
The shadows had their own war to fight.
---
By the time they stepped out of the hall, the sun had already dipped below the horizon. The air outside was crisp and wet, the faint mist of evening curling around the fortress walls.
Nogare and Zentake took the lead, their cloaks fluttering slightly in the cool breeze. Omina walked beside Yoshiya, arms crossed, her expression somewhere between sulking and disbelief.
"Seriously?" she muttered. "We didn't even get rations. Straight to Giggleburg? That's the plan?"
Yoshiya glanced at her, half-smiling. "You've handled worse."
"That's not the point! Even adventurers bring dried meat!"
He would've laughed, but the road ahead looked endless. The torches along Korvath's outer gates flickered behind them, slowly fading as the night opened wide and dark before their small group.
---
The dirt path wound eastward, through sparse trees that whispered with cold wind. Nogare and Zentake moved silently at the front—two shadows in rhythm. Zentake occasionally stopped to crouch, brushing aside dirt or picking up small things Yoshiya couldn't identify. Leaves. Pebbles. Even bits of moss.
"What's he doing?" Omina whispered.
"Gathering materials," Nogare answered, not looking back. "Every path offers tools if you know where to look."
Omina huffed. "You sound like a teacher who forgot to bring lunch."
Nogare's reply came soft but certain. "There is food. We'll find it on our way."
She frowned. "And your sword? I haven't seen you use one since yesterday. Don't tell me—"
"I have it," he said simply. "We'll retrieve it soon. Potions, we'll brew later. Food, we'll hunt. Shelter… is waiting for us ahead."
That calm voice carried an unsettling confidence. Yoshiya couldn't tell if it was experience or madness.
Zentake, still walking ahead, suddenly paused and picked a violet plant, inspecting its thin petals. He sniffed it, pocketed it, and murmured, "Good yield."
Omina groaned. "You people collect weeds like treasure."
Yoshiya smiled faintly. "Maybe they are."
Another mile passed before Nogare raised his hand. The group halted.
Through the trees, faint orange light pulsed—a small campfire. The smell of smoke and singed fur drifted in the air. As they drew closer, Yoshiya saw them: crude tents, scattered bones, and the unmistakable silhouettes of kobolds, huddled around a dying flame.
Omina's voice dropped. "You've got to be kidding."
Nogare looked at her. "Here. We'll camp."
"W–what?!" she exploded. "You mean this is our rest stop?! Among kobolds?!"
For a moment, Yoshiya couldn't breathe. Whether from the chill or from Nogare's certainty, he wasn't sure. The night around them seemed to tilt, darker and quieter, as if even the trees were listening.
Omina stared at the kobold camp, then back at Nogare, her voice dropping to a disbelieving whisper. "Some vacation this is."
Yoshiya could only nod. The journey had just begun, and already, it promised no rest—only the shadow's kind of peace.