Layers of heavy, oversized leaves hung above the heads of Lacey’s party.
An occasional rustling came from birds flitting through the branches. They darted between the trees, flew away until they were only the size of a fingertip, then vanished into the blue sky. Lacey gently lifted the hood of her robe and squinted up at them.
Chirp, chirp, chirp... Was that the muted sound of birds singing in the distance? Or was it something else entirely?
“It’ll take a while before we’re out of this forest.” Wayne got one foot caught on a tree root and breathed a “Whew.”
“It’s no problem! Feels to me like we’re on a picnic!!!”
“Careful, Brooks! Don’t shout so loud. What if you attract monsters?”
“Oh. Good point... You’re right, Dana. SORRY!!! HRMMM!!!!!!!!!!”
“Don’t ‘hrmmm’ me! You’re being too noisy!”
“Huh. I just can’t tell whether you two get along well or not.”
As she watched the stout young man incur the ire of the light green-haired woman, the girl in shorts folded her hands behind her head and gave an exasperated smile.
“Brooks, Dana, Rosie. Don’t play around too much,” Wayne turned around and told them.
“All right!”
“Very well.”
“Okaaay.”
Each of the three gave their own unique response.
“Lacey, are you doing okay?”
Hearing her name suddenly mentioned startled her. Lacey stopped scrunching the hem of her clothes and stood bolt upright.
It hadn’t been long since they’d set off from the capital and begun their quest. They weren’t complete strangers, but they weren’t close enough yet to trust each other. Lacey squeezed her lips tight and breathed in a lungful of air. Then she stayed that way, biding her time.
The other members of the party seemed to be on the lookout for monsters, with Brooks at their center. Wayne kept his eyes fixed on Lacey. After a while, she realized that he was waiting for her to answer.
When you were asked a question, you answered. As basic as this concept was, Lacey was so socially inept that she couldn’t respond immediately.
“Er, um...” She was flustered, and her tongue was getting tied. She clutched her rustic wooden staff with both hands.
Wayne waited for Lacey. She’d heard that he was the second son of a duke, but he wasn’t impatient like Lacey’s nobleman fiancé. On the contrary, he was even giving her encouragement.
“Go on.”
“Er, well...”
“Mm-hmm?”
“Um, er, w-well...”
Just as she was about to say something, the green leaves rustled in the wind, and the sun peered out from the gaps. Wayne’s blond hair caught its light and shone.
What a pretty color, Lacey thought as she looked up at Wayne.
“Are you tired?”
Lacey had suddenly closed her mouth and was acting vacant, which Wayne had misinterpreted as fatigue. In the end, all Lacey could do was grip her staff tightly.
So she didn’t really understand the meaning behind the hand that was stretched out to her as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“Come on.”
This is a story from before they defeated the Demon King.