231: Flight

As we sat around eating the tacos, I couldn’t help but wonder what Luis, no sorry, Lewie, wanted to tell us. I was about to ask when a familiar pressure arrived next to me, nudging me with her head.

“Hello, Lily,” I said, reaching out to scratch behind the ears.

I didn’t need to wait to figure out what she wanted and just separated some of the buvul, bread and cheese, infusing her plate as I moved it to her just so she’d have the mana.

It did let me see the buffs, although there was nothing special about the dish, so it just provided fire immunity and +3 Strength for the reheated buvul.

“So what’s the deal with you then?” I heard Liane asking Luis between bites.

Milo just frowned before I saw the door shut and felt the air mana circle around us.

Luis looked a little nervous, but seemed to steel himself. “I checked with my father before I said anything, but to put it bluntly, I’ll be visiting villages and towns to gauge morale and take note of any leadership who may be breaking rules.”

“So you’re hunting for corruption in the open?” Liane asked.

“Yes, and no…” Luis said, but Liane didn’t give him a chance.

“Corruption by design is done out of sight. What about the orphanages? How will you see them? And the moment they know you’re the prince or looking, they’ll put on a show,” Liane stated.

Luis was nodding. “Yes, this is why I’ll be talking to the locals in the inns, at the markets, to work out those unspoken things where I can. Also, from what I’ve heard, Trev brings it out of them naturally,” he chuckled.

Hari was nodding in agreement. “He’s not wrong about the last part, but you’ll certainly have your work cut out for you, especially with how fast you’ll be travelling with us.”

Luis nodded in agreement again. “Yes, I understand that. I’ll be parting ways with you as discussed in Elarith Vale. Heading north is very much just a quick glance to spot anything incredibly glaring.”

“Seems like a big job,” Jen commented.

“And what, you’re only searching north?” Liane said with far more snark than I would have expected.

“No, we are heading in all directions,” Luis didn’t raise his voice. He just remained calm.

“Liane, I understand your concerns, but at least they are trying to do something now,” Hari tried to reason.

“Who is? It’s just Luis.” Liane said back.

I shook my head, “No, Kathrine mentioned she was going away as well.” I added.

“Yes, Trevor is right. It’s more than just me, thankfully, and it’s only people we know we can trust, no more relying on bad information.” Luis added with confidence.

I could understand her frustration. It seemed like everyone in Dunhearth knew exactly what was going on, but no one said it openly, or did anything about it.

“Well, when we go past Hydrina, arrest the lot of them. The whole town is corrupt to the core,” Liane muttered.

I was confused and looked to Jen, who just whispered, “Hometown.”

There was a silence that seemed to fall over the group, especially with Liane, who didn’t look happy. She had even stopped eating her tacos. That didn’t last long, however, as Lily went to steal them.

“You mentioned that Trev may need to pull rank. What was that about?” Jen asked curiously.

“Well, yeah, look, it’s an absolute last resort. I know you all well now. I know the very last thing you want to deal with is politics, but if we discover something, rather than exposing what I am doing early and tipping off everyone across the kingdom, Trevor as a Lord of a high noble house would be the highest-ranking official behind myself,” Luis said.

“So?” Liane asked. I thought she was snapping at him, but her look to Milo instead gave me the impression she just didn’t understand why.

“You need a high-ranking official to pass judgement on those lower legally. What I did with the colonel is technically legal, but without my noble background, it would have likely ended poorly,” Hari said, nodding.

“Couldn’t Hari do it then?” I asked.

“He could, I guess, but he’d be on the same level as a town lord, so it becomes messy,” Luis said before he quickly added, “If you are unwilling to do it, I understand. I will do it myself, or send off a messenger.”

I sighed. “It’s fine.”

I felt Crisplet’s mana pushed towards me, and it was odd, but there was overwhelming reassurance and defence? Or defend? I guess he’s saying he’ll defend me.

“Thanks, Crisplet,” I whispered towards the fire, getting a spark.

Looking down to where my taco was, I couldn’t help but notice my plate was now empty. Looking at Lily, I saw a single eye open that quickly closed.

Milo let down the air barrier that was surrounding us, and almost immediately there was a knock on the door.

Luis quickly put his hood back up as Hari got up to answer.

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As Hari opened the door, he visibly paled. “It’s so strong in here.”

“Ah yes, as we mentioned, that is Lily. She is over there by the fire, and I’d advise it’s best you leave her alone,” Hari said firmly.

“Ye… Yes, sorry. We feared monsters when we felt it. I’ll leave you to your dinner.” Nero quickly backed away from the doorway, and I heard the door shut hard on the other side.

Hari, turning back to us, had a grin on his face. “This is going to be a fun trip.”

***

The next day was much the same. Lily was gone before I woke up in the morning, and I was reminded just how cold the morning air was as I stepped outside of the warmth that Crisplet’s fire had.

I saw Jen and Hari sitting on a bench, both wearing very warm-looking coats.

“Morning, Trev,” Jen waved.

Crisplet came out a moment later and started to melt small piles of snow that were nearby.

“Morning. We reach Farnox today, right?” I asked.

Hari nodded. “We do. It should be pretty easy, the same as when we arrived. All these roads are very smooth.”