With the situation resolved, I took Talulah back to the destroyed camp, while Yelena stayed back to bring recovered supplies with the remaining soldiers to our camp. Talulah's emotions calmed down considerably, but she was deep in thought for the greater part of your ride. She was so engrossed in it that she didn't even notice when she leaned back, lying in my embrace as we rode.
She only noticed it after we were able to see the destroyed camp. She instantly corrected her posture, trying to act as if nothing had happened, but her red eyes betrayed her state of mind. To cover that up, she decided to speak up.
-"Thank you, Eno. If not for you..."
-"I will accept your thanks this time. Don't feel bad about what happened, just focus on making sure it won't repeat."
-"What would you do in my place?"
I wanted to say that I would never be in her place, as Sankta would never betray me, but looking at my past, I swallowed this back. Thinking of it, it was because of this armor hiding my identity from Andoain that he dared to betray me.
-"Eno?"
-"Sorry, I got lost in thought. To answer you, I would make it so betraying me was something no one could match in price. Loyalty is nothing more than a value one puts on their group. If the price offered by someone outweighs it, the betrayal will happen. To prevent it, you can either raise the loyalty or add another weight to your side of the equation."
-"So you would make others fear betraying you?"
-"Not exactly. I would make it so they can't live normally with the stigma of being a traitor. For example, I would publish their information, place a bounty on them, and forbid those affiliated with me from associating with them. As there aren't many organization friendly to the infected, even if a few shunned such a person, they would have serious trouble living without protection, and even then, by simply making others aware of that person's infected status, even protection might not save them."
-"You... You can be quite cruel. But your idea is indeed good."
-"To be honest, I would advise you to establish contact with forces friendly to the infected. Even if you can't ally, at least sharing information should be possible."
-"I'll think about it."
After we entered the camp, Talulah went to Alina's side, as she had already regained consciousness. At the same time, I was approached by Shining.
-"How's the situation?"
-"All resolved. Reunion might not be as stable a partner as I would wish for, but as long as those people are leading it, they are good allies."
-"My thoughts precisely, but I also feel that they seemed to be targeted by someone. Are we sure we won't get involved?"
-"Just some nobles. They won't dare act against Laterano."
-"I see..."-She looked at me, her eyes once again hiding many of her thoughts.
-"We should get going. Yelena should return with supplies before the next morning, so let's get everything ready for departure at dawn."
-"Eno. Do you think that Sarkaz and Sankta can live in peace?"-She asked me from nowhere.
-"Yes and no. I believe that any race can be at peace with each other, no matter how their history was. But I'm also privy to some secrets about Sankta that made it hard to imagine. I think you also know some things about Sarkaz that would make reconciliation almost impossible. Even then, I believe that with enough time and effort, it should be possible."
-"I hope so too."
We quickly returned to the camp, with Shining, Talulah, and Alina riding Arion, while I flew back. There, Shining took Alina to rest, her wounds still requiring some time to heal, while Talulah and I sat by a campfire. Noticing our return, some children brought us some food, so Talulah and I ate while waiting for Yelena.
-"You are so young."-Talulah commented after I took off my helmet.-"I expected you to be like Patriot, not younger than me."
-"I'm much older than I appear to be."-I corrected her.
-"Is that so?"-She seemed not to believe me.
-"Mind if I join?"-Margaret decided to join us.
-"Feel free."-Talulah had nothing against it.
I also nodded.
Margaret thanked Talulah and tried to sit next to me, only for Arion to appear and block her. Knowing how Arion was with her, Margaret simply tried to go to the other side of me, only to be blocked once again. Under an amused gaze of Talulah, two horse-girls continued their rivalry until I finally told Arion to let Margaret sit.
I was slowly getting exasperated by how they would interact with each other, as their rivalry was only growing with each passing day. At least they would avoid interacting with each other if there was no need, but from time to time, Arion would appear and do everything she could to prevent Margaret from getting close to me. Well, as those occasions often happen when I take off my helmet, and with a slight blush visible on Margaret's face, I think it might be the reason.
-"Ehem."-Margaret cleared her throat to hide her embarrassment.-"I wanted to know if our plans remained the same, or if we need to change them?"
-"Just pushed slightly back. We will depart tomorrow at dawn, after Yelena brings all the supplies."
-"And what next? We still hadn't decided which country we would pass through."
-"Don't worry. I sent a letter to my elder to ask for assistance outside Ursus. When I receive the response, then we will make the decision. Speaking of..."-I looked at the Spectral Hawk that descended next to me.
I grabbed the letter with a official seal of Laterano on it. Without the need to check it over, I opened it and took the first piece of paper from inside, a personal message. After reading through it quickly, I let it burst into flames.
Ignoring the pleasantries and some other 'grandfatherly' elements, the letter advised me not to enter Victoria, but instead to pass through Leithanian. It also told me about hiring some people to meet us there and escort us further. Lastly, it mentioned that the preparations for the monastery had started, but for some matters, I needed to appear personally.
As for everything else in the letter, it was shortened reports so that I could get up to speed on global matters, along with a new digital communicator, documents, and a gun that the bird carried separately. The communication looked like a tablet, but in our current location, it was useless, lacking any signal.
The gun was something familiar to me, as it was one of the guns I carried with me back then. It was previously destroyed, so this one had been repaired. It wasn't a conventional gun, even for Terra's standards. I would compare it to something akin to a railgun, but rather than electricity, it utilized Originium Art with similar properties. The result was a weapon capable of piercing through any known defense, while destabilizing Originium in the target, causing premature eruption and disintegration of the body: an infected killer. I quickly put it away, it usefulness not that great to me now.
-"We will be going through Leithanian."
-"Leithanian? Won't we get stopped?"-Margaret, as someone wandering the lands for a few years already knew some things.
-"We'll be all right. I just received all the needed documents."-I showed them to her.-"Also, Talulah, can you prepare your draft of the agreement between us? I can decide on the agreement between Laterano and your Reunion on my own, only needing to report it later."
-"Sure, I'll have it ready before our next meeting. I will outline what we need and expect; we can get details locked on later."
-"I couldn't ask for more."
-"Have you two been in Leithanian?"-I asked them.
-"No, outside Ursus, I've only visited Lungmen."-Talulah shook her head.
-"Lungmen? I planned to see it once before, but because of some matters, I was unable to do so. Any recommendations for something to see there?"
-"Well, I was young then, so I don't remember much, sorry."
-"Don't mind it. If you want, I can take you there with me then."
-"I'll think about it."-She smiled, but it looked rather forced.
-"As for me, I visited Leithanian once, but only with my family to visit a friend. I felt that compared to Kazimierz, everything there was... How to say it... Grand? Like many things were done only for the sake of appearance."
-"Well, compared to rather utilitarian Kazimierz, Leithanian is definitely much more, let's call it, artistic."-I agreed while reading through the reports on Leithanian and listening to them talk."
-"Aside from that, I was impressed by their music and those Spires."
-"Leithanian music is indeed splendid. When I was young, I wished to learn how to play it; sadly, my life never allowed me to do so."-Talulah fully agreed.
-"I also listened to it a few times, but never actually learned it."
-"Learned it, meaning you learned some other styles?"-Margaret asked.
-"Yes, I can play most music native to Laterano on piano and organs."
-"Oh? You must let me listen to it someday."
-"Sure."
-"As for Leithanian, you should watch out for casters living there. Some are known for their inhumanity, doing anything they can to further their craft."-Talulah returned to the main subject.-"While technically forbidden now, many infected are still killed due to being 'living staff' to cast Originium Arts."
-"You think someone might target us?"
-"I can't know that, but beneath the glamorous exterior, there are many cracks. While far from their past glory, there is reason why Leithanian can stand next to Victoria. Even if Laterano is backing you up, you still need to watch your back."-Talulah warned me.
-"I'll be careful. This time, we only need to pass it through, so we should be able to avoid any major Nomadic cities. We only need to stop by Wolumonde to meet with our new escorts."
-"Wolumonde... Wolumonde... I don't remember this name, so it must be some minor city. That's good, at least there shouldn't be anything too dangerous there."
We continued our chatting like that, Shining and Liz joining us at some point, until Yelena showed up. After that, we started to pack the camp up, departing at dawn as planned. Talulah traveled with us for an hour or so before splitting and returning to her matters.
Our next long stop was planned to be at the edge of the Ursus border, where we would resupply from Reunion's camp before moving through no man's land into Leithanian. Based on our previous speed and weather, we should be able to arrive there in a week's time. On this leg of the journey, we continued the rotation of riding Arion, with both Alina and Yelena joining the list.
This was also my first occasion to truly interact with Alina, and I must say that her character was so gentle that I could understand why she had such an important place in Talulah's heart. It is just that I would prefer if she could hide her black-bellied personality slightly, as in just one of our rides, we went from 'thanking me for saving her life with her body' to 'throwing Talulah into the mix', making me afraid of what outrageous idea she would come up with next time.
Thankfully, the rest of our travel was uneventful this time. We arrived at our destination on time, and after setting up our camp, met with Talulah, who once again represented Reunion. As the convoy started to resupply, Talulah handed me their draft of the agreement, and after negotiating, we agreed on a deal mainly consisting of three points.
First, Laterano agrees to provide land and manpower to establish monasteries for refuges and production of Oripathy Inhibitors.
Second, Reunion will escort refugees of good standing to settle in monasteries and work in factories.
Third, Laterano is obliged to ensure that refugees are treated well and are provided with fair compensation, while Reunion shall pay for any product bought from Laterano according to its base international price.
Aside from those points, there were many other paragraphs that existed to ensure Laterano wouldn't be harmed, as well as rules of trade between parties and such. To make a complicated matter short, I agreed to provide land, and they will bring people who can't live anywhere else there. It was a win-win situation, as it gave Reunion a way to improve Infected lives, while also giving Laterano much needed workforce.
After that, Talulah took me aside, wanting to talk privately.
-"Eno, I was troubled for the past few days about how to repay everything you did for Reunion and me, and while I still not believe this is enough to repay you, I hope you can accept it."-The looked at me seriously.
-"You don't have to, but I'll accept your gift."
-"Then excuse me."-She stepped forward and took my helmet.
Talulah, being a little taller than me, she easily tiptoed and kissed my forehead. I was surprised by her actions, but I quickly noticed that this wasn't some show of emotions, but rather a ceremony. After she stepped back, she handed me my helmet and turned around, hiding a blush.
-"Ehem. You might not know, but I'm not Vouivre but a Draco. Draco were always special because of their Originium Art, but few know that they can also bestow it on others. I hope it can help you in the future."
-"This..."-I looked at her back, a little taken aback.-"Thank you."
-"Let's stay in touch."
-"Sure."
When two of us returned to the rest of the group, I bid my farewells with Yelena and Alina, after which we departed, finally leaving the lands of Ursus. Because some people decided to join Reunion and remain, but also some joined, our total numbers climbed up to almost two-hundred. Almost all young adult men left for Reunion, so aside from a few elderly and young children who were almost evenly divided between genders, our convoy was more than 80% women.
Out of Ursus, the tensions in our group lowered noticeably. With others relaxed, we four were also influenced by the atmosphere. Liz and Margaret let themselves go the most, one almost riding on my back while the other would invite me to spar at every stop. Even Shining was much more cheerful, finally no longer avoiding me at all. She would even actively approach me while I sat by the campfire on night watches, having conversations that would often last the whole night.
Now that we were traveling through no man's land, along with the fact that the climate was now much more moderate, our traveling speed slowed down due to all the mud and water. In Ursus, the ground was at least solid and hard at this time of the year. We planned to reach Wolumonde in two weeks, but at this speed me might be late.