Snuck in Threat

"Pirates...?"

Midas mumbled what he had just heard from Jikith's lips, noticing the weight of the man's hand on his shoulder—the youth watched the driver laugh slightly to himself. Helmut, right in front of him, kept his calm expression, slightly shifting the way he sat on his knees at the dim giggling of the two men beside him. Whoever his driver really was, Midas was sure he lived some kind of double life.

"The festival that will happen soon just outside Baumfall has been celebrated for many past Trestempo now—always being held on the coast of the plant kingdom's territory, since the warm weather allowed for the usage of the beach. Yet, after the past few Trestempo, the festival's location was moved to be held more inland, as the number of pirates trying to disturb it has been growing substantially every Trestempo."

"This Trestempo won't be any different, even though the knighthood is sure to have weakened the pirates by simply backing off from the coast—two squadrons have already been set up inside the city, yet... our shortage was quite felt after we lost one of them to the man that is said to become a water kingdom general in the future—which is why I'm offering you to help us out..."

Midas was sure that Gunvar had been mentioned with that description, making clear that Jikith had direct ties to the five pirates the youth had run into before—confirming that his driver possibly also included Guan beside him. The youth wouldn't be surprised if Jikith had some intel on the location of prisoners that were taken by the water kingdom knighthood—knowing seemingly much more of how the capital city and its noble residents work than any other person he met. After a while of quietness, Uteli's expression lightened up—eagerly straightening her posture to speak up.

"I will help if you promise to bring back Javelin to us..."

"Uteli...?"

"Don't you see how malicious the knighthood is...?" I have watched multiple of my friends from the orphanage being taken away without even having a chance to resist these knights...! And now I have heard that they're not only exploiting us but the people of nearby regions as well... We have no reason as to why we shouldn't stop them—you even killed multiple of them, so why are you suddenly hesitant about this...?"

Midas widened his eyes as he watched Uteli bow over the wooden table to face him with tearing eyes, her lips almost frowning the same way as Javelin as she looked down on him. Her words made the youth remember what had happened the first moment they met; simply slashing through the knights he had faced was not only worth an afterthought to him—so what made Gunvar really different from any other knight that might have shady intentions? 

Pinned under the gazes of everyone around the table, the youth stared down onto the wooden tabletop—his eye eventually focusing on his bandaged hand that he had laid on top of his lap. In a fraction of a moment, Midas made himself remember the invasion of the northern fort—it was another water kingdom general that had ended Alma's life right in front of his own eyes. The youth had every right to betray the knighthood for once—the possible consequences of Gunvar's failure seemed much less relevant than saving the life of possibly not only Jevaila but her brother as well.

"Alright, I will steal the powder during the festival..."

"Then it's settled."

Jikith and Guan sat up from the cushions, seemingly having done their part, as the driver was already eager to leave the room. The youth feared the confrontation with Gunvar the most; his options of countering the large spinning blade of his were limited, even with the sun shard, as they would most likely clash outside of Baumfall. 

"I will be taking you two right to the festival on the morning it begins... Any details about who does what are going to be disclosed there, since I do have to speak with another person about how we deal with evading the general. During that time you won't be leaving this room under any circumstances—beds, food, and hygiene are provided by Helmut."

Sounding like an instruction more than a farewell, the youth turned to the wooden door as both Jikith and Guan left without saying another word. Turning to the table again, Midas watched the plant kingdom elite stand up and walk towards a set of wooden cupboards and shelves, all built into the wall of the room, as their edges seemingly melted into the wall. Watching him prepare what seemed to be food, Midas noticed Uteli staring at him again—this time with the same curiosity she had shown at the orphanage.

"You said you were used to Javelin's temper... is he always like this...?"

"He sometimes gets frustrated about my decisions; Javelin takes things very seriously—no matter how minuscule they might seem to others. Nonetheless, he's not someone that would harm anyone seriously—even though he possesses a sun shard like me... he completely refuses to use it other than for defending himself for some reason... Most of his time was spent on keeping an eye on his sister and improving his woodworking skills—at least that is what his sister had told me once."

"I see... it fits him."

The youth slightly leaned back on his cushion, feeling like some sort of weight had dropped from him once the room grew much more empty. Quietly, he watched Uteli as she pulled her legs up to cover her grin that was dimly visible through her long hair. The two days he would have to somehow use would most likely be used to completely replenish his mana—possibly even improving the circulation of it, since his speed with which he would bend might make a difference in a potential clash with Gunvar, having seen how fast he would be able to swing his sword himself.

"Why rely on people like pirates...? Couldn't an elite like you simply order a set of guards to do the dirty work for you...?"

Midas eventually grew curious, looking up at Helmut as he laid down slices of fruit onto a broad leaf in front of him and Uteli, serving them familiar slices of red fruit, also having some fresh herbs to go with it. Grasping a fibrous slice of white fruit, only slightly tinier than his hand and somewhat creamy in texture, the youth watched Helmut seat himself, laughing dimly.

"Interesting question, but it makes sense... You see, the guards of Baumfall can only rely on thick leather garments and sturdy pieces of compressed wood as their defenses. Resources like iron and steel aren't widespread in the territory of the plant kingdom—most of it that does get found usually is mined by the water kingdom anyway, which leaves our men with outdated gear... I'm not the only one who knows this, which can severely damage the morale of any man ready to take on such a task. And to add to that, doing so might spark a more widespread conflict with the water kingdom—since their army is much more expansive, directly betraying them might give them a reason to declare war on us."

Licking his fingers, Midas chewed on a boiled stem of seemingly the same long herb that grew in the lowlands he had already ventured through—the bland, dimly grassy taste familiar to the green spread Guan had given him to try. Uteli made quick work of her food, laying down onto the plant fiber rug that spun around the entirety of the circular room and looking up to the glowing fruits from lying on the floor.

"I chose Jikith in particular because he used to be part of the knighthood himself, basically knowing their ways of handling things—actively having planned out some of their approaches, even establishing some connections to various nobles. He eventually turned his back on them once the invasion of the northern desert had been planned out completely, holding a grudge at them for the same reason as I do."

"Yeah... especially with the sandstorm that is currently raging on the east of it, the northern desert became a mess. Most likely having been one for a long time before that as well... since it appeared after the water kingdom army."

"I have heard about it—it is said to fully cover the eastern coast with thick clouds, and heavy winds rage and sweep over the region around it. And the squadrons that are placed to camp out inside the mountains between the northern desert and water kingdom currently lack a commander that would allow them to continue their attack... even though no one but themselves knows what they are really after."

"That seems promising... this way the people of the northern desert can at least live in a momentary moment of peace just a bit longer."

Midas quietly observed as Helmut disposed of their long leaves that were placed on the table to serve as plating—seemingly having no servants, as the youth might have suspected. Laying down onto the plant fiber rug too, the youth suddenly felt tired from the eventful day—having to hide from knights, losing Javelin, being forced to ride through seemingly the whole of the giant tree trunk they found themselves on top of, and now running into Jikith again, who revealed his true identity as if it was nothing special.

"Since you now live here for a short while, why not take a bath...?" You must be tired; I can see that just by looking at you... I myself will now go to sleep. You two have your own rooms to the left door—the bathing room is straight ahead. I wish the two of you a peaceful night. Just so you know, I will now close the entrance."

Approving with a nod, Midas got up from the floor in a tired motion—his head hurting from the events and his lack of any food, having not eaten much for the past few days now. Seeing him get up, Uteli mirrored his movements, letting him enter the bath first, since she somewhat felt bad about shouting at him earlier and somewhat thankful for getting at least her out of the storage house despite the danger of the guards and knights posted up there.

Midas found himself standing under a spring of water that flowed out from an angled, circular opening in the wall—a short wooden beam was built right in front of it, preventing the water from simply gliding down the wall. His tired feet were sunk into the water, just a bit short of reaching his calves. Feeling it glide down his bare skin, the youth lost himself in thought, the cold sensation of the water keeping him just awake enough not to close his eyes. 

Using the quiet moment, the youth observed the stone rune—unclothed from any bandage, Midas was able to make out a round disc that was built into the pentagonal shape of the rune—a tiny needle was connected to the circular shape that formed around the slot in which the green stone was held. The pointer wasn't directed at any of the five symbols engraved into the stone, all of them covering each one of the five corners of the pentagonal rune. 

Running his fingers through his wet hair, Midas blankly stared down at the reflection of himself in the shaking water, moving as more of it trickled down his arms, back, and legs, causing its surface and the image of himself to ripple. The youth had to get Javelin back under any circumstance; if he failed to do so, Jevaila would be devastated knowing he was lost to save her—a future the youth doesn't want to be responsible for. It was clear that he had to somehow even get better at using his sickle and mana, already planning on spending at least one of the two days only concentrating on his energy flow.

Shaken out of his thoughts as a dim slip of air ghosted over his skin, Midas froze slightly, seeing that the door was slimly opened to peek at him. Uteli's eyes widened at the slash marks on the youth's back, covering the top of it with multiple light lines that intersected each other, clearly originating from cuts from a fight. Stunned, Uteli blinked twice as she saw the youth looking back at her, making her close the door frantically.