Chapter 24: Princess Mia... Tries Mushrooms!

Early the next morning, Mia and Sion started walking, using the riverbank as a rough trail. Rather than blindly wandering into the forest, they decided to gamble on the river. Being a water source, there might be a village somewhere along its banks.

Besides, it's a little scary to be somewhere without water.

Having thoroughly experienced the agony of prolonged thirst in the previous timeline, Mia had chosen to stay close to the river. Sion had agreed, but...

Th-This... might have been... a mistake... she thought, regret hitting her with each labored pant.

The riverbank was blanketed with large rocks, and walking over them proved extremely taxing. Though she'd made an effort to improve her stamina in case of an emergency, there were limits to what she could realistically achieve. The rocky, unbeaten path was simply too arduous for the legs of a young girl.

Sweat streamed down her forehead, and her cheeks were flushed with color. Judging by how much her knees were shaking, they might give way at any time.

"Hey, are you okay?"

From atop a boulder, Sion extended a hand. She took it, and with his help, managed to climb up.

"Thanks for the hand, Prince Sion."

She flicked the sweat off her brow before scanning the surroundings. Unfortunately, as far as the eye could see, there were no villages.

"I must say, I wish there was something to ride. I won't go so far as a carriage, but I wish we at least had horses."

"Hm? Ah, right. You know how to ride." He shrugged before continuing. "Not that it's likely to come in handy. I doubt we'll just happen upon a couple of wild horses. Of course, if you're fine with your ride coming in a smaller form..."

"A smaller form?"

"And having it howl at night."

"Howl... My! Prince Sion! Are you saying you can ride wolves?!"

She was reminded of the wolf-riding prince in Elise's book. The character had made an impression on her. She stared at Sion, her eyes widening with wonder, only for him to let out a strange choking sound. His hand shot to his mouth. A second later, he broke into a fit of laughter.

"No, I definitely can't ride wolves," he said, still chuckling. "Oh, praise the sun, you can be so delightfully gullible sometimes, Princess Mia."

"What?! You—"

She gave him an angry pufferfish glare.

Stupid Sion! Just because I'm a little naive about these things... I take it back again! I hate everything about him! Not just his guts!

Still, she couldn't afford to antagonize her only ally, so she decided to direct her displeasure elsewhere.

"...This is all because of those people who attacked our wagon. It's all their fault," she muttered.

To her surprise, Sion frowned at that.

"Hm? Is something the matter, Prince Sion?"

"I was just thinking that this whole thing seems a little strange."

"What do you mean?"

"It's true that the political instability here in Remno has turned the kingdom into dangerous territory. As such, it's not exactly surprising for a merchant's caravan to be attacked. However, the people we ran into back there weren't regular bandits."

"Now that you mention it, I do remember someone saying something about assassins."

"That's right. They were professionals. Trained killers who knew how to fight. They're not the kind of people to start roaming around in droves just because public order is on the decline."

"My! Are you suggesting that someone sent assassins to kill us?"

"Not all of us... Probably either myself or you, though I suppose it could have been Miss Tiona as well..."

Either way, that wagon was filled with high-profile targets. It was no real surprise that a team of assassins had made an attempt on their lives.

"But no one was supposed to know that we were in that wagon, right? Did information leak somehow?"

"That would indeed be the logical assumption, but..."

Sion trailed off. The contemplative expression on his face suggested he was reflecting on the events in the wagon. Mia, in the meantime, did some contemplating of her own.

Well, if he's offering to do all the thinking, then I guess I don't have to bother.

She quickly arrived at a conclusion: he could do all the mental heavy lifting. She, in the meantime, was going to find something to eat.

What should I do, though? I can't exactly go fishing. What kind of herbs grow along rivers again? Did I see any— My, that's...

Suddenly, the sight of a mushroom growing at the riverside caught her eye. It was a beautiful thing, bright red and shaped like a torch's flame. The next thing she knew, she was crouched beside it with her hand outstretched, about to pluck it from the ground. Just then, she remembered what the head chef had said to her.

"Your Highness, it's fine to be interested in the delicacies of the wild, but please remember one thing. Be very careful with mushrooms, as it's extremely difficult to tell the difference between poisonous ones and safe ones. They're dangerous to all but the most discerning experts, so if at all possible, I urge you to stay away from them."

"So this is a mushroom, huh..."

She retracted her hand, heeding the head chef's warning.

Hold on a minute. Now that I think about it, aren't I an expert? I've done plenty of research on how to survive in the forest too...

The books she'd read, coupled with the experience of having spent one whole night in a forest by herself, instilled in her a bizarre confidence in herself. She knew that she'd be able to tell which ones were edible and which ones were not. It was a gut feeling. In other words, a feeling that came from her gut. Which happened to be rather empty at the time.

"I mean, just look at it. It's so pretty. Of course it's edible."

She reached for it again.

"I wouldn't touch that if I were you."

A voice made her jump.

"Mia! Get back!"

"Eh?"

Sion's hand wrapped itself around her arm and tugged her in his direction. He pulled so forcefully that she almost fell into him. That alone would have made her heart skip a beat, but it was followed by the realization that he'd just called her "Mia." No title. No address. As if they were close friends. Or even...

Granted, they'd talked this over the previous night and decided that in the interest of safety, they'd stop referring to each other by their titles for the time being. She distinctly remembered thinking Oh, you cheeky little boy! Trying to get all buddy-buddy with me, are you? I see your game! when he'd brought up the idea last night, but now that she'd actually heard it in person with all the benefits of the audiovisual context...

Th-This is going to give me a heart attack!

With her face red and her heart pounding, she pressed her hands to her cheeks as her disconcerted mind shifted into romance mode so fast it almost snapped its chain. Sion, on the other hand, was fully composed as he stepped forward to shield her. He faced the stranger who had spoken so unexpectedly.

Before them stood a big man with a thick beard. At a glance, he looked like a huntsman of some sort.

"...Or, I suppose, someone merely dressed as one," Sion mused cautiously.

He let out a short sigh. When they'd fallen into the river, he'd thrown away his sword to make it easier to swim. If this man was one of the assassins who had attacked their wagon, Sion would be hard pressed to fight him unarmed. He set his jaw, his eyes hardening with resolve. Mia's safety came first. If push came to shove, he'd hold the man off by any means necessary to buy her time to escape.

To his surprise, the man made no attempt to approach them. He simply pointed at the red mushroom that Mia had been about to pick.

"That, little lady, is called a Salamandrake. It's poisonous and just touching it is enough to give you a rash. You don't wanna find out what happens if you eat it."

"My! Is that true? It looked so pretty, I thought for sure it'd be safe to eat!"

...Mia, seriously?

Sion opened his mouth, reconsidered, closed it again, and looked at his own stomach. He rubbed it, growing a little nervous about all the wild herbs he'd eaten yesterday. For a brief moment, his trust in the Great Sage of the Empire wavered.

"You kids don't live around 'ere, do you? Where're you from?"

"We're— Mmmfm?"

Sion pressed a palm over Mia's mouth and spoke in her place.

"Who... might you be?"

He quietly studied the ostensible hunter. The man's bearing didn't seem like that of a trained assassin, but he still couldn't let his guard down. If the man turned out to be a bandit, one wrong word could place their lives in danger. He might try to hold them for ransom, or even worse, sell them to slavers.

"Hm? Oh, is this one of those 'tell me your name and I'll tell you mine' things? Heh, you got a point. The name's Muzic. I'm from Doni Village, which is just o'er that way, and I hunt for a living. See?"

He held up something that had been hanging from his waist. It was a large hare with white and black stripes in its fur.

"My! Is that... going to be eaten?"

"Yeah. You wanna try some? They're a real treat."

"That sounds wonderful. I'd certainly like to have some. You see, we've been separated from our friends, and we're terribly hungry."

Isn't she being a little careless?

A wary frown flashed across Sion's brow, but he quickly dismissed the notion. Princess Mia wasn't the kind of person who'd be oblivious to the inherent risks of such a situation. The mushroom incident a moment ago gave him some cause for concern, but he chalked that up to a momentary lapse in judgment caused by an abundance of curiosity. It shouldn't affect her ability to perceive real and imminent danger.

Which means...

He glanced at her face. It showed not the slightest hint of worry. She simply looked at the man, her expression placid.

She's figured that either way, we're not going to get anywhere just walking along the river like this.

He sighed wryly and shook his head.

It looks like she resolved herself long before I did. I'd better step up my game.

He steeled himself and spoke, "We're the children of merchants. We were crossing a bridge when our caravan was attacked by bandits, and we've become separated from our parents," he explained, presenting Muzic with the story they'd agreed upon beforehand.

"Oh, that right? Must have been tough for you." He shot them a hearty grin. "Why don't you come with me then? My village ain't far."

"I appreciate the offer, but... We need to get to the capital."

"The capital? Then I'll ask around the village for you. See if anyone's goin' soon."

With that, he set off, and Mia and Sion quickly followed.

As most of you have surely guessed, there was nothing in Mia's mental makeup that even remotely resembled resolve. Rather, she'd remembered a passage she'd read in a book about forest survival techniques.

Amongst the foods one can find in a forest, one of the most delectable is the meat of the hare. In particular, stew made from halfmoon hare — recognizable by the pattern of black and white stripes on its fur — deserves special mention for its exquisite flavor.

She swallowed.

Meat of hare... How terribly exciting!

In other words, the only thought underlying her actions was the fact that she was starving.

N-Not that I'm obsessed with food or anything! This is about our health! I just thought that in a situation like this, we'll need to eat some nutritious food to keep us going! That's all!

Her thinly-veiled excuse fooled no one but her own gluttonous self.