Three days ter, early in the morning, a carriage is parked next to the gatehouse by the double gate. Inside, Lina and Vyncent wait for Emmod, Novel, and Enryn Barber, who will pick up the brothers and bring them to join them.

  Vyncent has his arms crossed and is tapping his fingers against them. His gaze keeps drifting to the window, accompanied by frustrated sighs.

  "Where are they?" he growls, casting a disdainful gnce at the empty street.

  "They should be here any moment," Lina tries to calm her brother.

  "I hope so," Vyncent mutters. "I didn't get much sleep, and I hope for their sake I didn't wake up this early for nothing."

  "What was going on with you st night anyway?" Lina asks, puzzled.

  "Wait, you were awake?" he asks, concerned.

  "I didn't sleep a wink," Lina says, shifting restlessly in her seat and clenching her hands. "Not that it would've made much of a difference if I had. Were you moving furniture around? It sounded exhausting."

  "Training," he replies curtly.

  "But not alone, right? I could've sworn I heard Cecie."

  "Really?"

  "Yes," Lina says. "She's been different ever since she was assigned to you..."

  "Whatever," Vyncent interrupts, cutting off his sister before the conversation becomes awkward. "Maybe you just heard the maids. They were up te finishing some tasks for Father and Mother," he shrugs innocently. "They were probably figuring out how to make this morning's farewell as unpleasant as possible for us," he adds, causing Lina to smirk as well.

  "You know how they are," she says. "But honestly, that farewell felt like it was for eternity," she jokes, making Vyncent smile too.

  The previous night, their father had been pgued by all sorts of thoughts about what could go wrong today. The most absurd ideas crossed his mind.

  'What if Nikos falls asleep while driving the carriage and loses control? What if Emmod and Novel offer his children some strange berries, giving them terrible diarrhea on the way? What if Lina and Vyncent go into the sea and get eaten by a wild ponkyl?' (Ponkyls = the rgest predators of the world's oceans, feeding only on other predators.)

  These dreadful worries kept him up for a while, until Joane finally managed to get him to sleep te in the night. As a result, Joane was even more exhausted than Edmur two hours ter when they said goodbye to their children.

  Even though it was Edmur and Joane's idea to keep today's pn as secretive as possible, in the end, they were the ones who made sure the whole castle had known for three days that something was going on. The staff learned that Lina and Vyncent would be leaving for a day, but with whom and where remained a mystery, despite their best efforts to find out. Not even their coachman, Nikos, knows where they're going, as he'll only receive the instructions from Enryn Barber in a few minutes.

  Lina and Vyncent are wearing dark hooded cloaks, though Vyncent has a different one on than usual. He's avoided wearing his usual cloak to not draw unnecessary attention, since the Elmhart crest, a battlement, is dispyed on his personal cloak.

  In contrast, Lina's cloak is noticeably oversized. She could pull the hood over half her body, and the sleeves dangle past her hands. If the sun hadn't occasionally peeked out from behind the clouds, the tired people in the castle might have thought it was a ghost stumbling towards the carriage.

  "Leave the cloak alone already," says Vyncent, while Lina unsuccessfully tries to tame the cloak.

  "Worse than a dress," she grumbles.

  "But it's a nice bnket if you get cold," ughs Vyncent, prompting Lina to mimic his expression before a knock sounds at the carriage door.

  "Finally," says Vyncent.

  Lina immediately straightens up, nervously smoothing the fabric of her cloak and running her fingers through her hair.

  The carriage door opens, revealing Enryn Barber with the Brymbach brothers standing in the background. Enryn, who bows briefly, is wearing a dark hooded cloak like Lina and Vyncent.

  Novel and Emmod, on the other hand, are dressed in their usual everyday clothes: Novel is wearing a gray-green T-shirt and long bck pants with brown shoes, while Emmod has on an olive-colored T-shirt and long pants. The holes in their clothes have been mended by their mother.

  With a scrutinizing sideways gnce, Vyncent examines the two from head to toe.

  Meanwhile, Enryn positions himself beside Nikos and discusses the route with him.

  "Hello, Novel. Hello, Emmod," Lina blurts out, her voice slightly higher than usual, greeting them with a quick wave.

  "Hello," they respond innocently, returning the brief hand gesture.

  "How are you?" Lina asks.

  "Good." "And you?" they reply in turn.

  "Good. Not tired?" Lina continues.

  "No." "And you?"

  "Not tired either. Thanks again for making all this possible," says Lina.

  "Of course." "Hopefully the day pays off."

  "It definitely will. We've—"

  "What is that thing?" Vyncent interrupts with a startled tone.

  His eyes narrow slightly as his gaze falls on Emmod's headband.

  Emmod confusedly touches his head, as if something had nded on it.

  "Yes, exactly," says Vyncent, since Emmod can't feel anything but his red and bck bandana.

  "You like it?" Emmod asks, raising his eyebrows skeptically before getting a sharp look from Lina.

  "I mean... with this weather," Vyncent adds, trying to be as polite as possible. Nevertheless, there's a hint of mockery in his voice that barely conceals his disapproval.

  "There are plenty of clouds in the sky," Emmod responds, puzzled. "Besides, it's more about the gesture behind it. Because actually—"

  "I honestly don't care," Vyncent interrupts, bored, rolling his eyes and turning away.

  "Come on, get in," he says, waving them inside.

  "Wait a moment. We're taking the carriage?" Novel asks in amazement.

  "What else? Or can you ride horses?" Vyncent replies.

  Emmod and Novel both shake their heads.

  "You see," says Vyncent, "so we're taking the carriage."

  "Not walking?" Emmod asks.

  "I'm not walking for four hours," Vyncent responds, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

  Emmod and Novel are still in a state of happy shock and can hardly believe it. But Vyncent's patience soon wears thin.

  "Either you walk, and we'll meet you there, or you get in now. Otherwise, we'll be here so long we'll take root," he says, leaning casually against the back of his seat.

  Not wanting to miss the opportunity, they eagerly climb into the carriage.

  It's Emmod and Novel's first time riding in a carriage, so they're both excited. Emmod's excitement is slightly dampened by Vyncent, who takes up a lot of space next to him. Novel sits cautiously and upright next to Lina, who is also sitting carefully and straight. An uncomfortable silence fills the carriage at first. There is little eye contact exchanged, as Emmod and Novel are just as nervous as Lina about getting to know each other better.

  Vyncent impatiently peers through the front window at Enryn and Nikos. Enryn is trying to expin the route to Nikos on a map, holding up a rge map in front of him. However, the map keeps fpping shut due to the light breeze. Enryn's expnations are also cking, as Nikos can barely understand a word.

  "It'll take about three hours to reach the sea by this route," Enryn says.

  "I usually only need two and a half," Nikos grumbles.

  "That's possible," Enryn replies, "but we won't be taking the usual route."

  "And why not?" Nikos asks, even grumpier now.

  "So we don't draw unnecessary attention," Enryn expins. "I'm the only protection we have today."

  "Oh, for heaven's sake," Nikos mutters gloomily.

  "There's a shortcut here, but we're not taking it," Enryn continues. "We can't get through here, so we'll have to go this way. Hmm... But if we do that, we might as well drive through the King's Road with how busy it is. Hmm... So that's off the table too."

  With every new sentence from Enryn, a new vein appears on Nikos' forehead.

  "So first we head east, then here roughly northeast, and, um... by the split cherry tree, head north. Then..."

  "Oh my God. Why don't you just sit here, grab the reins, and py coachman for the day," Nikos snaps angrily. "You can teach me how to do it," he continues grumbling, "telling me how to drive—unbelievable!"

  "What's so hard to understand about the route?!" Enryn now puffs up.

  "What's hard to understand about it?!" Nikos now yells.

  Vyncent furrows his brow and throws sharp looks between the two of them as their voices grow louder. His impatience increases with each exchange.

  "Enough," he interrupts the bickering. "Enryn, sit next to Nikos. We'll take your route to the sea. Nikos, accept it. No more discussion," Vyncent commands, throwing himself back into his seat with a frustrated sigh.

  Enryn moves toward the carriage door while Nikos mutters a few unpleasant words under his breath.

  "What's wrong, Enryn?" Vyncent asks as Enryn stands by the door. "You don't look so well."

  "Apologies," Enryn says. "I haven't slept in two days."

  "And you're our protection?! Oh my God," they hear Nikos grumble from the front.

  "You shouldn't overwork yourself at the start," Lina says. "Sometimes less is more."

  "I'll keep that in mind," Enryn replies with a smirk. "Alright. Let's get going."

  With these words, Lina's tension rises significantly.

  "If there are any problems or questions, just knock on the front window," Enryn says politely. "Otherwise, enjoy the ride."

  "Okay, thanks," Vyncent replies curtly, waving him off to close the door.

  "He's pretty id-back," Novel says after Enryn closes the door. "Even though he barely spoke to us on the way here," he adds.

  "No surprise," Vyncent responds. "It wasn't his job to chat with you but to bring you to us. But in his current state, he's more of a liability than anything else."

  "He's just still a bit nervous," Lina interjects, "because he was only recently promoted to the royal guard," she expins.

  "You've got a crush on him, don't you?" Vyncent asks casually, not noticing how Lina's face turns red.

  "I just have faith in his abilities," she replies, offended.

  "Father does too," Vyncent says. "But you're probably right. I can't remember the others ever getting such an important assignment so early," he continues.

  "Nikoss, for example, is very different."

  "Nikoss?" Emmod and Novel ask, giggling.

  "Yeah," Vyncent replies dryly. "That's what Father calls him sometimes. Because he's not a brown-noser like many others. He knows his pce and does his job conscientiously, which is why Father trusts him completely," he expins. "But Father actually calls him that for a different reason."

  "Why?" Emmod and Novel ask.

  "Because he's an ass," Vyncent says with a smirk.

  The carriage begins to move, rolling along the upper edge of the town towards the forest. Since it's Emmod and Novel's first time in a carriage, they initially inspect the seemingly unimpressive interior with curiosity. However, after just a few minutes, their excitement dampens, as the ride to the sea turns out to be less thrilling and adventurous than they had imagined. The carriage is slow and the view outside is limited as well. They only notice that it's become cloudier because barely any sunlight filters through the already dense forest. They feel a bit trapped, like they're in a prison, with no sense of where they are, even though they know the forest very well.

  It isn't until a bushy creature jumps onto the moving carriage that the journey begins to feel more promising. The creature had been following them since they left the castle.

  "What is that?!" Vyncent jolts in surprise as the creature peers through the side window from the roof of the carriage.

  "Mister Red," Lina excims joyfully, but before she can reach the window, Vyncent grabs her wrist.

  "You're not really going to let him in, are you?" Vyncent asks.

  "That was exactly what I was about to do," Lina says.

  "Too bad," he retorts. "As long as I'm here, that's not happening."

  "What?" she asks, puzzled.

  "Every time that squirrel shows up, there's trouble," he replies.

  "You're imagining that," she counters.

  "Don't you remember the st time? Or the times before that?" he asks. "I'm serious," he adds, gripping her arm a bit tighter.

  Lina huffs in frustration.

  "Sorry, Mister Red. I guess we'll see each other ter," she says, and Mister Red disappears from view.

  "He really does follow you everywhere," Emmod grins.

  "Oh, that... Mister... that squirrel," Vyncent interrupts before Lina can respond. "There was a time when I thought it understood me. And that I understood it! I thought I was going crazy. Father literally spped me awake when I told him about it. A few days ter, when I saw it again, it didn't happen, and it hasn't since," he expins.

  Mister Red also remembers that incident, which is why he's careful not to speak with Lina, Emmod, or Novel when others are around.

  "The imagination a child can have," Vyncent muses. "Crazy, right?" he asks the others, nudging Emmod beside him.

  "Crazy," they repeat with a hint of irony that, luckily for them, Vyncent doesn't catch. In fact, his thoughts have already moved on.

  "So, what was your father like?" he asks out of the blue, causing both Emmod and Novel, as well as Lina, to widen their eyes in surprise.

  "Vynce, I don't know if..." Lina tries to interject, but Vyncent cuts her off.

  "I've already met your mother, more or less. But what about your father? What's he like?" he presses, his curiosity sounding almost suspicious. "Does he work in the mountains as a miner? Or are your parents separated? You don't have to tell me, because..."

  "He's dead," Emmod interrupts, stopping Vyncent from making any more assumptions.

  There haven't been many moments when Vyncent has been interrupted, but this was the first moment when Vyncent, without a second thought, overlooked it.

  "Dead?" Lina asks, shocked, to which Emmod weakly nods. Novel, on the other hand, looks down at the floor with a neutral expression.

  "How did he die?" Lina asks, much more gently now. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

  "An untreatable heart condition," Emmod replies in a half-whisper.

  "Is it hereditary?" Lina asks, concerned.

  "It's not unlikely," Emmod replies. "No one has figured that out yet."

  "We never knew him. We were too young when he died," Novel adds somberly.

  "Since then, our mother has raised us alone," Emmod continues. "We're all she has. That's why she was so scared when you showed up at the door. I think her biggest fear is that we'll be taken from her too."

  Vyncent leaves it at that and doesn't ask any more questions. Though he and Lina were tasked by their father to learn more about the Brymbachs, including whether they had any connections to the Crimson Crusaders, even Vyncent feels uncomfortable continuing the conversation in this direction.

  By now, the route they're traveling is completely different from the one Enryn had originally pnned. Many ndmarks that should have been on the map are missing. They're unable to cross a river and are forced to travel alongside it for a long time until they find a bridge wide enough to cross it with the carriage. Fallen logs, muddy ground where the carriage risks getting stuck, and uneven terrain are all obstacles that force the group to detour in all directions.

  After an hour and a half, they stop for the first time to have some breakfast. The real reason, though, is that they've gotten lost and need to reorient themselves.

  Lina and Vyncent have a bag with some slices of rye bread, apples, bananas, as well as cherries and grapes. Emmod and Novel sit nearby, staring bnkly ahead.

  "Do you want some?" Lina offers them.

  Emmod and Novel shake their heads.

  "No, thanks. We ate some fruit on the way," Emmod says.

  "And that's enough for you?" Lina asks.

  "We don't eat much during the day, or rather, we don't need much food during the day," Emmod replies.

  "Don't you want to grow big and strong?" Vyncent chimes in, taking a bite from another apple. "And besides, food is just so tasty," he mumbles with his mouth full.

  "I agree, but it also works out for our mother if we don't eat much," Novel replies.

  "Are you sure?" Lina asks, holding out a banana, which Emmod and Novel politely decline. But Lina can't be satisfied with that. It wouldn't be hospitable to fill herself up while the two just watch. She offers them food a few more times, without eating anything herself in the meantime.

  "She won't stop until you take something," Vyncent says, shoving several grapes into his mouth at once. After several rejections, but twice as many offers from Lina, Emmod and Novel finally take a few slices of rye bread.

  Once this hurdle is overcome, Lina also offers them many of her fruits.

  By this time, Vyncent makes it clear with a loud burp that he's had enough.

  "How did you guys experience the day when the explosions happened near the marketpce?" Vyncent asks suddenly.

  Emmod and Novel look at him, perplexed.

  "You were there, right?" Vyncent continues. "Otherwise, you wouldn't have met my little sister. How did you manage to get out of there?"

  Emmod is unsure of Vyncent's intentions, much more so than Novel, who seems less concerned.

  "Our uncle," Novel says, while still munching on his rye bread.

  "Your uncle?" Vyncent asks, paying close attention now.

  "Yes. Uncle Ko," Novel says, and Vyncent raises an eyebrow.

  "A few days ter, he was suddenly off on a trip," Novel continues. "But he didn't tell us where or how long he'd be gone."

  Vyncent becomes thoughtful and sinks back into his seat.

  Meanwhile, Enryn and Nikos are once again loudly debating, prompting the four to step out of the carriage. They don't need to worry about being seen by anyone since they're in the middle of nowhere. It takes several minutes, but after much back and forth, Enryn and Nikos finally agree on a route. They use the position of the sun to roughly figure out where they are and where they need to go.

  Enryn spreads his map out on the ground so everyone can see it.

  "We're here," he points. "As you can see, we've gone too far east."

  "And whose fault is that," Nikos mutters smugly.

  "We need to go this way now, north, and then... uh... about here, we head northeast," Enryn continues, ignoring Nikos' comment. "By our estimation, we should arrive in about two hours."

  "Why don't we just leave the carriage here?" Emmod asks, causing Nikos to burst out ughing.

  "You can totally scratch that one!"

  "The path," Novel starts, "you've miscalcuted. It's probably less than an hour on foot. We took a shortcut."

  Everyone looks at him, confused. Only his big brother agrees, pointing to the map.

  "There's a small waterfall nearby. That means we're about here. From here, it's enough if we just head northeast. If you want to reach the harbor, we go north. There's a small beach about 100 meters in that direction. But the long, beautiful beach lies this way, beyond the forest," Emmod says, pointing northeast.

  Vyncent is slightly impressed, and Lina is astonished.

  "How do you know the forest so well?" she asks curiously.

  "This isn't our first time here," Novel replies.

  "Oh, so you're familiar with the area," Nikos says through gritted teeth. "And why didn't you say anything earlier?"

  "You didn't ask," Novel replies with a shrug.

  "What do you say?" Enryn asks Lina and Vyncent.

  "Let's go!" Lina shouts.

  "If it'll get us there faster," Vyncent adds with a shrug.

  "But first things first," Lina says. "I'm taking off this cloak."

  "But..."

  Don't wet your pants, Enryn, I'm still here," Vyncent says. "If anything happens or she gets seen, we'll handle it."

  "Do you want to watch her change, too? Come on, close the door," Vyncent shoos them away and waits with them outside the carriage for a few seconds until Lina, now wearing a beige blouse, steps out.

  "Nikos," Enryn says, "you'd better follow the route we just discussed and meet us there," he continues, taking another bag of food supplies from the horse. Nikos' eyes widen so much with rage that it seems like they're about to pop.

  "What's the matter?" Enryn smirks, struggling to hide it. "You wouldn't want to disobey a royal guard's order, would you?" he says. "I expect to see you at the harbor in a few hours. Plus, I'll keep an eye on you."

  As they continue on their way by foot, they can still hear Nikos cursing in the background as the carriage starts moving.

  They had already covered a good distance, and it shouldn't take much longer now. The sun had also come out, which they noticed by the rays of sunlight filtering through the tall tree canopies. Lina was handling it much better than the others, who were beginning to feel warm under their hooded cloaks.

  "We'd probably already be there if you didn't have to stop and examine every little thing," Vyncent compined to his little sister, who took it in stride. She found everything fascinating along the way—pinecones, berry bushes, or strange-looking mushrooms, which Enryn had to stop her from touching every time, as he believed they were poisonous. In addition, there had been a pile of leaves she'd jumped into, a wild boar that Vyncent would have loved to chase down for a meal, and a bear, which only Lina had seen. Lina swore she saw it, even though the others said she must have imagined it.

  "We're almost there," Emmod said to the group about an hour after they set off.

  "There's the edge of the forest!" Novel called out excitedly, pointing straight ahead.

  Emmod and Novel quickened their pace, with Lina following closely behind.

  "And you walk this path for three hours on foot?!" Vyncent asked as he and Enryn also picked up their pace.

  "It's worth it to us," Emmod replied as they reached the forest's edge.

  Lina, Vyncent, and Enryn were amazed.

  They stood on a high hill that offered an extraordinary view. Below them was a vast dune area, with rows of dunes shaped by the wind and held in pce by pnts. The area was rich with flora and fauna. Directly in front of them, where the coastal dunes ended, began the wide beach.

  “Here, Santaria fought Rilgohin,” Lina says enthusiastically. “So much history is buried here.”

  “More like a lot of people,” Vyncent replies, taking the wind out of her sails.

  Only a few people were nearby, while most were much farther back, in rger groups, near the beginning of the beach—where it was easiest to reach using the normal path. About fifty meters away was a small harbor with wooden piers, where boats bobbed on their moorings. Seagulls circled in the slightly cloudy sky before zily settling on smaller ships or fishing boats. Large passenger ships rarely docked at the harbor, as passenger transport and all goods traffic in Rilgohin were handled exclusively by rail.

  The sea here had a gray-green color instead of blue, due to the abundance of algae, which caused the sunlight to refract earlier in the water.

  But they couldn't compin in the slightest. None of them would have traded this moment for anything else in their lives.

  "It's even more breathtaking than the stories," she boasts as a gentle sea breeze brushes against her. "And look at that fishing boat out there, they've got a huge catch."

  The others squint out at the sea, until Novel finally seems to spot it.

  "But how can you...?"

  "It's because of my eyes," Lina expins. "A lot of people say I have eagle eyes, so I can see several kilometers away. I just think I can see sharper than others, that's all."

  "But if you can spot a small fishing boat on the horizon, that assumption doesn't seem too far-fetched," Emmod notes, still straining to see it.

  "We can't go down to the beach, unfortunately. Too many people," Enryn says suddenly. "Even here on the hill, it's too risky. If someone sees you..." he continues, thinking aloud. "We should find a quiet spot away from here to stay temporarily until I meet with Nikos," he concludes decisively.

  "You'll, of course, be coming with us," he says directly to Emmod and Novel. "You know your way around here, don't you?"

  "If we have to wait that long, we know a pce," Emmod replies and leads them a few hundred meters further to a small, solitary grassy area on the edge of a cliff.

  Here, only a four-meter-tall willow with nce-shaped, light green leaves stands. Around it are tall pines, with bushes growing beside them that would quickly reveal any intruder. Beyond the cliff is the beach, directly below them. From this vantage point, the sea is much closer than before. However, the small harbor and most of the dunes are no longer visible.

  "Awesome," Vyncent says, voicing what both Enryn and Lina are thinking.

  "This is a good spot," Enryn adds with satisfaction and drops the bags.

  However, he doesn't get to enjoy the view for long.

  "What do you think you're doing?" Enryn asks, seeing that Vyncent has taken off his cloak and is now only wearing a white shirt with short sleeves along with his pants.

  "I don't feel like just sitting around here," Vyncent expins.

  "My prince," Enryn starts, stepping in his way. "I must protest!"

  "Rex a little," Vyncent responds, now more insistently. "Don't you think I can take care of myself?"

  Of course, Enryn knows this, but he also has his orders.

  "I just want to have a look around, that's all," Vyncent says. "Get to know my future kingdom a little better and such."

  "Fine," Enryn says.

  "Good," Vyncent calls back, making sure not to slip. "Lina, you stay here. I'll find you ter," he adds, making his way down the slope.

  While the three of them eat some berries and grapes, Enryn scouts out the nearby area.

  A few minutes pass before Enryn comes back.

  "Now, where's our prince?" he asks as he looks over the edge of the cliff.

  "Lina," he says, and Lina looks up at him, her cheeks stuffed like a squirrel's.

  He clears his throat.

  "Miss Elmhart. I need your eyes."

  Lina blushes before she stands next to him.

  "Can you spot your brother?" Enryn asks, and Lina scans slowly from right to left.

  "There he is," she says confidently. She points to a distant spot on the beach. Apparently, Vyncent made it down the slope very quickly and had already put a good distance between himself and the others.

  "That can't be him," Enryn protests. "That guy doesn't even have a shirt on."

  "No, no, that's him," she insists.

  "But I thought he just wanted to look around," Enryn says, baffled.

  "You misunderstood," Lina expins. "He doesn't just want to look around, he wants to be seen looking around."

  By now, Emmod and Novel are also standing next to them.

  Enryn sighs.

  "Well, nothing we can do," he says, resigned.

  "Can you really tell from here that it's your brother?" Novel asks, amazed as he stares into the distance.

  "Yes," Lina shrugs, "And because so many girls are gathering around him. He may be a fool, but the amount of attention he gets for it is ridiculous," she says, almost annoyed.

  "I'm off then," Novel says suddenly, having a change of heart. "You coming?" he asks.

  "Where to?" Emmod responds.

  "Just to wander around a bit, like him," Novel answers.

  "I want to enjoy the view for a while longer."

  "I'll stay with her," Emmod says, and they sit down a meter from the edge of the cliff.

  "Good idea," Enryn says with a yawn. "Let's stay here for a bit," he adds, lying down with his arms behind his head beneath the willow tree. It doesn't take long before his eyes begin to droop.

  'Just a quick rest,' he thinks before falling asleep.

  Emmod and Lina don't notice any of this, as they've fallen into a kind of trance while taking in the view. The strong, salty smell, the calming, rhythmic sound of the waves, and the sight stretching out to the horizon have a soothing effect on both of them.

  From here, Lina experiences nature very differently than on the castle grounds. Simirly, Vyncent, who has taken off his shoes to feel the sand between his toes and the refreshing waves that continually wash over them.

  “Can you also see Santaria from here?” asks Emmod.

  “ Sorry?”

  “I was just wondering how far your eyes can see.”

  “As far as the horizon,” replies Lina, “Anything beyond that is out of my reach too.”

  “But it's fascinating, isn't it?”

  “What is it?”

  “That there are other cultures hidden beyond the horizon that we hardly know anything about.”

  “I try not to think about it, I don't even really know our own,” Lina replies and snorts, “The trapped princess,” she begins, “You know, the day I turned 14, a lot of things were going through my head,” she says, ”I was tense and very nervous because it was my first day outside the castle. I get stomach cramps every time I'm nervous," she expins to the listening Emmod. "And even though I should be much more nervous today than I was back then, I don't feel it. It was the same in the marketpce. I always thought it would be the worst day of my life. But after the explosions, it became the most exciting day of my life, overshadowed by the losses we had to bear."

  "I think you're a lot like my brother and me," Emmod says with a grin. "One day we're at home eating the st crumbs of bread from our ptes, and the next day we're feasting with the royal family. Who knows what life has in store for us tomorrow?" Emmod says, looking out at the vast sea. "Maybe I'll find a golden treasure chest, or maybe I'll just lie under this tree all day listening to the crickets chirping in a meadow—I don't know. But I think that's what makes life so worthwhile. The thrill of it—the not knowing what will happen next."

  Lina is captivated by his story, but also by him.

  "Still, it's funny," he continues. "So many differences in our lives, but the food tastes the same," he says enthusiastically, meeting her eyes. "And here I thought you and your family were so untouchable, but in the end, you're just human too."

  "Maybe we're not so different after all," Lina says with a smile, returning his gaze with trust, and he smiles back.

  "I like your bandana," she says at st with a genuine smile.

  Emmod blushes and begins to stammer. "And I like, uh... your... uh..."

  "A 'thank you' will do," she says, easing the tension a bit.

  Emmod swallows. "Thank you," he says, scratching his head, slightly embarrassed.

  "My uncle gave it to me for my seventh birthday," he continues, slowly finding his words again. "I wanted to say that earlier, but your brother interrupted me."

  "That's just his way," Lina snorts.

  "But why are you so down-to-earth?" Emmod asks. "I mean, compared to your brother—with all due respect," he adds.

  "I think it has a lot to do with my mother," Lina says. "Even in her position, she never really wants to boss anyone around. Even though people work for us and get paid to do so, Mother feels uncomfortable about it. She's never in that mindset where she thinks she's better than anyone else. She just happened to end up in a great position because she was married to my father before he was made king," Lina continues. "She embraces her role as queen, but only to the extent that it's beneficial for her and others at the same time."

  "She's humble. That's a rare quality in the upper css," Emmod says, thinking of some of his not-so-humble cssmates.

  "She once told me, 'Never look down on anyone unless you're helping them up,'" Lina says, and a brief silence falls between the two.

  "Do you still want to sit here?"Emmod and Lina scream loudly, causing Novel to jump, as he had crouched directly behind them."What's your problem?!" he asks afterward."Don't sneak up on people like that!" Emmod snaps. "You'll give her a heart attack!"

  "From ughing to death?!" Novel retorts, pointing to Lina, who is giggling uncontrolbly."Novel," Lina says after finally calming down, "I'm sorry about what happened with my brother. And that I couldn't help you in that situation.""It wasn't your fault," Novel replies, "But thanks for apologizing.""Where did your brother learn that anyway?" Emmod asks directly.Lina raises an eyebrow, unsure what he means."That kick," Emmod continues. "It was lightning fast and perfectly executed. It was really surprising.""Oh, that," she says. "He's been trained since he was little by Albes, the officer of the Royal District. Albes says his skills even match those of the royal guards. That's why Enryn knows Vyncent is more than capable to take care of himself."

  "That's one thing," Emmod begins as they all gnce over their shoulders, "and I think it's also because he's just too tired to make proper decisions," he says, pointing to the snoring Enryn."Can you do stuff like that too?" Novel asks with interest. "I mean, with archery, for example. You didn't hit us, but it was close," he adds, a bit picky."I told you I didn't hit you on purpose!" Lina says seriously.

  "Oh, calm down, Robin Hood. I was just joking," Novel says with amusement, and even Lina can't suppress a smile."But seriously," Novel continues, "I can't even string a bow properly.""Things worked out differently for me," Lina expins. "As a child, I always enjoyed watching the soldiers train from my window. I found archery especially exciting, and my mother noticed my enthusiasm early on during the tournaments held at the castle." She eborates, "But my father always says it's not fitting for a woman to learn to fight and that it would damage our family's reputation.""He also believes that a woman shouldn't have to defend herself, that a man should do it for her.""That's ridiculous," Emmod says."My mother thought so too," Lina replies. "But the conversation with my father didn't go well. Even though she argued that archery is mainly about hitting distant targets and that my eyesight would be a huge advantage. More importantly, it's a sport where I'd be safe. But my father wouldn't listen. So, my mother took matters into her own hands and asked Greynyx to secretly teach me archery. We trained whenever we could, though we didn't have many chances."Suddenly, behind them, Enryn makes an unintelligible sound, pulling the three out of their conversation, followed by a loud snore. Lying in the shade of the willow, he turns over, trying to make his uncomfortable sleeping position a bit more comfortable."Shall we py hide and seek?" Novel asks."We should let him know before we go," Lina points to Enryn, "so he doesn't get a fright when he wakes up and we're gone.""If he wakes up," Novel whispers."Maybe we should just let him sleep. He could use it," Emmod says, as Enryn starts to drool."But aren't we forgetting something?" Lina asks, uncertain."Then it probably wasn't that important," Emmod says after a brief thought.

  Emmod is the first seeker. Lina and Novel hide while he loudly counts down from ten to zero and then opens his eyes.

  “So, where are you?” he asks himself eagerly, but his excitement quickly turns into mild disappointment.

  “Got you,” he says, sounding a bit defted to Lina, who has simply hidden on the other side of the willow tree where Enryn is still sleeping.

  “That was a bit too easy,” he remarks.

  “I thought it was so easy that it would be hard again,” Lina replies honestly.

  “You’ll have to try harder if you’re pying with us,” Emmod says, puffing up a bit.

  Now, together, they search for Novel, but it takes them quite some time to find him. Novel has hidden in an empty animal burrow beneath a small slope, which is well concealed by the surrounding nature. Lina, despite her sharp eyesight, would never have found the hiding spot alone, but Emmod knows where he is. He remembers that as a small child, Novel once ran away after being teased for his rge ears by other children. With the help of their uncle, Emmod was able to find him at dusk that time.

  Now, farther from the willow tree, Lina begins counting down from ten again, as she was the first to be found. Emmod and Novel are out of sight by the time she reaches zero. This time, Novel hasn't chosen such a good hiding spot. Though Lina has to search a bit, she eventually finds him crouched between two fallen trees—not nearly as well hidden as his first spot. Emmod’s hiding pce is a bit trickier, though not impossible. He’s concealed behind some light underbrush, not far from Novel. Without Lina’s help, Novel might have struggled to find his brother.

  “Got you, Emmod,” Lina calls out.

  But Emmod doesn’t fall for the trick. Based on her voice, she should still be several meters away. It’s probably just a trick to lure him out of hiding. He stays put, carefully trying to spot either Lina or his brother.

  A few seconds pass before Lina is suddenly standing right in front of him.

  “I told you I’d found you,” she says.

  “How?!” Emmod asks, perplexed. “You were at least 20 meters away!”

  Cheerfully, Lina just points to her eyes, hinting at the strength of her hawk-like vision.

  Now it’s Novel’s turn to be the seeker, since he was the first to be found. By the time he counts down to zero, Emmod and Lina are already long gone. Lina hides behind a thick berry bush, enjoying a few wild raspberries.

  But suddenly, she feels a strange uneasiness in her stomach. A sensation of cold and sadness that she cannot expin, but which seems familiar.

  Is it from the raspberries?

  No. The cause is nearby. As if moved by an invisible force, she leaves her hiding spot.

  Surrounded by spruce trees and soggy ground, this feeling of emptiness leads her to a winding path, which she follows. A gust of wind stirs up the branches and twigs scattered on the ground, clearing the way ahead. When she looks forward, she sees that the path leads to a clearing at its end.

  'Am I back at the willow?' she wonders at first, but on closer inspection, she realizes she’s not. For in the center of this clearing, surrounded by tall, densely-packed firs, there is only one thing—a gravestone.

  "Got you," says Novel, grinning at Emmod, who is wedged between the massive roots of a rge fir tree.

  Novel has to help him out of the hiding spot because he’s stuck.

  "You sure took your time," Emmod says, brushing the dirt off his cloak.

  "That's because I looked for Lina first," Novel replies. "I thought she went back to the willow, but she wasn’t there. I searched everywhere but couldn’t find her," he says. "Do you think she got lost?" Novel asks, sounding a little unsure.

  The thought makes Emmod uneasy too. They’re pying hide-and-seek, and if they can’t find Lina, she technically wins. But if she really got lost or if something happened to her, they’d be in serious trouble.

  That risk is too great for Emmod to ignore.

  "LINA!!!" he shouts, but instead of a response, his voice fades into the vastness of the forest, and there’s no sign of her.

  This now strikes Novel as strange as well, and they decide to split up to search for her.

  "LINA!" they take turns shouting her name repeatedly.

  There’s still no trace of her, and their worry gradually turns into fear—until Novel hears something.

  "I’m here!" Lina calls out. He pinpoints the direction and signals his brother to follow.

  They chase the sound, which leads them to a clearing, and as they arrive, a weight lifts off their hearts. In the middle of the clearing, they see Lina, calmly sitting cross-legged in front of a simple, light-colored gravestone.

  "There you are," says Emmod, relieved.

  "Quite the hiding spot," Novel adds with irony.

  "Is that why it took you so long to find me?" Lina asks slyly. "I should try harder next time, right?" she says, grinning.

  "What are you doing here?" Emmod asks, changing the subject.

  "You seem more surprised that I’m here rather than by the gravestone itself. Did you already know about it?" Lina asks meaningfully. "That someone’s buried here?"

  They nod, causing Lina to react slightly shocked and now more cautiously.

  They sit down with her on the grass.

  "We found it a few years ago when we were still little," Emmod begins. "We were with our mother on our way to the sea and decided to take a shortcut through the forest. Back then, we didn’t know the woods as well as we do now, and our mother knew even less. We followed our gut, which led us here.

  Mother was deeply shocked—not by the grave itself, but by the name on it. She quickly led us away from this pce, but her shock lingered for several days."

  "When we came back the next time, the name had been erased," Novel adds.

  "That’s horrible," Lina says, shaken. "An insult not only to the dead but also to the family they left behind," she continues. "Do you remember the name?" she asks eagerly.

  Emmod and Novel exchange thoughtful looks.

  "Mother told us never to speak of the grave or tell anyone the name that was on it," Emmod expins, which dampens Lina’s mood considerably.

  "But we can probably make an exception," Emmod says, and Lina’s face lights up.

  "But first, we need to make sure," Emmod continues, and he and his brother hold out their pinkies to Lina.

  "Do you swear not to tell anyone?" he asks.

  "I swear," Lina replies seriously, linking her pinkie with both Emmod and Novel.

  "We can’t remember the first name," Emmod says, "but the st name was Wynfre."

  "Wynfre?" Lina repeats, and Emmod and Novel nod.

  "That name sounds familiar," she says, though she keeps her thoughts to herself for now.

  Then they all turn to look at the inscription on the gravestone together.

  In gratitude and loyalty.Here lies //// Wynfre, a loving brother and friend.Forever remembered in our hearts.Rest in peace.

  "Why the long faces?" they hear a voice behind them.The three scream loudly, even though the source of danger is easy to overlook: Mister Red is standing alert behind them."Don't sneak up on people like that!" says Novel, whose heart almost stopped."You're one to talk," replies Emmod, who also has to catch his breath."Where were you?" Lina asks excitedly."Fell asleep on the roof of the carriage," Mister Red responds, still half-asleep. "Then I followed your scent," he continues, stepping into their midst. "So, what are you doing here?" he asks, squeezing between them to step forward. He halts awkwardly when he sees the gravestone. His heart, already beating five times faster than a human's, begins to race even more."I don’t believe it," he says at st, shocked."Neither could I," says Lina. "I had a vision of this.""So did I," he mutters absentmindedly, moving closer to the gravestone. "Every day… and every night. But why? And why does it feel so… familiar?" he asks himself, closing his eyes and touching the gravestone for a few seconds.He shudders, pulls his hand away, and takes a few steps back."Mister Red?" Lina asks, concerned. "What’s wrong?""This isn’t just any grave," he trembles, as if struck by lightning.He starts to breathe heavily."It’s mine.""What?!" "That’s not possible." "Are you sure?" they ask, all talking at once.But Mister Red is in a daze."I... I remember. My life," he says, eyes wide and gssy."I... I remember..." he stammers, looking into their faces."...my family."

  “Lina!!” they hear someone shout loudly in the forest. It seems that Vyncent has returned.“I... I shouldn’t be here,” Mister Red continues, perplexed, and quickly makes his exit.Lina wants to follow him, but Emmod holds her back. Without exchanging a word, he uses his expression to let her know that Mister Red needs time to process this.At the very moment Mister Red disappears from the clearing, Vyncent appears on the other side.“There you are,” Vyncent says, relieved. “Enryn!” he calls out, “They’re here!”With quick steps and only anger in his mind, Vyncent approaches the three. Lina steps in front of her brothers, but Vyncent simply shoves her aside.“What the hell do you think you’re doing!?” he yells.Emmod steps in front of his brother. This time, he will protect him.

  Vyncent doesn’t care who stands in front of him. He grabs the nearest person by the colr, taking Emmod to task.“Were you pnning to show my little sister your grave in advance!?” he starts, urgently.

  “It’s not what you think!” Lina says, jumping onto his arm.Emmod offers little resistance, even if he wants to. But he doesn’t have to.Because as Vyncent’s gaze falls on the gravestone, he loosens his grip.“Wynfre?” he whispers softly to himself, releasing Emmod as cold sweat forms on his brow. “W-we need to go,” he stammers quietly, still in shock.Just then, Enryn joins them.“There you are,” he says, slightly out of breath. “We need to head back soon. If we’re not back on time, your father will send half the town to look for you.”This jolts Vyncent back to reality as he takes one st look at the gravestone.