Chapter 179: The Gates of Bakurad

Months had passed since then...

"We’ll reach Bakurad Fortress in two days if we continue at our current speed."

Regis spoke, to which the others nodded in response.

"Ugh, I really hope that it doesn’t rain again..."

Aurelia could not help but mutter with a nervous expression as she gazed at the clouds.

Their journey had not been smooth sailing.

Although they each had their own horses, there were still some circumstances that remained unpredictable such as rain.

Of course, observing whether it would rain was easy for adventurers.

It was just that Regis did not expect Aurelia to hate it so much. Otherwise, they would have continued their journey like normal.

Regis looked back at her with an apologetic smile, "Don’t worry, we’ll inform you the moment we see any signs of rain coming."

"Thanks..." Aurelia smiled in return.

They then focused back on their journey.

Since leaving Delimoro City, they had been riding horses while following the path made by yellow soil.

It was a relatively well-maintained path since the city frequently sent supplies to the fortress.

And so, their journey had just gotten easier.

Aside from a few slopes and hills that they encountered on the way, the terrain remained even and even those obstacles were easily dealt with by their horses.

Currently, they were at full throttle with occasional breaks to ensure that the horses would not fall sick from overfatigue.

***

Later that night...

Clank— Clink— Clang—!!!

Regis and Killian exchange attacks, their steel swords producing clanging noises that echoed in the vicinity.

Pandora was reading a book on Magic Theory beside the campfire, facing towards the previous two.

And finally, Aurelia sat beside Pandora, holding a cup of hot milk with both her hands as she watched them sparring against each other.

This had become one of their routines when spending the night.

’That looks fun...’

Aurelia thought as she took a sip of her hot milk while taking occasional glances at Regis, Pandora, and Killian.

Mist left her lips as she took a breath, ’It feels particularly cold today.’

Her thoughts could not help but remember what she and Regis had talked about a few months ago.

’Maybe I should have accepted his offer back then?’

Aurelia’s mind surged with various thoughts.

Adventuring seemed fun.

’I should still think about it...’

Deep inside, she knew that there was nothing to think about.

"Hmmm...’ Aurelia let out a hum as she took a sip of her hot milk once again.

Pandora, still immersed in her book, spoke, "Is something the matter?"

"Um..."

Hesitation surfaced in her face before she ultimately shook her head in reply

"It’s fine if you don’t want to talk about it. Just know that we’ll be here for you no matter what happens."

For some reason, Aurelia felt something unusual about Pandora today.

And it did not take long for her to realize what it was, ’She’s unusually talkative...’

At this moment, she could not help but lightly bring the warm wooden mug to her cheeks, feeling the warmth of the hot milk it contained.

Aurelia felt unsure, ’Is it really alright for me... to enjoy life?’

Although years had already passed since "that" incident, she still blamed herself.

The only reason why she did not immediately take Regis’s hand that day was because of the hate she had for herself.

Feeling that she deserved nothing in life, she had...and will keep on self-sabotaging every good thing that may come her way.

Tap— Tap— Tap—

Aurelia heard footsteps closing in, prompting her to look upward.

A pair of blood-red eyes greeted her with a gentle radiance as a handsome youth stared at her with a kind smile on his face.

’Did he notice?’ Aurelia began overthinking.

She did not like it when others noticed her shift in mood.

It made her feel that she was unnecessarily spoiling the atmosphere.

Nervousness and guilt slowly gripped her heart.

But to her surprise, Regis did not speak a word and just handed her a wooden sword.

"Wha— Huh— This..."

Aurielia did not know what to say at the sudden, strange gesture.

Regis did not reply and just brought the wooden sword closer to her.

Not knowing what to do, she had no choice but to take the wooden sword from his hand, "T-Thanks, I guess..."

"Go on, fight him."

"Eh!?"

Aurelia looked to where he was pointing and saw Killian in a battle stance already with his wooden sword.

Before she could think any further, she found herself in front of Killian, much to her shock.

"Let’s start slow, okay? Here I go!"

"Wait— What—!?!?!?"

Thwack—!!

Aurelia was not able to speak as she felt a force on her wooden sword.

The force made her hand tremble, but another emotion welled up inside her heart alongside it.

However, she could not quite point his finger towards it.

Thuk! Thack!! Thwa—

"H-Hey! Wai–!"

Thwack!!

"Argh, seriously!! I thought nobles were supposed to be gentlemen!?"

Aurelia was fed up as she took the initiative to swing her sword in one big motion.

Thakkk!!!

"That’s the spirit!" Killian smiled, "And you must’ve forgotten... I ditched my etiquette classes, so don’t expect any preferential treatment from me just because you’re a girl!"

Meanwhile, Regis and Pandora sat beside each other by the campfire.

Upon hearing Killian’s words, Pandora, who was still immersed in her book, spoke, "Now he’s just lying through his teeth, huh?"

"Hahaha... don’t you think that’s an important ability of his to flirt with women?" Regis could not help but laugh as he watched the two sparring from afar.

"Brother, may I ask something?"

"Sure."

"Why go so far for her?"

Hearing her question, Regis had a hesitant expression on his face.

"Well, I won’t consider this as ’going far’. It’s just that she reminds me of someone. Besides, even you care about her, so it’s safe to say that she’s already our friend."

"How come? I still want to know your thought, Brother." Pandora asked, her deadpan face still focused on her book.

"I don’t really know how to explain it. But there’s someone who made an expression just like hers..."

Regis paused for a moment before continuing, "Although she acted like everything was normal, she’s always belittling herself and her mind was filled with negative thoughts, like she’s always so hard on herself despite what she shows everyone."

"In short, it was a look that I didn’t like. And I wish that no one would have to feel like that about themselves."

Pandora finally lowered her book and stared at Killian and Aurelia in the distance, "May I ask who that is, Brother?"

"Yes, I mentioned her when I was telling you about my past. But I believe that you will all get to meet her in the future, so I’ll introduce you to her when that time comes."

"Is that so, hm?" Pandora’s grip on her book unconsciously tightened.

Her gaze showed complex emotions, betraying her deadpan expression.

"Hahaha! Take this!!"

"Hey! This is just a spar, why are you flinging dirt on my face!?"

"You’re so cocky earlier, what are you pussying about now, huh!?"

"What the... how can you speak like that to a noble!? Stop flinging dir— mpmh!"

Aurelia’s giggles and Killian’s pleading voice echoed in the area, making Regis and Pandora giggle from time to time.

The feeling of her hands trembling enlightened her as she discovered the unfamiliar emotion she felt.

An emotion that had evaded her since that incident.

On this particularly cold night, when the stars above were hidden behind the clouds and the moon was nowhere to be found, Aurelia felt particularly alive.

***

Thu–khu—dug!!! Thu–khu—dug!!! Thu–khu—dug!!!

The sun had just risen on the horizon as four horses galloped at high speed.

After a few more hours of travelling, a splendid sight greeted them as they got past the last hill in their journey.

On the far right, they could see the glorious sun that was baptizing the plains in its golden rays.

On the far left, a seemingly endless forest could be seen, as well as a vast mountain range that seemed to be thousands of kilometers both in height and length, greeted their eyes.

And finally, in the far distance, they could see an imposing reinforced gate that was hundreds of meters tall.

The gigantic walls were made with a special material that looked like stone, which also had a metallic sheen on them.

Subtle waves of mana could be felt even though they were still tens of kilometers away from it.

"So that’s the Bakurad Fortress." Regis’s eyes widened at the sight.

Although the Corelli Fortress also had large walls, it was nothing like what they were seeing right at this moment.

Pandora and even Killian had eyes filled with amazement.

However, unbeknownst to anyone, Aurelia’s eyes were filled with complicated emotions as she gazed at the gates of the Bakurad Fortress in the far distance.

’I guess it’s really over now, huh?’

She thought, somewhat unwilling to admit that their months-long adventure was about to end.

Regis looked back at them with a smile, "What are we waiting for? Let’s go!"

Killian cheered as they rode their horses down the hill.