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Captain's POV
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After I'd left Airi and Astrid in the hallway, I made my way to the Palace once again.

The doors to the King's study were already slightly ajar, so I simply pushed them open and entered.

At his desk was His Majesty, and standing before him was a well-dressed man, no older than 40.

By his side was an ordained sword that glistened in the glow of the sun, but I couldn't see its usefulness.

He held a stack of paper in his arms, all different types of paperwork the King had already gone through or is about to go through.

This man was Duke Palingten, or better known as his Palace title: the Minister.

He was basically the King's supervisor or secretary.

As I pushed open the doors, they both turned their attention to me.

"Ah, Doujima. What is it?" (King)

"I'm here to say that we'll be heading off the Greif first thing tomorrow." (Captain)

"Oh? What about the recent events?" (King)

"The Vusin Squad would be better suited for that." (Captain)

"That's true..." (King)

Our squad was not the only of the King's Squads, there are 5 of us.

The Laplace Squad, the Vusin Squad, the Karma Squad, the Cupio Squad and the Flioren Squad.

Our squad is mainly for adventuring and other affairs that the King needs done in other areas of the Kingdom, like the bandits occupying Alzibria.

The Vusin Squad is for detective work. They deal with crimes and finding out the suspects.

The Karma Squad often work together with the Vusin Squad as they do legality work, with finding the correct passages to arrest someone, as well as dealing out the punishments on criminals.

The Cupio Squad is for work that the King needs done... Silently. They aren't often seen by the other squads, but we know they exist.

And the Flioren Squad is often used for bodyguarding. Unless circumstances say otherwise, they are the ones that protect the members of the Royal Family, whether that be watching from afar or by being shoulder to shoulder.

"Ahem, Your Majesty, you still need to work on these documents." (Duke Palingten)

"Yes yes, I know. I'm about to now, so you can leave. And while you do, call the Vusin Squad Captain." (King)

"... Haah, very well." (Duke Palingten)

With a sigh, the Duke turns and leaves the room, giving me a glare as he walks past.

"... So, you are heading off to Greif?" (King)

"Yes, we are." (Captain)

"Remind me why again." (King)

"Based on the letter that Ryu had intended to send, his sister - the daughter of the No-Names - is currently living there under the care of someone called Frien." (Captain)

"Daughter of the No-Names... You say your young knight found Ryu in the Great Forest, correct?" (King)

"Yes, that is correct." (Captain)

"Why are they living so differently?" (King)

"I'm not sure. To begin with, I'm not sure as to the reason why Ryu left the bandit group. For all we know, they could be being tracked by someone or something." (Captain)

"But then why would the Daughter be in such an undefendable place? Unless it's only Ryu that's being followed or tracked." (King)

"That's what I suspected. He didn't seem too happy about having to go to Greif, and the letter he sent to his sister had said that he was hiding her for her sake." (Captain)

"It really doesn't answer many questions... Well, you are free to go, I'll just have the Vusin Squad take your job." (King)

"Thank you, Your Majesty." (Captain)

And with that, I turn to leave, heading back towards the knight barracks outside of the Palace.

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The early morning sun blared at us as the five of us approached the outer gates of Richt.

"Do we really have to leave this early?" (Astrid)

"The sooner we get there, the better." (Captain)

"Well, yeah. But a few hours won't matter much in a week long journey." (Astrid)

"Maybe, but we will have to make stops along the way. I don't suppose you'd like camping all week while having to ration food?" (Captain)

"Ugh... Fair enough..." (Astrid)

I didn't hear many other complaints come out of her mouth for the next few hours we were travelling.

What I had said about the stops along the way was true, but our first one wouldn't be until our third day of travel, where we'd be passing by a small village to get some more food and good rest.

Throughout the entire trip, Ryu was, unsurprisingly, quiet. If his horse was as quiet as he was, you'd completely forget he was there.

Of course, he wasn't completely useless during the week. He was the one who'd wake up first and prepare something to eat.

Nothing luxurious, but definitely better than what you'd eat normally while camping.

"Say, Ryu?" (Airi)

"...?" (Ryu)

"How'd you get these rations to taste like this? They're surprisingly good." (Airi)

"... I've had experience." (Ryu)

"Experience, huh?" (Airi)

"... They are quite good..." (Astrid)

Astrid mumbled some compliments under her breath, which I'm sure she had planned for none of us to hear, but it seems like we all had..

"Did you...? Wow, that's surprising, Astrid." (Airi)

"W-w-what is?! I didn't say anything!" (Astrid)

"Don't worry about it. We all heard." (Kana)

"Kana!" (Astrid)

It was a different atmosphere to what you'd usually have while travelling, but a good different.

This continued for the week, when we finally arrived at the wooden walls of Greif.

As we approached the walls that had seemed large at a distance, they suddenly became smaller and smaller until they were barely taller than me.

A loud shout could be heard from inside as the makeshift gates began to open.

What we were greeted with was a narrow, dirt pathway to the centre of town. Wooden and stone buildings surrounded us on both sides with considerable gaps between.

The residents of the town began to filter out of their homes to the side of the path, where they watched us ride our horses towards a nearby stable.

While not particularly poor, the townspeople didn't seem exactly rich. They all wore clothes made from a fabric that made them itch, and they were all doing some kind of labour.

They seemed to surround us in curiosity until a parting in the sea of people seemed to appear opposite to where we had rode in.

As it got closer, a small, elderly man approached us, a limp in one leg while he supported his body on a crude, wooden cane.

While not by an extreme amount, he seemed be be faring much better than the others that lived here as his clothes seemed much more comfortable.

From the looks from the people around, and his own demeanor he seemed to be the leader of Greif.

"Greetings, my name is Aret Greifen. What is your reason for visiting, Sir Knight?" (Aret Greifen)

"I'm Doujima Vabenheim, Captain of the Laplace Squad. Do you have an elder that goes by the name of Frien?" (Captain)

"Ah, a member of the King's Squads, it's an honour. Sadly, we do not have an elder that goes by Frien, however, we do have a young man that does." (Aret Greifen)

"A young man? Could you take us to see him?" (Captain)

"By all means. Follow me." (Aret Griefen)

He turned slowly and began walking in a different direction at a steady pace. The crowd that was around us once again parted as he walked.

Naturally, the people around us began whispering, and I managed to catch a conversation of a few.

"Isn't that..." (Villager)

"I think it is..." (Villager)

"What's he doing back here?" (Villager)

"I thought he died?" (Villager)

It was pretty obvious who these were pointed at, and I look over my shoulder towards Ryu, who seemed unfazed by it, though lost in his own thoughts.

We continued to follow Aret for a few more minutes as we went further and further into Greif, passing a variety of buildings, like an alchemist, a herbalist and a smithy.

Before long, we turned another street that led to a dead end, where Aret walked past a few houses and turned to look at the third house on the right.

He gave the door two polite knocks and waited, before it was swung open.

"Ah, Chief, what's up?" (???)

In the doorway stood a man, no older than 30, with headband strapped around his forehead, blocking the blonde hair he had from falling into his eyes.

"There you are, Zion my boy. These knights here wanted to talk to your father." (Aret Greifen)

As if he hadn't noticed us, he looked past Aret towards us.

"Ah, sorry. Nice to meet you, I'm Zion Frien. You are...?" (Zion Frien)

"Captain Doujima Vabenheim. Is your father in?" (Captain)

"... First, come inside, I'll serve you some tea, then we'll talk." (Zion Frien)

He seems a little energetic, but I pay it no mind as I enter the house.

It was quite a modest house, with 3 rooms on the first floor, one for the kitchen, one for dining and one for relaxing. The stairs to the second floor were hidden behind the door.

A few lanterns were hung here and there, and in the dining room was a large, wooden table that had been carved well.

Zion came back quickly, with 5 cups on a tray he held with ease.

"Here you are... Right, we can talk now. I'll start. My father, Zio Frien, has passed away." (Zion Frien)

"Oh. I'm sorry for your loss, but can I ask how long ago this was?" (Captain)

"Hmm, I think it's about two years now." (Zion Frien)

He didn't seem very sad while talking about his father's death, but from the many objects that seemed to be placed around the house, he seemed to have a close relationship with him.

"H-how did he die?" (Ryu)

In a trembling voice, Ryu raised his curiosity.

"Ah... Ry-- No... He died of illness. Nothing major, a common cold, he was just too old to handle it." (Zion Frien)

"I see... Can I... See his grave?" (Ryu)

"... Sure, I'll call down Akar--" (Zion Frien)

"No! I'll find my way there myself..." (Ryu)

Without even taking a sip of the drink he had been served, Ryu left the house.

"... He's changed." (Zion Frien)

"Who? Ryu?" (Airi)

"Yup. He seems like a completely different person. He never seemed to hesitate to see Akari. Ah, that's his sister by the way." (Zion Frien)

"Yeah, we know. She's the reason we came here." (Astrid)

"She is?" (Zion Frien)

"Yeah, almost a year ago now, I was told to go through the Kingdom and find the son of the No-Names. When we found him, not a month later we found a letter addressed to his sister." (Airi)

"So, are you here to take her?" (Zion Frien)

"We don't know. We don't even know why she's here." (Captain)

"Same boat. She doesn't speak about anything when it comes to three years ago." (Zion Frien)

"Well, we can figure that out another time. One of our members should be here, Etsu. Do you know where he is?" (Captain)

"Etsu? Ah, he should be cutting the firewood right now. Near the edges of town. Not far from the stables." (Zion Frien)

"Alright, thanks." (Captain)

"No problem." (Zion Frien)

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Author Notes
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Wow, big chapter. 100 words off 2000.

Once again, I am going to publish this as soon as I finish editing it, but I had a lot of fun writing this chapter for some reason. That might be obvious by the larger word count.

But I don't have a lot to say, so j hope you enjoyed and please continue reading!