Shia's Resolve

16. Shia's Resolve

"By the way, Ronar-san, about the horse behind you."

"—Eh, ah, yeah. You said you wanted to leave town by the end of the day. Besides, I thought that depending on your injuries, you might need to be transported somewhere..."

Ronar reacted immediately to Tori's voice.

In addition to the horse he had shared with Shia, Ronar had brought another horse loaded with the two's belongings.

He had been lectured severely by the others for departing just after the gates were closed, and he had been looked at as if he were a fugitive, but he had managed to bluff his way through.

Even though it was his comrades who had committed the act, he had been there, yet he had failed to stop them and had fled back to the town. The guilt over that, the burden of wondering if Tori had died, and above all, there was Shia.

He had blurted out a spur-of-the-moment lie to cover his tracks, but he had a daughter of his own; could he really leave this girl, who was even younger than his own child, all alone? In the end, that thought was what had moved Ronar.

Thus, when he confirmed that Tori had freed himself and was standing there talking normally, he felt a profound sense of relief.

However, he didn't think Tori should be in a state where he could simply say he was "fine."

As if to avoid Ronar's suspicious gaze, Tori approached the horse.

"Mind if I check the luggage?"

"A-Ah... no! I didn't take anything, I swear! I just packed everything exactly as it was in the room!"

Shia watched Ronar as he spoke in a frantic rush.

Because Tori had moved, she was now out in the open, but Ronar's attention was focused on Tori, and Shia herself had calmed down.

Furthermore, there was no lie in Ronar's current words. The only time he had lied was during the incident in town; since boarding the horse, she had sensed no such emotions.

"I'm not doubting you on that," Tori said, searching through a bag.

"I just wanted to make sure the things I need were in the luggage. Besides, I know you didn't act out of malice regarding the earlier matter, Ronar-san."

"No, but still..."

"Shia rode with you on your horse, didn't she?"

"Eh? ...Ah, well, yeah...?"

"Shia can tell when people are lying or acting with malice. That's why she doesn't get close to people who harbor those kinds of emotions."

"Huh? ...Wait, you're not joking...?"

A surprised gaze shifted toward her, and Shia gave a small shiver, her ears dipping slightly beneath her hood.

It wasn't that she could detect every single lie perfectly. She could simply sense general emotions. However, malice had a piercing sharpness to it, making it easy to identify.

"It just means you aren't a bad person, Ronar-san. —Ah... here it is. I wonder if this will work."

"?"

"?"

Tori pulled out a bottle small enough to be gripped in one hand. When he shook it, the contents shifted, suggesting it contained a liquid.

After both Shia and Ronar tilted their heads in confusion, Ronar asked.

"Is that alcohol?"

"It is alcohol, certainly, but the intended use is a bit different."

"Uhm... then, what are you going to use it for...?"

"I'm not sure if it'll work, but I think it can serve as a deterrent. So, I'm sorry, but Ronar-san, could you take Shia back to the town once more?"

"—What!?"

It was Shia who cried out in surprise at Tori's words.

She immediately rushed to Tori's side, grabbing his clothes and looking up at him.

"Go back to town... what about Tori...? Tori is coming too, right?"

"I'm going to stay and stall it."

"Stall what?"

"The Serpent, obviously."

"Then Shia won't go back to town either. I'll stay here."

As Shia tightened her grip on his clothes, Tori's brow dipped in a troubled expression.

"That's not allowed."

"Why not!"

"Because... it's obviously dangerous, isn't it?"

"But that means it's dangerous for Tori too!"

"I'll be fine."

"Then Shia will be fine too! I won't go to town unless it's with Tori!"

"...Shia..."

Tori's brows sank even lower. But this time, she would not back down. It was because she had backed down before that Tori had ended up injured. If she had been with him, she surely could have been of some help. That was why she could not yield.

Shia looked up, and Tori looked down. In the midst of this stalemate where neither would budge, Ronar interrupted with a hesitant, "Now, uhm..."

"I think it'd be pretty much impossible to send just this little lass back to town."

His lifeline was thrown to Shia.

"I did bring her here, but she slipped through the closing gates on her own and bolted out in a flash. I just happened to recover her and bring her along afterward. I bet she would've made it here on her own even if I wasn't around."

Ronar spoke while scratching his chin, and Tori's lowered brow now knit together firmly.

"...Shia, I told you to wait, didn't I?"

"You said 'in case of an emergency'."

"That was for your sake, not mine."

"But—!"

"No 'buts'. Shia, you're still a child; you don't need to get involved in dangerous things."

"But Shia can do something too!"

"—Shia."

Shia's ears drooped at the voice, which was sterner than usual. Then, Ronar intervened again, looking at Tori.

"Now, now, now. First, you two just calm down. More importantly, you've got a plan, right? I heard Serpents are nocturnal. There isn't much time until sunset. If there's something to be done, wouldn't more hands be better?"

"That's—"

"Besides, this kid's a beastkin, right?"

"!"

"!!"

"So even if she's a child, she can move way better than a human kid—...Wait, what's with that reaction?"

Tori's eyes widened slightly, and Shia stared at Ronar with her eyes round as saucers.

"...No... Ronar-san, how did you realize Shia is a beastkin?"

"Huh? I mean, she looks completely different from the beastkin I know, but that personality is a beastkin's through and through."

"Personality...?"

"The way she's so devoted, the clinginess, the stubbornness when she won't give in. Yeah, she's definitely a canine. …Hmm… maybe a tanuki?"

"—Huh?"

"...A tanuki...?"

She had never heard of one, but it was probably the name of an animal.

Tori, looking down at Shia, blinked his pale grey eyes once and then looked away unnaturally, placing a hand over his mouth. Was it her imagination, or were his shoulders shaking?

"...No... I mean, she is certainly cute... but to go straight to tanuki after saying canine...?"

"Why not? It's cute, right? Though maybe a red panda is a better fit?"

"...That's not even a canine."

"........."

'Cute' wasn't supposed to be an insult. So why did she feel something so unsettling?

As Shia knit her brows in a pout, Tori noticed and cleared his throat as if to compose himself, lightly touching her head through the hood.

"Well, as Ronar-san says, we're pressed for time, so I suppose extra hands are necessary..."

At the voice that leaked out with a sigh, Shia's eyes suddenly sparkled, and her ears pricked up. "Shia will help too!" Her tail was likely standing straight up as well.

Tori, his resolve completely eroded, let out a wry smile and said.

"Alright then. I suppose we'll have you help us a little.