The second dawn had arrived, painting the sky in hues of rose and gold that struggled to penetrate the deep shadows of the ruined ship's interior. Twenty-four hours had passed since Honami Ichinose's abrupt arrival, twenty-four hours spent in tense, static anticipation. The air in the cavernous space felt heavy, thick with the dust of ages and the residue of their anxieties. Riku, stiff and weary from sitting on the cold metal floor with Ichinose's head resting on his lap, looked towards the ship's entrance. The rhythmic swish of Levi's blade polishing had been the only constant sound throughout the long night.
Twenty-four hours, Riku calculated mentally, drawing on his limited understanding of the fairies' magic gleaned from Rio's fragmented knowledge and his own observations. The duration of many tracking spells is limited. If they placed one, it should have dissipated by now. Or, if they're cautious, they would have sent another scout, or approached in force by now. The continued absence of any sign of the fairies, save for the single creature Levi had dispatched, was the most convincing evidence that the tracking, if it existed, had failed or expired. It was time.
He gently shifted his leg. Ichinose stirred, a soft sigh escaping her lips. Her face, peaceful in sleep, looked utterly out of place against the grim, metallic backdrop. Her long, gradient hair was fanned out across his thigh, a vibrant splash of color in the dim light.
"Ichinose-san," Riku murmured softly, his voice low to ease her from sleep. He gently tapped her shoulder. "It's time to wake up."
Ichinose stirred again, her sapphire eyes fluttering open. For a brief moment, confusion clouded them as she registered where she was – nestled against a young man's leg, in a vast, ruined space, with a brooding man cleaning a blade nearby. Her inherent composure, however, reasserted itself almost instantly. She blinked, sitting up slowly, pushing herself away from his lap with a quiet grace. "Ah... Riku. I... I must have fallen asleep. Thank you for... letting me rest." She glanced around, her sharp eyes quickly taking in the lighter sky outside the entrance. "Has it been long?"
"About a day," Riku confirmed, flexing his leg to restore circulation. "Twenty-four hours. There's been no sign of the fairies. I believe the tracking, if there was any, has failed." He pushed himself to his feet, Levi smoothly dropping from his perch to stand beside him. "We should head back to the village now."
Weariness clung to them, a dull ache in their muscles and a leaden weight in their minds, but a sense of purpose now propelled them. They left the echoing, ruined silence of the dwarf ship behind, stepping out into the crisp morning air. The journey back towards their village was less tense than Riku's solitary trip to retrieve the spirit gun, but it was still fraught with the constant need for vigilance. They moved through the familiar, yet always potentially dangerous, wilderness – dense woods giving way to rocky slopes, following paths known only to the villagers and members of the expedition. Riku led, his senses sharp, navigating the terrain. Levi moved with silent, predatory grace, scouting ahead and covering their rear, his eyes constantly scanning for threats. Ichinose, despite her impractical uniform and lack of experience, kept pace remarkably well, her breathing steady, her gaze observant, absorbing the harsh beauty and hidden dangers of this new world with a quiet determination.
As they drew close to the village boundaries, the scent of woodsmoke, faint but familiar, reached them, a poignant reminder of the lives they were protecting. They stopped just short of the final ridge overlooking the settlement, concealed by thick trees. The village looked peaceful from here, nestled in the valley, the morning sun just beginning to warm the roofs.
"Alright," Riku said, turning to Igris, who had been following silently, his armored form an imposing presence even in the natural surroundings. "Igris." He held out the card. The loyal shadow knight paused for a moment, his head dipping slightly towards Riku, then dissolved back into shimmering energy, returning to the card in Riku's hand. He slipped the card into his inventory, securing the visible manifestation of his System power before they reached the village.
His gaze then turned to Ichinose, his expression serious. Levi moved closer, his own expression losing its sardonic edge, replaced by a pragmatic gravity. The moment had come to initiate their unexpected guest into the necessary deception required for life among the villagers.
"Ichinose-san," Riku began, choosing his words carefully. "There are some things the villagers... and most people in this world... cannot know about you. Or about how you arrived."
Ichinose met his gaze, her sapphire eyes calm and intelligent, showing she was already processing the implications, likely connecting it to their earlier conversation about her origins. "You mean about me... appearing from another world?"
Riku nodded. "Exactly. And about... the System that brought you here. That must remain a complete secret. It's connected to me, and its existence, and the power it represents, could draw unwanted attention, not just to me, but to the entire village, from beings far more powerful than fairies." He paused, then added the most sensitive point. "And perhaps most importantly... about Igris." He gestured subtly towards his inventory, where the card now rested. "The villagers... they have never seen him. They don't know he exists. His appearance is... impossible to explain in this world. Terrifying."
Levi stepped in, his tone blunt and direct, reinforcing the point with his usual pragmatism. "Look, Blondie Two. Our people are... resilient, but they're also terrified of the unknown. A girl just appearing out of nowhere? That's bad enough. But revealing that Dola can summon giant, armored... whatever he is... out of thin air? They'd lose their minds. It would cause panic they can't recover from easily." He crossed his arms. "More than that, it immediately screams that Riku has a hidden source of power nobody understands. That's the kind of secret that gets villages investigated. And if the wrong people investigate, it gets villages wiped out. So, Igris doesn't exist, got it? Not to them. Ever."
Riku added, his voice gentler but firm, appealing to her observed empathy and willingness to help."Ichinose-san. Maintaining a sense of normalcy, as much as humanly possible. So, please... you're just a member of our expedition now. Someone I found during my travels. No talk of other worlds, no systems, and no explaining Igris at all. His existence is our secret."
He looked at her, waiting for her reaction, for her acceptance of this heavy burden of secrecy. Honami Ichinose's composure was remarkable, a shield she wore effortlessly, but this was asking her to live a complete lie, to conceal her very identity and the extraordinary circumstances of her arrival, all for the sake of people she had just met.
Ichinose was silent for a moment, her intelligent eyes scanning both Riku's earnest face and Levi's pragmatic one. She absorbed their words, processing the logic, the necessity, and the inherent danger they described with a clear, analytical mind. The calm she radiated wasn't ignorance; it was deliberate processing and assessment. She understood the gravity of the situation they had placed her in, a world far more complex and perilous than she could have imagined, a world where her very existence, or even the knowledge of Riku's powers, was a potential threat.
"I understand," she said finally, her voice soft but clear, unwavering. "The risk of causing panic among the villagers, or attracting dangerous attention from other races. Maintaining stability for the village is the priority." She met Riku's gaze directly, her expression calm and resolute. "You are concerned for their safety above all else, even at the cost of revealing... certain truths about your own capabilities or accepting help that cannot be explained. I can respect that logic." A small, determined smile touched her lips, a flicker of steel beneath the gentle exterior. "I will do as you ask, Riku. I will be... whatever you need me to be for the villagers. I will not speak of my origins, the System, or... Igris's existence. You can count on me."
Riku felt a wave of profound relief wash over him. He had gambled on her observed composure and willingness to help, and it had paid off in spades. She wasn't just calm; she was sharp, logical, and willing to bear the weight of a dangerous secret for the greater good. "Thank you, Ichinose-san. It means a lot. More than you know."
"Just... try not to slip up, Blondie Two," Levi added, a hint of his usual smirk returning now that the serious part was handled, though the underlying seriousness remained in his eyes. "Dola's got enough on his plate without having to explain inter-dimensional travel, sentient shadow knights, and why a perfectly normal schoolgirl just appeared out of nowhere to a crowd of scared villagers."
Ichinose nodded, acknowledging his point without taking offense, a faint amusement in her eyes at his persistent nickname. "I will be careful, Mr. Levi. I understand the importance of this secret."
With the understanding solidified, the complex web of necessary secrets agreed upon between the three of them, they turned towards the final stretch of the journey. Just ahead lay the rise, and beyond it, the temporary village where two thousand lives depended on Riku's leadership, strength, and now, his capacity for intricate deception, aided by his two vastly different, but equally vital, companions. They began walking, a strange trio bound by chance, dangerous secrets, and the shared burden of survival, approaching the village and the uncertain, but hopefully calm, reception that awaited them.