000 - What Makes The Sky Blue

<3 Days Later>

Eingana City, once devastated by swarms of monsters and the attack of the Primal Beast Phoenix, had now been fully repaired. However, despite the restoration, the town was still far from operating normally. Many shops remained closed, their goods destroyed or damaged, leaving the streets quieter than usual.

Still, some shops had begun to reopen—small stalls along the roadside selling food and accessories that had survived the chaos. The town was slowly coming back to life, though it would take time to fully recover.

On one of the streets where a few shops had reopened, Rei and Djeeta walked side by side, enjoying what little the town had to offer. Djeeta clung tightly to Rei's right arm, her body pressed close to his as they strolled. Rei, in turn, enjoyed the warmth of her presence and the softness of her touch.

"Hahh... Not too much we can see on today's date," Djeeta murmured, her voice tinged with disappointment. Her plans for a romantic festival date had been completely ruined, and now, even their attempt at a casual outing felt lackluster.

They had been walking since morning, but by afternoon, they had already seen most of the open shops and accessible areas. With so many places still closed, there wasn't much left to explore.

"Well, what can we do? Do you want to go to Auguste Isle instead? We could continue our date on the beach," Rei suggested, trying to lift her spirits.

"I want to... but we've been here longer than I thought, and I feel bad about the others still on Ravi Island. Besides, I'd prefer if we went to Auguste Isle with everyone," Djeeta said after a moment of thought.

Hearing this, Rei moved his right arm—the one Djeeta had been hugging—and wrapped it around her shoulder, pulling her closer to him.

"Ahh, you're so cute, Djeeta~ How about this? After we get back to Ravi Island, we can spend an entire day together. You haven't tried the amusement park yet, right? We can have fun there together," Rei said with a smile.

"Really? Alright, you better not forget about that!" Djeeta replied, her mood instantly lifting.

She happily hugged Rei's waist as they continued walking through the city, their steps light and their hearts full.

After spending another hour together, Rei and Djeeta sat under a tree, enjoying some snacks. The peaceful moment was interrupted when a small bird fluttered down and landed in front of Rei.

"A bird? Huh, this is Sierokarte's bird," Rei said, immediately recognizing the little creature.

"She's carrying something on her neck," Djeeta pointed out. Sure enough, a small letter was tied around the bird's neck with a delicate ribbon.

Rei carefully untied the letter and opened it, while the bird hopped onto his shoulder, chirping softly.

"What is it?" Djeeta asked, her curiosity piqued.

"Hmm, it's a request from Sierokarte. She wants us to come to her shop to meet her," Rei explained, scanning the letter.

"We should probably tell the others about this too," Djeeta suggested.

"Actually, the letter says she's already sent another one to the others on the Grandcypher," Rei replied.

"Sounds like this is really important. I didn't expect Sierokarte to need all of us," Djeeta said, her tone a mix of surprise and curiosity.

With that, the two of them, accompanied by Sierokarte's little bird, Gotle, made their way to the Knickknack Shack.

~~~~~

"Reeiiii! Djeeetaaaa!" Lyria's voice rang out as Rei and Djeeta arrived in front of the Knickknack Shack.

There, they found Lyria, Vyrn, Katalina, and Therese waiting for them. It had been a few days since Therese joined Djeeta's crew. After the city was repaired, she had suddenly appeared on the Grandcypher, asking to join. And then the easygoing Djeeta agreed without hesitation, and now Therese was officially part of their team.

"Looks like you guys got here first," Rei said as he approached the group.

"Yeah, we were roaming the city when we got the letter from Sierokarte's bird, so we came straight here," Katalina explained, pulling out the letter from her pocket.

"Alright, then let's go inside and find out what Sierokarte wants," Djeeta said, leading the way.

"Missing people?" Therese exclaimed, surprised by Sierokarte's explanation.

"Yes, it's been a week since we received another missing person request. At first, I thought it was just the usual case of adventurers getting lost, but after a few days, they still hadn't returned. Now, more people are starting to go missing," Sierokarte explained, her tone serious.

According to Sierokarte, people had begun disappearing two weeks ago, even before the festival started. However, the chaos caused by the Phoenix Primal Beast and the swarm of monsters had buried the missing person reports, almost making them forgotten.

It wasn't until a few days ago, when more reports of missing people came in, that Sierokarte began to take the situation seriously. After some investigation, they discovered that the missing individuals were being kidnapped by a Primal Beast.

"A Primal Beast kidnapping people? That's really weird. Why would they do that?" Lyria asked, her confusion evident. Primal Beasts usually didn't involve themselves with people unless they were being controlled.

"I don't know the reason, but the problem is that the Primal Beast is taking people to high mountain peaks and cliffside locations. We don't have the means to reach those places," Sierokarte explained.

"There's one path, but it's extremely dangerous. You'd have to navigate narrow cliffs with the risk of falling, and the area is crawling with monsters. Plus, after the attack on the city, we don't have enough people to mount a rescue operation."

"I see. So you need my wings to rescue them, right?" Rei asked.

"Exactly. And the others too—Rei might need help fighting the Primal Beast, but if possible, try to avoid it and focus on rescuing the people," Sierokarte said.

"Well... I don't know if he'll need *our* help," Therese muttered, scratching her cheek.

"Alright, we accept the request," Djeeta declared confidently.

"Thank you so much~! If you manage to rescue the people, bring them here, and I'll prepare the rewards for everyone," Sierokarte said, her cheerful demeanor returning.

After Sierokarte left the room, the group continued their discussion.

"Alright, I'm going to bring Lyria for this. With both of our powers, we should be able to handle the Primal Beast," Rei said, standing up confidently.

"Yay! It's my turn~" Lyria said happily, her excitement evident. She was just glad to be spending time with Rei.

"Fufufu, alright. We'll head back to the Grandcypher. Just be careful, you two," Katalina said, her tone calm. She wasn't worried about Lyria—Rei would never let anything happen to her.

"Too bad I can't follow you two, but oh well. Just be careful, alright?" Djeeta added, though she trusted Rei and Lyria to handle the situation.

"Are you two really going to be fine fighting a Primal Beast with just the two of you?" Therese asked, her voice tinged with concern. Fighting a Primal Beast with only two people was practically unheard of.

"We'll be fine. You saw my fight with the Phoenix before, right? Don't worry—I'm stronger than I look," Rei reassured her with a confident smile.

Therese still felt uneasy, but remembering how Rei had held his own against the Phoenix Primal Beast and how he and Lyria had defeated it together, she relaxed a little.

"Alright, then. Let's go, Lyria," Rei said, holding out his hand.

Lyria took his hand, and the two of them walked out of the room, heading to a secluded area where Rei could use his wings without drawing too much attention.

After Rei and Lyria left, the others decided to head back to the Grandcypher. But before that, they stopped to grab a meal. Katalina and Therese had only eaten a small breakfast, and they were hungry.

As they sat down to eat, Djeeta turned to Therese. "So, how about it? Have you been having a good time on the Grandcypher?" she asked between bites of her food.

"Hmm? Oh, yes! It's been fun. Usually, after the festival tournament, I'd just go back home and live a boring life until the next tournament the following year. But now, it's been so exciting—especially training with everyone," Therese replied, her eyes lighting up.

"The adrenaline of fighting someone stronger than me feels amazing. Especially when I spar with Rei. He's like a thick wall I can never break through. Every move I make, he counters perfectly, and he can even stop his attacks before they hit me," Therese continued, her enthusiasm growing as she talked.

She went on for a while, recounting her experiences and sparring sessions with Rei, until Katalina finally intervened.

"Alright, Therese, that's enough. Let's eat before the food gets cold," Katalina said with a gentle smile, cutting off Therese's rambling.

After their meal, the group decided to do some grocery shopping for the Grandcypher. As they browsed the stalls, they noticed an erune man stumbling through the streets. His body was covered in wounds, and he looked battered and exhausted.

"Huh, what's wrong with that guy?" Djeeta asked, glancing at him curiously.

"Probably just the usual adventure stuff. He'll be fine if he goes to the pharmacy," Katalina said nonchalantly. Seeing wounded adventurers in town was nothing out of the ordinary.

"But his wounds look worse than what we usually see," Therese pointed out, her tone slightly concerned.

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it. This is just how Skyfarers are," Djeeta added with a shrug.

With that, the three of them walked past the man without giving it much more thought.

Meanwhile, the erune man was none other than Stan, who had been desperately searching for Aliza since her kidnapping three days ago. After witnessing her disappearance from the mansion, he had rushed out without waiting for backup, determined to find her.

However, Stan's cowardly nature made the search anything but easy. Every time he encountered monsters, fear overtook him, and he ran away. The wounds on his body weren't from monster attacks—they were from his countless falls and stumbles as he fled in panic.

"Lady Aliza... I'll come get you..." Stan murmured to himself, his voice trembling with determination and guilt.

~~~~~

A few moments later, Djeeta and the others finished buying the ingredients and supplies they needed for the Grandcypher. As they walked outside the town to return to the ship, Therese couldn't help but notice the large quantity of milk and sugar they had purchased.

"Why did we buy so much milk and sugar...?" Therese asked, glancing at the bags they were carrying.

"Of course, it's for Rei to make pudding for us! His cooking is always amazing—even his pudding tastes better than the ones from restaurants," Djeeta said excitedly.

"He can make sweets too? I remember tasting his cooking for the first time before, but how can he make something like that?" Therese asked, clearly impressed.

"I don't know. Rei always says that in his world, both of his parents were busy, so he was the one who cooked for himself and his big sister," Katalina explained.

"Also, his cooking skills probably improved even more after coming to this world," Djeeta added.

"His world, huh? I'm still surprised after hearing he's not from this world..." Therese murmured.

They continued chatting about Rei as they walked, but their conversation was suddenly interrupted by a loud scream and the sound of monsters.

"Whoa! B-back, you fiend! Get away from me! AAAAAHH!"

The four of them stopped in their tracks and looked toward the source of the noise.

"Djeeta!" Katalina called out, and without hesitation, Djeeta rushed toward the sound, still carrying her groceries.

With her speed, Djeeta arrived at the scene quickly. She saw the same erune man they had seen earlier, screaming and running away from a group of boars. The monsters were easy to dodge, but the man kept running straight, panicking.

Djeeta immediately pulled out her sword with one hand and, in a swift motion, slashed through all the boars in one go.

*Slash* *Slash*

The boars fell to the ground, defeated.

"Huh?" The man stopped screaming and looked behind him, only to see Djeeta standing alone, surrounded by the dead monsters.

"Phew..." Djeeta muttered as she sheathed her sword.

"Are you okay? Wait, aren't you the guy we saw earlier in town?" Djeeta asked, recognizing the wounded erune.

"You know me?"

"Yeah, we saw you in town earlier. But what are you doing out here with your body still wounded like that?"

Not long after, Katalina and the others arrived.

"So, what's going on?" Vyrn asked the erune man.

"That's incredible! How did you defeat all those monsters with one hand while still carrying so much stuff?" Stan exclaimed, clearly impressed by Djeeta's skills.

"For a Skyfarer, these monsters are pretty small-time, you know," Djeeta said with a shrug.

"Oh, you're Skyfarers, huh? No wonder. There certainly are lots of dangers in the skies..." Stan murmured, deep in thought.

"I see! So that's the secret... Strengthening yourself through the constant thrill of danger!" he declared loudly, as if he had just realized something profound.

"Huh? No, that's not how it works. Strengthening yourself is about training and self-discipline. Stamina during a fight is especially important," Katalina explained patiently.

"Then I must face danger too! For the sake of protecting my lady! Watch me—through battle, I shall become a true warrior today!" Stan declared, completely ignoring Katalina's advice. Before anyone could stop him, he ran off in a random direction.

"Wait! Hey, stop!" Therese shouted, but Stan was already too far away to hear her.

"He just left..." Vyrn said, his expression blank. He had never seen someone like him before.

"What now?"

"Well, there's nothing we can do. Let's just go back to the Grandcypher," Djeeta said, eager to put the groceries away before anything else happened.

They continued walking toward the Grandcypher, but not even a few minutes later, they heard another scream.

"AAHHHHHH!" *Groaaar!*

"Djeeta..." Vyrn said with a sigh.

"I know," Djeeta replied, already running off to save Stan again. The same scene repeated itself, with Djeeta defeating the monsters and Stan apologizing profusely.

"What the hell are you doing!?" Katalina shouted, her anger evident. Seeing someone recklessly throw their life away like that infuriated her.

"Ehkkk! I'm sorry!" Stan immediately apologized, though he wasn't sure why Katalina was so mad.

"Stop running off if you don't have the ability to protect yourself! What are you even doing out here?" Katalina demanded.

"I'm here to rescue my lady! She was kidnapped a few days ago by a Primal Beast," Stan explained, recounting what had happened and how he had ended up in this town.

"Missing person?"

"Kidnapped by a Primal Beast?" Vyrn and Djeeta said at the same time.

"Isn't that...?" Therese asked, glancing at Katalina.

"Yeah, it's the same one Rei and Lyria are handling," Katalina confirmed.

"You don't need to worry about your lady," Katalina said to Stan.

"What do you mean? My lady was kidnapped! It's my job to rescue her, so I need to hurry!"

"No, that's not what I mean. Someone is already handling the missing person request. I'm sure your lady is one of the people who were kidnapped, and she'll be back soon," Katalina reassured him.

"What? Someone's already rescuing them? But the place is really dangerous! I managed to find it, but I still don't know how to get there," Stan said, his voice filled with worry.

"But what kidnapped her—...what kidnapped Lady Aliza was... a Primal Beast," Stan stammered.

"Don't worry. The person rescuing them is strong. They'll be fine," Djeeta said confidently.

"You can stay with us. The person going to rescue those people is our friend," Vyrn added.

"Yeah, just stay with us for now until your lady returns. Let's go—we still need to put these ingredients away," Djeeta said, leading the way.

"Oh, right. By the way, we don't know your name," Djeeta suddenly remembered.

"Stan... My name is Stan, the bodyguard of my lady, Aliza," he introduced himself.

"Bodyguard?? You're!?" Vyrn exclaimed, clearly surprised. So far, Stan hadn't shown any ability to protect himself, let alone someone else.

"What? Don't underestimate me! If it were just the usual thugs, I'm sure I'd be able to do something by myself..." Stan said defensively.

"....Sure, sure," Vyrn replied, clearly unconvinced.

As they walked away, Stan lingered for a moment, looking toward the mountain where Aliza was being held.

"I'm sorry, my lady... But I can't do anything against a Primal Beast. I hope you return safely with their friends," he murmured before following Djeeta and the others.