[Okay, so..]

“Shh. I think they’ve caught up to us.”

It’s a good thing we were easily able to find a secluded spot in the area.

Well, considering that the surrounding buildings appear to be just storage houses, finding one or two places to hide in shouldn’t be that difficult.

But I digress.

I shushed her earlier because I heard footsteps. It was the crisp, heavy sound of steel boots clanking against the polished stone of the streets.

They’re here.

As expected, I guess my sudden outburst earlier managed to notify them of our presence.

Carefully, I peeked from one of the slits between the panels of the door, then I beckoned for her to come before whispering,

“Hey, look outside.”

I didn’t wait for her to get behind me as I continued watching the knights that were conducting a search,

‘I wonder, how I got caught up in all this?’

All I remember was that it was dark. Everything. No light, no shadows, my memory was a complete blank. Not the simplest fragment. Then suddenly, I was among barrels and crates with little breathing room left. The city surrounding me was ablaze and the only thing I had with me was this unknown woman. And according to her, I lost my memory and that I was only fifteen. Then I almost remembered something but suddenly felt pain splitting my head apart. Then there was that sound.

[Those monsters..]

My recollection was interrupted by the low, trembling voice that the woman who came up next to me unnoticed let out. I felt her body shake for a bit before moving away from the door. I looked at her briefly and I saw that she was slightly trembling, and her fists were tightly clenched.

“Is there someone you know from their belt decorations?”

She didn’t bother to reply, but I could see a faint glimmer in the corner of her eyes, reflecting the blazing inferno surrounding our refuge. The flames that burned reflected in both her eyes, exuding a gaze trembling with... something.

I didn’t want to keep my eyes off them for at least a second, so after confirming she won’t do anything rash, I looked back outside,

“Four enemies, huh.”

We’re surely dead even if one manages to catch sight of us. I have no confidence in fighting against one of them, especially against four. Combat isn’t an option and the only viable way to live until tomorrow is to escape from them unnoticed.

So,

“What do we do?”

[I don’t know.]

Her voice was somewhat steady earlier, but now, it was shaking,

“Are you okay?”

Sure enough, her voice was trembling,

[I don’t know.]

Feeling irritated, I turned around to look at her face,

There were tears falling from her eyes and she looked listless as she slumped powerlessly on the ground.

I wanted to look at her in disdain but managed to rein it in, thinking any unnecessary conflict would only make matters worse. Thinking like this, I thought for a bit before continuing,

“Hey, you. We’re going to die if you keep acting like that.”

I wanted to add some force in my voice for effect, but it unexpectedly sounded stern, even hateful,

“Get a grip.”

She looked like she wanted to say something as she bit her lips white, fortunately, she only nodded half-heartedly before averting her gaze from mine,

I kept watch for a few minutes. The knights outside were still checking the surrounding buildings. Time passed by silently until she composed herself and spoke,

[Sorry. I lost myself for a bit. I’m.. I'm okay now.]

“Do you want to talk about it?”

[No. I’ll ‘get a grip’ like you said.]

Her voice was thick with contempt, but I swear there were hints of sadness and disappointment mixed in.

“Suit yourself.”

I bitterly replied, then I continued to survey the situation outside.

The knights on the streets were searching through the warehouses. From the looks of it, they are four buildings away from where we were currently hiding. They were taking some time searching the first one, maybe that one was occupied.

On the other hand, the warehouse we’re in was completely empty, so I was able to easily see the end. The wood panels gave off a dancing silhouette against the conflagration beyond the walls and it was because of this that the insides of this warehouse was somehow illuminated. It’s also because of this that I could see that there wasn’t any sort of door or entryway at the back side.

It appears that this warehouse only had one entrance.

“Three warehouses away. We’re running out of time.”

I racked my mind for ideas but each and every time I played a scenario in my head, it was helpless.

I wanted to hide and pretend we weren’t here but once I saw what they did after searching the farthest warehouse from us, that idea was immediately trashed. They burned the place inside out. Flames suddenly just exploded outwards the moment the last of the knights walked out. Even if we hid inside, we’d end up burned to death.

I thought about outrunning them for a second, but as I continued to observe their movements, I came to the conclusion that those thick pieces of armor weren’t even hindering them in the slightest. Those knights looked nimble and at ease despite wearing all that metal.

And all this time, this woman is just slumping behind me comfortably. Not a single word peeped from her mouth.

“Two buildings left.”

She muttered something before clearly speaking up,

[You don’t understand.. but still..]

[I’m sorry.]

I felt cornered. I felt trapped. Frustration was slowly building up inside me. I wanted opinions but the first thing that came out was a useless apology.

Unknowingly, I lashed out at her,

“What’s the use? Just shut up.”

We’re running out of time here and you have the time to spew useless things.

[I’m sorry. It’s my fault. If I didn’t blank out earlier we could have made a plan. I’m sorry Ysil. I dragged down you with me.]

“Can you just shut up? Your whining isn’t helping.”

I really want to slap your face right now but that won’t help.

What would help though is to probably use her as a distraction. Although from the looks of it, she just looked useless and pathetic. Where’d that woman from earlier go? We ran through horrifying death and gore and she managed to keep up but now, she’s like this.

If all comes to worst, I think I’ll throw this woman at them then run for my life.

[I’m sorry.]

‘Fucking hell.’

“*sigh*.”

But, thinking back, I’d like to avoid that if possible.

I don’t know anything about this place.

Wandering around with no knowledge, with my state like that, one wrong move and I’ll most likely end up dead. I need this woman until I’m all set. She seems attached to me for some reason, so I’ll use that. She seems to know my history, so until then, you’re with me. You aren’t going anywhere until you’ve expended your worth.

It was then that I saw the enemy knights enter the last warehouse before ours.

“One left, and that’s the end.”

I struggled to come up with a plan, then I remembered something from earlier - a sound. Adding that into the equation, I fixed up something that I hope would work.

It’s now or never so,

“How do I get to that passageway from here?”

She looked shocked for a moment before replying in a feeble voice,

[...I see.]

[...that’s fine, I guess.]

I’m thinking you’re under a huge misunderstanding here miss, but that doesn’t matter right now.

[Just turn right from that street and enter the second alley from the left, go straight then you’ll find a wooden shack. Enter that then go to the kitchen. On the floor, look for the broken tile with a tree in the center. Under that is the passageway leading outside.]

“Got it.”

[I’ll hold them off-]

Not letting her finish her convenient interpretation, I spoke to her in a hush,

“I’ll get their attention so hide. Once everything is clear, escape. I’ll see you later outside. Don’t do anything stupid.”

I guess she never saw the grin I had on my face before dashing out.

‘I sure hope this works.’