"Noir, huh. Cool name," Rion said.
Lie nodded. "Yup. He's famous. Haven't heard much from him since he killed the Demon Dragon that appeared two years ago though."
"Demon Dragon!?" Rion practically shouted.
Lie chuckled. "Tomorrow we should head back to the library. I'll pick you up a history book."
Rion's eyes lit up. "Sounds good to me!"
The two then finished their dinners and returned to the inn. After showering, Lie laid across her bed and pulled out her map, starting to make new markings. Shortly after, Rion emerged from the bathroom, drying his hair with a towel. He glanced over at what she was doing.
Lie looked up. "Wanna take a closer look?" she asked, patting the space beside her.
Rion nodded and laid down next to her, studying the map. It was impressive—filled with symbols, notes, and colored borders seperating the four kingdoms of Accia. Near the far left, he spotted the city of Wanier.
"So we're here, huh?" Rion mused.
Lie nodded.
Suddenly something else caught Rion's eye. Near the center of the continent was a city marked with a fancy dark blue logo. It read: Reana.
"What's this place?" he asked, pointing.
Lie glanced at the spot. "Oh, that's the Grand Capitol."
"The Grand Capitol?" Rion repeated.
"Yup. Each kingdom has its own capital—see?" She pointed to four other cities marked with stars, one per kingdom. "But this is the Grand Capitol. It's a shared city, a place where all four kingdoms intersect. It's the biggest city in Accia and has the most to offer—magic, tech, work, opportunity… everything."
"Hmm." Rion stared at the symbol for a while, then looked away.
"Hey, Lie… where do you live?"
"Me? Right here." She pointed to a small city near the bottom of Cara Kingdom, The kingdom on the bottom right part of the map, the one right beside Toren. The city name read Cellen.
"Whoa, that's far!" Rion exclaimed.
Lie laughed. "Yup. I've been traveling for about a month now."
Rion smiled faintly, but it slowly faded. "Are you… going home now that you found your book?"
Lie paused. "Y-yeah… I guess I am."
Rion forced a smile. "I see."
A brief silence settled between them, then Lie spoke up, her voice quieter than usual.
"If you want… do you want to come with me?" She blushed slightly. It was out of character for her to ask something like that—but parting from Rion now felt… strange.
Rion turned to look out the window, then back to her.
"I'd love to," he said softly. "But… there's somewhere else I wanna go now."A gentle smile spread across his face.
Lie watched him. His smile held a hint of disappointment—but also a spark of excitement. The fact that his feelings were written so clearly on his face made Lie smile, too.
"The grand capitol?"
Rion itched the back of his head, '"You got me, going there might help me in regaining my memories and it seems like a good place for a new adventurer."
Lie nodded, still smiling "It's getting late," she said. "You ready for bed?"
Rion nodded and stood, stretching. Lie rolled up her map and slid it into her bag at the side of the bed. Then she slipped under her covers and flicked off the light.
Rion climbed into his own bed and laid back. For a while, the two of them just listened—to the distant hum of city life outside their window.
"…Night, Lie."
"Night, Rion."
And with that final goodnight, they both drifted off to sleep.
(And thus, Rion's adventure continues…)