Voyage Of The Villainess

Dorris looked up at the cloudy sky. \'This is a new feeling to me without being Milady.\' Her mind was roiled by thoughts that sent a slew of emotions inside.

"I\'ll stay here with Rhyme to guard the ship." 

\'I\'m concerned now. Is it truly okay for me to stay here?\' Dorris sighed quietly to herself. \'However, I\'m afraid that if I accompany them, I\'ll cause more trouble.\'

As the wind blew and Callan\'s face flashed across her head. \'Choose between them...\' How could you choose between two persons who are equally important to you? \'

Dorris smacked her cheeks and shook her head. "What am I even thinking?"

"They are back?" Rhyme suddenly spoke, startling Dorris. 

\'Is he here all-time long?\'

Rhyme simply walked past Dorris. He looked towards the people who were approaching the ship.

"It\'s Lady Iris and Sir Elred." 

Dorris looked down and saw Iris and Elred sprinting back towards the ship. When she spotted the approaching individuals, her brow wrinkled. There was something uncanny stalking them. A white mist chased them.

"Where are Rein and Lady Malaya?" an awful sensation rising within her. She instantly extended both of her hands and pointed to Elred and Iris. "Is there something wrong that happened?"

Her hands began to glow lavender, and both Iris and Elred were transported towards the ship in an instant.

---⚓⚓⚓---

Meanwhile back at Malaya...

After a long period of stillness, the young boy eventually lowered his rake. "All right," he said. "However, if you do anything foolish, I will not hesitate to attack you."

Malaya rose up and smiled at them both. "Then I\'ll be cautious not to do anything that will upset both of you."

The little girl was overjoyed to notice that her brother and Malaya didn\'t seem to be fighting anymore.

"My name is Malaya," Malaya smiled as she introduced herself to the two children.

"My name is Lila!" exclaimed the small girl, delighted. "He\'s Lorn, my elder brother!"

"Hey, Lila, why did you tell her our names just like that?"

Lila fidgeted her fingers and she looked down. "She told us her name, so I just did the same thing."

Lorn just sighed then turned his gaze towards Malaya. "Be grateful that my sister is kind."

Malaya nodded her head. "Thank you, Lila."

"No problem!" Lila said with a big grin plastered on her cheeks.

"You stated that you have people with you who require help; I\'m sorry, but as you can see, there is nothing we can do to assist them," Lorn remarked. "I and my sister are already scraping by on our own; we can\'t afford to help anyone else; Lila, let\'s go now."

"I see..." Malaya cast a glance towards Lorn. \'Despite being such a kid, he appears considerably mature for his age.\' But, given their circumstances, and the fact that he still has to care for his younger sister, it\'s understandable.\'

"Wait," Malaya called out to the two. "Might you at least tell me where this is, or do you know of any nearby villages where we could settle?"

Lorn came to a standstill and turned back to face Malaya. "You don\'t belong in this country, do you?"

"Yes,"

"Then I\'ll give you some advice: if you value your life, never go to the cities or towns in this land," Lorn stated as he tugged Lila along with him.

They entered the house and slammed the door behind them, leaving Malaya alone.

---⚓⚓⚓---

It was already getting close to dusk after a few more hours.

"Why is she still not waking up?" Malaya inquired of Hyun Jae. She checked her pulse by touching her wrist, and her heart was beating regularly.

Then she looked around at the other folks. \'And none of these folks were awake either.\'

There were two who were awake, but they were just giving Malaya glares. It was the crown prince and Theo.

And the other one, Kayden, left again. When Malaya returned he was no longer here.

Malaya glanced up. \'If only I could see the clear skies, it could make things much not less gloomy in this desolate land.\'

Malaya\'s stomach growled. She glanced towards the wild boar that Kayden left. "I should cook dinner now." She pressed the middle button of her Trinity. Then started dismantling and butchering the wild boar. 

\'Ah.\' Malaya couldn\'t help but smile. \'How long has it been since I prepared my food?\' Rein and Dorris were always available to prepare my meals. \'I simply realized how pampered I was in this world.\'

Malaya lit a fire after a few minutes. She wasn\'t afraid about attracting wild monsters this time because it was still pretty bright.

She impaled the meat of the boar, one by one. Then started heating it to the fire. Malaya wiped off the sweat that formed on her forehead. 

\'It was all done at last.\' Malaya seated comfortably in the small rock as she watched the meat of the boar get roasted.

After an hour of waiting, the meat was already cooked. Malaya picked one and slowly blew it. 

She took a bite, \'Ah as expected it tastes a little plain.\' Malaya said as she took another bite. \'I wish I had some condiments with me. Or even a salt would suffice.\'

*Growl...* Malaya glanced to her side when she heard loud growls. A smirk formed on her lips.

"It seems both of you are hungry?"

Aadel and Theo looked sideways. 

"Hmm, it appears I\'m merely mistaken?" Malaya selected one roasted meat and ate it gently in front of them. "I\'m glad neither of you is hungry since I can eat this meal all by myself."

Malaya smiled even wider as she noticed the two stiffened but still not looking in her direction. \'I feel like a true bully, here.  Hahaha. But teasing these Mls is a lot of fun. Well, I\'m not going to give them any either. My sole concern here is Hyun Jae and, most likely, those folks.\'

After finishing her meal, Malaya packed up four pieces of pork. She rose up and proceeded to the location where she found the children. \'I should send them these as thanks for their advice.\'

But before Malaya could get to their home, she came to a halt when she heard cries. She slipped behind a tree.

\'!\' Malaya tightened her hold on the meat she had. 

Cloaked people encircled Lorn and Lila.

"We will not hurt you or your sister," said the cloaked leader. "Just let us know if you see two women one with black hair and the other one has dark blue hair, and they with a group of individuals."

Malaya took out her Trinity. \'Those cloaked people....It really seems getting away with them will not that be easy.\'