Testing My Luck in the New World

Led by Yua's sharpened ears, we plowed through the trees as fast as we could. Leaves, branches and bushes all snapped and crumpled in our wake. Several animals that likely once considered themselves predators scampered away to hide, rather than get involved.

I'd teleported us deep inside of Dumort Forest, but kept us well out of sight of the barrier. Our panic made me doubt this decision, but getting jumped the moment we stepped out of the portal wasn't going to save anyone. And the girl that needed saving was dear to both of us.

"Have you found Mana yet?"

Yua tore a thick, low-hanging branch straight off a tree and tossed it aside as she ran so I could pass unhindered. Her experience traversing forests demanded she take charge and I was too focused on my menu.

"Not yet."

Using my rights as her master, I been searching for Mana since we stepped out of the portal, but so far, I've gotten nothing to show for it. She was still too far to see her outline. Without that, using just the slight tug that pulled me in her general direction was almost as useless as tracking an animal whose existence was assumed at best.

What I did know was that we were headed towards the barrier by following her.

"Goddess... It's like she keeps getting further away."

"How'd they even get here so fast?"

"We were gone for hours. They could have used a cart. Or a fast horse."

And thanks to the tarnished reputation of the cat-kin, I doubted anyone at the inn would have tried to stop them from kidnapping her, even if they dragged her through the lobby kicking and screaming. Once they saw she was cat-kin, most probably wouldn't have lifted a finger to help even after seeing thrown into the back of a cart.

The much more nail-biting fact that kept me running as fast as I could was that, in order to make it as far as they did this fast, they must have kidnapped her right after we left for the Enchanter.

None of us stopped to check if Arthur was still at the inn, but his room was right above ours. He'd have had plenty of opportunities. And if that wasn't enough, the timing had to mean that Tillmann likely came up with this plan right after Arthur told him about us.

They both know about my teleportation magic. Waiting up above in his room, knowing we'd want to avoid the innkeeper's rath, Arthur just had to wait until he saw Yua and I teleport into the alley. If Erhard's overworked sleeplessness was anything to go off of, Arthur might have been told to watch the alley all morning to await his chance. And thanks to his own room's enchantment, all he had to do to keep Yua from noticing this was to close his window.

Arthur and whoever was with him must have been planning on sneaking into our room, wait for us to come back and attack when we had our guards down. Only, they happened to find Mana alone. If Tillmann's main goal right now was to capture a cat-kin, then taking the defenseless Mana was his best bet.

And I let it happen.

Just one failure after another.

"Wait," Yua said, coming to a stop. Her ears flicking, she quickly knelt behind a tree. Knowing she stopped for a good reason, but with my own impatience burning, I ducked behind her.

"What is it?"

She held a finger to her lips and I held my tongue. Her ears flicked several times before she answered.