A Journey Unwanted-Chapter 437 - 426: Aftermath

[Realm: Álfheimr]

[Location: Quadling Country]

"W-who... who are you talking to right now?"

The Cowardly Lion asked the question cautiously, his voice wavering with uncertainty as his wide eyes fixed on Grimm. The armored man stood a short distance ahead of him among the scattered remains of what had once been towering stone golems. The lion kept himself several paces away out of instinct, claws lightly scraping against fragments of rock as he shifted his weight uneasily.

Grimm had not moved much since the last construct had collapsed into rubble. His posture remained straight, sabatons planted firmly on the cracked stone ground with his gaze fixed toward the sky.

"There were eyes on us a moment ago," Grimm said calmly. The statement was delivered in such a straightforward tone that it took the lion a second to even process it. The Cowardly Lion blinked. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"...There were what?"

Grimm did not immediately elaborate. He simply continued looking upward as though observing something that had only just disappeared.

The lion followed his gaze instinctively. His ears twitched as he scanned the empty sky above them. He turned in a slow circle, searching the surrounding hills and the distant marble walls of Bunnybury. His eyes darted across the broken landscape.

But there was nothing, no strange lights or any figures watching from afar. There was just the aftermath of the battle. The only unusual sight left behind was the scattered field of shattered rock that had once formed three massive golems.

The lion looked back toward Grimm with visible confusion.

"I... I don’t see anyone," the lion admitted after a moment, his voice smaller now as he looked back toward Grimm.

Grimm lowered his head slightly, the pointed crest of his helmet pointing forward.

"The Good Witch, I would wager," he said with mild certainty. "It would be the most logical explanation for such attention."

The lion froze.

"S-she’s been watching us?" His voice cracked slightly as the realization settled in, the words left him in a startled rush. His expression shifted immediately, the earlier confusion giving way to genuine concern.

("O-oh no... if she was watching this whole time...") His ears flattened against his mane. ("She’s going to think I was involved in all that! And that I came here to cause trouble like those other idiots who pick fights near Bunnybury...") A nervous swallow followed. ("T-this is bad. This is really bad.")

Meanwhile, Grimm remained completely at ease.

"Her attention has already withdrawn," he remarked idly, as though commenting on something of mild interest. "Which suggests she did not see what she was hoping to observe."

The Cowardly Lion looked at him again, more confused than before.

"...What does that even mean?"

Grimm turned slightly as he spoke.

"She was attempting to measure my power," Grimm explained calmly, speaking with patience. "To observe how dangerous I might be before deciding how to proceed." He lifted one gauntleted hand slightly, flexing the fingers of the heavy black alloy. "However, what she witnessed was nothing more than brute physical force," he continued. "Strength of body alone tells her very little about the nature of my actual abilities."

He paused.

"In other words," Grimm added in an analytical tone, "she has learned that I am physically strong and little else." The lion stared, Grimm continued speaking as though discussing something trivial. "She does not know anything about my actual abilities."

The explanation seemed oddly detailed, the Cowardly Lion found himself blinking in confusion.

("Why... why is he explaining this to me?")

It was not as though the lion had asked for such a detailed breakdown. Still, the implication of Grimm’s words caused another wave of worry to creep into his mind.

"B-but if she was watching us..." the lion pressed nervously, "then that means she could attack again at any moment, right?" His tail flicked anxiously. "W-what if she sends something worse this time?"

Grimm folded his heavy gauntleted hands together calmly in front of him.

"If it is another paltry spell like the one she used before," he said, "then we have little to fear." The words came out with mild boredom, he paused briefly before adding in a dry tone, "Unless, of course, her true intention is to bore us to death through repeated attempts like that." His helmet tilted slightly. "In that case, she may yet succeed."

The Cowardly Lion simply stared at him, his mouth opened and then closed again. The lion struggled to understand how someone could speak so casually about a powerful witch potentially launching an attack at any moment.

His ears twitched uncertainly.

("...Then again,") he thought slowly, glancing at the shattered golems scattered across the ground. ("This man did just destroy three giant monsters like they were made of paper.") The memory made him shiver slightly. ("...And he’s definitely insane.")

That conclusion brought a strange kind of comfort, perhaps it was best not to question Grimm’s lack of concern too much.

Before the lion could say anything else, another voice suddenly drifted into the air nearby.

"Whoa, seems like I missed out on something interesting." The voice was soft and familiar, the lion’s head snapped upward.

A small figure was drifting down toward them through the open sky.

Puck.

The fairy moved lazily through the air, her small form hovering with ease as she approached the pair. Her pink eyes scanned the ground below, taking in the scattered chunks of stone that littered the area.

"...Huh," she murmured quietly as she floated lower.

Grimm shifted his attention toward her.

"Already done looking through the city?" he asked.

Puck drifted down until she was hovering roughly at the level of his helmet, her gauntleted hands folding behind her back casually as she stopped in place.

"I suppose so," she replied. "I saw most of what I wanted to see. At least enough to get a sense of the place."

Her tone was neutral and her expression was calm, though something about her gaze seemed distant. Grimm watched her for a moment in silence.

("She’s unsatisfied.")

The thought formed quietly in his mind. Yet it was not the expression of someone whose expectations had simply gone unmet. There was something slightly different about the look in her eyes. The General could not quite determine the cause.

"Did the city bore you?" he asked at last.

Puck blinked before breaking into a small grin.

"No," she said. "Actually, it was pretty cute." She lifted one hand as she spoke, gesturing vaguely in the direction of Bunnybury. "The houses are tiny and neatly arranged, the gardens are everywhere, and everything feels tidy," she explained. "It’s honestly impressive how everything looked neat and well kept." Her grin widened slightly. "And all the rabbits were walking around wearing these nice little suits." Her voice softened with mild delight. "They looked ridiculously adorable."

Grimm was quiet for a moment, then he spoke.

"Did observing such a sight result in the destruction of any brain cells?"

Puck stared at him.

"...What?" She frowned slightly. "...I have absolutely no idea what that sentence was supposed to mean," she said flatly after a moment. "But since it came from you, I am assuming it was meant as an insult." She crossed her arms with a small huff. "Can’t a girl appreciate something cute without being judged for it?"

Grimm did not respond to the complaint.

"Did you actually see something interesting?" he asked instead.

Puck narrowed her eyes slightly.

"Wouldn’t you like to know?" she replied with a smug smile.

"Yes," Grimm said without hesitation. "That is why I asked." His voice carried a hint of dryness beneath the helmet.

Puck stared at him for a moment.

"...Ugh." She exhaled slowly. "That was—" She stopped herself mid-sentence. "...Never mind." Her fingers brushed through one of her hair bangs as she thought for a moment. "I did see some interesting things," she admitted eventually. "But knowing you and your weird definition of what counts as ’fascinating’..." She shrugged lightly. "...most of it probably wouldn’t interest you."

Her hand moved to her chin as she considered something.

"Actually, there was one thing." Grimm remained silent, waiting. "One of the rabbits I saw was reading a newspaper," she explained. "There was a small article about a dragon sighting somewhere north of here." She glanced at Grimm as she continued. "At first I thought maybe it was Albion." She shook her head slightly. "But according to the Goddess Iofiel, Albion is currently in the Heart Kingdom, which lies to the south."

Her tone grew more thoughtful.

"And if it were Ddraig..." She paused briefly. "...well, there would probably already be chaos spreading across half the world by now."

Grimm considered the information.

"I see," he said quietly. "My lieutenant, perhaps."

Puck hummed thoughtfully at that. "So all of those like you..." Her eyes drifted toward Grimm’s armored form. "...can just turn into dragons?" She studied him curiously.

"If you train hard enough," Grimm replied calmly. "My lieutenant was something of a prodigy."

The Cowardly Lion stood nearby watching the entire conversation unfold, his gaze moved slowly between Grimm and Puck.

("...Turn into dragons?") he thought, his brows knitting together in confusion.

The longer he listened, the harder it became to follow what they were talking about. And the strangest part was how casually they spoke about it. As if turning into dragons was just another normal topic of conversation.

Something told him he was about to regret traveling with the insane man known as Grimm.