It seemed the girl liked to mind her matters even while speaking unofficially to a companion. Noboyuki couldn't help but laught at that fact. "You should've heard me speaking with my boss then. I couldn't speak so casually or even treat him as a friend, in all honesty, he got pissed the moment I did so. Then again, he was a sourpuss and I am not exactly a 'by the book' kind of guy." For the first time, though, he thought that Rena was actually enjoying herself, and it made him happy as well. She seemed to even crave for knowledge. It was good to see that, even if it was in another world.

Noboyuki simply nodded in acknowledgement as he heard Rena speak about herself. It was truly something how a princess was allowed to wander like that. Though he had already experienced her hardheadness first hand, so he could make out how that conversation with her father went. "Ha, in my world, every country is so different from the other. You would hardly be able to communicate between each other if the guys hadn't decided on a common language with which they could speak between each other. Still, I don't know how the big shots think, though. I am but another guy in the whole system." Noboyuki shrugged. He was always under the impression that, maybe, a monarchy wasn't so bad after all, despite what had happened in the past.

"And our problems? Pfft, they are a lot bigger than yours, let me assure you." Noboyuki said, dismissing the motion with his hand. "I mean, you guys have it easier than us. I will not say your problems are smaller than ours, cause that'd be a lie. However, we have to deal with a loooot more of things. For example. We are on the verge of destroying ecosystems and what not with all the shit we do." He then noticed he had cursed in front of her. He scratched the back of his head, looking a bit flustered. "Sorry about that. Anyhow, there's still a lot of things. Corrupt politicians, drugs. There's a mythological tale in Japan that says that after a big fight, the Gods Izanami and Izanagi said to each other 'I am going to kill 1,000 men on the surface of earth every day', said Izanami to Izanagi and he answered, 'Then I am going to give birth to 1,500.' Sometimes it actually seems true though." Noboyuki explained to her, and couldn't help but smile sadly.

"You guys are better off here, with all the nature there is here, maybe also better without technology and drugs like in my own world."

Rena actually seem to be listening deeply to what Noboyuki had to say, and well he had nothing good to say it looked like. She had to wonder, was his world really in such disarray? Whatever was happening, she was starting to become truly enthralled in their conversation. "You don't think our lords are corrupt here? I've heard many stories of stewards stealing small amounts of tax money from their liege, and for those more ambitious even to the point of in-fighting where one lord literally attempts to take land from another through direct military force. Bribery is common in the courts, even in assassination plots... if it were not for my father and the diligence of his courtiers I probably wouldn't be alive today as I am the last of my house, at least until I find marriage in order to continue my family line."

The princess motioned towards the same golden fields to their side, "If it were not for recent advances in agriculture, that land would be barren, the soil would be drained, while I'm not sure if that is the same as your 'ecological' problems, I'm willing to say that it is on a similar level in at least some way. I have traveled enough to know that across all cultures no one has more or less problems per say, not even different ones in essence, despite the huge differences between our two worlds I will still hold that to be true." Rena stopped walking, hopefully Noboyuki did the same, she still had the same thoughtful look about her, still thinking deeply on what the hero had said. "I have to wonder, do you really hate your home, your old life has much as you make it out to be? A home should be close to a man's heart, especially if that home holds family, I would hope that you had close relatives, or at a minimum friends back where you came from." She tilted her head questioningly, perhaps attempting to make it clear that she was somewhat confused by her companion's attitude.

She didn't wait for an answer before taking off down the road again, she didn't mean for Noboyuki to answer right there, that really maybe it would be better for him to take time to think about what she had asked, plus the town center of the hamlet was just in view. "Well, looks as if we made it to the hamlet proper, come on, I'd say we can pick up the pace provided you foot continues to behave." Rena started into a light jog, less time spent walking, the more time they'll be able to experience this small community's life.

"Heh." Noboyuki let out when he heard Rena ask him whether or not he hated his own world. "Hey now, I didn't say I hated it. If anything, I thought it was boring, but that didn't really mean that I didn't like the world. I lived in blissful ignorance of all of those facts and, to be honest, it is easier to remember the bad things rather than the good things." Well, after all, it came to mind quicker the bad things about his world rather than the good things. Still, it seemed they had their fair share of problems. "As long as it didn't have anything to do with me, I was happy. Unfortunately, every human contributed to those problems, in one way or the other. Most people are like me, I'm sure. As long as it doesn't affect you, you can ignore it."

Noboyuki gazed into the distance, thinking. Yeah, that was pretty much how he was in his own world, if a bit hypocritical. He shook his head. "Well, at the very least, I have a purpose here that I can't turn a blind eye to." Of course, he was talking about the prophecy of the hero. If he was chosen for one thing or the other, then he'd just have to fulfill that purpose and then get back to his own world, back to his dull life. "It's not that I didn't have any loved ones back in my own world, I had my family and a few friends, but, well, no matter what, I always thought my life lacked some thrill, ya know? I think here I've gotten a taste of that. Maybe, when I get back, I can finally settle down once and for all."

He lifted an eyebrow when Rena said that about the village, and then took into a light jog. Noboyuki went behind her, though not jogging and merely walking at a bit faster pace. "All right, let's do it. I don't think my food has anything to comply about right now."

The hamlet deserved to be called such, just a hamlet for good reason. Not only was this settlement's population on the sparse side, there were also a lack of any permanent structures made of real building materials, for most of the people made due in makeshift shacks that were barely held up by scrap wood. Although the idea of such a poor hamlet had been changing for the last decade, with a new trade route running directly through the land the small homestead brought about more in the way of traffic and especially traders who may have sought to offload extra merchandise for a guaranteed profit rather than risking to continue on. On top of that with the recent rise of demon encounters the hamlet eventually became the last bastion of humanity before entering demon infested lands, that is until reaching the next defensive settlement.

As Rena and Noboyuki entered the town square it became clear what affect the considerably new found prosperity had, in a circle around the center were newly build stone buildings, and a few others that were still under the hammer. Another thing to note was the many people out and about, while most of them were not real residents, only merchants and other such travelers, the number of bodies added to a joyous atmosphere. All along the roads leading in, shrewd business men had set up stalls to pedal whatever valuable wares they may have had on hand. Rena decided to take a closer look at one of these stalls, this man was dealing in jewelry, while odd that one would sell luxuries out in a backwater settlement, they certainly looked to be of fine quality, necklaces, rings, bracelets, and uncut gems. The girl was honestly tempted to see about taking something with her, but through self discipline she held back. They didn't have the budget to allow for such purchases, now that didn't stop here from touching and examining the jewels.

They spent half an hour simply exploring, mostly wandering with no real goal, after all they were taking some leisure time, it was a date. Rena at first was still somewhat tense, but as they continued on she gradually relaxed, and before long one could say she really was having fun. She was much more notably loose, not nearly uptight as normal, and perhaps more able to speak often engaging in small take with lot more frequency than before. Rena didn't talk about anything important other than going into detail into court life, what to say, and what not say, ways to remain diplomatic while dealing with higher society. It was not like she was giving instruction, rather it was more like just idle chatter in a friendly manner, even with a few minor jokes thrown in. Here the princess did stop worrying about keeping appearances, maybe forgetting to keep them, maybe sick of trying to lie, whatever the case is Rena, at least in the moment, enjoyed being able to be pleasant for once.

The little princess seemed a lot more tame and calm than the other days. Maybe it was the whole atmosphere of the little village that just screamed 'calmness'. Noboyuki could appreaciate it too, since his sarcastic comments went in a downward spiral to nothingness. It was nice not having to think on how he could answer people with a witty comment at least for a while.

Rena also seemed to be quite interested in the stalls and whatnot. As the man he was, though, Noboyuki stopped in the weapon's shop to look at whatever new things they had. Swords and whatnot. Just then he started thinking, why did he choose a simple short sword in the ened? There were a lot more of weapons aside from that, but he still chose the most generic looking one. Mayeb it was just as per habit of not standing out? Now that he looked at them, there were a lot more weapons that he could use and, while his own wasn't exactly a katana, it was still slightly curved. Maybe he only felt more familiar with those kinds of weapons in general? Japanese blood and whatnot. He asked around for a bit, and was even about to turn to Rena to ask her if he could buy a new weapon. Even so, what he found was the girl gazing at the jewels and then going on with her journey, without buying anything.

Well, he had enough money, and he hadn't done anything good for her lately, not to mention that she did cure his foot yesterday.... He approached the salesman and decided to buy one of the jewels she was looking at, to be honest, the cheapest he could find, well, he didn't really buy it because of the price, but because it was also pretty. A sapphire heart, a pink heart that shined brightly. While he said it was cheap, though... "Damn, that hurt my wallet." He looked at the inside of his rather modern looking black and blue wallet. It was now mostly empty with just a bit of this world's currency inside of it. "Critical hit to my exonomy, huh?" He sighed. Well, that girl should really appreciate what he was doing for her.

Later on, they were just having bits and bites of small talk. Noboyuki answered Rena's jokes with some of his own, and laughed a bit more heartily than other times. Yeah, it was nice being like that. He felt in high school again, when he had the right to laugh at nothing and just because. As an adult, he didn't have as many opportunities to do so. He also included some of the funny and even outrageous stories of his past that he thought would entertain Rena, of course, taking care not to say any details that would confuse her since her world did not have such things. He told her about the time he mocked a professor behind their back but didn't notice the one in front of him and got suspended, another time when he fell off the stage in a school play and even the time when he laughed so hard that milk came out of his nostrils while drinking in front of his crush at the time. Now, he just had to wait. For a good moment he could give her the collar he had bought for her, and for her not to think he is creepy. It wasn't until later that he questioned why the hell he bought it in the shape of a heart.

They were out of the market, for the most part while there were a few stalls left Rena left them alone, not as if they had the funds to entertain buying anything extra. Interestingly enough there appeared to small gathering area for discussions, these were more common in major cities and were actual meeting halls rather than the outdoor one present in the hamlet. Rocks and lugs must've been hauled from elsewhere, that didn't seem to matter much since the spot was crowded anyway. Rena pulled Noboyuki towards the meeting place, insisting that they could use information, but really in truth she just wanted to hear some stories.

The way it worked at these gathering spots was everyone took part, one person takes a turn to share either a piece of information or a story, in Eskar it was a very social activity, an important one at that. Tales were varied, some were about actual events, very solem, down to earth about the continued invasion of demonic forces. Often times it brought the mood downward, but no one could deny the importance of such news. Others were boasting from hunters, kills of epic proportions, course most knew them to be false but it was all in good fun. One in particular was of Sir Roland quite honestly only children stories about the moral adventures of a fictional knight. Rena while, she didn't say anything, still had a love for these childish tales, despite the fact she long outgrew them.

When it was her turn Rena decided to talk about one of the far off realms she visited years ago, Daldrom, a merchant republic more akin to Noboyuki's medieval Italy than a typical kingdom. While she wasn't considered to be a talented storyteller, Rena tried to be animated as possible throwing her arms about when described the vast vineyards to the best of her ability. She went into greater detail about the daily life of the common folk, about the brick homes they lived in, their cultural foods which mostly considered of fish. Then when it came to the court, she tried to paint a clear picture of the soaring palace walls, the well maintained lawn, the sophistication of the artists, the poets, of the best works displayed proudly within that ivory white castle. By the end Rena looked ecstatic, smiling brightly and even laughing occasionally.

She turned to Noboyuki, seeing as it was his go, she proceeded to forcefully pull to guy to his feet. "Come on Noboyuki." Rena spoke in a teasing tone, almost singsonging, "I hope you got something good for these folk." She looked upon him practically grinning. This date was great, a single chance to cut loose, at least for a day.

After that, Rena decided to pull him into a mass of people. He didn't handle crowds well, but it was a small crowd, as per the small town. Being there for a bit wouldn't bring any harm, right? They sat down and started on listening to what the hell this little get-together was about. Apparently, they still prcticed there the oral transmission of stories, unlike his own world where everything could be accessed at any time with the internet.

Noboyuki smiled and listened attentively to everything everyone had to say. There were some sad news, there were some grandiose tales of people killing monsters, there was even a story that was certainly completely ficitional, but still sounded so fun and entertaining that everyone listened with a lot of attention, just barely saying anything every once in a while when people were so surprised they couldn't hold it in. Noboyuki laughed under his breath. It was the kind of romance, well, one of the kinds of romance, that men yearned for. At the very least, he was having one of those romances right now wiht his quest to slay the Demon King. Still, whatever everyone said regarding the demon forces advancing made his desire to put an end to this even stronger. It wasn't right, for that demon lord to be taking the peace away from these people.

Rena then talked about her own experience. She talked about a kingdom named Daldrom that, to be honest, resembled the Italy in his own world quite a lot. The vineyards, the art, the music and everything else. It reminded him of the renaissance that came about in his own world. It was odd, but he didn't think much about it. There was bound to be some countries that developed more that the others in some areas, after all. Same as what happened to Italy. Maybe it was only the natural course of things and how it went in the end, that some kindoms will finally become greater in some regard than others. Military strength, art, technology. He wondered if there was a Leonardo DaVinvi in this world as well, since he admired him personally.

And then, it was his turn to tell a story. "W-Wha? Me too?" Now, they put him in the spot in quite a bad way. If he had known that a turn would come for him, he'd have thought of an story before. Of course, he should have deduced that out of the fact that Rena did tell her own. After a bit of awkward shuffling and thinking for Noboyuki, he finally came up with a great story to tell them. Instead of an story about himself that would probably be boring for them, he decided to tell them about Sir Arthur of the Round Table. A famous knight of British mythology. He thought it was right to tell that kind of thing in this situation. He told them how he got his prized Holy sword Excalibur out of a stone and became kind after that, and how he slayed a dragon too. How he united his knights and how everyone of them was almost as impressive as Arthur himself. After finally finishing the tale he had to tell everyone, Noboyuki sat down, still a bit unsure of whether or not it was liked. He just hoped for the best.

He then turned to see Rena and smiled. Everyone seemed a bit too impressed. Maybe he went a bit too far with his story? He did only tell them bit and bites of what he actually knew of the whole story. Not like he was some kind of historian or something like that. Well, it had some of the effect he wished for, since he wanted to give them a real shock with the stories of the King Arthur that had even become part of the anime culture in his world and time. "Well, that was fun. I've never done something like this, not in person at the very least."

Arthur huh, Noboyuki made this man out be greater than life itself, which had to beg the question if this king ever existed, it all seemed be fictional, as someone who had known an actual king her entire life she know what to really expect. Still as far as stories goes it wasn't the worse, plus Noboyuki had to have some natural talent if this was apparently his first time telling one at a garthering spot. When he sat back down Rena leaned over, "Then you have a knack for this if it were your first story." She flashed a nice smile before returning her attention to the next speaker.

By the time everyone started dissolving the gathering it was well into the evening, the sky already streaked with the brilliant orange of sunset. Rena motioned for the hero to follow her, it was about time to return home at the tavern. On their walk back the girl was still in high spirits, the day had gone much, much better than she ever expected when Noboyuki suggested a date out. She didn't regret a moment of it, not at all. While she wasn't talking, Rena was whistling a random tune, nothing in specific just a random collection of notes. Reflecting on the day as a whole, she'd actually learned quite a bit about her partner, in that single day he had revealed so much more than the month they've been on the road. It was good, the first time she felt like they connected.

She stopped by a low stone wall, behind it was the sun almost ready to disappear below the horizon, now the sky was in full twilight. Rena instead on moving on like she initially expected to do, she decided that simply watching the beauty of the scene to be too peaceful to pass up. Without turning her head she addressed the hero, "I can say that overall, I don't regret today, far beyond what I expected... what do you think about sunsets? Are they an end or a beginning?"

As they walked away from the now dispersed group of people, Noboyuki noted Rena being a little more lively than other times. She was even whistling about like anyother girl her age would when she had nothing to worry about. Noboyuki smiled at that. It made him feel like a doting father, in some way. He walked beside her, moving his head at the rhythm of whatever she was singing. It was either a song or something random, Noboyuki opted to think it was the latter since it didn't really resemble anything he had heard from the bards they had encountered before. In any case, it was a sticky tune that may not leave his brain for a while. Even so, he was quiet as a tomb at the time. He had some things in mind, after all. Like, how was he going to give her the pendant he bought for her.

He was taken away from his thoughts once Rena spoke up about the sunsets. "Heeeh..." Noboyuki smiled again with the same sarcastic aura he almost always had to him. "It's good that I was able to live up to the expectations of her majesty. Wouldn't have wanted to have my neck cut just because I couldn't take the princess on a decent date." He even motione with his finger going through his throat as he spoke of himself getting beheaded by a thing like that. He then turned to see the sunset. Always a sight to behold, no matter the world. "The end or the beginning, huh? Now, that's a hard one. In a scientifical point of view, I think it is both. No, it is a fact that it is both. What is an end here is a beginning on the other side of the world." Pragmatic as always, after saying that, Noboyuki sighed. "In a more philosophical point of view, though. I've always thought of it as a beginning. There's always the hope of the new day, no matter how bad the past day had been before, you can always make up for it the next day."

Noboyuki simply said. Even so, he felt a bit flustered about what he had just said and it even showed in his face as he blushed even a bit under his glasses. He scratched the back of his head with embarassment and fidgeted a bit before finally feeling that it was even a bit too much for even him. "I-I am going back to the inn. See you." He propped his glasses up and turned around. He was about to dash back to the inn, but he remembered about the pendant. He quickly took it out of his pocket and stuffed in Rena's. "This isn't any kind of big deal. Only a present. Don't think much of it." He simply said, before leaving for the inn.

He'd just forget about it and welcome Rena as if nothing had happened after that. It was easier that way. He just hoped she wouldn't bring up the matter of why the hell was the pendant shaped like a heart. It was just that there wasn't any other kind like that that was as cheap as that one...

---

Three weeks passed and now, Noboyuki was plenty sure that his foot was now cured. He gathered his things and was now ready to leave. They did some jobs around the town too, to get some money for their travels afterwards. He felt they were just about ready to leave and he was now waiting on the lobby of the inn, for Rena to come along. The only thing that bugged him was leaving the thing with the God unsolved. He was a nocturnal hunter and he couldn't hurt them right now, since there were still some rays of light on the floor.

Well wasn't that a mouthful to say? Still there was something endearing about the way he spoke, all in spite of his lack of finesse with words. She thought this in the best possible way, because really he could've gotten to the point with many less words, all the same he had a positive outlook, something that they'll need moving foward. Without warning however, it almost seemed Noboyuki panicked... about something, which right at the time Rena didn't notice, at least until he shoved an object of some kind into her hands, after saying he's going back to the room. It was a present he said, curious she looked down upon the gift, and well was quite frankly surpised. Somehow the hero found a pendant, more like a collar, a sapphire in the shape of a heart, treated on such a way to appear almost pink. The craftsmanship was faulty at best, that said it would've been pricey anyway. Rena stared at the collar, her mind suddenly racing to understand what it meant, this was no small gift in her eyes... no it really meant much more.

For maybe five minutes she stood there, seriously contemplating how to react, yet she had nothing, for the time being she held onto it, and nothing more.

---

The last three weeks were largely uneventful, and during that time Rena was quiet, not cold like before, she was unsure. After their date neither of them talked about the collar, the gift, it just seemed to be out of bounds somehow. Noboyuki was ready in the lobby while Rena was cleaning out the last of their things, the owner wasn't around, he had to take care of a few errands, so they've already thanked the man earlier. Rena was of course dressed in her traveler's cloak, everything was packed, everything but one specific item. It remained tucked away since that day, she didn't want to look at it, maybe affaid what it symbolized. She wouldn't have thrown it out, or leave it behind, but still... she had no idea what to do with that collar.

Rena came ambling down the stairs, not talkative still somber. She walked up to Noboyuki, head down, eyes cast to her feet. She was ready to go, and hoped the hero was able to understand that. One important thing to note, if the light were to hit her just right, one could see a brief glint of pink... around her neck.

Noboyuki looked at Rena curiously. Yeah, it had been... slightly awkward lately, but why was she so, well, depressed looking right now? Noboyuki had, for the most part, been acting normal in his own regard. He didn't like awkward atmospheres and something that had worked for him for a while now was how he decided to ignore things like those and almost forget about them. Even so, he had the matter still hanging over his head. What could Rena have thought about his present? Even if he didn't really mean what the pendant may have meant in any other situation, he was plenty sure that he harbored no romantic feeling towards the little princess he had met in this world.... probably.

As she appraoched him, Noboyuki couldn't help but feel a bit embarrassed himself. 'What the hell, Noboyuki? What are you, 16?! You've long since passed that age! You are already a man, so fess up and get on with the show! You both need to be focused on the task at hand. Break time is over.' He thought to himself, trying to give himself a bit of a pep up talk. He cleared his throat to go on with what he needed to say. "Is something the matter, little princess? You are unusually quiet and well behaved. It throws me offa bit, to be honest, not having your harsh words accompanying my journey just doesn't feel right." He said, with his usual sarcastic smile on his face.

"We can talk as we make our way out of here, though. We wouldn't want for that thing to show up again if we take too much time. Maybe the next town will be our lucky break and I will finally get those powers you talk so much about." Noboyuki started making his way to the door, ready to leave the twon anytime. He was acting like a hero, for once, at the very least.

"Yeah, no you're right, let's focus on the road... let me find the map first." Rena purposefully ignored his question, primary since she wasn't all that sure herself. True to her word the girl reached into her cloak, the map was stored in convenient pocket designed to hold such things. She must've been too rushed for whatever reason as the folded up parchment fumbled out of her fingers and on the floor, cursing silently under her breath Rena, still in a hurry, picked the map back up. Her face burned bright red, hoping beyond hope Noboyuki wouldn't say anything, how could this happen to her? She had been in court life for her entire adult existence, talking to powerful people without breaking a sweat, but here in a remote tavern located at a nameless hamlet she was bumbling around... and come to think of it, why did she care what Noboyuki thought at all...?

Rena closed her eyes and breathed deeply, trying to regain her composure, despite the lack of it in the first place, trying to calm her fingers, trying to calm her busy mind. When ready, maybe, she unfolded the map and lied it across the floor, possibly distracting herself by explaining the next stretch of the journey would be enough to help her relax. She launched into a needlessly in-depth summary of the next region up ahead, much more information then needed, and of course a bit quickly. When done she didn't feel better, well maybe glad something that simple still wasn't out of her grasp, but all the same it did little to help steady her nerves. She couldn't look at her partner, for reasons only unknown to herself, no matter how hard she tried keeping eye contact was neigh impossible, it only served to increase the awkward air between them.

After tucking the map away in its proper pocket, Rena didn't say anything else, other then perhaps a muttered command to follow, she practically ran out of the lobby, it was starting to get stuffy in there, she didn't like it. Now outside the princess touched her blushed face, it felt better out under the sky, somehow... something was wrong she only wanted to understand why, although she thought of the obvious cause, for whatever reason she did not want to believe it, couldn't be... Rena stood there by the door, fidgeting with her gifted collar.

Yeah.... Rena wasn't herself. Like at all. Being so clumsy as to drop the map like that. She indeed have something in her mind. Noboyuki knew, supposed he knew, what was troubling her. 'I hope I am not right, though....' Noboyuki sighed, and tried his best to focus on what Rena was saying. There was no use over getting worked up on something like that, even if she seemed to be troubled by it, Noboyuki took it upon him to not say anything about it until she wanted to talk about it herself.

Noboyuki merely nodded at the explenetions Rena talked about, acknowledging them to their fullest, trying to overwrite the thoughts of him interfering on Rena's train of thought. He would have accomplished it had it been not for the fact that he saw Rena still troubled about the matter. There was nothing he could do about the growing awkwardness between the two of them if she wouldn't, at the very least, look at him. Maybe she did not really trust him enough as a friend to talk about those kinds of things? Maybe she just couldn't look at him anymore like a friend after the unnecessary gift he gave her the other day? Maybe she thought he was a creep now? Damn, there was him again and his habit of overthinking things. It was something that irritated him to no end.

After Rena decided to bail on him and run out, Noboyuki merely sighed and followed, though at a more relaxed pace. Walking to where Rena was now waiting, Noboyuki took his sweet time, trying to arrenge some kind of way in which he could chase away the awkward atmosphere between the two. After a while of deliberating over it, he thought he had finally found a satisfying answer. It would involve him lying, quite a bit in fact, but if that took away the awkwardness between the two of them, then that was completely all right. He approached the girl from behind and with his usual way of being incosiderate and just a plain ass, he lightly tapped Rena's back, if a bit forcefu. "Don't overthink it. It doesn't mean what you think it means, I've got completely no interest in you. It was just a present, nothing more. I prefer my girls more.... mature." He simply said, before getting on his way. "C'mon, we don't have time to waste now."

After hearing his words Rena wasn't so much as relieved as maybe what Noboyuki wanted, but only that much more confused. The signals he was giving were conflicting, giving her a gift was one thing, and honestly there wasn't any harm in a simple gift by itself. It was other things though, could possibly have something to do with when he presented that collar, which was really during an emotionally charged time, least for her. More importantly however was the collar itself, a heart being a symbol for love was very strong in Eskarian culture, if not love then one of deep companionship.

"I... it doesn't matter... nevermind, you're still right, I didn't mean to waste time." Rena spoke flatly, with a new emotion of confusion, or maybe frustration, rejection? In the end she wasn't too sure what it was, but it didn't help at all. Rena pulled way from Noboyuki, she'll have to take more time to think this over, plus despite what she wanted to say, the more diplomatic response was not to respond, guarding against unknown feelings fogging her own judgement. What was she doing? What did she even what? What did Noboyuki even want?

Good news is they finally were back on track, moving towards their original goal, this time with unexpected baggage unfortunately. Not much had changed from before, Rena was still not talkitive, still unable to state her companion in the eyes, it felt awful, but somehow she had to deal with it, and for sure the sooner, the better.

Some days after leaving the small village they had spent almost a month in, the pair finally got in with their journey. Noboyuki tried his best to keep up with appearances, but with Rena like that.... well, it was hard, even for a master of deceiving like him. Though, of course, before getting to the next settlement or village, they had to spent some time camping outside. It was nice once in a while, but having to spend most of his time outdoors like that.... Not something for him, not at all. Maybe not for Rena as well, no, maybe especially not for Rena. She did spend most of her live in castles and whatnot though.

Still, Noboyuki had been oddly bothered by the sudden thought that popped inside his head before. The master of deceive, Noboyuki, the man that had lied for a good part of his life. Most of what he could do was lying and now he was lying to himself, pretending to be a hero. Yeah, what the hell was up with that? Didn't he have anywhere better to be at? Like, his work? His boss must have already fired him, though. He had been away for a lot of days after all. Suddenly, the idea of going back to his world didn't seem as good.

It was late at night, and they had already set up camp for the night. Noboyuki was enjoying himself a cigarette, making sure not to let any of the smoke get to Rena, and also making sure that the wind blowed right on his face so that the smoke would go behind him. That way, Rena would only get a feint smell of the cigarette and not have to suck up all of the second hand smoke. "So, is there anything in your mind right now, princess? Feel free to share it with the group." He said, with a sarcastic smile on his face while he held his cigarette in his right hand. "The night is young, and we got no marshmallows to toast, so, wanna tell some kind of ghost stories or something to pass the time?"

Two months, it had been officially two months since she had met and subsequently partnered with Noboyuki, the weird man from a weird world, through all that he was meant to be a hero of legend. Thing was Rena stopped regarding him as such a while ago... probably was around when he gifted that collar, after that well she hadn't been able to think of him quite the same again. This was about the extend of what Rena confidently knew, this took her the weeks afterwards to finally decide, at least she was able to settle on something. Speaking about that collar Rena still wore it, the jewelry was a nice piece, not the nearly the most expensive... but she liked it none the less, although she was sure Noboyuki hadn't learned she wore it constantly yet, how would he react anyway? When he finds out.

At their campsite Rena continued to remain distant and silent, they had their tasks, she took care of her share wordlessly. She had gotten use to the new found measure of coldness, although it would be a lie if to say she didn't miss the joy from their date those many days ago. How come she was experiencing this then, a odd feeling of longing, nothing this strong not ever. Maybe she should try confiding in Noboyuki, still everytime she tried, she couldn't bring herself to talk, her voice got trapped.

The hero was drawing from one of his cigarettes, being considerate as not to blow the foul smoke upon her... she liked that about him. They were not doing much, just waiting, maybe trying to enjoy the night sky but who could say? The abruptly, to her, Noboyuki asked if anything was on her mind. She almost paniced thinking he finally learned what was on her mind and was about to dig into her about it, strange as that might sound, she wasn't in the best frame of mind. However soon she realized it was just him teasing, talks of ghost stories was a giveaway.

Yet, Rena had to ask him someday, it had been weighing on her mind, and perhaps somehow that was a good time. The practiced diplomat straightened her back as to appear more attentive, closed her eyes, and drew in a sharp breath. How come this was so hard for her to ask? Many times in the past she had no problems with being direct towards nobles in court, this was nothing. Rena felt a stupid courage well up inside her, she knew it was now or never, even if it were to possibly be so out of nowhere and had to be so so sudden to ask then, but she was dying to know, plus perhaps catching him off guard would give a more... truthful answer. Before she was able to chicken out, Rena blurted, "Noboyuki... I uh wanted to know... what kind of girls.., I mean uh women? Uh God, I mean what girls do you like!"

Noboyuki was about to choke on his cigarette after what Rena just said. He indeed started coughing a bit. It was something really sudden, even for Rena. He never thought a princess like that would be asking HIM of all people what kind of woman he liked. He figeted around a bit. His cigarette was also already at the end of its life, so Noboyuki threw it to the ground and stepped on it to put it out. He finally cleared his throat, but that didn't take the awkwardness away from the thing he was just about to answer. He scratched the back of his head and thought of how he could best answer the answer suddenly put over him.

"Hm, I.... Well, I.... I dunno how to answer that, to be honest." He laughed nervously a bit, as he beat around the bush to answer. He could lie his way out of this, but.... "I think.... I'd like someone who is, well, kind of... my contrary? I mean, maybe someone with a strong will, straight forward and if a bit naive. I dunno, maybe someone that, even though they act strong, they still want someone to protect them. Something like that? I dunno if that is a good answer though." For the first time, Noboyuki blushed furiously and was remarkably flustered when Rena asked him something.

He had to turn the tables on her, though. He didn't like being on the teased side, after all. "A-A-Anyway, are you crushing on someone right now?! I bet someone like you has at least some guy you'd like to be dating right now, right?! Or at least, you've got your type of guy well defined by now! Unless you are still as naive as you seem!" Noboyuki lost his cool for a bit as he pointed at Rena. His blushing became three times more intense as he shouted that, and his voice echoed through the woods. 'Hell, I am getting dragged into this. I need to stay calm.' Not that he could undo what he had just done, seeming almost like a teenager being asked what kind of girl he liked. Well, it was the first time he was asked that, and he felt it almost impossible for him to lie to the girl in front of him. He sat back down. He'd have liked to take back what he just said, but since the thing was already done, then why not hear what the girl had to say?

Little bit of shock and awe wasn't a bad thing, and as she kinda hoped that was the exact effect her question had. Rena sat in silence for just a few heartbeats, quickly trying to analyze what was said... what he described honestly sounded a lot like her, maybe not word for word, but unfortunately close. As much as she wouldn't want to admit it, her suspissions were becoming more and more confirmed, it was a terrifying prospect, yet also relieving somehow, knowledge is power after all... and maybe a relief in other ways.

Then Noboyuki tried to redirect the conversation, becoming quite flustered really something that Rena had not gotten to experience before, it was a whole lot different seeing the normally sarcastic hero actually becoming defensive. Mentally she saw this a chance to push, if he were becoming more unbalanced then maybe she would get some answers. Least this is what she wanted to say and do, instead her logical thought process got swept up in a torment of emotion. "N-no, no its uh not like that, I don't-t even think about dating..." Her tone lowered for a moment, her already red face blushed deeper. "I mean, not until you asked me on one." Her volume then returned. "No! I-I, uh just forget about that... you are the reason why I asked really, um, uhh just remember...? Back in the hamlet you've said that... you prefer your girls more mature... uh so that only got me thinking..."

Rena was only dropping deeper into embarrassment, faded off mid sentence as she realized what she ended up blurting out, shameful display that should've never happened, not to her of all people. God, she had to run some kind of damage control somehow, and it had to be blunt. She breathed in deeply, regaining her composure, the the first time in a long time she stared Nonoyuki in the eyes, it had to hit home to work. "Look... we've been traveling for long enough now, we can be honest to each other right? I... uh I need to know something, what do you think about our relationship now? And uh..." Rena almost faltered, nearly stumbling her words, "What do you think of me?"

Noboyuki knew something about lies, having told them all of his life to cover up for his screw ups and for whatever he didn't want to say, and that something was that lies had one great fault. That you needed to remember each and every one of them to follow up the story later. Noboyuki thought he had all and each of his lies stored away in his memory, but having been caught off guard like that took it away. He couldn't access his lie database after a question that threw him off as badly as that.

And now, he was put on the spot right now after she said that he had previously commented on how he liked mature women. That was a big lie if he ever told one. And Rena had to remember precisely that one of the many lies he had told during the trip. Then again, most of those lies were white lies that no one would have thought twice of. Like, I didn't eat your food or, I didn't cut down that mugger. Things like that that did more harm to his own person than to others.

"Oh, that was, you see, well, I meant......!" He tried to lie his way out, as he had done several times before. "I-I meant....! Kind of like, mentally? Something like that? I-I dunno...." He was losing his cool again, despite wanting to turn the tables on the girl to stop that. What could he do now? He was making a fool out of himself now. He propped his glasses up and took a deep breath. Yeah, he was just about prepared for any kind of curveball the girl threw at her right now. He was confident of that. It was just a matter of how he could steer the conversation away from that subject.

And then, she asked something else that surprised Noboyuki so much that he felt like dropping comically like in an anime character would when asked something ridiculous. 'A-A screwball!?' What the hell, why was Rena being so straightforward all of a sudden!? He had been thrown off his comfort zone in an extreme manner. Now, this truly put him on the spot. His heart was beating at one hundred per hour. He knew what would happen if he answered from the bottom of his heart. He thought he knew what would happen. Previous experiences spoke harder than just imagination. "I.... I know we are friends. At the very least, I know that's what we are right now. I know that I... am happy? Yeah, I'd say I'm happy with how things are right now." At least that came from the bottom of his heart, but what came next didn't.

Noboyuki bit his lower lip. Hell, he knew perfectly well what that question meant. He knew why Rena was asking it, and he knew the real answer for that, but... 'You gotta lie all the way, huh? Even if it is only for the sake of status quo..... For not changing things from what they are right now. It would hinder things in the future, and I think both of us cannot afford that. No. It is like it must be. I'm sorry....' After thinking about it for a while, Noboyuki finally came to a conclusion.

"And to me, Rena.... To me you are...." With his eyes stuck to the ground, Noboyuki finally swallowed everything up and decided to live up for his lies and go on with that path. He lifted his gaze to look at Rena, a kind, yet apologetic look in his eyes. "My comrade with whom I've been in an adventure with for a while and a precious friend." Having said what he had to say, he was fairly sure that that answer would give a satisfactory conclusion to all of this. Both of them would finally be able to look at each other in the eye, even if right now his heart ached like crazy.

She studied him long and hard, it was a reasonable answer, and one she truthfully was hoping for... but something was off. His words felted stilted, but natural, it was almost paradoxical. Rena had learned how to read people, it was a common skill in court after all, yet she had never really analyzed Noboyuki. He was only effectively a commoner so she didn't have reason to distrust him at face value. Now however she was starting to think differently... she wasn't sure, if anything he hid it very well, quite honestly on an impressive level. Still he just seemed too off to be truly natural, little too shifty in his gaze, taking a little too long to reach a conclusion. It was nothing big, no obvious giveaways, only smaller signals that at best... could prove something. For both their sakes Rena hopped this was only a false hunch.

She simply nodded and looked away, and sighed, "Then that's fine, long as we remain honest with each other I don't see there being any problems." She purposefully put an emphasis on the word honest, maybe he'll pick that up, but she wanted to drop signs that she was beginning to become suspicious. She stood up from her spot around the fire, clearly a bit tired. Her mood had normalized more or less, which was fantastic for here, could be that she only needed a release of emotion, although how long that would be the case remained to be seen.

"I'm... sorry for that, I think you should've figured how I have more than a few things on my mind, I just needed some answers, so thank you for telling me the truth, it helps." She could attack him right there, but she was sure that doing so would quite literally cause him to bolt, and well it could've also been uncalled for if he were really being honest. Rena said a quick good night before settling in for sleep, who could imagine what the future may bring?