The girl, Deiba, was resting, sleeping under the tree. Luca was seated beside her, and Rin was alert, watching around for any danger. Ming was just thinking about one thing: is it good for them to believe in their stranger? But on the other side, he also thought that the girl, Deiba, was too young and looked innocent; she did not seem harmful to them. Both thoughts bothered Ming. Meanwhile, Luca and Rin were waiting for Deiba to wake up so they could start their journey again. A few hours later, Deiba started waking up. Luca, Rin, and Ming straightened up.
"You are awake," Luca said.
Deiba rubbed her eyes and nodded.
"About time," Rin said, with a calm and cold voice.
Then Ming suggested, "We should start our journey then." His voice was calm. Rin and Luca nodded, then the three of them started closing their bags. Deiba also got up. Rin took a breath and said, "So, let's go." Then the three of them started their journey.
---
On the other side, in HQ
In HQ, Kenzo, Sofia, and Akiko were doing their training, guided by Hikari, Amaya, Daisuke, and Fubuki. They were training with Soru, Sheto, and others. During the training, Akiko was thinking, "When will they arrive back?" Sofia was thinking and murmuring, "Stay safe and come back safely." Kenzo was not thinking about this that much, but about something else that no one knew.
Hikari, who was giving training to them, glanced at the gate and murmured, "I hope you all are alright." Everyone was thinking about Luca, Rin, and Ming's safety. They kept doing their daily routine activities like training: Sofia's interactions with Ash and the leaders, Akiko's interactions with Soru and other leaders, Kenzo's quietness, Soru's interactions with Akiko, the Old Lady, and Sofia. But in everyone's mind, there was concern for Luca, Rin, and Ming. They were unaware of the danger that was coming toward them, toward HQ.
---
Back in the forest
Rin, Luca, Ming, and Deiba kept on their journey. Luca was getting curious about Deiba's face. He even tried to get a closer look at her face by any excuse, but Deiba always moved away. Rin and Ming noticed that and shot their glare at Luca.
"Luca, behave," Rin warned.
Then Ming said, "Luca, if she does not want to show her face, then respect her choice." His voice was calm.
Luca sighed and nodded but also pouted a bit, which made Rin roll his eyes. Ming smiled a little, almost unnoticeable, and Deiba laughed a bit at his pout.
Luca looked at her with surprise and said, "Hey Rin, Ming, look! She laughed! She actually can laugh!"
Rin rubbed his forehead, shook his head, and sighed. "She is not a robot who can't laugh, idiot. Don't be so surprised."
Ming said in a calm voice, "Don't make yourself look like a fool. It's not a big deal if she laughs. Don't be like Soru, who says nonsense things always."
[In HQ, Soru sneezed and said to himself, Did anyone say my name?]
Back in the forest, Luca felt a bit offended by their comment and pouted even more.
"Stop pouting, idiot," Rin said firmly.
"Fineee," Luca responded with a pouty voice. Deiba smiled a bit at Luca. Rin and Ming tried to hide their smiles but also smiled a little, almost unnoticeable.
After a few hours of journey, they arrived at the fruit tree. Rin stepped forward, looking up at it. The tree was big and tall. Rin took a breath of relief and said, "This is that tree."
Ming and Luca looked at it, then up at the tree, and they also took a breath of relief and nodded. Luca smiled with relief, and Ming murmured, "Finally." Deiba stood next to them.
Was this the end of this journey? No. They still had to go back to HQ, but could they go back safely, or was another problem waiting for them? And in HQ, would the others sense the new danger that was coming toward them, or not?.
End of chapter 24