I love the way Lazuli engraved the decorations; the gems, although basic and imperfect, are well placed and do give it a nice look.
"This is great, thanks," I say to her.
"Y-you'r welcome!" She bows to me and gets straight fast.
I come out of the tent, happy and delighted that I have new improvements to my weapon.
"It was time you did something like that for me!" Karina says, with her hand on her chest.
I did it for me though...
"The increase is low, but it will help until we can get something better," I comment. These upgrades are not permanent, after all, I can remove them with a decorator like Lazuli.
Lazuli passes by me and goes to Adhuin's tent, where he is still working. That is when I see Lucio getting up and moving away from the group.
"Tsk..." I click my tongue while I am thinking about my next move.
"Are you thinking about talking to him?" Karina asks.
"I have a few questions to ask him."
I quickly walk towards him. Aurelia looks at me when he is moving and sees I am approaching. I nod at her, telling her to leave him to me. Neither of us trust him, even when he has been helpful. He did join the battle against Maxwell, after all.
"Hey, Lucio!" I call his attention.
I catch him as he is moving between the tents into the forest. "Where are you going? I need to speak with you."
He stops and turns towards me. I cannot read his expression.
"What is it, Amber?"
"Why are you following us? Lisa, I get it. She got caught and probably has no idea where to go. You?"
Lucio shakes his head.
"I actually thought you would trust me. I have nothing against you."
"Not even 400k?"
"Heh, I suppose I left a bad impression..." He takes a step forward. I take one back, keeping my distance. "A very bad one... Okay, let me explain. I never had any intention of capturing you and taking the reward money. You have always defeated me; the only way I could even have a chance is by setting up a trap."
"Sure," I answer with sarcasm. I don't believe him.
"I don't trust him either," Karina adds.
The only thing talking in his favor is that he has not done anything so far, and that he decided to help me against Maxwell. Even then, I cannot give my back to him at any moment.
"You said you wanted to tell me something, yet you have not approached me so far." I point out.
"I was looking for it when we arrived at town."
"We are perfect here." The fact that he is dodging is worrisome
"I suppose you are right..." He looks to the ground. "Amber... You should have noticed the kingdom is acting weird, right? I have been hearing rumors, and maybe it has to do with what happened to you."
"I'm listening..." He must be talking about how Orianna decided to betray me.
"Rumors say King Reynald and Princess Orianna received a visit from an unknown messenger, someone who warned them about something that will happen in the future... And now Maxwell knows about the same message."
I stay silent for a few moments. I think I know what he is about to say.
"You know about them already. The Gates. Seems this person is interested in them and has been going around, revealing their existence to important people... They call him The Traveller."
That name again, the Traveller.
"You know, rumors are what an adventurer and traveler needs. We use that to make our living... And this one is repeating. Faction leaders have been visited by this person, and everything changed, motivations shifted, morals moved... Only a few seem to have kept themselves from changing the way others did."
"How long has this Traveller been going around?"
"Some say it has been months. He visits a faction leader, tells them something, and they stop being who they were."
"And you think he is the one responsible for what happened to me and the choice to change the laws in the Kingdom?"
He nods.
"In fact... I was wondering if you contacted him. When I heard you were hunted by the Kingdom, I felt you might have talked with him and learned what he whispered to everyone."
"I have not met this person. With Maxwell is the first time I have heard about this Traveller..."
"They say he wears a mask or something to cover his face."
Like the person who made sure I was carried to that dungeon... Could that person be the one behind this all? He seemed too unbothered about the dungeon monsters, and he even went through the creature that killed Kathrina.
I inspect Lucio's face for any sign of deceit. I cannot say I am the best at detecting it, but I cannot say I don't find any. I still don't get why this had to wait until we arrived at town, or why he didn't say it at the moment.
"I am hunting that Traveller." Lucio informs. "I can remove myself from your party once we arrive at the next town if you want, but I need to find him, and I need safe passage there."
There is a bit of a pause. I cross my arms, thinking about this mysterious person. Someone who has been whispering mysteries to the different groups to make them act and that, maybe, is the reason why I was put into this situation.
"If you try something funny, remember Aurelia is around." I answer and turn around. I hear him chuckle as I return to the fire.
I sit beside Aurelia.
"So, what did our mysterious companion say?" Aurelia asks.
"There seems to be someone behind the change of heart of the Princess. And he is chasing that person. I don't know if he is lying."
"I can just kill him, but you told me to continue observing him for the time being... Well, I have good news. The Movers are moving north, too. They are breaking camp tomorrow now that everyone is together. If we keep them safe, they will even pay us. What do you say?"
I nod. We will have a safer company if we go with them.