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Chapter 289 – Interlude 4 – Kaori, The Actress, Part 6

Thankfully, the rest of the trip was without much incident. They ran into a couple of monsters here and there, but overall, nothing the guards and the Saviors couldn\'t handle. The lush forest that hugged the road they were on never darkened the way it did before. 

Thus, during a morning so bright and comfortable that even as tired as Kaori felt from not getting as much sleep as she usually did, she grinned out at the gates ahead, when she realized they had arrived. 

Wow…  She thought.  Pearl. We\'re here! 

"We made it!" Kaori pointed ahead, looking at the others. 

"In the end, we didn\'t get our flesh bitten off by some monstrous, ravenous beasts. Hooray," Vermia said with barely any emotion as she got out of the carriage. Kaori, however, interpreted that as some genuine relief on her part. 

One by one, the guards and the actresses all jumped off the carriage, but Kaori\'s eyes remained on the vehicle as she waited to see if the Saviors were departing. Specifically, she wanted to know if her time with Ash had already come to an end. 

She was curious about her. Putting aside how she saved her life, it felt like Ash had an interesting story to tell. One that Kaori would love to listen to. Thankfully, though, the Saviors both jumped off the carriage as well and quickly walked over to Kaori and her friends. 

"Well, here you are," Kasumi gestured ahead. "Safe and sound." 

"Thank you," Kaori bowed to her. The woman gave her a polite smile and waved her off. 

"You\'re welcome. So, do you already have a place to stay at, or what?" 

"Uh…" Kaori turned toward Yumi. She was, after all, the one who did most of the planning for their group. 

"No," Yumi shrugged. "We were actually just going to ask around for any potential inns to stay at." 

"Oh. In that case, I\'ve got a few to recommend." 

"I suppose that if you\'re saying this then the answer is \'yes\', but have you been here before?" 

"I live here," Kasumi replied quickly. "Well, when I\'m not training her," she pointed at Ash. 

That made Kaori notice that Ash had been looking at her before Kaori caught that and her eyes moved onto Yumi. 

Considering what Kaori had on her mind about wanting to get to know her a little better, she hoped this was a good sign that Ash felt the same way. 

Who knows? She thought.  I feel like I might be in the process of making a pretty good friend. A hot friend too, which is never a bad thing either. Can\'t have too many of those. 

"Anyway," Kasumi continued, "how about it?" 

"I\'d like that if it\'s alright with everyone," Yumi turned to gauge everyone\'s reaction. It was a subtle hint at her considerate nature that was part of why Kaori had connected so well with her in the first place. 

The troupe didn\'t have an official "leader" exactly. Everyone contributed in their own way. However, moments like these made it feel like Yumi was very much their unofficial leader. She was the most organized, and the one who always put together their schedule, but she always made sure everyone was in agreement with what she had in mind. 

"Yeah, sounds good," Kaori replied. Vermia and Sinneah both reacted the same way, and before long, Kasumi was taking the lead. 

"Alright, follow me." 

And, coincidentally, Ash and Kaori had ended up alone, at the back of the group as everyone else walked ahead, toward the open gates.

Neither of them said anything for a couple of seconds, but Kaori didn\'t keep quiet for too long. 

"I\'m really glad we\'ll get to talk a little bit more!" She proudly stated as Ash turned toward her. She had said that loudly enough to where some people gave her a strange look, but she didn\'t care about that. "I was, eh, kinda worried we wouldn\'t get the chance." 

As Kaori let her know that, Ash gave her a skeptical look. 

"Why do you wanna talk to me?" She asked, and the question came out so suddenly, that Kaori pulled back.

"Cause you seem cool?" She shrugged. 

"Is that it?" She asked again. 

"Uh, yeah…" Kaori replied, confused. She couldn\'t tell why Ash was acting so strangely all of a sudden. "Do you not want to? S-Sorry if I\'m being pushy, or whatever, I just…" She trailed off. 

"Nah, it\'s alright," Ash sighed. "I\'m just not used to that." 

"Huh? Not used to what?" 

Ash looked back at her then. She didn\'t say anything for a couple of seconds, as though she was gauging whether she should make the following admission, but in the end, she did. 

"People wanting to talk to me. I… Whatever, just, yeah," she said, exhibiting a sudden vulnerability that Kaori hadn\'t seen coming, as she looked away. 

"How about," Kaori told her, "later tonight, we head to a tavern and we have some drinks together. How does that sound?" 

"Fine." 

"Awesome," Kaori told her, smiling widely. "I\'m looking forward to it." 

Soon, they caught up to the others, and as Kaori\'s attention went from the half-demon to the city they\'d just entered, she felt like she\'d walked into a dream world. The differences between this place and Jade were so clear, it made the feeling of being spirited away all the more powerful. Vibrant, gorgeous architecture, large trees planted in the middle of the street, colorful flowers lining the sidewalks, and people with friendly smiles on their faces as they talked to each other, which gave the area a spirit of friendliness that was right up Kaori\'s alley. 

"This is amazing!" Kaori all but yelled, and Vermia, who had been to her right, flinched when she heard her. 

"Goodness, woman, calm down," Vermia said. "It\'s just a city." 

"A colorful city, though!" 

"And that\'s enough to impress you?" 

"Absolutely!" Kaori replied. "Have you seen the buildings in Jade? They\'re so stale compared to this!" 

"The enthusiasm is cute, but uh, you might wanna lower that volume a little bit. Don\'t want people thinking a bunch of weirdoes just came into the city," Kasumi advised her. 

"And what\'s wrong with being a weirdo?" Kaori asked, putting her hands on her hips. "I, for one, take pride in my strangeness. A friend once told me that the expression of lunacy is what makes for compelling acting," she declared proudly, putting on a sage-like tone. 

"I guess I can\'t argue with that… Mostly cause I have no idea whether that\'s true or not, but anyway, come on, I\'ll show you to the place." 

Kasumi did just that. A while later, they were arriving at a quaint little building at the center of the city, by a round park where a few different stores and restaurants were found. On a sign outside, Kaori saw the words "Sleeping Dragon Inn". Here, Kasumi led them into the inn she had in mind, and, as they walked inside, Kaori understood why she recommended it. 

The place just instantly filled her with a cozy sensation. There was a fireplace, currently unlit by the back of the room, a counter to the left where Kaori saw some plates waiting to be used, and a small staircase to the right, that she guessed led up to the rentable rooms.

Gesturing for them to continue following her, Kasumi took them to the counter where a large man with a thick beard, wearing an apron that said "world\'s best dad-chef", placed his hands down and raised a brow at them. 

"Good morning, ladies, what can I do for you?" He asked, with a very polite tone. 

Immediately, Kaori noticed his silver eyes. She\'d seen them before, on two different people, most notably. One was Yumi, of course, and the other person who\'d held this same shade, well, Kaori tried to push the girl out of her thoughts for fear of falling into melancholy over her. 

It had been years but that wound in her heart, although healed, could very well reopen again if prodded enough. 

"Good morning," Kasumi replied. "They want to rent some rooms here. I was just showing them to this place. Goodbye!" She said, waving at everyone. 

When she heard that, Kaori quickly said: 

"U-Uh, where are you going, though?" 

As Kasumi gave her a weird look, she elaborated. 

"I mean, just in case we need more help, you know? Not to bother you or anything…" 

"Oh. We\'re going to be staying over at my house," Kasumi told her. "it\'s just down the street, the grey house on the right. You can\'t miss it." 

"Alright, ehm, bye…" Kaori said, a little embarrassed to have reacted like that. 

Ash, however, had an amused smile on her face. 

"See ya," Ash told her in a low voice before the two Saviors left. 

"… Well, anyway," the man continued. "You wanted to rent some rooms?" 

"Yes," Yumi stepped up. "How much will it be?" 

"Ten crowns per night, per room," he said. 

I… I guess that\'s not too bad,  Kaori shrugged, as Yumi turned to look at her for approval. 

"We don\'t know how long we\'ll be here," Vermia spoke up. "We should probably just play it smart and rent out a single one." 

"Really?" Yumi asked, surprised. 

"Yes. Depending on the size of the bed, we can just take turns choosing who gets to sleep in it," she added. "I think it\'s a fine idea." 

Yumi looked toward Kaori and Sinneah. 

"I\'m fine with it," Kaori chuckled.

I\'ve swapped spit with Sinneah too many times to count, and I\'m comfortable around both Yumi and Vermia, even if Vermia can get on my nerves sometimes. Sharing a bed with any of them is nothing. 

"Agreed," Sinneah said as well.

"Okay," Yumi then reached into her purse and pulled out the ten crowns. "One room, then." 

"Right. Here you go. First room on the left," he said, before pulling out a drawer from the counter. He then went through a bunch of keys, but his brows furrowed as it looked like he couldn\'t find the one he wanted.

"Ah, curses," he sighed. "I forgot where I put it." 

Then, he called out for someone. 

"Keiko! Do you know where I left the keys for the rooms?" 

And, as soon as Kaori heard that name, she froze. 

… What? 

"Yeah!" A voice answered from behind an open door that Kaori hadn\'t noticed, just beside the man in front of her. A voice she knew well. "Got it." 

A few light footsteps thudded against the ground then, heading toward the room as Kaori felt her heart beating faster. 

And then, the owner of that voice came out. 

A short, thin, black-haired girl, with silky black hair and a pair of big silver eyes, holding a keyring in her hands that she passed along to the man. 

"Here you go," Keiko told him, before turning to see the customers. 

Of course, when she saw Kaori, her expression immediately changed to one of shock. 

"… Kaori?" The blonde heard, and she took a deep breath. 

By Lumina\'s grace…  Kaori thought, as she took a step forward. 

"Keiko?"