Walk away.

　I go back to the spirit race.
　She just gives me a cold look and repeats the same line.

'Wait, I need to talk to you.'
Walk away.
It's nothing personal. It's just that I want to talk to you.
Walk away.
Just for a minute. Can you listen to me?
Walk away.

　There's still no way to catch up to you.
　But I'm not going to give up on you so easily this time.

"We're not here to raid the forest. We just want the monster in the back here.
Walk away.
'As soon as I get the item the demon has, I'll leave. But in order to do that, we need to continue onward. There's no turning back.
If you're not going to leave...

　The girl of the spirit race goes into attack motion.
　But I won't give up.

　I'm a beast tamer.
　I've used many animals.
　I've been known to get violent on occasion.
　Basically, we've been able to talk it out.

　So, I trust that this kid will get the word out...
　I throw out my thoughts.

'If you want to attack me, do it.'
Meow!
Hey, Lane!

　The two people behind me were flustered, but I nodded and showed them that I wasn't worried.
　I looked at the spirit tribe girl again and met her eye to eye.
　I stared at her as if to tell her that this one was harmless.

'I won't do anything.'
....
We won't attack and we won't fight back.
....
I really don't mean you any harm. Of course, I'm not here to ruin the forest. You'll just have to trust me on that.
Initiating exclusion. Illusion Arrow.

　The girl says in a cold voice and shoots a magical arrow.
　An arrow of magic power snatches her cheek and blood flows.

　........But that's it.
　Without hitting it even though it's at this distance.........The second shot is never released.

''........Why?''

　The girl from the spirit race had agitation in her voice.
　For the first time, it was as if she had been touched by this girl's emotions.

''You said you were going to attack me, right?　Why don't you run away...?　Why don't you........fight back.......?
'I told you.　I didn't mean for you to get hurt. I just want to talk to you.
You don't mind if they hurt you?
I don't mind.
....
'Just don't turn your blade on Kanade and Tania you two over there. If you're going to hurt those girls, point your blade at me.
I don't understand. Are you really a human being?　Are you the kind of person who takes our dwelling place, vandalizes it and tramples on it?
That's who.
....
'It's just ... it's an excuse, but not everyone does that. There are good people, too. I can't tell you if I am or not, but at least I didn't mean to hurt you. Can you trust me?
'....Thora will not be misled by sweet talk.

　Once again, magic power converges in the girl's hands.
　The amount is incomparable to the previous blow.
　Is this........dead?

　But I can't retreat.
　I have to prove with my body that my words are true.

　I don't have to run away, I just have to accept her magic as it is........

"Rain!

　Kanade and Tania stepped forward to cover for me.

'What are you two going to do... you promised to leave it up to me!
'Cause I can't watch it!　I'm on the edge of my seat!
It's not your persuasion!　You're outrageous, really.
'Lane really isn't a bad person, you know!　Trust me!
'Kanade was right!　I, being a dragonborn, can vouch for you!　So don't listen to me.
....

　A moment of silence comes.
　Soon.........magic power slowly dissipated from the girl's hand.

''........Funny humans. And the funny cat spirit race and the dragon race. This is the first time Sora has encountered beings like you two.

　The hostility was gone from the girl of the spirit race.
　She gently landed on the ground and walked over to me.
　She stopped in front of me and looked up at my face.

''........What's your name?''
It's the Lane Shroud.
...Sola is Sola.
That's your name?
Let's just hear it out. Nice to meet you, Rain.
Yeah, you're welcome.

　Sola held out her hand and....
　Gently, they shook hands.



----------



　So that's how it is.

　When I explained our situation, he seemed to agree with me for the time being, and Sora had a hint of understanding in his eyes.
　It seems that she believed the story without any doubt.

''There, I was stranded in that ward........what was that?
It was developed by Sola.
'Well, if Sora... then you can disarm it, right?　Can you let us through the back, please?
I can't do that.
Why?
''That ward is the one that blocks the path leading to the spirit race's village. We can't just carelessly disarm it and put our people in danger.
Are you sure you're not defending a demon?
'To begin with, there are no demons in this forest with truth shields. We do have a shield of truth, though.

　That's not what Arios and the others told me.
　Have we been lied to?
　No, there is no reason to do that.
　Then ........the premise was wrong.
　Maybe Arios and the others were grabbed by a gossip.

'What do you mean by that?'
The Shield of Truth is kept by Sola and the other spirits. If a brave man appears again and says he needs it to defeat the demon king, I will give it to him. I don't like humans but more than that, I can't forgive those demons.
Are you sure?
'No problem. That's why I kept it out of anyone's hands. You'll have to wait a minute.

　Sora disappears like a mirage.
　Perhaps it has moved beyond the wards.

　The wait is often....
　Space shook in waves and Sora reappeared.
　Unlike when she disappeared, she held her shield in both hands.

''Come in.''
So this is the shield of truth...

　It was surprisingly easy to get.
　It's a bit of a letdown.

'Nya you're so easy to believe after all that stuff.
I looked into your memories.
Nyan?
'While we were talking, I did a light peek into Rain's memories with magic. As a result, Thora determined that I wasn't lying.
When did you do that...
It was unchallenged, and I didn't even notice it was happening... but that's to be expected of a genie with a talent for magic.
Then when we tried to break the wards, why don't you just search our memories instead of attacking us, no questions asked?
We can't go through all that trouble. Besides, people are the enemy. We don't have to listen to them. Now ... because I've decided it's okay to listen to Rain for a bit.
Well thank you for your faith in me.
Nothing....
At any rate, the job is done. Let's get out of here.

　Tania and Kanade flipped, but....
　I'm stuck on my feet.

　For some reason, I'm worried about Thora.
　I found myself talking to her.

'Look I just want to thank you for something.
Thank you...?
'You did us a favor, didn't you?　I'm thanking you for that. I just didn't think it would be right to do nothing at all.
''There's no need. Handing over the Shield of Truth to the heroes was originally agreed upon by Sola and the other spirit clans in the old days. Sola obeyed it. Never mind that.
'When you put it that way...'
You shouldn't have cared if I said it was okay.
But I think that's the beauty of Rain is that she cares there.
Are you having trouble with anything?　If there's anything I can do, I'll do it.
It's...

　Thora's lips are tied together and she turns over to escape my gaze.
　For the first time, I felt like my emotions were shaken.
　She looked like a child at a loss for what to do in the face of a difficult situation, not knowing what to do.

'What's going on?'　So if that's the case, you want to talk about it?　Maybe I can help.
But...
I can't leave Sora alone.
Why do you have to go to such lengths...
You can't just abandon someone in need, can you?
....

　Sola was all giddy and....
　There was a slight, small smile.

'Rain is what you call a softie, isn't she?
Really?　I don't think so, but...
You don't know. But that's... not that I don't like Lane.
Nyah I think Lane has flagged it up again.
Do you think our master is a codger?

　For some reason, I got stares from both of them.
　I didn't do anything, did I...?

I understand.
So that means...
'Rain is human, but I have decided that he is worthy of our trust. The same goes for Kanade and Tania. I will be open and honest about the situation Sola finds herself in.
Thank you.
'But once you hear the story, there's no turning back. We don't know what kind of situation awaits us. Still.....
I don't mind.
Well I'm not done talking about Sora yet, sir.
I don't care what the risks are. I've decided... we're going to help Sora. Don't you?
Yeah. I'll do my best for Sora!
Well, I'm in it for the long haul. I'll help you.
Thank you very much.

　As if to hold back her overflowing emotions, Sora bit the edge of her lip and........
　I bowed my head in pecking order.