Volume 8 - Chapter 15 – Afterwards (1/2)
08-15 Afterwards
By the time Jin and Elsa reached the edge of River Torres, dawn was finally breaking.
“Ah, I’m tired.”
Jin said and sat on top of a rock that was up on the riverbank. Elsa also sat down.
“You must be tired too?”
Jin said and Elsa nodded to confirm.
“Mm. A little.”
Judging from her expression in this poor light, she wasn’t just tired but also was hiding some more complex emotion.
“Is something on your mind?”
Jin asked, and Elsa spoke a few words with a sad look on her face.
“I wish Mine was here.”
Hearing that, Jin asked Elsa.
“Are you worried even though after running away with you she exposed you to danger?”
“Yes, because it was my wish to run away. I also think I was to blame too for getting into danger. More importantly, Mine protected me and…She may have died.”
Elsa said and cast her eyes down. Tears began to gather in those eyes. Jin comforted Elsa,
“Mine’s safe.”
He said.
“Eh?”
“I found Mine who had drifted along the stream, then I began looking for you, Elsa. She had serious wounds, but she’s fine now. She’s in the care of a reliable healing clinic. After she improves a bit more I can have you two meet.”
Jin briefly explained Mine’s circumstances, and this time tears of joy spilled from Elsa’s eyes.
“Mine, lived…”
Looking at Elsa who happily muttered a few words, Jin was glad that she could be saved.
After resting for a while, Jin and Elsa once more began to walk. It was already considerably bright. River mist enveloped the surroundings.
They moved for quite a time, until they arrived at a wide and flat location.
It was around six meters wide, vast enough to park two carriages in side-by-side.
“Maybe they can land here.”
Jin surveyed the area and muttered. Reiko caught that and,
“It is fine.”
She said and looked up at the skies.
“Alright.”
Jin said a brief word, and Reiko gave orders through her ManaCom.
“Pelican-1, come here.”
“Eh? Not just the Raptors, you also called in the Pelicans?”
To the surprised Jin Reiko said,
“Yes, Laozi said to prepare them for the unlikely event that they are needed.”
Jin nodded and,
“I see, as expected of him. In that case, Elsa. Go over there by the edge for a bit. …Like that.”
“?”
While Elsa didn’t know what was going on, she still moved to the edge of the riverbank as Jin said. There a black shadow swooped down from the skies.
“!”
Elsa was surprised and put herself on guard. Jin told her,
“It’s fine. That’s an airplane I built.”
Elsa looked at Jin seemingly astonished.
“An airplane?”
Before Jin could say something in reply to that, Pelican-1 cleaved apart the mist and landed down on the riverbank where there was barely enough space. Afterwards the landing gears protruded a little bit out from the riverbank.
“This is…an airplane?”
“Yeah, it’s transportation model Pelican-1. Come on, get in.”
Jin said, went ahead up the airstair, then turned around to face Elsa and held out his hand to her.
Seeing an airplane for the first time, Elsa timidly took Jin’s hand and ascended the airstair.
“Ah…”
From Elsa’s viewpoint, the plane’s inside wasn’t much different from Jin’s carriage’s. And that’s how she was able to calm down a little.
“Come on, have a seat, and please buckle your belt.”
Jin had Elsa sit on the window seat, and buckled her seatbelt.
“What’s, this?”
“It’s a safety belt so that you won’t get thrown off your seat in case the fuselage shakes.”
Jin said and sat down on the seat in front of Elsa, then secured his belt.
“All good, please take off.”
“Roger.”
The pilot, Sky-1, was the top Air Force golem.
With a whooooshing sound as if the plane was sucking in air, Pelican-1 started moving.