42 Too Good To Be True (2/2)

Mina was caught off guard.

'How do you propose a trip to a horse?' Mina gazed back at Nightmare and then to Tarou who seems to be expecting to see how she worked her magic.

”I...we need your help,” Mina stuttered in a barely audible meow. Nightmare looked at her as if prompting her to go into more detail. ”We need to find something in the forest.”

”That's a long way from here,” Nightmare replied with a series of grunts. Mina wracked her brains trying to figure out how to make the stallion agree to make the trip.

”It's important,” she added sincerely after realizing that she had nothing to offer the animal. If she were human, she would have just stolen the horse. But right now, she was a cat and she needed Nightmare's to help her.

The horse chewed on something while mulling over her proposal. After taking almost forever to finish chomping his food, Nightmare replied.

”You can hop on. It's on the way.”

Mina stared at the horse. Nightmare made it sound as if they just need a ride back to the stables. Before Mina could reply, Tarou, who seems to have recovered from all the running, squealed.

”Boss! You're the best! I knew you'd make it work!”

'But I did not even do anything,' Mina thought while feeling dumbfounded. She never thought asking Nightmare a favor would be that easy.

***

After Mina and Tarou found a comfortable position inside the saddlebags, Nightmare stood up and walked towards the open gates. Mina anticipated difficulties in asking Nightmare to bring them to the forest and in getting out of the manor. To her surprise, they did not encounter any hiccups. Not with Nightmare, not with the gates, not even with how to stay seated while on horseback.

When Nightmare stepped out of the gates, she could hear the one of the guards question if they should stop the horse and bring him back inside. If the guard rushed to stop them she would have felt better. But an older guard shot him down quickly before explaining the circumstances.

”Nightmare maybe the general's horse but he is a free horse. He gets to roam around on his own.”

Despite the guard's words, Mina couldn't shake off the unease she felt in her bones. It was as if someone prepared everything for them.

As the horse disappeared, a strange figure peered out of the windows.

”Those animals will have an exciting adventure,”the old man said while looking outside.

The younger man beside him followed his line of sight before asking in a worried voice, ”Will they be safe?”

”We will know when Nightmare returns,” came the old man's reply.