Kae stood abruptly. “Listen, old man! We gave you enough money! Answer the question! Out of which gate did the Sagnian carriage take Kaiten?”
The innkeeper gulped, and almost toppled right out of his seat. “Alright, alright I’ll tell you everything! They wore the flames and lions of Sagna, you’re right. But the gate they hauled the prince out of, it was the one to the north. No one bothers to pass that way. The woman with the swords, she didn’t go with them. She left after them a couple hours later, I think.”
“The north?”
“There are no worthwhile trade routes in that direction. Or any reasonable path through the Kilrough Mountains.” Cassendir mused.
“Yureun.” Loren said, and all eyes were on her. “They took him to the Ruins of Yureun. The Plaguelands.”
“The Plaguelands, y’say?” The innkeeper’s voice held a d note of fear. “No one goes to Yuren. That land is cursed. Are you sure, girl? I only saw them leave through the northern gate; maybe they went around the city?”
Loren shook her head. “No, they wouldn’t have gone around. You said Kaiten was loaded into a carriage, correct? The grass around Rhodia is too thick, it would snare a carriage’s wheels. If they had gone on horseback, they wouldn’t have to strictly follow a path. There must be old roads up to the Plaguelands, maybe even some leading to disused trade routes to the northern part of the mountains. In any case, they went north and that’s where we have to go.”
The innkeeper shook his head and stood, hands flying up in a surrendering gesture. “Whatever you adventurers plan, I want no part of it! I’ll be in m’room, holler if you need anything else and have the coin to spare!”
Kae sneered at the innkeeper’s retreating back. “As if we’d give you anymore of Loren’s gold, you—” she whispered.
“Kae! Not now.” Loren’s tone was reprimanding, but she wore a slight smile. “Maybe later, in private. Let’s just finish our food and get to bed.”
The room offered by the innkeeper was small and cramped, with a single large bed standing on only three legs. There was no chamber pot, or any furniture at all aside from the broken bed. There was a fine layer of dust on everything. Loren made a face when she saw the state of the room, and Kae was expecting the princess to leave the room, storm up to the innkeeper, and demand better accommodations. Instead, the princess merely sighed, defeated, and kicked her boots off onto the floor.
“No fiery words for the innkeeper about this, dragon princess?” Kae said in a joking tone. “You paid a lot for this shit hole.”
“Not now, Kae. I just want to sleep, and get started on the path to the Plaguelands as quickly as possible. Every spare second we waste here gets us closer to getting caught. And the Beastman palace isn’t that far from here; Doreos might already know some humans are in Rhodia.”
“Makes sense.” Kae grunted. She set her pack on the floor, and started to remove her knife belt.
Cassendir awkwardly cleared his throat. He hadn’t moved from the doorway.
Loren threw herself onto the bed, and coughed hard as the movement kicked up a cloud of dust. “Oh gods, when was the last time they cleaned this room? Is something wrong, Cassendir?”
“Well…There is only one bed.” He pointed to it, and the scholar’s brain had seemed to grind to a halt.
“Yes there is only one bed. What about it?”
“I’ve never— I mean, you two—girls…” He trailed off, and was met with a boot thrown at his head.
“Who cares?” Kae said, working to take off her other boot. “Sleep on the floor with your bedroll, its fine.”
“But… Me alone in a room with two females? Isn’t that improper? After all, the Aldoran princess—”
“Cassendir!” Loren barked, cutting the scholar off. “I don’t care! Kae is right, just use your bedroll and sleep on the floor. There’s enough room on this god-cursed bed for three people, but its tilting to the side, someone might get crushed.”
“If Ma’trii was here, he would make a good pillow.” Kae offered, chuckling.
With a defeated sigh, Cassendir set down his travelling pack, and unfurled the bedroll.
After everyone has settled in for a rough night in the dusty room, Kae stood by the bed. She watched Loren lying in it and shifting here and there, trying to get comfortable. They had shaken the dust out of the sheet as much as possible, and borrowed a few of Cassendir’s Kespian silks to wrap around their heads to keep from breathing in any more dust, but it still didn’t improve the experience. The huntress watched as Loren eventually settled, silks covering her head, and her chest rising and falling slowly with breath. She couldn’t help but smile. Loren was always so uptight and headstrong, but in these little moments when she could be at peace, Kae noticed she was happy. Loren’s expression eased, and her body relaxed, and she looked vulnerable. Kae felt the urge to protect the princess welling in her chest. She climbed into the tilted, dusty bed, trying not to disturb the princess.
Chapter Nine
The night passed uneventfully, save for a quite a bit of tossing and turning throughout the night. When the girls woke, they found their bodies stiff from the inn’s bed and with dust motes in their hair. Cassendir, on the other hand, had a comparably better night on his bed roll. They changed in silence. An air of misery hung over their heads, tempered with a sense of tension from Loren. The princess’s face was set in stone, and her movements were mechanical.
Undershirt then tunic, padded trousers then leather armor, then surcoat on top. Boots then buckled sword belt, followed by camping pack. Loren sighed, feeling like she had only blinked once
