Ashes and Kingdoms

Moving to Nanais at the beginning of the reconstruction was centered on men who were confident in their health, roughly in their twenties and forties. Some emigrated with their families, but in that case they had no young children, and even with their children they were past the middle of their teens. If there are no doctors, and you are going to cross into land that is inconvenient and anxious for daily food, then naturally.

But little by little, when Nanais began to function as a settlement - when the fruits of the fields and the prey of the fishery were ample and the food situation was more than living in poverty in the city - the people who heard the rumors began to migrate, even with the elderly, to women and children.

That's why.

"Oh, no, no, no?

"Well, yeah."

In the square, he lays his face on a monument to his last job, and a ghost child raises his voice. Beyond the walls of the nearly made, from the shadows of the abandoned debris and the bushes of the sanzashi full of white flowers, the voice responded immediately. There are about five of us playing, but that's all the kids in Nanice right now.

The adults put aside one of their morning jobs, smiled and looked at the kids, and had lunch here outdoors.

"What's that doing?

Lena asks strangely. "It's hide-and-seek," Finn replied, pinching the lunch Fauna had made for me. By the way, the first part of the day was when a small fish caught in the morning was judged and tightened with vinegar, wrapped in vanilla and stabbed in a yang branch. The staple bread is baked. Residents' meals had improved considerably as the bakery opened this spring also makes a variety of creative breads.

"Hide?"

Lena asks back. Finn wiped his fingers with a cloth towel, thought about it for a second, and then smiled, oh well.

"Unlike you, humans don't like to find someone hiding in the shadows. Especially the kids. That play is competing between hiding from sight and finding it better. Old people used to say," Rabbit and fox. "

I can tell you just in case you find it, it doesn't mean you can eat it. It's hard not to give a bad explanation and get weird misunderstandings.

Lena was surprised, but even the raven and fox seemed convinced, and nodded so much.

"That's why you can't if you find me. Finn play, too?

"Now you don't do it to boulders anymore. But we used to play together a lot. I didn't need any tools, and it's not hard to do, so my little one could play with me."

I miss him. At the same time, I heard a kid say, "Enough," and the ghost started the search. The adults who were watching other children hide are pushing their laughter and killing them with ghostly manners.

One, another, and they reveal their hiding place. But I can hardly find the last one. The ghost child is gradually turning into a crying face. Some adults send signals by sneak hand gestures, but they don't seem to get into eyes moistened with tears.

"That's a little mean."

Finn snapped around laughing bitterly. The last one hiding was in the dark beneath the lamp, where the children already found were gathered around the monument. He saw the gap from the first hiding place, and moved, and he went astray. The ghost was not aware of it at all, as those found once were to be unable to help.

And, inadvertently, Lena fluttered herself and walked out toward the monument. The ghost child looked back in amazement, and then he rounded his eyes that he had found the last one.

"I found it!

"Shurui!!

My children raise their voices. It was only in the beginning that I was distracted to hear of dragons that they, too, were no longer reluctant at all to Lena, who was looking like a person, while living in Nanais. Anyway, Lena is closer to us than the adults who are the same people.

Finn looked up to heaven for a moment, but for Christ's sake, he went up to arbitration.

"'Cause you shouldn't be so mean."

"It's hide-and-seek, so it's natural to keep them from being spotted! You shouldn't tell me from the side -?

A child I didn't find till the end is puffy and angry. Finn put his hands on that head and sneezed and stroked him.

"I'm sorry, but I almost had a ghost surrender."

"Ah, Dragon Horse."

As soon as possible, the child slows down his voice. To the extreme reaction, Finn smiled slightly bitterly.

"And it's a little too sticky. If we don't finish him where he's right, the ghost will be angry and go home. That would be boring."

If the ghost surrenders, or the last one comes out to him himself, either way, that time is over, and the ghost takes turns. Let's all whack and whack again and decide on ghosts. It is a simple and simple rule.

"It is... but Lena is sloppy. Yeah, next time, Lena's gonna do a ghost!

A child I was still dissatisfied with makes me smile when I think of it all the time. I guess I'm confident I'll hide so I'll never find out. Finn turned into a complicated face with the one he felt sorry for and wanted to laugh at.

"That doesn't make sense. Because no matter who or where Lena is hiding, she'll soon find it."

"That's a lie!

and this is a chorus for everyone.

Oh, no. Finn raised an eyebrow. Apparently, Lena is too familiar with the child to see the ability - apart from being able to fly or change her appearance - sweetly.

Finn looks back at Lena and asks her what to do. Sooner or later she was smiling like fun.

"Fine. If you meditate on your eyes, count to twenty, and everyone says," Enough is enough, "will you look?

"That's right. Don't look at me!

Push hard, then I'll go, and the kids will set up. The crying child is searching for a hiding place like she completely forgot about it.

When Lena imitated the ghost earlier and lay her face down on the monument, the child was scattered.

"Dragon Horse, hurry up, hurry up"

One of them pulled my sleeve, and Finn rounded his eyes. They were put in numbers at some point. I don't know, and Finn laughed bitterly and started looking for a place where he could hide his figure. I'm not a kid anymore, so I don't have a pretty good place.

(Well, you'll soon find it anyway)

I can't even hide for real. I crouched in the shadow of a near-field object that I would soon find out if I was a used child.

"... JUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU. Is that enough?

Lena's voice calls in imitation of the children.

"Enough said."

As disputed by the voice rising from there, Finn also feels quite embarrassed, which is enough, he says in a less loud voice. As soon as I got there, Lena gave me signs of surprise.

Finn decided to hide, too?

Soon, that's what happened.

A delightful Lena's voice arrived flamboyantly at Finn, who smiled bitterly.

I can't! Beautiful people like Finn, even though they can find you where you are!

Thank you.

Dangerously airborne, Finn replied ambiguously. No, not at all.

(Well, I guess it does stand out)

Now that I've put my own thing aside and shared the dragon's vision, I can also nod to what Lena says. Humans as small as Mac and Nellis can sense its existence even in the distance. I don't even have to actually look you in the eye.

Thinking that far, Fu and Finn questioned.

(Can you hide?

A normal person wouldn't be able to deceive a dragon's eyes. But what about Dragon Marquis?

Hmm, and Finn tilted his neck.

I didn't want to get that idea in return for being told I couldn't do it, or if I could, I could hide and surprise you. There would have been no sin if there had been.

He was serious, and it was just placid and rational and questionable. And seriousness was the beauty and faults of this tombstone Dragon Marquis.

I can't feel Lena's presence anymore.

Reminds me of a night at Comrith. At that time, I didn't answer the call because Lena was flying far away, or perhaps distracting me from Finn.

(Even if the bond is never broken, could it be "lost"?)

Finn sank deep into himself at some point, remembering how he felt then and how he was not very aware of the bond on a daily basis. Without realizing that they are building walls that cover not only the power of dragons, but even themselves in multiple ways.

Lena, on the other hand, had pinched the kids out of hiding first because Finn could always be found.

Whether behind the walls or lurking their breath in the bushes, the active mind movements of the children have become waves of various colors and lights, spilling out all over the place. Lena went straight to their respective places, without ever getting lost,

"I couldn't see."

"Wow! Why!?"

I chuckled when I surprised them. The movement of the children's hearts was lovely and enjoyable.

That's how everyone was gathered around the monument while I said it was that way.

"Look, now we've all found it"

"Not yet! Dragon Marquis, you're still hiding!

Yes, yes, the children protest. Lena smiled and just waited a moment, looking around in the kind of flair she said.

- But.

……

You should see it soon, I didn't know Finn existed. Oh, and the grin disappears from Lena's face.

I haven't gone far, I know that. I can feel signs that he's nearby somewhere. But there's no that beautiful light I'm used to seeing, and there's no answer to the call.

"... Finn?

My lips trembled and my golden eyes moistened and swayed. Lena looked around busily and began to grate and come and go. I can't imagine looking for things, one by one, just like humans, because they are real dragons. If I lost sight of it, it was no longer there.

I call it three or four times with my heart, and even if I turn my consciousness to the bond, I have no reaction. Finally, Lena raised her voice like she was about to cry.

"Finn, where!?

When I asked and got a reply, it didn't mean anything about hide-and-seek - and it wasn't the kind of voice I could go into. The children are bewildered by unexpected developments, and the bulk looks bad and blinds them. The spectator, who was near the square, also twitched uncomfortably, but of course, Lena was not in her eyes, such as around her. There's only one person who's conscious, one person who's lost sight of it.

For the first time since she bonded, Lena didn't even want to indulge in the solitude she tasted, she burst into tears and cried.

"Finn...... heh, uh-huh!!

Finn finally jumped out of hiding in a hurry. I can't believe I'm immersed in thinking until the cry gets in my ear anymore.

"Lena! Sorry, accidentally...... ugh"

The clogged voice was due to Lena running into my chest. but to that extent you should take it spoiled.

"Finn, Finn!! Hiding. Oh."

Lena clings as she cries. Finn was completely in trouble and busily excused herself as she stroked her head and back.

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hide. Never again, I promise. I'm so sorry.

Combine words as well as emotions to best comfort you. But the upset Lena's mind doesn't quiet easily to that extent.

I even apologize and keep whispering because I'm with you all the time, because I'm fine. Around the desperate fin, the children stood here all the time.

"I made him cry - Dragon Hou made him cry -"

"I shouldn't."

"Hey, hey, hey"

There can be no words to give back to Finn, he just stands up with a pitiful face. Lena also remains disappointed and has no sign of moving.

Slightly, a seemingly adult took the children, and threefold, after the square. As good as Finn is with them, I can't help it. It's not something that you can look at forever, such as a diagram of a young daughter crying and hugging a young man on the way. At least, grandiose.

That's why Finn even withstood his feathers for a while, painfully feeling the gaze watching from there. You deserve it.

After that, Nanais didn't get a hide-and-seek injunction or anything......

For the record.

"In that case, look in the tunnels, in the same way as humans do. Remember."

Nellis, who heard the upside of it, said in dismay. Kokon and the adult Lena nods. But the hand is still stuck in Finn's arm.

I can't hide anymore.

So fine, Finn comforts me. And Nellis raised an eyebrow.

"That's natural, isn't it? But if you get punched and passed out, sometimes you lose sight of it, don't you?

…………

Finn looked at the noisy assumption, and Lena stuck around again.

"I don't know. When you're just asleep, you'll never be invisible... unless Finn's intent is to hide, I think it's okay."

"Oh well. Want to give it a try?

"Give me a break..."

(Final)