"Aah! Hahahha!"
Riku could hardly contain himself, almost becoming an additional ingredient in his stew as he came close to falling off of his stool and into the pot, as he let out another laugh. Slapping his knee, Riku wiped a tear from his eye and continued to laugh.
Leander glared at Riku as he muttered.
"It's not that funny."
Undeterred by Leander's resistance, Riku slapped his knee a few more times before coming back to his senses.
"You called your sword, Sword! Ha! I needed that. Between the Kitsune hunting me down and Melaine still not paying me for making that armour, I needed something whimsical."
Agitated, Leander contemplated whether it would be worth it to break his promise with Melaine in order to bring the ceiling down on Riku's head. Before he could smile at the thought, Leander's brow furrowed.
"Making this armour? What do you mean by that?"
At Leander's question, still with a bright smile on his lips, Riku answered.
"Well, everything has a maker and as fate would have it. I made your armour; well, I didn't know it was for you at the time. I met Melaine a few centuries ago when I came to this continent. She helped me make this humble abode of mine, and then she left for a long time. A couple of years ago, she arrived on my doorstep with bags and bags of dragon scales. It only took me a year to make that armour of yours. Pity she was unable to find a soul strong enough to handle the materials."
Leander's brow furrowed at the same time hearing his words. Narina looked up from her bowl of stew with a guarded, inquisitive gaze hidden in her eyes.
Running his hand through his hair, Leander thought about what Riku had just said.
'This armour is dragon scales? Dragon scales… I suppose that explains its durability; those manyfangs were completely helpless, unable to bite through it or even mark it with their claws. Even Lewren was unable to mark it, he only bested me because of his damn tail. I wonder what kind of mark Decemtal would have left had Ravenmother not intervened.'
"That can't be true!"
Narina stood up, her bowl of stew clutched tightly between her hands. Leander's gaze fell on Narina; she was loud as usual, but her boisterousness wasn't there. Instead, she seemed offended by Riku's comment.
"There's no way this Melaine brought you dragon scales. The only dragon clan on Orozia was... wiped out a long time ago..."
Riku paid Narina's remark very little attention, as he dismissively waved his hand.
"If all of the dragons were wiped out, you explain where she found the scales."
Gritting her teeth, Narina sat back down. An annoyed expression came over her face as she was unable to think of a good enough response.
Scratching his chin, Leander looked at the vanbrace wrapped around his left arm. It was made from the same scales as the rest of his armour, dragon scales. The dull blue scales were no longer as clean as they were when stored within the armoury of Melaine's castle. Put through the wringer as Leander had engaged in plenty of fights within the past week alone.
Feeling the scales, they were still cold to the touch. Riku's living space, where his beloved pot of stew was kept, was not a cold environment; the forge was only separated by the floor, which gave the room an inherent warmth. Yet, despite this, Leander's armour had never lost its sensation of coldness.
"Thinking about it, I had come across a dragon. It was the last beast I ran into before reaching here, except its scales were brown."
Riku shrugged.
"I guess not every dragon is dead. You never know, kid, if you're lucky enough, you might run into another dragon."
Narina's frustrated expression loosened, looking away from Leander and Riku. She quietly responded.
"I guess I have the worst luck out of all of them."
Leander watched Narina for a few seconds before turning back to Riku.
"I have one more question. Which I very much think you should answer for us. Those damn foxes, you three seemed well acquainted."
Riku had been silently chuckling to himself, unable to let go of Leander's choice of names. Yet as Leander asked his final question, Riku's laughter died at the same moment his face darkened. Quietly, he spoke the names of the women who had attacked him.
"The Grey Fox, the Yellow Fox… What's there to say? They are assassins from my home, Rosaceae, the Continent of Blossoms. They are members of the Kitsune, a faction that works for the Elikeen Council… and the Elikeen Council enslaved my people – the Oni – when they took over the continent and closed its borders. Now it sounds as if the Elikeen Council are trying to clean up some loose ends."
Leander quietly listened to Riku, his expression growing grim, hearing how this 'Elikeen Council' had enslaved his people. The thought of it made his blood boil.
'What has happened to this world whilst I've been gone?'
Riku continued speaking.
"From what Grey said, they are targeting myself, Stormwind and my twin sister. That is troubling, to say the least. The Kitsune move in pairs, generally in order for one to make up for the other's weakness."
'Stormwind?'
Leander faintly remembered the name. He had first heard it from Kenju as they crossed Funerary's land bridge.
"So what you're telling me is that there are at least six of these foxes in the continent? Yellow and Grey and… whatever the other foxes are."
Riku nodded, his gaze turning wistful as he looked at his pot of stew. The peace he had felt waking up this morning felt so far away.
"As I'm sure you noticed, the foxes receive their names from what colour their mask is. Yellow has a yellow mask, Grey a grey mask, but there are more. Red and Blue, Purple and Green… Black and White."
Looking at Leander, a type of fear seemed to take over Riku's eyes. It felt almost unnatural coming from someone who at first seemed unable to take a situation seriously.
"The White Fox is the leader of the Kitsune, but she is practically a nonthreat. Never leaving her paradise, she just issues orders to her seven foxes. But Leander, I cannot emphasise this enough, if you come across the Black Fox, flee. The Black Fox isn't partnered with the White Fox, Black is strong enough to not need a partner. I cannot emphasise this enough until a time you are able to regain even a portion of your strength, as you are right now if you meet Black. Run with all your might, or he will murder you!"
His eyes narrowed as Leander slightly tilted his head.
"Are you worried about me? Save your worries. I've died once and am in no rush to revisit the land of the dead. Anyway, what of these people the Kitsune are after? Your sister and… what kind of name is Stormwind?"
Riku watched Leander with the same grim expression for a few moments before exhaling a deep, frustrated sigh.
"Oh, for the love of- I was trying to give you some sage words of wisdom. Can't you at least pretend to be thankful… Ugh anyway. Stormwind – it's not his name, it's his title. The Hero of Stormwind, he led a revolt against the Elikeen Council. Rallying the enslaved Oni. It was a success… until the Elikeen Council dealt with the problem directly. He fled the continent, arriving on the shores of the Wilds in a half-eaten boat. Last I heard, he's living on the Frontier, eeking out a living working for the Hunter's Guild."
Leander shook his head in disbelief.
"A half-eaten boat. Wait, if he arrived on the shore of the Wilds. That means he would have to fight his way all the way until he reached human territory. I find that hard to believe; what normal human could achieve that?"
Riku slightly smiled as he slowly turned to look at Leander.
"Someone worthy of the title Hero. I think you'd know best what a Hero is capable of."
As Leander was about to retort, Narina scrunched her face as if she was trying to recall a faint memory.
"No, no, I think I remember meeting a human who arrived in the Wilds by boat when I was still living with my uncle. My uncle took a liking to him, so he let him pass through his territory with his blessing."
"What?"
Leander looked at Narina with a confused expression.
"Who is your uncle? Ugh, never mind, that's not important right now. Riku, there was one more person. Your twin sister, Grey, called you the Heir of the Land. Is she an Heir like you?"
Returning to his bowl with a bright smile, Riku began to talk although his mouth was full of stew.
"Ah, my sister… Yes, she is an Heir. Whilst I am the Heir of the Land, she is the Heir of the Sky. I wouldn't worry about her too much."
It was Narina's turn to make a confused expression as she turned to Riku."
"You're not concerned about your sister? But she's your twin sister. How could you not be worried about her?"
Riku threw his hands up in defence.
"Oh, calm down, it's not that I'm not worried. She left the Continent of Blossoms years before the Elikeen Council closed the borders. She married somebody important in the Demon Kingdom, so I'm sure she'll be fine.
Leander frowned.
"Somebody important? I would hate to have to fight your sister. I might not like you, but since we're supposed to be allies, that would leave a bitter taste in my mouth."
Riku's smile grew brighter as Leander asked his question.
"Quite the opposite. Since you'll be trying to take the Demon King's head one day, make sure to find my sister, Sora is her name. Just say you know me, and I am certain she will help you."
Rubbing his brow, Leander closed his eyes. Having an ally in the Demon Kingdom wasn't an offer he would turn down.
Opening his eyes, he studied Riku, the Heir of the Land.
'But what does that mean, the Heir of the Land? The Heir of what, exactly? This guy, not only is he versed in forging, but he can also repair enchantments... Whatever those are, and to top it all off, he cut off the Grey Fox's arm. He would have probably killed her had the Yellow Fox not made it back in time.'
Counting on his fingers, Riku quietly muttered to himself.
"The crystals were payment for fixing the sword, the laughter I got out of the sword being called Sword was payment for the armour…"
Riku's face contorted as he counted on his third finger
"Hmm, it seems I'm in your debt for helping me fend off the Kitsune… Tell you what, I will forge you one Soul Arm in exchange for your help. Yes, one Soul Arm. That should be a fair trade."
Leander watched Riku curiously.
"Soul… Arm?"