Fated

Chapter Fifteen

"I figured it out," the tactician muttered under her breath,

"Figured out what exactly?" Asks the engineer as he went to close the furnace.

The smell of fresh bread waft around the small kitchen as he placed the baked goods on the table.

The female simply grinned before turning her head towards the male, "it's been 3 days since Solomon and the others went to their expedition right?"

"...Yes?" Ugo confirmed with hesitation, what could possibly be going on inside her mind, he wouldn't know.

Solomon and the others has embarked on their journey towards the dead city, turns out they are having a hard time locating the exact location to advance further. They usually come back around noon time, exhausted and will leave early in the morning too.

Today they would probably arrive around noon once again if their search leads to another dead end, much to their leader's dismay that is.

The tactician was very much well-versed with maps and specific locations, she could've spot the place they were looking for in a nick of time. But Solomonㅡsurprisingly was stubborn as a rock, a huge contrary to his usual self. Many times the engineer had tried to persuade the magician to finally refer to their tactician, but he wouldn't budge.

Then again, he might have wanted to keep this mission a secret from her. He scoffed at the thought.

Ugo is a smart man, he's not oblivious to the magician's subtle shift of attention whenever their tactician is involved. He could see how his gaze would linger on her far longer than anyone else, his small subtle smile when the tactician crack a lame joke. He'd even notice the smallest gesture of unspoken affection from the man, may it be laying a hand against the small of her back, gently grabbing her forearm to pull her out of the way or to guide her somewhere.

If he was the first to ever figure this out, it is no surprising.

Solomon is an extremely reserved man, if he were involved in a mass murder, heck, no one will even suspect him.

But Ugo knew him for so long to notice these seemingly small gestures.

He'd just slowly shook his head lightly paired with a knowing smile whenever he'd caught his friend's longing gaze. If the magician was well aware about his feelings, he'd most probably bottle it in for the time being. He know his friend is a very intelligent man, he's not the type to lock in his emotions and let it control him from inside out, as much as possible he'd most probably confess first. But in this case, they're not exactly at the right time to do so.

The Orthodox church is still out there wrecking havoc. Divine staves are being used to aid wars while inflicting fear among other living creatures. As much as romance is concerned, it's not literally something Solomon would prioritize when everyone's lives are at stake, his and even hers.

Ugo knew this odd mission somehow, somehow involves her. Solomon never once stray away from his mission to defeat the Orthodox church, and for him to suddenly brought a mission that does not involved it, was peculiar enough as it is.

Searching for the dead city.

What lies in those barren lands, the engineer had no idea, much to his utter dismay. There's not much to go around in their base library, and books were pretty hard to come by. To be honest, he wouldn't even know the place existed if it weren't for Solomon.

Speaking of,

"Wait, (Name)..." Ugo called out, brows furrowed in thought as he interrupted the tactician's ecstatic rambling. The latter stops almost immediately with a pout, offended at her friend's interruption.