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jerkily.
    Usagi leaned forward and left a butterfly kiss on their lips, a kiss Mamoru felt as vividly as his demon. She rose and left hastily, as if embarrassed by her unusual behavior.
    Feeling the blush rise to his body’s cheeks, Mamoru could only do the equivalent of groaning mentally. The demon had it bad . It was no use trying to tell it Usagi was probably acting, encouraging a doomed crush to amuse herself. That made more sense than thinking she’d suddenly become nice!

Chapter Five
    Akakiba
    T he days on the road were each the mirror image of the last, consisting largely of sleeping, eating, and riding. Summer had long gone and with it, the oppressive heat. The current autumn weather was mild and refreshing. The first fallen leaves of the season spotted the path and the trees were adorned with hues of red, orange, yellow—and green, too. It was yet early and some trees took their time.
    “I hear water,” Akakiba said. “We’ll rest when we find it.” He led them onward, following his ear.
    The source turned out to be a rivulet, only deep enough to come up to the ankle. It was good enough to refill their water bags.
    Yuki’s pet dragon muttered an indistinct complaint about the size of the stream—the annoying creature was welcome to find its own stream next time—before wading in and rolling around. The crystal clear water turned disgustingly muddy after this treatment.
    “Better?” Yuki inquired.
    “Less itchy,” the dragon said. “But now I’m covered in mud.”
    “Don’t move; I’ll rinse you.”
    By the time Yuki was done, Akakiba had had time to attend to certain bodily functions, feed the horses, and finish his own meal.
    “I’m glad it’s not summer anymore,” Yuki said between two mouthfuls of food. “It was horrible.”
    Akakiba fully agreed. At the worst of the summer heat, the dragon’s hide had been dull and cracked, and its mood so irritated it poisoned Yuki’s too. It was good to be past that, because he had no desire to experience a second shouting match. He hadn’t known sweet-tempered Yuki was capable of fighting with anyone, even less with him! He couldn’t quite recall what it’d been about, but it had entirely been the dragon’s fault. One could hope the annoying creature’s growth would soon force it to leave land and find a nice lake to call its own. Mature great dragons were simply too heavy to live on land.
    The weather held fair as they rode eastward and watched for the signs of dying life described by the Sanae impersonator. So far, the trees all had vibrantly colored leaves and the wildlife was no scarcer than usual, singing and chattering and scurrying.
    Glancing up at the sun, Akakiba tried to determine how far they might have strayed off course by following this trail instead of cutting through the forest in a straight line. Riding in the tangled undergrowth surrounding the trail would be harder riding than he liked. His expertise was roughly limited to the basics of not falling off the horse.
    “We should have begun to see some evidence by now,” he said.
    “Hm?” Yuki blinked as if coming out of a daydream. He must have been absorbed in a mental exchange with the dragon again. “I’m sorry? What did you say?”
    “Do pay attention when people speak, would you?” Akakiba straightened in the saddle, facing forward so his scowl wouldn’t be visible. He tried to be patient—that cursed dragon had to leave sooner or later!—but repeating himself constantly was irritating. “I said I don’t see any sign of sickness.”
    Yuki studied the forest left and right. “I have to agree. The sparks are present and bright here. But it shouldn’t be much longer before we find the place.”
    “Assuming there’s something to find.”
    Yuki either ignored his words or didn’t hear them—probably “talking” to his pet again.
    By the end of the afternoon, Yuki watched the trees with his head tilted. “I think the sparks are getting a little dimmer.”
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