Chapter 396 - Back to lrio.
Inside the plane.
''Ichiro…'' Lucas wryly smiled and showed Ichiro, Azura, and Alena their seats.
Ichiro wryly smiled and sat next to Azura, ''Sorry about it.''
Lucas glanced behind him, where a frightened flight attendant was standing.
''She will be now scared whole fight.''
''Heh.'' Ichiro chuckled, ''Well, I wouldn't have been able to get your attention otherwise.''
Lucas wryly smiled and asked, ''Are you planning to tell me why you are leaving so suddenly?''
''Sorry, but the less you know, the better,'' Ichiro replied and didn't want to leave any traces that could lead back to them.
Lucas sighed and nodded. He left the tourist class and walked past the flight attendant, who started whispering in a shaky tone.
Lucas wryly smiled and had to explain to the flight attendant that it was a joke.
''How do you know him?'' Azura asked while looking Lucas back.
''He was the Captain of the plane, which I used to travel back to Arya,'' Ichiro replied and didn't tell her that the plane was the same as that got struck by the missiles.
Azura nodded thoughtfully and had a hunch that there was something else he didn't share with her.
Alena, who was sitting behind them, looked outside the window with an emotional gaze.
Soon, the plane left the runway and became airborne.
The City of Coldland got further away until it was nothing but a black dot in the distance.
Alena sighed and turned her head back to the front.
…
In the sky on top of Taryn, Capital City of Gensa.
A plane landed on the runway.
Inside the plane.
Ichiro rubbed his eyes after waking up.
''Yawn.'' Azura stretched her limbs and saw outside the window that they had landed.
Around the airport, there was snow gathered on the ground, but much less than in Coldland.
''It's winter…'' She murmured, ''I thought there wasn't winter in Gensa.''
''Of course, there are.'' Ichiro replied, ''But the weather isn't as cold as in Coldland.''
Azura nodded with slight excitement and asked, ''So, where are we now?''
''Capital City, Taryn.'' Ichiro took off the belt after the plane stopped. ''We have one more plane trip ahead.''
''Aww…'' Azura moved her legs around, which had gotten numb, and after hearing that there was another plane trip ahead didn't make her happy even the slightest.
Alena wryly smiled and took their bags from the overhead bin.
She didn't have time to pack in Coldland, but they bought clothes from the airport for her.
Every passenger stood up and started taking their bags.
Ichiro, on the other hand, walked towards the cockpit.
When he reached the flight attendant's area, there was the pale-looking flight attendant who was still scared once she saw Ichiro.
Other flight attendants frowned and wondered who he was and why he came.
But then, the cockpit door opened, and Lucas appeared with three tickets in his hand.
''Here.'' He offered the tickets to Ichiro, who took them with gratitude.
''I will owe you one.'' Ichiro said with a severe look, ''You have my phone number.''
Lucas smiled and nodded, ''Well, I hope I don't need your help.''
''Well, if you need anything.'' Ichiro put the tickets in his pockets and nodded at Lucas before leaving.
He, Azura, and Alena left the plane and reached the terminal shortly afterwards.
''Where are we going next?'' Alena asked while looking around the terminal.
The sea of people was walking back and forth in the terminal; tomorrow, a Christmas Day was, making the last day to travel somewhere.
The sky above Taryn was already dark.
Taryn was quite a simple city, quite similar to Irio, which had more ordinary buildings than Skyscrapers.
The airport of the Taryn was quite close to the City's Center, which made the area around the airport very busy.
Ichiro raised his head and saw the times when planes left and noticed that there were only ten minutes before the night flight for Irio leaves.
''Another plane trip, it seems…'' Ichiro led the way and walked past the sea of people while Azura and Alena followed behind with hurried steps.
Their faces were paler than most of the Gensa's people have gotten accustomed to, which attracted much attention.
The fact that they are stunning, like pair of beautiful sisters, didn't help the fact, and many kept ogling at them.
They managed to reach Gate Number 17 somewhat unhindered, even though many eyes followed after them.
After reaching the desk, where a beautiful flight attendant was waiting.
Ichiro gave the tickets and was allowed inside the plane.
Azura and Alena were still suffering from jetlag and had very sluggish movements, and instantly after they reached their seats, they fell into a deep slumber.
''Whew…'' Ichiro took a deep breath while Azura's head was on his shoulder.
A calm and steady sound of breathing came out of her nose, calming Ichiro down as well.
It had been half a year since he left Irio, and he thought it would take him over three years before he came back to Irio, but his journey in High School didn't go as smoothly as he expected.
Ichiro stuffed his hand inside his pocket and took a phone from there.
He used his thumb and entered Worldly Messaging App.
He scrolled down through his messages with his family, and they have rarely talked lately.
One reason was because he was busy, and his parents knew it.
His little sister, Ayako, sends messages every day, and Ichiro barely has time to reply to them.
'I wonder how they are doing…' He closed the phone and stuffed it back inside his pocket.
He had heard about Irio from his little sister, and apparently, he was pretty of a celebrity, but he didn't think it was anything significant. The hype after his achievements must have been reduced by now.
Ichiro thought that not many might even recognize him, and while he was pretty famous in Coldland as one of the Four Kings in Irio, he didn't know he was that popular.
He remembered how Hessu, Antti, and Antero called him a Legend of some sort, but he thought that it was nothing biggie and that the tales of his achievements were still somewhat vivid in their minds, but now, after multiple months without a word about him.
Ichiro thought he had been forgotten, but he has no idea currently… How wrong he indeed was.