Travel The Distance

Chapter 38

I raced into the entrance hall of the castle and came face to face with all of my advisors, including Kyoka and Fumikage. The two of them were out of breath, their chests moved up and down at a constant rate as they spread themselves out on the floor. Tsu knelt behind Fumikage with his head in her lap whilst Yaoyorozu knelt beside Kyoka, gently brushing her fingers through her hair.

"What's happened?" I asked as soon as I entered the hall. Everyone's heads whipped around to look at me, their eyes were wide with fear.

"T-the army is advancing now. They moved up their invasion date. They'll be at our borders by dawn." Fumikage gasped out. My blood ran cold. We had always known that it was a possibility that they would attack early, but having it actually happen was a different matter entirely.

"Dawn," I muttered emotionlessly. "Arrive at dawn."

Worried looks were cast about, we all had the same thought. It was too soon. No matter how much we prepared, how much work we put into a plan, we were still outnumbered. We were still at a disadvantage. However, it wasn't the time for doubts and fears. We couldn't lose hope. Not now, not even if we were on the cusp of losing. Anything could turn a battle.

"Listen up losers. It is currently five pm. Everybody needs to eat within the next two hours and then go to their rooms to sleep. Eijiro, relay this message to the army. If you're not asleep by eight pm I'll find out and beat your ass. Got it. Dawn is at five am. They are unlikely to attack before daybreak because the humans in their army won't be able to see. Just in case, Fumikage will station several spirits at the border as the first line of defence and scouts in case they attack preemptively. Everybody will be woken up at four am when we will all eat before taking our prediscussed positions. Understood?"

"Yes, King Katsuki!" Everyone shouted, their voices echoed around the entrance hall. The loud noise rose to the sky.

My orders were carried out swiftly. The army was told that the enemy would arrive at dawn and were told to eat before sleeping at eight pm. Eijiro and Hanta cooked enough food to feed half of the kingdom with the limited provisions we had, the food smelled mouth-watering and caused Ground Zero to rear his head in my soul. My dragon called out for me to eat the food which was being served far below me, but I couldn't bring myself to integrate and be social. I knew it was stressful for every person involved in the battle, but as the King, I couldn't help but feel that every injury and death which would inevitably occur on the battlefield the next day would be my fault. I was the one who had asked people to fight. I was the one endangering everyone. Maybe if I hadn't sat on that throne the previous year, the oncoming battle wouldn't even exist.

Too consumed by my tumultuous thoughts, I didn't hear the sound of boots hitting the stairs as they ascended the tower. I didn't even realise Shoto was there until I saw his white and red hair shifting in the wind out of the corner of my eye.

"What are you doing here?" I grunted. Shoto observed me for a minute. His eyes held no pity, he knew that I wouldn't like that. It seemed like we had known each other for years, and yet it had been a few months. His eyes held an understanding of how I functioned. He knew me exceptionally well. Maybe it was because we were made for each other, though just thinking about those words made me want to barf at how cheesy they were.

"I could ask you the same question," Shoto replied smoothly after he had scrutinised me for a heavy minute, "Shouldn't you be with your troops, rallying them?"

"I'll do that later, or just get Eijiro to do it. He's their commander. I don't do well in those sorts of situations.", my voice was low and gruff, I was practically growling the words. Being so close to a battle was grinding on my nerves. I could taste the oncoming bloodshed on the tip of my tongue. I could sense it in the shift of the wind and sway of the grass.