Magi: The Tale of Faith and Hope

Guide

Defeated by Aladdin, the traitor Ryosai and his troops were captured. Afterwards, the Kouga village became part of the Kou Empire. Under the command of Hakuei's troops, the village is courageously stepping toward a new beginning. And, once the remainder of the two weeks had passed and the day to leave for the spring market had arrived, it became the day for Aladdin and the twins to depart.

"Onii-saaaan!! These clothes are heavy and hard to move around in~" Aladdin whined, tugging on the thick clothing. The twins smiled wryly in understanding. They could barely even move. The Kouga women had bundled them all up as much as humanly possible before sending them off. Oh well, at least now they had a change of clothes that helped them look like they might actually belong in this world.

"What are you talking about? Don't you have a long journey? This much equipment is necessary!" Dorji chided him.

"Hey, speaking of bundles... what was that wrapped up package I saw you hand off to Hakuei before we left?" Faith asked her sister curiously.

"Uh... I'll tell you later," Hope said, sweat-dropping. She didn't want to say in front of the others, but it was actually the magic carpet, spoon, and everything else that she had 'borrowed' from Kouen to make her escape. She had also slipped in her pearl necklace as compensation for whatever trouble she might have caused. Hope figured returning everything she took might help ensure that he had one less reason to come after them... She really hoped he wasn't holding a grudge. She had made sure to emphasize to Hakuei that Kouga Clan had no idea what she was doing, and that it had absolutely nothing to do with them in any way. Hakuei had been surprised to learn that Hope had met Kouen before—Ryosai was in no condition to relay the message he received about how he wanted her captured, and it had been completely forgotten in the wake of his betrayal—and understandably confused by her cryptic message, but the princess had promised to keep it in mind as she accepted the package to pass onto him for her.

"Look, you can see the market!" Boyan said excitedly as it came into view. Aladdin and the twins immediately perked up after hearing that and smiled as they looked down upon the lively and colorful market below the plateau.

"Huh, two girls and this lil' kid?" a tall man with a really intense face asked as he leaned down to get a closer look at the twins and Aladdin. The guys had introduced them to a member of a caravan they were familiar with who was a really muscular and macho middle-aged man. He had a thick mustache and was covered in scars. Even the little squirrel/Tasmanian devil thing riding on the man's shoulders looked tough with the matching scar it had over its eye. The three friends sweat-dropped. He and his little critter were staring really hard at them...

"Give them a ride to Qishan," said Dorji. "They'll do any kind of work."

"Hmph. I guess it won't matter if we have a couple more girls or one or two more kids," the man said, biting one of the coins someone had handed him to make sure it was good. "But going through the desert is tough. You kids sure you can handle it?" The three friends exchanged a glance.

"Yep," they answered with a smile.

"We can handle it," said Hope.

"I'll do my best!" said Aladdin.

"We're tougher than we look," said Faith.

"That's for sure!" Dorji agreed with a smile, patting Aladdin on the back.

"..." The man stared at them for a moment. "You have ten minutes until the carriage leaves. Finish your goodbyes," he said with a huff as he turned away, deciding to accept them. "You siblings probably have memories you want to recount." Aladdin, the twins, and Dorji stared after the man in surprise.