Moss Mountain (Chapter)

Moss Mountain is the twenty-sixth chapter of Natsumi Mukai's +Anima manga.

Synopsis
Igneous Giesrieg leads his soldiers towards Moss Mountain, home of the Kim-un-kur. As he approaches he calls out to them hoping to talk, however they only fire some arrows, warning him to stay away.

Cooro and friends rest on the outskirts of Sandra. With winter approaching, Nana Alba thinks they should stay in Sandra, however Husky is concerned about Senri's recent trouble with the soldiers there. Cooro convinces him that since the town is so large they could easily hide or get away if something bad happens; so they decide to go back to Sandra, but then notice Senri wandering towards Moss Mountain. They try to stop him but he is insistent on going to the mountain with or without them, so they follow him.

In a Kim-un-kur village, a scout informs Si Mukar of the soldiers camping nearby. Si Mukar is sceptical that talks with the Astarians will have any meaning.

Marca Brighton follows the +Anima children from a distance. She wonders where they are going since there aren't any towns where they are headed before she realizes that it is where the Kim-un-kur live. Marca then questions whether there is any connection between the children going to Moss Mountain and the rumors that the Kim-un-kur are the origin of +Anima.

The +Anima children approach the Astarian military's camp. Cooro is entranced by the scent of the stew cooking over the fire. Nana tries to stop him from thinking about stealing the food, but has second thoughts over her own hunger. Husky chases after Senri when he notices an Astarian flag and realizes whose camp it is. Igneous finds Husky and Senri in the camp and starts to interrogate them when two more soldiers carry Cooro and Nana over and inform him that they ate the food. Arthur recognizes Senri, but refrains from telling Igneous the embarrassing story of the suspected kidnapping. Now understanding that the children only came to the camp because they were hungry, Igneous lets them go; he is more concerned about his mission. Senri starts to resume his journey towards the mountain, but Igneous stops him having decided he may be useful for the mission.

At night, Igneous explains the diplomatic tensions between Astaria and the Kim-un-kur, citing the Battle of Moss Mountain. Astaria would like to invade Sailand, but for that they need an alliance with the Kim-un-kur who so far have refused to talk. With Senri acting as an emissary, Igneous hopes the situation will change. Nana refuses to go up to the mountains for free, but Igneous reminds her that she stole his food, and tells them that if they refuse then he will arrest them for stealing the military's food. Senri agrees to help him.

In the morning, Igneous takes five soldiers and the +Anima children toward Moss Mountain. Arthur had questioned the decision to take Cooro, Husky and Nana, however Igneous was concerned that they may be the only ones who could stop Senri if he turned on them. As they travel, Cooro notices someone watching them, Igneous suspects it is the Kim-un-kur. Now two miles further than the soldiers had managed to get before, Igneous wonders whether it is because Senri is with them. Igneous calls out, trying to get them to talk to him, but there is no response. Then Senri sees a bear.