Another update and it's over 1AM here... but please enjoy!
Wishes, Dreams, and Memories
Chapter 33 – No Longer a Secret
"I… still can't let you decide just like that," Frey rose from her seat, getting the attention from the three men, "You know why I'm saying this, don't you?"
"I know," Lest replied in determination, "That's why I want to keep it a secret."
Frey let out a sigh, "You and your secrets again… even if you don't remember about it, I could figure out your secret back then. But what I'm saying is that you're not on your own anymore, so you should think more about what they're going to feel."
"I… I know that, but…"
"Sweetie, you can go," the familiar voice brought shock to Lest's face as he quickly turned to the source of the voice.
"D-Dolly?" Lest looked at his wife nervously as she approached the group calmly, "Did you…?"
Dolce nodded and frowned, "I did, and I'm sorry…"
The Guardian turned around and headed out towards the door with Pico catching up to her, leaving Lest completely clueless on what he should have done. He turned as Frey tugged on his clothes, with a worried look on her face, "You can go with me then, once you've talked to her. I still fear the worst, so I suggest you should spend some quality time with her today."
"… Yeah…" Lest replied sadly before turning to the other two in the room, "But before that, when should we be leaving? And where to?"
"The sooner the two of you leave, the better. I still need to prepare the airship for you, so tomorrow morning should be the earliest time you can go," Arthur replied before turning to Kiel, "As for the location, Kiel had found the place where the emperor will most likely be."
"Hold on, I've marked it on this map…" Kiel took out a worn map from the book, pointing at a single spot, "Living runes are most likely attracted to places with high level of runes, like this one."
"This is…" Lest looked around the pointed spot of the map as he noticed that it was familiar to him, "It's around Leon Karnak… the entrance leading to the Forest of Beginnings…"
"Yeah, I thought so," Frey added, "Ethelberd's presence might alter the layout of the entrance, but it should be safe for humans to go through there. After all, he is now half human and half runes."
"Well, I assume that settles everything," Arthur spoke up as he and Kiel got up from their seats, "I wish there is something more I can offer to you other than to wish for your safety, but it seems like this is our limit."
"Lest," Kiel looked at Lest with a frown, "We're your friends too, so we're also worried about you. I don't think I can do anything else to help make sure you come back alive other than to hope for the worst to happen to you."
Lest gave Kiel a nod, "Okay, I'll try and do what I can."
It was already night time in Selphia and the female Guardian was spending her night life on the castle's balcony along with Pico. Spending a day with Lest had lifted her spirits after her world turned upside down from the news she had heard that day, but as night came she knew that her pain hadn't completely healed.
"You look a bit more relaxed now that you've spent some time with Lest," Dolce turned around in surprise as Frey stood there innocently, "I guess my brother isn't so dense after all."
"Y-You're just seeing things," Dolce turned away to hide her blush, but her embarrassment prompted Pico to follow up the teasing.
"Dolly couldn't seem to take her eyes off Lest and she was smiling all the-ouch!" a talisman landed on Pico's head, stopping her from embarrassing the Guardian even more.
"I can tell from your actions that you're fine now," Frey walked over to Dolce's side, joining her on the balcony, "Even if you're doing okay so far, I really wish that I don't have to put you in this situation in the first place," Frey let out a sigh, "I'm sorry…"
There was a short pause before Dolce spoke up quietly, "If you really are sorry," the Guardian turned to Frey with a small smile, "then tell me more about you and your brother's past."
"Huh?" Frey looked at her in confusion.
"Well, I don't actually know about his past other than what you had told him before," Dolce added as she turned her attention to the night sky, "I've told him about my family and Pico before, so I figured I should learn more… about him…"
"Well…" Frey put her hands together in excitement, "Since you're the one asking for those stories, I can tell them as detailed as I remember them…"
"Hah…" Frey let out a long sigh after her constant laughing as she told Lest's most embarrassing past stories, "Well, those are his most embarrassing moments I can remember. There could be more that I missed though…"
"I suppose that those stories were quite entertaining," Dolce giggled along while Pico was laughing as she hovered beside her.
"Entertaining? They were so funny that they almost as funny as your stories as a little girl!" Pico's laughs were quickly silenced with a swarm of talisman covering her face.
"… What a dumb ghost," Dolce whispered in embarrassment.
Frey watched the two of them with a smile, "I can see that the two of you get along quite well too. It's almost like you two are actually sisters!"
"That's what she claimed," the female Guardian let out a sigh as she turned to the innocently-smiling Pico, "She's just a sticky and perverted ghost I happened to come across one day."
"Aren't you being a little too mean on me, Dolly?" Pico looked at her friend with a frown, but Dolce could see through the ghost's antics, "D-Dolly?"
Dolce let out a smile as she turned around at Frey, "You can ignore her. I'll take care of the ghost later."
"Y-Yeah… I guess?" Frey laughed awkwardly before a yawn escaped her mouth, "It's getting late anyway, so maybe it's best that we get some sleep for an early start tomorrow."
Frey turned around and was about to leave, until Dolce called out to her, "Wait, I need to ask you one more thing."
Frey turned to her with a tired smile, "If it's about Lest, I think I'm already out of stories for the night."
Frey hurriedly got back to her tracks until the Guardian called out to her once more, "It's about you," Frey stopped in her tracks, but didn't turn around, "You told us about your childhood until the two of you grew up. Yet, you never told us why and how you and Lest got separated-"
"Personal issues," Frey replied quickly, looking at Dolce and Pico with a serious face, "I… I can't say anything more about it."
"Okay, I won't ask about that issue if that's your wish," Dolce looked back at the Earthmate, "That, supported with a few suspicious actions of yours… reminds me of a certain someone around here…"
Pico hovered to her side, "I'm thinking the same thing as milady."
"W-What do you-"
"Ghosts can't eat human food," Dolce spoke up sternly, "Isn't that right, Pico?"
The ghost girl nodded, "I can't eat and I can barely touch anything."
"You never actually eat anything from I can see," Dolce added, "But if you're a ghost, you shouldn't be able to touch anything."
"W-Well, that's because I'm a human being…" Frey stated defensively, but it wasn't enough to stop the two from questioning her.
"You can't be a human being, because you can't survive without eating," Pico added.
"You can't be a ghost either," Dolce paused for a moment before she asked her final question, "Who or what are you?"
Frey saw the seriousness in their eyes and after a few moments of silence, she sighed in defeat, "It's just like Lest said about you. You can tell if someone is hiding something," Frey looked at the two with a sad smile, "Okay, I'll tell you the truth about myself…"
The next morning came and a small crowd had formed near the airship. Dolce, Pico, and Forte were present to see Lest and Frey took off. Arthur had already boarded the airship as the navigator, waiting for the two Earthmates to say their goodbyes. As Lest and Frey were going to board the airship, Dolce came over with two cloth-wrapped boxes and handed them over to Lest.
"It's your lunch," Dolce told Lest in a whisper as she looked at him without any visible emotions.
"Two portions?" Lest looked at the boxes in confusion before turning back to his wife, "You mean it's for me and Frey, right?"
There was a slight pause before her reply came with another whisper, "Maybe."
"Thanks Dolly," Lest wrapped Dolce in a hug before he and Frey boarded the airship.
"Um…" Forte suddenly spoke up, though hesitantly, "Kiel told me about the situation yesterday. If there's anything I can do to help…"
"Protect the town," the dragon knight stared at Lest, "We can't have you join our fight this time. My only request is that you protect the town in my and Arthur's absence."
"Understood," Forte nodded and smiled, "Both of you, please be safe."
There was a short pause before Frey spoke up to answer, "Yeah… yeah, we will."
Dolce looked up as the airship took off without saying a word. Pico was watching her worriedly as the Guardian kept on watching the airship until it was out of sight. She knew that Dolce wanted to do something for Lest, but any action she took would eventually end up hurting him. As if the news of his losing his life wasn't enough to burden her, more sad news about him came just the night before. She just wanted him to have a normal and happy life with her, just like how her parents had wished for her happy life.
-Flashback-
"I'm a living rune, just like Ethelberd," Frey's words silenced Dolce in Pico, who both looked at her in disbelief, "And just like Ethelberd, my greed of power turned me into this… I can only make it out here from the help of an Earthmate the king knows."
"Does… does he know?" Dolce asked shakily.
Frey frowned and turned her head away, "No, that's what I'm trying to prevent him from finding out. If I'm the only one to go for this mission, then that secret will never be revealed to him. This is my sin and I'm going to pay the price with my own life instead of his."
"But if it comes to this, then something must be wrong, correct?" Pico asked.
"Yes…" Frey slowly nodded, "Even with my own life and Lest's charm, the power isn't enough to completely purify Ethelberd's soul. But… it could be possible if both of us are present."
"Even with that… the risk is still there…?" Dolce asked sadly, getting a nod from Frey, "No… Is this the only way…?"
"I can try," Frey put a hand on her pocket and pulled out a glowing shard, "I can try and use this too. I just hope that the rune shard still have enough power even after enabling me to stay here longer than I should have…" Frey closed her eyes and put the rune shard back into her pocket, "So please… Don't let Lest know about this… about what I am…"
"Yes…" Dolce slowly nodded, "I won't tell him…"
-End of Flashback-
Not one, but two living runes? One on each side of the battlefield? The showdown is coming next chapter!