The journey to the Far West took a long time, at least a month to just get there. Every day they wondered if their decision was the right one. They will eventually have to return to Orario because of the statuses on their backs. The twins followed their Grandmother along. The journey was taken in silence.
Save for saying good morning, good night, please, and thank you. Words were a rarity for the Vlahos trio. The letter from Dia addressed to the twins remained unread. The wounds were still too fresh…at least that's what they told themselves.
Sofia had secured transport out to Saumouth Grove, or as close as possible. They just sat and thought about everything they've done so far. Irene was fiddling with her hands, with her staff, and with her cloak. Oftentimes, she'd see her granddaughter clutch the cloak to her chest. No tears came out, just one painful grimace.
Her grandson was more of the opposite. He would stare off into the horizon and then turn blank. The boy was most likely thinking of what he could have done better.
"Don't think like that, Isaac," Sofia elected to speak.
"You don't know what I'm thinking."
Sofia stared right at him, letting her status dictate the tone, "I think I'd know better than anyone how you're thinking. After all, that's the way I was thinking almost sixteen years ago," that got him to turn and shut up quickly. "All I ever thought about was how I could have saved my friends, my Familia. How I should have done something even if I was doing all I could in the fight."
"This is about the Dragon, isn't it?" Irene inquired. The One-Eyed Black Dragon.
Sofia sighed, "Yes, my dearest child, it was. That Dragon was a beast leagues above what the Leviathan and Behemoth were. It started with our mages, blowing them away with fire and miasma, then dashed to our front lines, swatting them away with such a force that killed them on impact."
Isaac turned back to face her, "Then how-"
"I only survived because I managed to get a protection spell over me and a few others. If I was a second slower, then I would have died and this conversation would not be happening and you both would be in that slut's Familia," Sofia said, her tone dictating that she was done with the current conversation. Or at least that line of thought.
Silence took over the wagon. The driver tuned them all out because they were sure that this was not a conversation they were supposed to be hearing. They instead called out, "Madame, your first stop is coming up. The village of Vulcanal."
"Will you be available in the next few days?" Sofia questioned. The driver gave an affirmative. "Then we will meet at the entrance in a few days' time."
Vulcanal was huge, simply put. It is most often referred to as a shrine city. Or better yet, the 'Smithing Shrine Sity' for a play on words. Most of the buildings...were weird. Not to mention that the terrain they were in was pretty mountainous. The Far West is known for its mountains and deserts. Their eyes were glued to the fact that peoples' homes were inside the mountain itself.
Isaac and Irene looked around to see some old architecture, brick and stone houses—again, embedded into the mountainside—all stacked appropriately. Spick and spiffy, clean, organized, like a smith's forge. They made sure everything was nice and tidy. It looked like the Coliseum in Orario. That was the kind of feel for it, a very symmetrical feeling. Old roads that could only fit around eight people before it ended. Carriage travel was not permitted inside the walls. Running across the street took only four strides for the average person.
However, what they both noticed was the sheer number of smithing shops. While not literally on every corner, they easily were the most popular. They all seemed to be under a brand though. A single blacksmith's hammer with a 'V' engraved at the base. "Grandma, is this the smithing capital of the world?" Irene asked. "I feel like I've read something about this before in a book a few years ago when we were traveling with…" Have we seen this before?
"...with Dia…" Isaac lamented. I don't...remember off the top of my head.
Sofia stood from the carriage, paid the driver, and stepped off the back. "Come along, you two. It's time I reveal something else." The answer is staring them in the face...guess I have my work cut out for me before they return. She threw up her hood and condensed her staff to the point where she could hide it under her robes. The twins had already hidden their weapons. Their cloaks still displayed the Dia Familia and they didn't want to part with them ever. The pins that she had gotten for them were pinned to their shirts. They would covet those forever to their dying days.
Since they haven't gotten in combat since they left, they had no worry. Well...that's sort of a lie. Sofia wanted to make sure the twins haven't gotten sloppy so she often has them fight her. The problem was that their movements lacked something. They were not at their peak. A trip to her will do some good. The Great Mage has this planned out for the time they are gone.
The time limit was not set in stone but she will not let them go until they were fully confident in themselves again. She didn't want them to be like her after that. The Mage often wondered if Dia ever saw through her façade, and wondered why she never called her out on it. The Dark Times for Sofia Vlahos was longer than just eight years ago but almost twice that.
The twins threw their hoods up and put their packs under their cloaks. Sure, they looked suspicious but if their Grandmother was putting her hood up, they followed her example. She often leads that way on how they act, so if she was doing something, then they would follow. Oftentimes, it allowed them to blend in. That conversation that just happened was because they were the only ones on that carriage, save for the driver. "Open up your cloaks to show off the armor."
Confused, the twins did so, showing the subtle shine of the armor they wore since before Orario. Whispers reached their level five senses. "That's his prized armor!" "Why are they wearing it?" "Baka! Don't you recognize the one in front?"
The whispers continued, further making the twins uncomfortable, looking to their Grandmother, "Can I ask what the hell is the point to this?" Irene hissed. She was not liking it. She thought it was bad in Orario but this place was easily worse. Isaac just stared ahead and paid them no mind. He was still on the road to recovery. He was missing one person in his life and it was a lonely month without her.
"Well, I'll be. It looks like you really brought them!" A man stepped outside a building, the biggest one on the block, an apron around his chest, sweat pouring off of him, and goggles on his face. The man's curly beard and hair all looked like it was one big patch of hair. "Come, come inside. We have much to discuss."
"It's nice to see you again, Lord Vulcan," Sofia said with a smile. At this point, her hood was off and many people recognized her shouting that the Great Mage was here. The twins once again glanced at one another.
Should we? She sent.
Yeah, why not? He replied before shoving off his hood, Irene following.
"Is that your daughter?!" a female shouted. More voices clamored, throwing out wild theories.
The man, no, the deity, Vulcan, raised his hands and everyone quieted down. "These are the two I've heard about, right? Isaac and Irene? Your grandkids, if I'm not mistaken." The eyes around them widened. "Glad to know the armor I crafted made it to that village you two cleared out."
The twins felt their brains pause, reboot, and play it back again. "That village? The mine?"
Sofia fidgeted for a moment, "Let's talk inside. This for Lord Vulcan and your ears only."
Isaac followed first, then Irene a moment later. Both were waiting for this conversation.
"Apologies about the heat, I was forging my newest creation," Vulcan said, throwing off the apron, allowing the twins to see his sculpted body, full of scars. He noticed them looking with curiosity, "Ahh, burn scars, something I never had to worry about in Tenkai. That was before I got this enchanted apron, keeps me from overheating. I was only sweating because it doesn't cover my whole body. So leaning over the open flame is no problem."
Vulcan's forge had multiple sets of tools and multiple different tables that neither Isaac nor Irene could tell the name of. If Welf was here, he'd be gushing over all the little nooks. The mere thought made them twitch. Mikoto…I miss you.
I miss them too. I can't tease you about it. Irene answered her brother's unspoken worry.
A servant entered the room with cups of tea, "The refreshments as you requested, Lord Vulcan."
"I told you that I would get them."
The servant smirked, "And I wanted you to interact with your guests. Apologies for the interruption. If you need me, then all you must do is call." They left, leaving the tray with four cups behind.
Sofia reached out and poured the tea before passing one each to her grandkids. "This tea is one of my favorites."
The twins did not sip their tea, still pensive. Their eyes were dilated. What do you think the connection between them is?
I don't know, Irene. Right now, I'm still trying to make emotions a priority. If what he said was to be believed, then Lord Vulcan made the armor we are wearing currently.
Irene sharply looked at Isaac, who stared back, You mean to tell me we've been wearing god-crafted armor and I'm just now realizing it?!
Isaac smirked slightly, Hey, I've just realized it too. It would explain why the armor always seemed to never have any scratches. Even after getting caved in, it still fits as well as the first time I put it on.
"What exactly are they doing?" Vulcan inquired to Sofia.
Sofia sipped her tea, sighing in satisfaction afterward, "Speaking in their minds. They have what I believe is called 'twin telepathy' and their eyes are the indicator that they are using it."
"So, Lord Vulcan-"
"Just Vulcan, please. It makes the conversation flow better," he interrupted Isaac.
Isaac continued, "...okay. Why and How did your armor make it into my sister and I's possession? Besides the fact that we got it as a reward, how did it get to a village that was for a fact, a three-week trip on the other side of the Ganna mountain range?"
Sofia cleared her throat, "That would be because of me."
"Grandma?" Irene tilted her head slightly.
"Could I have an explanation then?" Isaac questioned.
The Great Mage sipped her tea once more, "Of course. In truth, I have kept an eye on you, thanks to a close associate of Dia's. It's someone you've never met and I will not reveal the name. They wished to remain anonymous but they wanted to make sure you were safe. Vulcan was then contracted and had made me run that out to the village. I could cover most of the planet in a couple of days. I am simply that fast." She put her tea down, "I was always worried what became of you. To be frank, I was wrapping up a decade-long quest and that's when I heard you two arrived in that village. That bag of jewels that you also received was a small gift from me."
"It makes sense, considering Davlin was ecstatic about the materials," Isaac said, reaching into his bag and pulled out a familiar necklace. Irene's hand went to the pin currently residing on her shirt. The necklace was still caked in dry blood.
"She was so happy to receive that…remember?"
"Almost like yesterday…"
Clearing her throat, "So, are there any questions about the armor? The person who crafted it is right here you know?"
The twins cleared their emotions to look at Vulcan. "What makes the armor so special?"
"Why does it seem to repair itself?"
Both twins asked a question at the same time. They looked at one another and shared a chuckle. For a fleeting moment, Sofia felt as if they were better again. Melancholic looks replaced it soon after.
Vulcan chuckled, rubbing his hands together with an excited expression on his face. "Finally, I get to explain. Alright, normally making multiple sets of armor is bothersome, so I thought about making only one set but giving it a special effect. I call it Auto-Repair. The name is simple because I'm far too lazy to come up with some fancy name that people will just shorten anyway." The twins had to admit, he had a point. "The armor you wear has this enchantment applied, making it slowly repair itself. During its forging, I gave it two special effects. One I've just said but the other was Size Adjustment. As you may have noticed, the armor always adjusts itself to feel just right on the user."
The twins were enthralled by the explanation. "Well, after almost having my chest completely caved in, I was a little surprised that it was ready in a few days…"
Vulcan nodded, sipping his own tea, "Just perfect…that is the effect at work. It gradually 'heals' itself over the course of time. It adjusted to be just far enough to not crush your lungs more than they probably were. It has to go slow in order for it to properly ensure its repairs. It is some of my finest work and it took me at least six years to properly forge a first set." Vulcan has a literal pile of his failures, and they will never see the light of day. He only uses the materials again for other projects.
Irene pulled out her staff, "If we're getting answers, then why do my staff and Isaac's swords feel like there is someone encased inside them?"
Sofia elected to answer, "That's because there are."
The twins widened their eyes, not having expected such a blunt answer. Vulcan took over, "To be fair, the weapons you possess were made almost a millennia ago by both Hephaistos and myself."
"Lady Hephaistos?" Isaac asked, confused.
Vulcan provided context, "She and I are about equal when it comes to forging prowess. I never liked the idea of confining myself to a small space like Orario, hence why I'm out here. She and I are equivalents to one another. She's of Greek origin and I'm of Roman origin."
Isaac finally reached for his tea which was still warm and took a sip, "So what's this have to do with our weapons? Because right now, they are eager."
"You can feel their presence?" Vulcan asked with raised eyebrows.
"Since we first came in contact with them," Irene supplied. "The witch, Leona, had basically handed it to us for free, claiming it was a favor from you, Grandma."
The Mage shrugged, "Not really but that Witch works in weird ways. "Vulcan, would you kindly explain what their weapons are?"
The weapons themselves stirred, making the twins hold them. "Yeah, because sometimes I feel like they have emotions."
"The one thing we tried to do and succeeded but never did again," Vulcan said. "You are not to repeat this to anyone except your own descendants when they reach the right age. This technique was called Spirit Forging."
At that, the weapons hummed, the marking in both the staff and the swords, making the twins eye Vulcan in a new light. ""Spirit Forging?!""
"Yes, Spirit Forging requires the use of spirits, lesser spirits, like a Salamander or an Undine. Gnomes and Sylphs also helped as well. For example, in your swords, Isaac, there are a lesser Salamander and Gnome. Since you use fire and earth more than anything, they help amplify that magic." Vulcan turned to Irene, "As for you, young lady, you prefer wind, so a Sylph resides within your staff. You both may not notice it but spirits are often attracted to the weapons. You cannot see them but sometimes, you may notice another presence."
Irene snapped her fingers, "That's why I felt like someone was looking over my shoulder during the ride here! Are there any spirits in the room?"
Vulcan chuckled at the mortal's cute question. Even though, in his line of vision, he did see a few Gnome spirits crowding around the boy. Sylphs crowded around her.
Sofia smiled at her granddaughter's curiosity and exuberance. Isaac merely looked thoughtfully at his two swords, obviously thinking of what, rather who, was inside his swords.
"Speaking of presence, why can we feel the weapons, I mean the spirits in the weapons whenever we would fight, they always seemed eager to fight. Is it because of my own intent?"
Vulcan turned his divine eyes to the elder Vlahos twin, "Not exactly, Gnomes and Salamanders are much more…battle-hungry than Undines and Sylphs. They make more appearances because that's their nature.
His weapons felt offended and judging by the wide eyes of Isaac and knowing grin of Vulcan, he said that to gain such a reaction. "Okay, so they like fighting as much as I do when I'm into it."
"Also, these weapons have made it into your hands yet again," Vulcan said, which made Sofia's eyes wander back to the Smithing God.
"Are you saying?"
"Didn't it feel odd to just have these weapons ready for you? The fact that they feel so right that if you ever picked up another sword or staff, the spirit might be angry with you. They are bonded to their wielder. More specifically, they've bonded to the souls of which you inhabit."
"So, what, we're reincarnated heroes or something?" Irene asked but Isaac again looked pensive.
Sofia regarded Vulcan, "Tread lightly, Vulcan. It hasn't been confirmed yet."
"Sofia, listen, they possess the weapons, they've used them, it's a pretty good assumption that they were a part of his party way back then."
"If you're going to talk about us in the same room, then at the very least, tell us what it is," Isaac drawled. "We're aware of how reincarnation works and that most original souls have been 'recycled' at this point; so what else are you hiding from us Grandma, Lord Vulcan?"
"Secrets make or break people, Gran, how about…I don't know…trusting your family?" Irene bit.
Sofia sighed, "The fact you have the one of the staffs and the swords means that at one point in time, our line was stretched back into the Age of Heroes…to the beginning of it, even before the Gods even thought about descending. Zeus slightly filled me in so most of what I'm about to say is just conjecture on my part. When he gave you your hidden falna, he felt like he'd met you before, despite only being two years old. Also, even if the Gods were never on Gekai, that didn't mean they couldn't bless us with such items as these. Remember that the domain of every God or Goddess was followed so, these weapons could have been made in Tenkai."
"Okay, so what does he have to do with us?" Isaac asked, setting his sword off to the side. "Besides the falna, we never met or remember him."
"It is no coincidence that you met Bell Cranel. I have reason to believe that Argonaut walks amongst the mortal plane once more, for the first time since his death at the beginning of the Age of Heroes. The stories of Argonaut are all wildly inaccurate. Only Zeus and Hera know the true story. And if that pervert is doing anything, he instilled heroics in the young boy."
"Yeah, Bell has the tendency to pull off stupid things that should not go his way."
"You're telling me that Bell is the reincarnation of the Argonaut?!"
As you can see, the twins have very different reactions, even though one shared the sentiment of the other.
Vulcan nodded, "Indeed and we Gods aren't supposed to tell you who you were but I can word it in a way that spoils nothing. Your souls, the Vlahos line itself began during the Age of Heroes. In the time of the original Argonaut, his party consisted of over ten people. There were two sets of twins, one of them being Amazonian. The other was a pair of elven fraternal twins. High Elves. Wielding the weapons that Hephaistos and I made specifically for them…"
They were already putting the pieces together. The fact he said fraternal meant only one thing.
"And these survived over a thousand years? How?" Irene exclaimed, almost falling out of her seat. The tea was long forgotten. All four were currently enthralled in their conversation.
"Spirit Forging preserves the weapon, making it impossible to tarnish in any way. It's a literal blessing as a weapon, bound to whom they deem worthy."
"What about the spirits? From the way you made it sound, it didn't sound voluntary," Isaac leveled a look at Vulcan.
"They asked us, and I know if you have that thought to your weapons, they'd give you a feeling of contentment, satisfied with being with you. Don't mistreat the weapon because they can just as easily reject you as they claimed you," Vulcan said. He turned, "Oh, I guess we had a very long talk, it's already night."
""Huh?!"" the twins bellowed. It only seemed that the day just started. I guess time flies when the conversation is going well.
That and the company wasn't bad… Irene countered her brother's thought. We will see her again, and we'll go from there. I just hope Bell hasn't done anything stupid.
Vulcan only chuckled, "How long do you plan on staying, Sofia? You know you can always settle here."
Sofia set down her teacup, "I know but my work is not over. I still have another destination in mind, and it involves you two. Don't think I haven't noticed the way you've been fighting."
The elder Vlahos twin cocked an eyebrow, "I've noticed and it's called fighting for the one person you've sworn to protect only to fail right at the finish line. So excuse me for not giving it my all. I'll find my reason to fight but right now…I'm processing." Wow, at least my sarcasm hasn't faded. It only amplified.
Irene quickly retorted, whilst ignoring her brother's mental thought, "The pain's still fresh and the wound is open, we're trying to heal, and it's something that can't be healed by magic…"
""Only time,"" both women said, making Sofia crack a motherly smile. "Melissa always used to say that any time you two got injured and I offered to heal you…"
Vulcan stood and clapped his hands, "Well, I'd be a terrible host if I didn't offer you a place to stay for the night. My home has over fifteen rooms that are still open. Feel free. They all have their own bathrooms."
Irene was not the only one to groan at that, "Good, but I am calling dibs. After that, you two can soak up all the hot water you want," Isaac said before standing and stretching. "One last question, are the spirits opposed to being named?"
"These spirits never had names," Vulcan stated as a fact.
"Would they be happy with a name? I mean, if what you said is true and we are indeed reincarnations of a Hero's party, I feel like we've named them before."
"When did you get so philosophical?"
"A month on the road with nothing but swirling thoughts in my own head will get me thinking of everything I've ever done up to this point, Gran. I just…I'm looking for another reason…"
"For?"
"Lord Vulcan?" Isaac pointedly ignored Sofia. He didn't have an answer. Correction. He didn't have an answer she would like.
The deity of the Forge eyed Isaac, noticing the evasion but said nothing on it. Instead, he answered him, "If you give them a name, and they accept it, why bother asking me? I on;y made the weapons, I left the naming up to the owner's interpretation."
"When you put it like that, you sound like Hermes," Isaac commented. "Right now, he's not the highest on the deity nice list." He winced, "That sounds harsh, please accept my apology," he said bowing to Vulcan. He didn't mean for it to come out as harsh as it did.
Vulcan waved him off, "Hermes is a shifty bastard, and he knows it. I've been compared to worse."
The Vlahos trio waved him goodnight before claiming one of the rooms. Of course, the twins took a room that had two beds. Sofia wanted to help them but once she heard them crying, she backed away. Her relationship with them is not the best, and she'd rather not test them on that.
In truth, she's been without her family for so long, she wonders what it would take to be defined as a family again because Sofia was sure she was the least capable right now. She could almost hear Alfia scolding her in her mind. "One day, you two. One day, I'll be the right person to come to when you need my help…"
Each one had their own problems to face. It was only a matter of time on when they confronted them. When Isaac went to bed that night, his thoughts went straight to Mikoto. He hoped she didn't hate him and if he returned, and she did…he would accept that. The pain twice scorned would sting for years but he'd endure it.
He'd have to.
It's been a month.
One.
Whole.
Month.
It's been one month since Yamato Mikoto has last talked or even seen Isaac Vlahos. All she wanted was to hug him, then probably hit him, then kiss him. Even those thoughts were enough to get her to flush but it was more out of her own awakening. Her feelings for him were true. She wanted to see him, to accept him.
The girl stared at the letter like she did every morning. She would read it once a day like she always did. The serious samurai understood why he left. She truly did. It was the fact that it was so sudden. How could she react? Her boyfriend left. She tried to not let it hurt. She really did.
It still stung.
Each time she read the letter, she could almost feel the emotions he let out while writing. It was enough to know that he almost didn't write it. The smeared ink, the small wrinkles in the corner. She barely touched it, and here it sat.
Her thoughts were even worse. She had a lot of time to think about what had happened that night. When she was captured, the what-if statements flooded in. Each one got increasingly worse. Haruhime, Chigusa, and Ouka often checked in on her. She showed up for training and she would give it her all. It seemed like she had a goal in mind.
She would smile sometimes but they wouldn't see the glint in her eyes when she was with him. That hasn't shown up at all. Bell would often check-in and she respects Bell as a person, don't get her wrong. Right now, she's attempting to get over it. She had gone to speak to Lord Take one morning.
"Ah, Mikoto," he said before noticing her downtrodden expression, "So, he left?" A nod. Take immediately wrapped her in a gentle fatherly hug. "Did he say he will return?" Another nod. "Then please have faith. I've noticed the interactions you've had, your expressions, and his. He would do anything for you but he also needs time to heal."
Mikoto continued to be unresponsive.
"The loss of one deity can do many things. For veterans, they accept it easily but imagine how you'd be if I returned to Tenkai without warning. The fact that I've had an impact on your life wouldn't be easy to overcome. There is also the fact his own sister is facing the same thing and we know how close they are," Take continued, holding Mikoto by her shoulders, making direct eye contact.
"He's also emotionally numb," Mikoto whispered.
Take nodded, "Yes but you know he still feels something for you. I am a God but I am not omniscient. So, when you see him again, what are you going to do?
"I still wish to be with him," Mikoto admitted, fidgeting. "Maybe one day we could go see the Far West and I could take him to the Far East to our old shrine."
Take smiled, a smile that a father would have, "Then, it sounds like you have a date to plan."
"Thank you, Lord Take…I needed to hear this," Mikoto smiled, fully this time. Takemikazuchi already knew those two were better together. The God of War knew how much Dia meant to Isaac and Irene. The fact they all but basically went to war with Freya was enough for him to gather how far their devotion goes.
In the future, he would ask them what they would have done differently. The answer he received was nothing short of surprising. They would do it all over again.
The Far Eastern maiden returned to the Hearthfire Manor after that with her demeanor a bit lighter than in the previous days. She greeted Bell and Welf, a nod to Lili who was working on fiances, again, Then, she found Haruhime in the kitchen, wearing her maid outfit, and just hugged her. It caught the Renard off guard slightly but the blonde vixen's maternal instincts kicked in, "Lady Mikoto?"
"Just…let me have this, Lady Haruhime, please."
"Okay," she smiled slightly. "Everything will be alright, your hero will be home soon, and when he is, be sure to let him know how you feel."
"I will, count on it."
Over the course of the month, in the past two weeks, Mikoto slowly got adjusted to not seeing him. At first, just the vaguest mention of either of the twins sent a flash of pain. She thought that was how it would be. Much to her relief and surprise, she could mention them in conversation and not be totally affected.
As a result, Mikoto pushed herself to train better, to be better. She wouldn't pull a Bell as he has twice already. That being a blitz level up. No, she would take the time and maximize her physical self before worrying about her status. A status may have dominance in a fight but it is the person themselves that make the status. It is not always about who has higher stats.
The twins proved this to be true. They had the drive to be their best, and with everything that happened, their best wasn't good enough.
Mikoto sees this as a reason as to why they left, besides the fact that they left because of the pain. They wanted to be better and she did too. Every time, from that day forward, she strived to be better than the best but she would not rush. Time and patience will be her greatest weapon to her arsenal. The Dungeon would be her testing grounds. She knew that she would push past the eighteenth floor and head to the nineteenth. From there, if she fought monsters, she could level slightly faster. Of course, she would not go without backup in the form of the rest of the party. She could not use Haruhime's level boosting magic because the amount of excelia gained would immediately be cut in half.
Hestia sensed something was off and sought out Mikoto before offering some words. Hestia was not just the Goddess of the Hearth, a way to use a Divine Flame, but she is also a Goddess that deeply cares about family.
Mikoto knew she made the right choice to convert but a part of her feels guilty that she feels like she's abandoning her friends. The girl refused to do that and vowed to make an effort to pay back the kindness her friends have given over the past month. They deserve that much and what better way to say thanks than by cooking a meal from her home?
Meanwhile, in Twilight Manor, an elven princess sat in her library again. She obviously was affected by her daughter leaving. The letter she left for all of them was kind, and that was how she revealed to the executives that she joined the familia. Of course, Tiona was the first to question Riveria on it, asking if she knew.
When Riveria told her that she didn't, Tione looked shocked. "They must have done it between the day before they left and when we got the letter."
"Yes, but wouldn't writing that many letters take a bit of time? The ink has to dry, then you gotta seal it," Tiona brought up. "Which means…"
Riveria sighed, "They had made their decision days in advance…"
"Now what?" Tione asked.
"Right now?" the High Elf asked rhetorically. "Continue preparing for the next expedition. As much as she would be useful, her departure was necessary. I would not want to stay in a place that had caused me nothing but pain." It was one of the multiple reasons why Riveria left the Alf Forest. She wanted to see the outside world and every High Elf there were kiss asses, only looking for favor with her father so they could marry her and make her a trophy wife.
That shut the conversation down. You two best come back, or I'll look for you myself.
Finn walked by, "Are you ready, Riveria?"
She turned to see Loki and Gareth not far behind, "We need to come up with a plan for Knossos."
Riveria smirked, "We all know that you'll be coming up with a plan."
The Prum smiled sheepishly, "But I still do value your input. Just don't get me started on what I'd come up with if she was here."
"Aye, the young lass would be helpful but we have to accept what happened. She'll be back," the Dwarf said. "Can't keep the mother away from her daughter for too long now, can we?" The teasing smile on Gareth's lips made Riveria hold back an insult.
They were just teasing her, trying to ease the tension.
Riveria knew Irene was capable, even in concurrent chanting. If Sofia noticed, and she probably has, then the Great Mage would tutor her into using it more often. This gave Riveria an idea to eventually bring up when the time was right.
Loki obviously was happy at getting a new member, another first-class mage to boot. She still needed to finalize that thing with Hestia. Their condition for the two splitting up was simple. One: Make an alliance before they return. Two: Isaac was allowed inside Twilight Manor at any time, like an honorary member, as it would apply to Irene for Hearthfire Manor as well; this being Familia semantics. He had to check on his sister and mother, now didn't he?
Three: Hestia would get to see Irene's status in exchange for Loki viewing Isaac's. The twins were family before they were familia members, and nothing was going to tell them differently. They stressed this condition over the others. Finally, Four: The very next chance they could, they would take both the twins and Bell on an expedition. It was solely for experience purposes. Eventually, the Hestia Familia would have to take on expeditions as ordered by the Guild.
That was easily doable when they got back and settled in again.
...
My little New Year's gift to you all. By the time you get here, I'll have updated Chapter 38 (previous Chapter) with a little omake.
I have another one-shot idea in mind, so that's for later. A Tales of Royalty Chapter is in the works, so that's up and coming. After that, I should aim for a Shrouds Chapter.
Self promo: I made a little fusion (non-canon to this) with Tales of Royalty (also non-canon) which has been posted.
It's called: Is It Wrong To Get Isekai'd Into a Parallel Dimension?
Okay, that's over, enjoy the new year everyone!