While Vlad was drinking his sorrows away with Ethelwulf, Alear and Lumera still were in their tight hug, neither of them refusing to let go.

"I'm so glad I finally found you again, my dear," Lumera whispered. "I didn't know where you ran off to after we escaped."

Tears flowed from Alear's eyes while she tightened her arms around Lumera. "I'm sorry, Mother. I just wanted to gather the rings quickly. To impress you."

"You know that your well-being goes beyond the rings for me," she said, gently prying Alear from her shoulder, but not fully letting go.

Alear let out a sob. "Mother."

"Now, there's no need to cry anymore. Mother dearest is here for you," Lumera rubbed her thumb on Alear's cheek, removing the tears staining her face, if only momentarily.

"I tried being like you, a good dragon, helping people. But they saw me only for what I am."

Lumera's smile went away. "Dear, you know the situation isn't ideal. Forcing them to understand won't do you or them any good. Just give it time."

"But I don't know if I can take this anymore," she said, lifting her head ever so slightly. "No matter what I do, it always ends the same."

It hurt her. Lumera thought showing love to Alear would at least help her ease her pain, but it seemed it wasn't enough. Her scars went deep, and Lumera disappointed herself for taking so long to find her again.

"You did what you could. Now, a long rest should do the trick."

Alear shook her head. "I don't feel like sleeping."

For the first time, Lumera had to give her a stern eye. "That won't do. I'll take you to the Somniel right away, no ifs or buts."

"I…" she paused before burying her head back into Lumera's shoulder. "Alright."

"Good, but there is still one more thing I have to do here. I swear it won't take long," Lumera said and she was rewarded with a slow nod, making her smile. "Let's go back to the camp."

She took Alear by her hand and guided her back to Ethelwulf's house and the cloth was back on. Gesturing Alear to stay, she moved the makeshift roof aside and spotted Ethelwulf drinking wine alongside Vlad, who stared at his cup with a contemplating gaze.

"Hopefully, I'm not interrupting anything," Lumera said and Ethelwulf choked on his drink, whipping his head in her direction.

"N-no, we were just…" He looked at Vlad, who was unfazed by her presence. "Sharing our thoughts."

Lumera glanced in his direction before letting out a small chuckle. "I'm surprised you have any wine left if you're sharing it like this, Ethelwulf."

He took a deep breath, cleaning his mouth with a napkin. "I have a large stockpile, and I wanted to help Vladimir alleviate his troubles."

Her eyes widened for a moment. "And those are?"

"Jealousy, hate, disappointment," Vlad suddenly said, swirling his beverage in a continuous motion before looking inside the cup. "I have a lot of things to sort out."

"Oh," Lumera exclaimed, interlocking her fingers. "But you said you wanted to talk with me, right?"

He nodded. "I did, but my mind is all over the place right now. I don't even know where to start."

"Then it's an ideal conversation over some tea, is it not?" she offered, and Vlad sighed.

"Maybe once I'm not intoxicated. But right now? There isn't much privacy when anybody could eavesdrop over a damn curtain. I hate having to use selected words."

"I can fix that issue," Lumera stated, and Vlad flinched. He turned his head towards her before frowning.

"I'm not going back to the forest," he declared, but she shook her head.

"Trust me, the place I have in mind is far from any prying eyes." She extended her hand. "All I'm asking is your trust."

Vlad hummed, shuffling in his seat. He touched his chin while looking down at the rest of the wine he had left before taking a deep breath. He swallowed the rest in a quick slurp and gently put down the cup.

"Thank you for the drink, Ethelwulf," he said and stood up from his seat. "I hope the hatchet has been buried at this point."

Ethelwulf hummed. "I wouldn't worry about that. If anything, I should apologize. Circumstances make us demons without us even realizing."

A strained lopsided smile formed on Vlad's face and he instinctively looked away. "Right you are."

He reached the other side of the table and offered Ethelwulf a hand. He looked at it for no more than a second before promptly shaking it.

"Never did I think I would find a drinking partner as mysterious as you. I hope we'll meet again soon, friend. "

A huff escaped Vlad's lips. "Likewise, Ethelwulf."

He turned to Lumera, who beckoned him outside with a wordless nod. Once they'd crossed the large camp, Vlad let out a loud whistle. Lumera winced and instinctively brought both of her hands to her ears, but didn't fully cover them.

It took a moment. In fact, it was taking a lot longer than Vlad was expecting before Hoof eventually appeared in front of them. To his surprise, Hoof was also carrying Alear, who was holding the reins more tightly than it should have been necessary.

"Why is she…" Vlad exclaimed, and Lumera hid her lips with the tips of her fingers.

"I may have forgotten to tell you that your steed stayed with us," she said, but Vlad shook his head.

"No, I left him to his own devices. He tends to do whatever he wants, and if he was with you, then by all means. He just has a knack for coming back when I need him."

Once the duo reached Lumera and Vlad, the latter let out a sigh. "What was going on inside your head when you mounted Hoof?"

Alear's face went red before she hid it behind the steed. "I… didn't want to be alone."

"Still, it's dangerous to mount a horse without at least knowing the basics," Vlad chided before offering Alear a hand. "Come on, let's get you down."

Once she took his hand, she quickly jumped down from the horse and reached Lumera's side, who had her eyes wide. She zeroed in on Vlad, who only gave her a perplexed look back. She eventually shook her head.

"Your timing couldn't be better, dear," she said before extending her hand with her palm down. "Now, both of you grab my hand."

While Alear didn't hesitate at all, Vlad stared down at the offered hand. He looked up at Lumera with a frown. "What happens if I do?"

"Again, I ask you to trust me."

Vlad hummed. Once he touched Lumera's hand with just the tip of his fingers, blue flames rose around them, forming a thin veil. He didn't even have time to register whether the fire burned him or not before everything turned white.

His body was suddenly extremely heavy and he couldn't move at all. Every muscle tightened under the sudden drag, his skin began to ripple as if he was flying up towards the sky. His legs started to buckle, but when he was about to be crushed, everything suddenly stopped.

The light faded away and he opened his eyes to a brick floor with his knees on the ground. He lurched, instinctively closing his mouth before bile began rising from his stomach. All he could think of was to punch his gut and take the largest gulp he could.

Somehow, he successfully forced it down and it made him shiver. Of all things to make me want to vomit…

Vlad shook his head and lifted his chin, only for his brow to furrow.

He found himself in a small plaza, surrounded by empty stalls and an open dining hall void of chairs or tables. His feet clapped under the marbled paths, leading him in any direction he wished. He turned around and was surprised by a pool of all things, or at least what he thought was a pool.

There was no water in it.

"This place feels more like a large resort than a town," Vlad thought out loud. He heard a set of steps coming from the dining hall, but nobody was there. Only when he lifted his head, he found a balcony with Lumera standing there.

"You're not far from the truth," she said, somehow still keeping up a smile.

However, Vlad frowned and widened his stance. "Where are we? And where is Alear and Hoof?"

"You don't have to worry about them. They are safe."

She went down the stairs connecting the balcony to the plaza while gliding her hand across the railing. She had that smile, but Vlad noticed the forlorn look Lumera had while gazing at the bits of marble adorned at every corner.

She took in a breath before fully facing Vlad with interlocked hands. "As to where we are, this is the Somniel. A place that, for all intents and purposes, can be accessed by me and me alone."

Vlad eased his stance, glancing at the plaza. "That explains why it is so empty." His gaze snapped towards Lumera. "But at least you could have given me a warning before warping me from place to place."

"Oh," she exclaimed before letting out a chuckle. "Did the trip upset your stomach that much?"

"It was more than just upset," he said, crossing his arms. "You almost made it spill all the wine I drank. That's borderline cruel. I still can't get enough after being a forced abstainer for so long."

She halted her laugh, and her eyebrows knitted together. "That doesn't sound like a problem. In fact, I'd like to think I was doing you a favour."

"What I drink is my business, not yours," Vlad rebuked. "I don't need some mother hen to watch over me. Especially when I'm in my damn sixties."

"...Sixties?" Lumera parroted. She sized Vlad up and down for a moment before murmuring a few words that he couldn't understand. Eventually, she let out a sigh. "I think I'll need more than just one pot of tea for this."

"Might as well double the amount for the both of us."

{*}{*}{*}{*}{*}{*}

Once Lumera had all the pots prepared for the imminent conversation, they found a secluded table within the Somniel's garden, located below the plaza. It was there Vlad found out the Somniel was a floating island, but with so many things happening so quickly, this was one of the few moments he had to brush off.

It took too long to explain the entire story. He had to make sure he didn't miss any detail from the point he appeared in Elyos. For the first time, he had no reason to lie. If an equivalent to a god of this world couldn't help him, then who else could?

He didn't even want to imagine just how many cups of tea it took to get to the point they were now at.

"But then how did you get here in the first place?" Lumera asked, her hands holding the cup almost too tightly.

"That was the whole reason why I'm telling you all of this," he said, rubbing his forehead with the tips of his fingers. "But if this doesn't ring a bell to you either, what am I supposed to do?"

She extended her hand, gently touching Vlad's elbow. "I'm so sorry I can't help. The gates of Elyos have long been closed off."

"Then they might as well have opened. Otherwise, how could I even get here?"

"No, it's impossible to traverse through Elyos. This world is under a tight lock. Nothing should be able to reach it," she explained before taking a deep breath. "But then that means the only way for you to come here would be…"

She stopped for a moment, touching her chin in thought before an excited smile adorned her face. "Are you sure you aren't a dragon yourself? I know I've already asked that, but I just don't know of any other way to explain it."

Vlad sighed. "Lumera, you know as well as I do that I'm not a dragon."

Her shoulders sagged. "Yes, I know. Maybe we should leave this whole conversation behind us. All I can say is that you reincarnating here may as well be nothing more than a large stroke of luck."

Vlad scoffed. "This goes beyond just luck. This is a damn miracle."

He took the cup of tea and downed it in one go. The saucer let out a loud click once Vlad put the cup down. "I'm on a floating island, talking with a dragon that looks like a normal woman over a cup of tea. And here I thought I was going to sleep peacefully inside my coffin. Nothing about this makes any sense."

Lumera darted her eyes away before taking a careful sip. "I'd like to think that things do make sense. More or less."

"How can you even say that with a straight face? Aren't you supposed to be this world's god or something?"

"Idol of worship? Yes, but a god? No, far from it," she stated. "Any and all Divine Dragons know that our power isn't limitless. If it was, then the Fell Dragon would be nothing more than a fly ready to be swatted."

She looked to her right, gazing at the clouds encasing the Somniel. "I could be seen as a god, but that title has little meaning in the grand scheme of things."

Her irises glided towards Vlad, giving him a fierce look. "Especially now when I can't be seen as an omnipotent being. I need allies, friends, and people willing to work with me to defeat Sombron. Not the ones praying at a church hoping I will fix the problem somehow."

Vlad hummed and looked down at his empty cup. He grabbed himself a pot and poured more tea. His breath hitched when he saw his own reflection in the amber liquid mirroring everything he did. Eventually, he took a deep breath.

"Lumera," he called out. "What was your end goal with this conversation? As it stands, I don't think we'll ever conclude my problem."

"Right, about that. It's a matter we still have to discuss, and—," she paused before opening the lid to her pot, only to let out a relieved sigh. "I was worried we wouldn't have enough tea."

Vlad glanced at the lid before looking back to Lumera with a raised eyebrow. "You made how many pots again?"

"About nine," she curtly answered and promptly poured herself more.

"I thought I was the one with a deficiency," Vlad remarked.

Lumera's hands momentarily shook and a small splash dropped on the table, staining the sheet.

Lumera let out a groan before frowning. "Mine at least doesn't involve addictive substances."

Vlad tapped the top of the pot two times. "This is black tea. And black tea has caffeine in it, Lumera. We both have an addiction."

"I—" she paused, and her lips puckered. Closing it with a clap, Vlad was not expecting her to sulk. "Look, this war cost me many things. This one gets a pass."

He put his hands up defensively. "I'm definitely not one to judge. Besides, we went off-topic."

She perked up before coughing into her hand. "Yes, we did. I wanted to talk about Alear."

Vlad perked up. "What about her?"

Lumera looked down at her cup, swirling its contents gently. "You are basically the first person she was able to befriend. I was honestly shocked by how much she already trusts you. I know it isn't much in your eyes, but when you told me you helped her recover after her battle, I couldn't actually believe it."

Vlad hummed, looking away. "'Befriend' isn't the term I would use. If anything, we are acquaintances who just so happened to need each other to survive. I would have acted differently if I knew a little more back then."

The tips of Lumera's fingers went white. "So, you agree with Ethelwulf? That her kind isn't redeemable?"

"I didn't say that. Everybody should be given the chance, and do everything in their power to not let that chance die in vain. As cliche as it sounds," Vlad took a long strained breath. "Alear is doing just that."

Lumera hid her mouth behind her hand and closed her eyes. "I'm so glad you see it that way."

Despite the kind words, he couldn't help but click his tongue. "Which is why I'm extremely envious of her initiative."

"What?"

Vlad opened his mouth to speak, but no word came out. He let out a hiss, reluctant to ask. "Do you have any children, Lumera?"

Her breath hitched before she lowered her head. "I didn't have a chance to. The Fell Dragon attacked us so quickly that most of the Divine Dragons died before we could even retaliate. Alear will probably be the only person I'll ever be able to call my daughter."

"Then cherish her. Love her. Even spoil her. Because there isn't a parent's greater fear than seeing their children disappear before them."

She let out a gasp. "Vladimir, you—"

"Please, don't ask," he whispered while his lips quivered. Both of his elbows leaned on the table. "It's a burden I thought I wouldn't have to carry anymore."

He tried to take a sip but his hands began to shake. The tea threatened to spill with each splash against the walls of the cup. Lumera stepped in, gently guiding Vlad's hand back to the table before looking directly into his eyes.

"You wish for the same redemption, do you not?" she said.

Vlad's face scrunched up as he let out a hiss. "You have no idea how badly, but there's nobody who could forgive me. Not anymore."

Lumera hummed, caressing his arm in a slow motion. "Do you think I could be of any help?"

He shook his head. "I don't know how."

A strained huff escaped her lips. "I guess that was too bold of me. I shouldn't have asked."

"No, it's just…" Vlad let out a sigh. "I have no idea what to do right now. I should be glad to be given a second chance like this, but I've never felt so aimless."

"Then," Lumera tightened her grip on his arm, "would you be against being given a calling? For now at least?"

His eyes shot up. "Pardon?"

"It's about Alear. She comes from a predatory environment and doesn't know what it means to have a proper family," she explained. "I don't have any parenting skills. I'm too nose-deep into managing the war and have almost no time for her. Even when I do, I don't know how to make use of that small window."

Vlad stared at her for a moment before his eyes narrowed. "So basically you want me to be her surrogate father figure?"

Lumera eagerly nodded, but Vlad whipped his head away. "Then you're asking the wrong person. I've made too many mistakes back then, and I fear I would make them again."

"But you acknowledge them," she countered pleadingly. "You seem too careful to make those mistakes again. I'm sure Alear would only be glad to have you to lean on."

He clicked his tongue. "That's turning a new leaf. I would just leave my past to rot."

She jolted her hand away before clenching it into a fist. "Yes, you would. But sometimes letting go is the best thing to do."

"Even if I did, Alear would be nothing more than a proxy," he stated. "I don't want that."

To Vlad's surprise, Lumera began to smile. "If you truly mean it, then I don't know how she could ever become one."

"I…" he couldn't speak up.

Was it really that simple? Just because Alear looked like his daughter automatically meant he cared for her?

He internally shook his head. No, that's too far-fetched.

"You don't have to become her father. I just need somebody she could consult with. Somebody who could help me be a better parent," she admitted. "Could you do that for me, Vladimir?"

He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Why do you ask me that when you know I'm not the right man? There are too many things that could go wrong."

"No, they won't," she declared, putting a hand on her chest. "Vladimir, you've already proven yourself to be a reliable man. You can't let your past define you like this."

"That's easier said than done," he shot back, almost venomously, to the point Lumera flinched. "Even if another miracle occurred and I got to meet my children and wife, how could I tell them I sought out my own redemption after what I've done!?"

Lumera's shoulders sagged, both of her arms leaning on her legs. "I hate to say this, but…" she grabbed her dress tightly. "Do you know of any other way?"

As if a wave came crashing down, Vlad stared wide-eyed at Lumera and his mouth hung agape. His body grew limp and he fully leaned on the chair before his gaze slowly lowered to his feet.

"No."

AN: This one was... tough.

At first, the chapter idea was fine in my head, but the amount of times I had to rewrite dialogue and the interactions to make things at least somewhat interesting was very taxing. Granted, I still think this is a good chapter, I'm proud I made it, but it could have been better. Cavik was instrumental in making this chapter polished, so it wouldn't just be one giant mess. His proofreading really helped.

As always, the usual plug to the discord server. Again, it is a great community to be in. It's full of people like us who just like to talk about fanfictions.

Here's the link: u89gs745fn

Thank you for reading today's chapter.

God's speed.