Sylphiette
My dear Rudy.
How many nights have I dreamed of my beloved returning home? Of him embracing me once again saying "Hey Sylphie, sorry it took me so long to return." wearing his charming smile.
"Took you long enough Rudy!"
I would smile and return his embrace and feel relief.
"Ah so it was all a dream, there's no way Rudy would die."
My dreams often ended like that.
I would wake up to a world without Rudy.
It has been five years since his passing, and five years I've dreamed of such dreams. Only in my dreams, I can feel his embrace.
But today, the most peculiar thing happened.
"White-Grandma! Uncle Roland is calling for you at the front gate!"
Little Paul woke me up. I realize I've dozed off reading 'Adventures of the Great Mage Rudeus' once again.
I checked the book to see if I'd damaged it by sleeping on top of it, thankfully it was fine. This was a precious first edition gifted by the great author Norn herself after all, it's to be kept in good condition.
"Thanks for waking me up Paul, now go play with your sister upstairs."
"Got it! Lunetta-! Let's play!"
I pat Paul's head and watch him run off, he really took after Eris's energy and looks like Rudy with his adorable mole.
Of course, his facial features were more like his father Edward, but Christina still adores Paul's resemblance to her papa Rudy.
"Now then, Roland called for me right?"
Why was little Roland calling for me? Maybe Lily came to visit? No, a family member would just walk in, so maybe a visitor asked for me and he was probably keeping them company.
He should've at least invited them inside instead of keeping them waiting outside though, that boy can be so rude sometimes.
Both Clive and Lucy are very hospitable to guests, I wonder who Roland takes after to be so cautious? Maybe it's in the blood, both Rudy and Cliff were cautious in their youth after all.
An image of young Cliff hiding in fear behind an equally scared young Rudy came to mind, a smile came with the thought.
I walk to the front gate and see Roland's back, he was positioned to block the entrance firmly.
Was something wrong?
"What is it, Roland? Who's our guest here?"
I asked Roland as I approached him.
There was no need to be so defensive, mister Orsted is in the living room, and all of the current world powers have to attack at once to pose a threat to that man after all.
I arrived next to Roland and saw the guest.
It was Rudy.
It was the Rudy I married, the Rudy from our student days.
His face was of a handsome and cute teenager now. Wearing his now nostalgic old robe that we bought together, and his trusty staff Aqua Heartia leaning on his shoulder.
It was the young Rudy that made my heart beat uncontrollably.
"...Rudy?"
Ah, I'm still dreaming.
I must still be asleep in my room, and little Paul or Roland is probably going to wake me up soon. So I better enjoy my dream while it lasts.
If I'm vivid dreaming, then I can have the young handsome Rudy in front of me spoil me to my heart's content right?
Uehehe... Let's have young Rudy carry me in a bridal carry and cuddle until I wake up.
But I noticed something odd, Rudy looked different than my usual dreams.
He was afraid, deathly so.
It has been a long time since I saw such fear and uncertainty on his face. That's right, Rudy was often like this back in this time. Even as he aged, he didn't let go of his fears.
Seeing Rudy in such a state, I knew I had to comfort him.
Even if this is a dream, I can't ignore Rudy who needs me.
"Yes, it's me Sylphie. I came back from Begarrit."
He told me. His voice was exactly as I remember it.
So this was Rudy who returned from Begarrit, it was a difficult time for us back then. I must be dreaming of this because I was reading the part about the Teleportation Labyrinth in Norn's book before sleeping.
I gave the scared Rudy a big hug and stroked his head to comfort him, he always liked that after all, and I loved stroking his hair.
"There there Rudy, welcome back."
Ah, this is such a good dream
If I woke up now, I'll wake up with a big smile.
But the dream kept going.
We spoke more and Rudy told me he came from 62 years in the past somehow. He had rushed home from the Teleport Labyrinth expedition while utterly confused.
This was strange, but it was a dream after all I thought. I even once dreamed that Rudy was a prince in a white suit and I had to save him from a dragon with my magic while wearing a suit of armor one time.
But then this dream kept going further.
"What a long dream." I thought to myself as I led Rudy further into the living room and greeted Mister Orsted.
Then it kept going on and on.
Am I not dreaming?...
I pinched my cheek as I saw Roxy jump to Rudy's chest. Everything was too detailed, too real, I could feel pain from the pinching and I could smell and taste everything normally.
Then I realized that I wasn't dreaming, and Rudy really had come from 62 years ago.
By then, we were talking about serious topics with Mister Orsted. I brushed off the fact that I thought I was still dreaming aside and started focusing more intently.
Rudy was much more scared and confused after all. I had to be his support.
I held his hand.
Rudy is back.
Even if this was merely a long dream shown to me on my deathbed, I wish it continued for a bit longer.
Roxy
"thus deduced my goddess of Wisdom Roxy."
Heh, that Rudy. He managed to make me blush from beyond the grave just by his writings. He's the only one who is capable of that.
Although I would appreciate it if he didn't fill his research notes with love letters... No, I appreciate the little surprises more than anything, to be honest.
Today we have no faculty meetings or events, so I can focus purely on my research projects.
Although I'm at the forefront of magical research, and what I'm doing is important for the Dragon God Alliance in the future, sometimes I hardly feel like I'm working.
Sitting in my office, hearing the students of my students outside discuss magical theories written by my husband and I. Eating sweets and going through these research notes filled with love letters. It's hard to call all of this work for how enjoyable it is.
Lara is out adventuring, she still hasn't even visited after leaving all those years ago when Rudy was alive. I'm sure she's doing incredible and important things. As much as I'd like to get angry at her for not visiting, I can't really. I used to be even more distant from my parents when I was Lara's age after all. From what she's told she will be staying away from society for her future goals, so it'll be quite some time until I see her again.
Lily is continuing the magical implement side of Rudy's research. Applied magical technology would be one way of saying it, as Lily prefers. Luckily she visits more often, she has inherited that strong attachment to family from Rudy. But unfortunately, she inherited my bad luck in romance from me. As much as I would like to believe that she'll meet her fated person as I did in the end, she has even more impossible expectations than me in men due to her father being Rudy and brother being Sieg...
I hope I get to see a grandchild from these two before my 200-year lifespan runs out...
Aside from worrying about my two hopeless daughters' hopeless love lives. My children are all living respectable lives, all proud of calling themselves the descendants of Rudeus Greyrat the Magic God.
Aside from being a mother to all of Rudy's descendants, my role as the chairwoman of Ranoa Magic University is a high honor and I work hard to fulfill the duties expected of me.
That's why I'm sitting here, going through Rudy's old numerous research notes and making summarized copies of them. It's somewhat of an arduous task, entrusted to me by Sylphie and Orsted as the wife in charge of magical research. But of course, it's an incredibly rewarding task that I love doing, this is one of the last requests left to me by Rudy after all, to continue his research. I have to give it my all.
Throughout our marriage, me and Rudy have written many books and published many groundbreaking discoveries in magic. It was how we spent time together, sitting across each other, talking about magic, just as we did in Buena village almost a century ago. But even then, after 5 years of his passing, I was still making new discoveries in his notes.
Seriously that man was busy revolutionizing the world of education and the Arts, inventing new products, and fields of research, building political alliances that connect the entire world, and raising his children. Even while he was being the busiest person in the world, he still hinted at so many magical developments just in his scribbled notes in his personal diary, in between paragraphs describing how he found me adorable while playing with the children.
Yet he still writes silly things such as calling me his goddess of wisdom.
It makes me want to invent resurrection magic just to tell him how unbelievable he is.
Ah, Rudy... I wish he had a longer life span...
Maybe it's because I'm a longer-lived race, but I feel like my emotions linger for longer. I can see it in Sylphie as well, how much she misses Rudy, despite how well she hides her still present grief in front of the children.
Sometimes I'm jealous of Eris for passing before Rudy. To live her last days with Rudy, instead of passing with only Rudy in her recollections like how Sylphie and I will go.
Whenever I miss Rudy badly, my hands and thoughts reach for a particular set of notes that's been growing in page number steadily.
Research in time magic...
Rudy had proven that it was possible, that's how he saved our lives from that hellish timeline, it was impossible to forget the words written in blood and tears on that diary. I had avoided touching that diary ever since I finished reading it all those decades ago, yet after Rudy's passing, I've read the sections about time travel enough times to memorize it. The notes written about Rudy's speculation on how he had accomplished Time Travel, the collection of those notes, and my own ideas on how it's possible.
Reading these notes, I get tempted. The selfish desire to leave it all behind and go back, to grow old together with Rudy. I would protect him from all that made him suffer in his youth, and I could once again live those golden days full of happiness...
But the thought of leaving our children behind, and not continuing Rudy's work shuts down such thoughts. It's a flight of fancy that is all it is. I'm already older than a century, I'm at least a decade too old to still act this childish...
Although all it would take to go back would be a magic construct using Silent Sevenstar's approach. It would solve the problem Rudy ran into in the other hellish timeline. For the mana required, I just have to go to a mana-dense Labyrinth somewhere to use up all the mana there and bring additional high-quality Magic Stones to charge it up...
"Lady Roxy, lord Roland is here to meet you."
Startling me out of my daydreams, one of the Maid Automatan dolls informed me that Roland was here.
Hmm? Why was he here? Roland should be busy looking after the kids with Sylphie. Lucy should still be busy meeting the Neris and Basherant nobles.
Was there trouble? But Orsted was at home to guard the kids so it should be impossible for any danger to fall on them.
"Did he look like he was in a hurry?" I asked as I approached the doll.
"Lord Roland arrived at the gates running. He seemed to be in a rush." the doll answered.
"Take me to him" I followed the doll
I walked my way to Roland, greeting students and faculty I passed by along the way. If anyone were in danger there were better ways of informing after all. So there should be no reason to panic. If I were seen panicking as the chairwoman, the students would also panic after all.
I arrived at the gates, where Roland was waiting. Engaging in some conversation with students, he was still famous despite not being seen in the University after his graduation. The sight of him being uncomfortable in a crowd of students looking up to him reminded me of Rudy.
"Hello Roland" I called out to him. The students saw me, some greeted me and some ran away, probably ones that were skipping classes.
"Good afternoon grandmother. Apologies for interrupting your work. White Grandmother sent me to call you back home." Roland said, bowing to me in a Millishion-style greeting.
"I see, thanks for letting me know. Do you know why Sylphie is calling me?" I pat Roland's head. The boy has gotten too stiff spending time around Millis nobles. I wish he loosened up at home in Sharia at least.
"That is... It's bizarre but a man who looks just like grandfather has come to visit. He claimed he was Rudeus Greyrat from the year K423." He explained, looking confused.
"What?"
"White Grandmother believed his claim and my demon eye of identification has told me that he is indeed grandfather..."
Sylphie believed him? Sylphie would never mistake Rudy's identity. Then does that mean...
"I don't understand grandmother. Do you think it's Man-God's trickery?"
"No anything Man-God tries wouldn't work here in Sharia. The city has too many people under Orsted's protection for him to have any vision of it. And Sylphie wouldn't mistake Rudy for anyone..."
Does this mean he's time-traveled from the past? But it will be from an alternate dimension to ours. As closed time loops are completely separate and different from how Rudeus's time travel magic worked.
Regardless, this means Rudy was home!
"Let's hurry home!"
I got on Dilo the Fifth (Armadillo mount) to rush back home. Roland ran on foot, easily keeping pace. As expected of Rudy's grandson and Lucy's son, everyone has good stamina... I'm over one hundred years old now, I'm excused.
Some citizens, students, adventurers, guards, and Rudo mercenaries looked concerned seeing us rush this much. Thankfully Roland calmed them down. Seriously, everyone gets too easily worried whenever I show concern. I'm not Rudy you know? Orsted is in town. As if there would be any danger in the city.
We arrived home, I ran into the living room.
Rudy!
Rudy's back!
A/N:
Yo! Decided to continue this a little bit. I was surprised by how well this got received, despite it being a weird idea.
Writing Sylphie and Roxy's thoughts before meeting Rudy was fun. The two long-lived wives outliving their husbands has always felt sad to me, it's why I wanted to write this silly fic from the start.
Although continuing from here, it wouldn't be that interesting to write or read I'm afraid. I have a few ideas for an extra chapter or two from here to wrap things up when I feel like writing it.
If I wanted to make this a longer story, then having Rudy need travel from Rapan to Bazaar to teleport to Asura kingdom Ars (Teleport Immigration) and then from Ars to Sharia would've made for a story with more natural progress and conflicts. The trio Rudy initially encountered would accompany him through Begarrit deserts (succubus alone is just impossible to deal with alone) Rudy would gradually learn of the past 62 years of history from various sources and hearsay. Meet his children one by one (Sieg in Begarrit, Christina in Ars, Lily in Sharia), and finally return home to Sylphie and Roxy at the end...
But when I first wrote this story I kinda messed up and just skipped all that and teleported him straight to Sharia, whoops haha.
Then there's the extra what if chapter I want to try writing, about Paul being the one slipped forward in time. Either when Rudy's gathering allies against Geese, or after the conclusion.
I might post another silly Mushoku Tensei fanfic with an even dumber premise later.
Sorry if anyone is disappointed at how infrequently I update the stories I started. Thank you to everyone who enjoys my silly writings, and a bigger thank you to everyone who writes fanfics of Mushoku Tensei! I love reading them all! Keep them coming!