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Year 16 AL, Those You'll Leave Behind
Ilias sat deathly still on her throne, staring somewhat blankly into the small portal before her. Her eerily calm disposition betrayed the tumultuous storm raging within the Goddess of Light. Once again, Luka had allowed himself to be sullied by the perverse and lustful touch of Monsters. Even worse, it hadn't been just a single Monster like before.
No, her Prophet had very easily allowed eight Monsters to pleasure him.
Eight. Monsters.
Luka had given in four different times to the vile creatures, allowing them to drain him with their depraved wiles. Ilias had watched every last moment of the Monsters teasing Luka with their disgusting bodies, doing all they could to drain him dry of his purity. It had been a stressful affair for Ilias, especially once her Prophet had been serviced by that Elf.
Ilias clenched her marble throne as those memories came to the forefront of her mind. The Goddess of Light remembered with painful clarity how that whore of an Elf had tempted her precious Prophet with her vagina, desperately trying to entice him to break the First Commandment. The most horrifying part though was the fact that it was so close to happening.
The Goddess had seen it herself, as Luka's penis had been perfectly positioned to penetrate the Elf multiple times during the whole ordeal. Again and again, his purity had reached the corruptive entrance of the Elf, and it very nearly had delved in so many times.
The very idea was painful to the Goddess, who had felt her heart clench up in fear whenever her Prophet's virginity was threatened by the call of the Elf's pestiferous womb. Just thinking about how Luka could've failed to resist that temptation distressed her, as the last thing she wanted was for Luka to fall away from grace. She could not take such a thing occurring, not to her Prophet.
He was supposed to be her beacon of Light, her bastion for good. If Luka - the only being in existence with a soul of pure Light - gave his love to Monsters, it would surely ruin him. And where would that leave Ilias, exactly? Without the faith of her beloved Prophet, the Goddess's plans would be torn asunder and tossed into the wind like ash from a dying flame. This was not a possibility she wanted to entertain, for Ilias could not afford for it to occur, not now.
Which meant that Ilias needed to ensure that Luka be steered by to her Light.
Ilias stood from her throne, calling forward a certain purple-haired man to appear before her. Marcellus's unconscious form emerged from a swathe of golden cloud, his body curled up onto one side. The Goddess glanced over the man a few times, her gaze hardening. She reached down and tightly gripped his shoulder, giving him a rather abrupt shake.
Marcellus groaned in annoyance, his pale-blue eyes fighting to flutter open as the intense luster of the golden clouds impeded his sight.
"Get up, Marcellus." Ilias commanded coldly. He slowly began to do so but not without complaining, "Y'know, one would think that a Goddess like you..." The purple-haired man started, not seeing the powerful scowl forming on her face as he rose. "...Would have a much more gracious way of waking people up!"
Ilias gritted her teeth, "Under the current circumstance," She whispered threateningly while lowering her glare, "Such things are simply not possible."
Marcellus's face scrunched up at the heated comment, blinking his eyes rapidly while attempting to face Ilias. "Uh-huh, and why is that, exactly?" He asked, feeling a bit of shiver go up his spine. He glanced up to Ilias's face, flinching a touch at the intensity of her scowl. Her normally soft blue eyes were devoid of their usual disarming charm, now blazing madly like an azure flame burning in the night.
"That is not something we will speak upon until later; for now, I need you to spend the rest of your waking moments from now until tonight to educate yourself on how to be a pious believer of my faith." Ilias said while folding her hands over her waist in an attempt to maintain her brittle composure.
Marcellus frowned, picking up quickly just how upset Ilias was at the moment. He straightened up, forgoing his earlier mocking tone in order to avoid provoking the Goddess further. "Okay, so how do you want to go about that?" He asked, not quite looking forward to having "educate" himself. To say that he had been a loose believer even at his most radical would be an understatement.
The bright blue eyes of Ilias shut for a few moments, only opening once the rage that had once been there was able to dampen some. "You'll have a very knowledgeable teacher, Marcellus. That much I can promise." The Former Hero cringed, already not liking the sound of this. "...Great, and uh, who would that be?" He asked.
Without missing a beat, Ilias reached out and grabbed Marcellus's head, unceremoniously teleporting themselves out of Ilias's throne room.
Marcellus cringed as his World of golden cloud swirled and morphed until it was replaced by something altogether different. Instead of standing on top of pillowy clouds, his feet meet dropped onto a large grassy plain. His pale-blue eyes looked around to see him and Ilias now standing in the middle of what seemed to be a great emerald forest of sorts.
'Huh, doesn't actually look half-bad here.' Marcellus thought as he glanced around the place, taking in the intricate hedges and white-barked trees. 'Downright pleasant, actually.' He mused, his gaze turning to a large pond that sat in the middle of the field. At that point, he would've taken in the clear pool with a great deal of awe like he had been with the rest of the area but that feeling was halted by what was standing in front of the pond.
More specifically, who, was standing there.
The figure was quite tall and had a mane of sage-green hair that fell well below her shoulders and onto her pure white robes. From her back sprouted multiple pairs of large wings to signify her status of an Angel, each of them noticeably tensed. The Angel's soft face was also hardened, her blue eyes in particular seeming very displeased.
Curiously enough, there was an ancient-looking black chalkboard standing tall behind her as well.
"This is my closest confidant and greatest Angel, the Great Seraph Eden." Ilias said, gaining a small smile from the Seraph as she was introduced. Marcellus raised an eyebrow as he glanced up to the Goddess who continued, "She will be in charge of your education." Ilias finished, giving Eden a nod. Marcellus warily looked back to the Seraph, whose smile seemed to instantly vanish once his pale-blue eyes turned to her.
"...Eh, thanks." Was all he could muster as a response.
Ilias lightly fluttered her wings as she prepared to leave, "Remember our agreement, Marcellus; listen closely to everything Eden tells you and don't give her trouble, either." The Goddess of Light did not bother giving the purple-haired man an opportunity to retort, vanishing in a flash of light before he could even get a word out. Marcellus warily turned back to Eden, who had not let up in her glaring.
Oh boy.' Marcellus thought, not feeling very enthusiastic about what was about to happen. Nevertheless, he gave a strained smile and lifted a hand to wave in greeting, "Hello-"
"-Shut up." Eden immediately cut off, venom practically dripping from her tone.
Marcellus closed his mouth as any pretense of niceties died alongside the greeting he never got to finish. His hand dropped limply to the side as Eden continued, "I don't like you and I certainly don't like you being here. You're a failure of a Hero, a complete disgrace to Heaven and Earth!" She spat while turning around grabbing a piece of chalk. Marcellus watched on in silence as the Seraph began writing on the chalkboard, continuing to rant as she did.
"Nevertheless, Ilias willing, I shall turn you into someone more fit to hold the title of our Prophet's Father. Though even I can only do so much." Eden said angrily, forcefully setting the chalk down with a loud clack once she was done. The Seraph whirled around, scowling at Marcellus as she folded her arms beneath her impressive bust. The purple-haired man glanced at the chalkboard, silently reading what Eden had written.
Eden University
1. Learning the Six Commandments
2. Prayer 101
3. Dutifully Serving the Goddess
4. How not to be a Degenerate!
Marcellus gawked at the last section of the lessons, "Oi, who are you calling a degenerate!?" He asked while glaring at the Seraph. Eden lightly scoffed, "You, of course. Do you see anyone else here?" She fired back, giving him a smug closed-eyed smirk.
The Former Hero blinked slowly, not fully able to comprehend that this was Ilias's "closest confidant." Finally, Marcellus spoke up. "Look, can we just get to the point already?" He asked while crossing his arms, "Obviously neither of us are really thrilled about this, so let's just speed things along."
Eden curtly nodded, "Perhaps the only thing we can agree on..." She said as she turned back around. The sage-haired Seraph grabbed the chalk once again and pointed towards her first lesson. "...Now! Even someone like you should know the Six Commandments, however-"
"-Eh-Ehem!" Marcellus faux-coughed, his deaden interruption visibly causing Eden to clench her chalk more tightly. She pointed an ill-willing glare over her shoulder, but the Former Hero did not seem to care about this in the slightest. "I believe that your little chalkboard there says this is a University, right? So, where's my desk at? You certainly wouldn't expect me to just stand here all day when I'm trying to learn, right?"
Eden almost growled as her displeasure rose and she begrudgingly faced Marcellus once more. She didn't offer any reply, instead just glaring at him while gesturing at the grass below his feet. The purple-haired man scoffed, "Really? What, your lil' "University" here can't afford a single desk, or at least a chair? Doesn't quite make me feel very confident in the quality of my education here."
This barb proved to be the Seraph's breaking point.
"Oh, you are SO insufferable!" Eden yelled with a stomp, "Just sit in the grass, stop being such a nuisance, and listen closely!"
Marcellus threw his hands up in the air, "OKAY!" He roared back while plopping cross-legged onto the ground, "...Can have this big great garden here, yet ya ain't got even one freakin' chair?!" He complained under his breath.
Eden, seemingly not having heard the slight, turned back to face her Heavenly chalkboard once again. "As I was saying, the Six Commandments are the most important..." The Seraph's words quickly fell upon deaf ears, as Marcellus's attention was quickly pulled away from her and onto his own thoughts. Specifically, the Former Hero found his mind wandering back to Ilias.
The fury in the eyes of the Goddess of Light was a great one, that much he knew for a fact. What really worried him though, was not knowing what had drawn her ire so powerfully. That and, at the back of his mind, he couldn't help but worry if it had to do with his son. It was, unfortunately, the logical conclusion. After all, why else would Ilias had sought him out if it was anything else? No, it most certainly had to do with Luka.
But if that was so, then what could his son had possibly done?
"...So on and so forth. Any questions thus far?" Eden finished, turning away from her chalkboard to give Marcellus a questing look. The purple-haired man cringed in response, having blanked completely during the Seraph's little class over the Six Commandments. He coughed lightly and raised a hand, "Erm, yes. I think I got it all but eh, just in case, you may have to go over all of that one more time."
Eden stood frozen with her face locked into a look of heavy disappointment. "Really? You weren't paying any attention, were you!?" She accused, her normally soft blue eyes flaring threateningly. Marcellus gingerly raised his shoulders, "Technically, umm..." He shook his head as he dropped his shoulder back down, "...No, not at all."
Marcellus's answer quickly infuriated Eden, who let out a frustrated yowl and threw her chalk at the purple-haired man. The small white piece of chalk struck his forehead, sending a small but sharp pain throughout the top of his head.
"FUCK! Why'd you do THAT!?" He yelled, clutching his now throbbing forehead with both hands.
Eden was quick to fire back, "Because, you boorish heathen, you need to better yourself for Prophet Luka! And that means you need to take this seriously!" Marcellus continued to rub at his wounded forehead while the Seraph placed her hands on her hips, "Now, actually pay attention, please!"
With that, Eden turned and pointed at lesson one once more. "From the top, again..."
Marcellus sighed and let his chin fall into the palm of his as the Seraph droned on, wondering if it was possible for him to die a second time from sheer boredom. 'I just hope that Luka's having a better time than I am right now...' Marcellus thought, unable to keep himself from worrying about the uncertain fate of his son.
As his Father suffered in the most mundane of ways, Luka was very close to where they had come across the river when having first entered the Forest of Spirits. He and Miyabi had been traveling quietly for the most part, as the Doll had fallen silent for reasons unknown to Luka.
'After what we just did, I figured she would be happier.' Luka thought, glancing at Miyabi out of the corner of his eye. 'Did I do something wrong?' He wondered, not knowing that he actually had nothing to do with why she was so somber.
Miyabi herself was lackadaisically walking besides the river, watching the water flow with a thoughtful gaze. The Doll was lost in her own strangely sad thoughts, all of which seemed to be surrounded by her "new" given name.
When Luka had first called her Miyabi, she had been struck by a powerful sense of excitement. However, now when the Doll thought about her name, she would see the face of the demented Monster that Luka had defeated. Miyabi couldn't understand why her mind was making this bizarre connection, but it seemed to only grow stronger in spite of the growing distance between themselves and the fallen Monster.
It made the Doll pensive, more so than she had been in her entire existence as an undead Monster. Miyabi had never given her past life much thought before, but now she couldn't stop thinking about it.
And above all else, Miyabi couldn't shake the feeling that the truth lay behind the dead blue eyes of that corpse her and Luka had long ago left behind. But if this was the case, what exactly was that truth?
Unless she and that girl had once been one in the same which, while it sounded crazy, wasn't completely out of the question. After all, why else would Miyabi think of both her and of that Monster's face every time she thought about her own name? She couldn't figure out why and that was greatly troubling.
"Hey, wait up Hero!"
Luka and Miyabi stopped and turned to see the familiar form of Aubrette flying up to him. In her small hands was what appeared to be an acorn, one that the Fairy gleefully held out to him. "Here, us Fairies wanted to give our Hero one last gift before he left!" The purple-haired Fairy finished with a wide smile.
"Oh, why thank you!" Luka said, before faltering just a bit. "Though, uh, what is it?" He asked.
Aubrette raised the acorn up in front of her chest, "This a proof of our friendship, from us Fairies to you, our Hero!" She then dropped the acorn into Luka's awaiting hand, who watched with awe as the small item began to glow in the sunlight. Then, he felt a peculiar warmth spread throughout his body; it was difficult to describe other than that it made the young Hero feel very happy.
"Wow." Luka breathed out, his pale-blue eyes eventually rising to look to Aubrette. From behind her, the other two Fairies Calypso and Rusalka flew up, each of them caring a much larger item: his walking-stick. Luka blinked, not even having realized that he had left it behind. "Oh, thank you!" He exclaimed, graciously taking the item from the smiling Fairies.
"We discovered this when we sought you out a second time, Hero Luka! We felt as though you'd appreciate being reunited with it." Rusalka explained, fluffing her little brown dress giddily. "That, and we wished to gaze upon you once more before you departed~"
Calypso laughed at her fellow Fairy's comment, "Hehe, what she's tryin' to say, it that we like you for more than what ya got in your pants! Though it certainly helps to have somethin' like what ya got in there~" The blue-haired Fairy said with a wink.
Luka's face burned, the Fairy's collective and open admission of affection somehow making him feel even more queasy than when they had been rewarding him earlier. The purple-haired boy fought to keep the blush on his face from rising anymore than it already had. "I-It's nice to see you three again too." He replied with a quick nod, pocketing the acorn soon after.
"Aww, look, he's getting all baaashfuuulll~" Aubrette cooed, much to Luka's increasing embarrassment. The other Fairies giggled along with her, to which the young Hero began clearing his throat. "E-Ehem! Well as much as I'd like to stick around, I'll be going now. Ha-Have a good day!" He exclaimed with a wave.
"Come back, someday! We'll be sure to show you a lot more fun!" Aubrette shouted.
"Yeah, don't be a stranger now!" Calypso yelled right after, "Come 'round anytime ya'd like, Luka!"
"Fare thee well, Hero Luka! May our paths cross again someday, it is a time I shall be looking forward to!" Rusalka finally called out, waving all the way.
Luka couldn't help but smile at hearing their kind words, watching the three fly away into the thicket. As somewhat eccentric - and terribly lustful - the inhabitants of the Forest of Spirits were, they had been very hospitable to him. The young Hero pocketed the acorn with a smile and turned to face Miyabi; however, his smile quickly faded as he took note of the Doll's gloomy disposition.
"Hey, is everything alright?" Luka asked.
Miyabi's face was uncertain, showing just how mixed and muddled her thoughts were. The Doll considered telling Luka about what she had been thinking about but hesitated, not sure if telling the young Hero that he had possibly just mutilated what might've been her corpse would be such a great idea. Even so though, she couldn't simply ignore what she was feeling either.
"Luka?" Miyabi softly called out. How she said his name was reason enough to cause him to pause, but the fact that this was the first time she had called him by his name wasn't lost on Luka either.
"Yes, what is it, Miyabi?" Luka asked, yet again unintentionally causing the Doll's unstable emotions to flare again. The Doll fidgeted, the nervous movement raising the young Hero's concern.
"Um..." Miyabi started, suddenly unable to even meet Luka's gaze. She deliberated for just a few seconds longer before being able to reply, "...I think that I'm going to stay here."
Luka's mind blanked for a few seconds, his confusion plain on his face as he stared at the Doll. He had pretty well gotten used to Miyabi following him around, so to hear her say that she wasn't traveling with him anymore was a bit of a surprise. "Oh, is that right? Do you mind if I ask why?" He asked.
Miyabi paused, again debating with herself whether she should divulge her true reasons to Luka. However, when she faced the Hero that had - for all intents and purposes - been very hospitable to her despite how rocky things had been between them, she didn't have it in her to trouble him with the knowledge.
So, instead of telling him of her morbid suspicions the Doll just put on a smile and said, "There's so much more fun things to do here, like playing with those Fairies..." Miyabi swished her kimono around with her arms as she continued, "...I was going to tell you earlier, but I didn't know how to."
Technically, this wasn't a lie either. Miyabi had no desire to go back to the mansion now that it was abandoned, and the Fairies did seem like fun to be around for the most part. Her lie seemed to be effective enough, as Luka's pale-blue eyes widened in understanding, and he smiled down at her.
"That's fine, I'm just glad that you like it here so much." Luka said, lightly fidgeting around his walking-stick. "Eh, I guess that mean goodbye for now, Miyabi?" He asked. The Doll once again felt the awful crashing of sadness and glee inside of her, and she could see that same Monster's face flash in her mind's eye once again. Miyabi forced these things away, those were things she could mull over later.
"Yep, but make sure to come visit me again, big bro~" Miyabi said with a wink, "I'd like to see you again someday!" The Doll exclaimed, hoping that she'd know who she really was by the time that happened.
Luka's smile weakened just a bit at that. Like before, he was once again reminded of the piece of advice he had been given by that blacksmith all the way back in Iliasburg about how he should never promise to come back to anyone. It soured his mood considerably, but - much like how Miyabi was - he too hid his true feelings with his smile.
"Yeah, it may take me a long time..." Luka trailed off, nearly kicking himself as he saw Miyabi's grin falter. The purple-haired boy searched his mind for a way to raise the Doll's spirits. An idea came to him, though it nearly made him cringe to even think it.
Luka renewed his smile, "...But I'll try to come back and see my lil' sis."
As inherently bizarre it was to say, the way Miyabi's purple eyes glowed made up for it tenfold. Luka only had a split second to brace himself as the Doll flew at him, wrapping her small arms around him while burying her face in his chest. The young Hero returned the gesture, wrapping his free arm around her much smaller form. After a moment they separated, Miyabi falling back down to look up at him with the largest and most sincere smile he had seen on her face so far.
"Thank you, Luka." Miyabi said, using his real name for the second time now. The young Hero himself was lost as to why what he said caused the Doll so much joy, but he didn't bother in questioning it. Luka nodded down at Miyabi and simply replied, "You're welcome. I'll see you around, okay?"
Miyabi laughed as they separated, her hair twitching as she did. The Doll nodded, "Yeah, I'll see you then, big brother!" With one final wave, Luka turned around and made for the break in the underbrush that he had first entered in with Miyabi in the first place.
The Doll stood still and watched Luka disappear into the thicket, her smile vanishing from her face once he was gone. She remained there, gazing longingly at the space that the purple-haired boy used to occupy. For a hairsbreadth of a moment, Miyabi considered forgetting her suspicions and following along with Luka once more, but she stopped that desire before it could take hold.
And so, Miyabi turned away and ventured back deeper into the Forest of Spirits, hoping that she could figure out who she truly was...
The sky overhead had begun to darken some, the long day beginning to come to its close. The clouds had thickened once more, threatening to bring with them yet another bout of rain for the day.
Alice hardly cared about that, though. What really bothered the lavender-skinned Lamia was the fact that Luka was getting close. That in of itself wasn't the issue, as she was obviously waiting on him to return. However, it was how she knew he was close that offset her mood.
And that was the smell.
Even though Alice could not see Luka she could pick up his scent, his musk. It hit her nose far before anything else did, and it was frustratingly - almost sickeningly - sweet. Even worse, his aroma was mixed in with the warring pheromones of eight Monsters.
Eight. Monsters.
Not that this bothered Alice. No, why would it?
Alice broke from her thoughts as Luka himself finally strode into view, coming out from behind some very low-hanging branches. Strangely enough - though Alice didn't really care that much - the Doll that had went in with Luka was not accompanying him at the moment. And of course - because why not? - he seemed to have acquired another one of his beloved walking-sticks while inside the Forest of Spirits
Alongside these things, Alice took note of the fact that she could also sense something else about Luka: He had acquired Sylph's blessing.
The power of Wind flowed around Luka much like the breeze itself, lightly swirling and brushing against him. Alice felt a cold chill run up her spine, realizing that this meant that Luka was indeed one step closer to becoming the Hero that she needed him to be.
To being the one to kill her.
"Hey, Alice!" Luka called out, raising to wave a hand at his traveling partner. "Sorry I took so long, but I did get the power of the Wind from Sylph!" He proclaimed, a proud little smile coming to his face. A small breeze blew around him, tossing his shoulder-length hair about in the light gust...
...Why did he have to be so cute?
Alice slithered down from the tree she had been resting in to stand before the approaching Hero. She folded her arms beneath her chest, the move being used to help reign in the ridiculously polarized thoughts she was having about her death and Luka's unwavering boyish charm.
"I can sense that much. The Wind seems to be quite fond of you." Alice observed, squinting to look at the boy a bit closer as something else seemed off. Then, she realized that the three cuts he had gotten on his right cheek were now gone. This meant that, at some point, Luka had needed to Meditate his injuries away.
And yet again, this troubled her deeply.
Luka nodded, missing the Lamia's expertly hidden distress, "It does, uh, seem to like me quite a bit..." The young Hero trailed off, feeling the breeze he had just been referring to swirl around him once again. Then, it moved forward and lightly grazed against Alice. He watched it toss about her long white hair, causing it to flow in quite the pleasant way. Then, when the Wind came back, it said something very interesting.
"She saw what you did~"
The Wind's comment froze Luka, his mind fighting to process what it had said. He understood it clearly, not that there was room for misinterpretation, but the statement caught him off-guard either way. 'Does it mean that Alice saw me with...' Luka bristled, '...But she said she wouldn't be going into the forest, right?' The Wind blew lightly against his ear, almost as if to giggle at his puzzlement...
...Wait, how did the Wind know what he was thinking?
"Hey, are we going to get moving, or what?" Alice said, holding out her red tail to give Luka his traveling bag. The young Hero broke from his brief torpor and took his bag back, "E-Eh, thank you. Let me just see something here..." He said while taking his map out from his traveling bag. Luka looked over the parchment, seeing that the closest Spirit to reach next was Gnome.
Who was, from what the Four Animists book had told him, somewhere in the Safina desert. If Luka was being honest, heading into a desert did not sound like such a great escapade. However, if he wanted to find the Earth Spirit, he had very little other choice.
"Ooo, you're going to go get Gnomey next? Yaaay!~" Sylph suddenly exclaimed from within his mind. He could practically feel the Wind Fairy dancing around in his mind, her excited giggling echoing lightly in his ears. 'I guess you and her are very close?' Luka asked in his mind.
"Of course! We're best friends, almost like sisters!" Sylph replied, "It's been so long since we've seen each other, I'm sure she'll be just as happy to see me too."
Luka nodded and folded up his map, "Alright, we'll be heading for Gnome next, then." He said before looking up to Alice. "But before we head out, we should probably go back to San Ilia for a bit and stock up since the only major city I see on the way is Sabasa Castle. Getting there could take us a while, so I don't want to take any chances."
Alice sighed, "As much as I'd hate to go back there, you're right. Heading straight into that desert without preparation would be a terrible decision." She agreed unenthusiastically, her tone making it clear how she felt about returning to the Ilias-faithful town. Luka swung his traveling bag onto his shoulder and looked the sky, which seemed to still have a good amount of sun left poking through the gray clouds rolling across the sky.
"We shouldn't have to be there for very long, just a small stop at San Ilia and then we can start heading for Sabasa. Then once we get out bearings there, we can start searching for Gnome." Luka decided. Alice crossed her arms in a show of displeasure, "Just as long as we leave San Ilia as quick as possible. Having to go back there is bad enough."
Luka shook his head, "Now don't be like that, the town wasn't bad at all. Besides, I doubt we'll be there that long anyways." He said, beginning to move back in the direction of San Ilia. Alice said nothing more, simply slithering over to follow him as they departed from the Forest of Spirits. As they drew farther away, Luka couldn't help but feel something calling out to him.
It wasn't the Wind like before though, for the breeze had died down by this point. No, it was the same tug he had felt earlier, the one he had felt before fighting that terrible plant Monster. 'But I had defeated her, I'm sure of that. What else could that be?' Luka thought, glancing over his shoulder to gaze back at the forest.
Alice watched the young Hero come to a stop, now just staring into the trees behind them. If it weren't for the troubled look on his face, she would have urged him to move on at this point, but she felt curious as to what stopped him so suddenly. Before she could ask, he shook his head and continued walking as quickly as he had stopped.
"Sorry," Luka said quietly, "Just felt... something..." He finished, his face becoming solemnly pensive. Alice took a second to follow him, her golden eyes looking from him to the Forest of Spirits. The Lamia gave a light hum from her throat, finding that she couldn't sense anything awry.
Though the reason Alice couldn't feel what Luka was feeling, was because what he sensed was a result of the connection between himself and the purple-haired girl still trying to reach out to him. Unfortunately for them both though, they would not meet for a very long time. And once they did, neither would quite be the same as they are now...
...In fact, nothing about the Forest of Spirits would be the same, once Luka returned.
Apologies for taking so long to get this rather slow-paced and shorter chapter out. Had a long bout of procrastination and writer's block, so getting this chapter out was a bit of an ordeal.
Either way, one last stop to San Ilia before heading off for Sabasa. Some interesting things moving in the background meanwhile, both in Heaven and elsewhere. Exactly where these things will lead though, remains uncertain...
F14M3RZ: It's probably an unexpected element to this story for some, but it's one I think will be enjoyed. Just feeds the flames, so to speak.
scoobs987: The jury is out for this one, I'll say that much.
omegaqilin: You're fine, I didn't read it as passive-aggressive at all. As I had said, I expected this decision to be a bit unexpected for some but it adds another layer to her and Luka's complicated relationship.
In a way, it represents how both of them have to repress themselves. Alice needing to repress her own desires in order to not get too close to Luka, as that would impede her goals of having him kill her. While Luka has his own reasons for repressing, due to Ilias's Commandments.
But of course, their resistance can only hold for so long, especially when they're alone together.