"Excellent thinking. I'm proud of you." Jirni said.
'Just when I thought that things couldn't get any worse.' She actually thought.
Jirni could easily picture two young and bored people "exploring" the house.
"Thanks, Mom. Your approval means the world to me." Quylla said, obtaining a whimper in reply. "That said, I want to be fully honest with you. I didn't come here just for a meal. I need your help with something important."
Suddenly everything made sense and Jirni's mind pieced together all the elements of the puzzle.
"What can I do for you?" She asked anyway with a warm smile on her face despite the knot in her stomach.
"With all the recent chaos, the Kingdom had to call Manohar back in the field. Professor Marth can't leave the White Griffon without putting the lives of all those who live there and received a Balkor card at risk.
"Lith is unavailable and quite pissed off with the Royals for threatening his family which leaves me as the sole candidate as Manohar's assistant. I've tried my best, but he's harder to predict and does more damage than a Blinking fireball.
"This is my only opportunity to make up with the Kingdom for quitting my job as Assistant Professor and maybe even become a Great Mage." Quylla said.
"Indeed. By volunteering, you have saved the Ernas household from further embarrassment. On top of that, whatever mission requires Manohar must be big enough for you to achieve plenty of merits." Jirni pondered out loud.
"The crazier he behaves, the more relevant your contribution will be and in turn the payoff. Let me guess, you want my help to keep him in line."
"Yes." Quylla nodded, making Jirni inwardly sigh in relief.
She would rather spend a month working with the Mad Professor than tell her estranged husband about Quylla's relationship with Morok and deal with its potential consequences.
Morok Ernas. Just thinking the name made the food in her stomach take a second tour of her throat.
"Kamila told me how much you want to leave your office. This would be the perfect opportunity to spend some time together and to get you back in the field, two birds with one stone." Quylla said.
"I don't think that the Royals will agree with this plan but I'll call in as many favors as I need to make it happen." Jirni replied.
"They already gave their approval." Quylla pushed a document bearing the Royal Seal on the table. "They refused at first, but then I pointed out that both you and they owe me that much for 'killing' me."
"You have guilt tripped the Royals and me into doing your bidding." Jirni was moved to tears again, but this time she didn't hold them back. "I couldn't be more proud of you, pumpkin."
"Thanks, I guess." Quylla knew that her mother used such words as a compliment yet they still stung at her conscience.
"Since when are you close with Kamila?" Jirni asked, realizing the role that her assistant had played to bring the ploy to fruition.
"Since Lith introduced her to us during your birthday." Quylla replied. "Also, even though we have been mad at you, we never stopped worrying about you and that damned Balkor card.
"We kept in touch with Kamila the whole time to make sure that you were alright."
"I was right. Lith is an asshole and that poor woman deserves better." Jirni said with a hiccup.
"Mom, not to ruin this moment, but-"
"I know. The kettle called and said that he wants the pot to stop calling him black." Jirni cut her short, regaining her composure. "When do we leave?"
"Tomorrow. I took into account that if you accepted to help me, you'd need some time to arrange the work in the office during your absence."
"If I accepted?" Jirni echoed.
Not even an Archon could defy a Royal Order. With that piece of paper, Quylla might have ordered Jirni to jump and she'd have to ask how high.
"Yes. I wouldn't force you to do anything you don't want to do, Mom. I just want to try and mend our relationship, if you allow me to."
Jirni was at loss for words so she simply nodded.
'I swear that as long as I draw breath, I won't betray my family's trust again.' She thought as the void inside her heart was filled by the missing piece that she thought was lost to her forever.
***
Zedken Region, city of Ruham, the following day.
"Good gods, my little Flower, why didn't you tell me yesterday that we have to deal with both the enemies of the Kingdom and Manohar?" Orion walked with fury at the idea of having to bear with the Mad Professor's antics for days.
His armor clinked at every step as if someone was shaking a sack filled with coins.
"For the last time, stop calling me like that in public!" Phloria scolded him. "Besides, what was the first thing you taught me about the Knight's Guard? The who, where, and what are irrelevant…"
"The only thing that matters is the mission." Orion completed the phrase for her with a grunt. "By the way, you look lovely in the uniform."
"Thanks, Dad. The receptionist, the data analyst, and that cute Lieutenant we met earlier must agree with you since they slipped me their contact rune. Too bad they were all women!" Phloria snarled.
All the members of the Knight's Guard wore a full suit of light armor made of Adamant that covered them from neck to toe, leaving only the head exposed. Both father and daughter sported a surcoat with the colors of the Kingdom, silver and gold.
They also bore the insignia of the Royal Family on their shoulders and chest. It depicted a triangular shield with on its center a prancing griffon wearing a crown on its head and holding two scepters in its front claws.
One scepter represented the authority of the Royals over the Mage Association and the other over the army.
Phloria wore Orion's magical pin that rolled and compressed her hair, turning her do into a pixie cut. Long hair was nice to look at, but for a fighter, it was nothing but a nuisance.
The combined effect of the armor, her height, and the pin made her look like a young officer with delicate but beautiful features.
"That's nonsense! Only an idiot would mistake you for a man. It's just that you are so gorgeous that no one is immune to your charms." Orion said.
"Thanks, Dad, but from now let me do the talking. At least I sure don't sound like a man." She grumbled.
They reached their destination, the private apartments of Krishna Manohar. The god of healing, the Never Magus, and the Royal Pain were only the most polite among the many nicknames he had earned during the years.
He was a man in his early thirties, about 1.74 meters (5'9") tall with black hair streaked silver. Thanks to his slender build and white uniform, he appeared to be slightly taller.
A stubble at least three days old was the sign of how busy he had been during the last few days dodging those that were supposed to make him behave.
"Also, remember never to reveal my or aunt Solus's secrets, or bad people like those who attacked you two will come for us." Lith said.
"Sorry, Uncle. I promise I'll be careful." Leria squeezed his hand, afraid that something might happen to Lith because of her big mouth.
The kids had spent so much time in the Desert that they had forgotten that it was the only place beside their home where they could talk freely about their odd family and friends.
Lith checked the road ahead with Life Vision, noticing how many things had changed in the last nineteen years. The constant passage of the carriages between his house and the village had smoothened the once rough path.
In the distance, he could see new buildings being built over abandoned unfertile lands. Sometimes, the silence was broken by the echo of a faint noise from Lutia that had been carried by the wind.
"Gods, I can still remember when our village was just a few dozen houses that you couldn't see from the road until you almost got there. Now I can see the grey mass of the buildings from here and even hear its noise." Lith sounded like an old man even to himself.
"Well, it's not all that bad." Rena said. "Now instead of mud we have paved roads and when you go out for a romantic walk at night it doesn't feel like a haunted village anymore. There are enough establishments and lights to not make you feel alone."
"Romantic?" Lith echoed with an amazed tone.
"We are married, not dead. My life may not be as adventurous as yours but we never get bored." Senton grunted. "Speaking of boredom, Dad often whines about you not allowing merchants to use your Gate.
"He says that otherwise Lutia would already be a middle-sized city."
"I won't sacrifice the safety and the privacy of my home in exchange of a few coins. Allowing people to come and go would endanger us all." Lith replied.
"I know. I'm just trying to warn you. Dad loves you, but when it comes to business, he can be really annoying." Now that Leria had relaxed enough to stop clutching Abominus' fur, Senton took her other hand, restoring his wounded fatherly pride.
***
Heavenly Plume tribe, at the same time.
Solus had no problem with the Desert's heat, but for Elina using an oven during the day was akin to torture. The chilly nights instead were the perfect moment to ask for a cooking lesson and have a chat.
Especially now that the children were away and wouldn't barge in at any moment demanding attention. Also, Lith's absence would make it easier for Solus to open up.
"Are you alright, dear?" Elina asked while arranging the ingredients for the cookies on the table. "You weren't as lively as usual during dinner and Raaz told me that you didn't assume your human form upon your return."
"I was just tired." Solus lied through her teeth. "I needed to rest a bit on the mana geyser to get my strength back."
"Was it that bad that you feel the need to hide it from me?" Elina said.
"I don't know what you are talking about." Solus became beet red in embarrassment.
"Solus, you may have learned many things by living with Lith over the years, but lying isn't among them. You wince every time you lie and the moment someone calls it out you act all awkward." Elina sighed.
"If you don't want to talk about it just say it but please don't treat me like a dumb kid. The gods know if I hadn't had enough of that from Lith in the past and I probably still have."
"I'm sorry." Solus turned around her head in shame and her eyes fell on the sugar bag. "Maybe this was a bad idea."
"No, it's not. You always wanted to learn how to cook and finally you have the time and the means to. It's really easy, just follow the recipe and everything will be alright." Elina said.
"That's what I'm worried about. If I learn how to make my favorite sweets, I'll become even fatter!"
"What are you talking about? You are not fat, you are a lovely young lady!"
Solus sat on a chair and told Elina everything that had happened in Zeska, from her being mistaken for pregnant to the wounds that she had failed to heal until her return on the mana geyser.
"That woman was very rude, but she was only concerned about you." Elina said while hugging Solus from behind. "I'm much more worried by the tower getting damaged. It holds your life force and without it, you would die.
"How could the tower get cracked by a few hits of an Awakened? I thought it was nigh-indestructible."
"Maybe in its full form, but right now the tower is just very sturdy. And that only as long as it's fueled by a mana geyser. Without it, the tower has to consume the energy it stores and becomes weaker with each second that I spend in human form.
"I couldn't heal because I'm not fully human, yet. This body is a product of the tower so once it loses too much energy, we both start to crumble. I'm just like a Horseman, but my power core needs much more energy than theirs to work. It's not fair!" Solus sighed.
"Life rarely is." Elina replied. "Look at the bright side. Now you know how it feels to be tired, hungry, and how fragile the life of a human is."
"You say it like it's a good thing, but aren't those flaws?" Solus replied.
"Yes, but they are also what makes a living being different from a statue. You have spent years worrying whether you were a person or an enchanted piece of stone and know you know. I say that it's worth celebrating instead of brooding." Elina said.
"Thanks, Mom." Solus stood up, returning Elina's embrace and melting her heart. "How do I prepare chocolate chip cookies?"
"You just need, flour, eggs, sugar, butter, and a pinch of salt." Elina put emphasis on the last word, remembering Solus' stone cookies. "The chocolate chips go last so we'll worry about them later.
"The trickiest part is the beginning since you can't taste the dough until you are done."
Solus followed her instructions, adding the butter and sugar to the flour and kneading them together before adding the eggs.
"By the way, Mom, I still don't have my period but-"
"You what?" Elina froze while looking at Solus' womb and counting in her head the days since Solus had gotten her human body back to see if the numbers added up.
'That woman in Zeska was right, yet it's not even been a full month. How can the bun already be in the oven? Maybe it happened when she fused with Lith and it remained in stasis along her body!' She inwardly promised never to underestimate a woman's intuition again.
"Okay, that came out wrong." Solus blushed up to her ears. "I meant that sooner or later I'll regain my period as well and I want to be prepared."
"Good gods, and here I thought that Lith was horrible with conversation starters. I need to sit down." Elina took a few deep breaths. "Don't worry, dear. A woman's period is nothing complicated.. We'll talk about it as soon as my heart starts beating again."
