Arc#4 Chapter 43: Getting Away with Murder (Patreon)

‘That went well.’

Reivan sighed and tried to look at the bright side of things, pushing all depressing thoughts to the back of his mind for now.

Luckily, the perfect distraction was right in his pocket.

He reached into his overcoat — which he really should be taking off considering how he’d intentionally roughed it up to look like he’d been wearing it the whole time he was in the sanctuary — and took out the orb with a miniature white kitten contained within the glassy cage.

It was apparently a panther, though, and calling it otherwise might upset the beast. While it didn’t have anything special about it other than having the [Light] attribute, this creature would be his outward partner for his tenure as a battlemage, so it was ideal for him to build some goodwill between them.

“Let’s try to get along, okay?”

The creature's only response was to relentlessly scratch at the inside of the orb in a futile attempt to mutilate his face — which was, quite frankly, adorable because of how small it was.

‘Which reminds me, I haven’t named it yet. I can’t keep calling it an it either, since this kitten’s a girl.’

After a bit of deliberation, he decided to give it the future true name of Innocence, in dedication to the guilt he felt in killing the young man who initially captured it. Since the beast was also innocent when it was ripped away from its family, the name fit like a glove.

‘For a nickname… Let’s go with Ino, I guess? Ah, no, that's the name of that one anime girl that I… Ehem. Anyway, better think of another one.’

Reivan kept on staring at the beast inside the orb, trying to come up with a different nickname. By the time he thought of something he was mildly satisfied with, the small kitten had grown tired of threatening him and was simply looking around the room curiously, her hatred forgotten for the time being.

“Sen. I’ll call you Sen.”

Sen tilted her head, confused. It couldn’t understand him because they didn’t have a connection yet, and hence, wasn’t aware that it was just given a name. But language barriers never stopped Reivan from talking to his dogs back in the day. It was the thought that counts.

‘Speaking of which… How do we summon them out of this thing?’

As far as he knew, the orbs only had two functions: to capture or to release.

It wasn’t the type of release where you could force the creature back inside whenever you wanted though, rather, it was the permanent kind, where you’d have to beat them down again if you wanted to get them back inside.

When he did it back in the sanctuary though, the beast inside was just released normally, appearing in front of him. But when done in the material world, that meant the beast would be sent to the spirit world, where humans normally weren’t allowed, as far as Reivan knew.

This was according to the booklet all first years were given before entering the sanctuary, warning them not to release spirit beasts after returning to the material world.

‘Or is that it? They just stay in the orbs until we convince them to form a permanent bond? That seems oddly… dumb. That surely can’t be right. The poor beasts have to stay in there for a year, if that’s the case.’

“Good day, Brother Salwyn.”

Reivan was jolted out of his thoughts by a familiar singsong voice. He shot up into a sitting position, accidentally dropping the orb on top of the bed — it almost rolled off had he not caught it in time.

As he had expected, right in front of him was Elder Bernadine, smiling at him with mischief in her eyes. “I surprised you, it seems.”

“Indeed you did, Elder…” Reivan cleared his throat. “I was just talking to… uhm, to Sen. The spirit beast I caught.”

“Splendid initiative. Even if they can’t understand you yet, an attempt to reach out will be helpful in endearing it to you.” Bernadine nodded in approval before she conjured a chair from thin air and sat on it. “Now, forgive my bluntness, but I’m going to have to ask you some questions.”

“Of course. I will answer to the best of my abilities.”

“Very good, very good. Just so you know, you’re not under suspicion. No one is! This isn't really an interrogation, we merely want to accumulate every bit of information we can from all possible sources.”

Reivan nodded in understanding, smirking in his mind. “It’s a relief that I won’t have to worry about false charges then.”

Bernadine giggled before clearing her throat. “Can you tell us what you think may have caused such a large number of people to go missing? Anything that comes to mind, dear. Perhaps you noticed strange signs while exploring the sanctuary?”

Pretending to spend a few seconds of contemplation, Reivan hummed in thought before eventually talking, a hint of uncertainty in his voice. “I don’t quite remember seeing anything suspicious, but at the same time, I wasn’t paying too much attention to my surroundings. As Elder Ozran mentioned earlier… I believe the most likely cause is an accident of some kind.”

‘A wolf-shaped accident named Dominance, that is.’

“That’s what we thought too, actually.” Bernadine sighed and shook her head, placing a palm against her cheek. “But you see, each orb is linked to each one of you. We can retrieve it any time as long as they’re in the Tower’s vicinity or anywhere in the sanctuary. Even if they’re inside spatial storage artifacts, we can still get them all back.”

“Huh. And I’m assuming your mention of this fact means that some of the orbs weren’t retrieved…?”

“That is the case, yes. Unfortunately, none of the twenty-six orbs from the missing first years could be retrieved.”

“Really?” Reivan’s brows shot up in surprise, but internally, he was relieved. The orbs he took were still in Zouros’ stomach, after all, so her words just confirmed that they couldn’t do anything to take the orbs back from him. “This kind of makes it seem like they’re absence isn’t caused by an accident. Whoever did this was aiming for the orbs, then?”

Bernadine nodded solemnly. “That is what we’re going with for now.”

“That…” Reivan leaned a little closer, as if he was afraid they would be overheard. “Then could it be that you’re implying the existence of spies? That there are still spies in our midst…?”

“Spies…?” Bernadine raised a brow before giggling. “Goodness, no. If there was a spy, they would be among the twenty-six who never returned from the Sanctuary. Though, perhaps a few of the dead this year were victims of these spies.”

Reivan acted like he realized something. “Is it because of the oath, Elder? You think some of them were spies or traitors, that’s why they were killed by the oath they took?”

“Precisely.” She gave his head a little pat. “All speculation for now, however. Even if the oath was responsible for any number of the twenty-six deaths, we should still be able to retrieve the orbs. The fact that we can’t boggles our mind.”

“...I see. Honestly, it’s beginning to seem like all twenty-six of the people who never came back were spies, and they all, through some unknown way, left the Sanctuary and got far enough away from the tower without anyone noticing.”

Bernadine giggled yet again, nodding in agreement. “Ironically, that is the most conceivable reason. However, some of the missing people are from prominent mage families and have been raised in Vel Ayala’s Upper City all their lives.”

“And this… disqualifies them from betrayal…?” Reivan ventured, trying to sound hesitant, knowing that the elder came from one of the most prestigious mage clans in Vel Ayala.

“No, not really. But it becomes all the more unlikely,” she said matter-of-factly, completely unoffended in any way. “We take very strict measures on our kin, you see. In fact, we’re much more strict than the tower in regulating our own.”

“So that’s how it is… In any case, I hope whoever’s responsible is caught, wherever they may be now.”

‘Yeah, right. You guys are way off with your theories. It was actually me, Reivan! And I’m in your walls!’

Dom did most of the work, but he was responsible for stealing the orbs. If he had never met Dom and the orbs stayed with the wolf, they would have all been retrieved without trouble — allowing the Tower to write it off as a very unfortunate tragedy caused by numerous accidents.

With everything he'd gotten so far, Reivan would have found it somewhat acceptable even if he was forced to go home right this instant. But of course, he appreciated the tower's ignorance since that meant he could stay for longer.

Reivan pretended to contemplate something before speaking with feigned hesitation. “My apologies, Elder. I don’t think I can contribute anything of substance to the investigation. I was too focused on trying to find a good spirit beast to catch…”

Bernadine nodded. “That makes sense. I was the same, back in the day. Picking a partner is very important, after all. And from the looks of it, you managed to obtain a very cute spirit. It’s a cat, is it?”

“No, she's a panther, Elder.”

“Oh. Goodness. I’m glad she can’t understand us yet. That would have gotten her quite mad!”

Reivan chuckled at her obvious attempts to lighten the mood from the relative gloom of the Tower’s situation. “Elder Bernadine, again, I’m sorry I can’t be more helpful.”

“No, no, there’s no need for that. You had your own problems and were too preoccupied with them. Simple as that. Very understandable."

Bernadine chatted with Reivan, asking a few more questions before eventually standing up. The chair she had been sitting on vanished into thin air with a single clap of her hands.

“I think that’ll be all, Brother Salwyn. You’ll have to excuse me. I suppose we'll wait until the Sage King steps in... though I highly doubt it.”

'Oh? Is she allowed to just say that...?'

Judging from her tone, it seemed the Sage King wasn't popular with everyone, as opposed to the Sword Star who was respected by every single knight that ever existed. He wanted to ask more, but something told him that now wasn't the time, so he reluctantly pretended to be concerned with something else.

"Elder. What am I to do now?”

“For now? Whatever you please. It’s still early in the morning and you have the rest of the day for yourself. You are now allowed to leave your quarters to have a meal in the Mess Hall. You’re the last one to be questioned so everyone who got out of the Sanctuary in one piece has converged there.”

“I see…” Reivan dipped his head before feigning confusion. “Huh? I’m the last one? But there’s still…”

Bernadine threw him a sympathetic glance, shaking her head. “Unfortunately, Sister Tamaya Hardeling, whom you… ehem… may have a connection with, is one of the missing people. I’m very sorry, Brother Salwyn.”

Reivan remained mostly expressionless as he let a sigh escape his lips, and Bernadine took that chance to console him.

“I dislike being the bearer of bad news, but she will hardly be the first of many losses. This is a very dangerous profession, Brother Salwyn. And though unfortunate and not something anyone wished for, I hope this incident is enough to impress upon you just what kind of calling you've pledged yourself to.”

“Yes, Elder…” Reivan nodded, acting as if he was struggling to squeeze out the words. “I’m fine… We barely knew each other.”

Bernadine looked heartbroken but she quickly smiled. “I see. Then I suppose you’ll be okay, Brother Salwyn. As for what comes after… What remains of the first years will be called upon tomorrow morning, at eight o'clock. I suggest you be in the Mess Hall before then. Take the rest of the day to replenish your stamina. Maybe get some warm food in you at the Mess.”

“Thank you, Elder. I’ll… I’ll go and do that.”

“Good. Now, I know you don’t want to hear something like this right now but… Well, Maya isn’t the only berry in the bush. Nor will she be the only fruit in the forest. Stay strong. And may the cold winds bring warmer tidings to you, Brother Salwyn.”

Leaving those final words behind, Bernadine turned around and disappeared, leaving Reivan to his own thoughts.

He sighed, involuntarily recalling Maya’s face as life drained out of her eyes. Reivan was sure that she would haunt him in his sleep for a while.

Even though he held no special romantic feelings for the chatty young woman, he certainly didn't think she deserved to die — she just had to.

For his mission.

He wouldn’t change his decision even if someone turned back time to the second just before he put a hole through her head. But he couldn't help but wish he met her a little earlier that day. Perhaps if he had the time to persuade her or to force her to eat a slave pill, he wouldn't have had to kill her.

Hell, he could have used Akrhan's oath spell.

But he was living proof that none of those things were absolute. There were loopholes. And if she really wanted to expose him, she could deal damage at the expense of her life.

Done at the wrong time, it wouldn't just affect him, but the entire kingdom he represented.

'I... I did what I had to...'

It wasn't the right thing.

But he didn't come here to do the right thing. He came here to do what he had to.

After all, morals and feelings had no place when millions of lives could be placed at risk by his actions or inaction.

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When Reivan arrived at the Mess Hall, Aldimir was already there. And the young man who concealed his identity as a member of the Adamantes clan wasted no time in hailing Reivan into a table full of girls.

‘God, I don’t really want to go there…’

Fooling around or even just hanging out with girls was the last thing he wanted to do right now. But at the same time, he couldn’t exactly ignore his only remaining “friend” in the Tower.

After a moment’s hesitation, Reivan sighed and decided to head over.

“Ladies, this is my good comrade, Clover,” Aldimir announced to the girls seated around the table when Reivan drew near. His arms were noticeably wrapped around a distressed young woman who was crying onto his shoulder, uncaring of where his arms were placed on her body. “He’s cool, if a bit quiet. Also, he’s Maya’s… uhm… what were you guys exactly?”

“Just friends.” Reivan sat himself down on the only open sear, which unfortunately placed him between two young women he didn't know. He gave a quick nod of greeting to the beauties sandwiching him before moving to order himself some food. Once he was done, he leaned back and observed his seatmates, noticing how somber the mood around the table was.

Eventually, he felt it would be too strange if he didn’t ask about it. He leaned to the left, whispering a question to the young woman adjacent to him. “I’m assuming someone here knew one of the missing people? And I think I can guess who.”

“Her brother was one of the missing people.” the girl leaned toward him and whispered back, her face close and her hand resting on his shoulder. “They were right next to each other in that hall so she noticed he was gone immediately.”

“So that’s how it is.” Reivan nodded to himself, not bothering to push the young woman away from him, lest he somehow offend the entire group. Girls were just like that, according to Valter. “That’s… rough. I’m sure they both worked really hard to get here.”

“Mhm. They came from good families and had a lot of expectations of them…” she shook her head. “Oh, speaking of. I heard you don’t have any siblings. Is that true?”

“That’s right… Did Maya tell you that?”

“Uh-huh. She told me a lot of things.”

Reivan turned to her and looked into her eyes for a moment before turning away again, infusing a bit of pain in his face for any Ascendant watching. “Only good things, I hope?”

“Very good things.” the girl giggled silently, pulling away a little and pushing a bit of her hair behind her ear. “Like how you guys had a thing together?”

“A thing…? I don’t exactly know what that is, but she just used me as a backscratcher — except her itch wasn’t on her back. There wasn’t anything else other than that.”

“Funny, that’s not all too different from what she said you would say. Ah, I don’t think we’ve been formally introduced, yet, right? I’m Panini Lizeth, nice to meet you.”

“Same… Actually, I’ve heard about you.”

“Only good things, I hope?”

“Oh, definitely. Heard you got a great ass,” he joked. “Mostly from Aldimir, by the way. Watch out for him.”

Panini’s eyes widened at his bluntness but eventually grinned as she offered her hand. “He’s insufferable. Hopefully, you’ll be slightly better?”

Reivan shook her offered hand. “I had hoped you wouldn’t set the bar too low, miss.”

She giggled, leaning in a little closer as her grip tightened. “Well? How was it?”

“How was what…?”

“My ass.”

“Uh.” Reivan forgot his wits for a second before teasing back. “Respectfully, it’s even better than rumored.”

“Pfft.” Panini let go of him and rolled her eyes, playfully slapping him on the chest. “You say not to set the bar too low when you’re like this? Men, I swear…”

“My parents told me not to lie.” Reivan shrugged and nodded to the shy and quiet girl to his right. “It’s nice to meet you too.”

“Ah. Yes…” Alini smiled softly but didn’t seem keen on talking more.

“Don’t take offense. Her name's Alini. And she's my elder sister who’s shy around strangers.” Panini tapped him on the thigh before resting her hand on it. “Don’t underestimate her though, she’s a really good spell slinger! She was unbeatable back in our hometown. Well, only against people our age, but still.”

“Really?” Reivan raised a brow at the shy girl, who looked very much like her sister, except with slightly longer dark hair. “No offense taken then. Wouldn’t want to offend someone who could blast my head off, eh?”

Alini laughed awkwardly, looking like she wanted to be anywhere but where she was at the moment. “I… I’m not that great…”

“Modest too, as you can see,” Panini interjected. “Could use a bit more friendliness though, unlike me. I’m very friendly.”

Reivan chuckled wearily. “I’ve noticed.”

“Heh. You said you were just friends with Maya, right?”

“Uh… Yes. That’s right…"

Panini squeezed his thigh a little, and Reivan had to try very hard to stifle his reaction. “How about being just friends with me too?”

Reivan froze for a heartbeat, deciding to hide his embarrassment by taking a sip of water — this earned another giggle from the woman though.

‘Damn the republic. Why are women here so… forthwith? Is it the food? Or is it the fucking cold? It's the fucking cold, isn't it... It's a culture thing or something.’

He was sure that the men who were benefiting from this aspect of their culture had no complaints, but Reivan was growing to prefer Aizen’s relative demureness. Of course, if it was a woman he loved, he would be very happy if they were forward with him. But being propositioned so much was inconvenient when he just wanted to focus on his gods damned mission.

‘And Clover Salwyn isn’t even that handsome. And he's poor too! Isn't this kind of unnatural...?’

He was a man who was already taken by two very wonderful women, so he really didn’t want to defile himself any more than he had to in this mission. Of course, he still would, as long as it was needed to keep his cover, but he didn’t want to keep adding reasons to be guilty of.

‘I can’t just blow her off though.’

That wouldn’t be very in character and no ordinary single man would refuse. Handling it incorrectly could also ostracize him from a portion of the girls — and he didn’t need that kind of negative attention.

Hence, Reivan could only entertain her, finding a subtler way to refuse.

“If you and Maya really don’t have anything between you two,” Panini whispered under her breath, her hand slowly inching closer to where they shouldn’t be. “Why don’t you give me a spin too? You can confirm Aldim’s words and a few other things in private.”

Reivan cleared his throat, noticing how a golem had teleported into the Mess Hall carrying his food. “Maybe not tonight… Or the next few nights.”

“Oh, yeah, definitely not right now.” Panini seemed satisfied with his answer and removed her hand, pulling away to make space for the golem to place the tray in front of him. “You have to wait until a few dates, at least. And I just want to pass out after that little hike. I wish they gave us hoverboards or something so we didn’t have to bloody up our feet from all the walking.”

“I’m glad we feel the same way. Perhaps some other time, then.”

Panini giggled, resting her chin on her hand. “You must really like it with Maya, huh? You’ve already reserved the next few nights with her? How scandalous. At least let her use the bed in her room for once.”

Reivan licked his lips and finally decided to drop the bombshell. “That would be a little hard to do, considering she never came back from the sanctuary.”

Silence.

That one sentence, spoken with a voice that wasn’t particularly loud, caused all the tiny pockets of conversation around the large table to cease. Noticeably though, Aldimir and the crying girl had disappeared at some point, but there were still around four girls sitting around the table aside from the Lizeth sisters.

“...Are you serious?” one girl with a supermodel's face and a particularly prominent set of fruits hanging from her chest finally asked after the silence hung for long enough.

Reivan nodded, his face a stony mask. “Elder Bernadine confirmed it.”

“Oh, no…”

“Maya…”

“S-so that’s why he looked so grumpy…?”

“No, I think he’s always kind of like that. You saw him the other day too, right?”

The young women all reeled in shock, covering their gaping mouths or just outright tearing up. Even Panini jolted away from him like she’d just gotten burned, biting her lip and seeming like the end of days was coming.

“I can’t believe it…” she muttered to herself. “I literally just talked to her yesterday… and now she’s dead…?”

“Afraid so.” Reivan bobbed his head and looked down at his food, somberly finishing off the last few bites before standing up. “I’ll get going now. I… I need to rest.”

There were no complaints from the silent young women, who all seemed visibly distressed by the news of someone’s death — even though it was the death of someone they’d only known for a couple of days. Whether it was a testament to their soft nature or evidence of Maya’s absurd social skills, he didn’t know.

Just as he was about to duck into the hallway where his assigned quarters was, he was suddenly stopped by a willowy hand on his shoulder. He looked back and saw Panini, the girl who had just propositioned him earlier.

“Uh, hey.” Panini ventured, seemingly finding it hard to find a place to rest her gaze, looking anywhere but at him. “So about what we talked about…”

Reivan held out a hand to stop her and nodded. “I understand. You don’t have to explain anything.”

“...Thanks, Clover.” she smiled and looked at him with appreciation in her eyes. “I wasn’t trying to lead you on or anything… Maya just kept saying all these things and… Well, I got curious?”

“Uh-huh…”

‘I said you didn’t have to explain though…’

“But then she’s, uhm, y’know…” Panini looked down at her feet, shuffling them uneasily. “Now it just feels wrong to, uhm, do that with you. I mean, you both said you weren't really together, but... it still...”

“I get it." Reivan stopped her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I appreciate you coming out to clear it up. Most girls would have just avoided me for a while, I think.”

“Right… uhm...”

Seemingly having trouble coming up with something else to continue the conversation, Panini turned around and started walking away. But not before turning back with a faulty smile and an awkward wave of her hand.

Reivan was about to wave back but froze upon hearing what she said.

“Oh, but maybe after a few months, I'll feel better about it and we can pick up where we left off.”

For a few moments even after she disappeared from his sight, Reivan stood there with his arm in the air, stunned, once again, by Arkhan’s women.

════════════════════════════════

Not really in the mood to mingle in the depressing mood surrounding the Mess Hall, Reivan stayed in his room for most of the day.

The thought of going outside to explore Vel Ayala on his own and maybe buy a new overcoat to replace the one he’d intentionally roughed up crossed his mind, but he restrained himself from such foolishness.

Sorcerer skills aside, Clover Salwyn was just an ordinary man if not for being in slightly better shape than the average Arkhanian his age, and from the perspective of the tower, he was supposed to have spent the last twenty-four hours running around in a different world to find a spirit beast worthy of capturing.

That meant that Reivan had to act like a tired teenager even when he wasn’t tired at all.

As he had expected though, Reivan couldn’t get any decent sleep. It was a mixture of not being truly tired and thoughts of Maya flooding his mind. Whenever he closed his eyes, he could see her face and remember the times they spent together.

The other person he killed also appeared from time to time, but not as much as Maya, perhaps because he actually knew her. But that didn't mean the note he found in the young man's body was any less haunting. He could practically hear the mother's tears fall, each drop rumbling like thunder.

In the end, Reivan gave up and jumped out of bed at around ten in the evening to sate his hunger. There were still some people in the Mess Hall, and he even saw some people he’d exchanged greetings with. But he wasn’t in the mood for conversation, so he kept to himself and only offered them a nod or a smile when their eyes met, his mind too occupied by their foray into the sanctuary.

He didn’t think the real Clover would have felt differently had he been here.

Reivan quietly finished his meal and just as quietly slunk back into his room, crashing straight into his mattress as soon as he could. He wasn’t tired before, but by now, his mind was thoroughly turned to mush.

It didn’t take long for him to fall asleep, but he woke up screaming about an hour later, droplets of cold sweat all over his forehead. He cursed in the darkness, the words coming out thick and slow as he cradled his head in his hands, hitting himself in the temples a few times to jolt thoughts of that one girl he slept with a few times out of his mind.

That was all she was to him — or rather, that was what he wanted her to be so he could just stop feeling like shit. But that didn't really work either, and at the back of his mind, he knew it wasn't healthy to deceive himself like that.

Hours later, he finally couldn’t take it anymore and ran away from his nightmares, activating [Glimpse of Eternity] so he could at least occupy his mind with something other than a girl he barely knew, all while letting the night pass quietly.

Reivan was oh so very thankful that the little white-haired fairy living rent-free in his mind said nothing about his cowardly actions. But in a way, Reivan had come here to be admonished and mocked. To be punished in some way.

So when he realized he couldn't even get that, all he was left with was a bitter taste in his mouth that he couldn’t get rid of.

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Reivan got up early, bathed and dressed up, then headed for the Mess Hall.

The first years were to gather at eight, but he was already finished eating breakfast at six. He wanted to use the next two hours to get his head back in the game, but it wasn’t working all that well.

“Hey. Are you deaf?”

“...Huh?” Reivan was jolted out of his thoughts by a familiar voice behind him. When he turned around, there was a red-haired beauty looking at him with mild annoyance. “Inaria…?”

“Excuse me?” The president’s fifth child and only daughter’s gaze grew frosty, in stark contrast to her fiery hair and eyes. “Do I know you?"

“Oh." His mind ground to a halt at the slip of the tongue. Once he recovered, he quickly tried to think of an excuse. "No, uhm, I recognize you from some newspaper articles..."

"I see... Well, then please call me Miss Inaria. Or at least Sister Inaria. We're not close, please refrain from acting in an overly familiar manner.”

"Right. Sorry…”

“...Whatever.” Inaria let it go rather easily, probably thinking that spending any more time with him was a waste. She set something on the table and turned to leave. “Don’t leave your wand on the floor. Someone could slip on it. Or worse, break it.”

Reivan looked at the wand on the table and felt for the place he usually kept it in, confirming that it was, in fact, not there. He had no idea when he may have dropped it and wasn’t even sure if it was possible to have it leave his overcoat’s inner pocket when he didn’t move around that much.

‘Oh, god… I need to get my shit together.’

“Hey there, my friend.” Aldimir suddenly plopped down on the chair right next to him, a bright smile on his face despite the dark circles under his eyes. He grimaced as he looked at Reivan’s face. “Damn. You look like shit.”

“I know…” Reivan ground through clenched teeth. “You look like shit too.”

“These are battle scars, brother. if you know what I mean. You’re not doing too bad yourself. Tired of Maya already? I saw you talking up that redhead just now.”

“What? No. I wasn’t talking up anyone.”

“Sure, you weren't.” Aldimir rolled his eyes with a smirk, obviously not believing him. "Don't worry though, I won't go for that one. She's too pretty for me."

Reivan momentarily forgot his troubles after hearing the young man's words. "She's too pretty? How the hell is anyone too pretty...? And wouldn't that be a good thing?"

"Brother, take these words of wisdom from someone more experienced than you." Aldimir leaned in close and snaked his arm around Reivan's shoulders. "The prettier a woman is, the more baggage she has."

"Baggage...?"

"Yeah. It could be anything. Family troubles, issues with an ex-lover, or some kind of tragic past. They all have that kind of shit. I can barely take care of myself, I don't need that kind of stuff on my shoulders, man. Mark my words. If you want to enjoy life, marry a six, have fun with sevens and eights, get some nines on occasion — but never go for tens. And anything beyond a ten should be avoided like winter pox. Trust me, those will kill you."

"That's..." Reivan wanted to refute that, but strangely enough, there was some truth to the words.

Helen was an orphan with simmering beef against her family. Elsamina had her past as a sex slave. Vianna, his mother, was the princess of a ruined dynasty on a different continent, and even had the new dynasty's hostility. And Stella... well, she didn't have a tragic past or anything like that, but anybody who said she didn't have a few issues would be lying.

'Wait a minute... there's still Gwen!'

Reivan almost thought that, but then he remembered that Gwen was initially born of a union between an imperial peasant and an Aizenian operative in the empire. And she had to get rescued out of there, secretly squirreled away to the kingdom's lands where she eventually became a knight.

'Oh my god... It's fucking true...'

If he scoured the continent hard enough, he could probably find a few more beauties at his mother's level who didn't have tragic pasts or some other issues. But the realization that the most beautiful women he currently knew all had one issue or another was a slight shock.

"That's the face of someone who agrees with me," Aldimir smirked at Reivan, shaking his head. "I won't ask you about it, Brother. I have my stories too. Just like you, I've been burned, thinking a mere mortal like me could handle a beauty of that caliber. I guess only a prince or something can safely taste those fruits and live to tell the tale."

'Uh, no. I haven't been burned at all... yet. No, I won't ever be burned... My fiancees are both good people... Yeah.'

"So anyway!" Aldimir clapped him on the shoulder. "What's eating you up, Brother? I'm feeling generous so if your woes are heavy enough, I'll treat you to this place I know..."

Reivan sighed heavily, his head held low. “Maya’s dead. She was one of the people who didn’t come back.”

There was a pregnant pause for a few heartbeats before Aldimir cursed in a language Reivan didn’t know. How he knew it was a curse, he wasn’t sure of himself, but he supposed there was just something about the way the young man said it.

“So that’s why you’re… Shit. I’m sorry.” Aldimir gave him a few awkward pats on the back. “I mean, you kept saying you guys just… y’know. But she obviously didn’t mean nothing to you…”

Reivan spared the young man a glance, and, after a moment of thought, nodded. “Yeah… I think I actually liked her. As a person. She didn’t deserve to die in there…”

Aldimir pursed his lips and gripped his shoulder. “Yeah. Nobody did, man. Nobody.”

The two of them spent the next few moments in silence, with Aldimir quietly eating breakfast and Reivan trying to come to terms with whatever he had to come to terms with.

At some point though, the awkwardness warranted some lightening up. So Reivan nudged Aldimir’s foot under the table. “Not everything’s all bad though. At least one of us got to take a girl to his room because of that shit.”

Aldimir’s eyes widened for a moment before he realized Reivan was just joking around. He smirked. “Hey, I was already working on her since before that.”

“Yeah?”

“Uh-huh. I'm not a monster, man. I was just trying to sincerely comfort her last night, but she just kinda... y'know? She just needed someone. And I just ended up being there, get it?”

“Sure.” Reivan rolled his eyes.

"Believe me!"

The two of them chuckled before they both silently agreed that joking about this could be seen in bad taste. They both chose to talk of other mundane matters, such as what they to happen today.

Suddenly, the teleportation pad in the middle of the Mess Hall glowed brighter than usual as Elder Bernadine appeared, followed closely by a few golems holding stacks of grimoires.

“Oh, am I a bit early? Goodness.” she giggled and checked a golden pocket watch tastefully decorated with jeweled flowers. “It seems I am. Well, since we’re already here…”

Elder Bernadine looked around with a big bright smile and nodded.

“Who wants to learn how to break open their orbs first?”