Whoosh….

I open my eyes and realize I was back, the flying rose petals, that… rosy fragrance, and hints of violet. But this time it was kind of weird, no rose petals were around in air nor red and even purple only… pink, there’s only pink roses throughout this sea.

I’ll admit it’s nice to return, to feel back this euphoria, but I can’t help but to ask.

How and Why am I here again?

While standing tall among the pink roses below me, I began to survey my surrounding. Checking if everything was still the same, and yup… the willow tree was still there, and the two women were still there too.

I knew what was going to happen to me if I go to that willow tree again, so I tried a new path, the women, and I do hope both of them have an answer on why I’m here again.

As I walk towards them, I sensed something was different between them both. I remembered cordially their manners were with each other, how sisterly even. But now it’s very hostile, from a distance alone I could tell they were fighting, from their erratic moving hands, shaky and tense bodies, and harsh mouths, the words they were shouting at another were very crass, it’s like I’m seeing the fallout of one of them betraying the other.

And it surprises me more as when I was more closer with them, I could see very clearly that they… weirdly looked like Ruith and Amadela, no... they are Ruith and Amadela! From their very contrasting color of their blonde hairs, stark height and frame difference, and just… all of it.

But their fighting suddenly stopped when I got very close to them, they separated and went furiously on different paths.

At that point I was running towards them, trying stop them from leaving their spot but in the end, I had to make a last-minute call, which one to follow? Amadela? Ruith?

One thing that I knew was that Amadela couldn’t possibly be the one who send me to this weird rose field realm, but Ruith… she might have, considering that she drugged me and is a powerful Mage, she was the best candidate on top of my head.

So… I followed her, ran as fast as I could to reach but damn… she’s really fast for a short person.

While I was chasing her, trying to keep her still in my vision the wind got colder and snow out of nowhere came falling down where it embedded the pink roses. We eventually stopped running as our breath was gone, but unlike her I really want to know why I am here again, so… I mustered up some strength and went running to Ruith again.

But suddenly a white cloaked person popped up in front of Ruith, then another and another, until there were rows and rows of those white cloaked people in front of her, then…

“SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP!!!!!” Ruith yelled repeatedly in annoyance at the white cloaked person.

I stopped, I was a bit staggered by her yelling at the white cloaked people in front of her. Is as if she was suppressing a demon, but instead that demon multiplied even more to the point it surrounded her, closing me off from Ruith.

Seeing this I dash and ran again to her, even leaping inside the crowd, squirming, crawling, and wriggling like a worm in the soil. It was slow but I got my results when I reached the middle.

There I saw Ruith, still yelling “shut up”, on the floor, while… crying, on the ground…

“I… have done what you asked me to do…” she said while weeping bitterly. “So… WHAT DO YOU STILL WANT FROM ME?!?!?!” she yelled again towards all of them with tears overflowing her eyes.

Right there… I couldn’t help but feel sorry for her, feeling like that… she’s a victim, like the thing that she did to me wasn’t of her own actions… I… I don’t know why, seeing her clearly like this, so defenseless, so tired, so… depressed, reminded me of her, of Anne…

And remembering that made me want to go to her, to hug her so tightly that she won’t feel the cold. Letting her know that she’s not alone, she doesn’t have to suffer it alone.

With that, I embrace her, leaping forward and hugged her tiny body, keeping her away from the cold except for warmness, the warmness from my body. This broke her as she hugged me back, so tightly like me while letting out a very heart wrenching cry…

Right now the only thing I could do is just, to close my eyes, stroke her head gently and keep her warm.

But in the end, reality flooded back to me as this time it wasn’t Eleanna that was shouting at me nor was it Arthur setting up our lunch, this time… I opened my eyes to me wearing my birthday suit beside a girl who is also in her birthday suit…

As the rays of sunlight was seeping in from the window, I woke up with surprisingly no hangover, well… when I looked back at what drugged me, it was still a simple milk tea, even if it’s weirdly the one I usually made.

But nonetheless I rose from her bed, stretched my arms as well as my chest and yawned which in turn woke her up.

“Morning…” she said quite cheekily at me while rubbing her eyes.

As I saw her there, naked, only covered a bit by her blanket, another bit of reality came rushing in… we didn’t use a condom…

SHIT, SHIT, SHIT, WAIT!!! Calm down Martyn, yesterday might have been her safe day and all my bois must have died before arrival!! But, wait… what if the drug she uses wasn’t only an aphrodisiac! but a fertility booster as well!? Shit... I AM STILL TOO YOUNG TO BE A DAD DAMN IT!!!!

Remembering that night I could only stand like a statue, a sweating nervous statue as I remembered again if Eleanna, Arthur, and Miss Marie were to find out… they’ll kill me.

Arthur might be forgiving but we did make a pact on losing our virginity at the same day and night, Miss Marie is definitely going kill me, and, damn it… she is 100% will be disappointed in me, Eleanna on the other hand… God… She won’t forgive me, she’s going to hate me and god… how I could I do this to her…

What is wrong with you MARTYN! She is the love of your life and you fucking ruin it, I… fucking ruin it… damn it…

My brain at that point went overdrive again, as guilt, sadness, anxiety, and anger were mixed in there and all of this, all of this… is because of her…

But as I was about to unleash my fury at her, looking right in to her annoying face, I stopped… seeing her face again made me remember about that dream, where she was crying alone, pleading for those white cloaked people to release her…

I… honestly can’t be mad at her, she’s a victim too…

“Are you lusting over me again Lord Protector?” And that line killed every notion of me being sympathetic and empathetic towards her.

“YOU FUCKIN-”

BRAK….

“AGHH!! By Lux, Lord Protector! Cover yourself!!!” Amadela crashed through the door and was greeted by a half covered cheeky brat and a fully naked shameless man.

“Sorry… sorry…” I apologized and tried to find my clothes, which… was being stepped by her.

I then slowly went to her where her face went overdrive, tomato red and all.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?!” She yelled in embarrassment.

“I am taking my clothes… it’s down there…” I said embarrassingly, for the fact that a girl is seeing me naked, while pointing at my pile of clothes near her.

“Ahh! ahhh… Okay… sorry, I overreacted…” She said, still embarrassed.

“It’s… okay…” I replied.

A few minutes later…

“Now… could you two explain what happen last night?!”

Amadela asked as she was sitting on the seat that I previously sat on, when I was drinking the milk tea with Ruith, with Ruith herself too was sitting on that exact seat, while… I was sitting on the floor like I was being punished for something heinous…

Wait… Why the fuck am I on the floor?!

I stood up, not wanting to be looked like the criminal in this interrogation, I explained while everything to her while standing, from Ruith’s invitation, the milk tea, and the part where I did it with her.

“You know… he was one hell of a stud when he ravaged me in the bed, hehe…” she remarks about last night with that cheeky tone of hers. “But… I couldn’t help to be disappointed at the end, shame that I had to be the one to made him climax….” she sighed in disappointment like it was my duty to be the one finishing it.

My face turned sour and slightly livid from her remark, but Amadela though… wow… she was already tomato red when she saw me naked, but hearing about mine and Ruith’s bed activity, really turned it up to a notch.

I mean she was like that girl from willy wonka’s factory, but instead turning blue like a blueberry she turned red like a strawberry, well… in the end her blush subsides and the only thing remains was... why did she chose me?

"You are the second hero, your blood is a fine addition to my house and this house do need an heir!" She said.

“Wait an heir? From you? Isn’t that your brother’s job?”

“Hmm… it seems his majesty haven’t explained us Feannags’ unique tradition, well it’s simple, we Feannags aren’t like the south or any other houses in Erisgi, as the heir of this family must came from the womb of the Seeress of the North, me!”

“But, why?” I was genuinely curious of this family’s quirk.

“Tradition and some perks if you came from my the womb of the Seeres of the North, like a blessing in health, a blessing in strength, and other boring things that keeps their bodies stronger and healthy.”

“Huh…” It was interesting actually. “Okay then, but wouldn’t our HYPOTHETICAL kid going to be a bastard?”

“Ohh that? It’s fine! Different clerical jurisdiction and us Tuaths don’t recognize the stupid social concepts southern people use for kids out of wedlocks!” while I was a bit astonished at this... somewhat liberating piece of Tuath culture, she clarified while giving a devilish smirk to Amadela, it also gave me some relief that I don't really need to take any responsibility for this. "But if we do get married... our child would fare much more in the public!"

"Nope! I already have a woman that I want to spend my life with, so again, no thank you!" I turned her down.

“Hmmm, fine..." she pouted for a bit. "But talking about our child… either it’s going to be a she or a he, I’ll still need another of your seed to make another… but then again, there is a chance I have two buns in my oven!”

HMMM…. On the first hand I am not going to be drugged again, but on the other hand, twins, TWINS!!

* * *

After breakfast where everyone was introduced to Ruith and me circumventing Arthur’s and Eleanna’s question of my late return to our room, we then finally got to the part why we went to Geamradh in the first place.

Me, Arthur, Eleanna, Miss Marie, as well as Amadela and Kristof, waited anxiously in Ruith’s study room for the big reveal and the connection us four has with the first heroes. Ruith, calmed and relaxed like a cat, was about to sat on her study chair to finally reveal everything.

“I’ve heard from the princess you four have uncovered who one of them is, Lady Elizabeth Stella Maynard, Lady Marie’s older sister and Lady Eleanna’s mother!” She paused for a moment. “Then there’s only two more to reveal then, well… The leader of our seven saints is Sir Henry Wulf, legends called him the protector as he always carried a big topaz shield, he’s your father right, Lord Protector?

“Yes…”

“Then the last one, the one who wields light itself, Sir Luther Svard, Sir Arthur’s uncle!”

I knew it…

Miss Marie once told who my father was, he was a goofy and a laid-back man and the most important part, his college friends were Eleanna’s mom and Arthur’s uncle, it was quite a revelation when I first heard from her, but I really couldn’t care less for the man who abandoned me with that… monster…

While Eleanna and Miss Marie was giddy all the way by the confirmation, Arthur on the other hand, has some mix feelings on this fact. He was still a bit excited and quite taken a back, but it still is too mixed to be sure on what he thinks of this.

But for me and thinking back again when Nieve revealed that she knew Eleanna’s mom, and the knowledge I already have about our predecessor relationship.

I’ve already expected it miles away who they might be, but the one thing I still don’t get is… why them? I have a feeling that this guy Lux didn’t choose our predecessor out of whim but then again… I could just be seeing into it too much.

After that Ruith told us about what they left for us four, Eleanna’s mom left two things, one a necklace and the other is a diamond ring. Ruith explains that Elizabeth enchanted both of them with specific powers.

The necklace, called the Star Necklace, was imbued with powers of protection of any kind while the diamond ring, called the Diamond Ring of Eliza, was enchanted to be filled with a ludicrous amount of mana and stamina, essentially enabling the wearer to cast anything without dropping dead from exhaustion.

While it was being shown to all of us, Miss Marie’s attention was caught as she realized the necklace was actually the same necklace she gifted to Eleanna’s mom.

“Yeah… I remembered it now, I was at her 16th birthday. I gifted her with that star shaped necklace and she always wore it through high school and even bragged about it… haha…” she chuckled a bit. “I thought she lost it or didn’t care about it anymore when she didn’t wore it in college… but… it seems it was being kept safe for us huh!” Miss Marie smiled as she realized her gift was not let to waste.

“I think you should have it Miss Marie, I’ll just take the ring!” Eleanna, though I could tell from her eyes that she wanted to keep both, revealed a rare selfless part in her that I’ve only seen twice.

With Elizabeth’s heirlooms being settled, we then went straight to what Arthur’s uncle left behind for him and it was a sword called Aronlight

“Wait… Aronlight? As in the Exalted Light?! THE Sword of Light!!!” Kristof went ballistic with excitement smeared all over his face when he heard it.

“Yes, and the only one who can wield it is Sir Arthur himself!” Ruith said.

Ruith then explained it further that before Luther left to return to our world, he turned Aronlight to a stone slab where the only way return it to its original form, was by dropping a small amount of blood that is related to him.

“But the stone slab isn’t with me, it was stolen a couple of generations ago, but it has been found! The académie’s head mage informed it to me a couple years ago and for safety I implored him to keep it by his side until the heroes, specifically you Sir Arthur, summoned.”

Again, Arthur was a bit mixed on this but nonetheless, a weapon that can help with our future endeavours is a must have tool.

Now lastly, is what my dad left me with, which… was… nothing…

Nothing….

The room fell silent, awkwardness is filled in the air and the others are awaiting for what my reaction would be, which was nothing too really…

“Though he did left me with a raging alcoholic bitch, it counts right?” I said sarcastically.

“Mar…” Eleanna looked at me in pity.

“But wait, you did said he carried a huge topaz shield!”

“Sadly, the Topaz Shield is still being searched after a millennia, even though it’s quite huge and should be easier to be find, we still haven’t found it to this day, I am sorry Lord Protector.” Ruith said guiltily.

“Nah, it’s okay… he abandoned me and even if he did leave something useful for me, I don’t want it. I don’t want anything from a guy who didn't came home from buying a milk... it’s fine…” I said as neutrally as possible.

After that brief awkwardness dissipated, we then went straight to last important bit in this meeting, Dubh, chaos itself and the one we were prophesied to defeat for the sake of Lumenter.

Nothing is really known concretely about who he is except his unbridled hatred towards Lux and his determination on destroying everything he created, but what is known is his cult! The Rider Cultist.

Ruith gave us a brief history on what the Rider Cultist are, they are like what Raoul once described, the abandoned ones, forsaken ones, rejects, distressed, distraughts, outcasts, and the hateful ones, they are through and through, a by-product and the living consequences of this world’s injustice and Dubh, is using them as his puppets to stir trouble and kill off the four Magus.

“Which in turn to why you were summoned now, the first Magus who fell, was the Magus of the East, Jan, he was a reliable friend and colleague. He too was a very dear person to the Princess!” She paused for a moment. “I do not know why you four didn’t follow the steps of your predecessor, but whatever your reasons may be, I do hope, you! Lord Protector, fulfill your end of the bargain on whatever deal you made with our Majesty! And save us from that beast of darkness.”

I didn’t need to be told twice about it and knowing now who the first heroes were and even seeing the chance for me to finish and one upping my dad… really gave me a smile on the face.