Dia was still thinking about the Omen when she and the others arrived at the lovebirds’ little nest. She could see a faint dome shimmering around the small garden and house, and Risti made a small noise in her throat.

“Looks like the two of them were also alarmed by this incident,” Risti mumbled. “There weren’t any obvious defences when I left with Dad this morning.”

President Cadenza nodded. “Well, at least our hosts are very cautious. I like cautious people. They tend to live longer and are infinitely less arrogant than people who like to court death a lot.”

Dia didn’t know how to answer that, so she simply made do by pulling off an accurate representation of a stone. Fortunately, Claud and Lily opened the door a few seconds later, and a small gap appeared within the barrier.

“You guys are here.” Claud nodded at them. “Come on in. I’ve prepared quite the spread for dinner, so you guys better help clear up all the food.”

Everyone’s stomachs rumbled in collective harmony, and Lily laughed. “Come on! Food’s going to get cold soon!”

It didn’t take long before everyone was seated around a round table in the garden. A huge pot bubbled merrily by its side, releasing a fragrance that Dia had never smelt before. She wasn’t the only one either — Farah and Nero were staring at the pot, drool leaking out of their mouths — and Dia touched the side of her lips.

There was just something rich and tangy about the soup that drew Dia to it.

“Anyway,” Claud began, “you guys saw the mess that’s going on in the town right now, right? We don’t have any influence around Monsville, so don’t do anything weird or suspicious. It’ll be a problem if the Moons target us or something. Also, I think they’ll be coming around to investigate everyone in Monsville. Something about testing for an ominous prophecy or something. How they intend to do that is anyone’s guess, though.”

Dia twitched. Claud was almost certainly referring to the Omen that the Moons had detected, but she had a feeling that saying that out loud here wasn’t exactly a good idea. The Omen seemed to be a word that was affected by Authority, unlike her Salvation Star, and she didn’t want heads to explode or something.

“Not sure what prophecy they’re talking about, though.” Lily’s gaze swept around the table, and Dia had to school her expression. She was half-certain that there was a weird look on her face just a moment ago, and there would potentially be an issue if the others asked her about it. Still, it didn’t make that much sense.

Considering that the Omen’s goal was to off the other Bearers of Destiny, shouldn’t she be allowed to spread the word about that dangerous fellow? One would think that the more she spoke about it, the more aware people would become, but no. In the same vein, it would make sense if she could actually describe the context in which Salvation Star was granted to her, but...

The five grand skies had to be crazy.

The lovebirds looked at her again, and Dia pinched her own cheeks. To the pair, she definitely had some odd expression when they were talking earlier on. It would suck if they asked her to talk about brain-exploding things.

Thankfully, Schwarz had something to say too. “Right, I forgot about this thing.”

He reached into his clothes and pulled out an entire barrel.

Somehow, anyway. Setting it down on the ground, Schwarz removed the lid and produced a bunch of cups, before filling them with a delightful beverage that had a tangy orange scent from it.

“Boring,” Nero muttered. “I don’t smell alcohol.”

“You alcoholic. Go drink fruit juice for once,” Schwarz replied. “After you drink three cups of this, the next bottle of alcohol is going to feel much better.”

“Really?” Nero asked.

“I’m the professional here. If you don’t listen to me, who are you going to listen to?” Schwarz asked back. “Trust me. You’ll appreciate the bottle I’ve reserved for you.”

“Is there a bottle for me too?” President Cadenza abruptly asked.

Everyone looked at him, and the President of the Folders’ Association chuckled gently. “Well, I’ve been told that Nero is a really good drinker, and I really want to pit myself against him.”

“He can’t get drunk,” Schwarz replied. “He’s emptied out one of my reserve cellars before, and wasn’t even drunk. Unless you want to suffer liver damage like he probably has right now, don’t. Don’t even think about it.”

“I’ll have you know that my liver is perfectly fine,” Nero replied. “And I do get drunk.”

“Only by drinking actual pure alcohol, the kind that’s not actually used for drinking,” Claud muttered.

“You’re just a wuss,” Schwarz replied. “Well, President Cadenza, I do have a few extra bottles. You can definitely give it a try if you want to…Risti, don’t look at me like that. He’s your dad. I have to humour the seniors.”

“Well said, Schwarz. If your drinks are good enough, I’ll even purchase some from you on a contractual basis for now on.” President Cadenza rubbed his hands. “Now, the bottles—”

“Not now,” Claud cut in. “Drink after dinner. I’ve cooked a lot. Don’t waste food, or I’ll cook you in soup tomorrow.”

Dia glanced at the knife in his hand, which was now twirling, shaking the air at the same time. It was quite the potent threat, and before long, everyone was dining in earnest.

It was quite the departure from their usual meals, though. Eating under the open sky…that was something that only happened when Dia and the others were harvesting lifestones and prana jade at the ancient battlefield. It felt a bit odd to be feasting right in front of the house otherwise.

“Right,” said Lily, “how are you guys going to settle accommodations? We have three free rooms, but they aren’t exactly that big.”

“We were thinking of setting up a small house made of barriers on your garden, actually,” Schwarz replied. “It’s far more convenient that way, especially since we need to give you two your privacy.”

“Yeah,” Farah added. “And we also prefer sleeping in our own rooms too. I’m not a quiet sleeper…”

“Well, as long as you guys are happy,” Claud replied. “Alright, once we’re done, you guys go set up your own accommodations. Leave the dishes to me and Lily.”

It didn’t take much time for the cauldron of soup to be emptied completely, and Dia began to set up another small house with a bunch of barrier artefacts. They had done it enough times that it only took them a few minutes before everyone each claimed a room.

“Quite amazing, though.” Dia put down her backpack and looked at her bed, which was made out of a barrier. This barrier was a bit special; it was one that sought to absorb shock, which also made it a treat to lie down on. Of course, given that the garden wasn’t that big, the six of them could only make a bedroom for themselves.

Everyone else would happen either in the garden or in the small house.

Stretching once, Dia lay down on her bed and thought about her next move. Now that she was securely tucked away for the foreseeable future, Dia intended to embark on her Second Tutorial. She had no idea what the Trial of Aeons entailed, but there was a significant chance that she would be involved in it, whether she liked it or not.

Raising her strength was a no-brainer.

She had done her due diligence too. Nero had explained to her what the Second Tutorial entailed — it was a test of her will and determination, but the form the trial took was quite varied. For some, it would be looking back to the past, putting the trial-taker into their most vulnerable moments. For others, it would be a future based upon present decisions, aimed at breaking their will.

There were lots of variations, each more dangerous than the next, but the theme of the Second Tutorial was ‘regret’. Did she regret anything?

Dia hadn’t quite found the answer to that question yet, however.

After lazing around for a while, she flipped onto her back and pulled out a Refresher to clean herself up, before getting back up. She had a few questions for President Cadenza, who was almost certainly aware of the secret that she, Nero and Risti shared.

“President Cadenza,” Dia called out softly. “Are you free now? I have a question.”

The middle-aged, all-green man glanced at her. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s about…Limbo,” Dia began slowly, following her instincts.

“Ah, yes. Indeed.” President Cadenza looked at her. “What do you want to know?”

Dia thought about her next words very carefully. Ever since the Salvation Star skill appeared on her status, she couldn’t help but link the Omen to Limbo, since they were both entities whose goal was inimical to all life in general. However, while President Cadenza knew about Limbo, he almost certainly didn’t know about the Omen, so she had to be very, very careful about her next words.

“To what extent,” Dia began, “do beings of Limbo affect our world? Do they have significant influence?”

“Influence?” President Cadenza thought for a moment. “No. They are not of this world. They should not be able to influence the Last Godsfall and its components. They are, in other words, external problems.”

“I see.” Dia frowned.

“You seem to have trouble enunciating your actual question,” President Cadenza observed. “No matter. Come find me again if you figure out how to ask without killing yourself or me.”

Dia nodded. “Got it.”