Shadowbane

Xi put the phone down and sighed, "The driver says we need to stop for a little while. There is something wrong with the tires, and we're almost out of gas anyways so we're going to stop at the gas station a few miles ahead of us."

"This whole situation is bizarre. You wouldn't need a phone if you didn't have that stupid window blocking him from seeing us and vice versa."

Kai put the scythe back onto the table and looked over at me. He's been conversing with the Eldritch inside of it, or trying to at least. In response, the Eldritch has been attempting to corrupt him, but it was 'futile' according to Xi.

"In a perfect world, I would agree with you. But you never know who is compromised. It's not that I don't want to trust the driver, especially since he's driven for Lady Aresa for almost ten years now, it's that I can't. He has his own life and his own family. What happens if Hyun or the Supreme Leader threatens him in a way that leaves him with no choice but to spy on us?"

"I don't know who this Hyun is, but the title 'Supreme Leader' gives off an ominous vibe. Is that another name for 'King'?"

Kai nodded, "In a sense. The difference is negligible and vast at the same time. It will take you quite a while to understand what I mean by this. I could explain it in detail, but I'll leave you with this for now and allow you to figure the rest out through your own experiences going forward. A King is usually chosen through succession, and it's almost always within his own bloodline. Our..." Kai sighed while rubbing his temple, "Supreme Leader was chosen through voting. The people voted, and unfortunately he was chosen. He won with twenty-seven percent of the votes. Which is higher than it sounds. The next person in line was at nine percent."

Voting? The people? Now that's a new one for me...

"And Hyun?"

Xi and Kai looked at each other awkwardly for a moment before Kai turned his gaze toward the window. Xi realized he was passing the baton to her and she flopped backward into the seat. Her head was on top of the seat, so she was staring at the sunroof as she clicked her tongue.

"Ugh, why would you leave it to me? I don't want to talk about those freaks. And it's not like we even understand their motives anyways..."

"Quit your whining and speak to her, sister."

Oh, they're siblings. They do kind of look alike, but I wasn't positive. Especially since they have different last names.

"Fiiiine..." Xi turned her head to the right so she could see me. "So uh, he's the leader of the nobles, but they're not called nobles anymore? No one uses that term anymore, and they haven't for a really long time, but I'm still going to call them that. I mean, that's exactly what they are! They can change their titles all they want, it's not like anything of substance has actually changed past that..."

"Sister..."

"Okay already! I'm getting to it." The limo slowed down and pulled into a gas station with nothing else around it aside from a few mobile homes with vehicles in front of them. "The nobles call themselves 'The Phoenix Initiative'. They're now an institution that focuses on many different objectives. Spreading knowledge through their school system while assisting any alumni who come to them with business ventures they deem a potential success. They also assist the police in any way they can like how they're helping with our current crime epidemic. Honestly, the amount of crap they have their fingers dipped into is endless."

"Let it be said that on paper they actually do quite a bit of good for the nation," Kai said.

"On paper, huh?"

Kai and I watched the driver walk up to the maintenance garage next to the gas station. "Yes. In practice they produce a lot of good results which leads to them appearing much more virtuous than they actually are." Kai continued as the limo driver discussed something with a mechanic inside the garage. "You'll understand when you spend some time in Telebron, Rei. If you want to help Lady Aresa, and I assume you do, you'll need to learn all of the local politics as well."

"I'd rather stick to scouting the lands in search of the Xerath's main hive, but it's not like I have any leads to go off of... Truly, I hate politics. I vastly prefer it when I have a simpleminded monster that I can focus on."

The driver returned and restarted the engine before pulling up to the garage. There was a vehicle inside of it already so he had no choice but to park outside of it. We need more than just gas apparently. What did she say again? Something about tires.

Kai opened his door and exited the vehicle. I could hear him discussing something with the mechanic as Xi sat in the seat her brother was in a moment ago. "Is that what you were doing for Lunaria? She said you had been here for about a week, but she didn't tell us anything past the fact that you were heading to Telebron to meet up with Aresa."

"That's what she wants me to do. I'm considered an expert when it comes to the Xerath thanks to Aresa."

Xi giggled while rolling down the window, "Well, she does put you on a pedestal! I admit, I'm very interested to see what you can do. Plus, having someone who can turn invisible is going to be... Err, I'll let our little Aresa tell you about that part. We need help, desperately. So having someone like you who can get information for us right now is a godsend."

Xi poked her head out of the car window, "Did we hit a spike or something?"

"No. Two of the tires were deflating because we're overweight apparently. But don't worry, the mechanic says we just need to leave it with him for an hour and then we'll be fine. You hear that, Rei? Please have Petey exit the vehicle."

I heard the driver open the main door and soon after that the sunroof opened up again. Ahh shit, so that's what he meant by overweight. Petey does weigh a ridiculous amount, but I didn't think it'd be that much of an issue.

Petey crawled out of the sunroof as I exited the side doors with Xi.

"How much, good sir?" Kai asked the mechanic.

"I'll know when it's finished, but it won't cost all that much. About a hundred oughta cover it."

Kai nodded and looked at Petey. "Rei, may I?"

"Go ahead. I'm starving though, so someone buy me some food."

The mechanic pointed at the gas station, "That couples as a restaurant. I'm biased as all hell since I own the place, but I'd say the food is pretty damned good. And it's all I fucking eat, so it better be good!"

"I'm hungry too~! What do you two want? I'll get our orders set for us while you fight Rei's pet." Xi asked.

Xi ran off into the store after Kai and I told her the same thing. Burger, fries, and soda(although he asked for water). I grabbed Petey's sword out of the vehicle and handed it to him before he walked off into the grass.

The environment here in these lands is so strange and beautiful... I've never seen such big plains like these before. And it's obviously much better here since there isn't a bunch of Xerath popping out of the ground trying to eat everything. I haven't seen any since around two or three miles out from that first city I entered, so that must be the extent of Lunaria's domain.

Kai entered the vehicle for a moment before popping back out with a spear in his hands. I could also feel a slight pulse of aura emanate from him while he was inside of the vehicle. So that's what it feels like when he creates a shade. I need to remember this feeling, it could be important later.

Kai stopped next to me while flipping the spear around in his hands, "Just to make sure. That sword doesn't absorb souls, right? I haven't tested whether my ability still works if I am killed with such a weapon, and if I have a choice in the matter, I'd prefer to never test it."

"It doesn't. He killed a few Crotians and a powerful Xerath with it, but their souls were still there. The scythe does though, as I told you earlier."

Kai thanked me and immediately enhanced himself. Petey was a few hundred yards away at this point waiting for Kai to approach him. It only took a few seconds for Kai to close the gap. When he was within striking distance, Petey wasted no time and attacked him with the same swing that cut the Xerath in two earlier.

Surprisingly, Kai didn't move or even attempt to parry. He just lifted his spear up sideways and attempted to block it. The sword connected and smashed Kai into the ground. Despite his enhanced state, it must have damaged him quite heavily, because he vanished and reappeared behind me as he climbed out of the vehicle. I could hear Xi laughing hysterically from inside the gas station.

"Hmm, I wanted to test the strength of your pet and I must say, I'm very impressed right now. I wasn't entirely sure of what to expect out of a summon using an artifact weapon, but that was far outside my expectations." Kai said before climbing back into the vehicle. I watched him as he lifted the long perpendicular seats up before grabbing another spear from underneath them. He then created another shade before exiting the vehicle again.

The mechanic had just finished placing the jack under the vehicle and was moving it up now as his partner began to remove one of the tires. I thought they just needed to be inflated? Well whatever, it's not my money.

"Alright, I need to eat. You two have fun."

"I'll be right behind you. I just want to test myself against your pet here a few more times." Kai said before enhancing himself again.

On my way to the gas station I could see Xi waving at me through the windows. The area near the windows were lined with booths and she was sitting in the middle one. I entered the gas station and the old lady behind the counter called out to me right away.

"The hell created you, girl? Ain't never seen a hybrid like you around these parts."

"Heh, I only recently found out what had corrupted me, and it's in a place I cannot go."

"Another dimension?" The old lady asked as she wiped the counter down.

"Yes..."

The old lady turned around and went back to cooking. It was clear she didn't plan on saying anything again so I walked up to Xi's booth and sat down across from her. "Aresa said that you didn't know where you were from. When did you find out?" She asked.

"Back when... Wait. This whole time I've been under the assumption that Markus and the others had been revived ages ago, and surely they would have told you what happened, but if you're asking me that..."

"Markus? Markus..." Xi looked thoughtful for a moment before her eyes opened wide, "Ooh you mean that old Templar guy! We never met him, but Aresa has talked about him before. I would love to meet him some time... I have a thing for men in white armor.~"

Never met...

My head was spinning at the implications. I placed my face into my hands as my mind came to one painful conclusion; Viktor didn't hold up his promise to send the artifact to one of Arkaios' temples.

{R-Rei, calm down, it's okay!}

It's not okay, Luna. But thank you for attempting to console me anyway...

I need to speak to Arkaios. That's the only option here. It's impossible to find the artifact without him. Viktor thinks I'm dead, so he won't be worried about me sneaking around one of his towns or wherever the hell he's keeping the artifact.

"Xi, where is Arkaios temple in Telebron?"

"There isn't one." She idly replied as she watched the old lady cook.

"What? He places them wherever he's allowed---"

Oh. That means the winged cunt didn't allow him to place a temple here. Technically it makes sense that you'd want to keep out any outside influences from your nation, especially against an unknown god(assuming he even was unknown to her). But considering the fact that I was already suspicious of her, all this does is make me even more wary of the Fairies.

"Is that a problem? Did you need to visit one of his temples?" Xi asked.

"Yes. Do you know where the nearest one is?"

"Uhhh... You should ask Kai. I've only heard that God's name in passing. And almost every single time it was during one of Aresa's stories. The other time was from... The Phoenix Initiative? I feel like they said his name once. I can't remember why though."

After that we sat there in silence for about ten minutes before four plates were plopped down in front of us. Two burger and fry sets, one with a large steak on it, and the last one had a big piece of pie on it. It was yellow with a big layer of cream on top of it.

"That's for you dear." The old lady said before leaving to the back of the store.

She gave this to me for free? Was it because of my story? That's awfully kind of her...

"Lucky you! I wanted to get us dessert but we're trying to cut down on our expenses." Xi said as she stared at the pie.

Kai walked up to the booth and sat down next to his sister, "More like you're putting on weight so you're forcing everyone else to avoid sweets as well."

"Shut up liar! And I'm not gaining weight, right Rei?!" Xi stood up while putting her hands on her hips. Her dress had open areas around her legs, waist, and stomach, so I could clearly see the areas that would be affected by fat first.

"Hmm, your waist has some fat on it but it doesn't look bad at all. If anything, isn't that exactly where you want there to be fat? I thought that's what women aimed for. Your waist, thighs, and ass, right?"

"See! And she even said it looks good. So the weight I've put on has only made me look better. That's right, it's definitely helped me..."

Oh, so that fat she put on was unintentional huh? It does look good to me, but maybe her culture sees beauty differently.

"Sit down and eat behemoth. The mechanic said he's mostly done, so we need to leave soon." Kai said as he picked up his burger.

"Y-You... I will remember this." His sister replied before she sat back down.

I practically inhaled my burger and fries before drinking the entire black soda in one go.

Kai put his burger down and raised an eyebrow at me, "By soon I didn't mean in the next ten seconds..."

When I reached over for the pie I noticed Xi was staring daggers into it. Seeing this, I decided to slowly eat it. She noticed me looking at her as I scooped up a little piece of pie, which made her narrow her eyes at me as I put it into my mouth. Is this lime? Never thought I'd taste it in a sweet, but it's actually pretty good.

"Damn, it's a shame you're on a diet Xi. This is delicious!"

"So you're going to bully me too... Aresa is my only ally in this."

"Anything else you need to know?" Kai asked me as we continued to eat.

"Your sister said you might know where the nearest Temple of Arkaios is. It's important that I find and enter one."

Yet again, Kai raised an eyebrow at me, "Strange request... Or maybe not? I know about the Templars back on Urza, but is there a specific reason you need to speak to their God? Aresa said he vouched for you when you initially appeared, but past that your connection to him was unknown."

"So you don't know why either? I figured as much after what your sister said earlier, but you have no idea of how disheartening it is to hear this..."

"?"

"Markus, Keith, Nisha, Albel, and Lindon. These are the names of Arkaios' branded warriors who died during the assault on Xethra. Or more like they had all died when Viktor attacked us. With the exclusion of Markus who died around the same time Shana and Ishar had. I thought you guys knew about this since you talked about my dead comrades, but I guess they weren't shown in any of the footage Viktor released?"

"So she really is dead... Aresa was completely heartbroken when she saw her in the footage." Xi said, looking forlorn before she stood up and walked to somewhere behind me.

"What my sister means to say, is that Lady Shana could be seen a few times during your siege. And since you lost the battle, coupled with the fact that she never showed up in Termia, Aresa had to assume she was dead. In concern to you she knew you'd be back one day. Lady Shana however... I didn't know her personally, but I've heard nothing except good things about her." Kai continued, "Although, your ally Ishar was also not shown in the footage. That is the Crotia who Alicia served under, yes? She's mentioned him a few times. She and Aresa thought he died during the Xerath assault on Viseux."

"So only I, Shana and the skeletons were witnessed in the released footage?"

Kai nodded before shoving multiple fries into his mouth.

Well that's just fucking great. It could just be by chance that he cut them out, but what if it was on purpose? Why would he do that though... Arkaios doesn't need a TV to know what happened to his warriors. None of this makes sense, so I'm just going to focus on finding a temple and asking him directly.

"You never answered me. Do you know where the nearest temple is?"

"I must apologize again, as I do not. I'm nearly one hundred percent positive that there is no Temple of Arkaios in Termia, but it'd be best if you asked Lady Aresa. She would be better informed on this topic than I or my sister would."

I heard a bunch of electronic noises behind me. Turning around I saw Xi playing a game of some sort.

"Don't mind her. When she's sad she needs some time alone to empty her mind while indulging in her hobbies. It may seem odd that she's grieving over someone she's never met before, but I'd say she's mostly empathizing with Lady Aresa."

"What game is that? It's really loud."

"Pinball. An addictive game that I do my best to avoid. Even the sound is making me..." Kai slapped his cheeks and shook his head before looking at me again, "... You can go watch her if you want, but try not to talk to her."

I'm interested in it but I'll leave her be for now.

I stood up and looked around for the old lady. She was still in the back so I headed for the exit instead. I wanted to thank her, but there's nothing I can do if she's not here. Once I was outside, I walked over to Petey who was sitting near the edge of the parking lot. He was completely still as the mechanic and his employee talked about him.

"Why the heavy armor when he's all bones anyways?"

"To protect the bones, idiot. What kind of stupid ass question is that?" The mechanic jumped when I walked up next to him, "Whoa?! What the fu... Ehm, sorry lady, you just scared the living shit out of me. I didn't hear you at all."

I laughed while picking up Petey's greatsword, "It's fine! Most people don't hear me coming. So you guys are interested in my summon?"

"Never seen anything like him before. And it's even weirder that he's the owner of an artifact weapon! Normally the summoner hogs any artifacts that they own, so that if their pet dies, they won't lose half of their net worth in a single instant." The mechanic said.

"Trust me, I understand what you're saying. He's perfect with this sword but I'd be lying if I didn't fear him losing it. It's for the best though, so I've decided to keep it in his hands." I jutted my chin out toward the limo. "That ready to go?"

"Yes ma'am. One of the tires was leaking so we had to replace it, but I'm keeping the price the same since you all ate at my restaurant and filled your gas up here."

Now that's an interesting business practice. I don't even own a vehicle and this little interaction makes me want to exclusively shop here. A shame he's so far away from Telebron.

The driver came out of the limo and the three of them asked me questions about Petey for a while until we eventually heard a familiar ringing sound which told us that the station's front door had been opened. I looked over and saw the two siblings heading this way. Looks like it's time to go.

"Alright, back to work for us. Thanks for talking to us lady, I learned a lot of interesting shit." The mechanic said before walking toward Kai.

"No problem! Goodbye, you two."

The limo driver opened the door for me, allowing me to slide inside. I sat in the same left-side seat as last time and waited for our journey to continue. I could vaguely hear Kai talking to the mechanic as Petey crawled inside through the open sunroof. Once he was settled, Xi hopped in through the sunroof next.

"Ahh that was fun! You ever played a game like that before?" Xi asked me.

"'Pinball?' No. My sister had video games in her room, but I never played them."

"You had a---Oh, right... Sorry."

Aresa told them about that too it seems. Not that it's surprising. Hard to recount my history without mentioning the part where I lost my family too.

A vague memory popped into my head. One where my sister was combing my hair while arguing with my mother. She had just found out that my sister was training to be a mech pilot, and she was very unhappy with her because of that.

It's so weird thinking about my family... I lost them when I was a child, but so much of it stuck with me. But I'm sure that's mostly because I used to watch memories of them all the time while I was in Xelba. After my master taught me how to view past memories, I used to spend most of my downtime with the pigeons or watching my old memories. For some reason, the fact that I lost my family is bothering me much more now than it did back in Xelba. It's like---Wait... I didn't lose all of them!

"Xi, do you have a way of searching for people? What kind of information network does Aresa have at her disposal?"

"Um, that's hard to answer and it depends on who you're looking for?"

"My uncle."

"Your uncle...? Oh! Aresa did say he was an author, but I guess I just assumed he was dead too? If you're asking this though, then that means he's still alive?"

"I don't know. He wasn't with us when we were sacrificed, so I actually have no idea of what happened to him after that. Did he take ownership of our family home and business? Or was he killed so one of the local clans could consolidate our business into another business they managed? I would love to know the answers to all of this if it's possible."

Kai sat down and closed the door behind him. "Answers to what?"

Xi told him what I had just said, but the look on his face told me everything I needed to know. "It's not that I don't want to help you, Rei, but it's truly an impossible task. Asking us to get information out of Arcadis is practically the same as asking us to get information out of the Demon realm."

"Oh come on, it can't be that bad."

"He's telling the truth." Xi said.

The limousine engine roared to life before the driver pulled back onto the road.

"Hmm, you were a child when you were there last, yes? So this may be one of the things you did not learn or overhear back then, but the Elves clamp down hard on information. Obviously people are allowed to come and go, but you better have a damned good reason if you're going to show up and demand information on one of their citizens."

Kai continued, "None of us could do that, even through bribes. No one would risk prison time or exile to help you for money unless it was a ridiculous amount. So if you don't plan on selling that sword Petey is using, then you'll need to go there in person and prove who you are. If they are certain you're the same little girl who left all those years ago, then and only then could get the answers you seek."

"But we can search for information regarding her uncle outside of Arcadis. You never know, maybe he traveled after the rest of his family was, uh..." Xi trailed off again.

Kai nodded and smiled at his sister, "That is true, and a rare good point made by my beloved sister. If he visited Termia or any of the local regions I'm sure we'll find some information on him."

"That's assuming he did travel... Oh well if not. I plan on going home at some point so if he never left the Elven city then I'll just have to wait until I'm back there. Hopefully Aresa likes it there as well."

"What?" The two siblings said at the same time.

"? Is that such a strange thing to say?"

They looked at each other awkwardly in the same manner they had earlier in the day. But this time, Kai was the one designated to reply to me. "... Is that what you plan on doing while in Telebron? Bringing Aresa to Arcadis?"

"She was really interested in going there the last time I was with her. Surely she's spent enough time in Termia by now? Or is she planning on staying here forever? She must have really grown to love this place then. But that's just going to lead to the same conclusion as before..."

"What do you mean?" Xi asked.

"... I don't want to ruin whatever magical plans you guys have for the future, but I don't need to know your 'politics' to know that this place is on a timer. Let's say I find the main hive and we even kill the Xerath's God. Then what? You still have the Nei'lah's God and Crotian army to deal with, not to mention Rai'ga and whatever the fuck he brought with him. And most importantly of all, you're going to lose to Viktor if you don't find a way to kill him."

"You're a real downer huh? ... Not that I fully disagree with you, but you really should wait until you have all of the facts before giving up like that," Xi said.

"It may seem premature to you, but I'm just stating how this is going to end. In fact, I'll go as far as to say that I foresaw this outcome the very second Lunaria told me about all of Termia's neighbors coming up with excuses to not attack Viktor. Maybe one or two was being indecisive and weak, but I've been with Viktor, I know exactly why so many of them were pretending that attacking him would be a premature action. And then they all conveniently ended up being absorbed by Viktor's nation. I'm sure it was all completely by chance. Yes, just by chance... Also, which one is it?"

"Now what are you asking us?" Xi sighed. She had been getting angrier and angrier as I spoke, so she took a moment to clear her head before continuing, "'Which one' what?"

"Which one is obviously Pro-Viktor? Hyun or the Supreme Leader? I'm sure one of them is either openly calling for an alliance, a peace treaty, or maybe even becoming a vassal state. If it's not open, then regardless of their words, I'm sure their actions are all pointing in that direction."

Xi winced and looked at her brother who was calmly listening with his eyes closed and arms crossed in front of him. A few moments later he opened his eyes and looked at me. "You are indeed quite informed when it comes to Viktor. Without even seeing the state of our affairs, you nailed one part of it already." Kai rubbed his temples and looked out the window, "... It's the Supreme Leader. He's somewhat open about it, but in an annoyingly crafty way. If anyone calls him on it he always has a way of talking past his opponent. And anyone who disagrees with him is what he calls a 'Death cultist'."

"Death cultist...? What the hell?"

Xi kicked the table and growled. She ignored her brother's glare as she turned the TV on. "I'm pissed off because you're saying the same things the Supreme Leader does. He's trying to steer the whole nation toward joining arms with Xel'nethra. But he won't just fucking say it! And anyone who speaks ill of the Xel'nethra is considered someone who is too obsessed with their own national pride. He says 'They all want to die in vain to protect their own selfish interests instead of seeing the big picture. They're trying to get their whole family killed for something as stupid as a flag...' These are the things he says over and over and it pisses me off so much! This isn't even my country and it makes me mad!"

Xi flipped through the channels and landed on one showing a handsome man in a white suit with short blonde hair. He was sitting in a really nice office giving an interview. "Oh look, there's the piece of shit right now."

"And you believe the Xerath currently plaguing our area are related to the Yulia Alliance?" The interviewer asked.

"Sadly, I do believe this to be the case. We've had a large influx of refugees from Yulia for multiple years now. At first, they said it was the Demons and Xerath who forced them out of their lands, but recently it's come to my attention that they weren't being entirely truthful. While they were telling the truth to a certain degree, they left out some very crucial information. Like for instance, the fact that the Xerath were brought to Zhegu ages ago through the black market."

"You mean to say that the Xerath were bought like a commodity? Why would they do such a thing? Did they not understand just how dangerous that was?" The interviewer replied.

"Perhaps they did. Perhaps they didn't. It matters not in the end. For we have already learned through Lunaria that the Xerath are the leading contributors to your planet's level of total corruption. Once you hit a certain point, the Demons, Eldritch, and even more Xerath begin to pop up everywhere."

The Supreme Leader continued, "The people of Zhegu may not have wanted to be part of whatever sick research was going on behind the scenes, but what's done is done. Keep in mind, I said 'May not'. There's also no way of proving just how many companies, organizations, and people were behind this effort. And now we are the ones being punished for it. We're far past the amount of refugees that we can handle, and more of them keep flooding in every single day day. Tell me, do you think it's a coincidence that we were besieged by Xerath the very same moment we began to be swamped with refugees from the Yulia Alliance?"

"It's been a hot debate among reporters that almost all of the refugees have been from the Yulia Alliance... It's hard to deny just how suspicious that is. Why not other nations? Other continents?" The reporter replied.

"It is as you say, but I do not want the citizens to be unnecessarily wary around our guests. For now, we only have our conjecture. There is no proof of any wrongdoings on their part. So please do not be too suspicious of your new neighbors. There's a good chance that they are merely people who were victims of their own nation's poor choices or foreign governments---"

Xi turned the TV off and buried her face into the seat cushions. It sounded like she was crying, but I chose to ignore it even if it became obvious as she began to speak. "I hate him. I hate him so fucking much... Did you hear the way he worded that? 'Do not be too suspicious'. 'There's a good chance'..."

I looked to my right and saw that even Kai looked like he wanted to kill someone. "I make an effort to control my emotions at all times, but that man infuriates me beyond measure."

Kai looked at me and continued, "In case you were wondering. Yes, we are from the 'Yulia Alliance'. It was a medium-sized continent of seven allied nations sharing almost the same culture and values. Our land was beautiful and relatively peaceful until the Demons and Xerath began to overtake everything... We held them off for a long time, but all of a sudden one day their appearances and attacks ramped up severely. Eventually, we had no choice but to flee. I don't know how there are still refugees appearing, as everyone remaining in our lands should have been killed by now, but somehow there are survivors finding their way here through the portal that's west of Telebron."

"Were the Xerath like the ones here? Hives full of ooze and no God or Lords in sight?"

Kai shook his head, "No. If there was such a Xerath, I would have heard of it. I was quite high up in the chain of command for the largest nation in the Alliance. There's a chance they appeared after we left to seek help in Termia, but I really doubt that..."

"I do too, which leads me to my initial impression after Lunaria broke down the issues Termia is facing. I believe the Xerath are related to Viktor in some way."

"What? But how?" Xi lifted herself off of the seat and looked at me. Her eyes were still wet and a little red.

"I don't know. These ones are obviously operating like Xerath that are not under his control, and yet... It's just a hunch, but like everything else, it's awfully convenient that they are attacking only you."

"Sadly, Rei, that is not true." I looked at Kai before he continued, "They are also attacking Viktor. If anything, they're hitting him much harder. His lands are infested with these hives. He's been forced to deal with them for over five years now, which seemed like a huge boon for us at first, but then the Supreme Leader was elected, and... You know the rest."

For real...? I was so positive of that hunch too. And even now I'm still having a hard time believing that they are unrelated to him. Am I in denial? Or...

Our talk concluded after that, giving me a much-needed reprieve to digest all of the information I had been given over the past couple of hours.

"I think I see why Alicia said she loved this city."

We had just entered Telebron a few minutes ago. The city had the same theme as Viseux but something about it was just so much more beautiful. Everything was pristine, there were waterways everywhere with a surprising amount of people fishing from them, and the citizens themselves just looked lively in general. A massive difference from Viseux where everyone looked like they were sneering or plotting against one another even in broad daylight.

"Alicia grew up in a different city. Her hometown is further to the east." Kai said.

... I'll just pretend she was talking about Telebron.

At one of the stoplights the phone began blinking and Xi picked it up. After a brief conversation, Xi put the phone down and said to me, "Looks like you'll be able to meet Aresa tomorrow around noon. What do you want to do before then?"

"Where am I staying? Instead of a hotel I think I want my own place this time, but I don't have any money, so dig into those pockets you two."

"... At least you're honest about your greed. What kind of home are you looking for?" Xi asked.

"Nothing big. What district does Aresa live in? Let's look around there."

Kai laughed and shook his head, "Not happening. All of those homes are taken and even if we could buy one, not even Lady Aresa would be able to requisition enough money for it. You must understand. Our Lady is considered 'The Goddess of Termia'. There are many reasons for it, but I'll let the Lady herself tell you all about it. However, regardless of the reason, the fact remains that those who worship her want to be as close to her as they possibly can be, which means that the homes in her district are outrageous in price."

God damnit...

"Aresa wanted you to stay with her in the chapel but there are a lot of issues to overcome first before that can happen," Xi said.

"Okay, then how about the next district over? Can we walk around and look at places there?"

Xi shrugged, "Worth a shot but that's still very close to her." She then picked up the phone and told the driver to drop us off in the Huron district.

About twenty minutes later the limo parked on the side of the road in a seemingly random place. When all four of us exited the vehicle my impression didn't change at all. It really did seem random.

"Is there a home buyers association near here or something?"

Xi waved to the limo as it pulled away. "No no, this is in the middle of the district near our 'Goddesses' place of residence. Hehe, you're sooo going to be surprised when you see her."

Kai tapped my arm. I turned and saw him pointing off into the distance. "That's where she stays."

Looking in the direction he pointed, I saw that the next area over was on a slope that ended in a plateau where a massive white chapel was located. All of the homes across the river were incredibly beautiful and pure white just like the museum was in the Abyss realm.

"So that's her district?"

Kai merely nodded in response.

"Then that's where we're going," I said before walking in the direction of the chapel.

Xi ran up beside me and poked my shoulder, "Uh, Rei? Did you not hear what we said earlier?"

"I did. Let me be specific. We're going to search for homes starting from this part of the district that's closest to hers."

"Ooh okay! That makes much more sense."

"But how do we know what is for sale?"

Kai chuckled as he walked along my right side, "There will be a large sign posted on the door. It's impossible to miss them."

As we walked down the street I couldn't help but marvel at just how clean everything was. The whole city reminded me of Aresa's chateau.

"Ugh..." Xi said, causing me to look in the direction she was. There was a sign on a door with a number far higher than the limo repair from earlier.

"So, just wondering here, but how much is eight hundred and fifty thousand in the currency here? Can the average layman afford it?"

Kai shook his head, "Definitely not. The homes across the river in Aresa's district start at around two million, so while this is better, it's still far outside of our price range. Unless you plan on doing something that will net you a ridiculous amount of money. And speaking of which, please try to keep your stealing to a minimum. If your ability is ever discovered, then anything you stole of substantial value is going to come back to bite you, and by consequence you'll be hurting Lady Aresa's reputation as well."

"They would need proof, would they not?"

"For financial compensation or to jail you, yes. For political means of attacking you and Lady Aresa? Definitely not." Kai replied.

Well shit. I still plan on stealing but I guess I'll keep it to things that won't raise too many alarms.

I continued walking toward the river, which caused Xi to ask again why I was still heading in this direction, but the reason was made clear soon enough. I wanted to see the river I'd be crossing every time I needed to visit Aresa.

We arrived in no time and quickly crossed over the bridge. On both sides of the bridge there were stairs leading down toward a pretty big walkway full of people fishing. Most of them were just relaxing while waiting for a nibble, but there was also a good amount of people casually engaged in conversation.

"Why are there so many people fishing? There are people down on that walkway fishing in both direction for as far as I can see. Surely there isn't enough fish for all of them in this river? It's barely fifty yards wide."

"There is. I could go into extreme detail if you wanted, but the short version of it is that this river leads to the ocean, and there are multiple schools of fish that exit the ocean from a river to the west of here who then feed and breed at a large lake a couple hundred miles south of Telebron. Then all of the newborns take this river north to re-enter the sea. No matter how many people fish, there has never been a shortage. I really hope you like to eat fish, Rei. Because they're the main delicacy here in the capital."

I ate them a lot back in Xelba but not a single time since then.

I walked down the stairs and entered the walkway. The fishermen checked us out and began to discuss something amongst themselves while pointing at Petey. For my part I was focused on another group of men occupying the walkway.

"Is there warehouses down here as well? There's boxes everywhere and men are moving them from one part of the walkway to another."

A man to my right laughed as he put a slip on a stack of crates. "That's right missy! We call this the waterway and every single one of them is filled with multiple storages that are used to house most of the food in Telebron. There are reasons for that, but I'm sure you don't want to hear all of that technical nonsense."

I pointed at a door behind him, "Uh, are they supposed to look like they're about to fall off their hinges?"

The man looked at the door and sighed, "Nah, this one's derelict. Damned fools won't use it anymore after a murder took place in that storage. They claim it's haunted and now the higher-ups won't give me the go-ahead to use it again. It's been empty for nearly four years now. Such a waste damnit!"

... Hmm.

I walked up to the door and opened it. After a loud squeaking noise I got a good look at the room. It was rather small and filled with dust. Not the kind of a place a normal person would want to live, that's for sure. Good thing I'm not a normal person.

I looked back at the man, "Any chance I can buy this place or at least rent it? I'd like to live here while I'm in Telebron."

"You want to live there? You sure about that? And the city owns it, you'd have to ask them." The man replied.

"Kai?"

Kai was rubbing his chin while looking at my new potential hovel. "It's honestly not a bad idea... This place is easily accessible for us and there will be people fishing outside of your door twenty-four-seven. They would naturally serve as lookouts for you whether you wanted them to or not. It's also very close to where we are currently staying. Not to mention just how pleased Lady Aresa will be when she hears that you are living so close to her very own docile."

"Mind if I use this?" Xi asked the man as she pointed at a phone attached to the wall.

"Go right ahead, but it only connects to places inside of Telebron."

"That's all I need it for. I'm going to inquire about the storage here." She said before picking up the phone and spinning the dial multiple times.

Looks like this is where I'll be staying from here on out. It's honestly exciting... I haven't had my own place since I was a child in the Xerath's domain. Assuming I can even call that cave 'My place'.