Thief of Time

“It’s good that she’s calmed down,” Farah observed. “However, while it is tempting for us to raise her as one of our own, we are not really the best candidates to act as surrogate parents.”

Dia nodded. “Taking care of a child is hard work, and we’re often moving around too much—”

Beth sniffed, and then looked at Dia.

“…You can understand me?” Dia muttered, looking at the kid. “Are toddlers this intelligent? Or is it just you?”

Beth pointed at herself, and Dia made a funny face back at her, which made the kid laugh. As Risti wiped the little kid’s face, she said, “Well, she does seem to have imprinted on Dia as her new caretaker for now. The kiddo was very upset when she couldn’t see you, and when you weren’t waking up, she was…well, quite worried. You could see that gigantic frown, and the tears that were going to pop out at any moment.”

She rubbed Beth’s head a few times. “Well, I’m not sure either. We’ll have to ask the professionals or something, in my opinion. This child is quite attached to you already, after all.”

Risti patted the kid on the back, who promptly slid down the chair and toddled over to Dia.

“…You’re hugging my leg, though.”

“It’s the right size for a child to hug,” Risti replied. “Don’t sweat it. Besides, you’re hurting all over, so just stand there and let her rub her cheeks wherever she likes.”

Dia grimaced. “It’s a bit painful to look at her now, though. I’m reminded of myself, my brother and my mother.”

“You’re the adult,” Risti replied, before meeting her eyes directly. “It is the job of adults to suffer for little children.”

“That’s a…unique view, I guess.” Dia looked at Beth. The awful, deathly expression the little girl had on in that Distortion had completely vanished, and Dia knew that Risti was right. She had, in a sense, taken up the role of Beth’s mother. If she were to shy away from this little bundle right now, there was no telling what would happen, and…

For all her reservations, Dia truly wanted to help Beth out.

She thought for a few seconds, and then turned to Farah. “We’ll get more expert opinions on this. However, she’s too young. I can’t really just hand her over to strangers or anything at her current state. Once she grows older and—”

“We’d all be attached to her by that time, you know.” Farah rolled her eyes. “Well, I suppose we can just change the contract terms of that nanny I just hired to a permanent one. The kid needs a good environment, after all. The only problem actually lies with us, but if Beth likes the nanny too, that can be solved to a certain extent.”

Schwarz bobbed his head. “And it’s not like the four of us can’t raise a child. I mean, look at us.”

He pointed at Farah. “Countess Farah, who at a young age, reversed the fortune of an ailing county. There’s Risti, the daughter of President Cadenza, who picked up lots and lots of useful things as she followed her dad around. We have the princess of Lustre here, the person that Beth has imprinted on.”

Schwarz smirked. “Seems like you three are highly qualified.”

“Don’t go trying to shirk your own responsibility by excluding your own name,” Farah replied.

A set of heavy knocks rattled the house before Schwarz could reply, and Farah got up. “Damnit. They sure got here quick…what is Nightfall doing? He’s supposed to be holding off the others while Dia recovers! Dia, you stay here with Beth. Everyone else, follow me.”

The three of them departed with a murderous air.

“Is it really necessary to look like you’re going to kill someone?” Dia asked, looking at the toddler, who was still hugging her leg. Beth paused, looked up at her, and then giggled, before opening her arms up for a hug.

“Alright, up you go.”

The little girl rested her head on Dia’s shoulders immediately, before her movements began to slow. Within seconds, she had fallen asleep, which was…

Probably not what a child would do, right?

Dia stroked the soft, warm back slowly. Beth felt like a fluffy cloak that had down sewn inside, which was a conducive environment for her to think through things properly. Beth hadn’t shown any fatigue up until she climbed into Dia’s arms, but that didn’t mean that she wasn’t tired.

She literally just wasn’t showing it. Perhaps, some part of her was guarding against the others; it was very possible that this little kid only felt safe around her.

“You know, you can’t just dump all your trust on me…” Dia tickled the little girl gently, but the kid had fallen into a really deep sleep. Her body was moving evenly with every breath, and there was a small smile on her tiny face.

Dia took in that sight for a while, and then touched her head. The problem with this was that as the most capable combatant in the Seekers of Life, she would be heading out frequently. This kid would either have to tag along or get used to her absence; both were outcomes that had their own problems.

“Mhm…” Her mind wandered over to Farah and Schwarz, who were more of the administrative kind. Getting the kid used to them was for the best, and—

She glanced at the incoming party of people, and her hackles rose as tri-coloured people entered her vision. The others were surrounding the two Moon Emissaries, bitter expressions on their faces.

“She looks quite rested to me,” the burlier Moon Emissary commented.

“Doesn’t mean that she’s not mentally fatigued,” Schwarz replied.

“Sooth, little mortal.” The smaller Moon Emissary waved her right hand, and before Dia could react, a gentle burst of light had covered her. The cloud lasted for three seconds, before the Moon Emissary withdrew it. “Are you feeling better now, Miss Dia?”

Dia looked around for a moment. Admittedly, she did feel more refreshed, but using skills on someone without warning was quite rude. Her mind spun rapidly, before coming to the conclusion that reacting in a neutral manner was probably the best approach.

“Indeed,” Dia replied. “I am feeling better.”

“Excellent.” The Moon Emissary played with her long hair for a few seconds, before turning to her burlier escort. “Let us all take a seat first. We have come to discuss the recent events…in which you, Miss Dia, have proven to be extraordinarily important in dealing with. Are there more chairs?”

Schwarz and the others glanced at Dia, who nodded once.

“I’ll get some,” Schwarz said. “Give me a moment.”

It didn’t take long for everyone to be seated around the table, but despite the seeming equality which everyone from the Seekers of Life had, Dia could tell that the two Moon Emissaries were focused on her…and the little kid sleeping in her arms.

Dia could not derive any pleasure from this realisation.

“So,” she began, “to what honour do I owe this visit to?”

The burlier Moon Emissary glanced at his partner once, who nodded in response. A small pause followed, before he said, “We would like to question you about your experiences in dealing with the Distortion. None of us know what happened in there, and we would like you to narrate what you went through.”

Dia closed her eyes for a moment. She could vaguely sense mana and…a very powerful energy surrounding the two of them. If she didn’t get it wrong, the Moons were actually paying very close attention to this conversation. If she tried to lie, it would be very obvious.

However, if she told the truth, the little girl that was hugging her…

There was no telling what these cold Moons would do to her. In the worst-case scenario, the Seekers of Life could fall out with the Moons, and it wasn’t as if she was a truly important asset either.

She had to be very careful.

“Give me some time to collect my thoughts,” Dia replied. “It’s a mess in my head, and I can’t even remember most of it.”

“Very well. That we can do,” the tri-coloured woman replied. “In the meantime, I am told that this is a mansion named after us. I wonder if we have the privilege of staying in Moon Mansion? After all, it is said that the Seekers of Life once called themselves the Moon Lords…”

It was a thinly veiled threat, if nothing else.

“What a rumour,” Schwarz replied smoothly. “However, we do have guestrooms…not that Dia would need that much time to think about it all, though. How about I interest you with my legendary brews? The Moons must know about my drinks.”

The burly Moon Emissary snuck a glance at the bartender, and his partner sighed. “Now that you’ve brought that up, it would be very…problematic for me to decline.”

She glanced at her burly companion. “Bring it. I want to see the alcohol that even my masters have cautioned against.”

“The Moons cautioned against drinking his stuff?” Risti asked.

“…Surprisingly enough,” she replied.

“Excellent.” Schwarz grinned. “I’ll show you all due respect and take out my strongest brews.”

“Bring it,” the burly Moon Emissary replied.

Dia glanced at the small group, before returning to her contemplations.