I Own a Brothel in Another World

Chapter 222 – Hero of Old

By my intention, the dip in the water was supposed to be short and efficient. Still, it appears that I have underestimated the excitement such a thing can bring to beings usually restricted to their tiny personal space. As long as the flower girls keep themselves close to me, they can enjoy actual freedom. From what they have told me, such situations are extremely rare and they rarely leave their cup, save for a very desperate situation where their prey is so close yet not yet in their clutches. Each second out of the honey filling their flower is agonising.

Yet, here they are, splashing each other with water and giggling joyfully. I watch the pair of beauties have some fun as I clean the remaining nectar off my skin and hair. Naturally, since we are still all naked, which is a basic state for these gorgeous ladies anyway, I do get a nice view of their greenish figures and certain alluring aspects.

It takes quite some persuasion to convince Lilia and Lilie to get out. But, a deep kiss full of mana for each does solve the issue temporarily. It also gets them fairly turned on again, both girls already recovered from our earlier battle. I somehow manage to bring us to the shore without another round, albeit with a lady on my arm each and poking teasingly at my member as it leads the charge valiantly.

Arriving in front of the concealed suitcase, I resummon my clothes, which evokes a few disappointed whines and pouts. But, my new friends obediently follow my lead and step into the rectangle after me, coming down the tight staircase. I watch them attentively, making sure entering this sealed space doesn’t hurt their connection with their flower. It’s as important to them as the birth tree of a Dryad to the forest lady.

When we step into the reception, they gasp in wonder and look everywhere.

“Are you royalty?” Lilia asks.

“Someone with a hidden house this big has to be,” Lilie points out.

“No, not really.” I shake my head while chuckling. ”But, I do know a few. And this mansion was given to me by a king, in the end. Well, not this exact one, but the building on which this recreation is based, back at my actual home.”

“Master is way above something like royalty,” Sirgia comments, strolling into the spacious hall in a familiar maid outfit. “As a Primordial, he is the rightful progenitor of all races, making him their direct superior.”

“I knew you smelled too good!” The pink-haired girl grins eagerly.

“And your semen was way too energising.” The blue-haired girl nods while licking her lips.

“Never mind all of that. Do you need any help here?” I turn to my little lover.

“No, Master. We are done with the preparations. Follow me and we can start.” She bows politely and spins around fast enough to flash me her cute butt, sneaking a peek over her shoulder to check if my eyes have skipped to it as intended.

Sighing softly, I ruffle through her hair and we move to the dining hall. In there, I find the Oreads also dressed in maid uniforms, milling about in wait. At our entrance, they quickly gather around a big collection of tables set up with lots of meat and other dishes, but mostly revolving around poultry. Without further ado, we sit down and enjoy the feast. I’m sure both the Oreads and the Lilies are sated for quite a while, but that doesn’t stop them from sampling my incredible wife’s cooking mastery.

“So, what are you doing here, Master?” Lilie inquires as we dig in.

“Travelling, as I said earlier,” I reply. “Mostly passing through. We need to get to the other side of this jungle and past the other line of mountains.”

“Is it because of them?” Lilia gestures at the Nymphs. “It’s been a while since we’ve seen your kind. Did something happen to your dwelling?”

“You can say that.” Ianthe smiles ruefully. “But, no, we are just accompanying Master Alastair since he offered us shelter at his home in the Human lands. To not make it too difficult for him, we wait in this magnificent residence.”

“Oh, so it’s like us!” Lilie beams at her. “This jungle is so boring and we rarely find anyone to play with, not to mention feeding off. Plus, people here hate us anyway. We usually have to hide in the ruins and hope for the best.”

“Those ruins, can you tell us more about them?” I raise a curious brow at her after swallowing a tasty dose of fried chicken.

“They have been here forever, longer than we exist,” the blue-haired lady answers. “There’s not much to them, I think. Or at least we can’t feel anything special from the fallen buildings. No one really investigates them either. If something worthwhile was there, it’s no longer present, most likely pilfered by all the adventurers and settlers from the area.”

“I guess that’s good. We need to move forward instead of being bogged down with side quests at every opportunity.” I chuckle amusingly. “We might check them out someday, but for now, let’s just make a quick stop at the village and be on our way. As long as it’s not openly hostile to Humans?”

“We’ve seen one or two around and they didn’t look like slaves so I don’t think so,” the pink-haired beauty replies. “You are a Primordial though, no?”

“That’s correct, but not many people know about Primordials in the current age,” Sirgia explains. “To most, Master looks like a normal Human.”

Everyone nods in understanding while staring at me studiously. I just shrug. Things like that are beyond my scope of influence. More ancient entities seem to have no trouble noticing the difference, but she is right, a typical person won’t notice a damn thing. Nevertheless, it’s good to know that we have a chance of interacting with some people without being attacked on sight.

“We will have to stay behind if you want to visit the village,” Lilia states and we glance at her.

“Yeah, that would be for the best.” Lilie giggles bashfully. “People would assume we have charmed you or something and that it’s some kind of a trick to ensnare more of them so that we can suck them dry.”

I plop a hand on her bright hair. “That’s alright. You can observe from a safe distance. We don’t want to put you in danger. But, we could use a guide past the settlement.”

“It would be our pleasure,” both girls answer together.

The conversation switches to a pleasant banter afterwards as we eat in a comfortable atmosphere. Sirgia and the Oreads direct some questions at the Liliraune, mostly wondering if she is one or two people. The flower sisters explain that they are technically one, sharing their minds, personalities, thoughts, and sensations, so they are a single entity in two bodies.

Intrigued by that, my inquisitive Dwarf picks her timing to gently pinch Lilia’s nipple without being spotted, which results in Lilie letting out a wanton moan as the victim’s mouth is full of chicken at that very moment. It evokes some laughs and jokes, as much as new possibilities that start swirling in my genius inventor’s brilliant brain.

After eating up and resting a little in a pile of bodies, the four of us leave the mansion. If possible, we want to spend the next night in the village, experiencing the local culture instead of hiding in our spatial residence. It’s more fun that way. For us, the mansion is something quite common and dull, but for the Oreads, it’s a completely new experience. We are just switching places for an indefinite amount of time.

The Lilies take the lead, keeping themselves very close to me, explaining the necessity of staying near or else they will wither away. Sirgia obviously doesn’t buy that for a second, and that’s not a surprise. Thankfully, she doesn’t mind, sending me impish glances as we traverse the thick and humid environment.

We pass some more ruins, stopping only briefly to admire the ancient structures and continue heading in the settlement’s direction. As soon as we get relatively close, Lilia and Lilie summon their flower, which blooms from the ground in a charming show of swirling petals. They reluctantly bid us farewell and promise to keep an eye on us from away. Wishing us luck, they crouch inside the cup, and it shuts close a moment later, returning to the ground the same way it has come up, just reversed.

Back to the two of us, we join hands and stroll forward. It doesn’t take long for someone to start stalking us from the bushes and the trees. I notice it first, but Sirgia doesn’t take much longer. We both act like we are oblivious and try not to give off any dangerous or hostile vibes. We don’t want to spook the natives.

Five minutes later, a shrub in front of us shivers and a pure-blood jaguar Beastkin steps out of it with his bow drawn on us, wearing simple leather armour made from various beasts living in the area most likely.

“Halt,” he commands, aiming at me. “Who are you?”

“A simple traveller. We are traversing the jungle to reach the mountains,” I answer calmly. “Did we intrude on your hunting grounds?”

“A simple traveller, with a Dwarf slave?” He squints doubtfully.

“I’m Master’s mate. The collar is a memento of the time he saved me from a tragic fate in a Human city,” Sirgia quickly defends me. “If you don’t lower your bow, I’ll be forced to consider you a threat and defend my mate through whatever means necessary. I’ll let you know that I’m a Tier 5 physical Class. Your iron arrows will barely tickle my enhancements.”

The man’s eyes instantly widen, and I can’t really blame him. Who would want to verify that, especially with their opponent bringing out a massive hammer bigger than themselves which looks like a legendary artefact.

Man, the girls are really developing so quickly. Though, it’s in big part my fault and how much we train.

“Do you need proof?” she asks, raising her weapon above her head and starting to activate some kind of technique.

“No, no, no!” The feline hastily waves his arms. “Please, don’t attack, there are innocent people in that direction!”

She harrumphs and dematerializes her hammer.

“A village?” I address him again, acting surprised and intrigued.

“Yes…” He sighs in defeat. “I don’t stand a chance against you as a mere hunter, so please, don’t hurt anyone. We’ve already had it rough with Abyssals and our settlement is still recovering.”

“Abyssals?” This time, I don’t need to fake my reaction. “Are they harassing you?”

“No. At least not anymore. It’s a story from a decade or two ago. But it takes time to rebuild and return to the quality of life from before the attacks. Not many strong males and females were left after the enemy was defeated,” the Jaguarkin explains.

“Don’t worry. We aren’t looking for trouble. But, if we can help with anything, we’ll try to offer our assistance. It might seem like we are travelling light, but have a castle’s worth of equipment and supplies on us. Plus, my beloved mate is a genius artificer. She might be able to improve your lives a little while we stay a night or two,” I reassure him.

“That… That would be wonderful.” For the first time, he relaxes a bit and shows a hopeful smile. “My name is Daki. I’ll bring you in. That should help ease the others as much as possible.”

Nodding, we fall behind the furry hunter. Just in case, we keep our senses sharp. There’s always a chance it’s a trap. No one knows how strong the guardians of the village truly are. I can’t feel much from Daki, but that can be misleading. I wouldn’t send out my strongest fighter as a scout either.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, the jungle community appears to be as weakened as he made it seem. We arrive in front of a simple wooden palisade, clearly rather fresh, five or so years since its construction. The sentries at the top of the gate tense a little seeing us, but Daki talks it out with them and we are let in.

What greets us is a common rural village made of wooden huts and cottages. The roads are either filled with gravel or wooden boards too. They aren’t that wide, clearly not needing to be since no one can pass through the jungle with normal-sized carts. Trade might not be a staple part of their economy. At least not the external one.

The population consists mainly of Beastkin, both half-bloods and pure-bloods. I spot an Elf or two, but that’s all. Figures out that these guys would be the ones capable of taming the wilderness enough to live in harmony with it. 

“Do you think we will be able to find a place for a night?” I ask our guide.

“Definitely. We do have an actual inn with rooms, even though they are mostly used by people who drink too much in the evenings. It’s very modest, but should be comfortable enough,” the man replies with a smile. “It’s that way, near the main market. Wait there and I’ll bring the chief. If you are willing to help, our wise leader will definitely come up with something.”

He doesn’t wait for our response, running away in the opposite direction. We exchange glances and follow his instructions. Without a local by our side, the villagers are a bit more cautious and throw plenty of curious looks our way. Nevertheless, we just act natural, like visitors passing through their hometown.

The market is easy to find. We spot a bigger break between the buildings and enter a circular plaza, all important establishments positioned on the very rim of this arrangement. The middle is filled with stalls. There aren’t that many of them and the goods revolve around things that the people here actually need and might want, ranging from produce, through tools and equipment, to adornments and other vanity items.

Obviously, there’s also food.

Before looking for some regional keepsakes, we stroll towards a booth with a stone furnace. Plenty of ingredients are laid atop the counter in front of it while the half-blood Goatkin female busies herself with some flat bread, her cute tail twitching adorably as she hums to herself. From what I can see, she prepares something I would describe as this world’s pizza, though the shape is rectangular. But, some ingredients match, while others would be considered exotic.

“Excuse me?” Sirgia tries to get her attention as gently as possible.

“Just a second, dear. I need to spread this piece all good like this, and let me hear what—AH!” Turning around, she jumps in place and drops the cloth she has been using to clean off her palms, her wide eyes locked on me.

“Everything alright?” I ask calmly.

“Yes, yes, of course. We just don’t get Humans here often.” Her gaze wanders around over her neighbours as she offers us a strained smile.

“Daki said that much. And I can imagine. This is fairly deep in the jungle and way past the mountains.” I nod softly.

At the mention of the hunter’s name, some of the earlier tension leaves her body and she picks up the cloth. “You certainly are far from home, mister. My apologies, I seem a bit jumpy today. How can I help you and your…?”

“Mate,” Sirgia fills in, continuing to use the term easily digestible by Beastkin. “Can we get some of what you are cooking? It smells delicious.”

We might have eaten not that long ago, but can you ever say no to pizza?

Yeah, no chance.

“Of course. What would you like? Mild? Spicy? Meat? Veggies? I’m currently experimenting with our local cheese and mushrooms if you wish to try it.” The woman gestures over the wooden boxes holding the ingredients.

“We’ll rely on your expertise. Pick something unique. It’s our first time here,” I suggest. “And don’t make it too big, please.”

“As you wish!” She makes a playful bow while waving the cloth like a handkerchief. “Please, help yourself to the strawberry lemonade while you wait, courtesy of my mate. You can rest by the fountain in the centre. I’ll send my son to fetch you in ten minutes or so.”

We accept the free samples, which are definitely intended to get us hooked on the tasty sweetness as a marketing tactic, and turn around. The chilled juice is truly delicious. Maybe the tactic will work and we will ask about it the next time, then she will guide us to her husband’s workshop where he’ll try to sell us a batch.

For now, though, we sip from the ceramic glasses and head for the middle of the plaza. Sirgia’s head swivels left and right as she takes in the inventory of the native merchants, while I raise mine to peer at the statue set atop a pillar growing out of the pretty fountain and…

“Oh, Master look, there’s even a smithing station amongst the stalls for quick repairs—”

The distinct noise of glass shattering reaches us as the cup I’ve been holding onto slips out of my fingers. Sirgia glances down at the destroyed tableware and then quickly up at me.

“Master? Are you okay?”

I stand there, frozen, eyes wide in consternation and disbelief, barely hearing her calling to me. Everything spins and swirls, including sounds and sensations. The only thing that’s perfectly audible is the noise of my own blood in my ears as it pulses violently. It’s been rather hot in this area, but I feel like I’m starting to burn from the inside.

There is simply no way…

“Master! Say something! Master! Answer me!”

My vision jumps and this overwhelming stupor gradually washes away as I realise that Sirgia is shaking me with all her strength, an expression of pure panic painting her usually collected visage. 

Rubbing my forehead, I place a hand on her hair and pat it softly. “Yeah, I’m good. All good. Sorry about the cup, just…”

“I don’t care about the cup! What happened? Are you sick? Was it poison?” She lets go of me and picks up her own glass, peering into it angrily.

“No, nothing like that.” I chuckle weakly. “The drink was fine, great even. It’s the—”

“What’s going on here?” a woman calls out to us and we turn around to face her. “You are spooking the shopkeepers with your shouting.”

A half-blood Beastkin greets us once more, this time, the female comes from a line of raccoons or something similar. Slightly rounded ears sit atop her long dark grey hair and a fluffy, striped tail hangs off her midsection. She looks to be fairly well-built, clearly not a farmer or a scholar, and her outfit only supports that. While most of her calves, thighs, arms, and belly are exposed, she wears leather armour reinforced with steel plates over her chest, shoulders, hands, knees, and feet.

However, the chest piece doesn’t do much to hide her also well-developed charms, adding a gorgeous curve to its tense surface.

As I’m about to apologise, I notice Daki making his way to us from behind her, clearly left in the dust by our new conversation partner. Then it clicks. Their chief is actually a chieftess. But, since in Beastkin communities that position is often male-dominated, they must still be too used to the old term when a guy managed the village.

“Sorry about that, Chieftess. I got a little… dazed for a moment and made my mate anxious. It was not our intention to cause a scene, I promise.” I offer her a respectful nod. “May I ask what is that?”

The woman regards us studiously for a while before following my gaze. “Ah. I guess this might come to you as a surprise. This is a monument of gratitude our people erected in the name of our hero and saviour to never forget his goodwill,” the raccoon lady explains.

All four of us now look at the statue atop the pedestal, depicting a Human man in scouting equipment, complete with a billowing cape and a lowered hood. He was depicted in mid-stride, weapon in hand, thrust forward and trained towards his enemies like a rifle. It fits extremely well with the thin makeshift harpoon launcher that bears an astonishingly modern-like scope situated at the rail mounted to its side through what’s professionally called a dovetail.

I could never mistake this particular design.

A Specter.

I tinkered with it way too much as a kid.

“Hero?” I glance at her with a slight frown.

“It’s a long story. Easy to say, it’s the main reason why we even take the unnecessary risk of letting Humans get this close to our settlement or welcome them into our community if they prove their lack of bad intentions.” The Chieftess shows a reminiscing smile. “I was but a growing girl when the worst of it took place. We were constantly assaulted by those ugly monsters that devoured everything. This place was as big as a town once, now it’s still a mere fraction of its past glory. Nevertheless, one day, this man appeared out of nowhere. We didn’t trust him, but he didn’t care. He fought back the enemy alongside our best warriors, often leading the charge with his impeccable tactics. With his help, we thwarted those monsters for good, destroying their nest or whatever. Afterwards, when asked why he risked his life to aid us this much, he just said—”

“War does not discriminate,” I whisper softly. “We are all victims in its wake.”

“That,” she finished with an impressed glance. “Our chief from that time made him an honourable member of the tribe and he settled down, becoming our defender and guardian. We learned a lot from him in the art of war, which helped our hunters and wardens considerably. He hunted any remaining Abyssals and dealt with other threats as we rebuilt. It’s quite funny because our elders had to lead him away for weeks as he was against this memorial. I still remember his face when he came back.”

“Such an amazing story. I’m surprised I haven’t heard about it.” Sirgia sighs in wonder. “What was this great man’s name?”

“Connor,” I answer just as the chieftess is opening her mouth to do so.

“You seem to know a lot about our hero,” she points out, looking around most likely to see if the plaque is anywhere in sight.

And no, it isn’t.

“It would be embarrassing if I didn’t.” I smirk cordially, looking up at the man’s likeness.

“Why?” Daki joins in with a curious tilt of his head.

“Because that—” I point at the statue. “—is my father.”

Sirgia’s eyes turn into saucers as her face snaps between me and the man repeatedly. 

The Raccoonkin snorts quietly and waves her hand. “Please, I know you Humans all look the same, but we aren’t this oblivious to believe every—”

Shaking my head, I close my eyes and take a deep breath. Recalling my dad’s lessons on schooling your expression and properly relaxing your body before taking the important shot, I tune out everything around me like plenty of times in the past, losing the rest of her sentence in this overbearing silence. To further enhance the effect, I reach up with both hands and comb my hair to the back to mirror his always short trim. Exhaling very slowly, I open my eyes again, deeply focused solely on what’s in front of me, which in this case, turns out to be the female in charge.

The chieftess freezes mid-word and a massive shiver passes through her entire body as our eyes meet, her pupils narrowing subconsciously, like a deer caught in the headlights. She stares right at me without a twitch while her subordinate gapes at my expression and general visage with his jaw hanging low to the very floor almost.

Like this, the resemblance has to be rather uncanny.

Letting go of the moment, I shake it off, releasing my bangs and flicks to cover my face once more. I notice the lady release a breath she wasn’t aware she was holding and slowly recover too, but the point is already made.

“You good?” I glance at her earnestly.

“Yeah…” She nods stiffly. “I had a chance to witness this expression once… Right before he skewered an Abyssal through the knee over hundreds of metres away… In its full sprint…”

I snicker openly. “That does sound like him. If you aren’t sure how to kill your enemy in one shot, immobilise them, you’ll get plenty of chances to finish the job.”

“Oh my Goddess… Oh my Goddess… I really get to meet our hero’s son… Benu won’t believe this…” Daki paces back and forth, basically fanboying over my person, and then he stops abruptly, eyes going wide, peering right at me. “Uh… Ummm… As a Human… What’s your stance towards pure-blooded felines?”

“What?” I laugh confusedly.

“Nothing! I gotta go! See you later, sir!” He turns around and sprints away, barely avoiding the people who have crowded us since the first shout.

The chieftess chuckles as she shakes her head. “Daki has been courting Benu for a while. It’s no surprise he would be worried.”

“I still fail to see the connection there.” I turn to her with a perplexed expression.

“Well, there’s a saying, like father, like son. Or an apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.” She grins like it’s entertaining her quite a bit.

The realisation hits me like a truck. “No…”

“When I said he settled down, I meant he settled down,” the woman continues wolfishly.

“You are kidding…” I blink owlishly at her. “After everything, he pretty much avoided all interaction… There’s no way he…”

“Tell that to his mate. And their son.” She smirks as her tail flicks around with delight.

“What the fuck?!” I grasp my hair in disbelief. “Wait, I have a brother?!”

Even Sirgia gasps at that, staying silent until this moment and most likely trying to process everything that’s been revealed to us. Meanwhile, a twinkle of joy sparkles in our host’s eyes as she smiles slyly.

She is not lying, I can tell that much easily.

“Where do they live? Shit, I have so much to say to him, so many questions to ask!” I can feel my own lips take a quite impressive curve on their own, my heart beating as fast as never before.

And that’s when hers immediately disappears, replaced by a downcast, somewhat guilty expression as she bites down on her bottom lip. Her ears lower a little as her gaze skips to the side in a telltale of looking for a way out of the hole one has dug into themselves.

Signs that I pick up on right away.

“Ah. Of course. It’s not like I haven’t come to terms with such a possibility a long time ago.” Wanting or not, I definitely deflate a little, feeling Sirgia’s delicate fingers threading through mine from the side.

“No, it’s not like that. He isn’t dead.” The lady shakes her head vigorously. “I don’t think he is, at least… He was way too smart and strong to get done this easily…”

“What do you mean?” I ask for clarification.

“Well… He is missing…” she answers.

A sardonic laugh escapes me unwittingly. “Oh, old man, no matter the world, always disappearing, leaving your kids behind… At least there’s a mother this time…”

“What happened?” Sirgia inquiries after a moment.

“The news of a massive outbreak on the Human side of the mountain range reached us. It was supposedly so dangerous there was a chance it could spread far, possibly even here. He ventured out to help with it, saying that it might be a good moment to look for his lost friend. Since Humans obviously would not accept our help, he went alone,” the chieftess shares with us. “Some time passed and we learned that the defence had failed, the Human settlement brought to ruin, and even their king lost their life. He hasn't come back yet. But we still believe he will. Many do.”

“Looks like we are in for another chat with Ross and our rogue mage.” I stroke my chin thoughtfully. “I think I know which operation it was. It’s the best place to look for clues.”

“You are going to search for him? In that insanely dangerous hive of death and decay?” She gapes at me in astonishment.

“Definitely,” Sirgia responds before me, hugging my arm tighter. “And we will all help you, Master. If your father is still alive, we will make it our utmost priority to find him. I bet that if we reach out to all our allies, it will take no time.”

Smiling at my lovely mate affectionately, I crouch down to place a dainty kiss on her cheek. “Thanks. But we aren’t going to rush it. We might be chasing after a non-existent rabbit if he has truly passed. And if he hasn’t, then he is going to be alright for a while longer knowing how resourceful he is. He wouldn’t want us to get too hot-headed and fixated over this.”

“But that’s suicide!” the village leader protests.

I let out a light chuckle while looking at her from below. “I’m stronger than I look. Much stronger than he was, most likely. And I have some extremely powerful friends. This wouldn’t be our first fight against the Abyssals. In the end, we are Heroes of our own too. And we even got support from above.”

She seems partially sceptical, but it’s clear that another part of her does believe my words to some extent, perhaps instinctually. Dropping the topic, she sighs heavily and offers me a hand. I take it, get up, and smile at her appreciatively.

“Let’s leave this for later,” she says. “It’s a bit late, but I think introductions are in order. My name is Codae and I’m the current chief of this village, or as you have pointed out, chieftess.”

“It’s our pleasure,” I reply politely. “Name’s Alastair. Alastair Carter. And this is one of my precious mates, Sirgia Forgegraver.”

“Just like Connor Carter.” Codae smirks jovially. “Coincidence?”

“I think not.” I can’t stop myself from this follow-up and we both laugh, though she might not know the reason behind mine.

“I heard that you would like to find a room for a night or two. It won’t be an issue. Now that I know you are our hero’s son, you will fit in in a blink. In the morning, everyone will be all over you. Better be ready. And try not to give too much attention to Benu. She has it damn hard for your old man. For a moment there, you looked just like him.” She gives me a friendly but also slightly pleading look.

“Don’t worry. I already have way too many Beastkin to warm my bed. I would lack the hours in a day if I wanted to satisfy them all together.” I snicker, at which she raises her brow in surprise. “And I do have a loving albeit a tad lazy Alpha Catkin as my dedicated mate. That’s surely enough kitty for me.”

“That sounds like one thing you might actually be different about from your father,” Codae jokes.

“Yeah. I tried to follow in his footsteps… but it didn’t work out that well.” I shrug, causing Sirgia to giggle amusedly. “My biggest fault is wanting to please everyone. I find it hard to push away a girl that honestly cares about me. But, don’t worry, I’ll be careful around Daki’s mate. He feels like a nice guy.”

“Thanks.” She nods. “Now, while I can find you a spot in the inn anytime, would you maybe like to visit your father’s home? I can’t guarantee that Ayumi will immediately be comfortable enough to let you stay, but you know…”

“That sounds great.” I ruffle through my pretty Dwarf’s hair. “I would love to meet the woman who managed to heal his heart. He wasn’t in the best place after his previous, unfortunate arrangement. I gotta show her my gratitude for making him happy enough to forget about all of that.”

“I have a feeling she won’t take long to like you. You do resemble him a lot.” Codae gazes upon me kindly. “Come on. It’s not far.”

“Right. Let’s get this over with.” I scoop the shattered cup into my spatial storage and turn to the side. “First, though, we need to pick up our pizza. It will be a decent homecoming gift, I think. Then, it’s time for long overdue mother-son introductions. Afterwards, someone has a lot of explaining to do.”

Glancing up briefly, I begin to walk, sensing an anxious presence at the back of my mind.

For now, I’ll try not to think about it too much. 

This is a time for joy, not drama.