Chapter 39

  Audrey

  “O-Ouch… the sun needs to go away…” sunlight stabbed my eyes as they fluttered open, sending a wave of pain through my head. My whole body felt sluggish as I tried to escape the assaulting rays of light, only to find myself unable to move. As my vision came into focus, I looked around to see the bed in total disarray, the linens more on the floor than being of use. “W-What happened last night…?”

  My breath hitched as my eyes landed on Lydia beside me, her nude form flushed and her gold bangs slicked with sweat. Her arms were wrapped around my body tightly. Errant red hair hung in the edges of my vision, and I looked down to see myself in the same state as my girlfriend. I remember the party… and the drinks. I vaguely remembered being carried back to the cabin, but another wave of pain rang through my head, this time accompanied by some nausea.

  Holding a hand to my mouth, I managed to free myself from Lydia’s hold, only to fall right off the bed with a loud Thump. “Ow… Again…” I muttered. The ceiling spun slightly as I lay on the ground. The cool wood floor felt nice against my warmed skin.

  “Audrey…?” I heard Lydia’s sleepy voice from the bed, my crash landing having woken her. A moment later, her face peeked over the edge to stare down at me, her emerald eyes still hazed with exhaustion. “Are you alright down there?” She asked.

  “My head is pounding… and I feel sick,” I said, holding back another wave. I couldn’t even spare a moment to feel embarrassed about being completely naked on the floor.

  “That would be a hangover.” She said with a small smile. “I’ll get you some water…” Her slender legs swung over the edge of the bed, but not even the sight of her beautiful body could take the pain away as I groaned. Yet, as she tried to stand, her knees gave way and she sank to the floor beside me with a gasp.

  “Are you alright?” I asked, peeking out from beneath the hand I was using to shield my eyes from the light. Her legs were visibly shaking for some reason.

  Lydia stared dumbfounded at her legs for a moment, then her gaze slowly met mine with a pout. “This is your fault, Audrey!” she accused.

  “What did I do?!” I shot back.

  “I wonder! Goddess… No matter how much I cried your name, you just weren’t satisfied!”

  “You can’t be serious…” I said in disbelief.

  “You ravaged me like a beast! But I might be willing to forgive you if—”

  “I did that to you, and I can’t remember?! What a waste!” I cried with frustration, cutting her off.

  “...” She just stared at me with a blank look before sighing. “No remorse I see… I’ll be the one in control next time.”

  I opened my mouth to retort, but another wave of nausea stopped me. I really need water…

  “My Guardian… Holy magic.” My exasperated goddess said.

  “Oh… right.” Closing my eyes for a second, I flooded my body with stella and felt the ill effects of the night before fade away. Sitting up, I watched a look of realization overcome my girlfriend before I sensed her follow suit. Then, we both sat there in silence for a moment, utterly naked until we broke out into uncontrollable giggles.

  My memory of the night before was clearer now, and I crawled on my hands and knees toward Lydia until I was right above her lap. “You were complaining just now… but I seem to remember you begging me for more. How dare you try to pin the blame on me.” I said mischievously, my lips hovering just an inch from hers.

  Her face flushed slightly, and she tried to scoot herself away but was already against the bed with nowhere to run. “I don’t know what you mean.” She deflected.

  “Is that so?” My hand landed on her thigh, tracing small patterns toward the inside. The goosebumps rushing across her skin flipped my switch, and I leaned into her ear. “I’m sure there are plenty of other ways I can tie you up…”

  “W-We have to leave today… We can’t spend the whole time in here…” she whispered back, but the tone of her voice betrayed her desire. As our lips moved closer, a sudden knock on the door broke us out of the haze of lust threatening to claim us once again.

  “Girls? Are you awake?” Elder Salma called through the door, and Lydia and I scrambled to our feet. We looked through the messy room for a moment before giving up. I just pulled our pajamas from my dimension, and we slipped the nightgowns on.

  “We are, Elder! Please wait a moment!” Lydia called back as we hurried to fix the bed, kicking the discarded clothes from the night before into the shadows for me to retrieve later. It only took us a minute to arrange ourselves before Lydia put on a smile and opened the door. “Good morning, Elder. Have we slept in?”

  Elder Salma raised an eyebrow as her gaze flicked past us to the room. “No… I just wanted to see how Audrey was faring.”

  I stepped up behind Lydia with a grin. “I’m just fine, thank you for the concern!”

  “I see. Well, breakfast will be ready soon, and I’m sure the two of you will be leaving soon after?” She asked.

  “That is the plan. We can’t thank you enough for the hospitality you’ve shown us. I hope that you’ll overlook any… annoyances we may have caused.” Lydia said pleasantly.

  “Please, our village owes you a great debt.” She paused, and a slight grin graced her weathered face. “And if you’re referring to last night, please don’t worry. I’m quite the heavy sleeper, so I didn’t hear a thing.”

  “Neither did I, to be clear,” Aurora said, clearly lying.

  Heat rushed to mine and Lydia’s faces as silence fell over us in the doorway.

  “R-Right… Let us change into proper attire, and we’ll join you for the morning meal.” Lydia suddenly went into princess mode from the shame, and I couldn’t help the awkward laugh that escaped me as I looked away and scratched my cheek.

  “Of course, I’ll wait.” With that, she turned on her heel, hobbling down the hall with her walking stick. “Oh, to be young…” I thought she mumbled before turning the corner.

  Lydia slowly closed the door, then leaned her head against it with a large sigh. “Audrey?”

  “Yes?”

  “You’re banned from alcohol.”

  “... Yes Ma’am.”

  A while later, we stood at the entrance to the village in our armor, surrounded by the residents as the sun hung high in the sky. The village women had been kind enough to repair the torn clothes we had initially arrived in, and the patches were only noticeable due to the color difference.

  The awkward atmosphere that had followed us to breakfast had long dissipated as Lydia and I said teary goodbyes to the people we had come to know, even if it had only been a week since we arrived. It felt so much longer and much too short… A part of me longed desperately to stay here, to convince Lydia to forget about everything that had happened and settle down. I could live the rest of my life by her side, welcoming her home from her hunts and playing housewife. But our time here had been a dream, and it was time to wake up.

  “You girls have everything? Do you remember how to get to Oylutz?” Elder Salma fretted over us. Lydia and I smiled warmly before taking each of her hands.

  “We’ll be just fine, Elder,” Lydia said. “And yes. Follow the main path until the fork, then go left.”

  “We promise to come back and visit,” I said while nodding in agreement.

  “We’ll hold you to that.” She said with a smile, then the Elder reached into her bag and handed Lydia a sheet of parchment. “This should allow you to claim the reward for subjugating the bandits, though I fear the payment won’t be much.”

  I looked over Lydia’s shoulder to see a written confirmation of the quest's completion that the village had submitted to the guild, along with the village head’s signature and stamp.

  “No, thank you. This will be a big help to us,” my girlfriend said with a smile before her face turned serious. “Speaking of…” Neither of us had asked what the bandits’ fate would be until now, and it seemed curiosity finally got the better of my princess.

  “We’re still debating what to do with most of them, though it seems the leader won’t escape with his life, at least.” Elder Salma said with a small smile.

  “I see. Please don’t let your guard down until the very end. I fear men like him do their best work when the odds are stacked against them.” The village head nodded thoughtfully at Lydia’s warning before giving us a warm smile.

  “Again, thank you, girls, for everything you’ve done. Please be safe on your journey… And I hope you find what you’re looking for.”

  My girlfriend and I hugged her tightly before pulling away for the final time. We had said most of our goodbyes at this point, and a hand landed on Lydia’s shoulder. She jumped slightly, but then relaxed when she realized it was only Daniel with a massive grin on his face.

  “I expect you to be a world-class hunter next time I see you, little lady! Make sure to watch out for each other out there.”

  Lydia only nodded, then I gasped a little as she bowed her head. “Thank you for teaching me, Daniel. Next we meet, I swear that not even you will match my arrow.”

  I knew more than anyone how much pride my girlfriend carried herself with. In our time together, she’s never lowered herself to anyone other than those she truly respects.

  “Now, now. You’re gonna make me embarrassed being all earnest like that…” Daniel said, rubbing his chin.

  “That was the goal!” The mischievous look on Lydia’s face as she straightened herself made everyone around us laugh, and Daniel’s face flushed slightly.

  “Is that any way to treat your teacher?” He mumbled, then he gently pushed us both toward the road. “We expect lots of stories, so come back once everything settles.”

  Holding back tears, Lydia and I waved goodbye to the crowd, seeing us off.

  “We will!” I shouted back.

  “All of you stay healthy until then!” Lydia added.

  We started walking, waving over our shoulders until the village gate was out of sight. “They are all good people,” I said quietly.

  “That’s exactly why we need to keep moving.” My girlfriend said with resolve. “There are many others out there that need our help… And I need to know what happened to everyone. Even if…” She trailed off, unable to finish the thought.

  “I know, Lydia. But we’ll find them. I know we will.” I said, squeezing her hand.

  “Right.” She said with a thin smile. “I don’t know what I’d do without you, Audrey.”

  “Well… You probably would’ve walked just fine this morning.” I joked, trying to lighten the air around us and causing Lydia to laugh with a shake of her head.

  “It’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make to keep you beside me.” She smirked. “But rest assured, I’ll have my revenge.”

  Our banter continued even as we stepped off the path and into the trees. Once there was no chance of being seen, I slipped the packs full of supplies and clothes the villagers had given us into my pocket.

  “What about the bow?” I asked. The hunters had made Lydia her bow as a gift, and she had it unstrung and tied to her back along with a quiver of arrows.

  “I’ll keep it.”

  I nodded, then reached into the shadow before me to pull out my silver locket. I paused as it rested in my palm, thrumming with power I hadn’t sensed before. Before I met Lydia and came into my divinity, it had been a weight around my neck… The last reminder of what I had lost. But as I’d grown, laughed, and cried, that weight had slowly vanished. Now, I could hear my mother’s voice in my ear, urging me to move forward instead of looking back.

  “You’re ready…” Aurora murmured in my head.

  “What do you mean?” I asked, staring as the locket started to glow slightly.

  “Remember when we first met? I imbued your locket with power in preparation for your true awakening.”

  “Wait, are you talking about my artifact?!” Excitement coursed through me at the thought.

  “I am. Try pouring your divinity into it; it should respond to your will.”

  I did as she said, and the glow from the locket grew in strength until a flash of light blinded me. I heard Lydia shout in surprise from beside me, and when the light faded, we both gasped.

  A beautiful silver blade replaced the locket in my hand. The metal seemed to sparkle in the sunlight, and a thin veil of dark mist followed it as I slowly swung the weapon through the air. Tiny points of light resembling stars flickered from the trail before disappearing in succession.

  “It’s so light…” I observed as I admired the artifact. The length was a bit shorter than a longsword, but it was perfect for me. A small engraving of the moon and stars was inlaid right above the guard. The hilt was wrapped in simple black leather beneath my grip, with tiny gold threads woven throughout.

  “Audrey… What is that?” Lydia asked with awe, and I glanced at her with a smile. The last piece of my mother had become one with my very soul, and its name fell from my lips like it had always belonged.

  “This is my divine artifact: The Twilight Blade.”

  ***

  Lydia

  I watched with amusement as Audrey swung her new sword around. When it first materialized, I was awed and speechless. It had been like my very existence had reacted to her divine artifact. Now… She just looks like a kid playing with a new toy.

  Despite the teasing thought, I couldn’t help but admire just how beautiful and strong she looked with it in her hand. The blade had sliced cleanly through a thick tree with hardly any resistance, prompting my girlfriend to test its power on anything that caught her interest as we walked down the forested path.

  Eventually, after she had cut a massive boulder in half with ease, I had to rain on her parade a bit. “Audrey… The power coming from you is quite conspicuous, maybe you should put it away for now?” I asked. I didn’t know if normal people could sense it, but the waves of divine power coming from her were intense. It’s probably because she isn’t keeping herself in check like usual.

  “Ack… Is it really that bad?” She asked with a sheepish smile, and I nodded.

  “I can practically see it… Though that may be my own divinity at play.” I watched as she took a deep breath, then the sword in her hand glowed white before the shape shrunk down, the mass sliding up her arm before reforming as the silver locket around her neck. “That’s handy…” I murmured, and Audrey held a hand to the accessory with a gentle smile.

  “It’s almost as if I can feel my mother’s touch whenever I change its shape… As if she’s guiding my hand.” My heart wrenched, and I couldn’t help but wonder if I’d feel the same. But I don’t have anything from my parents. The thought made me want to cry, but I hid the expression on my face.

  “I didn’t want to interrupt you’re playing—” I began.

  “I was not playing!” Audrey retorted, acting offended. I just pretended I didn’t hear her, which caused her cheeks to puff out adorably.

  “You haven’t explained yet what exactly a divine artifact is… Will I get one?” I heard my tone slip near the end, and Audrey looked at me with worry.

  “You should… Aurora told me they only appear after a guardian has overcome some part of themselves.”

  “Really? Do you know what you did?” I asked, but I already knew. Audrey almost seemed to be a different person since she woke up after saving me. The determination and confidence that I’d seen flickering inside her since we met were on full display… along with the feelings she usually hid from.

  This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  She smiled fondly, once again holding a hand to her chest. “I just… Made peace with my own emotions, I guess? Though I had some help…”

  “I see.” It was all I could say, and we fell into a thoughtful silence. The only noise was the crunching of dirt beneath our feet as we walked down the path. I guess there’s no point dwelling on it, since I can’t even talk to my goddess yet. Life came one step at a time, so I needed to focus on what was right in front of me.

  The silence stretched on, and we eventually made it to the fork in the road. The wooden signs confirmed that we were on the correct route, and we followed the one pointing left, with ‘Oylutz’ carved on it in blocky letters. We walked for another few minutes before I paused.

  “Elder Salma said it would take another three hours from here… Should we just go through the shadows now?” We had walked the initial part to avoid missing the fork in the road. It was hard for Audrey to sense where exactly we were without an indicator, but it would be near-impossible for us to miss a city full of people.

  My girlfriend smiled and held out her hand. “I don’t see why not. Want me to carry you?”

  I scoffed at her question. “Is it really that fun?”

  “It is for me, makes me feel like a knight caring for her princess,” Audrey said, making my heart race slightly. I took her hand and stepped closer.

  “Except Lucia is my knight.” I teased, taking some devilish pleasure in her falling expression before I put my hand on her face. “You’re my irreplaceable partner, which I believe is much better, no?”

  “That’s true. A knight wouldn’t be able to hear those sweet noises—” She started, but I quickly squished her face with my hands as my cheeks flushed.

  “Finish that sentence and you won’t get to hear them for a long time!” I threatened, and Audrey grinned at my embarrassment before sinking us into the shadows. Huffing, I quickly floated toward the village and away from my girlfriend, who trailed behind me while holding back giggles.

  Seriously, this girl… My whole body was warm with embarrassment at how much I loved Audrey, and right as I had the thought, I felt something shift inside me.

  “Ah! There you are!” A loud and excited voice filled my mind, causing me to stagger, which was impressive considering I was floating.

  “Goddess?!” I exclaimed, causing Audrey to glance at me with a smirk.

  “You know you don’t need to speak, right? Just direct your thoughts at me!”

  “Like this…?” I ventured, and heard the deity hum in approval. “I knew that! You just surprised me!”

  “Well, I’ve been waiting all week for you to figure it out on your end. Whatever feelings you were just having must have activated your divinity.”

  “How embarrassing…” I thought, forgetting to direct my mind away from my goddess, who gasped excitedly.

  “Aw! I thought this before, but my guardian is quite the cutie this time!” A sigh escaped me at how laid back this goddess seemed to be.

  “I don’t remember you being this… excitable,” I said, trying to be friendly with my words. Deciding not to waste more time on our journey, I moved forward again with Audrey sticking beside me with a patient look.

  “Ah, well, I was dealing with a lot of heavy stuff when we first met. But this is how I usually am!” There was a slight change in her tone that betrayed some sorrow. “My sis tends to be a bit too serious, so I have to make up for it somehow!”

  The warmth I heard as she spoke of Audrey’s goddess was no lie, and it made me wonder why the two of them were estranged. Audrey had told me a little about what happened, but had said it would be best to hear it for myself when Azure was ready. Unfortunately, beating around the bush wasn’t really my forte.

  “Can I ask why you aren’t speaking to your sister right now?” There was a beat of silence before my goddess giggled quietly.

  “You’re a blunt one… I can’t say I hate it, though.” She paused before continuing, her voice sounding uneven. “Let’s just say some things happened with our previous guardians… Both my guardian and I spent a lifetime blaming ourselves.” A sense of guilt flooded me through the bond. It was like I could feel Azure’s emotions as my own.

  “I understand. Still… It’s been a long time since then. I learned the hard way that taking everything upon yourself can hurt the ones who love you, whatever your intentions may be.” I thought back to the expression on Audrey’s face after the incident with the assassin and shuddered. It was a look I vowed never to see again.

  “...” I was met with silence in my head, and started to panic.

  “I-I didn’t mean to overstep, my goddess!” But my flustered state was only met with a gentle laugh.

  “You didn’t, my guardian. It was good advice… And something my sis would probably say. You’re both the responsible type, it seems.” My eyes flicked to Audrey, who seemed to be pouting beside me.

  “Is this what it feels like when I talk to Aurora…?” I graciously pretended to ignore my girlfriend's complaints with an amused smile.

  “Well, someone needs to be…”

  “How rude to talk to your goddess like that!” She huffed playfully before turning thoughtful. “Maybe it’s time for me to face my sis properly, it has been seven hundred years after all.”

  I nodded with a smile, happy that I could help my new goddess. Some silence passed between us, and right as I thought Azure was ending the conversation, she finally spoke with her usual upbeat tone.

  “I know you said so while in my divine plane, but you weren’t kidding about being together with my sister’s guardian, huh?”

  My face flushed at her observation. “Well… I did say we were lovers.”

  “Even with our bond incomplete, it still took considerable effort to tune the two of you out… I think ‘Lovers’ might be an understatement!” A groan escaped me as I covered my heated face with my hands. A hand patted my shoulder, and I peeked between my fingers to see Audrey with an understanding expression.

  “You’ll get used to it.” She said with a smile.

  “I don’t know if I want to.” I paused, then muttered under my breath. “Maybe we should get separate rooms from now on…” I hadn’t meant it seriously, or for my girlfriend to hear, but she started to shake her head in a panic.

  “No, I don’t want to sleep separately!” She said. Her reaction helped me brush aside the embarrassment as I laughed.

  “Relax, Audrey. I don’t even know if I could sleep without you now.” Her presence helped to push away the nightmares that plagued me at night. The images of my family’s corpses filled my mind for a moment before I pushed them away. Suddenly, Audrey latched onto my arm as we flew through the shadows, and butted her forehead against my softly.

  “I feel the same, Lydia.” We stayed like that the rest of the flight, both of us deflecting any unnecessary comments from our divine partners until my girlfriend made a noise and slowed us down. “I sense lots of people. Looks like we’re here!” A pang of disappointment struck me as she untwined our arms and began excitedly looking through the shadows to the outside. It took a few minutes, but Audrey eventually grabbed my arm and pulled us from the shadows.

  ***

  Audrey

  Lydia and I appeared in the forest, about a five-minute walk to the front gates of the massive stone walls I glimpsed through my magic. We checked each other over one last time to ensure nothing looked out of place, then walked onto the road and towards the city.

  “I’m so excited!” I said. Our main goal was to turn the lie we told the villagers into reality by finally registering as real adventurers! Not only would it give us some proper identification, but it would also be a source of income.

  “You acting like that might make the guards even more suspicious than covering our faces.” Lydia teased as we drew closer to the city gates.

  “What’s so wrong with being excited? Being adventurers means we get to travel and see all sorts of new things!”

  “You do know that’s not why we’re doing this, right?” my girlfriend asked with exasperation.

  “I know, I know… But you have to admit it's a nice bonus!” I defended.

  “I suppose so.” She said with a smile. “But really… Tone down the bouncing until we get inside, at least.”

  “Fiiinnnee~” I relented, walking normally beside her again as we arrived at the gate. There was a short line of people waiting to enter by the looks of it, so we joined the back and waited for our turn. However, we failed to realize that the guards were charging a toll to enter until we reached the front… and neither of us had money. When we got to the front, the rough-looking guards crossed their spears in front of us.

  “Two silvers per person.” One of them ordered, holding out his hand expectantly.

  Lydia’s eyes widened. “O-Oh… I apologize, but we have no money.”

  The guard’s expression hardly changed as his hand dropped and he pointed his spear at us. “You either pay, or leave.”

  We raised our hands, if only to act afraid as my girlfriend tried and failed to negotiate with another guard. “I understand, sir. The two of us are registering as adventurers. Once we take on some quests, we’d be happy to—”

  “Pay or leave.” The guard growled, stepping closer with his weapon at the ready. I had to suppress the snicker that broke on my face as I watched Lydia grit her teeth in frustration. She handles nobles with ease, but the common man is too much. Aurora chuckled in my head at the thought.

  “Surely we can work something out?” Lydia asked, giving the man pleading eyes that had no effect. The guard looked ready to use force, but a hand landed on his shoulder, stopping him.

  “What’s the deal, rook?” Another guard wearing slightly better clothes stepped into the situation with a smile.

  “C-Captain!” The guard hassling us saluted in a panic. “I was just stopping these girls from holding up the line!”

  The supposed captain narrowed his eyes slightly at the two of us before grinning. “What? The two pretty ladies can’t pay the toll?”

  “I’m afraid we lost our coin on the trip here.” Lydia lied, still clearly agitated.

  “Is that so? What kind of honorable guards would we be to turn away such distressed damsels?” I kept a neutral smile on my face, but I didn’t appreciate the man’s wording. The captain's eyes landed on my chest, and his gaze made me shudder as I instinctively shielded myself. “Some things are just as valuable as coin, rook.”

  I backed away a half-step, but then realized that there was no lust in his gaze, only greed. Looking down, my locket was on full display, and his intention became clear.

  “You can’t be serious! You have no idea what—” Lydia came to the same conclusion, but was cut off as the captain raised his hand with a frown.

  “Now, Now. You little ladies are the ones trying to bypass a toll set by our lord. That necklace there seems worth four silvers, no? It’s either that or the two of you find some other city to sneak into.” His eyes narrowed toward us as he made his ultimatum, and Lydia quickly grabbed my hand and moved to pull me away.

  “Ridiculous! You have no honor!” She spat, but then stopped as I refused to move with her.

  “Deal,” I said simply, and the captain smiled in mock-appreciation.

  “Audrey! You can’t—!” My girlfriend shouted in disbelief, and I let go of her hand to unclasp the chain from my neck.

  “It’s fine, Lydia. Trust me.” I handed my mother’s last gift to me to the scheming guards, then folded my arms. “Now, may we enter?”

  The captain simply shrugged and gestured dismissively over his shoulder to the gate. “Pleasure doin’ business with ya.”

  Re-taking Lydia’s hand in mine, I pulled her into the city as she glared daggers at the men. She fumed in silence even after we lost sight of the gate, until I stopped in the middle of a busy road.

  “I… Don’t know where the adventurer’s guild is.” I admitted, turning to face her, but the look in my girlfriend’s eyes was angry as she ignored my words.

  “Why would you give them something so precious?!” She asked, and I just smiled.

  “I didn’t.”

  My blunt response made her anger flicker to confusion, and I couldn’t help but giggle at how cute she was.

  “What do you mean? You obviously did.” I hummed to myself as she ranted, then closed my eyes, using the shadows to observe the guard captain entering the guardhouse and lounging on a chair as he admired my locket. “Audrey? Don’t ignore me!”

  I cracked one of my eyes to press a finger to her lips as I shushed her. “Just give me a few minutes…” Lydia’s frustrated expression urged me to tease her more. “Do you know how to get to the guild? Maybe you should ask around while I’m waiting?”

  My girlfriend scoffed, turning around with a pout. “Fine! Since you don’t want to tell me anything. Don’t go anywhere!” I watched as she stomped off and started to ask people on the street for directions. Closing my eyes again, I watched for an opportunity to reclaim my treasure.

  “I didn’t realize my guardian had such… inclinations.” Aurora accused, and I grinned.

  “Lydia’s just so adorable when she’s worked up, I can’t help myself!” My explanation didn’t seem to soothe my goddess at all.

  “You should be cautious of letting it go too far, though.”

  “I wouldn’t do anything actually to hurt her… and I always make it up to her in the end.” I defended.

  “Well… That much is true at least.” Aurora relented, and silence filled my head as we watched the guard captain set my locket down on his desk, then leave the room.

  How careless. Since he stole it, he should expect to be stolen from!

  “Are you done teasing me yet, Audrey?” I heard Lydia step next to me, her voice still pouting. I opened my eyes with a smile.

  “Of course not!” As I spoke, I willed my artifact to return to me. A subtle light flashed around my neck, and Lydia gasped as my silver locket appeared in its rightful place.

  “How’d you do that?” She asked curiously.

  “It’s my divine artifact—a piece of my very soul. I just told it to come back!” Aurora had not explained this, but I knew instinctively I could command it at will.

  “Well, you should probably hide it for now. It’ll cause trouble if he sees you with it now.”

  I nodded in agreement, then willed my artifact to change shape again. It glowed white and moved down my arm to perfectly wrap itself around my wrist, right next to the bracelet Sasha had made for me. When the glow faded, it became a cute band with moons engraved on it.

  “How’s that?” I asked, proud of my work.

  “I can’t even act surprised anymore.” Lydia sighed, then took my hand to examine it. “It is charming. It suits you.”

  Even after all we’ve done together, she still makes my heart pound with simple words.

  “You’re just weak to her,” Aurora remarked.

  “You make that seem like a problem,” I said, causing my goddess to scoff.

  “I got some directions to the guild, we’re not too far away, luckily.” Lydia lowered my wrist after inspecting my new accessory, but kept our hands intertwined as she started walking. I admired the buildings surrounding us as we went, the architecture being very different from the style I saw in the kingdom’s capital. The dark stone bricks were framed with even darker wood from the surrounding forests, with shallow layers of planks forming the roofs. Eventually, my eyes landed on Lydia again, and I could tell she was still pouting a bit from earlier, so I wrapped my arm around her shoulder and pecked her cheek.

  “I’m sorry for teasing you, forgive me?” I asked cutely. She turned her face away, but I could see her ears turning a little red.

  “F-Fine… You’re lucky that I love you.”

  “I sure am!” I sensed a few sets of eyes on us, but ignored them as we continued walking down the main road. It seemed the adventurers' guild was right at the heart of the city, and as we turned a corner, a massive marketplace came into view. There were crowds of people bustling every which way, and vendors hawked their wares under colorful tarps and tapestries. I should’ve been excited for such a sight…

  The volume was unbearable. I flinched and froze in place as the noise hit me like an explosion. S-So many people. My vision began to tunnel as I heard screams of pain among the crowd. The myriads of red fruits became blood as soldiers slaughtered each other. The colorful tarps became war banners, and I lost my breath.

  Then I was suddenly on the battlefield again.

  ***

  Lydia

  “It’s quite busy here,” I observed, but my thought was cut short as my arm was pulled behind me. Turning around, I saw that Audrey had stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. “Hey… Audrey? What’s wrong?” Stepping closer, I realized that her face was pale, and her body was shaking. My girlfriend hadn’t responded to me, her eyes glued to the marketplace, but glazed over.

  “Audrey!” I shouted in a panic. Not even waving my hands in her face resulted in a reaction as she stood motionless. Her skin was cold and clammy as I touched her cheek, and her breathing became erratic. “Talk to me! Please!” I begged, but even when I placed myself in her line of sight, her eyes did not look at me.

  “My guardian! Get her off the street!” Azure shouted in my head. I flinched, still not used to the telepathy, but did as she said, scooping Audrey in my arms and running to a nearby alley. It was then I felt it. A shadow ripped from beneath Audrey, and I just narrowly dodged it as it pierced the wall behind me.

  Despite the attack, my girlfriend was still staring blankly, looking on the verge of collapse as I felt her mana and divinity surge out of control.

  “What’s wrong with her?!” I asked in my head.

  “I’ve seen this before… My last guardian…” I dodged another shadow spear that scratched my cheek. “You need to calm her down.”

  Stepping closer, I took the trembling girl in my arms. “I’m here, Audrey! Everything will be alright…” I ran my hand through her red hair, whispering in her ear. She stopped shaking momentarily, but then her hands came up and tried to push me away as she spoke.

  “N-No… Please… I don’t want to hurt anyone! I don’t want to be hurt! P-Please stop!” She gasped for breath as she struggled in my grasp, but I only held her tighter as more shadows lashed around the alley. A few scraped me, but I was so focused on helping Audrey, I didn’t care.

  “Please, come back to me, Audrey. Nobody will hurt you here, I promise…” I whispered. “You’re my other half, you won’t have to do anything scary alone. I’ll always be beside you from now on, alright? So please… just look at me!”

  Slowly, my words seemed to register with her as her magic stopped, and I felt her relax in my arms. And after an agonizing minute of silence, I heard her shuddering voice.

  “L-Lydia…?”

  “Yes, I’m here.”

  “Oh… Goddess… What did I do?” I felt her arms wrap around me, squeezing me to death, but I didn’t care.

  “Nothing at all, Audrey. Everything is fine.”

  “It’s obviously not! You’re bleeding!” I quickly healed myself with healing magic.

  “Even if I was, it’s fine. As long as you’re alright.” Looking up, her blue eyes were still slightly dazed, and her face dripped with sweat. Her mouth flapped, but no words escaped until she took a breath.

  “I-I don’t know what happened… There were just so many people… And then suddenly I…I—!” I felt her heartbeat quicken as I held my head against her chest. Audrey seemed on the verge of losing herself again.

  “Hey! Look at me, Audrey! Only me!” I clasped my hands on her face, staring into those incredible sapphire eyes. “Just focus on breathing, alright? I’m right here!”

  She nodded in my hands. I watched as my girlfriend closed her eyes and calmed her breathing with some struggle. She’s had panic attacks before… But this was much, much worse…

  Finally, after a few minutes of silence, her hands covered mine, pressing my palms against her face in comfort. She’s still shaking so much.

  We stayed in the alley for a long time as Audrey slowly calmed down, and I cursed myself all the while for not thinking of the possibility. If the things I saw in the capital are any measure, then I can’t imagine the horrors she saw on the battlefield… She just seemed so strong during that week in the village…

  “Do not blame yourself, Lydia.” My goddess commanded in my head. “Not even the gods can escape the mental scars of war…” Azure read me like an open book, and I couldn’t help but smile a small, bitter smile towards myself.

  “I think I’m okay now.” Audrey finally said, still holding my hands against her cheeks. “We should get to the guild.”

  “Are you sure?” I asked with worry, but she only nodded and let my hands fall away.

  “I just need some rest, preferably in a bed. And to do that, we need to claim the reward from Elder Salma, right? Better sooner than later.” Audrey gave me a weak smile. Watching my girlfriend try to hide the remnants of the nightmare she just experienced pained me, but she wasn’t wrong.

  “Alright, then let’s get this over with quickly. I know you were excited to see the guild, but we’ll return tomorrow, alright?”

  “I’m not a kid, Lydia.”

  “Sure you are, you’re younger, after all.”

  Our banter made her feel better, and I helped her out of the alleyway on shaky feet. She took another deep breath as we turned the corner to the market, which was still buzzing with activity, and she seemed to handle it much better this time.

  I looked around the large square at the buildings, looking for the famous insignia of the adventurer’s guild.

  “A sword crossing a shield…” As I spotted it to our right, I breathed out and began to lead Audrey while keeping a tight hold on her hand. A minute later, we stood on the large cobblestone steps leading to a double wooden door, standing to the side so we wouldn’t be in the way of the foot traffic entering and leaving the building.

  “Are you ready to become an adventurer?” I turned and asked Audrey the question, and I saw some excitement and determination return to her tired expression.

  “Ready when you are, Lydia.”

  With a synced nod, we climbed the final steps and pushed the door open.