A year ago, the single largest convoy of ships was released as the Irregular Company and a good portion of the 1st Evacuation Army headed out from the mainland to Antarctica.
That record was now broken as over 50 new Masters Arrived along with over 10 thousand Awakened. This group was far larger than that original contingent. While only Government Awakened who had long term contracts were included in the 1st Evacuation Army, this 2nd Army was open to volunteers. The results had been astounding.
Of course, the Government's propaganda machine went out of its way to make the disaster appear a place where heroes were born. Prime examples of this being the mysterious Devil of Antarctica, the Red Judge, and the elusive Mongrel.
Now there were new heroes that responded to the call.
Kai – also known as Nightingale – along with Athena also known as Raised by Wolves – were headed the biggest stars in the 2nd Evacuation Army, and were each offered their own battalion.
By the time the boats reach the port of Fort Balmuth, the two groups were fiercely loyal and a bit deranged when it came to their respective Masters.
Along with a few other prominent figures, the 2nd Evacuation Army made quick work of expanding the base of operations. Awakened were now able to constantly guard every supply line and multiple battalions were able to respond to each Gate.
The problem was, none of these newcomers felt particularly helpful once they got there.
That was because they saw the streaks of red casting hued shadows across the entire landscape from above the clouds.
Like an eldritch monster, hundreds of Nightmare Creatures at a time were being pulled by the Red Judge out from near their Gates and into the Butcher Block.
Of course, the Saint couldn't be constantly watching over the Siege Capital, but it was still infantilizing to see a single person doing what an entire army was brought over to do.
Still, they were a sight for sore eyes for Gehrman.
Taking care of this Siege Capital was not very dangerous, but it was taxing. The routine of it, and the lack of anything resembling progress was getting to him.
The number of soldiers wasn't dwindling and the number of Memories and Echos had skyrocketed, but for each Nightmare Creature killed two more would take its place. Gehrman could keep everything at bay for now, but it would still take 6 months before Antarctica was totally evacuated.
Still, if Gehrman had to stay up in the clouds overlooking Antarctica for 6 months straight just so that no one would die, he would do it.
And he could do it.
The only limit was Essence, but he could also just turn into his Transcendent form for a while and waltz about the earth, moving at hypersonic speeds and slaughtering everything with pure physical power.
He had 7 (6 functional) minds in his Transcendent form, and the calculations it took to keep up the slaughter would have been manageable.
Still, having 6 simultaneous thought processes was the real issue. It didn't physically drain him, nor did it affect his Essence, but it did wear down on his spirit.
It was an intangible thing, perhaps better called his "humanity". Looking over the land and casting instant and brutal death upon all he deemed necessary was as satisfying as it was disconcerting.
How could he feel like a human doing those things while taking in so much data and thinking so many thoughts.
So, he needed to do some little things to maintain that humanity. Having lunch with Sunny was great, and now that Effie and Kai were here too, he would invite them to join as well. He wasn't as close with them, but he imagined that their presence would help Sunny get back in the grove after the traumatic events of Central Antarctica, even if he had now gotten rid of the Winter Beast.
The sessions of slaughter with Mordret were also beneficial, and the number of Bloodstone Shards he accumulated were getting to considerable amounts. Not to mention the fact that they were now only missing a single piece of Ritual Blood before they could embark into the Chalice Dungeons.
Really though, the thing that helped him feel the most human were the times with Seishan. The casual meals and banal conversation.
It was always a nice stress reliever.
Tonight though, he was stressed.
That was because for the first time he was going on an honest to goodness date.
…
When he had set up the time for their next meal and Seishan had replied "No" it had struck him as concerning.
When she then responded by saying,
"We will be going on a date instead. I'll send over an outfit I'd like you to wear."
It had been perhaps the most forward thing Seishan had ever sent him, and he couldn't lie, it threw him off a bit.
All he could do was respond affirmatively.
"Alright, where do you want to go?"
Gehrman had shown her a good number of restaurants around Fort Balmuth, after all. Some were "hole in the wall" places while others were the typical fancy kind. He expected the latter, but instead she chose something he didn't expect.
"We will be going to Ravenheart. Dire Fang will be over to take you directly to the Citadel and will guide you to the proper venue."
Gehrman stared at that text even longer.
Dire Fang. The Saint. The powerful Vassal who was on the level of Saint Tyris who contained the damn Winter Beast for a month.
That Dire Fang.
Was a chaperone.
Good gods he couldn't wait to see that guy's face.
A little while later a Blood Sister showed up to drop off the outfit, it seemed to be brand new and tailored directly for him. How Seisahn acquired his measurements he wasn't sure, but the Blood Sister stuck around to make sure they fit perfectly.
They did.
Her name was Alice, and they had met way back on the Forgotten Shore. The fact that Gehrman remembered her name seemed to send her into a bit of a daze. Not one that was akin to a schoolgirl surprised her crush knew her name, but instead one that conveyed the thought "Why do you know my name? Are you going to murder my family later? Dear gods am I going to die?"
Alice said none of these things, but Gehrman was fairly certain she thought them which was a bit regrettable.
He had hoped that his casual outings with Seishan would dissuade the Blood Sisters from having an unpleasant image of him.
As he scrounged around in his Memories, he briefly recalled that she had been one of the ones to stab him to the wall that time when he underwent a Madness plunge in order to experience Dissociation…or was it Agony? Whatever it was, it was back when he was trying to figure out the different Madness types from [Inheritor of Madness]. Not the most pleasant of times.
Especially because he had screamed bloody murder for an entire night after telling these fine young ladies to impale him onto a wall.
On second thought, he doubted such a thing would leave someone with a favorable impression no matter how cutely casual he acted.
The thought that Seishan might still be creeped out by that crossed his mind, but if she was she never showed or mentioned it.
He hoped that this wasn't just a part of the facade she put up as a Legacy. Gehrman liked to think that the Seishan he talked to was the genuine article, and not a mask made to appeal to him.
In any case, he was more concerned with the outfit she had picked out for him.
The current fashion was a strange blend of the medieval style that were similar to what the Spell produced and the fine craftsmanship and sleekness popular in fashion before the era of the Nightmare Spell.
Seishan never really wore traditional armor, whether it be because of taste or because such a thing was a part of Valor's aesthetic. Instead, it was light attire or even dresses. He had noticed a particular red dress that she seemed fond of lately. When she trained, it was almost always a part of her serious ensemble.
That was odd in and of itself, as the thing was a piece of utter and astonishing beauty that complimented her ridiculous looks and slender figure to make her more attractive than a supermodel.
Thankfully, Gehrman was in a mature (almost) adult body. The raging hormones of the past were dulled by age, though they were not entirely gone, he did not become a mess before Seishan.
Plus, he had developed his ego far more than when he had on the Forgotten Shore. Back then the emotional responses of Old Gehrman, Johann, and Dorian had occasionally mixed. Old Gehrman specifically had an exaggerated response to Seishan due to some occasional uncanny similarities to Maria.
However the current Gehrman was his own person, so while his heart might skip a beat if his "date" did something that reminded him of Maria, it wouldn't make him lose control.
He was fine.
Totally in control of everything.
He shook his head, snapping himself out of the train of thought.
The clothes, he was thinking about the clothes.
They held no medieval modifications, and instead shared a rich modern craftsmanship. It was a high end suit with a burgundy coat and a dark undershirt. His shoes and pants were slimmer and more form-fitting than the wide, baggy slacks and modified shoes of his normal attire.
By the time he was done, he looked like the child of a rich politician.
He couldn't deny it made him look rather handsome though.
Pursing his lips as he looked at himself in the mirror, he decided this occasion warranted some effort on his part, so he went to the bathroom and did his best to comb back his messy hair.
The result was not perfect as he didn't have any product, but it was decidedly better than it had been before.
After showing his readiness to Alice, she seemed stunned for a moment, then nodded in approval.
Gehrman took this to mean he looked utterly stunning.
And why wouldn't he? He was a Saint after all, it would be impossible for any human to remain anything less than beautiful at such a level.
Instead of going to Song's headquarters, Dire Fang actually met him in Gehrman's own building.
He had not been living in the Butcher Block like his subordinates did (though he did rest there on occasion as a show of solidarity) instead, he took up residence in the high-end Government apartments where Sunless and other officers of similar rank lived.
Dire Fang met him in a low-lit meeting room.
The older man seemed to look Gehrman up and down appraisingly. He suddenly got the feeling that he was a young man being assessed by a protective uncle whose niece he was taking out on a date.
This wasn't entirely far off, as the Vassal would have indeed filled an "uncle" role in the young girl's life.
Still, it was a bit odd that the Saint put aside his deference and modest waryness of Gehrman for this specific assignment.
"Good to see you, Dire Fang. I hear you're my taxi this fine evening?"
The wolfish man met his quip with a glower.
He did not say a word, simply letting his muscled hand take Gehrman's shoulder.
What happened next was quite surprising.
A Saint could take anyone into the Dream Realm with ease, it wasn't a part of any Aspect, it was a simple fact that an individual of their power bent the world when entering and leaving the respective realms. They did so with enough magnitude that they could take others with them.
However, this time when the space around them gave a gentle shudder, it did not sharply twist, revealing the Dream Realm before them.
Instead…nothing happened.
Gehrman gave a nervous look up at the Saint.
Dire Fang's face went a bit slack. Then he closed his eyes with his brows furrowed.
Again, nothing happened.
Gehrman kept himself from laughing. Not because of the man's failure, but because he took on a look that seemed almost constipated in trying to bring them into the Dream Realm.
He never imagined such a look on the regal and deadly Saint.
It was a nice reminder that no matter how awe-inspiring Saints looked, they were still human.
Gehrman briefly wondered if Sovereigns ever showed a similar face, or rather, did they have the capacity for it.
The sobering thought let Gehrman finally make a move.
Soon the world around them vanished and reappeared, what awaited them was not Ravenheart though, but the Gehrman's private office in New Yharnam.
Dire Fang looked around, his face solemn and deadly serious.
There was a long beat of silence.
"This is my fault," Gehrman said. "I didn't consider the fact that my being a Titan would affect things."
Indeed, this was an obvious oversight. When a Saint took someone with them they were essentially encompassing that individual's presence with their own, thus including them in the transportation.
For Dire Fang to accomplish such a thing for Gehrman was fundamentally impossible.
Saints could do it for each other so long as both parties were willing since at their core, they were both Transcendent Beasts. Gehrman was not a Beast, however.
The older man silently and gently lifted his hand off Gehrman's shoulder, letting it drop to his side.
His bearing was by no means diminished, but there was a sense of shame emanating from him now, though one would never know by looking at his stoic face.
"You go back, pull on your tether, and I'll meet you in Ravenheart."
Dire Fang wouldn't be tethered to New Yharnam just because Gehrman brought him here, so of course he could still teleport to Ravenheart by himself.
Gehrman, on the other hand, could just fly.
He was still hypersonic after all, and though he would have to take precautions in order not to ruin his clothes and hair, he could still get to the Great Citadel in a matter of minutes.
Dire Fang, the poor guy, could only let out a defeated sigh.
…
Seishan's heart was beating faster than normal. It was imperceptible to anyone but her. She doubted even Gehrman, who could likely feel her own blood pumping through her veins, would notice the difference.
But it screamed at Seisahn at the moment, and it bothered her to no end.
In terms of physical state she was perfect. Serene, deadly, and poised, everything a Princess of Song ought to be.
There was just one issue.
Her sisters…were taking things too damn far!
When Seishan returned to her home in the Dream Realm (which she did every night) she would be bombarded with comments about the wedding and the elaborate ceremony that was being created.
Seishan was steadfast on the fact that such a thing was unnecessary and out of line.
But her sisters seemed to disagree. Even Revel, the reclusive Dark Dancer, was strangely enamored by the prospect. Her shut-in sister had shown up one day in loose sweatpants and an oversized hoodie she had brought from the Dream Realm. The fearsome Saint had then, out of nowhere, regaled Seishan with what she thought would be fine additions to the ceremony.
All of which were simply terrible ideas.
The most startling being hiring one of the recently Transcended Vassal Saints to suddenly object to the marriage so that Gehrman could fight him off to defend Seisahn's honors.
She had no idea where Revel had gotten such a flair for theatrics.
Silent Stalker and Lonesome Howl had become a terrifying duo, suddenly becoming very particular with the food that would be involved. The assassin and warrior sisters did not appear remotely similar to the versions portrayed to even the Vassals.
Hel was of a similar mind, doing her best to prepare meals for the wedding…which was unilaterally declared out of the question. Though the Saint was masterful at prediction and deceptively clever, she did not make the greatest chef. Still, her effort persisted in a hopeless attempt to convince the other sisters of her ability.
Moonveil had become enamoured with decoration, turning the hue of the pale Jade Palace ball room into one akin to what one might experience under a blood moon. Indeed, the theming of that area of the palace was decidedly more brooding, yet it also – somehow – upheld an aura of romance.
Revel…Seishan didn't even want to think about her plans for the wedding. Fortunately, like Hel's attempt to become a chef, all of Revel's "ideas" were shot down as well.
Finally Eunbin, Beastmaster, was in charge of the guest list. She seemed to take an almost vindictive joy in sending out the most glamorous invitation possible to Bastion.
It would indeed put them in a rough spot.
On one hand, it would be seen as rude for them not to show up for such an auspicious ceremony, even if such weddings were practically unheard of for Legacy Clans.
On the other hand, it would be a prime opportunity to take out any high-ranking officials that Valor did send.
For example, if Morgan were to show up, it would make the powerful Master incredibly vulnerable.
Even if Seishan knew that her mother wanted the night to be special, she knew that if Ki Song saw the opportunity to butcher the top brass of Valor, she would take it.
Seishan didn't blame her. This was war after all.
In any case, all of this was annoying, but nothing to get worked up over.
That was the case until just a few hours ago. Eunbin and Revel (along with some of the other sisters on occasion) would drill Seishan for details about the outings she had with Gehrman.
She reassured them time and time again that there was nothing to those shared meals. If anything, it was just on opportunity to rant about stuff that was bothering the each of them.
This simultaneously pleased and irked the sisters for some reason.
Specifically, Eunbin and Revel were annoyed that Gehrman wasn't making any "moves" on her.
This led to the following exchange quietly whispered between Eunbin and Revel.
"Could it be that he's…you know, playing for the other team?"
"I already told you, fool, that he very much isn't…at least he isn't averse to woman, I'm not sure if that extends to-"
"Okay then what's his deal?" the Dark Dancer scream whispered.
"Ugh, I don't know." the ultimate seductress, Beastmaster, lamented.
They treated this like it was the most serious and pressing issue they had ever dealt with. Like there was an Unholy abomination marching on Ravenheart.
"Could it be that he's…scared?"
"Scared!? The man's insane! Self proclaimed and proved with evidence several times over. He's probably the most powerful Saint in the world, why, HOW, could he be scared?"
"No," Revel waved her hand. "I meant, like, what if he's shy. A 'oh my gosh there's a gorgeous girl I'm way too nervous to talk to her' kind of thing."
"They do talk though."
"Yeah, but just about mundane stuff. It's cute but it hardly gets the heart pumping, you know. No innuendos or secret glances or heated sexual tension can be maintained in such an environment!" Revel's "whisper" was now slightly above normal talking volume.
Seishan's face took on a look of utter befuddlement and horror at the words leaving her sister's mouth. Her sister truly spent too much time cooped up in her room reading if this was how she thought these things were supposed to go.
However, Eunbin, FOR SOME REASON, ran with it.
"Okay, that's actually a good point. I mean, it's like Seishan said he never even called it a 'date'. It's like he's friend-zoning himself to make things less awkward."
"The conniving bastard."
"Truly a devious planner, I'll give him that."
"We can't let this stand."
"Indeed, we can not."
Seishan couldn't help herself then, her hands reached out and gripped the shoulders of her sisters tightly. Though she was still much weaker than them, she used the same "big sister" gaze that always put them in line when they had been younger. Fortunately, even though they were Transcended it still worked.
The pair stopped talking and looked at her with tense expressions.
"What, exactly, are you talking about?" Seishan said a slow, deadly voice. Then, in a more haggard and fed up tone she continued. "What do you expect from him? Wouldn't you be more upset if he was lusting after me?"
"Oh, for sure."
"Defintiely."
Both sisters replied at the same time, a new look of murder on their faces.
"I don't care if he's a Titan, I'd kill him if he acted like a base male," Revel hissed.
"We all would," Eunbin said. "The guy would be dead in a day."
Seisahn inadvertently wondered about that. She didn't think long, only for a second. She considered if all her Transcendent siblings were to team up against Gehrman. They had a wide variety of Aspects that covered a lot of ground in terms of resisting his attacks. A few even had ways in which Seishan was confident they could damage him.
But would they actually be able to kill him?
No, they would be slaughtered. This was the instinctual answer Seisahn came to, and it filled her with a small amount of dread.
However, that dread went away when she reminded herself the "male" they were talking about was Gehrman.
"Gods why are you all acting so…" Seishan gestured helplessly at them, finding no words to adequately describe their fervor.
"You're our big sister, and the most perfect bachelorette in two worlds," Eunbin responded simply.
This was a bit jarring since, all things considered, the sensual and alluring Beastmaster should have taken that title easily. Her or Morgan, as she was direct heir to the throne of a Great Clan, while Seishan had her other sisters.
"Exactly," Revel said. "If he isn't perfect then he isn't worthy."
"First of all, you need to stop reading those books," Seishan shot a glare at Revel while pinching her. "Second of all, if I went by your criteria I would be alone for all of eternity. There is no perfect man."
This sobered the two of them up, though they appeared more annoyed than disheartened.
"Well, obviously, nobody is perfect so nobody is truly worthy of you, that much is plainly clear," Eunbin admitted. "But still he should at least be…pining after you a bit more."
"Pining?" Seshain asked incredulously.
"Obsessively pining," Revel added. "Of course, if he acts on any of his great desires that's a problem, he needs to be madly in love but still a man of chivalry, after all."
Seishan stood up.
"Get out," she said coldly.
Then, like two sad puppies they looked at each other in woe and skulked out of the room.
"Also," Seishan added. "If you have such expectations when looking for your own partner…it would probably not be a very balanced relationship."
Such comments were unnecessary, but she had to admit that their words bugged her, so she couldn't help but childishly take it out on them.
Revel seemed to deflate further, but Eunbin scoffed.
On her way she muttered.
"Of course my relationships will be unbalanced, I'm Beastmaster not Beast…respect and…ugh whatever."
Seishan looked at the empty doorway dubiously before crashing back down on the chair she had been sitting in.
This was getting weird.
It almost felt like her sisters were trying to live some repressed, childish dream of romance onto her so they could live vicariously through her.
Maybe because they think they won't get a chance to do it themselves.
Seisahn froze at that thought.
She was getting married. Such a thing was always out of the question for her. However, that wasn't necessarily true.
Before she was Song Seishan, she was just Seishan.
She had been an orphan, one who was deemed suitable to inherit the Beast Lineage and thus adopted by Ki Song.
During that time, she hadn't had any fantasies about weddings or a dashing groom, but that wasn't necessarily the case for her sisters. Perhaps before they once held such aspirations. Of course, asking for a ceremony would have been silly and absurd given their current station. Getting involved romantically was also slightly taboo, not to mention nearly impossible since no one would ever be allowed close enough to the sisters to build a genuine bond.
From this perspective, all their actions made sense.
This was the one time, likely the only time, in which they could live out a childhood dream. One that had long laid dormant.
It was a tactical ceremony, one where violence could easily break out. However, just for a little while, they were letting out a bit of the whimsy that they never got to experience.
Seishan let out a long breath and vowed to apologize to her sisters tomorrow for snapping at them.
Their words had gotten on her nerves.
The truth was, she was not totally naive when it came to romance. Plenty of her Handmaidens had gotten involved in such things on the Forgotten Shore. Of course, that was only when they were the interested party, anyone who tried to take advantage of one of her girls was met with dire consequences.
Still, they had been teenagers and teenagers did and talked about such things.
That was how Seishan was able to realize the source of her troubles. Gehrman had indeed "friend-zoned" himself. He hadn't made any romantic passes at her. If she didn't know any better, she would have thought him uninterested.
That…bothered her.
It was petty and childish, but perhaps influenced by her sisters she was willing to let such things come to the forefront, if only for a brief moment.
As she went back to the Waking World, picked up the communicator, and sent off a message to him, Seishan let out a deep breath and gently placed the device down.
"War is on the horizon," Seisahn muttered. She said it as a reminder that there were bigger things in the world than asking out a guy on a date.
This was not something worth stressing over.
Not in the slightest.