"No," Elyra said sharply, not even giving the decision a second thought.
"You're no longer bound by the ancestral pact," Varyn said, trying to steady his tone. "You can come home."
"I already have a home, Father," Elyra shot back, her eyes blazing. "It was never about the pact. I never cared about that. I became a shadow because I found my mate."
"You're in love with the boy?" His voice cracked with disbelief. "You would forsake your village for him?"
"I left the village when I was five, under your orders. Don't assume I ever loved it when you and it tossed me aside. Besides, you know as well as I do what happens when we place our mark," she said firmly.
"You damned fool!" Varyn shouted, his face flushed with fury. "You would forsake your own tribe and mark a human?"
"The same as the Shadows that came before me," Elyra said proudly.
"Most of the Shadows that came before you left and came home!" His voice rose to a roar, shaking the walls.
"They were never true Shadows," Elyra said, her gaze hard and unflinching. "You only become one when you dedicate yourself fully, like Sibelle."
"I don't give a damn about that harlot!" Varyn bellowed, his rage spilling over. "You will stay in this village, or I will kill him!"
Elyra chuckled, slow and deliberate, a dangerous glint in her eyes. "I'd like to see you try."
"You think you can stop me?" he growled, stepping forward.
"I don't think you can catch me or kill Bastion even if you send the entire village after us," Elyra said, her voice cold and certain. "I don't think you could even leave this room alive if I decided to end you."
A cold shiver ran through Varyn. He felt death pressing in from outside the room. One wrong move, and it would be over.
His eyes met his daughter's, full of unwavering conviction. She wouldn't hesitate to kill him if she believed he was a threat.
He remembered the daughter he had once held so dearly, the certainty he had felt that she would never be chosen. Sending tribesmen to the Diamondhart always yielded the village's finest warriors; they simply had to sacrifice one from the lot. Now, regretting that decision more than ever, he found himself an inch from death at his own daughter's hands.
"Leave!" he shouted, his voice breaking with fear and anger. "And never come back!"
"My pleasure," Elyra replied, her shadow swallowing her as she vanished, reappearing beside Bastion through his shadow.
Inside the carriage, Bastion held the Rank 1 cannon steady, a faint wisp of mana tracing the barrel as it aimed at Varyn through the mansion walls, ready to fire. Bastion had coordinated with Elyra through their telepathy, guiding his aim perfectly. Firing now would likely destroy the carriage and leave them disoriented, but the mere threat was enough to keep Varyn in line.
"That went well," Bastion commented, storing the cannon in his weapon slot.
He ordered his diamond steed, Steve, to leave the village while Varyn was probably still tearing through the meeting room. He had no intention of sticking around to test just how short the man's patience was.
"I don't know what he was expecting," Elyra said, exhaling. "I've been away from the village for nearly three decades. To him it might have felt like a blink of an eye given his age, but to me it was my entire life."
Bastion stepped forward and took her into his arms, whispering softly into her ear, "I'll make sure you never regret your decision."
Elyra returned the hug, her tail swaying gently from side to side.
Meanwhile, Lilia pretended to be part of the cushions.
Bastion sat down, bringing Elyra's head onto his lap as he slowly stroked her hair.
"Um… I'm guessing we're not getting that map?" Lilia asked.
"We will, probably not at a reasonable time. But if he wants his village to continue trading with the kingdom, he'll have to do as asked. Besides, it's understandable that he would fulfill his duties as the Marquis, even if he hates my guts as Elyra's father."
Back in the meeting room, chaos reigned. Papers and overturned chairs littered the floor, shards of glass glinting among the debris. Varyn slumped against the wall, a bottle of liquor clutched in one hand and a painting of a young Sibelle in the other.
He tipped the bottle to his lips, swallowing it down in one long gulp, then hurled it against the wall. The glass shattered with a sharp crash, sending droplets across the tattered carpet and warping the frame of the painting he still held.
He considered going after them or assassinating Bastion to free his daughter from the mark but quickly pushed the thought aside. It would be obvious who the killer was, and he couldn't risk the village if it were ever discovered. He exhaled heavily, the sound rattling through the ruined room, before slumping to the floor, drained of both energy and the will to fight any longer.
He glanced around the room and spotted the map lying on the floor. An idea and a flicker of hope whispered into his ears. A mischievous glint sparked in his eyes. Perhaps one last attempt wouldn't be so bad. After that, he would truly give up for good.
-----
A few days later, Bastion and Lilia arrived back at the castle, finally finished with his inspection of the territory. Overall, it was as stable as it had been under his father's rule and would likely remain so for centuries to come.
When Bastion and Lilia alighted from the carriage at the castle entrance, Elyra was already there, waiting for them. Her new abilities as a Shadow Guardian allowed her to remain at the castle and right by Bastion's side at all times, giving the illusion of omnipresence.
"Welcome home, Master," Elyra greeted with a bow, joined by the guards and maids.
"How's Seraphina?" Bastion asked.
"Still in her laboratory. She grew tired of just working on her skills, so she started mixing her arts into her daily routine as well."
"Does she ever take a break?"
"She got bored of the castle after a few months while you were gone, so no. She just stays in her laboratory semi-permanently now. She says it doesn't feel like work, more like she's just grinding levels."
Bastion chuckled at her reply before heading to the laboratory to see Seraphina. It had been a few months since they last met, as the last stretch of his visits had taken him quite far from the castle.
He knocked on the door a few times, hearing cursing from the other side, before she finally gave him permission to enter.
"Hey, I'm back," Bastion said as he stepped inside.
The room was in complete disarray, with papers scattered across the floor. A bed sat in one corner, an apothecary in another, a leather and cloth workstation occupied a third, and a shelf filled with books lined the fourth. By the balcony window, Seraphina sat at a desk, writing.
She wore only her underwear. Her hair was tied back in a messy ponytail, making it clear she hadn't properly groomed herself in days.
She turned and spotted Bastion; her eyes widened as she ran toward him with her arms outstretched. But before she could reach him, Elyra appeared and cast Clean on the entire room, Seraphina included.
She reached Bastion and hugged him tightly.
"I missed you. You were gone for so long."
"I'm back now, and I have no plans on leaving you again. I don't think I'll need to visit the territory anymore from this point on."
"Good, because it's boring without having you inside me to liven up my day."
Bastion smiled before leaning in for a kiss. They savored each other as if making up for all the time they had been apart. Finally, they pulled back, both feeling satisfied.
"So, what have you been doing all this time?" Bastion asked. "I heard you were grinding."
"Damn straight. I got bored with grinding my skills and working out, so I've been dabbling in some Scribing. I think I may have found my calling."
"That's great. Can I see?"
"Sure."
She handed Bastion a stack of papers. As he flipped through them, he realized it was a full novel.
The story followed a girl from Earth who was reincarnated into Gaia as a hero, completing her fated mission by the time she turned eight. After that, she was free to roam, tame beasts, and live her life as she pleased. It was a lighthearted, wish-fulfillment slice-of-life story with little drama.
"What do you think?"
"Very well written, but it's not really my cup of tea."
"I was talking about my penmanship, Bastion. I need to learn to write and draw perfectly for a hundred years if I want to become a proper Scribe before we leave. I figured I don't always have to write spell scrolls and can practice by writing a novel or drawing manga most of the time. That way, I can improve my Scribing arts and maybe even write a bestseller for money."
"You know that's just the average time it takes, right? If you have the talent to write and infuse intent at the same time, I don't see why you couldn't become a Scribe in a decade instead."
"I'm not that skilled with intent infusion like you or Lilia. I prefer simple methods that require very little thinking. It's very likely I'll need those hundred years to reach Scribe level 3. But I can definitely perfect my writing and drawing technique first before meditating on intent infusion."
"That's fine. Are you planning to mass-produce copies of this story for practice?"
"I would die of boredom. I plan to write as many stories as possible so that when we reach a place with an audience, I can start publishing my work."
Bastion was genuinely happy that Seraphina had found a spark of passion in her life. He didn't want her to simply grind for the sake of power and somehow survive millennia in that state of mind. Otherwise, she could very easily lose the will to live.
"Oh, right. Lilia reached Rank 1, right? Rune Mage, was it? You should probably start getting ready."
"For what?"
"For your wedding, silly."
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