Eren let Ariellia have a good cry to vent all the years of pent-up insecurity and doubt. When she's finally finished, he politely pulls away and sits on the bed. He looks away while the prideful young elf tries to pull herself together. The sight of her this way strikes compassion in him, making him wish there were a way for him to ease the distance between the father and daughter.
[Do you wish to seal the memory 'David's bitter decision' within your soul?]
[Yes/No]
Much to his surprise a translucent screen appears before his eyes, like when he summoned his stats.
"Why are you so quiet now, you were full of questions before? I'll cast you out of here if you dare look down on me for this!"
There appears to be a link between the visual state of their soul and emotions. When she was sad and weeping, she looked wretched and ghastly. If he didn't know who he was trying to comfort, he might have reflexively pushed the frightful ghost in his arms away. Now that her emotions have stabilized, she reverts to her vibrant self. She seems to be unable to see the blue screen in front of him, making its origins even more dubious. Is it really a cheat gifted to him by the heavens?
Shoving aside such distracting thoughts, he mentally picks yes. He does this because he simply feels that sealing the memory he'd just witnessed won't cause him any harm or discomfort. As an outsider he can understand David's feelings at the time, this won't change his attitude towards the duke. Hopefully with the memory gone, Ariellia's hesitance to trust her father's affection will lessen. That's if they ever manage to find a safe way to get her out of the seal without killing him in the process. Eren's more than willing to play hero as long as his life isn't in jeopardy.
"It looks like it's time for you to wake up. I don't know what you did a second ago, but I oddly feel a lot lighter. Take care till we meet again, I feel very sleepy all of a sudden." She yawns, lightly pushing him away from the bed as she crawls under the covers.
It's a light push but he finds himself being propelled backwards, evicted from the space once again. In reality, Ariellia's amethyst eyes snap open to spot two concerned maids hovering over her.
"Oh good, our lady is up. We feared you would sleep through breakfast and delay the duke's departure."
"I wouldn't dare." She promptly cleans up, brushing her teeth and lightly washing up with a wet rag. It's too much trouble to run a bath while on the road, especially since they've already started to dismantle camp. It's best to wait until they arrive at Draghdom.
'I recall they should have hot springs there.'
The mountainside city is the next town a player visits once you've escaped the monster march. It's a beautiful city built on the side of the mountain, using its natural incline to create several layered terraces and sectors. It's a bustling city centered on trade with markets on every layer. In Draghdom they honor Selene by keeping the old ways, sleeping by day, and working at night. The empty city streets come alive as soon as the sun begins to dip beyond the horizon, bringing the true meaning of a night market to life. The item shop she wants to go to is in the innermost layer at the top of the mountain.
To venture up the mountain, they have no choice but to leave the comfortable carriage behind. Their group will split in two, some of the maids and a few of the knights will wait with the carriage at the foot of the mountain, while the rest ride up the thin mountain path. It's a sound call, but why is it that she feels her heart begin to race at the sight of the strong war horses of the duchy. Eren has never ridden a horse before. The thought of falling and snapping Arie's pretty neck keeps racing through his mind.
"What's the matter dear? Do you want to ride with Daddy like old times?" David approaches her from behind with light steps, making her nearly jump out of her borrowed skin.
"Um I think I can handle it." She stutters, eyes listlessly switching from one horse to the next. She hopes to find a horse that looks more docile than the rest, praying her body has some preinstalled riding skill like when she danced with the duke on her wedding night. She finally spots a jet-black horse absentmindedly grazing off to the side without a rider. Decision made, she stealthily makes her way over to it. She doesn't see the startled looks on all the faces of those behind her.
"Dear, I don't believe Mori-fae is-"
Arie turns a deaf ear to the uproar behind her, so focused on reaching some form of agreement with the horse before her. Mori-fae stops eating the moment she steps into its range, its large silver eyes staring back at her. Trembling but determined not to embarrass herself, she reaches out to pet its long nose. In the movies from her world, she'd seen riders do this to prove their good intentions while bonding with the beast.
'Please don't bite, please don't bite me…' Her eyes are tightly shut as she blindly feels for its nose.
Mori-fae watches the odd dark elf before him, amused by her timid nature. With a deep huff, he nudges his nose closer to her. She jumps as soon as they make contact, pleasantly surprised that he's willing to accept her.
"You're willing to let me ride you?" She's dumbfounded by the turn of events.
'You bear a similar scent as me, child of darkness.'
"You can speak!" Her eyes widened in surprise, almost forgetting to keep her voice down.
'You are now my master, it is only natural now that we share a bond.' The black steed gracefully lowers its head, its lush raven mane draping down its glossy back. The symbol of two entwined feathers faintly glowing on its forehead. Arie spots a similar symbol on the back of her hand.
'A contract mark!' She's surprised to have acquired a contract beast so early. Broadly smiling, she grabs hold of Mori-fae's saddle, easily swinging her leg over it with practiced ease. Good, it looks like Ariellia does indeed have some equestrian skill.
"I'm in your care from now on Mori-fae, please take good care of me." She gently pats his long neck, feeling the strong muscles underneath.
"My goodness, you nearly gave this old man a fright. You're full of pleasant surprises lately." David rides up to her on his majestic grey warhorse. "I'm so happy to see Mori-fae has finally met his master. It took twenty knights to restrain him back then and no one has been able to ride him since. I was actually just about to give him away as a gift to the mayor of Draghdom. I'm so proud of you, my little moonshine."
"Hehe he" Arie nervously laughs, suddenly doubting whether master and horse were truly destined or if Mori-fae just didn't want to be gifted away.
[1x Contract beast: Mori-fae has been acquired, Beast Grade: S]