The spell of silence enshrouding the inner city was broken by the sudden appearance of the woman, bringing everyone’s attention to herself. Especially that of Daena, whom she called out by her name. It was only natural then, for Daena to be distracted for a moment. A very small moment, that was akin to an instant, but was enough to open a glaring flaw in her defence.

  Yet, instead of grasping that flaw, and turning it into his advantage, Vern quickly retreated from his position, stopping only when he was at least twenty metres away from both the women. Then, and only then, did he observe the white robed woman standing near the Blood Hall’s entrance. The one clad in a white robe, with patterns of thorn on its borders, and no clan’s emblem on her chest.

  “…You are the Wanderer who just recently came to the city,” Vern said, barely taking a moment to recognise the woman. But the woman herself ignored the man, nodding apologetically at Daena.

  “It looks like I did something unnecessary.”

  “…Tsk. I really do not like my battles being interrupted,” Daena said, and paused for a moment, glancing at her daughter behind her. “But I would not say that your actions were completely unnecessary.”

  “What did you do with Onias and Nalop?” Vern said, only to be ignored once again.

  “As long as you can understand,” the woman said to Daena, nodding for an entirely different reason, as she glanced at Wanderers lying around them. “This is not the place for—

  “I warn you, Lady of Thorns,” Vern said, finally gaining the woman’s interest. “If anything happens to Onias and Nalop…”

  “So, you still have a touch of humanity left within your Heart,” the woman said. “Unfortunately, even that little touch is tainted with your selfishness…”

  “Stop going around in circles. Just tell me what you have done with Onas and Nalop.”

  “You are quite impatient… And a little slow. Did I not say it already? I just ‘persuaded’ them to return back to where they had come from.”

  “…Do you take me as a fool?”

  “I never presume anything about others. But if you insist…”

  “This is the last time I will warn you, Lady of Thorns. Tell me, where are my two companions?”

  “And if I do not tell you? What are you going to do?”

  “…Do not test my patience.”

  “Or else?” the woman said, sneering at the man. “A joke of a Wanderer who does not even dare to fight fairly… So what if I break your patience? What can you do, except seethe in impotent rage?”

  “…You do not understand what you are dealing with here…”

  “Oh, I understand perfectly well, who and what I am dealing with, Vern of Flowing Fire,” the woman said, glancing at the Wanderers lying around them once again. “A beast, in the guise of humans. No, even beasts would not behave so indiscriminately around their young.”

  “…Are you of that kind?” Vern said, nodding to himself. “If you are here for just these ants, then I will spare their lives for your sake. Now, can you tell me, where are my two companions?”

  “How many times do I have to tell you?” the woman said, shaking her head. “Your companions have already gone back to the core city. As for sparing these people… I do not know them. Why would I intercede for their sake?”

  “…So, you finally reveal your true intentions…”

  “I never hid my intentions.”

  “…You are playing with fire, Lady of Thorns.”

  “Why? Because some people call you Flowing Fire, you think that only you can play with fire?”

  “…What clan are you from? What are your demands?”

  “…Demands?”

  “There is no need to play ignorant, Lady of Thorns. You know what I am talking about…”

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “…Then do you know who you are talking about?”

  “…What?”

  “The ‘kid’ in your mouth, whom you want to exile to the Grand Chasm, is my disciple,” the woman said, as her gaze turned cold enough to make even the shimmering air freeze in place. “You tell me, what should be my demands?”

  “…Disciple?” Vern mumbled, left completely stupefied by the sudden revelation. And as if to confirm the woman’s claim, the boy also chose that very moment to come back to his senses.

  “Master!”

  Nyssa paused for a moment, restraining the killing intent surging within her Heart, before turning back towards her son with a smile, and found him grinning ear to ear.

  “You are late.”

  “You cheeky brat… That is the first thing you say when you see your master after nearly a year?”

  “Even Daes’ mother came earlier than you.”

  “…It looks like your bones have grown quite stiff in the months I was not with you,” Nyssa said, feigning a glare, before glancing at the Lady of Raining Thunder. “Forgive my disciple for his ignorance.”

  “It is alright,” Daena said, dismissively waving her hands, as she put away her Glyph Tokens. “I like lively kids. Besides, he is much better than my useless daughter.”

  “…I am right next to you, you know.”

  “What?” Daena said, glancing at her daughter. “Do you want me to tell them about your stories? Like the first time you went to the Thunder—

  “Maa!” Daes said, glaring aggrievedly at her mother. “We made an agreement to never talk about it.”

  “…We never made an agreement. You decided it on your own,” Daena said, widening her smile, as she turned back towards Nyssa. “See? This is what I have had to deal with on a daily basis for over three decades. Compared to how she usually behaves, your disciple almost looks cute.”

  “On the contrary, I find your daughter’s boldness rather refreshing,” Nyssa said, returning Daena’s smile with her own. “Especially when seen in contrast to the other Wanderers in this city.”

  “Well, she does take after me in that regard… But she is still not as bold as your disciple.”

  “…That, I cannot argue with,” Nyssa sad, glancing at her disciple, and the three girls beside him. “Regardless, I must thank you for taking care of my disciple.”

  “I just said it, right? I like lively kids. Not to mention that he is also my daughter’s friend. Just that reason alone made it impossible for me to sit back and watch him get into trouble. Otherwise, I would not be able to answer my daughter. And to be honest, protecting your disciple was just an excuse. I just wanted to use the chance to stretch out my bones. You do not know how boring these past fourteen years have been. Unfortunately, it looks like that will not be happening today.”

  Daena paused, and let out a sigh, before continuing with her words.

  “But it does not matter anymore. After all, my daughter would soon be able to leave the city… When the time comes, I will have to ask you to look after her.”

  “You do not have to worry about your daughter,” Nyssa said. “Though I cannot promise that she will never suffer under my guidance, I can assure you that when you see her again, her transformation will be enough to make you feel proud of her.”

  “…As long as you can keep her away from your disciple’s hands.”

  “…I think you do not have to worry about that,” Nyssa said, glancing at the girls beside her disciple. “But this is not exactly the time and place to have such talks. How about we continue this discussion later?”

  “Indeed,” Daena said, glancing at Vern in the distance. “How are we going to do this?”

  “It would be best if we can solve things through peaceful discussions,” Nyssa said. “But that can wait for a while. Right now, the only thing I want to do is see my disciple from up close.”

  “Right, I almost forgot,” Daena said, waving her hands, controlling the tokens she had placed on the bodies of her daughter, and her friends, to fly back over to her hands, before nodding back at Nyssa, who, in turn, nodded back at her, before taking a step into the air. And in the very next moment, she was already standing next to her disciple, ruffling through his hair.

  “You need a haircut,” Nyssa said, with a slight curve to the edge of her lips, enjoying the sensation of messing with her son’s hair after nearly a year. And for a moment, even thought about giving in to the rest of her urges. But their situation was urgent. So, she—

  Alnea stepped towards his master, and wrapped his hands around her, ignoring everything and everyone else in the world. Be it the girls, staring at him with weird eyes, the two women, looking at him as if they had seen him for the first time, and even the two Wanderers, who stood on the same level as his master. At the moment, nothing mattered. Because he was with his master.

  “I missed you, mother.”

  “…Silly child,” Nyssa said, gently caressing his back. “Are you not afraid of embarrassing yourself?”

  “I don’t care.”

  “…You are just a few hours away from becoming fifteen years old, and you are still so clingy,” Nyssa said with a helpless smile. “What am I going to do with you?”

  “At least he is not crying anymore,” Yuri said, with a wide smile on her face. “It is good to see you again, big sis Nyssa.”

  “…It is good to see you again, Lady Nyssa,” Cecilia said, following immediately after Yuri, bursting with nervous energy, enough for it to leak into her voice. Still, at least she managed to stay coherent. Vestia, on the other hand, kept struggling with her words. Especially when she saw Nyssa’s gaze fall on her.

  “Am I so scary?” Nyssa said in amusement, as she pulled Alnea away from herself. “I am also glad to see you. All of you.”

  “I… It is my honour to meet you… Lady Nyssa. I am—

  “Let us leave it here for now, Bluestorm,” Nyssa said, glancing into the distance. “I also have quite a few things to talk about. And not just to you. Unfortunately, it seems like our guests are getting impatient.”