Rupegia

Chapter 57: Goodbyes – Part 1

"Gify, did you see that person?" I ask.

"Gih."

Dammit, he passed out too, but at least I know that the vision was real.

I focus on my Holly, but I can't see them and I don't even know what to look for. There is certainly some sort of spell preventing us from seeing that person.

Hana and Aoi come towards us, concerned about the feelings escaping through my [Bind].

The other girls come too, curious about my strained expression. I get my emotions under control to avoid causing a scene and then I explain to them what I saw.

"A… vision?" Klein asks as her tail massages her temple.

"I've had two so far. One showed me the Everlasting Storm, and the other showed me a dungeon in the high forest, a dungeon called 'Legado,'" I say.

Technically, Gecynd saw the dungeon, but that vision where I saw "myself" is too abstract to explain right now.

Alissa hugs my arm and nestles it between her perky breasts. "That dungeon is the one we'll be conquering," she says.

"Oh…!" Klein's tail shoots up in surprise. "Wow, that's… ominous. Your Thread of Fate is special."

Ciel snorts and says, "I know, right? Why can't we get a friendly old lady to explain to us what it all means? Why do our lives have to be full of obscure visions and cryptic messages? Foreshadowing in real life is just mean."

Lina and I chuckle, and Alissa smiles wryly.

"Right… these visions are literally foreshadowing…" I say and chuckle some more. Then I look around and notice all the eccentric side-characters of my story. "Oh, Gods. I'm living in a book or something."

"Well, yes?" Alissa says and gives me a kiss on the cheek. "One day you might join the Legends Series."

"Will they write about our sex lives, too? It's a very important part of us," Hana says.

"They may if I publish my diary," Alissa says with a mischievous smile.

"Can you do it after we're dead? I don't want you describing my first time with Wolfy," Lina says and looks at Alissa with a little worry in her gloomy eyes.

"I'm certainly of the opposite opinion," Roxanne says and smirks.

"I'm with Lina," Ciel says.

"Roxanne," Hana says and lands a heavy hand on the succubus' shoulder.

"I don't care," Aoi says.

The four girls turn to me, Alissa, and Klein. Their glare makes us uncomfortable, but before anyone can say anything, I raise my hand and suggest, "How about we don't decide this right now?"

"Agreed," Alissa and Klein say in unison.

Roxanne and Hana shrug and we return to observing the procession.

We spend a minute in silence, then Ciel is the first one to break it. "A place where neither the Sun nor the Moon can see. This is worrying… but I don't fully understand it."

"If it's beyond the Everlasting Storm, then maybe it makes sense," Lina says.

What's beyond the border of "reality"? I just hope there isn't a genre shift to cosmic horror.

"But the vision basically showed you fighting an equal," Hana says.

"Right. But who could be an 'equal' to me and my Gifts?" I ask.

"The… Emperor?" Roxanne suggests while cringing.

"No, that's… just no," Ciel says and a deep look of worry washes over her. "You going against the Emperor would be heresy. And there's absolutely no reason for you to fight or even dislike one another. Fighting the Emperor would mean fighting the Gods themselves and we are twice blessed by them. Just… no." She gets more and more desperate as her mind races with the possibilities.

Lina grabs her hand and draws her attention. Lina's anxious eyes pull Ciel back to reality.

"There's still a long road ahead; it's not really useful to think too much about those things yet," Lina says.

"Y-yes… I'm overthinking it," Ciel says and frowns. She pulls Lina into a hug and I see her quickened breath return to normal.

"But… there's still the matter of who brought Wolfy into this realm," Roxanne says and turns to me. "What would you do if you knew the truth about that?"

I shrug and say, "What could I do? We're talking about being mad at a supposed 'God.' But even if a 'God' isn't responsible for it, I don't think that I'd go so far as to kill them. I'd certainly be angry and ask for compensation, but it's hard to complain when I look at what I've achieved so far." I wave my hand towards the girls and they smile a little shyly, except for Hana and Aoi, of course, who grin proudly.

"So, there's really no reason for Wolfy to go against the Emperor or the Humanoid Gods, right?" Ciel asks, but her tone makes it seem like a statement.

"Right," I answer and nod, then I get closer to Ciel and cup her cheek with my free hand. "I understand that it's hard for you to think about those things, but you don't have to, it's not something that's likely to happen. And even if it does, I'd understand whatever you decide to do…"

Ciel bites her lip in pain and nods silently. I pull her head closer and give her a long kiss. Her tongue guiltily enters my mouth and then desperately rubs against mine.

We end up having a short 4-way hug as our kiss intensifies and our bodies search for one another.

The intense tongue kiss turns into pecks that she gives over my entire face. Then she stops and looks at me guiltily. "I'm sorry, Wolfy. I've been a priest my entire life. Thinking about such things breaks me apart from the inside."

I sigh and cup her cheek again. "I know, and I understand. But you don't have to think about this so much."

She nods again and smiles weakly. Then I look around and see the envious looks of the other girls.

Roxanne dramatically slaps her forehead and leans her body against Hana's, then she says, "Oh no~… Wolfy, I think I'm having a mental breakdown. Whatever shall I do? Should I choose your magic dick or claim the freedom to choose any dick I want? What. Shall. I. Do?"

"Alright, you're next," I say and extend my hand to her. She cheerily skips towards me and I bend her in a kiss, holding her entire body with only one hand.

Alissa reads my mind and tugs Roxanne's tail at the base, giving her a jolt of pain and pleasure at the same time as I lightly bite her tongue.

Then I give a kiss to each of the girls and Osaria appears. "I want whatever you're doing," she requests and I obey.

Oura and Nito dance with each other and it seems that it's Oura that's leading. They talk and giggle and share some kisses while Rande steals his second wife of the night.

With Osaria here, we can't talk about my vision anymore, but none of the girls seem very interested in continuing that depressing conversation anyway.

Trying not to hog me when my wives want some time with me, Osaria moves on to Roxanne and teases her a little. It seems that my succubus is still rather unsure of what she feels about Osaria, but she seems to be starting to "friend-zone" Osaria. She responds to her playfulness but doesn't make any moves to get more physically intimate with her.

The tiredness starts to hit us and the energetic teas start to be served. The tradition of the Turn of the Wheel is to stay awake for the entire "Long Night" and then go to sleep at dawn.

"We used to walk the streets for the whole night while casting [Purify Body] on the black-out drunks to make sure that nobody died because of the alcohol," Ciel comments with a wry smile.

"Passing out because of alcohol is a sign of weakness," Lina says.

"It's a sign you don't know your limits," Hana adds.

"And of irresponsibility, leaving yourself open to attack like that," Alissa finishes.

"It was mostly the poor, so I'm sure they all had low levels and stats," Ciel continues.

"The poor getting black-out drunk is a good way to drown in Betzenstein," Klein says and Hana nods. "You should never try to guess when the next tide is coming in. The Everlasting Storm is completely unpredictable."

"What's Betzenstein like?" I ask.

"I think that Goldport is calmer, at least the sea is, but Betzenstein has a lot more variety in everything," Klein answers.

Hana continues, "But that variety also includes thieves. I wouldn't advise us ever wearing any of our jewelry over there. There's always a thief in the Underside waiting for a chance to steal something."

"Underside?" Lina asks.

"That's what we call the town below the stilts. The entirety of Betzenstein is held up to always stay above the tide that floods the coast, but there are still people that build houses underneath the town. That's the Underside."

"And that's where all the thieves and cons live. Even worse is that wereapes and weremonkeys are infamously good at conning and stealing from people," Klein says with a wry smile.

"Hmm. I'd put your race on the same level as the dragonkin for how fun it is to be around them," Osaria says and pats Klein's head twice.

My little monkey and my red dragon narrow her eyes at Osaria, then at each other. "The same level?" Hana asks, threateningly, and raises an eyebrow.

Osaria giggles gently, a treat for my ears. "And your pride is only matched by the Kabar," she says.

"Well, at least we aren't sadomasochistic brutes," Klein says and turns her back to Hana.

The red dragon smiles fearsomely and towers over Klein while glowering down at her. "At least we're strong enough to defend ourselves from the predators around," Hana says in a low and slow tone.

Osaria takes a few steps to the side and puts her hands on Lina's shoulders. "Let me just say that the race at the top is certainly the dwarves," she says and walks away, cackling a laugh.

"In the name of all dwarves, I give the number one position to any other race that would like it," Lina immediately says before Klein and Hana can even begin to stare at her.

Rande gets one last dance with Oura and Nito and he finally tires himself out. Then we all return to the table and share a few stories. For me, it's a little painful to have to stay quiet and avoid talking about my time before Rupegia. Even more so because Krysta seems to be pushing to know more about me.

Dawn slowly comes and the band finally stops playing music. The constant noise of the party-goers reduces and the tinnitus sets in. I hadn't had it since coming to this realm, and it's oddly nostalgic to hear it again. It reminds me of those late nights playing games with Lily. When everything is turned off and we just see the black mirror in front of us, the only things we can hear then are our breaths and the low buzzing in our ears.

Anyway, it's curious how the sun rises in the east in this world, too. We see the beautiful sunrise coming up from the sea and it slowly paints the dark blue landscape into a beautiful shade of orange. The lights of the town mix with the first rays of sunlight and Goldport becomes truly golden.

Birds and the weird-sounding seagulls start making their noises and the patrons start to leave their tables.

"It's time for us to go," Rande says and we nod.

At the entrance of the Dansstroom, we say our goodbyes to each other.

"Tomorrow we are leaving at first light," Rande says to Klein and she nods.

We only have one short day left with her…

Then we return to our room at the inn and go to sleep.

"Gih."

Gify wakes us up at exactly midday. We've only had about six hours of sleep, so we are still feeling a little tired.

Feeling oddly "full" down there, we go down to have our breakfast/lunch.

The first proper meal of the new year is composed of simple bread sandwiches with some veggies and cold meat cuts, and some hot, energetic not-earl-grey tea.

"So, what are we doing today?" Klein asks, excitedly.

"Today is your last day with us, so let's… enjoy it?" Hana says and shrugs.

"Hm…" Klein hums and nods, a little tense.

"Is there anything you want to do with us?" I ask.

"No, nothing specific. I just… want to spend some time having fun." She gives us a pretty and youthful smile, then hurriedly adds, "Not partying, though, I've had enough of that for a few days."

"How about we just take a walk through the streets?" Roxanne suggests and smirks.

"Some shopping would be nice…" Ciel adds, casually.

"I'd like to buy a gem for Klein. Spread that to the other girls without warning her," I say through [Bind].

"Understood," Alissa says.

"Hm," Hana grunts in agreement.

"Okay," Aoi says.

"Then we can make a stop in the parks to rest," Alissa adds.

"Sure," I say and we leave.

Most of the town has a hangover, so it's much quieter and more idyllic today. The industry is taking a rest, but not the relaxing entertainment.

Taking the opportunity presented by the calm and empty streets, the tea shops moved to occupy them with chairs and tables shaded by parasols. We have a quick refreshing snack with cold tea in one of them and then move on.

We fit and buy a few more clothes. The extra income that Lina got from me selling my body was quite nice. It actually pays more than hunting monsters, which makes me think that the brothel idea isn't such a bad one.

We see a small play in the open about Ajax's Rise. It's about the time period spanning the first emperor's childhood and goes until his ascension to king.

We pull out our chairs and sit down in the middle of the street. A good amount of children and their adult parents sit down in front of the stage and happily wait for the play to start.

The imperial puppet master introduces himself as Vardo and starts the prologue. "Ajax was a young orphan, a child born in the underworld of Mac Gantus, which at the time was the Capital of the Domum Kingdom. Below the city, there was a huge, sprawling dungeon where monsters of all types, sizes, and horrors would roam.

"Before he was even aware of himself, he was already level two! Have any of you children killed a goblin yet?" He dramatically scans the audience by turning his head around.

One or two of the children, the ones with visibly better clothing, proudly raise their hands. A few others yell that a goblin had been killed in front of them, but they've never used a weapon before.

Vardo nods then disappears behind a black curtain and his face reappears on top of the stage, now covered in a white powder giving him the look of a mime. Then a small puppet of an olive-skinned boy appears from behind the curtains, holding a bloodied mini-dagger.

"Ajax didn't have the luxury to kill a tied up goblin, no. He killed them himself!" A puppet of a small goblin appears and snarls at the children, who all snarl back.

"Ajax was almost savage, such was his will to live." The puppet of Ajax launches towards the goblin and actually cuts it into ribbons. Its movements are far too precise for puppetry, so magic must be involved.

"And Ajax's hunger was unparalleled to others his age." The puppet then kneels in front of the goblin while Vardo makes exaggerated munching movements and sounds. The children make sounds of disgust and fake barfing.

"But he wasn't fully alone." Ajax's puppet produces a bloodied bag and walks to the other side of the stage, where a puppet of a small imperial girl waits.

The puppet girl produces an actual flame from her hands and Ajax pulls out a stick with a bloody piece of goblin meat. "His sister, Iris, was the only light of his life, almost literally. Together, they somehow managed to live inside the dungeon for years.

"And he actually grew strong enough to take on orcs by himself." Ajax's puppet now pulls a mini-sword and has a bloody fight with the puppet of an orc. Both puppets cut each other up and red stuffing comes out.

The children cheer when the orc is finally decapitated and a large amount of red stuffing comes out of it.

"In every sense of the word, Ajax was a barbarian, and his sister, a witch." The puppet of the little girl lifts a branch, and purple and green smoke flows from it. The colored smoke then envelops the orc, who starts to make pig-like cries of pain.

The boys whisper and the girls clap.

"What's a witch?" I ask.

"Mages that never use the system. Almost always women since our wombs make us naturally attuned to magic. They are not very strong, but their magic is always unpleasant to be around," Ciel answers.

Vardo continues, "Then, when they grew enough to be considered a man and a woman, they finally found an exit out of the dungeon." The puppets change into new ones of a "Conan the Barbarian" and a black-robed "witch." Around them, the background changes into that of a town full of sparkling details.

"Ooh…" The children mutter in wonder.

"But the beautiful sight only enraged Ajax."

Vardo's voice changes completely, now he sounds like a young man with a cracking voice that's just started to drop. "What is this?! A city of gold and silver atop the dreary and empty corridors?! A city of indolent and wealthy people atop the home of the desperate and poor?! And you people dare to call me weak?! I'll show you all who's weak!" His expression matches his voice and he almost looks like someone completely different.

Then Vardo's voice returns to normal. "Ajax and his sister decided to return to the dungeon, deeply indignant at the childhood that was denied to them. Within, they united their fellow orphans into a battalion of heavily trained boys and girls who could comfortably live inside the dungeon." Ajax and Iris are then surrounded by smaller puppets, all armored and armed with swords.

"Then he brought them to the surface and opened a guild, the first Monster Hunter guild." He raises a large building with the guild's symbol of a crossed fang and sword hanging in the front.

Ajax's puppet draws his sword and Vardo changes his tone again. "I shall protect the weak, not steal from them. I shall train them and give them a chance to grow. If they still aren't good enough to fight, then I'll shelter them while they pay in whatever way they can. The strong shall protect the weak! And the weak shall support the strong!"

Alissa's eyes almost shine as she listens to the puppet with pride. "That's the reason I live, to support," she whispers to me.

I can't pat her head because both my hands are occupied, so I just squeeze her thigh.

Vardo's tone returns to normal. "But that guild grew too much, too fast. The sibling duo was too powerful and their methods were too effective. The God-King ordered the guild to be dismantled, as his power cannot be challenged and a mere commoner's life is worth very little to him."

Ajax and Iris are suddenly surrounded by soldier puppets wearing shining armor. The soldiers raise their swords and throw them away, then they kneel in front of the siblings.

"Tired of the old ways of the God-Rulers, the town guards decided to help the siblings escape."

Ajax grabs one of the swords and slaps one the guards with the flat of the blade, making the children giggle. Then he throws the sword back at the guard and says, "I won't run away! If the God-Rulers want to resist change, then I shall break them! They are no Gods, they are mere mortals who have grown too comfortable on their thrones of gold! OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!"

The puppet guards grab their swords and repeat in unison, "OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!"

That's some impressive vocalization.

"OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!" The children repeat with glee.

The revolutionary siblings lead an army of puppet soldiers and the gold and silver of the city melts down as flames burn the background.

The children gasp as Ajax cuts down puppet after puppet and Iris burns them down with her magic.

"No benefit will ever be handed to you! Seize your destiny! Make the change happen now!" Vardo yells as he cuts down his enemies.

The burning town is left behind and a grand palace starts to appear. The puppets walk up the spiral stairs for a long time before they finally reach a palace of gold.

Vardo's face morphs into that of a decrepit old man. "BARBARIANS!" The puppet king yells and Vardo makes spit fly. Some children giggle and the others make sounds of disgust. "You dare oppose me?! DIE!"

The God-Ruler throws a flashy spell, but Iris' magic stops it in place, then unravels it harmlessly.

Ajax points his sword at the God-King. "You've grown too weak, too slothful. The God-Rulers of old would erase me from existence with just a glance. You shame the true God-Rulers, the nearly perfect existences who killed Ender."

The God-King takes a step back and trips on his own regal robe. "No, no, no, NO, NOO~-…"

Ajax cuts off the head of the God-King and Iris melts his golden throne. The children holler and clap at the special effects. It's actually really impressive.

Ajax turns to his men and says, "I am no God-King. I'm merely a ruler, a king. I am no better than any of you until the God of Change deems it so by their holy self!"

They walk down the spiral stairs and see the new town being built: one of stone and concrete instead of gold and silver, but still beautiful nonetheless.

Ajax walks up onto a podium with his sister beside him and his voice echoes through the street, "Today the Domum Kingdom falls and the Avgi Empire rises!"

A flash of light nearly blinds us as Ajax's sword glows, then he sinks it into the podium and all the puppets disperse into smoke. The children and the adults all clap, very satisfied with the show.

The curtains close and Vardo leaves his place on the top of the stage. He reappears on the ground as a normal wrinkly old man and bows, extending his open hat to the audience. We pull out a few silver coins and Lina throws them into the hat along with a flurry of bronze coins.

"Oof! A little heavy for my old body," Vardo says and straightens, holding his hat close to his chest. "Not really complaining, though. I am humbled by your generosity. Now, the next show will start soon. It's Ajax's Conquest!"

Watching more would be nice, but Klein wants to continue walking.

Hana and I squish Klein between us as we skip along the street. Gify nestles on top of her head and makes her freeze for a good ten seconds in awe.

"Oh Gods, did, did, did, did I get chosen?" She asks.

"Gih."

Klein's feelings suddenly flood inside of me as Gify connects us and I nearly break into a dance. Godsdamnit, she's energetic.

Her heart is a pulsing light that randomly changes into every color of the rainbow, but I can see that the bulb that makes up the LED of her heart is brittle. She lives in the "now," but if the "now" slaps her in the face too hard, she's going to fall on the ground and break.

Silent tears run along Klein's cheek, her excitement from before is all gone. She stands still and we both stop to observe her. With just a mental nudge, Hana and I each give her hand a kiss at the same time.

"What is it?" I ask.

"Your feelings are so intense that… I don't think that I deserve this," she answers with a weak voice.

"We'll decide what you deserve from us ourselves, thank you very much," Hana states, matter-of-factly.

Klein nods weakly and we start to walk again, but she's too overwhelmed with her emotions to return to her truly cheery self.

We spend the rest of the afternoon drawing out Klein's energy again. She cries a little more but she does become cheery again. Then we stop in front of a jewelry shop.

"Oh…" She mutters, eyes open wide and tail frozen in the air.

"Yes," I say and push her inside.

The girls take a look at the gems, but nobody wants anything, so we let Klein run wild. I approach a vendor with Aoi while Alissa helps Klein choose.

"Aoi, pull out your gem," I ask.

The female elven vendor's eyes nearly pop out of her skull when Aoi pulls out her Azurite gem with a *poof*. The necklace she has is too short; it'll only fit her when she's small.

"I'd like a larger silver necklace for this gem," I say and Aoi looks at me curiously. While the vendor goes to grab the cushion with the chains, I whisper to Aoi, "Pick one that will fit you when you're Hana's size."

"Ooh…" She mutters and her tail scratches her head under the scales.

She quickly picks out a wheat chain and the vendor goes to fit her gem on the new necklace.

Alissa and a blushing Klein come over with a small round sea-blue zircon. It's smaller than ours, but it's still beautiful.

"It's too beautiful…" Klein complains.

"Another complaint and I'll pinch your ass," Alissa says and throws a mischievous glance towards Klein.

"Fine…" Klein relents.

My little monkey then chooses a metal necklace painted in the same color as the gem.

"You look beautiful," I say and run my hand along her chest, where the chain touches her skin.

"You look hot," Hana says and kisses the back of her neck.

Klein giggles a little and gets a little more emotive. "Thank you," she says shyly while blushing.

With everyone wearing gems (even Aoi decides to wear hers), we strut down the street like we own the place. We are all high-class mofos who hold all the power of the world in our hands.

We'll seize our destiny! Bow to us, commoners, the Hero is passing through!

After fooling around a little more, the sun starts to set and it's time to go back.

"You know what this means, right?" Hana asks with a fearsome smile.

"My body is ready," I answer and give her a confident smile.