Chapter 20 - New Method
The morning dawned bright and cheerful, mirroring Lilly’s mood. She sprang from her bed, her excitement bubbling as she dressed, eager to share with Gramps the details of her conversation with her mother.
She knew he would be in the bakery, so she did a quick check in the mirror before heading downstairs. Light as a feather, Lilly descended the stairs, so caught up in her lightness that she failed to notice the ethereal wisps of flame dancing behind her.
Gramps was working on some fluffy dough when she came down, and looked up at her with a warm smile. But it quickly turned into a bit of shock when he saw the flames following her. “Lilly! The flames!” He exclaimed, pointing behind her.
“Huh?” Lilly quickly turned around, worried about something in the kitchen burning. ‘Oh!’ she thought, seeing the flames following her, only now remembering her new powers. ‘I need to calm down. Maybe... Hey, flames, stay hidden unless I call for you, okay?’ She thought, hoping the flames were as good at understanding orders as they were at following them.
They disappeared right after she gave the command, so it seemed to work. ‘This is really handy honestly. Could… could the flames perform enchanting if I told them to?’ She wondered, seeing a new hope for her enchantress status.
“You need to be careful Lilly, those things should not be seen. And more importantly, they should not be burning down the bakery either.” Gramps said after she had gotten them under control.
“Sorry Gramps, I totally forgot. But I saw Mom again!” She explained excitedly, hoping he would understand her aloofness.
“Really? Did you have a proper talk this time?” Gramps asked, now also excited.
“Yeah, we had a proper meeting! We hugged so much, and it was so great!” She walked over to give him a nice warm hug. “This is from her, she told me to give you a big hug.”
Overwhelmed by emotion, Gramps’ eyes brimmed with tears, and he soon found himself sobbing, his feelings too intense to contain.
“Uwaah, I’m so happy!” He barely got out between a few sobs.
Lilly understood him well, it took her a long time to handle all the emotions as well, and she hadn’t been any less overwhelmed in the dream. They stood there for a while, Lilly more composed than he was, but still letting some tears fall.
He eventually calmed down enough to ask questions. “Was she fine, did she seem fine?” was the first one.
“She was great even, hadn’t aged a day. I would be able to see her more in the future as well.” Lilly responded.
They separated the hug, and Gramps sat down on one of the chairs in the kitchen. He seemed like he needed to sit.
After a moment, Gramps regained some composure. “Lilly, how is she able to meet you like this?” he asked, curiosity lacing his voice.
“It has to do with the Vermilion Flame. It seems like she can use her bloodline to visit people in their dreams. She has visited you as well, but unless you have the amulet and flame it doesn’t seem like you can communicate clearly.”
That made him tear up again. “So she has visited me? It was her all along?”
“Maybe not every time, but probably a few of your dreams of her would actually be her, yes.” Lilly told him, knowing how much it meant to him.
“Oh dear, oh dear. I’m so happy Lilly.” He told her, and he really seemed happier than Lilly had ever seen him before.
“She started visiting a bit less after a while, since she could tell it hurt you. But I told her she could go ahead again after I tell you this.”
A soft smile touched Gramps’ lips. “She’s always been so kind... Now, even if I can't be sure, each morning I'll have this hope to hold onto,” he murmured, a newfound anticipation for sleep in his eyes. “What about her mother?”
“Oh, I didn’t ask much about her, sorry. But I think it would be the same for her, if she visits you once in a while.” Lilly said, a bit sorry she hadn’t asked more about her grandmother. Lilly hadn’t been very old when she died, so she didn’t have too much of a connection with her.
“Yeah, she still does. Huh…” At first, his expression was serene, but a faint blush soon crept across his cheeks, hinting at memories of dreams he seemed reluctant to share with Lilly.
“Uh, what about your father then?” He asked, subtly changing the subject.
“He was fine, she said. Only people with the vermilion blood can visit dreams, so I won’t be able to see him, at least for a while…”
“Oh, Lilly. A good long while I should hope. But I’m sorry.” He said, looking apologetic.
“No, it’s fine. I’m just happy to know they’re both… not fine I guess, but… there.” Lilly said, thinking about how they weren’t alive exactly. But they existed in some form, and that was better than the alternative.
“Did she tell you what happened to them?” Gramps asked, looking a bit nervous for the answer.
“Oh, yeah. They met a poison hydra in the forest. Just bad luck it seems.”
"Just bad luck..." His voice trailed off, a shadow of sorrow clear on his face. Lilly watched him, noting the subtle tightening of his jaw, a telltale sign of his deep, unspoken feelings about the past.
“Oh well, I guess that’s the sort of thing that can happen when you’re an adventurer.” He said, quickly turning his mood and looking at her with a self-righteous sort of smile.
“I know Gramps, you’ve made your point more than clear.” She said, hoping he would stop trying to win an argument with her former self.
“Is there anything else you'd like to share?” Gramps inquired, a note of satisfaction in his tone, reassured that Lilly understood the perils that came with adventuring.
“Nothing important I think. She told me a bit about my flame, and something about ancestors coming to visit me sometime in the future. And she’s bad at giving advice.” Lilly responded, thinking back to the dream and everything her mother had said.
“Huh, well, that’s good. Not the bad advice part, but it’s good you’ll be getting some help with understanding this power of yours.”
“Yeah, I’m looking forward to that. I wanted to test something now though, I might have found a way to enchant again.” She said excitedly.
“Oh, really? Then you should go ahead, Lilly. I’ll be keeping the bakery open today, so you’ll have to manage without me.” He said, a bit jokingly.
“Don’t worry, Gramps,” Lilly reassured with a confident smile. “I’ve gained much more control now.”
“Should I remind you of how you came down here?” He asked with a smile.
“That– that was just because I was excited!” She said defensively.
“Hahah, I know Lilly, I’m sure you have it under control,” he said, his laughter warm and affectionate.
She left him alone after that, leaving to find some old material and to visit Eolande for some experimenting.
----------------------------------------
A bit later in the day, Lilly was sitting in the enchanting room with Eolande, having explained most things that happened since the last time they talked.
“I still can’t believe the afterlife is a real thing, that’s such great news Lilly.” Eolande said, seeming very excited about the chance to see the people she’s lost over the years again after she passes.
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
“Yeah, I thought people would be aware of it since it can be proven. But maybe it’s very hard to contact it in any way, and my Vermilion Flame is one of the few ways to do it.” Lilly reasoned, thinking the flame could be special even compared to other great powers in the world.
Lilly carefully prepared a dagger from Eolande’s collection, selecting it for a sharpness enchantment – an experiment driven by curiosity. She was finishing the rune right now, only using the one for ‘sharp’.
“There, now I need to try this. I’m not sure how to approach it honestly, so I guess I’ll just try something.” She was able to sense the dagger and the direwolf tooth using the flame, but the next part of the spell was impossible.
“Good luck Lilly, I don’t have any advice unfortunately. Powers following instructions sound incredible, and you’ll have to figure it out on your own.” Eolande said from the side, watching intently.
Lilly started the process, first trying to think ‘enchant the dagger’. The flame seemed to do something, but it didn’t do anything to the tooth, so it must have been a failure. She held the dagger, feeling some type of heat and power from it, but she wasn’t sure what it was.
“Elly, do you sense some kind of power from this dagger?”
“Yeah, it feels hot. Very hot even. Do you want to test its cutting power or something?”
“Sure, uh, is it too hot for you to hold it?” Lilly asked, wondering if she would have to test it.
“I think so, unless you have one of the flame-resistant bracelets left I’ll have to leave it to you. You can use this wood– no that’s a bad idea. I’ll go get some metal for you to test it.” Eolande figured cutting wood with a dagger this hot would be a bad idea, so she left to find something else.
Lilly sat there holding the dagger, thinking about what she could try doing next time, to make the system from the tooth fuse with it next time. ‘Maybe if I try asking it to bring the threads from the tooth? Or maybe just ask it to make a sharpness enchantment. Do I have to specify the self-sustaining mana-drain of the enchantment as well?’
“Here you go, Lilly,” Eolande said, coming back with a metal ladle she could try cutting.
“You have too many ladles?” Lilly asked, thinking it seemed like a shame to ruin a nice tool like that.
"No, but that one misbehaved during a brew, so it deserves it," Eolande replied with a slight smirk, her tone light but her eyes still fixed on the dagger in Lilly's hand.
Lilly accepted that reason, taking the ladle in her left hand and preparing to cut it. The dagger slid through the ladle like butter, with nearly no resistance.
“Wow, that’s sharp. Or hot? Maybe both. Either way, cutting iron like this is no problem. I think the enchantment will go away soon though, it has no way to sustain itself.” Lilly thought out loud, letting Eolande hear her reasoning.
“That could be really useful, but I guess you don’t care much about cutting things. Enchanting something permanently is definitely better.” Eolande added her thoughts. “Oh, I think the enchantment ended. The heat disappeared.”
Lilly noticed it as well, feeling the heat dissipate from the shaft she was holding. Determination flickered in her eyes. “Time for another attempt,” she announced, her voice steady with resolve.
She put the dagger on the table again, preparing another attempt. She focused intently, directing her thoughts at the Vermilion Flame. ‘Dear Flame, could you transfer the sharpness essence from that tooth into the dagger, and integrate a self-sustaining mana-drain mechanism using any residual mana?’ She aimed for precision in her mental instructions, curious about the extent of her powers.
The flame got to work, slowly bringing threads from the tooth to the dagger. “It’s working! I think it’s working, Elly.” Lilly exclaimed, recognizing the process she had performed many times before.
“That’s great Lilly! But be careful with the power, it’s just a steel dagger.” Eolande said, excited but wary about the probable explosion coming up.
“I’ll get under the table if it finishes, don’t worry Elly.” Lilly said to ease her worries.
The process took a few minutes as usual, so the flames didn’t seem to speed up the process much. But it did finish, and the dagger started draining mana like usual. Lilly got under the table, expecting the dagger to be ruined due to excess power.
And as expected, there was a muffled pop from the top of the table soon after. Lilly could sense some excess mana flowing slowly from the table, although most of it would be absorbed for future use. She got up to see the remains of the dagger.
“Wow, that formation really does a good job, Elly.” Lilly saw the dagger had split into many smaller pieces, but all of them formed the original shape without having moved at all from the force. “Aaaah, I can still enchant!” Lilly exclaimed, her voice soaring with triumph. She began to hop around the room, her movements brimming with uncontained joy.
Eolande chuckled, her eyes twinkling with mirth. “I’m so glad, Lilly. Seems like you won’t need to rely on those flames for combat to prove your worth, after all.”
“It would be too easy doing simple combat like you ‘adventurers’ do, so it’s for the best I think.” Lilly shot back, thinking she might be too powerful in combat with the flames.
“I like the confidence, Lilly, but you shouldn’t underestimate people. Even a simple elf like me could take you out pretty easily as you are now.”
“Oh, ‘a simple elf’ are you? Mom said you were the strongest adventurer in the city, so you won’t fool me.” Lilly said, hoping to learn a bit more about her actual prowess.
“I’m flattered she thought so highly of me, but that’s ages ago. I’m sooo much older now than I was 10 years ago.” She said, still joking obviously.
“Avoid telling me how strong you are then, I don’t care,” Lilly said, caring.
“You really want to know, Lilly? Or is it enough that I can protect you from almost anything?” Eolande asked, a bit more seriously now.
“I am curious, honestly. Mom said you aren’t as strong as Lady Selene, but that you would beat her in combat due to role advantages.”
“Well, that’s probably accurate. I’m far from confident in an actual confrontation against her though, so don’t provoke her please.” Eolande said, seeming to be telling the truth now.
Lilly nodded, a playful yet sincere smile gracing her lips. “Alright, Elly. I’ll do my best to steer clear of that scenario.” Lilly smiled at her, happy she could be relied on for so much.
Eolande looked at her for a bit, seemingly unsure about what to say. “Did you get enough hugs in your dream to last a while, Lilly?”
Lilly looked back at her, wondering if Eolande felt a bit unsure of her role now that Lilly sort of had her mother back in her life. She couldn’t have that. “Elly, could I trouble you for a hug or two? Or perhaps, a thousand?”
“Oh, well, I guess it can’t be helped then. Come here you.” Eolande said, approaching Lilly with a more genuine smile and open arms. Lilly did the same, and a warm hug followed. As they embraced, Lilly inhaled Eolande's faint, nature-like scent. They hugged for a while before separating, but then Lilly was captured again, forced into another hug.
“Only 998 left.” Eolande said, with a sweet voice.
“Hah, oh, uhh… Could we maybe spread those over a longer period of time, Elly?” Lilly asked, understanding now what she had gotten herself into.
“Okay, after this one.” Eolande replied, holding it a bit longer.
“Dream hugs aren’t quite as nice as these ones after all, I think.” Lilly said, hoping to get Eolande back in her normal good mood.
“I knew it! I’ll have to give you as many as before, then.” Eolande said happily.
“I won't have the chance to see her often, Elly. So, I’m afraid you're still stuck with your hug duties.”
“That’s fine, it’s why you hired me after all.” She said, responding to the joke with a smile. “What about the enchantment though? It seemed to be even stronger than before somehow.”
“Yeah, It’s a shame we couldn’t get any measurements or testing done. I’m a bit nervous about the necklaces if I don’t know how much capacity is required now.” Lilly said, thinking about the possibility of bursting the electrum necklaces with her new enchantments. ‘Maybe I can adjust the power if I tell the flames to reduce it though.’ Lilly thought, possibly finding a solution to that problem.
“You could use some of my crystals to make sure you won’t break any. We can add one to a necklace before enchanting it, and then we can see if it was used after you finish. If it needed to help the enchantment, then we know it exceeded the capacity of the necklace.” Eolande explained helpfully, bringing up her possible contribution to the process.
“Oh, that would be great, Elly! But won’t that be hard to make?” Lilly asked, thinking about the requirements of crystal creation.
“I already made a few you can use. For a small electrum necklace an orange crystal should be more than enough to double the capacity, and those are easy to make,” Eolande said reassuringly. She seemed a bit proud of her ability, and for all Lilly knew she had good reason to be.
“Perfect then, I think I’ll just come over tomorrow with Mia and the necklaces,” Lilly said, thinking of the full moon tomorrow.
“Bringing girls home already, Lilly?” Eolande said, teasing her a bit.
“Hah, good one, Elly. Very– that’s top of the line that is, right there. Really good, honestly.” Lilly said, not willing to admit she actually found it funny.
“I knew you’d love it, Lilly. You can leave now.” Eolande responded, only seeming a bit reluctant to let her go without a hug.
Lilly went in for a hug anyways, feeling she had to for the sake of her mistake earlier. “That makes 997 to go,” Lilly whispered, a gentle smile on her lips as she released the hug and stepped back, before taking her leave.
Lilly felt grateful that Eolande was willing to do so much for her, but she had to admit it seemed strange for such a powerful adventurer with such a long life to suddenly take a liking to her. ‘Was it just happenstance, or does she know more about my family and its inheritance than I do? She didn’t have a particularly strong reaction to me telling her about the flames, but the amulet might have given her a clue about my abilities already…’
Lilly hated suspecting Eolande like this, but after the ordeal with Gramps fooling her she had become a bit less trusting. ‘She definitely cares for me, but there might be some reason behind that care beyond what I know.’ Lilly didn’t care too much either way, oddly enough, but she was a bit suspicious thinking back to how everything developed. ‘I guess there’s no use worrying about it, if she is hiding something I’m sure she will tell me eventually,’ Lilly concluded, satisfied knowing Eolande cared deeply about her either way.
Her mind then drifted to Mia, and a different kind of flutter stirred in her stomach – a blend of excitement and nerves that was both exhilarating and daunting. ‘Seeing Mia tomorrow... it’s the first time we meet as a couple,’ she reflected, the thought igniting a warm glow within her. It was a refreshing contrast to the web of uncertainties with Eolande. With Mia, things felt simpler, brighter – a budding relationship full of promise and the thrill of the unknown. ‘I wonder what tomorrow will bring,’ Lilly thought, a smile creeping onto her lips as she envisioned Mia's face, feeling a surge of anticipation for the moments they would share.