Calvin POV

After my greeting, Grandma Linda asked us to help clean the house as she went to buy more groceries for tonight's dinner, she got Duke to go with her too, so it just left us 3. I told David to not share that he's from the future secret and only tell her of us needing to find a holy sword here and how we now plan on fighting some strong demon as I don't want to worry her. We'll be staying here for at least a week, we have no information on this sword, I've lived here for more than a decade, and I haven't heard of anything like that.

It took about an hour, but she then returned with more groceries. I asked whether I could just teleport her to the market, but she always declined as she said she enjoyed the process. She didn't even wash up as she started to prep as soon as she got home, and just like Rose, she slapped my hand away as soon as I tried to help.

"Leah, how are the other 2?" Grandma asked her.

"Oh, they're doing well, Astrid is just as energetic as ever." Leah answered, "Last night, she said that she was here with rose about 2 months ago."

"They were, unlike someone." she then glared in my direction, "They sometimes take their break here instead of staying at an inn and constantly traveling."

"I told you-"

"I know, you don't have to keep repeating yourself, they might need your help blah blah blah. Did the royal capital ever let up their punishment on you yet?"

From what David said, it's going to be the same all those years later, I'm afraid that it's permanent, not that I care, my job is to eliminate ghosts, and it doesn't matter what rank I am. The lower-ranked ghosts are rarely picked up compared to the higher-ranked ones anyway.

"Putting a sword to the crown heir comes with its price."

"It would have been better if you had gone through with it, that guy deserved it." she grumbled.

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"I would recommend asking Henry. He's the eldest here, so he might know something, but I wouldn't get my hopes up." Grandma said as she was washing the dishes, "I don't know where you got your information, but the chances of finding a holy sword here are very unlikely."

"I was thinking of the same thing, maybe we can also visit Leah's dad, it could be just nearby and not necessarily here."

"Her dad lives near the volcano?" David asked.

"He moved in with my mother-in-law into her dwarven town, it's about a few days' walk from here."

"Did he tell you how they met?" Grandma asked David, who shook his head.

"Well, her mother's town is...unique. Very old-fashioned and very barbaric, even for Dwarven standards. They're big on traditions, and Leah was chosen by lottery to be a prize for a tournament. Calvin joined that tournament because one of the prizes that year was a cursed sword."

"That's how you two met?!" David exclaimed as his eyes widened.

"You're not going to ask about the fact that they put a 17-year-old girl up as a prize?" I interjected.

"Wait, what's the age difference between you two?" David asked.

"She's three years older than me. I was 14 at the time."

"The funniest part? They got married and divorced all in the same day." Grandma chuckled.

"Yeah, I'm probably still banned from that town for, uh, publicly disrespecting their traditions. But hey, I got the sword. And technically, we did get married."

"You introduced them to the concept of divorce," Leah added, "They were so shocked by it that they made a law where whoever initiates the divorce has to be hunted by the other for a week."

David just stared at us, completely baffled. I couldn't really blame him.

"Did Leah hunt you down?" he asked.

"She tried, her dad helped too, but it didn't really work. She then left the town and said that she wouldn't return until she got her honor back. She sorta did by us marrying in the end, but I'm going to have to rely on you to go there, I'd rather not antagonize them any further. So tomorrow, you can go and ask around with Leah, I'll check around the volcano to see if something comes up. I'll teleport you there and I'll bring you back in time for dinner."

"Are you sure you don't want to meet my parents?" Leah asked, "My dad likes you now."

"Why didn't you bring the other 2 here?" Grandma asked, "You can just teleport them back tomorrow."

"I asked, but they wanted to explore the nightlife of our new home more and get some new clients, so it's just Leah for now."

"Bring them next time, as much as I hate you having 3 wives, you picked the right ones. I always wonder what they see in you."

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*Flashback*

Leah POV

The crowd roared in excitement as the fights went on, but all I felt was cold fury. My name had been drawn, and my fate was decided without my say. I was reduced to a prize to be won by strangers. It was insulting. My father stood among the dwarves, arms crossed, nodding approvingly as though this was an honor. Typical. An elf who clung so tightly to dwarven traditions, yet barely acknowledged the part of me that came from him. My mother, on the other hand, stood near the edge of the crowd. She didn't cheer, but she didn't fight for me either.

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I tightened my grip on the spear hidden behind the platform. They might have chosen me, but they wouldn't keep me. Once this ridiculous tournament was over, I'd challenge the winner myself. I'd fight for my freedom. If I had to spill blood to make my point, so be it.

Each round brought a victor closer to claiming me. I clenched my fists, the humiliation burning hot in my veins. I wasn't some trophy to sit on a shelf. I was a warrior, stronger than most of the fools swinging their weapons around in that pit.

Finally, the tournament ended. The crowd erupted into cheers as the final victor was declared. My heart sank as I caught sight of the winner, it was a scrawny human boy, no older than 14. My initial outrage morphed into confusion. How had he managed to win? His opponents towered over him, and yet here he was, standing victorious, clutching the cursed sword that was supposedly part of his prize.

He barely glanced at me as he approached the event organizer. I expected arrogance, gloating, and maybe even a smug grin. Instead, he spoke quietly, his voice cutting through the noise around us.

"I'd like to claim the sword," he said firmly, "and... I'm going to need a divorce."

The crowd fell into stunned silence. Even the event organizer looked baffled.

"A...divorce?" he asked, "May I ask what that is?"

"Oh, so you said that the winner is automatically married to that girl over there, right?"

"Yes?"

"Well, I would like for us to go our separate ways, I only joined for the sword. I'll marry her and join the wedding party if that's part of the rules, but I'm not keeping her."

It took me a moment to process what I'd just heard. Was he rejecting me? Before I'd even had a chance to challenge him for my freedom? I felt my face flush with outrage. Now, this random human boy was dumping me before I could even reject him?

No. Absolutely not. I wasn't the one who got dumped. If anyone was walking away from this, it was going to be me.

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*Present time*

Ah, good times. Fortunately, my parents have apologized for not fighting for me then. Dad even apologized, recovering our relationship ship. The next morning, Calvin opened up the portal for my hometown and I made my way to my parents' home. I wasn't particularly eager to face them, but it had been a while since I'd visited. Plus, I couldn't ignore the nagging feeling that seeing them might bring some clarity after everything that had happened recently. The streets were quiet, unusually so.

Where are the morning drinkers with their breakfast beers?

When I arrived home, my mother was the first to greet me. Her brown hair was now streaked with hints of silver now, framed her face, which was etched with worry. As soon as she saw me, her shoulders relaxed, and a small smile broke through her tension.

"Leah," she said, pulling me into a tight embrace, "You're safe."

"Of course I'm safe," I replied, taken aback by her relief.,"Why wouldn't I be?"

My father joined us, his usual stoic demeanor cracking just enough to reveal a flicker of the same emotion.

"It's good to see you..." he said but the way he lingered made me feel...off.

I stepped back, crossing my arms as I glanced between the two of them.

"Alright, what's going on? You're acting strange. Oh, this is my husband's new...friend?"

"Yeah, friend sounds good." David replied.

"It's the ghosts," my mother said softly, "There's been... a mass gathering of them nearby. It's been a nightmare."

"Ghosts?" I repeated, "What do you mean by a mass gathering?"

"Exactly what it sounds like," my father cut in, "They've been appearing in large numbers, more than we've ever seen before. It's been relentless."

Of course, the dwarves would have the hardest time. Without magic, they couldn't harm ghosts in any meaningful way. And while their physical strength was unmatched, it didn't do much good against spirits that couldn't be touched.

"We've had some help, thankfully," my mother continued. "Two phoenixes are staying with us, and they've been keeping the worst of it at bay. Another one is supposed to arrive soon. We're managing, but it's still...difficult."

"I tried chipping in since I do have enough mana to be an exorcist, but there's been too many, so I've been told to rest." Dad added.

My chest tightened at the thought. Dwarves, for all their resilience, were completely vulnerable to this kind of threat. But something about what she was saying wasn't sitting right with me. I then asked them to start listing the types of ghosts in the gathering, but it didn't make sense at all. That was strange. Ghosts tended to stick to their own types, a gathering like this, with such diverse entities, didn't happen naturally.

"There could be a leader." David suggested after he saw me pondering, "But the ones that can do that are demons."

"There are rumors of it, but there's no evidence to support it." Dad responded.

Evolved ghosts, the demons...they're usually classified as S-ranked ghosts and are very rare, so it is indeed unlikely. The Severance we met the other day, and the gathering of ghosts...are the ghosts getting more powerful and intelligent?

"David, with your...you know, specific knowledge, has such an event ever happened before?"

"If it had, I would have heard of it." he answered, "This is a first for this area, but I can't be too sure, I might need to study the surrounding area a bit. A gathering like that shouldn't be here...but why?"

"Dad, is there a way you can get a guide for David? His knowledge can help us, and you know how strong Calvin is, he'll help out."

"Sure, I'll go get your uncle, honey, please entertain our guest, I'll be back in a jiffy." Dad said as he bent down to kiss my mom.

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Calvin POV

As advised by Grandma, I went to visit Henry, our local librarian who happened to be the eldest phoenix around, and also the wisest. Sitting behind the desk was Henry, the librarian. In his human form, he looked like a fragile old man with slightly wrinkled skin and his orange hair is now turning white in some areas. Henry wasn't just old; he was ancient, nearly 300 years by his own admission.

"Fledgling," he greeted, "What brings you here? Have you finally decided to appreciate the value of knowledge instead of gallivanting around?"

"Why do you people keep using that word? Gallivanting...ugh."

"You people? I never taught you to be a racist."

"You never taught me anything...It's good to see you too, Henry."

"I doubt you're here just to catch up. Speak."

"I need information on a holy sword. I've got a reliable source that said there's one here." I said as I approached the counter and leaned slightly against it, "But as you know, I never found one."

"I did tell you to not even attempt it. But I've been the keeper of this library for nearly two centuries, and I can't say a holy sword has come up in conversation or record during that time. Are you certain your source isn't mistaken?"

"They're not."

"Hm. You're serious about this."

"I wouldn't be here if I wasn't."

"You not reacting to our nickname for you is quite telling."

"I don't even know why you call me that, I'm not even the youngest."

"Oh, we call them, hatchlings."

"I know the lingo, but focus on the sword please."

"Holy swords aren't exactly common, fledgling. If one were here, it would be documented somewhere."

"Then maybe the records are incomplete." I suggested which earned me a stern look

"Incomplete? My records? Do you think I've spent three lifetimes preserving this knowledge for someone like you to accuse me of negligence?" he snorted, "Even my mentor mentioned nothing of the sort."

"I'm not accusing anyone. I'm just saying...maybe it slipped through the cracks."

"Nothing slips through my cracks, boy."

"Woah, phrasing."

"But it can explain why there's been a gathering of ghosts lately."

"What do you mean?"

"In your girlfriend's town, you know, the elf girl...there's been a mass gathering of ghosts there that's being dealt with. The presence of a holy sword might attract ghosts, after all, so your source might have some truth in it. It can be there, but I've been there many times, I've sense nothing of the sorts."

"Tell me more about this gathering."