After leaving the Golden Dragon Archipelago, their trip to Boothudurn went by in a flash. When the group arrived at the Farmer's Delight, some of the people there were surprised by the doorway being activated since they didn't have any records of people going inside. They had to explain what happened and answer a small interrogation that revolved around how they got there without the guild's knowledge and who Adriel was, they were pointed to a hotel. This time, everyone took an individual room. They were not fighting or anything, but after months of sleeping next to each other, everyone wanted a break.

The next morning, they passed by another room which was very simple. Just a long stretch of flat land with some monster cows roaming around and the city in the middle. They considered going there the previous day, but the buses that came and went from the city would no longer be around, and walking would take several hours. After that room, they stopped in Dzviery and slept for the night. Going right away to Boothudurn was an option, but no one wanted to risk getting stuck because they went over the 3 doorway limit.

The city of doorways was already doing very well, and they couldn't even see that this place was attacked less than a year ago. Still, being here only brought bad memories to Hera. Alex also felt extremely guilty. Now that she was no longer cursed, she could tell that what happened was mostly her fault. Going after her journal was stupid, and she had no reason to do so, especially knowing that everything she wrote was still in her mind. What she failed to consider was what would happen if the journal survived and some random person found it. In that case, the curse would spread even more, and the whole struggle to eliminate it would have been for nothing. Despite their feelings, both Hera and Alex were doing surprisingly well considering everything. They were able to have conversations and move around seemingly without any problems, only staring into the distance with a grim expression on two different occasions each, when they passed by either the place where used to be the hotel they stayed at or near the place where Hera killed an elf.

Thankfully, they didn't linger on those places and continued moving to the Kobold Road. So far, they didn't have many problems with the people standing guard. Sure, there was the small interrogation, but it was more about how they managed to go to a room where the other doorway wouldn't be active all the time than anything else. Unfortunately, their luck ran out as they tried to cross. The guard stopped them because of Adriel, and even Hera trying to pull her weight with her silver guild card wasn't enough to let them pass. It took three hours of talking, waiting, and having the same questions asked over and over until they finally let them through. If it wasn't for the fact that one of the superiors who got involved with everything knew Helena personally since she helped him solve a problem he had a few years ago, that could have devolved into something much worse. The group had yet another issue in the kobold road. No one stopped them, not really, but almost all humans were staring at Adriel.

"You know… I've never been on this side of things," Helena said as they walked inside the subway car, and some people walked away from them.

"What do you mean?" Hera turned to the mage.

"I mean, having this kind of thing happen, and I'm not the reason for it," Helena looked around, "It feels… just as bad. In this situation, at least."

"I'm sorry," Adriel frowned and tried using the remains of a scarf to cover his ears, "I should've gotten a hat or something."

"Adriel, if you ever apologize for that again, I am going to hit you," Helena said with a gentle voice.

"Same, and I think I hit harder. If we are not including spells in the mix," Alex replied.

"Thanks," Adriel smiled but quickly stepped behind Mylo as he noticed some stares.

Thankfully that part of the trip didn't take long, and in less than 20 minutes, they were already getting off the station in front of Boothudurn. Despite that, Hera couldn't help but be confused. People were not this paranoid before, the reason should be the increased activity of the Last Line of Defense, but at the same time, it didn't make sense. She couldn't find anything about this 'increased activity,' nothing that should show they are dangerous at least. Sure, there were a few hacks here and but those were only targeting either the guild website, news channels, or streaming services. And there was nothing about getting people's data or anything like that. All they did was stamp their logo on top of everything. That could prove that they had some abilities, but that was it.

Before she could figure something out, they all arrived at the checkpoint outside of the doorway leading to Boothudurn. Just like always, a few of the higher-level dwarves were here, but there were also some guards from the guild just outside the station. They were not being overly aggressive like the ones that tried to stop the group, but their eyes were clearly tracking them.

Either way, Hera focused on the path ahead, greeting the two dwarves who were by the entrance. She didn't know them personally, but they knew about her and hugged the entire party with warm smiles. Telling them to head inside and that they should be tired. Just as she touched the doorway, she heard one of them saying, 'I hope they don't mind the smell.' But the Empress was already frozen by the transfer process.

As soon as she regained control over her body, Hera sniffed herself trying to see if there was any bad smell. Sure, some of her clothes were gone, and her hair needed some care, but she took a shower in Dzviery before leaving, and the entire party grabbed some new clothes. They were still wearing their armor, which needed a good, long cleaning, but they were not smelling that bad, were they?

Walking through the long corridor connecting the doorway to the city proper, Hera realized the dwarves were not talking about her. Instead, about the city. Not because it smelled bad or anything like that, but because there was a pungent smell of flowers and alcohol in the air. As if a truck carrying perfume fell and all the scents mixed together. Adriel sneezed and rubbed his nose as the group saw the corner of the palace on the right and the guild on the left. But more than that, they saw a giant banner with the words 'Welcome Back' written in various colors. Under that cloth, there were also dozens of people. Mostly dwarves, including Rutigan, Fethy, Ogryn, Risli, and even Naka, but also Eridan and Renette, Bonnie's mom, were there, with big smiles on their faces. Seeing her dad, Hera started to run towards the crowd, and that's when Fethy, the Duchess of Culture, noticed the group coming and gestured for the band to start playing.

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"Goldilocks!" Eridan gave his daughter a big hug, tears forming in his eyes, "I'm so glad you are back."

"Sorryfffff it took me so long, grumpy bear."

After a couple of minutes, when the families were reuniting, including Quinn and Helena, the group started greeting the rest of the dwarves.

"Hera, it is lovely to see you well. I never doubted you would come back," Rutigan gave her a hug. Followed by Ogryin, his counselor.

"Me neither, but there were some close calls. We could also have arrived a bit sooner, but we took a small detour to fix a problem," Hera glanced at Alex, who was talking to the Royal Explorers.

"That's good. Being able to do that means you were not in any danger. Now, I'll go talk to the others so you can greet everyone, but I hope I can invite you for dinner maybe at the end of the week? I would love to hear about everything you did," Rutigan continued.

Hera nodded, "Of course. I want to catch up too. There are some… things I would like to know more about," she glanced quickly towards the guild and knew that the King caught her hint.

"It will be my pleasure to give you the rundown of the latest news. Now, if you excuse me, I must say this is a bit too much for me," Rutigan was starting to walk away while rubbing his nose, but Hera couldn't help herself.

"What is this smell, by the way?"

The King glanced to his side, "I don't know what you mean. But I have to go," he quickly walked off, but Ogryn stayed behind, tapping his staff on the ground and creating a small soundproof bubble around him and Hera, and only the two of them. Showing that he was indeed who taught her that spell.

"Because of your mission. The one we tasked the Royal Explorers, Fethy, is… Anxious. Her new way of dealing with this is making perfume, and… well. She doesn't take half measures, nor does she know what moderation is," Ogryn gestured to the side where the duchess was spraying perfume on a few plants that were growing by the sidewalk before she put the bottle in her pocket, noticed Hera and started approaching, "I'll be going now. Try not to mention the smell."

"Got it," the Empress nodded, and Ogryn dropped the spell, vanishing in the crowd. One moment later, Fethy was already by Hera's side.

"Hera!" she opened her arms.

"Fethy!" Hera gave her a big hug, trying not to focus on the smell, "It's so good to see you."

"You two, and I have to thank you. We didn't have any events planned this month. Well, we had, but we had to cancel because of everything going on. It would attract too much attention, apparently. But with you coming back, no one could argue that we should make something special," someone called the duchess from the side, rushing over and whispering something to her, "I apologize, my dear, but the duties of a host never cease. I have to take care of a situation. We'll talk later, yes? I have a gift for you that I'm sure you will love. It's a paradise in your nose."

With that, the dutchess left in a hurry. Ready to solve another problem.

"She really dances to her own tune, doesn't she," a feminine voice came from Hera's side. Turning around, she saw a familiar dwarven woman, but she couldn't quite place her.

"Yeah, she does. But she wasn't like that before I left. I wonder if she needs to talk with someone," Hera replied.

"That's true. I think it's because we toned down our festivals. Now she spends too much time without anything to do," the woman continued.

"That could be it," Hera replied with a frown, still trying to remember who this person was.

The woman chuckled, "You don't know who I am, do you?"

Seeing that she was caught, Hera just nodded, "I'm sorry. I feel like I've seen you before, but I can't figure out where."

"I can't blame you. You only had eyes for my daughter, which I do appreciate, but seeing how you didn't interact with her family, I was sure you two wouldn't last."

"Diesa! I'm so sorry. I didn't realize it was you," Hera gasped.

"Don't worry. Like I said, I know. Again this is not a problem. I just wanted to be here to greet you in place of my daughter. I know she would have wanted that," the woman replied with a sad smile.

"What? What happened to her? Is Silah ok?" Hera's eyes went wide; how Diesa spoke made it seem like Silah was dead.

"Why are you acting like… Oh! No! By the mountain, no! She is fine. It's just. After you vanished, Silah kept complaining about how she knew that would happen and that if the two of you were together, she would have to wait for who knows how long. Then, about a month ago, the guild was having something called a workshop for crafters in a room somewhat far away. Silah decided to go there to study and become a better blacksmith. We talk every now and then, but it's mostly through text. She is very busy, and I just really miss her."

"Oh? That's good. I didn't expect her to travel like that. How long will she be gone for?"

"Another month and a half. And starting next week, she won't be able to send texts very often. Apparently, the program is very intense, and she is already getting tired while they warm up."

Hera nodded; she knew that some places had workshops like that, and people usually took them very seriously, "Next time you talk to her, tell her I wish her luck. I'm sure she will do great there."

"I will. And I have to say, as much as I complain about her being away and that I didn't think the two of you would work out. I'm glad you dated my Silah, even if it was just for a little while."

Hera nodded with a smile, "Me too. Not the wouldn't work out part. But I have no regrets about being with her."

"Well. I'll leave you to it. And if you need any gear repaired, stop by. Silah might not be around, but we are still the best family of blacksmiths in the city," Diesa smiled and walked off.

Hera watched her go and looked around; seeing her dad and her friends talking, she decided to join them before yet another person appeared, talked for a moment, and vanished into the crowd.