Chapter 46: Reinforcement 6

Elania sighed, her shoulders slumping as she walked through the central district with Yolani by her side. Her companion’s hand rubbed soothing circles on her back, but it did little to ease the sting.

“I can’t believe we lost our share to those stupid dice,” Elania grumbled.

Yolani gave her a sympathetic smile. “It’s not your fault. Next time, we’ll have better luck.”

Elania nodded, but the disappointment still weighed heavily on her. “I know. I just don’t like setbacks.”

“It was nice of Captain Narbor to give you part of his share, though,” Yolani pointed out.

“Yeah, but he didn’t have to do that.” Elania said. “I feel like I owe him a bit for it.”

Yolani hummed thoughtfully. “Maybe we can think of something to pay him back. But for now, I want to use the money to purchase more supplies to make the [Regalia].”

Elania’s eyebrow shot up in surprise. “I thought we were mostly done already.”

A sheepish look crossed Yolani’s face. “Well, I thought of some extra embellishments that could help improve the compatibility during the bonding process. It should make the morphing more fluid.”

Blinking, Elania shook her head. “I don’t have any idea how artifice works at all.”

Yolani nodded. “It’s a bit advanced, I’ll admit. I’m using a lot of concepts I’ve learned from the [Divine Forging] book and skill Ember gave me.”

Elania glanced at the other girl. “What kind of concepts?”

“Oh, you know, things like infusing the materials to conduct [Divine Essence], aligning the mana channels for optimal flow, and using specific runes to enhance… well, everything.” Yolani’s eyes sparkled with excitement as she spoke.

Elania couldn’t help but smile at her partner’s enthusiasm. “It all sounds very complicated.”

“It is, but it’s also fascinating.” Yolani grinned. “I never thought I’d be able to create something like this, but I feel like I can make something truly extraordinary for you.”

Warmth bloomed in Elania’s chest. “I have no doubt about that. You’re amazing, Yolani.”

Her partner ducked her head, a blush staining her cheeks. “I just want to make sure you have the best [Regalia] possible.”

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Elania smiled brightly. “With you making it, I know it will be.”

Elania hummed as they continued back toward the estate, but the talk of bonding had reminded her of one potential issue.

She pulled up her [Soul Management] perk, scanning the various essences listed. Gorging on the crabs and random arcane beasts she had taken in the forest had raised the “other” entry to nearly twelve percent, a significant increase from before.

Her [Divine Essence] had been slowly coming down toward its “natural” level as well, balanced with her [Human Essence] and [Darkwalker Essence]. That wasn’t entirely ideal.

“I’m not sure I can raise my [Divine Essence] enough to easily bond with the [Regalia],” Elania said. “There aren’t exactly a bunch of Conclave monks to snack on anymore.”

Yolani’s expression darkened, her lips pressing into a thin line. “What do you mean?”

Elania sighed, running a hand through her hair. “It’s just... with how my essences are balanced right now, it might be difficult to push my [Divine Essence] to the percentage needed for the bonding process.”

It was probably an issue unique to her because of her demon nature. The other demi-divine would probably be 100% [Divine Essence] all the time…

And she doubted any of them would just let her snack on them, considering the process would make them very dead.

She paused, considering her options. “Maybe I can use my perk to expel the other essences, although it would probably mean discarding a large portion of my current [Divine Power] stores.”

Yolani’s eyes widened. “Is that safe? Won’t that leave you vulnerable?”

A sad smile tugged at the corners of Elania’s mouth. “For a while, probably. But finishing the [Regalia] would be worth it, I think.”

Yolani’s expression twisted into a grimace. A few more minutes of silence passed before she finally spoke again. “I actually considered this already and brought it up to Ember. She had a solution.”

Elania’s eyebrow shot up. Curiosity mingled with suspicion. “What was it?”

Hesitation flickered across Yolani’s face. “She suggested having a bunch of threesomes. She said it would boost your [Divine Essence].”

A scoff tore from Elania’s throat. “Has Ember been keeping her promise, or has she been harassing you again?”

Yolani frowned. “I would have told you if that was the case, but it’s obvious what Ember wanted.” She glanced at Elania. “Drinking their sweat, tears, or... piss would help too.”

Elania recoiled. “Yeah, no, let’s stop there. I’ll figure out how to expel the unwanted essence and do it that way.”

Yolani nodded. “It’s your choice, and I’ll support you no matter what.”

The anger still simmered beneath Elania’s skin. “Even if you approved and wanted me to, I don’t think I could handle doing anything with those crazy bitches. Just the thought of it makes me angry enough to want to kill them instead.”

Silence stretched between them as they continued toward the estate. As they neared their destination, a prickle of unease crept up the back of Elania’s neck. At the gate, her communicator crackled to life, scratchy and distorted.

She pulled the device out and adjusted the receiving power to maximum. Harlock’s voice filtered through the static, urgent and clipped. “The Heart needs assistance. We’ve encountered another airship and—”

The voice cut out abruptly, leaving only silence in its wake. Elania cursed, shaking the communicator several times to no avail.

Yolani’s hand touched Elania’s shoulder. “Go.”

With a nod, Elania flared her wings out and leaped into the sky.

What was she going to find aboard the Heart?