“How do you have time for all of this?” Claire asked, sitting at the front of one of the company’s vehicles as she drove the car herself—passing through the lonely streets of a small town in Heildin. “Are you actually the owner? I barely see you working.”

“You barely see me at all,” Sovereign replied confidently. “And that’s because I am working. I just thought you could use this small trip back to your country. Cerberus is quite far away, and you don’t get an opportunity like this often.”

“I can’t be wasting time in small trips like this,” she retorted. “I spent too much time at the hospital and need to keep with up my training…”

“Well, you should’ve told me that before accepting. Forget about it for a mom—”

The sound of a plastic bottle hitting the floor of the car interrupted Sovereign in his sentence, prompting him to lower his gaze to look at the seat next to him—and Claire to raise her eyes towards the rear-view mirror.

“Oh…” Lucy—who stood in the back seat, put one hand in her mouth with raised eyebrows, knowing well she just spilled her fruit punch all over the car.

Sovereign huffed through his mouth at the sight of the red spilled liquid, scratching the back of his head—covered by a black wig. “Well… I’m not cleaning that.”

“Lucy…” Claire furrowed her brows, quickly returning her gaze towards the road. “I told you to keep an eye on her!” she scolded the young CEO.

“I was… until I wasn’t.”

Their trip continued peacefully, arriving at a large concrete fenced area—where Sovereign indicated the lieutenant to stop the car’s engine. Claire parked the vehicle near the entrance—an open iron gate protecting the large interior of what seemed to be a green field. The trio left the vehicle quickly after, with Sovereign carrying Lucy in his arms.

Walking their way inside, Claire quickly recognized the place—one she had to visit years ago before enrolling at Cerberus’ academy. It was Heildin’s largest cemetery, neatly kept with well mowed grass, clean tombstones decorated with flowers of all kinds.

“This cemetery…” whispered the lieutenant, clenching her jaw as she followed behind Sovereign.

“It’s somewhere over here…” he smiled at her without worry.

He guided Claire through a stone path, passing through many tombstones and grave liners. They quietly strode across the place to finally stop in front of one of the graves, a single white flower resting at the top of it. Sovereign bent his knees to release Lucy from his arms, who jumped into the ground to jog in front of the tombstone.

Claire squinted her eyes to read the engraving, reading its name to herself. “Viktoria Angel…” her mouth slightly opened, closing it back to clench her jaw before speaking. “Angel… is this?”

“Lucy’s sister,” explained Sovereign. “She died in the Deadlands last year, and I wanted her to see her grave at least once. She already knew about, so there’s no need to worry.”

A huff and a few seconds of silence later—as Lucy sat in front of Viktoria’s grave with her eyes closed, Sovereign signaled Claire to approach with a quick motion of his arm. They both kneeled next to Lucy, who opened her eyes to grab a white flower the young CEO had prepared for her. Placing the delicate flower next to the other, the trio stood there silently for a few minutes—ending with Lucy stretching her arms towards the lieutenant, who picked her up in her arms.

“So, this is what you wanted?”

“It was,” confirmed Sovereign with a nod. “I requested her grave to be moved from headquarters. She was just a girl after all, not a soldier.”

“Hm…” Claire hummed in contemplation as they both walked side by side through the stone path once again. “This has been bothering me for a while but… is there a reason why no one else can see Lucy? I omitted talking about her under Mrs. Yeon’s request, but I want to know why.”

Smiling casually as he took in the gentle breeze blowing opposite of his direction, Sovereign turned his head to look at the lieutenant in the eye before replying. “She is a specter too, Lionheart. It’s a long story, but her sister was a specter as well. She was finally put to rest during one of your father’s operations this year, and I managed to save Lucy from Chimera. They captured Lucy, and used Viktoria as a test subject for a combined operation with Cerberus.”

“Chimera…” Claire’s expression hardened at the mention of the company. “At least they’ve been quiet for a while.”

“As for the reason you can see her… well, it’s simple. It’s your spectral gear.”

“I guess that makes sense…” She said before falling into a long pause, clenching her jaw as she continued following Sovereign through the cemetery. “Dammit! What am I a teenage girl?” her mind wondered with fury—eventually finding the courage to speak. “Listen, I… my mother... she was buried here… and I want to pay her a visit.”

“I know,” Sovereign stopped in his stride, turning his body to face one of the graves. “.”

“I should’ve known.”

A warm smile drew itself in the lieutenant’s expression, releasing her anxiety with a long sigh. She kneeled down on the ground, gently placing Lucy on the floor. Walking in front of her mother’s grave—an orange and red flower accompanied by a white one, she kneeled down with furrowed brows and pressed lips—offering a few words to her deceased mother, reassuring her of her safety after a long hospital visit.

“Sorry…” expressed Sovereign.

Claire looked behind from over her shoulder with a curious look in her face. “I told you to stop apologizing for it,” she stated calmly. “Specter or not, the attack had nothing to do with you. Don’t worry about it, okay?”

Her words unable to sooth his anxious heart, Sovereign kneeled next to the lieutenant to offer her a white flower as well—which she gratefully accepted before placing it next to the other. Just like before, they stood in front of the tombstone in silence as Claire’s sad eyes took one last look at her mother’s tomb—engraved with her name, Clara Lionheart.

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“We can go now…” she expressed to the young CEO. “Thanks for doing all of this.”

Nodding with a gentle smile, Sovereign guided Claire back towards the exit—her taking Lucy back into her arms at the request of the girl. They enjoyed a bit of small talk while walking through the stone path, eventually leading to a few questions dwelling in the lieutenant’s mind.

“Where do you even get those flowers by the way?” she curiously asked. “I’m not an expert when it comes to plants, but still…”

“They are quite rare,” proudly claimed the young CEO. “My mother found them a long time ago, took one to Kaldstein and decided to grow it. In fact, they were thought to be extinct hundred of years ago during the calamity.”

“Really?”

“Yep.”

“…”

“You want to say something, go ahead.”

Having been read thoroughly, Claire released a long sigh and stretched her shoulders. “I get that you don’t want to reveal everything about yourself but… how is it possible? You being a specter, and Lucy… I’m still not sure what to think about all of this.”

“You think I’m a threat?”

“I could kill you right now if I wanted to.”

“Haha, well… don’t.”

“I mean…” she sighed once again. “The Deadlands had expanded so far already it’s hard not to worry. I remain loyal to Cerberus but… it’s nothing personal, but you being a specter can raise some questions.”

“I guess I can see that now that you mention it,” Sovereign claimed with a drop of sweat rolling down his cheek. “Can I see the ring Sebastian gave you?” he casually requested.

“Wha—how do you know about it?”

“He told me about it. We are friends, remember?”

“Hm…” bringing one hand inside the collar of her uniform, Claire took out the small azure ring dangling from a chain—taking it off to rest it in her palm.

“It does look how I remember it…” thought Sovereign, smiling brightly as he led one hand inside a pocket inside his vest, presenting his own ring to Lionheart—purely crafted from amber. “Does it look familiar to you?” he asked.

The lieutenant waited a second to inspect the item, shaking her head immediately. “It doesn’t, no.”

“I see…” he huffed a quick chuckle—safeguarding his ring back into its pocket. “To tell you more about me… like any other specter, I too have a core myself.”

His claim caused a small flinch from Claire, who attentively listened to his story with intriguing silence.

“Lucy however, does not. She can live perfectly fine with her own heart, making her closer to a human than me.” He continued after a quick contemplative pause. “You see, Yeon told me once that I was only a boy.” His voice became soft, and a faint smile drew itself on his expression. “That was when my mother died, something I blame myself for among other things.” He stated. “It doesn’t bother me if people know what I am, but I am human as well, Lionheart.” He huffed a confident chuckle. “I too wish for a better life than this, that’s why I got my hands on Cerberus. That’s why I handed my spectral gear to you. Somethings I just can’t tell you, at least not yet. When all of this is over, if I get to live to see it, then I will—"

Lucy squirmed in Claire’s arms, eager to get a move on and interrupting the pair’s exchange. “Lucy where are your manners?” the lieutenant scolded the girl.

“Haha, we should probably make our leave or people will start asking questions.” Claimed Sovereign. “Either way, thanks for listening.”

Nodding with a smirk, the lieutenant accommodated the unstable Lucy in her arms. “It’s the least I can do. I still haven’t repaid you for the photo of my father,” she smiled widely, filled with pride in her family. “He looks like he hasn’t aged a day, and of course, he is still in shape. You should learn from his example.”

“I don’t know about that… Still, I can think of a few ways you could repay me.”

“Nothing stupid or you will never see me again,” the lieutenant returned to her usual self—sharp eyes and even sharper replies. “Or even see at all.”

Not wanting to keep Lucy waiting however, the pair quickly walked back to the vehicle—Claire taking the wheel, while Sovereign and the girl hopped in the back. They enjoyed a quite ride with the occasional small talk, forgetting about the problems of the world for just a day. The ride back to headquarters was a long one, and the pair decided to stay at a motel in the middle of the road once the moon rose above the clear sky—renting a single room for all of them, as Yeon cut the CEO’s budget to a bare minimum.

“Well, this looks nice.” Sovereign expressed, muttering his next words through his teeth. “If only I had more money maybe we could’ve afforded something better…”

“Then stop wasting it in stupid outings,” protested the lieutenant.

The room was somewhat small, with a bathroom at the end, a malfunctioning television with one large couch in front it on the right side of the entrance, and a single double bed for them to sleep on the left.

“Definitely better than a hospital room anyway…”

Sitting at the edge of the bed, Sovereign took his shoes off before dropping flat on the mattress—Lucy quickly climbing on it as well as she played with the soft blanket. “Which side are you taking, Lionheart?” asked the man.

“You are not sleeping in the bed,” she crossed her arms with scrunched brows.

“Excuse me?”

“I will take the left side, and Lucy will sleep on the right side.” The lieutenant coldly stated. “There’s a perfectly functional couch over there, take it.” She signaled with a motion of her head.

“But… think of the setting. You go take a shower and—"

“Think of my fist in your nose. Take the couch.”

“Damn… fine.” Reluctantly with his tail between his legs, Sovereign plummeted into the couch and sunk his back in the surprisingly somewhat comfortable sofa.

The night grew darker as the trio shared the room in silence, with Claire reading her favorite legend about the champion—lying in the bed next to the sleeping Lucy, who breathed peacefully with a smile. She lifted her head to look at Sovereign, only his silver locks at view from her perspective as the couch’s back covered his body.

“You awake?” she called out to the man resting in the couch with a soft voice.

“Yeah…”

Claire huffed a laugh as to not wake up the girl next to her, replying. “Thanks for today, Harumi. I noticed the flowers in my mother’s grave.”

“Think nothing of it, it’s the least I can do. One of them was from Sebastian too, I’m sure you knew that.”

“I mean it. You didn’t have to do any of this, but now that we can talk alone.” A small paused proceeded her words, half closing her eyes with a judgmental frown. “How was your date with Eutychia?”

“Guk!”

“So?”

“We only spoke business… Yeon was there too.”

“And you wonder why I treat you like this… I can never tell when you are being serious.”

“Haha… let’s not wake Lucy.” Another pause unfolded, followed by Sovereign lifting himself to sit in the couch—his crimson eye covered under the shadow of the dark room. “I know the way I am, Lionheart. I always like to think that I have everything under control, that the world is in the palm of my hand, and nothing can come even close to oppose or resist me… but sometimes I just feel as confused as everyone else, and look for an answer wherever I can find it.”

“I see...” Claire put down her book—laying it on top of a small drawer next to the bed. “Then let me know when you find your answer,” she said as she prepared to sleep, burying the back of her head in the pillow and closing her eyes. “I’ll be there when you do…”

A pensive expression was drawn in Sovereign’s face as he stared at both Claire and Lucy for a quick second—his mouth slightly open and eyebrows raised, a quick chuckle shifting his expression into a warm smile. “Yeah… I'll make sure not to take too long.” he spoke softly while lying back down, closing his eye to put an end to his day.

END OF CHAPTER