As I open the doors, before me is revealed not a prison like I had expected, but a rather small, cramped dirt room, with dozens of people crammed into it, sitting shoulder to shoulder. Four people stood out to me thanks to the colour of their hair, blue exactly like Xia and the siblings behind me.

Everyone looked up and a younger woman blinked in surprise before saying “It appears we’ve been saved. Praise the Moon.” She stands with some difficulty as everyone else does. They began moving to exit the room as I stood to the side to let them out.

The young woman who spoke approached Xia and the siblings, and gave them a look. “Why have you betrayed your Father? You all stood by his side while turning your backs on him.”

The siblings, except for Xia who moved to my side, which didn’t escape the young woman’s notice, kneeled. “Mother, we were wrong. We have seen the truth.”

“The truth, eh?” The young woman, who I now knew to be their Mother, turned to me with a brow raised. Before she could say anything, yells could be heard echoing from the stairs, not far from where we were but were drawing closer. “Well, we’ll figure everything out soon, first we’ll deal with the mess coming towards us. Can you six fight? I’ve become weakened thanks to the imprisonment.”

Glancing at her, she didn’t appear weakened, in fact I couldn’t even tell she had been locked away for a month, though the others including the three blue haired people did appear tired and weak. Looking at the stairs that led to the tunnels, I sighed.

“Don’t worry, I’ll handle them. Want them all dead?” I turn and ask Xia’s Mother.

“Preferably. They all sided with that bastard after all.”

Nodding to her comment, I walked up the stairs and into the tunnels.

***

Walking back down the stairs as I wiped the blood off my face, I saw the others still waiting and upon seeing me some looked amazed while others paled a bit. My eyes landed on Xia who gave me a slight nod as I walked back to her.

“I’m done.” Giving Xia’s Mother a simple nod, she smiles.

“As expected, the guards here were more for show than anything. Alright, you lot, go clean up the remains. You three, go rest. Young girl and Xia, I’d like to speak to you, privately.”

Following her through the tunnels as we make our way past the numerous bodies that littered the ground, Xia’s mother chuckles slightly.

“You’re quite ruthless, I had been worried you might be too kind.”

I sighed. “There is no use being kind.”

She simply nodded as we exited a tunnel into a simple room, a bed at the back and a small table with four chairs. Gesturing to one of the chairs, she sat down and smiled.

“Well, I’ve heard the details. It’s a shame that my husband has died, but I am glad that my children did it with their hands after seeing the truth. I pray to Celestia that you’re well, Blessed.”

“Please, just call me Alisha. None of this Blessed, Grace or any of that please.” A bit desperate, I spoke up as Xia’s Mother giggled.

“Of course, I’d heard from Xia you’re rather kind when it came to her. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Alisha. I am Matilda, the Mother of Xia as well as the many children you see out there. I believe you have come for more than to greet us, correct?”

I nod and lean forward, I explain everything to Matilda, about the Church of the Moon Goddess and the Archbishops attacks on me and how I was now planning to attack the Church and kill the Archbishop.

Matilda’s face slowly turned complicated the more I explained and as I finished she began tapping the table with a finger. Shaking her head, she looks at me.

“You understand what you’re asking us to do, right?” A bit confused, I tilt my head and she explains. “You’re asking my family to attack the Church of our faith. Not only is that blasphemy against the Moon Goddess, but also a crime the Sisterhood won’t take lightly. This will mean you will be punished as well, exilement from the Sisterhood is possible.”

I shrug at that comment. “I don’t belong to the Sisterhood, nor do I plan to join them anyway. They don’t get to decide my fate.”

Matilda blinked in confusion. “Y-you’re a Blessed, are you not?”

Looking at Xia, she shakes her head as I turn back to Matilda. “Yes. However I don’t want to walk a path laid down by others, nor will I be forced onto it. If this Sisterhood intends to force me onto a path, then I’ll refuse it. Same goes for the Moon Goddess, if she forces me onto that path then I’ll refuse.”

Bewilderment covered Matilda’s face before she narrowed her eyes. “Can I ask why?”

“Because I was a slave. My fate decided for me before I was even born. I was to serve as a shield for humans, so they could remain safe while killing and hunting monsters in a dungeon. If it wasn’t for the whims of one stupid man I wouldn’t be here today. I fought with two others of my kind, that being hybrids of man and monster, so we wouldn’t have to have our fates decided for us. Yet the moment I freed myself I learnt this Sisterhood wanted to do the same to me. I don’t want that to happen so I simply refuse to let it happen, and if that means I become alone because of that, so be it.”

A silence followed my words as Matilda looked shocked at my words. I had only given her the shortened version, but it seemed like it had enough as Matilda sighed.

“I see. I understand why then. We had always been taught that a Blessed is wholly faithful to the Moon Goddess and that joining the Sisterhood is the highest form of honour. Alright, I won’t question you anymore. Now, about your request. I refuse. My family will not offer you assistance and this is not in relation to what you just told me.

“You are not my Blessed, nor are you any of my children’s Blessed, excluding Xia of course. While we can become your Guardian, I can not allow it knowing your current plans. Though, if a child of mine really wants to then that is of their own choice. I can not support you in your endeavour as attacking the Church of our Goddess goes against our families beliefs. Do not worry, from the moment she swore her oath Xia stopped being a part of our family, though she does remain my daughter she will not be bound by our oaths to the Church.”

I understood her reasoning though I was also disappointed by them. As I’m about to get up to leave, Matilda spoke once more.

“I suppose we can’t forget our own traditions though. After all, one of our children becoming a Guardian to a Blessed is what our family lives for. Come with me, you two.”

Glancing at Xia, she gives me a faint smile as we both get up and follow Matilda further into the house. There was a lot of running around and a few kids could be seen out the windows, once again training.

“Though the Father is dead, we still continue our training. I do apologise for his actions. Originally we both had rejected the Archbishop’s words that a False Blessed had arrived. She had said you were a monster that had stolen a bracelet from a true Blessed and had received the word of the Moon Goddess to have you killed. We did not trust her word, as the bracelet a Blessed wears does not leave them, even in death.

“My husband however…I do not know exactly what happened when it came to him. He slowly became more secretive, visiting the Archbishop and even approving a training plan where we send our children to be trained by the Church. One such ‘training session’ led Xia to you, which means my husband knew exactly what happened yet did not say anything.

“A month ago, he suddenly had the guards and six of our children turn on us, who had believed the so-called False Blessed, being you, was in fact truly a Blessed since Xia had formed a vow with you. It coincides with your massacre outside of Vale meaning the Archbishop must now see you as a true threat. See, before we were imprisoned she saw you as nothing but a lowly monster, yet somehow even after the spectacular sight your evolution gave, she did not take you seriously. It’s the reason why she’s only ever sent low level members after you. As for why they sent Xia, I suspect my husband either did not plan for it to happen or knew it would happen and hoped that Xia would kill you.”

As she finished speaking, we arrived at an odd circular door. Placing her hand to it, Matilda softly chanted. I couldn’t understand what she was saying, but with a click, the door slowly started rolling to the side as Matilda turned.

“Beyond this door is our family's treasury. Weapons, tomes on magic or knowledge, clothing and so on lay beyond it. It contains everything our family has received or claimed in the two thousand years of its history. Xia, you may take three items from it, choose what you want. Beloved Blessed, you may take what you want, do not concern yourself with how much you take. This is the least we can do for you two, and I apologise once again that we can not offer our assistance to you.”

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Telling Matilda that I was fine with it, Xia and I entered the treasury. Before us on either side were shelves filled with books, magic tools, clothing and so on. At the far end on a wall were dozens of weapons, but after a quick glance I didn’t see any fist based weapons. Xia however had walked towards a certain rapier and was looking at it with admiration. Smiling at the sight of this, I started to look through the shelves.

***

Walking towards the door of the treasury, I had found six books that I had an interest in. Three were spell books, and three contained knowledge I desperately needed. The first book was a Wind spell. I had been sorely lacking in Wind magic and had been neglecting it and while there had been plenty of Lunar spells, I decided to ignore those.

The Wind spell is called ‘Vortex Blast’, it creates a powerful tunnel of wind that could be invoked from below a target or from myself, launching a focused tunnel of wind at someone, dealing damage to them. If used underneath them, it can send them flying upwards, removing them from a fight or allowing me breathing room to reset tempo.

Out of the next two, one was for Elizabeth and Olivia. The one for Elizabeth was a Summoning spell called “Guardian of the Ancients”, and looking at the contents made my head spin, but I figured she’d understand it.

The one I had gotten for Olivia was titled ‘Light of Dawn’. It’s a healing spell that could mark two people, and one was healed the other received half the healing. Like Elizabeth’s spell, I couldn’t understand anything in it. I had grabbed this in the hopes that perhaps reading and learning could help her.

As for the knowledge books, one was about writing. It only taught me how to write, something I really needed to learn. It was a rather colourful book, with some cute drawings on it. As for the last one, it contained knowledge about the Gods of this world, another thing I knew nothing about. Along with it, I grabbed a book with knowledge about the Moon Goddess. As one who had been labelled as Her Chosen, I knew very little about Her.

Meeting up with Xia at the door, she gave me a slight bow as she handed me a rapier back. It was the one I had given her, and looking at her waist I could see the rapier she had been looking at before. Accepting my rapier back, I put it at my waist. It seems as if she had only taken the rapier. As we exited, Matilda met with us.

“I had thought you would take more, are you sure you only want that much?” Nodding my head to her question, she smiled slightly. “I understand. I must inform you however that I am obliged to inform the Church of what occurred today as well as what you have told me.”

For a moment, countless thoughts ran through my mind, including killing her. Judging by Xia’s face, the same thought came to her mind.

“I figure that after some bed rest, sorting out affairs here and ensuring the family stabilises I will be able to inform them in about two weeks.” Matilda smiles and turns as she leads us once again.

I understood what she was implying. She had an obligation, but did not plan to inform the Church for two weeks, and since we’d be launching the assault the next day she wouldn’t say anything. I knew she told me of her obligation simply to reassure us.

As we arrived at the gates that led out of the estate, she turned to Xia. “Xia, though you may no longer be a part of our family, you are still very much my daughter. You are always welcome here, and the same goes for you, Alisha. I pray that you both remain healthy and shine brightly.”

Thanking Matilda, Xia and I both left the estate as we started to make our way towards Lily Pond Inn, both staying quiet.

***

As we both walked in silence, we soon arrived outside of the Lily Pond Inn, however before we could enter, a familiar face came out to meet us. Jessica walked out, two blades on her back and instead of the usual uniform of the Lily Pond Inn, she wore leather armour, blue-green in colour. She looked at me and gave me a nod.

“Master has asked me to accompany you during this mission. He has already been informed of the details and while he too wishes to join you, he believes this is a good opportunity for you to grow, thus he will simply watch from the sidelines. I will be joining you, I specialise in dual wielding swords and utilise a mutated source of power simply known as Anti-Magic. My current level is 62.”

Blinking a bit in surprise at everything, I had actually looked forward to seeing Floof once again. Instead, I looked towards Jessica and gave her a nod. “I appreciate it, thank you for helping.”

“Master simply wishes to avenge his friend and this is the best way to achieve it, there is no need to thank me.”

“I take it you are ready to go? We’ve still got a day left to prepare.”

“Yes, I will be staying with you until we begin. If there is anything you wish to prepare, I can assist or if you wish to train I can do that as well. Be aware my power is not suitable to assist you in magic training, I can only assist with physical training.”

“Got it. I want to practise a magic known as Gravity anyway, since it could be useful.”

We started walking towards my house once more, as I started to think of what to cook and hoped I could create more stat increasing food in preparation.

***

As Xia, Jessica and I arrived home, I entered the living room and a surprising sight entered my eyes. Alice was sitting on Olivia’s lap, playing with a monster core while Olivia watched, a smile on her face. Elizabeth stood at the back of the room, watching the two. Tilting my head at the sight, Alice turns to me.

“Mummy! Vi Vi ok!”

Alice hops off Olivia’s lap and comes over before looking at Jessica. A big grin appeared on her face as she rushed up to Jessica.

“Jess Jess!” Alice offers a confused Jessica a monster core before tilting her head, eating the monster core then pulling out a ration cube from a pouch instead, offering it to Jessica.

“T-this is that raven?” Jessica mutters in some surprise, her normally expressionless face coloured with some astonishment.

“Mm, she evolved some time ago. Seems she remembers you.” I watch as Jessica bends over and accepts the cube and eats it. Alice grabs her hand and pulls her over to a couch.

“Alice ok!”

Remembering back to our days at the inn, Alice and Jessica had gotten on surprisingly well, and Jessica had even looked after Alice for some time after the incident at the orphanage. Speaking of which, I should go and check on how they’re going.

Olivia stands and walks over to me slowly. Expecting her to grab my arm, she instead hugs me.

“Hello.”

Widening my eyes in surprise, it was the first time Olivia had spoken and hearing her voice nearly brought tears to my eyes. Just as I’m about to hug her back, she lets go and walks back to the couch and sits down, looking at the fireplace with a smile on her face. I could see more life in her eyes, yet there still remained a bit of a glazed over look.

Elizabeth walked over to me and gestured to the other room. Leading her to the kitchen, she started speaking as I prepared to make food for everyone.

“Earlier Olivia stood up while letting go of my arm, walked over to Alice and hugged her. She then spoke and called Alice cute. Alice had tried to give her food, a monster core at first then a ration cube. I’m not sure what caused Olivia, at first I thought Alice might’ve done something like magic but I hadn’t sensed anything. Ever since then, Olivia has sat away from me while smiling and occasionally saying different things.”

Frowning and turning to Elizabeth, I twirled a knife in my hand and asked “What has she been saying?”

“You look quite scary with that knife.” Chuckling, Elizabeth came over and leaned against the bench next to me. “Small things. Nothing of real structure, things like ‘with’ or ‘friends’ but just the words, even stringing them into a sentence doesn’t make sense. So far she has said, in order: ‘friends’, ‘be’, ‘I’ twice, ‘dream’, ‘don’t’, ‘want’ twice, ‘this’, ‘end’, ‘to’ twice, ‘with’ and finally ‘my’. This only thing I can think of them making in a sentence is-”

“I don’t want this dream to end. I want to be with my friends.” Looking up at Xia, who had at some point entered, she walked up to us. “I believe that is what she is trying to say. I believe Summer hit the mark about Madam Olivia’s condition, Alisha.”

Placing the knife on the bench for a moment, I cross my arms with some concern. “So she believes this to be a dream?” Scratching an ear, I pursed my lips before looking at Xia. “Can you go find Summer and ask her for some advice? She told us before just to make sure Olivia stayed near someone she knows, but nothing about what could happen. I want to make sure she is okay.”

Xia bows and leaves the house quickly. Elizabeth helps me while I’m cooking, but for some reason she starts looking a bit scared and by the time we had finished, Elizabeth had nearly ran from the kitchen while saying “I’m sure you don’t need me anymore!”

I felt a bit confused, Aubrey hadn’t acted like that and I simply was telling Elizabeth to hurry with certain things. As I sigh and wonder what happened, I heard someone enter and saw Xia standing there.

Xia walks up to me, and keeping her voice low says “Summer said that Olivia’s current state is a good thing, however we need to make sure Olivia starts to understand this isn’t a dream. Telling her outright will cause her to deny your words as that may lead her to believe the dream is ending. It’ll take some time, but giving her something to do or focus on will help tremendously.”

“So something like learning a new spell?”

“Yes. Summer recommended something like that. Also other activities, like gardening which is something you have access to, walking around the city and so on. As long as Olivia is not just sitting around the house doing nothing, it’ll be good for her. Just do not overwhelm her, give her something to do, and wait a few days then give her something else to do.”

Closing my eyes, I felt glad I had found the spellbook for Olivia. Serving up dinner for everyone, this time having made food that gave +300 Toughness, the only food I’ve felt sad about making, everyone enjoyed the food. After that was done, Olivia returned to the same couch as earlier. Sitting down next to her, I put the spellbook on her lap.

“I hope this helps you, Olivia. I think it suits you.”

Olivia turns her gaze from the fireplace to the book in her lap. Her hand slowly caresses the book before opening it. I could see her eyes moving and knew she was slowly reading it and with a smile, I got up and moved to the other couch, and using Alice, I practised my Gravity magic as she giggled. Xia and Elizabeth went to the basement with Jessica and had taken up sparring.

After a day of this, with Olivia and Alice sleeping during the night, and me joining the other three for some sparring before returning to practise Gravity, we soon left the house, along with Olivia who was still reading the book as we made our way to the Guild, where we would meet up with everyone, plan out our attack, and then head to the Church.