{A few days later}

{Rin}

Xhez waited patiently while Rin paced from one side of her room to another. The raven-haired girl held a pen in one hand and a blank sheet of paper in the other.

"Agh," she groaned. "Should I really...?"

"Do you believe it is something she should know?" Xhez asked.

Rin stopped, turning toward the sprite to ask:

"What do you mean?"

"... Perhaps I am wrong but I am just recalling my mothers' reactions when I told them about what you and I had been through before we saw them again and, to be honest, I almost felt like I should not have told them at all. Knowing about this... What would it do for your mother aside from worrying her?"

Rin sighed, her hands dropping to her side. Dejected, she went and sat down next to Xhez on what used to be Elisa's bed.

"I feel like she deserves to know, though."

"I agree."

"But... If it was your mothers, you wouldn't tell them?"

"Probably not."

"Ugh."

It was an odd feeling, being caught between two options she agreed with so heavily and equally. On one hand, as she'd said, Lyn deserved to know about her son's change of heart. That the boy they'd been mourning for the last three years had turned into an unapologetic murderer.

On the other hand, this would obviously crush her spirits.

Especially given that Rin had no intention of finding him and convincing him to change his ways. No, the next time she saw him...

[... I'm going to kill that asshole.]

After a while, Rin finally arrived at a decision. It was that last thought that gave her the resolve she needed.

Walking over to the drawer, Rin put the paper on top and began to write.

She went over some of her previous experiences. Her visit to Cradle, her journey to the village where June had met her unfortunate demise, though she left that dark portion of the tale out. Along with a few of the events in between as well, of course.

"... Mostly, I've just been trying to get stronger," Rin murmured as she scribbled. "How's Felix been? I hope that by now, he's found someone who annoys him as much as I used to. It's going to take a while before I can visit again, but... I think you'll see that I've changed a lot since the last time I went home. I look forward to it."

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

The further she went into writing this letter, the more she second-guessed her choice. But, as she finished it up, Rin forced herself to put the pen down.

[I can't.] She sighed, hunching over as she held the finished letter in her hands. [I just can't tell her that her son's a murderer now. Especially when I can't do anything about it.]

As she sulked, a moist, warm hand landed on her wrist.

Rin looked up and found Xhez smiling at her. For a brief moment, the sprite turned back into that naive, pure girl Rin had met what felt like an eternity ago. That version of her was long gone, but it was clear she still had kindness inside of her.

"Do what you think is right." Xhez's advice slipped into RIn's ears and, before she could convince herself not to, Rin folded the letter and stuck it into the wooden bird's mouth, watching it turn on and fly off just a moment later.

"There..."

"Was that all you wanted to do?"

"Yeah," Rin replied. "That, and write to Elisa too."

"Could you convey my thoughts to her as well?" Xhez asked. "I've missed her."

"I will."

Rin did inform Elisa of what she'd discovered. Mostly, just in case the woman ended up hearing about a strange, amber-eyed member of the Scorned.

[I need leads wherever I can get them. Someday, I will fight him again.]

It was enough to send chills down her spine, the change in attitude she'd had toward Tristan and his memory. But, she'd settled on that decision.

Someone knocked on the door at that moment.

Rin got up and went to check while Xhez, as swiftly as though she was swatting away a fly, cast her Illusion spell before Rin had even opened the door.

Once Rin did, she discovered Sara standing on the other side.

Rin's eyes roamed up and down her figure.

"Wow." Rin blinked. "You look amazing!"

In all of the time that Rin had known Sara, this might have been definitively the most skin she'd ever shown.

Wearing only some black boots, a black sports bra, and some shorts, Sara stood before her looking like a completely different woman.

Apparently, she was aware of that as well if the faint flushing of her cheeks was anything to go by.

"I was feeling hot..."

"As you should! You absolutely are!"

"N-No, I mean... Anyway," Sara shook her head, "Maria sent me. She wanted to know if you're actually going to be training today."

"OH! Right, sorry," Rin giggled awkwardly. "I was writing a couple of letters. I'll be there in just a moment."

"Alright then... I'll see you later, then," Sara replied quietly.

Rin closed the door, turning back toward Xhez.

"What do you want to do?"

"I'll watch the session," Xhez responded firmly. "Even though my physical attributes will never improve... I would still like to know how humans fight."

---

A moment later, Rin, Sara, and Xhez were all sharing the Meditation Center's space with Maria.

Their teacher, Xhez included since she was here to learn, was sitting in the middle of the room, legs crossed.

"Are you sure, Rin?" She asked. "It's your brother, after all..."

"I am," Rin replied. "After seeing what the Scorned are doing to ordinary people... Brother or not, they can't be allowed to get away with this."

Maria nodded slowly.

"When we first met, you had no ambition. You had no desires beyond the vague pursuit of an adventurer's lifestyle and glory. Tell me, Rin. What is your purpose now?"

It was a heavy question, of course. One that Rin would need to analyze all of her time spent learning in the Adventurer's Academy in order to answer.

But, she did in fact have an answer.

"I want to be as strong as you are," Rin stated, staring through Maria's very soul. "If not stronger. I want to make this world better for Xhez," she said, feeling the sprite's appreciative gaze on her. "And... I want to end the Scorned. Even if it costs me my life."

Maria shook her head with a smile.

"My oh my, how you've grown. Well," she clapped her hands. "I suppose I must ensure that last part does not happen. So, let's get started."