RED proposed something I hadn’t expected: “If Calliope can’t heal due to her mana affinity, perhaps I can learn healing magic in her place?”

But how could he learn with Gertrude, the instructor, dead? Perhaps he could manage through trial and error… But there was no guarantee that would work. At best he would end up just wantonly killing the practice animals to no gain. The easiest way was probably to have him be taught healing magic while in Barbory.

When I told him as much he agreed almost immediately. I couldn’t help but worry a bit for RED. He seemed stable so far, but I had good reason to keep on my toes. I created his body, but I was far from a master of husk building. The ‘what ifs’ continued to play out in my thoughts. The most prevalent was, ‘what if his body just falls apart’?

If he ever died suddenly due to bodily failure, and I wasn’t close enough to contain his soul, he would be shattered by the runes on this reality. For him, death really would be the end.  

The thought scared me. Lily, James, and RED could all die and shatter due to a moment of my carelessness. I had taken solace in the thought of reincarnation, but knowing now that the cycle is blocked on this world unsettles me…

I want to fix this world. People should have their souls tempered naturally through cultivation and the reincarnation cycle. I, for one, can testify to how horrid it feels to posses the memories of everyone you’ve ever killed.

The only problem is… I needed this dirty rune etched soul collecting method. The Fae were too powerful for me to fight with just my base strength. I needed allies and I needed to get more powerful. The wisdom of thousands of lives spoke to me, telling me that sometimes evil acts become necessary.

Time passed quickly while Lily and I planned our trip to Barbory. We bickered over numerous details such as carriage design, guard numbers, maids, and over whether we should bring James back from The Forgotten Lands to join us. I believed that James didn’t need to train recklessly by himself. There were too many risks involved and, without someone there to insure his safety, he could end up over his head. Besides, I could go pick him up in a day or two at most. It wasn’t like it’d be hard to drag him back.

“Calliope,” said Lily in a tired voice, “sometimes you have to let a man be a man.”

“I don’t have to let a friend do something dangerous, though,” I replied, “What’s more important, his life or his pride?”

“To you maybe his life is more important, but can you honestly say you’d never do anything dangerous for your own pride? I seem to recall you attending a dinner party hosted by my younger brother not too long ago…”

Ah… Shit. She did have a point. It was a painful, sharp point. A sigh leaked from the corner of my mouth. “Fine,” I said, “you win. I’ll leave him be.”

The door opened to Lily’s room and a maid entered. “Madam and guests, it is time for dinner,” said the woman with a flourish.

RED and I helped Lily into her wheelchair. Thankfully, she was already dressed; we didn’t have to fumble with her overly frilly dress. The maid lead the way to the main dining hall. Everyone was oddly quiet, and only the sound of our footsteps could be heard echoing through the castle.

Finally, the distant murmur of people broke the veil of silence. This was my first time visiting the main dining hall of the castle, and I was astounded by its grandeur. The room was painted silver and gold. Tapestries, murals, and paintings lined the walls, and an amazing chandelier was draped over the longest table I had ever seen in my life.

Numerous members of high society were lined up in the room, chatting away. The new king, Alec Gransus, was seated at the head. When he saw us enter he stood up and began tapping on his wine glass.

“Here here, to those of you who do not know, this woman here is Calliope,” he gestured to me, “and she’s the one who killed the World Dragon at Fort Clyfton a few weeks ago.”

The gaggle of aristocracy began clapping. I didn’t recognize any of the people. It felt strange and a bit out of place.

Dinner was served soon after. I felt a slight repulsion to eating the dragon meat, considering that the dragon’s soul was now living on within me, but the intoxicating smell overpowered any such hesitations.

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I was sold from the first bite. It was a beefy flavor, but it had a tang of sweetness to it. If I didn’t know better I’d assume the flavoring was from a teriyaki sauce.

The sides were strange vegetables I’d never seen before, but they all had a spinach-like flavor in order to not overshadow the meat dish.

Lily and I were seated rather close to the head of the table, but for some reason RED’s assigned seat was quite a bit further away. He was mingling with a pair of red-haired gentlemen donned in full military dress.

Alec, only two seats away from me, continually badgered me with questions about RED. He seemed to have a strange obsession with it. I think he might have misinterpreted something about my relationship with the once AI.

Lily seemed to be in good spirits, but I think she might have had a bit too much to drink. She was getting a bit rowdy and red in the face. Her jokes were beginning to get a bit too off color as well. I hadn’t realized she felt that way about the people of Barbory to the south.

The dinner party started to wind down and, judging by her face, it was time for me to get Lily to her room. None of the maids seemed willing to bother with it.

I stood and helped her out of the dining chair into her wheelchair again. She was fumbling and laughing. It wasn’t the demeanor of a princess. I had never seen her drunk before… I don’t think I want to ever again, either.

RED stayed behind to discuss things with some of the soldiers. One thing he seemed to have gained from Nox was detailed information about other countries in this world… I should have probably stopped him from leaking state secrets. It would suck if our actions caused a severe imbalance in this world.

Lily managed to make wheeling her to her room a near impossible task. The chair repeatedly had the wheels catch on her dress and she did her damndest to throw herself from it at least three times.

“Come onnnn, Calliope,” she whined, “I’m not,” she paused to hiccup, “that drunk. Let’s go back to the party.”

“I think it’s time for you to go to bed, Lily. Tomorrow we’re going to make our preparations for our trip south,” I said, trying to calm her down.

“Ah, yeah. Our road trip! I can’t wait, you know. I’ve never been outside of Gransus before…” She leaned her head back and stopped talking. She looked to be deep in thought over something. I didn’t particularly mind her silence, though.

We reached Lily’s room without any more delays, or words for that matter. I rolled her up to the bed. She used her arms and upper body strength to essentially flop onto her bed in full dress.

“You know, Calliope,” she mused as she rolled onto her back, “I sometimes wish you were a boy.”

I laughed at that.

“I’m serious!” She cried in outrage at my giggling, “if you were a boy then we could date and be more than friends… You should marry one of my brothers…”

I held my finger to her lips to stop her from talking. “Lily, you are very very young. I may not look it, but I’m much too old for you. One day, when you reach where I’m at now, you’ll come to understand just how trivial such thoughts really are. The love I feel for you isn’t defined by any relationship status. You’re like a little sister to me, and I love you like one. You have a beautiful soul.”

Her eyes began to close as sleep overtook her. I wasn’t sure if she heard everything I said, but I could only hope she did. I quickly and carefully eased her into a nightgown before tucking her into her bed.

I softly closed the door to her room and made my way back to the party to collect RED, but he wasn’t there. One of the maids told me he was offered a room at the home of an attending general.

Perhaps that was for the best. I didn’t need to keep tabs on RED. He was a grown man, after all. I felt a bit proud that he was off living his own life. I created his body and I suppose I harbored some parental feelings towards him because of it.

I made my way back to my room at the Academy dorms and slept with a smile.