Astraea: The Journey of Magic

Chianthias' mind returned to her body in her lair, a cave some time away from the city. Even Ozlo would take awhile to come here, and she knew that even if he did somehow trace the connection in that final moment, he would not be able to make it here even on dragonback by the time she was gone. She was assuming they would somehow still trace it anyways, and that this location was burned. Even if they did not, it wouldn't hurt them. Bases like these were always expendable, and she could just as easily construct a new one herself within a day. The ingredients and documents of course they would take with them as they were far more important, but those were easy to move and deal with.

The base itself was disposable, but that didn't mean it wasn't at least somewhat a drain on resources to keep moving. This was an especially well fortified and large cave that they had turned into a partial ruins, with some stone walls and pillars and even a stone floor. Countless wards spanned the walls, with it having been reinforced and shielded from prying eyes. The minerals itself within the cave walls were those that tended to disrupt divination spells, the opposite material used within the Oracle's Chamber of the Ivory Tower. Furthermore, they were deep inside, and the walls were incredibly thick and sturdy, made of some sort of feldspar with lots of quartz inside as well to add to its hardness. It had very high ceilings and large chambers, giving them plenty of room to work, and even had a lab to keep some of their ingredients...including kidnapped people, especially children, to use as test subjects.

It looked almost a half set up base partially constructed, but in fact it was just constructed enough to give them some comfort while also being easy to dismantle and move. She already had three other bases set up, so all they had to do was move what was important and destroy the rest. The emergency escape measures would go last, as she knew better then to disable those before anything else. She had never been caught before, and she wasn't about to let herself be caught now.

Still, she was fuming quite a bit. To run away from three brats, even if one was more like thirty or forty years old chronologically, irritated her to no end. Ozlo had seen through a good part of her ruse, but Ayazi...he had far more knowledge about her then he should.

I will need to take careful consideration to eliminate him. Still, this will prove the danger of the Starfallen here. The Demon King will surely send me far more capable individuals this time. We had too many low ranking demons here since they were just here for numbers. Still...if Ayazi killed who I think he killed, that is problematic. At the very least, we can't fight Ozlo in his mindscape anymore since Ayazi and Anna can join him in there, and who knows who else...

Right when she was thinking about that, she had a grave revelation.

Wait...where was...shit!

Dread and fear instantly overcame her, as her eyes nearly burst out of her skull. It felt as if the dread would consume her whole, the panic in her heart would make it burst. She felt a fear she never expected, not in her own base, but she understood her revelation all too well.

"Everyone, gather the documents and ingredients now! Get them out of here and to the new ba..."

Before she had a chance to finish barking orders, the entire cave shook, vibrations permeating across the entire base. Something had just hit the mountain hard. At first they thought it was maybe a rockslide, but then a second impact came.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

The boom was so loud it blistered everyone's eardrums and shook their bodies. Cracks began to appear on the walls that separated them from a large tunnel that led outside. It was a dead end, and there had not been anyone mining there before...and this was no mining equipment.

Another impact was heard, and then a part of the cave wall was completely obliterated as a large sword came right at her. She just barely dodged it, the sword scratching her shoulder, as a second sword flew in heading to where she dodged to. She quickly pivoted, avoiding the blow, as she stabilized herself. She formed her blade claws and slashed forward, right at the time to intercept a third large blade, this time coming to someone with a bracelet on their sword wrist, and a bracelet or anklet around each ankle. It was a small figure, but it did not calm her at all. If anything, it felt as if she had been dumped into an ocean of terror and dread.

"Found you!"

It was Riza. The S-Rank Adventurer Riza, who had been mysteriously absent from today.

She realized it just in time, and braced herself accordingly.

Riza, who had been hanging around the group, was missing. She was sure she had successfully pulled him into the city, but it was weird she didn't get a single report about him at all. Ozlo had kept her distracted with his own trump cards and surprises...

He did that on purpose?! Just for this?! Did they actually know about my Dopple? No, this was Ozlo probably just anticipating my escape. Or perhaps...Riza is acting on his own. No, but the only way he could be here is if Riza did know about the dopple! It would take a very specific spell prepared ahead of time, to track all that without alerting my wards!

"How did you know?"

"That you would use a dopple? I knew the moment you successfully attacked the Guildmaster. Someone as careful as you, managing to directly curse our best curse specialist? I had extreme doubts you would purposefully get close enough to risk such a thing. You have been so cautious, so why did you make such a reckless move? Answer: It wasn't reckless, it was to throw us for a loop and make us worry and second guess our own defensive abilities or to overestimate you, slowing us down and letting you act more freely".

"Tsk. You seem smart for a fool".

Riza and Chianthias clashed a few times, sparks flying. Every time the blades clashed, shockwaves emerged from the impacts and a crater formed under them. Neither one were holding back, using the full strength of their True Bodies. Occasionally a wind blade emerged from their battle and cut through a demon that was trying to carry away the documents and ingredients, especially if that ingredient was a human child.

"I am just expressive and true to my personality. I will have you know, Ozlo inherited his brain from me".

He suddenly changed sword styles, a second sword appearing in his hand. He did it fluidly too, catching her off guard. Compared to when Ozlo changed styles, there was no delay or Anna to cause a distraction. It shifted so naturally it looked like it wasn't a shift at all, but as if it was always like that.

Even Anna did not possess such skill with a blade, despite it being her main weapon. Riku didn't even come close to either in this regard.

Riza parried her attack right into a thrust of his own. When she slashed at him, he would block at an angle that let him slash at her immediately after. And furthermore...

"Tsk".

She grew out her tail and used the bladed stinger on it to deflect the two swords that rushed at her from behind, being remote controlled by Riza. Riza weakened the soil under her feet at the same time, giving her a disadvantage as she was on unsteady ground. This was the infamous Riza Four Sword Assault. The Technique that made him an S-Rank Adventurer and the leader of the Brigade of the Silver Wind. This was the terrifying power that had reduced one of the previous Demon King's generals to mince meat during the end of the war.

This was the power of someone who reached S-Rank, and gained an unaging body. Despite being at an age where he should be complaining about his back, he instead looked like a short thirteen year old boy. Despite being a grandpa, people would often mistake him for a grandson. This was nothing natural. The gods had certainly granted an enchantment, a system one could say, that allowed the people an increased ability to passively get stronger as they hunted monsters. It wasn't odd for those who are especially accomplished to even start to age slower.

But it wasn't often they would be able to maintain this youth at that age, not without something else having happened that boosted it. Despite that, Chianthias couldn't find a single clue as to why Riza was like this. What made him so special? What was his power? He shouldn't be an Otherworlder. Otherworlders were a natural exception, thanks to the starting bonuses they got from the Starfall, and especially the summoning bonuses of the Heroes.

But Riza was none of those. He had been born a normal commoner to a normal commoner family. Then when he was seven years old, he displayed incredible combat talent and saved his village from a large group of goblins. He registered as an adventurer soon after, and became one of the fastest in history to rank up to A-Rank. He learned magic from Amyris, he dueled with the Dark Knight of the previous Demon King army and won, and he rose to status, eventually becoming a count. But at some point inbetween all of his adventurers, he just stopped aging. And it was just like he gained a great deal at six years old suddenly. No divine intervention had been detected, and there was no good reason for this to happen.

If Ozlo was a brilliant genius who utilized reason and logic skills beyond the normal person and put in more effort then one would expect, Riza was a brilliant genius that defied all reason and logic and bent such things to his whim.

"Who are you!? What are you really?!"

"Sorry, can't tell you!" Riza declared, not even bothering to feign ignorance. He could tell from Chianthias' voice that it wouldn't sway her anyways.

Suddenly, a huge spike in magical energy came from behind Riza. A Black Hawk, which was smaller then a normal Hawk, was flying there while invoking magic. Chianthias recognized it immediately, but was puzzled. After all, she had just seen that Hawk an hour ago at a location that was at least several dozen hours away from here.

It was Glemia, Amyris' familiar. And it was invoking his magic.

Beams of light shot out of its wings, as Chianthias herself felt as if time was moving faster around her. No, it was more that she was moving a bit slower. Amyris had cast slow on her through Glemia, but there was something wrong here.

When I got back, one of the first things I checked on was the location of Amyris and his familiar! They were on the far side of the city, no way that bird flew here! Don't tell me...was it an illusion?! One with mass?! But we had that thing tagged a week ago! That would mean he conjured and kept an illusion up for a whole week, just to fool us! Damnit!

Her irritation and rage could fuel a thousand furnaces right now, she was in such a foul mood. Her very aura had turned pitch black with hatred and darkness, and she desired nothing more then to get back at the people who had made a fool out of her.

As capable as she was, she was not the only one who was capable. Ozlo, Riza, Amyris, Anna, even Kuroki and his party. They were all so capable as well. And in the case of Riza and Amyris, they had been waiting several decades to get revenge on Chianthias for what she did to Anna. They had gathered countless ingredients, formed a myriad of spells, prepared for so many contingencies. Chianthias could feel her lifeforce draining with each of their attacks as well, which meant they had somehow reverse engineed the Demonic Lifedrain spell that was supposed to be specific to demon and devil physiology, and and was using it against her.

Furthermore, she could feel it. Amyris was right now probing inside of her mind, even during the battle. The one who invaded minds was now being invaded herself. At this rate, she might reveal even more damning information then what Ayazi somehow got his hands on. She unleashed a large pulsewave of darkness to try and shake them away so she could escape, but they were having none of that. Several of Riza's attacks had already cut off potential escape routes. She tried to counter with a blinding flash, but Riza took an opening he saw to engage.

Riza slashed at her again, his sword seemingly bending in just the perfect way to deflect her double attack combined with a magical burst. He managed to slash her, but she was able to reduce it to a grazing cut through evasion and magic barriers. And yet, the second sword suddenly changed directions and managed to cut off her right hand, causing her great pain.

"You bastard!"

"I am afraid this is it for you".

"Lady Chianthias!"

Two of the demons rushed out and attacked him, but Riza just looked at them for a moment and suddenly they were cut into pieces. And yet in that moment, Chianthias retrieved her hand and jumped back. A magic circle lit up under her, and she suddenly disappeared...as well as exploding. Riza just barely contained it in a barrier, but he looked dissatisfied.

"Tsk, she got away. She has way too many escape routes. I destroyed three teleportation circles when I arrived, but to think she had a fourth? Those things are crazy expensive...that is, unless she used blood magic to create it. I wonder how many hundreds of people she killed?"

Amyris' voice spoke through the familiar. "Probably a great number. I wasn't able to get much from the probe, just that she has a few plans in mind and she isn't done with us yet...but, she did have some notes on petrification in there. I guess she was worried about Anna breaking free. I will need to make sure these aren't a trap though first before I can use them to search for methods to release Anna".

"I see...still though...teleport pads..."

Furthermore, they were only one time use one way teleporters. It was even rigged with an explosive trap as well.

"I went through all the trouble, and she still had some left over? These are even portable, what the hell? So she can just keep taking them to each new base? Uhg, if she has any more...waaah! What the hell! I was so close too!"

Riza went into a full blown tantrum at the unreasonable caution of this Devil.

"I am annoyed too Riza, but...there are children right there in cages you need to rescue. Please reign it in".

"No wonder we haven't been able to get her all these decades! This is absolute bullshit! Raaaaaaah! Next time for sure, I am taking her head off!"

Incidentally, Ozlo might have inherited his brains from Riza, but clearly not his maturity...or lack there of, when taking a loss. Even Amyris could not soothe him immediately.

"Well, whatever" Riza said, switching gears almost instantly once he was finally done rolling on the ground shouting. "At least we got a lot of documents, and looks like some of these kids are still alive. I guess I can say it was a tie at least".

That said, Riza was still really bitter.

After all the fighting, Kuroki's party had returned to the city, and things went well from there. In fact, inside the city, things turned out perfectly. Perhaps even too perfectly, to the point of it being weird.

"So you had zero casualties?" Kuroki asked Amyris, who was taking them somewhere for a special reward for all their hard work. They were currently in the silver district. This was not the noble district, the market district, or even the gold district. This district was expensive, but anyone, even commoners, could hope to enjoy some of the shops or facilities here on occasion. It was like a place for luxury stuff, but something that was more affordable so more then just nobles could come here. Merchants frequented this district a lot, so it was close to the market district. In fact, when Kuroki had rested after their sewer run, the wall they were near was actually the border wall between the market and silver district. All the shops there were apparently prime real estate, although some were empty since not all could afford them.

Kuroki was amazed they had zero civilian castualties. A few guards and adventurers did get injured, and one or two even died, but in terms of civilians, not a single one died despite goblins popping up all over the city. It was impressive, but Kuroki found that hard to comprehend.

"Hmmm....I could spoil it for you, but considering that Devil escaped, I think you will be seeing for yourself soon enough".

"...right..."

"In any case, we will be enjoying a great place in the Silver District. It's a bit expensive, so this is a very special occasion place, but they are doing half off for anyone who helped fight against the Goblin horde today, so I can treat everyone here tonight at least".

"Woo hoo!"

"Where are we going?"

"Well, as much as you still need to get used to this world, I thought something like this would be nice".

As he said that, he turned a corner and led them to a particular storefront. The moment the kids saw the sign, they got kind of excited and intriguied. Kuroki was only somewhat shy and bashful, but the idea was so alluring to him that resistance was futile.

After all, it was a bathhouse. Not only that, but they could also get food and drinks here and it also had spa services. The scent of a wonderful bath scents and the sort of relaxing atmosphere that seemed to seep out of the doors attracted them all, regardless of age. That said, Kuroki could understand what Amyris meant by expensive when he saw the sign.

Bathhouse Cost Per Person:

Elder: three large silvers

Adult: five large silvers

Older Child: (13-16) two large silvers

Young Child: (4-12) one large silver.

Younger Child: (0-3) Free

They were absolutely being treated here, since they still lacked enough personal finance for any of them to afford this place individually. And they were actually better off than the average E-Rank adventurer, thanks to their gear. Furthermore, the group broke out into cheers. All of them were sweaty and dirty, and seriously needed a good bath. Amyris mentioned they have professional laundromat services too, which meant their clothes would get cleaned by professionals using state of the art tools. Magic couldn't dry it directly, but this place had magic tools that could dry it indirectly. They were just expensive to use, hence the price.

Still, after all the dirt, grime, and blood they had gotten on them today, they were all in desperate need of a bath. The four had thought they would probably all get bathed together in a far more extensive and longer bath, given how much was built up, but clearly they were being treated to a luxury bath. Apparently while commoners normally either had to get bathed in a river or stream or pond, or the canals, or in the front or backyard outside, bathhouses did exist. However, they also cost money, especially since they had to make the cost of plumbing, which was expensive in this world, worth it.

Apparently it was even a large place where a large group could get together. Kuroki was confused at first, but Amyris explained that many traveling merchant groups made use of it. After all, they would accumulate the same fatigue for several days. Parties who escorted merchants also tended to use them when they were higher rank and made more money, which made sense. Apparently, the average D or C ranker could afford to make use of a normal bathhouse regularly, although they would still need to save a bit and pinch pennies if they wanted to go here regularly, which most adventurers would never do.

All bathhouses were public though of course, as only nobles and very rich individuals had access to private baths, or could afford plumbing in the first place. Apparently part of the reason was that metals often went into weapons and tools and infrastructure, but also the sheer work of digging through it all was expensive, and could mess with a city's defensive ward structure if the digging wasn't done right. And naturally, swimsuits didn't exist in this world, but the culture of this world didn't sexualize things as much and nudity was inherently innocent in its own right. In fact, bathing was considered a social activity by almost everyone in this world, a place to let loose, exchange gossip, chat, play around, gossip some more, and things like that. And especially gossip. It ranked up there with taverns, schools, and market areas as being the leading source of gossip.

And frankly, Kuroki and the others right now couldn't give a damn. Even Kaede, the only girl of the group, didn't. All of them had seen each other naked at least once already anyways, and they had worked hard all day and were tired and grimy and sweaty. They had been moving around all day, and the battles they fought together made them close and comfortable with each other as well. But also, they just had too much fatigue to care. Even Kuroki didn't care about one thing about this.

In fact, Kuroki took it back, this was just straight up a full on spa. It even featured rooms for the night, though that cost extra then the entrance fee. Apparently, additional things inside were cheaper, and it was mainly the entrance fee that was expensive, probably as a form of security deposit. They offered massages, rejuvenation treatments, skin care, muscle treatments, the works.

Amyris briefly looked at Kuroki, and the two nodded. They soon entered the establishment, and went up to the counter.

"One adult and four young children please. Here are our guild cards, as you can see we got rewarded with the title proving our participation".

On all of their Guild Cards, the title of "Azralia-Goblin Conflict Defender" had been added, which would serve as proof. The receptionist, seeing that, nodded appropriately. Incidentally, the way Kuroki was holding his had his thumb covering up his age, but she didn't have a second thought on that for a moment.

Incidentally, all of the cards displayed E-Rank as well. Thanks to everything that happened and their timeley reports, as well as working with other parties, they were promoted to E-Rank. They were not the only ones either. Soaring Shields also made E-Rank. Though Ozlo did warn them that while they might make D-Rank fast as well, expect C-Rank and beyond to be much tougher and longer to acquire.

"Alright, four large silvers and five medium silvers it is. Thank you for your service".

The five of them put their guild cards away, and headed into the changing room. Although each city and region had its differences, genders were generally considered equal, and it was even accepted that some might not fit into either of them, so this place like many others had completely mixed bathing. The changing rooms and baths were not divided, and there was no swimsuits in this world. Wearing clothes into the bath was considered incredibly bad etiquette and possibly against the rules, as it was for this place, so those who would be considered shy in this world would just have to put up with it. Otherworlders would have to put up with it, but this was the norm of this world.

However, Kuroki and the others were fatigued from the fighting, and they were on a blissful high of their achievement and payday, which had been rather satisfying in its amount, that they didn't care as much. Naturally, Adaptability, Mental Fortitude, and Compliance were playing their roles accordingly as well.

They stripped off everything, putting their underwear and all their clothes into the bin, and headed into the luxury establishment. The very smell felt inviting. There was an area for rinsing off one's body, a large bathing area that already had a few people in it, including some they recognized. Soaring Shields and Deep Dashers were here as well, and so was Ozlo, Ellie, and the Guildmaster, as well as a few others. Ozlo had apparently invited Soaring Shield and Deep Dashers to make it more merry, while the Guildmaster had ended up forcing his way into being involved. That one noble who stood up for them and Ozlo and put Valiance in his place was also here.

There were tables for eating, and some people had some drinks while in the bath or ate while at the edge of the baths. Ozlo himself was laying on a table, his back facing the ceiling, as he seemed to be getting a hot stone massage and also a normal massage at the same time.

"Break time?" Kuroki asked. If anyone deserved a break, it was Ozlo. He managed a Devil ambush apparently, on top of leading the adventurers, and putting up with Valiance, and all the work he did the last few days.

"Yeah...also, don't touch the stones".

"Don't worry, I won't steal any".

"No, I mean, I have thermal resistance, so they have to specially heat up these stones just for me. If you touch them, you might get third degree burns".

"Oh...got it, hands off the stones".

"Mhm....mhhhhhhhhmmmmmmmmmm" Ozlo replied, although the latter part was a reaction as one of the ladies tending to him placed another stone on a spot while the other undid a knot. "This is bliss".

Amyris just chuckled.

"Yeah, he certainly earned this break".

Suddenly, another boy...or rather, a grandpa who looked like a young boy, ran through the door from the changing room. His blonde hair was especially messy, and it looked like he was actually out of breath. Kuroki had never once seen him like that, even Sebas didn't push him this much.

"Sorry...I am...late..."

"Honestly, I am amazed you got back at all" Ozlo pointed out, as one of the women got another knot out of his back and he leaked out a sigh of bliss.

Ozlo didn't even bat an eye, and explained once he caught his breath a bit. "I was able to salvage enough of those teleport pads to get me back here in a hurry".

"...didn't you completely obliterate them?"

"Hence why I was late!"

Ozlo let out a sigh. "I can't believe...no, I am on holiday. Someone else deal with the idiots! I am not available! Ahhhhh...yes please, get that new one right there".

With that declaration, Ozlo fully focused on his own treatment, while Kuroki looked confused.

"Teleport pads? What are you talking about?"

Amyris turned towards Kuroki. "Ah, didn't you notice Riza was weirdly missing today? We sent him and my familiar to attack the enemy base".

"...ah. Wait, Goblin or Devil?"

"Devil".

"Ahh...hey, Riku?!" Kuroki said, before Riku pulled him over and more or less threw him into the bath now that they were done rinsing off. Riku then dove right in himself, popping up his head soon since it was rather shallow. Kuroki wanted to be annoyed, but the water already worked its way into his body and joints, and the two boys let out a brilliant sigh.

To them, the water was heavenly. Both of them so far had to endure being bathed outside the whole time. Of course, there were actually more people who could see them now then in that backyard, but the water was so much better it was so blissful. It was nice warm heated water, with neither one of them shivering at all. They were able to completely absorb the bliss of it all, and they looked so relaxed. Ryuu and Kaede joined them, and the four looked like they were in heaven. Deep Dashers and Soaring Shields had similar expressions. Although, none of them got close to how blissful Ozlo looked right now.

It appeared to be relative to how hard they worked. Riza even joined them, and had a similar expression. They even lined up next to each other and let out a collective sigh of bliss, making it a symphony of sighs.

But then a fool decided to open his mouth.

"Haha, look at that. It's a line of hills, their..."

The guildmaster said that, apparently buzzed already. However, before he could even finish his idiotic observation, such a comment was almost immediately met with his voice suddenly disappearing completely as Ellie cast a spell. Furthermore, a dragon was now flying behind the guildmaster, the same small one Ozlo had summoned in the command tent. What appeared to be a magical projection of a guillotine appeared above the GUildmaster's head thanks to Amyris, and even Riza was giving him the stinkeye. Yes, even Riza.

"Guildmaster, if you don't sober up and stop being weird, I will use that on you...and naturally, I will inform your wife as well".

"It appears my boss needs me to use my sobering spell on him".

"I will not have you tarnish my reputation by speaking such things to the people I am treating".

"Seriously? Even I wouldn't say that out loud at our first party with everyone".

Ellie, Ozlo, Amyris, and even Riza made their statements accordingly, although Riza revealed he wasn't all that different from the guildmaster in some aspects.

The Guildmaster seemed to come to his senses fast, making gestures that he would do his best as fear seemed to sober him up a bit.

Meanwhile, Riza was looking over at Ozlo.

"You been eating properly?"

"Better than you".

"Ozlo, you know you can't lie to me".

"Tsk".

"Hey, can you get him two portions of dinner please? Steak medium rare, mashed potatoes, aluvia sauce on steak and gravy on the potatoes, with chocolate milk on the side, and plenty of carrots?"

One of the attendants nodded, and headed to get such food.

"Are you eating too?"

"No, I am ordering next. You are eating both because you missed lunch today".

"What?!"

"A grandpa knows these things".

"How did...uhg".

"Ozlo, I believe some other people told you already, but you can let others take care of you. You don't need to handle everything and push yourself".

"Easy for you to say when you were the cause for many of my problems...and how do you even know that?!"

"Guess I walked right into that one, but it was written on your face. I am your grandpa, I can tell such things".

Although they were bickering, Ozlo looked far more relieved as he did compared to before. Kuroki figured it was probably due to their bond. As much as Riza caused trouble for Ozlo, the two genuinely cared about each other and looked out for each other. Riza was very much a meddlesome grandparent type, even if he didn't always act the age or look like it.

"Looks like you have good people around you, Oz" Count Cremalis said as he came over, having had a few drinks yet still looking completely sober, unlike a certain Guildmaster.

"I must say, I never thought a full fledged noble would publicly come to the silver district. Or share a bath with commoners".

"Heh. An exception or two isn't going to cause any real issues".

Kuroki looked confused, and turned to Dia for answers.

"What does he mean by that?"

"Typically, Nobles can enjoy anything here in their daily lives easily. Of course, those would be private facilities just for them. And if they do go out, they would typically go to the gold district. Unless you win some sort of raffle or lottery, most commoners would rarely if ever set foot there. High ranking adventurers might though. Merchants, who have more wealth to them and occasionally need to attend and do business there to show off their wealth and prosperity, might frequent the Gold District occasionally as well, in addition to other middle class positions like city leaders and those with high ranking positions even if they are technically commoners. The middle class, if you will".

"Ah, I see".

So the Silver District to the general people was the Gold District to the more well off merchants, or the Market District to well established nobles.

"Furthermore, one way nobles show their status is clothes. Typically, you cannot be dressed better then someone of higher rank. Its considered rude. Obviously there are exceptions naturally, such as surprise guests and all that. Its a difference between nobles and commoners you could say. Commoners might care a bit about fashion, but most don't obsess too much about it, while nobles and the rich obsess over it. Its part of their status".

Kuroki nodded, understanding the situation. That was why Ozlo was surprised to see the count attending the party.

"That said, noble children have been known to frequent them a lot, unofficially or even officially sometimes. It depends on their status or allowance, but unless their parents are being very generous with them, they generally wont be able to afford going into the Gold District too often unless its on officially family business".

"Wait, isn't Ozlo also a noble? And Riza?"

"Well, exceptions like them do exist. To be honest, Ozlo has barely any recognition of his noble status, and I think it's only when he wants to take advantage of it".

"...that does sound about right for him".

Perhaps Kuroki was unfairly letting his imagery of Valiance obscure his view, but Ozlo seemed far more hard working and just then what a noble typically would.

"There are plenty of nobles who do their jobs properly and have a sense of honor, but there are also plenty of scum as well. However, you can't always tell by their personalities. There is one noble in this city who tends to be rude, makes commoners strip and do weird poses as punishment when they are disgraceful to him, stuff like that. But then he goes and donates huge amounts of gold for the orphanages, the public facilities, programs to feed the poor. For those who strip, he ends up paying for just the medicine they need, claiming 'such injuries or scars are a pain' or 'I dont want such germs and filth near me' or the like. I heard from a doctor that those poses are actually great to tell muscle, skin, and interior body health. He was the one that argued against Valiance when they tried to make the Adventurer's Guild do it for free and make the Guild pay for this themselves. Although he did say 'how can we expect them to be properly motivated except by the power of our wealth for this?', he ended up donating way more then the minimum amount".

"So he acts all arrogant and cruel, but in actuality, he is actually incredibly kind and generous?"

"Yep. But the point is, you can't judge a noble on if they are scum or not just because they do or don't act arrogant or impulsive. So make sure you take care on who you trust okay?"

"Thanks. I guess that is the wisdom of a newly minted D-Rank adventurer for you".

"Yep!"

Dia seemed quite happy and overjoyed about his new promotion. It would let them earn more money and have access to more guild facilities and resources after all, and they were making money in order to help reduce the strain on their family. Apparently, they had four younger brothers, quadruplets, and one older sister who was already a B-Rank adventurer.

"Only a single older sister?"

"Happens sometimes, usually with girls. Some say its why our population doesn't overrun everyone else. That and also we can be rather weak and die easily normally".

"...you seem nothing like that".

"Ahahaha...that's fair".

"I hear we are supposed to be on standby for awhile even as we complete new quests" Riala mentioned as he joined in on the conversations.

"You think they are concerned because the Goblin surge happened so suddenly?"

"Yeah. Especially since there are Orcs in the southern woods. If such a surge is happening to them as well, then the situation could be far worse".

"But so far, there has been no movement from that, and such things take time. So we should be fine for awhile at least. Still, Orcs are way more dangerous than Hobgoblins".

Still, Kuroki had concerns. This wasn't a natural occurrence after all, something was clearly amiss. The Devils had made their move, but they were not out of moves. The Starfall was still a big mystery, having targeted even animals. And then there was the mysterious boy who had helped them out in their time of need. Or, as Kuroki suspected, an adult that had become a boy again due to his wish.

And then there was that place, and the people who helped him. What was that place? How was he able to invoke the Last Wish?

It felt like they were still small fish in a big pond, or rather, a big lake. And unless they got stronger, they likely would be at the mercy of these forces and would never find the answers they sought.

Which means, the ritual in five days is more important than ever.

Five days until the full moon, and Kuroki would perform the True Arcanium Ritual. And then he would be a step closer to finding those answers.

Meanwhile, far off in a different city, The Oracle was having his own bath. To be exact, two maidens were bathing him, scrubbing his body clean of filth. As the Oracle, he was far too important to be allowed to clean himself and required plenty of care. Once they were done however, they let him be to soak in the tub. He briefly mused about submerging himself in the water to deprive himself of oxygen, but he already knew it would fail. The collar around his neck would never let him die, under any circumstance.

Not unless the Council themselves demanded it.

Still, as he soaked, he did recieve a shock as his memories returned once more. He immediately checked various potential futures to see what happened.

"I see. Flopsy is no longer an enemy, the Devil was defeated and wounded, but escaped alive, and the Orcs will invade in the coming weeks next, fueled by Devil magic. It would have been nice to take Chianthias off the board, she is still the biggest threat to them this early in the timeline, but...this is certainly among the better outcomes. Now Kuroki's group is forging stronger bonds with some of his fellow adventurers, and...what is this? A new threadline? This was not here...was someone inspired and created a new figure of importance? Interesting".

However, his gaze turned towards one thread in particular.

"The Foxkin Zak. What an interesting individual. A Starfallen no doubt, but...he is defying predictions? Was it him, and not Green then, or one of the Hidden who shifted the future then?"

The Oracle took a greater interest in Zak. He examined the boy's...no, the man's timeline.

"Interesting. He has more knowledge then most, and a connection to Kuroki. I may need to find a way to chat with him, but...even my normal ways wont work with him".

As he considered things, he took a look at other factors.

"Uh oh. Looks like those organizations are going to be making their move. And unfortunately, the timeline we are now on has increased the spread of that new drug that makes people all weird and crazy. Seriously, licking your own sword? How unsanitary!"

He reviewed a bit more, but then found something odd...

"...there are blank spots. Someone is shielding future events from even my powers?"

He tried to peer into them, but he felt blocked.

"Someone is trying to stop people from viewing and changing the future. Is this the rumored power of the Demon King. No matter, I will not be detered so easily".

The Oracle already knew the events that would come next. These seemed to be fixed, nothing could stop them, only determine the outcome.

And yet, the Oracle smiled. Because he could still see it. The ideal future. A moment that would change everything, and proof that he had to hold out hope, without letting his captors know about this future.

The Heroes. The Starfallen. The Oracle. All appearing on the same battlefield. It was off in the future, it would take at least a year or two to manifest.

There was a future where he was free. And where he fought alongside the Heroes of this country, as well as Kuroki. This was not yet a fixed future. It could shape and divert, things could change. In fact, the odds of this future happening where low.

But it was proof that he had a chance to escape the prison he was currently in. That he had the chance to leave the Ivory Tower. So many other futures existed, where he remained locked in here. A few where he died, but even that was preferable to the endless imprisonment and abuse he faced. But to escape...that was his ideal.

This future is one where Kuroki lives. Perhaps there are ways to reach it without him. Perhaps he too is a replacable part that could be taken by any other. There should be endless variations of this moment, and there is no reason my escape depends on it.

But that changes nothing. Kuroki has one of the highest chances to die of any Starfallen, thanks to his biological donor and his stupid students. Thanks to Chianthias, and those who hate Amyris. Thanks to his small size but great potential, which attracts weirdos and those filled with envy. He is not the most important, or the least important. He is not the strongest or the weakest. He has no cheat abilities or special powers he was granted. He will have to go on great adventures. But, just like everyone else, he matters. He is important. He deserves to live and be happy!

The Oracle might not be aware of it, but the line between him talking about Kuroki and himself was blurring there, at that very end. The Oracle, for the first time in a long time, had tasted hope.

For years, he wished for any end to his imprisonment. In fact, he still does. And yet...for perhaps the first time in many years, his desire to live was growing.

And with this, his soul began to burn just a bit brighter. A single candle atop the white tower full of darkness.

And so, the Moments of Fate ticked ever closer, as the day came to an end.