After Eldric's brief talk with his brother, it felt as though they'd grown a little closer. Nothing dramatic, just a subtle shift. Words flowed easier between them, like a stiffness had quietly melted away.
That evening, they sat down for supper with the rest of the family. To everyone's surprise, Mister Rykard decided to join them as well.
It turned into a hearty night—full of chatter, laughter, and warmth. Rykard told stories of his youth while the children listened, their eyes wide with wonder. Elaine interrupted constantly, asking about the most trivial details, while Draven sat in quiet curiosity, absorbing every word. Eldric, meanwhile, found himself entertained as well, though not quite for the same reasons as his siblings.
While they were enraptured by the tales of a daring and gallant young Rykard, all Eldric heard were the fumbling misadventures of a clueless youth stumbling through life.
The story session came to an abrupt end when Miss Hargette smacked Rykard lightly on the back of the head.
"The children need to sleep, you buffoon. Stop filling their heads with your nonsense and go home already."
Rykard let out a booming laugh, his face flushed red with drink. "What are you talking about, sister? I barely slept when I was a boy—and look how I turned out!"
From the sofa at the back, Aurel chuckled softly—a rare sound. "I doubt you're helping your case, Rykard. You've been as lanky as a bean stalk since we were kids!"
The room erupted in laughter. Amid the noise, Eldric tried to sneak himself a mug of beer, only for a swift hand to smack his wrist.
Miss Hargette gave him a sharp glare. "And what do you think you're doing, young man?"
Eldric laughed awkwardly. "Oh—that was ale? I didn't notice…"
She eyed him suspiciously but eventually let him off with a sigh.
Safe to say, Eldric was more than a little disappointed. 'Damn it! I'm a thirty-one-year-old man! I can drink a beer if I want to!'
His internal protest went entirely unheard, as always.
Before long, the night grew too old for the three children, and they were sent off to bed. As they began to rise, Eldric leaned close to Rykard and whispered, "Don't forget that favor I asked you about."
Rykard gave a bleary-eyed nod, still smiling, before being promptly shooed out by Miss Hargette.
---
Day came, yet instead of rising with the first light, Eldric slept through the clamor of the slums. He needed the rest. Today would be a long one, and his plans wouldn't begin until sunset.
When he finally stirred in the evening, he felt groggy, but rested. He went about his usual routine, and for the first time in years, did nothing.
He didn't feel like forcing himself through the agony of Ether circulation, nor did he have anything to read or study. Even Elaine wasn't around to pester him today. And, strangely enough, for the first time since his reincarnation, his mind was quiet.
No restless thoughts gnawed at him, no memories clawed their way back to the surface. The faces of those he left behind felt distant softened. He didn't know if that calm was because of the choice he made yesterday, or if he was simply growing numb to it all.
He leaned back against the wall, staring at the ceiling. What was the choice he had made even? What did he want to do?
Eldric leaned back, eyes on the dim lantern light.
He wanted to go home, to Alex, and to his child. That was simple enough. But getting there… that was where things got complicated.
He couldn't just abandon this world as he was now. Not because he cared—he didn't. These people weren't his responsibility. Their suffering wasn't his problem.
But Alex would care. And that was enough.
If he wanted to stand beside her again, he needed to become the kind of man she'd believe deserved to be there. To leave this world behind without leaving a mess she'd scorn him for.
It wasn't redemption he sought. It was proof. Proof that he could still be someone she'd look at without disappointment.
"God," he muttered under his breath, "that's probably the stupidest thing I've ever thought."
He sighed, letting the thought dissolve. Maybe that was enough reasoning for now. Thinking too long only made things messier.
As he sat there, lost in his own quiet, the door creaked open.
Aurel stepped inside , pale and graceful, her light brown hair falling neatly over her shoulders. Even after seeing her every day for the past six years, Eldric couldn't help but admit she was stunning. Her blue eyes carried warmth, and the faint red streaks beneath them gave her beauty a fragile, sorrowful edge.
Seeing her son awake, Aurel smiled softly. "Hey there, Elly."
Eldric returned the smile. "Hi, mom."
She sat beside him on the bed. "What are you doing here all by yourself?"
Eldric stretched lazily, his joints popping. "Nothing, really."
Aurel chuckled. "Well, that is rare."
"Yeah," he said, grinning faintly. "I'm going out with Uncle Rykard at sundown. He told you, right?"
She nodded, her hand moving to gently stroke his hair. "He did."
They sat in silence for a while, Aurel's fingers lightly brushing through his hair. To Eldric, she was the hardest person to be around. He'd never done well with mothers. His own, back on Earth, had left him with too many scars to count, not that he was much better as a son, they deserved each other, in a way. So the quiet tenderness Aurel radiated felt... alien. Almost unsettling.
And then there was the knowledge of what she did for work, the kind of exhaustion she carried. He never said a word about it, he wasn't a good actor, and pretending ignorance was easier. Their relationship was... complicated.
"Elly?" her voice broke the silence.
He looked up. "Yeah?"
She didn't meet his eyes, her hand still tracing through his hair. "You're going to do something dangerous, aren't you?"
Eldric froze.
Her expression hadn't changed—that faint, gentle smile still lingered. But when she finally looked at him, he felt as though she could see through every wall he'd built.
'How the hell...'
He forced a casual tone. "Unless Uncle Rykard's planning something risky tonight, I don't think so."
Her hand stilled for a moment. It was a weak lie, and they both knew it. But instead of pressing further, Aurel simply nodded—and pulled him into her arms.
Her voice was barely above a whisper, tender yet trembling. "Please... don't take any of my babies away from me. They're all I have."
He didn't know who she was speaking to—him, the gods, or maybe the world itself. He only knew that her arms were warm, and that he couldn't bring himself to pull away.
"I'm not going anywhere," he said quietly.
A promise without weight. A lie he already knew he probably wouldn't keep. It's not like he pitied her—he simply owed her a little kindness before he left. That's all it was.
---
Eldric perched atop the shrine's tiled roof, leaning against a gem-eyed statue as the Garrison's moving headquarters drew near. The shrine stood a little taller than the mobile mansion, granting him a clear view of its broad, gleaming roof.
He was dressed in all black— shirt, trousers, boots —a matching ensemble that already looked worn despite being freshly bought. Then again, what could one expect from a clothing store in the slums?
As the Garrison approached, Eldric melded into the statue's shadow, his presence fading into the gloom. The district was abandoned tonight—no torches, no vagrants, no guards. A city-wide holiday had even drawn the volunteers, prowling the temple, away.
Perfect conditions for a break-in.
Below, the Sigiled warriors spread into formation, shields raised, enclosing the massive structure in a ring of steel. Their perimeter was wide enough that no one could glimpse the mansion itself, much less breach it.
Fortunately, Eldric didn't need to breach anything. He had no intention of fighting through them, not that he could. If the bottom was impenetrable, he'd simply come from above.
He'd thought about this plan before, but using Nihilic Veil on the moving fortress was risky, and he wasn't entirely sure it would even work on something that massive. And if it failed… well, explaining why a six-year-old happened to land on the Garrison's roof wouldn't be easy.
Now that he knew it would work, it was the only option he had. Entering from the top might disorient him, but he could manage.
Probably.
He smirked faintly. "Probably not."
The Garrison now rumbled directly beneath him, its armored roof glinting faintly under the moonlight. No one below had noticed the boy crouched in the darkness.
Eldric drew a slow breath, steadying his pulse. If he made it through tonight, maybe he'd try to do right by the family that had somehow become his.
If not…
'We'll see if I get a third try.'
He stepped off the statue and kicked off the roof, hurling himself toward the moving fortress below.