The rest of that day passed by in a haze. Lyra had walked down from the fortress walls and returned to the keep, and then secluded herself in her room. She sat in her bad, listening as the dings from the notifications kept coming in, a steady stream of death, following her even here. She sat on her bed, hugging her knees to her chest, chin resting on her knees. She did not feel like seeing anyone. Even when Lady Helena knocked on her door, she turned her friend away. Lyra had to come to terms with the reality of what she had done, on her own terms.
It was not a decision she made at the moment, but one she had carefully considered. Even now, she did not regret it, but that did not mean she was okay with what she had done, or happy with herself. She had killed thousands. And many of the survivors, their lives would be altered forevermore. They'd be disfigured, unable to work properly, their lives lacking in many ways, all because of her.
But what choice did she have? They, the enemy, threatened the lives of her friends, and of innocent people. As soldiers, they had accepted the risk of death. Still did not make her feel any better, every time a new notification appeared. But, she also couldn't just mute them. It would be disrespectful in a way, she felt. Enemy or not, they had been people, with lives of their own. Living and breathing beings, just like her, and she had been the one to extinguish them.
So she sat there, alone in her bed, for many hours. There were the occasional knock on the door, but she ignored them. She did not have the mental capacity right now to deal with people. However, once the sun started to set and evening came, the growl of her stomach stirred her to action. It had nearly been three days since she had anything substantial. Anything she had eaten the day prior she had also vomited, so no wonder she was rather hungry. Certainly, she did not require as much food as she did when she was a human back on Earth, but three days still made her rather hungry.
Slowly, she slipped her legs over the edge of the bed, and her feet touched the cold stone floor. Still in the same simple skirt and top, she approached the door and stepped outside for the first time in many hours. With silent footsteps she made her way towards the dining hall, hoping to find something to eat there. When she entered, she found a crowd of soldiers and knights already busy eating. Most of them were covered in patches of soot around their armor, but they were still eating heartily. However, upon spotting her, the conversations all came to a halt.
Lyra felt a pang of grief, briefly. She had once been considered "Part" of them. Strange and exotic perhaps, being an elven woman, but still able to hold casual conversation on mutual terms. But now, they looked at her as if she was something entirely different, a being who was beyond mortal understanding. It made her feel isolated, and lonely. Perhaps spotting the solemn expression on her face, one of the soldiers stood up and approached her. He smiled wistfully, before taking a short bow, and then he spoke:
"Lady Lyra, I heard from my wife that you comforted my daughter this morning."
Oh. He was the father of the two children, husband to the young mother inside the storage room. Lyra nodded softly in response.
"I just wanted to say thank you. Not just from me, but from my entire family. It is thanks to you, that I get hold them in my arms tonight. So from the bottom of my heart... I thank you." he said, somewhat sentimental.
Lyra did not know what to say, nor did she have time to. More and more people rose from their seats, and came over. They offered their thanks, swore their loyalty, offered to name their firstborn daughters after her. For fifteen minutes, she could not move, as the men swarmed her in order to thank her profusely.
"Alright! Give her a break, please!" the voice of a woman called out. It was Lady Helena, who had also come into the Dining Hall. She approached, and the soldiers and knights began to part ways, returning to their meals and previous talks.
"Are you alright Lyra?" Helena said, looking at her friend with concern.
-"Truthfully, no. But, I am doing better. And..." Lyra trailed off, but Helena understood. Lyra was touched by the many thanks, and it had made her feel a bit better. With a gentle touch, Helena reached out to take Lyra's hand, and this time, Lyra did not pull away.
"Shall we get you something to eat?" Helena said with a kind smile, and together they went to pick up some food. Lyra was actually famished, she only realized while eating, and went for seconds and even thirds. Since there was no further risk of invasion, the Keep had let go on any and all food rationing, so there was plenty of variety to choose from. Helena did also not ask any questions, but let Lyra do the talking. She probably wanted to ask a lot of questions, but chose to consider her friend's well-being and state of mind first, which Lyra appreciated.
-"I noticed a lot of people covered in soot." Lyra asked softly between a few bites of chicken.
"We have been assisting the Kingdom Alliance with gathering the wounded." Helena said. She added: "No one wants to fight anymore. So we've been carrying the wounded from our side of the "Scar" as we've dubbed it, and brought them back to the Alliance encampment."
"But it is difficult. The amount of wounded are at least triple the amount of uninjured. So the Commander of the Kingdom Alliance sent riders back to Fandir Fortress to ask for help in transportation. His Highness Thomas allowed it, since it is in our best interest to have them leave as well." Helena continued
-"I see." Lyra answered before taking a bite from a large sausage. It was good that things were progressing.
"I think, after this, both parties may negotiate a proper peace. There's only been an unofficial truce up till this point, but this ought to seal the deal." Helena said, sipping from a glass of water.
-"That would be good." Lyra said with a nod, also having a drink of water.
"I agree. And honestly, Lyra, I want to thank you as well. Twice now, you have saved my life." Helena said, brushing a strand of hair between her hair, a gentle blush on her cheeks. Rather than responding, Lyra reached over and pat Helena atop her head gently, which had the Court-Magus pout, then smile. She added:
"Everyone is very thankful, Lyra, as you can tell. I hope you can feel the sincerity and love from us all, so please do not feel bad, alright?"
Lyra nodded. Helena was right, and she could feel it. Though the way she was perceived had undoubtedly changed, that was only natural. But she still felt their sincerity, and their fondness.
-"Thanks, Helena. You have such a good way with words." Lyra remarked, and flashed her a smile. A bright, sincere smile, this time.
After her meal, Helena joined Lyra in her room, and they talked about other things. Lyra opened up a bit about what had happened when she had gone to Fandir Fortress, about the Mind-control, and the sexual abuse, which earned her a long and tight hug from Helena. Eventually, when night came and it was time for Helena to head back to her own quarters, Lyra felt okay. She wasn't feeling great, but she was okay, and that was okay.
That night, she actually managed to get some sleep, and woke up feeling partly refreshed. She had breakfast down in the Dining Hall that morning, and then had a proper meeting with His Highness Thomas and the Knight-Captains from the 3rd, 4th and 5th orders. There was still weeks of work left. Bodies and melted armor to be cleared from the fields, and plenty of letters to send. There had still been no word from the Ytrand side after their forces withdrew last night, but that was to be expected. Their king was dead, so they were extremely disorganized right now. But the Revean Empire did not intend to push the matter.
While they could go on a counter offensive once they were mobilized, Thomas was against that idea. In the letter he sent by messenger bird to his father the Emperor this morning, he had instead outlined his plans for a peace-deal, which he hoped his father would adhere too. Still, it would be a few days before they heard back from the Capital City. Lyra agreed to stay here for the time being, and that afternoon she sat down outside on a bench, enjoying a bit of time alone outside under the sun. She still got the occasional notification of someone having died, but they were rarer now. So, finally, she opened up her status window...
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Name: Lyra Lunarsong
HP: 14860 MP: 24220
Level: 83 (3,650,000 / 12,875,000)
Race: High Elf
Age: 26
Stamina: 1486
Strength: 1328
Agility: 1251
Spirit: 1164
Intellect: 2053
Job: Spirit-Mage* Upgrade Available (Apprentice, Novice and Intermediate level spells costs 50% less mana to cast. May communicate and form contracts with Spirits to use their powers as your own.)
Skill: Magic Creation (SSS) (The User may create spells with their own unique effects, the manacost is proportionate to the effect of the spell)
Available attribute points to spend: 80
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
So she had leveled up 16 times. From 67 to 83. Made sense though, when she looked at the recent notifications. 6139 recent kill notifications. That's how many she had killed with her attack. Still a few more coming in every hour, but at least it is not every minute anymore. And, she even had the option to upgrade her job now. So, she looked at the options she had:
Sage: (All spells costs 50% less mana to cast. All spells deals 20% extra dmg. May communicate and form contracts with Spirits to use their powers as your own.)
Oracle: (All spells costs 50% less mana to cast. May occasionally see glimpses of the future. Has the true-sight ability, allowing one to always see reality for what it is.)
Hmm, Sage or Oracle, indeed. Both were quite attractive to Lyra, mostly because of the mana-reduction to spells. If she picked Oracle, it seems like she'd loose out on being able to make contracts with spirits. Not that she had one. But the Truesight ability was rather attractive. However... seeing the future was not something Lyra was interested in. It sounded, frankly, like a hassle. So she went with Sage instead, figuring the Truesight thing was something she could just create with her unique skill anyways.
After that, she took a walk around. Anywhere she went, she was met with revering bows. Occasionally, she'd even be granted flowers or fruits from the people on the streets. Thanks to her, Fort Luna was still standing, after all. And so the days seemed to flow together. Lyra was still processing everything, but finally coming to terms with what she had done, and accepted it for what it was. She did not feel guilty anymore, when she saw the smiles on the children's faces as they played out in the streets. A week after the siege of Luna, the call came for them all to return back to the Capital. The threat was over, and so Lyra, Thomas, Helena, and the Knight Orders, were all set to leave Luna.
As they rode out the gates, the villagers sprinkled flowers from the gates, and even chanted her name, as if she was some hero. Ironic, Lyra thought with a smile, as the carriage left Luna behind, their course set on the Capital City...