I Reincarnated to Another World as a Woman-Chapter 138: A Team of Five

Theo hugs Arthur as well. He doesn’t hold back. He lets Thea’s unresolved feelings, her buried trauma, finally wash through him.

Rest in peace, Thea. Truly rest in peace.

His eyes sting too. Theo’s emotions mingle with hers until they blur together, overwhelming him. He doesn’t try to rein them in. He lets them flow freely.

They hold each other for a while. It doesn’t go unnoticed by the three observers outside, who are trying very hard not to watch and failing anyway.

Maeve’s eyes are watery now. She cries quietly.

"Oh, don’t cry. You’re going to make me cry," Julian whispers, his own eyes already glossed over.

"Okay, I’m supposed to be water," Liam mutters, clearly uncomfortable, "but why do all of you suddenly have water in your eyes?" He tries, unsuccessfully, to distract himself. Tears, from men or women, have never been his strong suit.

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Theo and Arthur eventually loosen their hold and step back.

Arthur smiles faintly and wipes Theo’s tears away with his hands.

"I’m really sorry. I truly am," he says softly. "It may sound repetitive, but I don’t know what else to say other than sorry."

"You do know that I don’t blame you, right?" Theo asks.

Arthur only blinks at him.

Theo lets out a quiet chuckle. "Apparently, you don’t."

He exhales. "I don’t blame you. Or Julian. Or anyone. Not Mother, not Father. I blame no one." His voice steadies. "If I have to blame something, I blame the situation back then. We all did what we thought was best at the time."

"Blaming someone won’t bring those days back. They’re already in the past. Let them stay there." Theo smiles, tears still clinging to his lashes. "We need to move forward. We still have so much ahead of us."

"According to Theo," he adds lightly, "I’ll eventually be stronger than any of you."

He smiles teasingly.

"That means I don’t need your constant protection. Trust me. I’m one of Theo’s students too." He gives Arthur a small blink.

Arthur stares at him in silence.

"Alright," Arthur finally says. "But tell me this first. When you fell from the cliff, what really happened?" His voice lowers. "I need to know it wasn’t because of me."

Theo smiles. "It was my magic. I was frustrated. You wouldn’t leave me alone, and I just wanted to get away." He pauses. "I broke the ground. And I fell."

"You... broke... the ground?" Arthur repeats, stunned.

Theo nods. "Yes. My memory is still fuzzy, but I definitely felt something surge out of my body."

Arthur leans back in his chair. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

"Broke the ground..." he murmurs.

"What? You don’t believe Theo that I’m strong?" Theo teases.

Arthur lets out a short laugh. "Don’t tease me about that. Seeing you this small, yet stronger than me... my mind still hasn’t caught up."

Theo scoffs. "What about Aldriana? You believed she was stronger than you, and she’s small too."

"I saw Aldriana’s power with my own eyes," Arthur replies flatly. "I didn’t have much choice but to believe her."

"Hmph." Theo crosses his arms. "Then I guess you need to see me too. Let’s find a dungeon. We can go together."

"No!" Arthur rejects the idea instantly.

"What is it?" Liam asks as the three of them step into the lounge, sensing the emotional storm has passed.

"You need to get used to the idea that I’m strong too, Art," Theo insists.

Arthur ignores him and answers Liam instead. "She wants to go clear a dungeon with us."

"Whoa. That’s a great idea!" Liam grins.

"Alright!" Maeve chimes in without hesitation.

"What? No!" Julian protests.

The five of them stare at one another for a moment, then burst out laughing.

After a few moments, Theo leans back in his chair.

"Alright. We’ve cleared some things up," he says. "Now I need to tell you what Theo wants to say."

Arthur frowns. "And how do we know it’s really from Theo, and that you’re not adding anything of your own?" He squints at Theo suspiciously.

"You don’t," Theo replies calmly. "You just need to trust me. I might add something for myself. Or I might not. You won’t know."

Theo meets his gaze, unflinching.

Every pair of eyes turns to Arthur.

Arthur exhales, rubbing his face. "Fine. Tell us."

Theo clears his throat. "First. He wants us to return to our normal lives. As normal as we can. But we are to keep practicing magic, especially mentally. Spells and incantations have proven unnecessary for us." He pauses. "But that is because our resonance is high. If someone has low resonance, then spells and incantations are still required."

"Second. Everything I know, Theo knows. And everything Theo knows, I know. You don’t need to worry that I forgot to tell him something, or that I deliberately kept information from you. There are no gaps between us."

"Third. He will not show himself unless it is absolutely necessary. If you have questions about magic, you can ask me. My explanation is his explanation." Theo tilts his head slightly. "I can’t explain how we communicate. But we do. Regularly."

He pauses, giving them time to absorb it.

His eyes flick briefly to Maeve. She has been watching him closely the entire time. When their eyes meet, she smiles and gives a small nod.

"Fourth," Theo continues, "he wants to know how we plan to move forward, beyond learning magic."

Julian speaks up first. "I want to create a separate communication system. Something different from phones. Just for the five of us." His eyes light up. "I want to combine my new understanding of magic with technology to build it."

He looks at Theo. "If talking to you is the same as talking to Theo, then I’ll probably need your help."

Theo nods. "That’s a very good idea. I’ll help however I can. And if I don’t know something, I’ll ask Theo."

"I’m planning to return to Solarys," Liam says next. "To meet with the Concordia Dungeon Department and the Concordia Defense Department. We need to warn the world about mutated dungeons. I’ll likely need data from you, Julian."

Julian nods. "I can provide that. And I still remember the watch and the alarm." He frowns slightly. "Was that why your watch recorded nothing, Thea? Was it Theo?"

Theo nods. "Yes. He wrapped the watch with his Aegis and placed it inside my space bracelet."

Julian exhales slowly. "No wonder. Brilliant move, Theo."

"I suppose I’ll be returning to Solarys as well," Maeve says quietly. "Back to my work. I’ll be your eyes inside the secret society."

Silence settles over the table.

"Arthur?" Theo prompts.

Arthur straightens. "There are several matters I need to handle here in Arvion. Chief Stille is one of them. He’s been an annoying fly for far too long." His eyes harden. "I intend to swat him down. There’s also Montrose Corporation business that needs my attention."

He pauses, then continues. "After that, I’ll head to Solarys. Liam, you won’t be able to do this alone with only Julian’s data."

Arthur looks around at them. "Even with your father’s influence, they might not take us seriously. Sam sent me a report a few hours ago. Several dungeons have appeared in Solarys, and one of them is suspected to be mutated."

He leans forward slightly. "Its width and height are about half of Mt. Helene’s dungeon."

Arthur leans back, a slow smile forming.

"If I’m right, the Solarys dungeon team won’t be able to handle it."

He leans forward again, placing both hands on the table.

"That’s where we come in."