Point-of-View: Mysst Jenwell

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"So, did you have fun yesterday?" Ilex asked me with a smile.

"Shhh, not so loud...I’ve got a brutal hangover, so please keep your voice down," I groaned as I buried my head under a pillow, before muttering, "And yes...I suppose I had fun."

"Glad to hear it...honestly, I’ve felt kinda bad about making you leave Obsidian and start over in an unfamiliar place like this. So, I wanted you to have more people than just me with whom you get along and can have fun with," He replied as he patted my shoulder.

Ugh, I drank way too much yesterday. Apparently, I passed out at some point, and Prysm carried me here while I was unconscious. I just woke up about an hour ago, and it’s now around 7 PM.

I wanna go back to sleep, my head is killing me, it feels all heavy and cloudy, throbbing painfully. I sure am glad that Ilex isn’t exactly the loudest person, I don’t think I can handle any loud noises right now-...

"Damn it, go away," I groaned as someone knocked on the door, interrupting my train of thought.

"Just relax and take it easy, I’ll go see who it is," Remarked Ilex, rubbing my back before getting up and heading for the door, greeting as he opened it, "Oh, hey, Larrk. What brings you here? Are you done with your negotiations in Obsidian?"

"Yeah, just wrapped it up about half an hour ago or so. It went pretty well, we’ve officially secured ourselves an alliance with Obsidian."

"Hey, that’s great! So, did you need something from me, or...?" Ilex asked him uncertainly.

"Well, actually...I’ve got someone with me who wants to speak to Mysst," Replied Larrk.

"Ugh, can it wait till later? Like, maybe a week later? Or better yet, how about never? I’ve got a really bad hangover over here, so I would prefer not to-...," I began as I groggily sat up and turned around, before trailing off as a familiar figure stepped out of a Pocket Dimension portal.

Uh-oh...

"Hi, there, Mysst. It’s been a little while since I last saw you, good to see that you look well."

"U-uh...hey, Commander. What a, uh...what a pleasant surprise this is, um, fancy seeing you here," I replied with a nervous smile, as she narrowed her eyes at me.

"It’s good to see you again, Ilex...how have you been? If I may, I’d like to speak to Mysst in private, so if you don’t mind, could I have the room for a few minutes?" She requested with a cold smile.

N-no, don’t leave me alone with her...!

"S-sure, go ahead...she’s all yours," Nodded Ilex nervous before swiftly ducking out of the room, flashing me an apologetic look as he shut the door.

Y-you damned traitor, get back here!

"Now, then...let’s have a chat, shall we, Mysst?" Suggested the Commander, turning towards me as she began to approach.

"O-okay, uh...what do you want to talk about?" I muttered as I nervously averted my gaze.

"Hm, let’s see...oh, for starters, why don’t we discuss how you abandoned the Knight Order without saying so much as a word? At the very least, you could have left a note or something...a small part of me was worried that you might have been brought here against your will, but evidently, that doesn’t seem to be the case. Had Larrk Stryker not informed me of your relocation, I probably would never have found out what happened to you..."

"Yeah, uh...sorry?" I replied sheepishly as I averted my gaze.

"Hm, is that all you have to say?" She responded as she narrowed her eyes at me.

What else am I supposed to say? I feel like I’m just going to piss her off no matter what I say...

"I, uh...I should have left a note or something before leaving, I shouldn’t have just left out of the blue like I did, sorry about that," I muttered nervously.

"Well, I suppose there’s no point in pressing you too much, what’s done is done, and this was your own choice. Do you stand by it? Do you have any regrets over the decision you made?" She asked me, her expression easing up.

Okay, good, looks like I said the right thing...she’s not all scary and menacing anymore, she’s back to her usual, friendly self. I should be careful not to change that...

"No, I don’t. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t hate being in the Knight Order...it was a lot of work, but the pay was good and I got a good amount of freedom too."

"Ahem, while I don’t deny that being a Knight is demanding work, you barely even worked half as much as you were supposed to. So it wasn’t that you got a good amount of freedom, it was more than you took a good amount of freedom," She pointed out dryly, before a wry smile appeared on her face.

"Yeah, uh, sorry about that too, I guess," I muttered as I averted my gaze.

"Well, it’s in the past now, so I won’t gripe about it anymore. Still, I have to say, I would never have expected this...you, of all people, running away for the sake of romance," She remarked in amusement.

"I was kinda surprised by that myself...but I definitely don’t regret that decision. Maybe you should try it too, Commander," I suggested in response.

"H-huh? Er, I don’t know about that, I’ve never experienced romance before," She admitted with a slightly embarrassed look on her face.

I sort of figured that was the case, but...

"Aren’t you in your thirties now, Commander? Not to judge, but that’s a pretty long time to remain a virgin-...," I began, before quickly trailing off as she flashed me a death glare.

"W-well, I’m simply not interested in romance...that, and I haven’t really had any opportunities to experience it. And you don’t need to call me Commander anymore, Mysst. You can just call me Aries," She replied with a smile.

"Uh, I don’t know, that feels weird. Maybe I’ll go with Miss Velenet instead," I responded after mulling it over.

"Come, now, we’ve known each other for a long time, so you don’t need to have any reservations about that. Well, anyway, I should get going now...I don’t want to overstay my welcome. But that said, I just might drop by again sometime in the future. Take care of yourself, Mysst," She smiled as she gave me a pat on the shoulder, before starting to leave.

"Thanks, I really appreciate it..."

Finally, I can get back to nursing my hangover. My headache has gotten worse, this really sucks...

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Point-of-View: Aries Velenet

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I’m glad I did this...even though I’d already confirmed that Mysst came here of her own free will, I still had my concerns. And now, it feels like I’ve got closure on this matter.

As I opened the door and stepped out, I was slightly startled as I saw Ilex and Larrk Stryker standing right outside...w-wait, have they been here the whole time? Did they hear everything? I wasn’t speaking particularly loudly, but I wasn’t exactly keeping my voice down either.

Now that I think about it, of course they wouldn’t have gone too far...even though we’ve formed an alliance, I am still an outsider in this nation, so it’s only natural that they’d keep a close eye on me.

Okay, just keep your composure and act normal...

"Thank you for indulging my request, Larrk Stryker, I really appreciate it," I remarked gratefully.

"Sure, no big deal, don’t worry about it. Ready to go back to Obsidian?" He asked me.

"Yes, I am," I nodded, before following after him as he led the way, while Ilex headed back into the room, before I added as I followed him through the hallway, "Are you not going to put me in your Pocket Dimension again?"

"Nah, I’ll just have you teleported straight to Obsidian’s capital."

"Alright, then."

Good, he isn’t saying anything about my conversation with Mysst...either he didn’t hear any of it or he’s being considerate, I-...

"So...you’re a virgin, huh?" He inquired with a slight, teasing smirk.

...I spoke too soon.

"Y-yes, I am...and I don’t think there’s any shame in that," I huffed defensively.

"I don’t disagree, I wasn’t shaming you. Still, you are pretty attractive, I imagine you’ve gotten plenty of propositions from guys."

Actually, no...there had been a few in the past when I was younger, but not many Nobles were particularly fond of me after I became the Knight Commander and rebuilt the Knight Order as I pleased, and until recently, most, if not all, Commoners despised the Knights.

"Well, not to brag, but yes, I suppose I have."

...why would I lie about that? This is so embarrassing...

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Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this Chapter! Don’t forget to vote, and feel free to leave a comment, I appreciate any and all feedback and criticism! 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

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