The Forsaken Hero
Chapter 72: Smile

Chapter 72: Smile

The days after the tournament slipped by all too quickly, backing me up against the wall of departure. Small butterflies fluttered around my stomach whenever I thought of the approaching date, filling me with uneasy anticipation. With so little time left, I dove into training with renewed vigor. Since I had finally crossed the threshold of fifth-circle magic, my mana underwent a transformative expansion. The difference between circles was small at lower levels, so I hadn’t noticed the difference before, but my body now overflowed with power. Each time a mage transcended tiers, their mana reciprocated and became much easier to increase for a small period of time. By the end of the second day after the tournament, I was capable of casting three fifth-circle spells back to back, provided I was okay with collapsing to the ground afterward. Selena certainly wasn’t happy about that...

Leaving the Divine Throne itself placed no weight on my mind. If anything, I longed for the freedom of the road. The constant threat that anyone could command me through the slave crest still terrified me, and I diligently stuck to crowded places where nothing could get out of hand. Just having that gone would be a burden off my shoulders.

When the morning of the fateful day arrived, I was roused by a sharp knock at the door. Yawning and bleary-eyed, I rolled out of bed and stumbled to the door. As my hand reached for the doorknob, a spike of alarm drove through the murky drowsiness that held my mind. Because of my Demonkin senses, I had scarcely noticed the crystal had yet to brighten, meaning it was still night. I rapidly cast several protective spells before easing the door open, cracking it just far enough to peer out.

"Oh, quit that and open up if you want your new stuff. Adventuring’s a dangerous business, and I’d hate to see you off with only a dress."

The tension flowed from my muscles as Revera’s surly voice slipped through the crack. Leaning back, I allowed her to push through the door, watching curiously as she dragged a few bags after her.

She grunted, hefting them onto the bed then crisply turned and beckoned me forward. "I haven’t all morning, you know. I’ve received word to allow you four sets of clothing, so choose quickly."

Without bothering to wait for a response, she began pulling outfits out and spreading them around the room. She worked quickly, giving me nearly twenty options to choose from of varying cuts and designs. While some of the garments were stiff leather, looking more like armor than clothes, others brought a blush to my cheeks. Who could possibly wear something so scanty on the road? Even the whores in the streets covered themselves with more than a few of the outfits provided. I shook my head in disbelief. This truly was a fantasy world, after all.

"Revera," I said hesitantly, "who chose these clothes?"

"Hmmm? Oh, they’re just the things I could find in your size. There should be something you like, so hurry up and choose."

I nodded and began walking among them, steering clear of the rather distasteful garments. After a few minutes of deliberation, I selected four fairly conservative getups. As a mage, mobility wasn’t a high priority, so I settled on clothes similar to what I was used to. The dresses were short, barely touching my knees, and the bodices snug, but they looked practical and comfortable. The colors were fairly somber, mostly blacks and reds, but Revera claimed they complimented my features beautifully. For footwear, I took a pair of knee-high travel boots, which fit my slender legs and feet perfectly. The soft leather was already broken in yet remained sturdy. The priestess promised they’d last for a long while, but I wasn’t too concerned about that. One of the spells I’d learned was Mend, which returned mundane gear to perfect condition.

She left me with a leather purse-like satchel, which contained a space enchantment and could store an entire wagon’s worth of supplies. They were uncommon around the Divine Throne, but it seems adventurers use them often. Curtseying gratefully, I let her out the door and set about preparing myself for the day. Dressing in one of the new outfits, I twirled in front of the mirror, scrutinizing myself from every angle. It was no formal gown, but much better than the slave’s garb I traditionally wore. Like most women’s clothes in this world, it emphasized feminine traits, hugging my waist and revealing much of my chest, but I doubted most people cared. Their eyes would be stuck to the slave crest, not my modest cleavage.

I left the slave quarters and made my way to the training fields. Although the festival had formally ended, most of the pilgrims and celebrants loitered on, taking a chance to explore more of the Divine Throne and city. The foreign crowds had fully adapted to my presence, instinctively parting the instant they noticed my demonic traits. Fortunately, the training fields had been repurposed by the mages, and I found Selena relaxing in the shade of a tree.

"They finally give you a change of clothes?" she asked, raising an eyebrow, "It suits you."

"Thanks. Selena, I, uh..."

She waited for a moment, but my words caught in my throat and I flushed red. Smiling, she took me by the hands, looking deep into my eyes. Her words were soft and gentle, but sent a thrill of surprise through me.

"It’s okay. I know you’re leaving with the rest of the heroes. I got you a parting gift."

"Gift?" I murmured, watching curiously as she reached into her bag and withdrew a staff.

"I’m sure you’ve noticed, but all the other heroes have their magic gear ready to go. A few weeks ago, I petitioned that you be granted yours, but the church claimed they repurposed them after you failed to appear."

I gasped, gripping the folds of my dress tightly. "I didn’t know."

"Really? I thought Soltair might have mentioned it to you. He’s got the Sun Sword after all, and his armor. I would have brought up my request, but I didn’t want you to be more discouraged."

I sighed, relaxing my fists. "It’s fine. I doubt a magic item would have made a difference."

She chuckled and handed me the staff. "You might feel differently once using one yourself. I say this is a gift, but I’m just returning the favor. It’s taken me months to get my hands on this, so consider this payment for the Life Dew modification you gave me."

The staff’s shaft, an exquisite creation of sleek glass-like crystal, was five feet long and crowned with a mesmerizing six-point star. As the haft grazed my fingertips, my mana erupted without warning, enveloping my entire being, and drove toward the staff. The crystal absorbed the mana greedily, and I gasped as a radiant pulse of light surged out of the star.

At that very moment, an intangible thread wove its way from my chest to the star, forging an invisible connection. Wary of the bond, which was all too reminiscent of the slave crest, my hand jerked away. Similarly startled, Selena jumped back, holding the staff at arm’s length.

"It’s never done that before," she said breathily, staring at the magic item, "Are you alright?"

I nodded, taking long breaths to calm my rapidly beating heart. "What happened?"

She looked at the staff closely, her words slow and unsure. "I think it formed some sort of tie with you. That’s incredibly uncommon among magic items, but a hero’s weapon might be different."

"Different? I thought the weapons were simply symbolic. Is it some sort of divine artifact?"

"Frankly, I’m not sure. The weapons appeared in the chapel of the Divine Throne around the same time you heroes arrived. I can only assume you were meant to be this one’s wielder. I found it at an auction in the city, and managed to steal it away."

She held the staff out once more, gesturing that I take it. Tentatively, I reached out and touched it before flinching back, but everything remained calm. The crystal star retained a faint luminescence, twinkling inconsistently like the stars in the heavens. After a quick, steadying breath, I took the staff, observing it with the Eyes of Fate.

A myriad of enchantments laced the item, but none of them emanated a sense of danger. Releasing a pent-up breath, I lowered it and looked up at Selena. She watched with a faint smile, but a sorrowful mist wet her eyes.

"I’ll miss you," I said softly, clenching my hands around the staff to keep them from trembling.

"You were a good student and a good hero. I’ll be here for several hundred years, so make sure to come back and visit. When the invasion begins in earnest, I’ll likely be deployed somewhere in the world, so perhaps we’ll get a chance to fight beside each other. I’m looking forward to seeing how much you’ll grow."

I nodded, lower lip trembling. I’d never been forced to give a goodbye before. There had never been someone worth giving it to. My heart ached with a sense of loss, no less than when I thought Soltair first abandoned me. My vision blurred with tears and I parted my mouth, but the words were lodged in my throat.

"Goodbye," Selena whispered, and I dropped the staff as she embraced me. Her slender body was warm and welcoming, and I buried my head against her chest.

"Thank you," I cried as gentle sobs rocked my body, "I’ll never forget you."

She smiled sadly, pushing me away. "Don’t make it sound like I’m dying. I just said we’ll meet again."

"Of course," I murmured, scrubbing my eyes with my arm.

"One of those idiots is about to kill himself," she suddenly mumbled, looking over my shoulder to one of the training mages. "I’d best be off. Good luck on your travels."

I nodded again, any words fleeing my mind. The elf turned one last time, looking over her shoulder and raising her voice. "Oh, and Xiviyah, next time, I want to see you smile!"

Of everything she might have said, that alone took me by surprise. Smile? Surely I’d smiled before, right? There were lots of fun, happy times where I’d at least laughed. Like when... when... when...

I stood there for some time, mouth slightly parted, and stared blankly at the training mages. My staff, which should have clattered to the ground, hovered before me, bobbing gently in the air. The sun was bright and clear, the flower’s soft aromas seeping up my nose, and the breeze warm against my skin, but I was completely oblivious to it all.

A smile. If it was her, I could smile. She’d been nothing but good to me, acting like the mother I’d never had. After a deep breath, I envisioned my mouth turning up and my face lighting up with gratitude. My brow creased in concentration and I succeeded in making the corner of my lips twitch. But, after a brief moment, a chill of apprehension wormed its way into my heart. Shivering and short of breath, I clasped my hand to my chest and offered a prayer to Fate, thankful Selena wasn’t looking at me.

A smile. How, exactly, did one smile?

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