February 21, 1976
Holy Kingdom of Soreh, Riad's Estate
(One Week Before Present Day)
(Road's POV)
After noticing these crystals, I didn't feel all that inclined to finish reading the rest. So I stepped away from the kitchen table and walked towards the parallel living room nearby to grab some fresh air.
A twinge of annoyance engulfed me, but surprising it wasn't all that overwhelming now either.
Instead of letting out yet another spout of anger, I merely accepted the circumstances for what they were. Well, more like "resigned" myself to fate.
As I stood amongst the destruction Sylvain caused to my house, I pondered on the pros and cons of the only two decisions I could make.
Tuning out reality and becoming lost in my own thoughts, J began running his brain through a couple of scenarios, insurance plans, failsafe tactics and others like minded factors.
Meanwhile, Via went back to reviewing the letter the Pope sent us.
From the looks of it, there was something she still was curious about.
Something that Sylvain didn't exactly go into detail.
She knew that The Pope sent us to go investigate a certain matter, but besides these random graphs and pictures, there wasn't anything telling us to go anywhere specific.
"Hmm. What's this?"
Hidden in between two pieces of paper that were glued together, one particular document stuck its corner outside the fold.
Curious, Via grabbed it before lightly examining it. But after reading through it a bit, her eyes widen in surprise.
"Riad! Riad! Look! Look!"
"You don't need to shout. I can hear you just fine. Now, what do you want this time?" I asked her.
"Look at this!" Via replied before handing over that same paper over to me.
"Alright, alright.... What exactly am I looking at?"
From what I read, this document seemed to be exactly what she was looking for. In the form of a standard military report, the actual orders in regards to this mission were neatly written down in a professional manner.
The instructions were along the lines of investigating the odd circumstances surrounding the Fellstars and the monsters that accompanied them.
Because they existed outside the border of a city state, we were given permission to assist on-site military in suppressing those specific enemies.
But suddenly, my eyes fell upon one particular segment of the letter.
And when it did, Via relished in my reaction.
As if trying to confirm that it wasn't some sort of dream, I reread certain paragraphs.
When I was certain that this was real, a great wave of relief and surprise washed over me, one strong enough to completely suppress the dreadful miasma back into the depths of my soul.
A natural and genuine smile followed suit.
"I see. So it seems like we won't need to postpone our hunt after all."
"Mhm~ Two birds with one stone don't you think?" Via exclaimed with great excitement.
"Should I go tell Yamir the good news?"
"Yes, but before you do, hold on for a second." I asked, grabbing her hand before she could run off.
"What? Don't tell me you want another quickie~"
"No. I meant that going over there as a holy knight would draw a lot of attention don't you think?"
Unsure what I meant, Via raised her eyebrow.
"Hm. I guess you got a point, but at this point is it really a problem?" She asked.
"For the past several years now, I have been hunting down that goddess with this appearance. What if she knows who I am now?"
Via shrugged her shoulders. Personally, she didn't feel nothing was wrong, but if I felt like it was time to change forms, then she wasn't going to object.
Reaching that conclusion, I took a few steps away from Via and let in one deep breath.
The mysterious miasma that was coming off of me earlier made yet another appearance. But this time, it began to grow a little thicker as it started to cover my body in black smog.
My face, body, size and every other important aspect of his body was slowly becoming coated by this black colored magic.
Unlike last time though however, I was in full control.
This process took about three or four seconds to finish, and once my new appearance had taken shape, the miasma from before faded away.
The result of his magic changed my body into something completely different.
My hair had changed from snow white into a luscious blonde. My physique grew a little more muscular, but the body frame was still as slim as ever before.
"How's this?" I asked.
"I see you borrowed some inspiration from your original body. I guess you couldn't help being yourself again?~" Via asked with a smug smile.
"Sorry..." I admitted with a little embarrassment.
"Heh, it's alright though. As long as you don't blow your cover, everything should be fine. Besides, I prefer you much more this way~...."
"In fact, you're making me all horny again. Wanna make out?~" She asked again with a seductive voice.
"This is literally not the time nor the place…" I denied.
"Tch, you're just like Yamir. Both of you are no fun."
The moment she said that however, Via stopped in her tracks, as if pondering on some more thoughts.
Her naughty face changed to an expression of suspicion.
"Hey, Riad? How much do you trust Yamir?"
Now that's a strange question.
"Why do you ask?"
"Earlier when she collapsed, she told us she was able to feel the Goddess's presence right? When she was talking however, I felt something was off with the way she was speaking. I can't really put my finger on it, but I feel like she deliberately chose to omit some important details."
"Omit? As if hiding something from us?"
"I could just be getting ahead of myself, but that's what my intuition is telling me. But if Yamir ever decided to betray us one day, it would be plausible if she sided with the Goddess. Especially if you take into account the truth behind her origins."
"Her origins, you say…" I thought for a moment, perfectly understanding what Via was getting at.
"I see. In any case, it's too early to make any drastic moves right now. Although I hear what you're saying, I do want you to remember what I said earlier. So as long as we don't get violent with her, she won't do nothing to us. So for now, I want you to do nothing more but keep a close eye on her."
"I understand. But if she causes us any headaches, I'll have her head, okay?"
"Alright, alright. Now come along. Let's get a move on shall we?"
After chuckling a little, I prompted her into walking back into the kitchen to make our last bit of preparations.
But that was when we were met with an unexpected surprise.
Yamir was actually in the kitchen, fishing for a drink.
"Y-Yamir!? You were already down here?" Shocked, Via stuttered for a second.
Concerned, she looked to me for help.
"How long have you been down here?" I calmly asked.
"I just came downstairs. Were you two looking for me?" She replied.
Finally deciding what to drink, she pulled out the same bottle of champagne that I was drinking earlier.
But when she turned around to grab some cups and the like, she finally noticed my new appearance.
"Who the hell are you?"
Her eyes widened out of surprise. She almost readied her body into a defensive swordsman stance, but she couldn't reach for her blade since her hands were full.
"Relax, it's just me, Riad, but you can call me Naoto now I guess." He responded.
Skeptical, Yamir raised her eyebrows.
But after looking closely, despite the differences, there were still some qualities and traits that were carried over from the man she once knew.
She shouldn't be too surprised since she already knew that I had the ability to shapeshift, but I guess due to the chaotic events a few minutes ago and my lack of doing so these past few days, I suppose my new appearance would throw her a little off guard.
After confirming that it was me though, she began walking over to a nearby shelf to grab a couple of cups before pouring us a glass.
"Champagne?" She asked.
Both me and Via glanced over to each other with looks of concern. Not going to lie, we did feel a little put off considering that we didn't see, nor sense Yamir come downstairs.
Especially for Via since she dreaded the thought of spilling any important information.
Because if Yamir ever caught wind of her backstory or purpose in life, it would only spell nothing but trouble for the two of us.
But when we did look back towards her, Yamir's movements, behavior and reactions looked a little too genuine to fake. So perhaps there was a chance she didn't overhear us.
Hopefully.
"Yeah. I guess we'll take some." Via replied, accepting her offer.
"Anywho, we're pretty much ready to go. You finished packing?" I asked her.
Yamir nodded.
"So, where are we heading?" She asked, still unsure of the location.
"Heh, where else?" Via asked her with a smile.
Yamir raised her eyebrows and looked towards me for answers, but my smile was even greater than the one who stood by my side.
The moment that I have been waiting for so long was slowly approaching.
The goddess that I have been hunting down for years, no, perhaps even longer, was coming within reach.
"We're off to Cheshire..."