Even the King of Baskerville's thunderous voice couldn't make my heart pound as loudly as imagining my Mother's anger. My chest felt so tight I nearly thought someone had rammed an invisible blade through my chest. When we reached the western wing of Rigel Castle we were met by Geru, Ophelia, and Zuku. Their Parents had been standing with and they all seemed to be in the middle of a discussion until Uncle Goro saw me.
"Ragi!?" The others turned to me seeing that I'd returned. "My Gods..." Everyone raced toward me with Sister Schild and Uncle Goro wrapping their arms around me as tight as they could.
"Foolish Boy," Sister Schild hissed. "Don't you ever run off like that again!"
"I'm sorry Sister... I'm sorry Uncle Goro. I didn't know what to do."
"Nonsense... you have nothing to apologize about," said Uncle Goro. "Just promise you'll never do something so foolish again."
"You have nothing to worry about, I Promise."
Uncle Goro and Sister Schild returned to their feet. Sister Schild bowed to Sister Olivia and Commander Tarn.
"Thank you for returning our nephew to us," said Sister Schild. His Mother has been in a state since he left."
Returning her fellow Sister's bow, Sister Olivia placed a hand on my shoulder. "You needn't worry. When one of my Sisters found him we kept him safe. He's quite the extraordinary young man." Oh, what an understatement that was.
"Trust us... We know." Uncle Goro sighed as he finally seemed to relax. "We must retire for the evening. Today's events have worn heavily on us. There will be much to do tomorrow."
"Father," said Geru. "Could we at least stay with Master Ragi for the night? It would be unbecoming of us as his retainers if we didn't stay by his side."
"Unfortunately no my Son. Ragi will need to grieve tonight with his Mother. No matter your duty we must at least allow this." Uncle Goro looked at Rory as he finished speaking. "Now... come. We must leave."
Uncle Goro was the first to depart following Zuka. Geru, however, stayed behind for a moment. "Ragi, you needn't worry. I shall return tomorrow to continue my duties. On my honor, as a noble, I swear it."
"You have my thanks Geru." He smiled and then hurried onward along with his Father and Sister. Ophelia approached next, first bowing to the Sister Superior before taking my hand. She mouthed a silent prayer before letting go. Her ears perked up as she saw the ring on my finger yet she said nothing.
"Take care Ragi. Try to get some sleep."
Ophelia went on ahead but not before exchanging a small glare with Rory. The latter appeared the less eager to leave my side. She held my hand again and our fingers were tightly latched together. I wanted to tell her too that everything would be alright but I seriously doubted she would listen.
"Well... My duty is complete," Commander Tarn said. "Please feel free to call for me to escort you back to your Sanctum Sister Superior."
"I thank you, kind sir," she said. "I will be sure to thank them once I've reached my destination." The Commander bowed and then took his leave from the hall. "Alright, Lord Ragi. Let us go, I must fulfill my mission so that I may return."
"Right..."
Now was the true test. I was seeing my Mother again. Out of all the things I've heard today, my Mother's sobbing was the second that would be the most unbearable to hear. As we reached the door I could hear my heart pounding more in my ears. As I opened the door, tears began to stream down my cheeks. As I looked inside I noted how much larger the room was compared to what I was used to. There was a large bed where Mother had been resting with Lord Auberon by her side. She'd been clutching Father's staff in her arms like it'd been the man himself. Her face looked so lifeless it'd been like she died as well.
"Mother?" I called out to her. As she raised her head the life slowly returned to her eyes. She slowly placed the staff on her lap and held out her hands. "My little Firelight..."
For a moment I'd been frozen in place. The redness of her eyes, the softness in her voice, the pain. At that moment nothing else mattered. Not the business from earlier, not even my Godhood. My Mother longed to see her boy and like the most selfish idiot I was I'd left her all alone.
"Go on," Rory whispered. "She needs you..."
Taking the first step forward leads to another following. Before long I'd been nearly running to my Mother's arms. Leaping into the bed I crawled to her and wrapped my arms around her so tight I'd nearly used all of my strength. She hugged me too with the same force. I didn't need to hold it in any longer. The pain I'd been feeling, the confusion that plagued my mind, and the anger I held in my heart. All of it came pouring out in a flood of tears. We'd been crying so loudly I'm sure we probably could've woken the entire castle. But I didn't care. The world... My world... It was never going to be the same again.
Lord Auberon stood but I hadn't paid him any mind. All I could hear was him telling Rory to leave us to grieve. As the door shut my Mother let go of me for only a moment to place Father's staff next to the bed. She'd tucked me under the covers and continued holding me. I'm sure she just wanted me to cry myself to sleep.
"I'm sorry Mother..." I whispered. "I'm sorry I ran away."
"No Little Firelight... You have nothing to apologize for... You're my baby boy. You can do no wrong..."
I didn't want her to say something like that. I'd just left her in her grief. I'd thought she'd be angrier with me.
Shortly thereafter she'd fallen asleep, which left me alone with my thoughts. I couldn't fathom the amount of life-altering events in one day. I wondered what all of this was for. I examined the ring on my finger and as I felt the magical power buzz against my skin I thought of Father. I had to be the one to protect Mother from now on. Even though she was a warrior there was no telling what was going to happen. I needed the strength to keep what little family I had left in this world. Even if that strength was something sinister.
The next morning we'd be woken by King Luther's Advisor, Edmund. Father's funeral procession was to take place immediately by King Luther's decree. Though the King chose not to make a public spectacle of it. The King and Queen followed by the First children attended. Uncle Goro and Sister Schild along with Geru, Zuku, and Ophelia also attended. Lord Auberon, Lord Roland, and Sister Olivia even paid their respects. Out of them all, Rory was the one who stuck around the longest. She stayed near Mother and I at all times.
Unlike yesterday, Mother hadn't even shed a tear. Though I could tell she was still in pain. She would be for some time now and nothing anyone could do could heal it. She held Father's staff the entire ceremony and when Father's body was being buried I thought she'd snap it in half.
Father's burial grounds resided in the Rigel Royal cemetery, which was usually reserved for Royals and Nobles. Given our status now it was a more befitting place. Father would've rathered a lovely plot on a valley overlooking a village. But I'm sure he also didn't expect to die so soon.
When the Ceremony was over I was approached first by King Luther himself. He knelt at my Mother's side and took her hand.
"Lady Rita. I'd say you look radiant today, but the occasion does not call for such pleasantries. I'm sorry for your loss."
"T-Thank you, your Majesty. But please you don't have to lower yourself for me."
"It's alright," The Queen said. "Daedalus was a dear friend to us. As his wife, you are owed no less respect."
Mother lowered her head. "Of course Queen Bethany."
The King rose to his feet once more and then placed a hand on my shoulder. "Now, Young Sunai. I promised your Father that I would take care of you both should anything happen to him. As you saw last night I fully intended to keep that promise."
The King snapped his fingers and two attendants brought a large piece of cloth along with a badge with them. The King handed the badge to me and presented the cloth to Mother. The Cloth had a crest stitched onto its surface. It depicted the head of Wulfric along with Mother's sword and Father's staff.
"This is your Heraldic Crest. I wanted to wait till after you have greaved properly. But Edmund was insistent that we moved along with everything."
My Mother ran her fingers across the cloth. She'd likely knew what this meant.
"Long ago I told Daedalus that I would grant him a boon for driving away Wulfric. Initially, he refused but came to me shortly after you both brought Ragi here. The Boon I was to grant was to ensure that his wife spent the rest of her days in comfort and that his son is allowed to become the adventurer he'd always dreamed of."
"Father did all of that?"
The King nodded. Father never really remarked on his life as an Adventurer. I knew he'd been famous but prestige likely exceeded his expectations. Expectations that I'd now have to meet.
Uncle Goro and Sister Schild approached us along with their children. Both Aunty and Uncle bowed to the King and then turned to Mother. "Pardon us, I don't mean to interrupt your Majesty," said Uncle Goro.
"Worry not, Lady Rita is your companion. I should actually be excusing myself. A Kingdom unfortunately does not stop if one man dies. Not even for myself."
The King and Queen gave their final regards to Mother before departing. Sisteer Schild hugged Mother tightly fighting back her tears as she did. "I thank you both for staying as long as you did," said Mother. "I don't know what I'd have done if it were just Ragi and I."
"Come now Rita, there's no way I could leave you by yourself," said Sister Schild. "I just wished that Dagda could be here."
"Dagda has his collection of issues he needs to sort through," said Uncle Goro. "As do we." Uncle Goro and Sister Schild looked at each other and nodded in some silent agreement. "Children... Come..." Geru, Zuka, and Ophelia all came to Uncle's call.
"Our Original purpose in coming here was so we could leave our children here where it's safe," Uncle explained. "Since the recent crowning of Yayoi's new Sol Emperor, there have been some developments that require my attention. I did not want the twins to be involved."
"But Father, why not allow my Sister and me to aid you in weeding out those corrupt urchins," Geru protested.
"We've discussed this Shigeru. There are too many things at play to risk you two."
As Geru wanted to argue more but Uncle Goro's expression gave him pause.
"As for Ophelia," said Sister Schild. "Ophelia is also twelve like Ragi and as such, she is some years away from her age of pilgrimage. If Ragi is to become an adventurer I want her to travel with him."
Mother looked at her companion's children and she seemed a bit overwhelmed. She handed me Father's staff and stood from her seat hugging all three of them. "It's fine... the more the merrier. I'll take care of them as though they were my own."
Uncle Goro and Sister Schild smiled. "Alright," said Uncle Goro, "Then we must depart. We will have someone send for their things and bring them here."
"Speaking of that," said another voice from behind Uncle Goro. "I believe I have some business with House Sunai's Heir." Uncle Goro stepped aside and there stood Princess Aurelia along with two maids and a few manservants. Weirdly enough most of the Princess's entourage wasn't human. The Manservants were all a variety of Elves, Daemons, and even the rarer sort an Evangel. Tall, handsome, and blond-haired, he almost looked like someone from a romance book. The large white wings extended from his lower back.
Then there were the maids and surprisingly one of them was human. She was probably much older than Mother or Father. She bowed to us while the other maid remained unconcerned. She was a Daemon, a Red Oni more specifically. She had large pointed ears and two horns jutting out of her forehead. Her long red hair dangled over her shoulders though the rest was tied up in a bun in the back. She was likely around my age which was strange for a maidservant. She didn't seem too pleased to be here.
"This one will be your attendant. Go ahead introduce yourself."
The Red Oni stepped forward bowing as she lifted the edges of her skirt. "My name is Isabeau Notores, pleased to meetcha... I mean it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance..."
The Older Maid shot Isabeau a disapproving glare.
"My apologies Lord Sunai. Isabeau has some... Issues with nobility. But we thought it best to have her serve a new Lord much like yourself."
They probably thought I could relate to her more. I could see the sentiment in the decision but it was probably made not considering her apparent frankness. So to try and establish a solid relationship, I held my hand to her.
"You don't have to worry about calling me Master. It's a pleasure to meet you, Isabeau."
Raising her head she stared at my hand for a second. With much reluctance she took it. Her hands were rather rough even though they appeared so delicate. It was as if I was shaking hands with Mother or Rory.
"Well, now that you have acknowledged each other. It's time we took our leave," The Princess said. She bowed and beckoned her servants to follow her but not before waving me final goodbye. It wouldn't be the last time I see her but that was just the way she did it.
"I didn't expect ya to have such a cool head blue-blood," said Isabeau. "Though that might be because yer new."
"Trust me, I don't intend to have an inflated ego due to a change in status."
Isabeau smiled, then bowed once again. "Then I'm yours to command boss."
"Even though Ragi might not want formality, you'll speak to my esteemed self with respect," huffed Geru.
"Don't recall askin' ya for yer opinion blue-blood. Yer, not my boss."
"You dare speak to the son of the Miura Clan in such a way cur! I'll have you groveling at my feet for such disrespect."
Ophelia took her index finger and thumb and pinched Geru's ear as hard as she could.
"Ow ow ow ow ow!!!" Geru yelled. "Stop this savagery at once Ophelia!"
"Idiot, you're already causing Ragi trouble again."
While it wasn't good to see them bicker amongst themselves there was a sort of calmness to the sight. Just two days prior I didn't even have anyone to call friends. It was similar to what my Father described when Ars Nova was together.
"There's that smile," said Rory. "Thought you might've lost that for good."
"I thought so as well. My Father was... My Parents are the most important people in my life. They saved me as a baby and I intend to one day repay them... I'd like to repay you all as well."
"What for?"
I hadn't known whether or not it was the right thing to do. But I felt if I didn't do this now, then things would probably stay as they were.
"Come now, Son... Now is not the time to hesitate."
That sounds like something Father would say and you know what. I think I'll just do it.
Reaching out I took Rory's hand. She suddenly tensed up, her cheeks becoming flush with a bright red. Her hand was rather warm compared to my own. Looking her in the eyes I mustered up all the courage and determination within myself.
"You're here now with me... I hope that we will continue to be with each other for a lot longer."