It had been approximately two hours since the party returned to the surface, closing the curtain on the string of incidents connected to the Bloodstained Troll. Shay anxiously tapped his fingers on the cast he'd received for his left hand as he waited in the lobby of Dian Cecht familia's hospital, waiting for news on his teammates as the sun neared the western horizon. Listening to his own nervous melody as other adventurers went in and out of the offices, Shay closed his eyes, letting his mind wander back to the catastrophic expedition.
I suppose I should be grateful that nobody's dead… We were lucky to pass out only 1 floor away from camp. I still can't believe Lily took care of us as well as she did… I guess that's only natural from an Andhrímnir…
After Shay finally killed the Bloodstained Troll, Lily had dragged her three unconscious party members back to their camp on the 28th floor safety point. By the time Shay had woken up from his Mind Down, his teammates' conditions had already been stabilized by the desperately working healer. After subsisting for a small while on the floor's natural mruits, gourd berries and herbs, the group had recovered enough stamina to return to the surface.
Shay'd kept his worries at bay while they were at the mercy of the Dungeon, but sitting in the safety of the hospital's reception area, he was being crushed by guilt. Not only was this whole expedition his idea, but he was also directly to blame for things going south in the fight. If he hadn't lost focus when protecting Lily, the Troll wouldn't have grabbed him and he wouldn't have left his teammates alone. Before Shay could sink into a stream of similar thoughts, he was interrupted by his half prum teammate.
"Shay. How's the hand?"
"Ah… I never knew you were that stealthy, Van. The hand's good. Just gotta keep it still for a couple weeks…"
"Good, that was some crazy magic you were using. And I'm not stealthy, you're just losing your touch."
"...Hah, thanks, and yeah that's probably fair..."
Looking at the bandaged stub truncating his friend's arm, Shay had difficulty making eye contact. After a solemn silence, he spoke up.
"I'm sure you don't want to hear it, but—"
"If you apologize I'm breaking your other hand."
A small smile briefly overcoming his features, Shay's expression read 'you got me'.
"Everyone agreed to go down there, and everyone knew the danger. We just got unlucky."
"...Are you looking at prosthetics?"
"I will. For now, someone has to report to Lady Freya."
"Lily's got that covered."
"...We owe her, huh?"
"Yeah. To think she was a last minute addition."
"Be sure to thank her when you get back."
"Of course…"
"...Well, I'm going to go ask for a Status update. Are you gonna join me, or are you waiting for that idiot cat?"
He's just gonna continue fighting, isn't he? What the hell does a person have to be made of…?
"Van, I'm about to ask a stupid question… Why not retire?"
At this Van's eyes narrowed, a subtle rage bleeding through his calm expression.
"'Retire'!? Are you fucking kidding me? Do you still not understand, after all this time? …My devotion is to the Goddess, and I will become her sword, because that is my purpose. That is my meaning. After coming this far, no Einherjar would simply 'retire'."
Spitting the word out as if it were dirt, Van made himself overwhelmingly clear.
It's really just for Freya? Just for a sterile 'love' that you can never claim for yourself?
After watching Shay's expression, Van made an effort to use words that his friend would understand.
"Shay. I'm strong. You, are strong. After this incident, we've both certainly reached new heights. And we will continue to do so, trampling over those who've failed. An old friend of mine told me that Einherjar are those who climb the mountain of corpses and failures, so that we might become useful to our Lady. This is our duty, to never stop seeking further strength."
Listening to his senior as a warrior, Shay had to consciously stop the stirring within his soul as he resisted.
"...The seekers of strength, huh? The old me would've jumped at that idea, but… there's a good chance we're just two of the innumerable failures trampled underfoot."
"And?"
"...?"
"You're not so ridiculously naive as to hope for a world without failures, are you? One without corpses? So what if we're trampled underfoot? Our duty is to climb all the same. All the more, actually."
Hearing the rhythmic tapping of wood on the reception room floor, Van looked back to see Chloe making her way into the lobby on a set of crutches. Sighing, he headed for the door.
"I'm leaving. You'd do well to get your head back on your shoulders before joining me, dumbass."
~
The orange hue of the setting sun leaked inside as Shay watched the door close behind his half prum teammate. Walking up to meet Chloe, he gave her a quick once over.
"They put you back together?"
She responded with a small chuckle, happy to see Shay in a lighter mood than earlier.
"Yeah, they say I'll be feline a lot better in a few days! Now I just need a looong soak in the tub, meow."
"Yeah, I'm sure we all do."
As the pair began walking out the door, Chloe let out a confused chuckle.
"So uh, are we ditching the purrum?"
"Hah, no, he's already on his way to report to Freya. He left the hospital as soon as he could, and ran off to Folkvangr."
"Is he… gonna keep fighting, meow?"
…His duty, huh? Maybe I should give that another shot…
"Yeah, he'd never stop. Especially since he's probably just earned a seat at the big kids' table."
"Meow?"
"After all this, I wouldn't be surprised if you were both Level Five. That puts Van squarely in the elites of Freya familia. He's probably riding high right about now."
"Oh, meow're right! Hey! That means I'm kind of a badass too meow, aren't I? I'll have to bug Mr. Njord to update me!"
Shay gave a hearty chuckle as the pair continued south, enjoying their small talk and cutting through the backstreets on the way to West Main. As the sun threatened to touch the horizon, Orario's surrounding walls began to cast their shadows, making the city resemble a waning moon from above. As the pair neared the Hostess, Chloe suddenly stopped. The setting sun was peeking between two buildings, illuminating a red-orange barrier perfectly separating the two adventurers.
"...?"
"I just wanted to say… Um… Thank you, for saving me."
…Saving…? You almost died on my watch…
As images of the horrible scene from yesterday overlaid with those of his mangled mother in Shay's mind, Chloe started hobbling closer.
"I know you're probably blaming yourself for Van… but, I bet you can probably tell that's unreasonable, too."
Almost laughing at himself internally, Shay was struck by how well this woman could see through him.
"When I first met you, I had to face some dark things, but… I'm really glad I did. You helped rescue me from my past, and… I'd like to think I helped you a little, too… I thought it might be wrong, but the time we spent together has really been the best of my life."
As she closed half the distance between them, Shay felt a warmth that urged him to finally meet her gaze.
"Ever since then, it's felt like you were always saving me, in one way or another."
As she stepped into the light between them, her lightly blushing face was illuminated by the setting sun.
"And I think that's why… I fell in love."
Struck to the core by the dreamlike scene, Shay had only one thought rise to the surface of his mind.
That's the most beautiful smile I've ever seen.