The First Step

Bell and Welf were inside of Lumas' forge, Bell was on edge because he knew how Lumas was about his tools and wares but Welf hadn't went snooping around or touching things he shouldn't have, the duo were actually having dinner the forge was awfully quiet and it was bothering Bell. So until Lumas came back Welf would stay in the spare room, the door to Lumas' room stayed locked and Bell hasn't even approached the door, after shoving a piece of juicy brisket into his mouth and wiping away the excess juices Bell spoke

"How's the forge stuff going?" Not even looking up from his plate in his attempt to make small talk Bell cut off another piece of brisket

"It's alright, Lumas' methods are unorthodox but I truly am inspired by his work, every piece forged by him is beyond magical… Even the Magic Swords my family makes can't compare in quality, they may be more destructive but they are limited unlike Lumas' work" Releasing a sigh Welf continued "He had shown me a new path, something that I will forever be in his debt because of…"

Bell was lost in his thoughts for a moment but as Sebas' words flashed in his mind he spoke "Don't lose his trust, if he had truly shown you a new path stick to it till the end of your days, if he helped you then he saw something in you, but it's up to you to realize what he saw in you… for the past few months I've been with Lumas i was always asking myself what he saw in me, but I've slowly began to realize what that very thing was…"

Welf leaned in curious to know more, after a moment of silence Bell spoke a slight reverence in his tone "Its my dedication, Maybe I've been deluding myself thinking it was about the skills I hold but he never once showed greed in the face of them, I've been so hung up on proving to him that I was worth what he saw in me but maybe that was just me trying to prove it to myself"

Bell then shook his head "Don't listen to me, just when I thought I had it all figured out there is a new layer for me to peel back"

Welf let out a laugh as he chided "Maybe you're just overthinking it"

Bell shook his head as he sullenly spoke "I was just a small thief jumping from village to village when he found me, he put me through hell training me with no real reason to do so, he refused to have me sign up as an adventurer despite him being one at Level 10-"

Welf interrupted "Lumas isn't signed up as an adventurer nobody knows his true level or strength"

Bell chuckled "If you knew then you'd shit yourself, He's much stronger than anyone else knows, his intelligence is frightening… Everything anyone thinks they know about his skills is beyond wrong it's all an illusion fed by the rumors surrounding him, If you truly saw his status sheet as I have you'd be dumbstruck"

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Somewhere else, a beam of light flooded a room with a blinding comfort, as the light receded a short figure standing upon a series of symbols etched into the ground, Her short stature was contradictory to her body shape, one that could rival Freya, even beat Freya in some manner

Her black hair was down cascading over her figure reaching halfway down her calves, her naked figure could entrap a mortal but just as it was revealed a flurry of white petals surrounded her covering her in a stark white dress with a singular blue ribbon holding not only the dress up but her assets as well…

"When I heard of your descent I honestly didn't believe it but now that you are here welcome" a figure stepped out from the shadows with a small friendly smile, but the woman went wide eyed as she darted forward pulling her first friend into a hug, tears pooling in her eyes as she looked up only to be shocked

"Wha- what happened to your eye" she sounded more happy, ecstatic at the sight but the figure merely chuckled

"Well, that's a long story… mind joining me for some tea?"

With a smile the woman spoke "Ofcourse, lead the way"

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Lumas sat at an ornate table with Ais, Sebas, Riveria, Soreen and the Elders of the Forest, the discussion was heated but Lumas had yet to voice his opinion

"He IS the inheritor weather you senile old men believe it or not, he is not someone who is here to bend to our will, we are to bend to his… He brought back our mother, Yggdrasil… The spirits are starting to re-emerge, the mana pools around him as if he was its favorite treat… This man is our savior… one who should be treated with respect…"

One of the elder's face twisted into displeasure as he voiced his thoughts "You can't honestly expect us to respect a human…" the venom in his voice was clear to everyone at the table

Sebas shot to his feet as he roared "LEARN YOUR PLACE! You are speaking to the Holy King of the Freycliff Kingdom, if you dare belittle my King I will reduce you to nothing more then the very dirt we walk upon!" Sebas' voice was thundering with every word, no killing intent leaked only a faint feeling that made them feel like they were a mouse trapped in a corner by a starving predator

The elder shrank back but another stood to take his place as he stared at Riveria he spoke "My lady, you dare let your pet speak-" Riveria slammed her staff upon the table sending cracks throughout it "He isn't a 'pet' he is my lover… If any of you have any problems with that leave…"

Silence premenated(?) in the room until an calm voice spoke "Now now, we are here to find common ground not bite at each other's throats, Darling, if you will"

Lumas slowly stood up his deep voice heavy on their minds as he spoke "Initially I came on this pilgrimage with the Elves to see your culture… but now I have a different purpose," Slowly Lumas walked around the room, his presence was large… no it was humongous, his towering presence circled them, they could feel his eyes gazing deep within them, the suspense slowly reached its peak "Dragon Valley, In 2 years… Everyone living in the forests will relocate to the center of these 'Unforgiving' lands, once you arrive you will find everything you look for"

Soreen carefully studied his words, curious at the hidden meaning, only one possibility flashed in her mind 'Yggdrasil'... she hurriedly stood up before anyone else could "There must be some reason you want us to uproot our lives"

Lumas slowly nodded "You will be taken under protection of the Freycliff Kingdom"

"A kingdom none of us know, ruled by a man who eradicated a kingdom just a few days ago"

"It seems you understand then, you will be the first to join this kingdom in a thousand years… The return of the Freycliff name is on the horizon and any that dare challenge its strength will fall"

Soreen finally connected the dots… "You… you are Lumas Freycliff, you-you were paralyzed… there's no way you've survived this long"

Sighing as he fell back into his chair Lumas spoke "The words I'm about to say are not to leave this room… Everyone of you will take a heavenly vow if you wish to know where I've been for the last thousand or so years"

Curiosity killed that cat as they say, each of the elders were hesitant but since the vow was simply to withhold information- "If this information is somehow shared the consequences would be dire as per the rules of the Heveanly Vow"

Each and everyone already knew this so one by one they took a vow causing a small golden chain to manifest alongside a small more of light, the chain wrapped itself over the more of light disappearing into their body

Sure that everyone present that needed to take a vow took a vow, Lumas began his story… "My father, the genius that he was, was plagued by guilt… Guilt towards the crippling of his very own son in an alchemy experiment gone wrong...and due to this guilt he made a sacrifice unlike any other… this sacrifice brought upon the downfall of my kingdom as well as my slumber… for a thousand years I've slept… and when i awoke my memory was faded and fragmented and my magic ran rampant… but Riveria saved me from my own magic and brought me to Orario…(continued)"

As the elders listened to Lumas story, from how he went from a child scared of himself, to an adventurer delving into the unknown… they could hear the gratitude in his voice, the familiar love he has for her, the elders had differing thoughts, some related to his story, some felt bad, others thought of ways to profit from this… but at the end of the day Soreen held the voice of the people and she agreed, 2 years from now the elven race would undergo a massive pilgrimage and would disappear into Dragon Valley

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(A/N: Hey, sooo what's up this is the end of the chapter if you hadn't noticed... just figured I'd let you know