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The Wolf prowling across dimensions by Pandora's Reader

 Highschool of the Dead & My Hero Academia/僕のヒーローアカデミア Xover Rated: M, English, Family & Adventure, [OC, Rika M., Shizuka M., Saeko B.], Words: 820k+, Favs: 1k+, Follows: 1k+, Published: Nov 17, 2021 Updated: Nov 9 779Chapter 51: And so it begins

Dragon - The answer to this is gonna come up eventually, so you'll have to wait for it.

Beta'd by NiteNight.

{Six days later. Maccillian's POV}

It's pretty much been a week since Hestia cried into me, and since then, she's practically been glowing ever since. Her happiness was practically infectious, and it helped Lili get used to our familia.

It made it easier that I brought her to Soma, and got him to agree with letting Lili transfer. He did recognize her, but he didn't do the 'drink my highly addictive wine' thing since I already 'tested' everything he had. Aside from what was in the literal cauldron.

Since then, Lili's been slowly opening up to us. Well, mostly to the rest of the familia. Lili and I had no idea how to interact with each other, and we didn't really know what to do. Sure she practically took to Shizuka like a fish to water, and got along great with the other girls, but it was just with me that she didn't know how to talk too.

That didn't mean we didn't try, because we did, it was just awkward. Because despite what I said, I kind of DID snatch her off the street and kidnap her. Sure it worked out, but still.

My strange relationship with Lili aside, Bell and Welf were doing great. The rabbit managed to convince Welf to join his training, and it helped all three of us.

I got some more experience with my aura and gravity abilities, the still in development attacks, and constructs. The constructs though, Saya was starting to get way better than before, and she'd probably be half as good as me in a few more months. Considering I've technically had 2,000+ years to do this, and she's starting to catch up to me in a matter of weeks/months, it was kind of bullshit.

Welf was making improvements now that he could train in an environment that won't kill him if he makes a mistake. The worst he's dealt with is bleeding a lot when he misread one of my Minotaur constructs. Shizuka healed him up good as new, but I did get a bop on the head for letting it happen.

Bell was improving by leaps and bounds though. Just like I thought, he got his skill, but it was different. He didn't have charm nullification, just a minor resistance to it. Though, because of that, his ability to grow increased a stage. So by now, Bell was able to solo a Silverback and maybe an Infant Dragon on his own. He hadn't fought REAL Minotaurs yet, but if today was the day I thought it was, then we'd find out if he could. (Unless I'm wrong and I have to wait for tomorrow.)

Outside of the familia, things were strangely quiet. Syr still seemed the same, but I didn't have any reason to force answers out of her. She was still suspicious, and Shizuka always had an eye on her whenever we were at the hostess, but nothing happened. Speaking of Shizuka and the girls, they were doing good too.

Rika and Aisha hung out practically daily. They were basically sisters from another mother in an entirely different dimension. I sometimes heard how they would go around, competing with each other and other Amazons. Though Aisha hadn't introduced her to Haruhime yet. I didn't know why, but the moment she did, and I got justification, I'd go grab her and send Ishtar to hell, (Technically Heaven, but oh well.) I'd usually go and not care about the consequences, but if I just went and grabbed her, Hestia would get shit for it. (Unless they challenged us to a War Game... Wait... Can't I just do it anyway and then fuck em up in a War Game? I could... Just steamroll them all... The fuck am I waiting for? I could... Oh yeah... Bell... Charm magic bullshit... Well I'll figure out a way to save her eventually. She shouldn't really be in danger so it could wait.) Questioning myself and plans aside, there were the rest of the girls to think about.

Saeko took to the Takemikazuchi familia like a second home. She always has this new gleam in her eyes when she talks about sparring with Take, Mikoto, and how she was VERY interested in testing Ais. Her competitive spirit was practically blazing with new swordsmen/women for her to fight. Back in Remnant, she only really had Qrow, Weiss and Winter to fight. Two of those were family and used the same style, and Qrow was Qrow. Sure he was good, but he was a better scythe fighter then a swordsman. Fun fact, Saeko was the one making the most out of her new falna, and was just speeding past the rest of the girls. Her stats were all in the D range, and the moment she leveled, she said she'd grab Hunter. Which made sense. Though I noticed how she always had a kid or two hanging off of her whenever we visited.

Saya pretty much lived in Athena's library. Sure she went into the dungeon, but she mostly used the time to study, go through everything in that library, and work on her abilities. Like Saeko, her abilities were improving the more she studied. She didn't have a signature yet, like Rika's 'Gate of Babylon' or my TOTW and new moves, which I was still working on, but she was getting there.

Then there was Shizuka. She was practically vibrating with as much joy as Hestia had. Whenever she wasn't with me or hanging out with the girls, she was always with Lili, and if she wasn't, then she was with Hestia. The two of them even started sharing a secret conversation whenever I wasn't in, and I only knew about it when Hestia covered Shizuka's mouth when she was going to tell me. Shizuka rarely entered the dungeon, but when Lili finally decided to join Bell's party as his supporter, she would go with them for a few floors, then come back when she was sure they would be ok.

Lili both loved and was embarrassed at the gesture. It didn't help that Welf had practically jumped at the chance to mess with the smol supporter because of it. As a party, they were doing great. Sure they had to stick to the lower floors when Welf and Lili first joined, but after a day or two, they were prepared enough to work on heading to the 13th.

And if I was right, they should be there around now. (Maybe I should've gone with them... Eh, I'll hear about it when they come back later.)

{Bell's POV}

"Lili told you it was a bad idea! But nooo! 'Don't worry, what's the worst that could happen?' LILI WANTS TO KNOW IF YOU'RE REGRETTING THIS YET WELF!" So this might be a little sudden, but for context, the situation IS kind of bad.

What were we doing?

Well right now, we were kind of running away from a herd of Minotaur. Maybe six in total.

Why?

Well Welf may or may not have seen a stray Minotaur, and after Sir Maccillian's lessons, wanted to have a 1 vs 1 fight against it to compare the real thing against his aura constructs. Now that might seem like a bad idea, but Welf said he could do it, and just like Lili said 'what's the worst that could happen?' (Apparently this.)

"OK! YES! I'M REGRETTING IT LIL'LILI! BUT COME ON! HOW WAS I SUPPOSED TO KNOW THERE WOULD BE A HERD IN THE NEXT ROOM OVER?" He kind of had a point, and it was only because the Minotaur he fought let out a death screech that got the rest of their attention, that we were in this situation in the first place.

(But why were there so many here? There weren't this many around the last time Welf and I came here.) Which I knew was true. So why?

"WELL MAYBE TAKE LILI'S ADVICE! CLEARLY LILI KNEW BETTER!" Back to this.

"As fun as you two shouting at each other is, can we come up with a plan?!" They looked over to me, and I heard them both grumble an agreement. That was good, I could work with that.

"Lili doesn't see any perches to go to. This floor is still new to Lili too so without a map of the floor, there's nowhere to lead them to." She was right.

"Can't we just pick them off? You've got that crossbow for a reason Lil'Lili." I saw her eye twitch at that.

"Lili can't run AND shoot accurately! Unless Lili suddenly turns into Mama Rika, you're 'outta luck pal.' Or something along those lines!" Hearing Lili copy Ms. Rika was funny, but NOW WASN'T THE TIME!

We ran past another intersection, and came across a dead end. "THIS is it! THIS is how Lili dies!" Welf, Lili and I shared a look, and we all knew it was a do or die moment. And since none of us wanted to die, we'd have to do. The Minotaurs weren't here yet, so we had time to think up a plan.

"Ok. Quick supply check! Lili, how many potions do we have?" I know we have aura, mine, Trix's and Welf's from Sir. Maccillian, and Lili's from Ms. Shizuka, but we could take four direct hits from a Minotaur before it was gone. And that's on a full reserve. I knew I was almost full, but Welf was definitely at half, and if Lili was in a situation where she HAD to take a hit from a Minotaur, then things would be looking grim. Trix had the smallest reserves out of all of us, and could MAYBE take one good hit before it broke. But that was it.

"We have 3 health potions, 2 mind potions, and 1 lizard tonic!" The mind potions wouldn't do much. They all knew that, it was the health potions and tonic that would be the game changers.

I looked over to Welf, and it looked like he realized it too. "Alright... So HOW are we going to do this? I can MAYBE hold off two of them at the same time, but what about the others?" He had a point. I could fight Minotaurs, but it was usually a single one at a time.

But two, maybe three at a time? (Can I do it?) That was the question.

But I knew the answer. (I HAVE to do it.) If I didn't, we'd have a harder time getting back home.

We might not even make it back home.

That was a thought that made me even more sure of what I had to do. I gripped my knife, an aura construct Ms. Saya gave me to test out, and looked ahead. I could hear the stomping of the Minotaurs, and I knew it.

I had to do it. "I'll try to take on three of them. Lili." She stood at attention, which took some of the seriousness out of the air considering her massive bag. "Can you try to blind one of them as soon as they get in?" She looked at me, and nodded. I could tell she was determined to get out or go home. I wasn't sure, but it was what I wanted to see.

"Lili can do that. But are you sure you can do it? Best Mama Shizuka isn't here to help." Again, I knew she was right, but I just looked ahead, and gripped my knife harder. We still hadn't found a healer that wanted to join us, who would also be a good fit for the party, so without Ms. Shizuka, we were in trouble.

But that didn't matter right now. "I'm not sure if I can. But I HAVE too, and that's all that matters." I saw Lili nod out of the corner of my eye. Then I looked to Trix, my Hellhound partner. She was ready to fight, and was staring at the entrance. "Trix." She flicked an eye to me. "Protect Lili please." She started growling, but after a second, huffed and trotted over to her. I nodded at that, then saw Welf walk up to me, and grin as he put his arms and sword behind his head.

"Well, if we don't die, then we'll have one hell of a story to share huh?" I grinned back at that.

"Yeah. Yeah we will... I'll try not to mention it was your idea that got us here though." His eyes went wide, and I heard Lili snickering.

"Lili will though." That made Welf whip his head around, and the look of fear on his face was hilarious. When Ms. Shizuka came with us earlier, Welf saw just how scary the nice woman was. ESPECIALLY if something tried to hurt Lili.

"Lil'Lili. Please... Anything but that!" Lili started snickering even more, and Welf was about to say something else.

But we were out of time. The Minotaur were here. Welf and I shared a look, and we ran in.

One of Lili's bolts flew past us, and found its mark in one of the Minotaurs eyes. It was closer to Welf's side, so he went for it the moment he was in range. "EAT THIS!" He swung his sword to the hurt one, but it didn't connect.

Another Minotaur with a dungeon born weapon blocked it, and Welf was clashing with that one. The one with a bolt stuck in its eye was swinging wildly, and ended up hitting another Minotaur. (That'll help Welf. Now I need to worry about the ones on my side.) I focused in on them, crouched low to the ground, and started running around them. From our training sessions, and from the bit of experience I had with Minotaurs, I knew they were all power but no speed or flexibility.

Which I had in spades.

One of the Minotaur roared at me, annoyed that I kept running around, and charged at me. Now normally, I would've been able to capitalize on it.

But the other two roared and charged with it. And I couldn't just fight them ALL.

So I did the next best thing. Sir Maccillian, and Ms. Saya practically drilled into me that I need to fight smart. I knew how to do that, but I needed to make sure the plan worked first. "Lili! Can you hit the one on my right! Trix, fireball one of the others!?" I heard a 'yes' and a bark, then the sound of a crossbow fire and the heat of a fireball. The one on the left took a fireball to the chest, and the one on the right took a hit to the knee. That slowed it down enough for me to start the first part of my plan.

I stopped running around them, and started going TOWARDS them. The last one couldn't run towards me, so all I had to do was run past the first two, then head over to the last one.

And that's what I did.

With the two of them running after me side by side, I didn't have much space to go past them.

If I stayed on the ground that is.

I ran towards them, then when I was close enough, I jumped, and went over the first two. My target was on the ground, trying to pull the bolt out of its knee, but even with that, the moment I got close enough, it reared its head towards me and roared. It raised a bloody fist towards me, and swung. But it didn't connect. I knew how it'd attack, and I was ready.

I dodged the fist, ran my knife down its forearm, and took it out before the Minotaur could strike me with its head and horns. I could've gone for the kill, but then I heard a shout from Lili, and jumped away from the downed Minotaur to make sure she was ok.

Seeing that the Minotaur Trix shot a fireball at, was coming after her, told me she wasn't ok. Trix shot towards it, her maw on fire as she jumped at it, but she was swatted away when the Minotaur hit her with the broad side of its sword. That left Lili on her own while Trix's aura broke from the force of the hit and crashed against the wall. "Hold on Lili! I'm coming!" I ran past the downed Minotaur, and after a quick stab to the one healthy Minotaur still after me, I ran to Lili's side. (Maybe I should take Ms. Rika up on her sniping lessons. I don't have any ranged options at all.) That was something I only really noticed now, when our long range attacker was in danger.

That, and the fact we needed an ACTUAL ranger in our party. Lili had doubled as one, while Trix could too since she could breathe fire, but they were both in danger.

And as I saw the Minotaur stab towards Lili, I realized I wouldn't make it in time to protect her from another hit.

We COULD take hits from a Minotaur, but that didn't mean we SHOULD. Ms. Saeko beat that into me, and that lesson applied for more than just that.

Yes we had our aura, but we'd still feel it. And if Lili was hit by a Minotaur, she'd DEFINITELY be sent into the wall.

Her aura would take the hits, but Lili would be vulnerable.

And I wouldn't be able to make it in time to keep her from taking those hits.

I had to get there.

I HAD too.

If I let Lili get hurt, if I failed, then not only would Ms. Shizuka kill me... I'd disappoint Sir Maccillian and everyone else.

And I refused to let it happen.

That thought made something inside me change.

And suddenly, it all fit into place.

{Maccillian's POV}

"Eh, they're probably fine." I got off the couch, after taking Houndoom's head out of my lap, and stretched. Hestia was out at work, Shizuka was at the orphanage with Saeko, Rika was either with Loki or Aisha, and Saya was probably still at the library. "So what do I do today?" That was the question. "Eh, fuck it. I'll find something to do." I nodded, then turned to Houndoom. "Wanna come with me boy?" He shook himself for a few seconds, then barked an agreement. "Alright, off we go then."

And so we left. I'd find something for us to do. (Though I'm still curious about what the fuck the girls are doing.)

{Saeko's POV}

Having children crawling or crowding around me was something I was still adjusting too. Children were a strange subject for me, not only before the apocalypse, but even now. I know I had told my lord I wanted experience with them for the day I'd eventually have my own, but there was another reason... Also, hands-on experience with children was a VERY different experience.

Such as having my ears and tail played with, which was what three small children were currently doing. "Would you mind taking your hands off of that please? It's sensitive." The little ones just looked at me, they didn't stop as they did, and then they just giggled as they turned their attention back to my tail. It was strange.

Solely for the reason I did not know how to deal with this. (I can't threaten them. Striking the fear of death in their tiny hearts would most likely get me lectured by Lord Takemikazuchi, and most likely Shizuka) The thought of an angry or disappointed Shizuka sent a very unwelcome chill down my spine. I was on both sides of the Sadomasochistic spectrum, but Shizuka was someone none of us wanted to disappoint. She was the kindest of us all, and despite her masochistic tendencies in the bedroom, did not like to inflict or have pain inflicted onto her.

(Speaking of the walking natural disaster.) I looked over to her, and internally sighed. (I wish I could take notes about this.) Shizuka was currently reading the children a book, a hero story if I was hearing right, and had a very happy child on her lap, along with a circle of others at her feet. They all had joyous smiles on their faces, and if they had tails, I was sure they would all be wagging. (She truly is a natural.)

And she was. When she first brought Lili to us, we were all confused. 'HEY! I'm the first one to have a daughter! I'm number 1 again!' No other explanation. She just runs up to us, after telling me and Rika to go gather Saya, and says THAT. Saya had practically required a reboot, while Rika laughed at the 'joke' and got VERY confused after realizing it wasn't a joke.

I on the other hand had just looked at the teenager, who if I didn't know any better, looked like a ten year old with developed breasts. I wasn't as good as say Shizuka at reading people, but I could still do it. And when I looked at the little Pallum, I realized something.

She was hurting.

Breaking.

Suffering.

She reminded me of myself before Z-day and before my lord. My mask was cracking. The strain of putting on a kind face and pretending I wasn't a monster was getting to me. And seeing Lili, seeing her own mask, hiding her suffering and pain, endeared me to her. I couldn't be a mother to her, we were too close in age for that. But I could be a sister.

And that's what we were to each other. Saya also filled the sister role, not only because she liked Lili's analytical mind, but because she simply wanted to do so. Neither of us knew who was going to be the 'older' sister to her at the start, but after an unfair game of Rock-Paper-Scissors, Saya won the position. But that was fine, I had the 'fufufu' act down to a science, and will still act that way despite Saya holding the position.

Rika adored her mostly because she was cute, crafty, and used a crossbow. Suffice to say, we all loved the little one. Though Shizuka did the most, and we all knew it.

But to be fair, Shizuka was kind to all, unless they didn't deserve it.

Watching Shizuka entertain the children, I just thought to myself about the image she was giving off. (Her warmth and joy spreads to all those around her. Shizuka is a beacon of positivity... But that's not who I am... If I tried to emulate her, then I would not be who I am... Rika is the most laid back of us all. A competitive but fun loving woman who finds our path. Shizuka is the sun. The light that shows us a path. Saya is kind but strict. The one who guides us down the path. And I am me. I can be cold and cruel, but I do love... And I am the blade that cuts down whatever gets in our way as we walk our path... Ah... So that's it.) I finally understood.

The other reason I wanted to do this was to understand a question about myself. One that had as much importance to me as the idea of having children in the first place.

'What kind of mother would I be?' That was the question I fretted over.

But I finally understood.

(Gentle and kind like Shizuka and Saya, but in my own way. I don't believe I can be laid back like Rika. But I don't need to be. I will be me. The kind but dangerous woman that will tear apart any who dare lay their hands on my children or loved ones. Yes... I am the blade of my lord. And I shall provide safety in my own way. If that results in a mountain of corpses left in my wake, then so be it.) Just after that thought, I felt something within me change. It was similar to my semblance, like a part of myself had come to the front of my being.

It was cold, a chill that promised to bring silence and death, but one I felt could be more.

And I would ensure it could be more.

{Shizuka's POV}

(She's smiling more. Something changed... But it's a good one. Good for her.) I felt something else change too, but all that mattered was that Saeko seemed at peace.

{Rika's POV}

"~Hey soul sister!~"

"~Ain't that Mr. Mister on the radio, stereo?~"

"~The way you move ain't fair ya know.~"

"~Hey, soul sister, I don't wanna miss a single thing you do tonight.~"

""~Hey, hey, hey.~""

"~Just in time, I'm so glad you have a one-track mind, like me.~"

"~You ga...-"

"WOULD YOU TWO SHUT UP!?" Aisha and I blinked, then looked in the direction of whoever the fuck said that. There was a fat looking merchant asshole, and I was pretty sure Aisha had the same opinion about him that I did.

We looked at each other, brought our arms off the others shoulders, and cracked our knuckles as we looked at the guy. "You want the first shot at him?" Aisha grinned, and started walking towards him. "Be sure to save some for me, soul sister!"

She waved at me for that. "Got it sister!" I grinned, and looked at the fat merchant. Fucker was quaking in his boots now that he realized he just pissed off an Amazon and Werewolf.

(That'll teach him to interrupt sisterly bonding.) I was teaching Aisha songs from back home, and I couldn't resist the one we had just been singing. Cause come on, that was the perfect opportunity. (We'll get back to it after we shove our feet up his fat ass.) I grinned when Aisha kicked him in my direction, and I hit him in the gut with my own kick. That felt ni... (Damn, I'm starting to turn into Crazy... I'll go diving tomorrow or the day after. That should do it.)

Yup, I'd just go shoot or stab some monsters later. That'd fix... "Damn... Crazy is infectious." I heard Aisha go 'huh?' But I just focused on literally anything else.

{Saya's POV}

"How the hell did he make it look so easy?" I was practically pulling my hair out at the roots with all this 'enchanting' crap Zaka did. At least I had somewhere to start. I asked him for an explanation on how he did the passive strengthening he used on ours and the Remnant crew's weapons, but I just had no idea on how the hell I was supposed to get it to work.

"'You just have to make the aura able to devour other aura and mana' he says. WELL HOW THE FUCK DO I DO THAT?" That was all he said, and I wanted to bash my brain into the wall. I knew he was fucking with me, he just HAD to be, but he left me to figure it out on my own. And I was going to fucking DO IT.

Though I accidentally hit a shelf in my annoyance, and got hit in the head with a book from said shelf. I muttered some more curses under my breath, and blinked when I read the title. 'Mana enchantments for beginners.'

"... You know... Sometimes I love my luck." I grabbed the book, placed it next to my 'Mana manipulation for beginners' book, and happily hummed as I made my way back to my study.

I had two forms of power to mix together.

{Maccillian's POV an hour later}

"Maybe this wasn't the brightest idea." Houndoom just barked an agreement, and I glared at him. "When did you get so fucking smart huh?" Another bark, and my eye twitched. "Ah shut up and blast 'em. I'm ready to go home after this." He barked again, a little smugly, the bastard, and turned to open his maw. Flames shot out of it, and the weird bug things chasing us screeched as they went up in flames.

Might need context on what the fuck is actually going on here.

To sum it up, I was bored, heard there was this big nest of Flybeemon looking motherfuckers a bit away from the city, and I decided to check it out.

Though 'big nest' was an understatement. There was an underground colony absolutely FULL of 'em. And it wasn't just the flyers either. There were natural Killer Ants, a bunch of the worms, and even some broodmothers. "You know what?! I'M FINING EINA FOR THIS SHIT!" Houndoom barked an agreement, and we went back to running.

Now I knew I could fucking annihilate this entire place with a TOTW, but for one, I was underground so I couldn't. Two, I actually COULDN'T use it because I didn't have the reserves for it. And three, I was still in range of Orario, so I couldn't bring out my sword unless I wanted to give myself away.

So that's what led to me being knee deep in charred giant bug carcasses, and soaked in nasty ass bug juice. I used the chance to train my new moves, work out kinks and all that, and it was even good gravity training. But at the same time, I didn't like the fact I was turning massive bugs into pancakes. It was disgusting... Only because they fucking sploded everywhere when I did. Ugh. "Should've stayed home. Who gives a shit if I'm bored? I can just fucking sleep it off... I should've slept it off... Ugh..." I flicked off some more bug gunk, and scowled as Houndoom and I left the colony.

When we were topside, I coated my leg in aura, doubled my personal gravity, and stomped the ground. I listened in for the sound of collapsing tunnels, and nodded when I heard them all dying. With that done, I turned to Houndoom, saw he was shaking himself off, getting bug gunk on me, and making my eye twitch. I looked at the little fucker, and if I didn't know any better, I could swear he was thinking 'Oh no... Anyway.' Aura awakened creatures would naturally get smarter, the changes with them having their magic stones melt away from being awakened might've added to it though. But despite that, I knew he didn't have thoughts as detailed as those yet.

Didn't mean he didn't know what he did though. "I'm not washing your fur tonight." He rolled his eyes at me, and just trotted away. He was such an ann...- "I'm a horrible influence." Houndoom snorted, and kept going. (Maybe I should've just killed 'em before I got attached to the little bastard.)

{30 minutes later}

Houndoom and I ran back to Orario, and when we got back within its walls, I sighed. (I still smell like crap.) I grunted as I shifted, and walked towards home. He seemed a little less smug, couldn't possibly be because I made him run under doubled gravity or anything, no way. The almost glare I felt being aimed at my back probably didn't have anything to do with that either.

We walked back home, and I rolled my eyes as I still felt the glare. "Oh stop being a baby, you're fineee." He gave me an annoyed bark, and I snorted. "It wasn't even that bad." An annoyed growl, and a few embers aimed at my ankles was his response to that. "See! If you got enough fire in you to do that, then you're fine." Some more fire, and I had to swat my pant leg to put out the flames he spewed on me, but it was fine.

I annoyed him some more, and was about to spike the gravity on him to fuck with him, but stopped when I saw Bell and his party.

Bell was leaning on Welf. Though I was pretty sure he was knocked out.

Welf was looking a lot worse for wear.

Lili just looked about ready to drop, her bag nowhere to be seen, and probably would've dropped if she wasn't using Trix to support her.

And Trix herself was limping as she walked.

They all stopped walking when they spotted me and Houndoom, and we just looked at each other. At that point, I HAD to ask. "What the fuck happened to you?" Welf just gave me a shaky laugh, Lili shot him a look, and walked herself over to me. Then Trix just let out a tired bark after looking at Welf. When Lili got to me, she raised her arms up, and I blinked. "Really?"

She nodded, and flailed her arms a bit. "Lili is too tired to walk all the way back home. Up please." I blinked again, then shrugged. I had the option of putting her on my shoulder, but decided to try the dad thing.

"Sure." I turned and crouched down, felt her latch onto my back then put her chin on my head, and stood back up. "You comfortable smols?" Lili just hummed in agreement, and I looked back at Welf. He looked both amused, and too tired at the same time. "Well, let's hear it on the way." Welf made another nervous laugh, and we walked home.

[Omake - Plans in the shadows. Freya's POV]

My observations over my new treasures led me to some VERY interesting findings.

For one, I was sure my identity of Syr was under suspicion by them all. I was unsure HOW, but I knew I'd need to temper myself and slowly lower my interactions with them whenever they arrived at the Hostess.

The second thing I learned from them was what the coating they had around them was. Aura, the manifestation of their souls. It had come up during the day the Hostess had been reserved. The little treasure's shine had taken on a glow much similar, but still inferior to theirs. I still remember hearing how the little treasure was simply ecstatic about having had his 'unlocked' by the silver treasure. That gave me ideas.

Many, many ideas. (What would a killing stone be to treasures able to magnify one another's brilliance more than just once? Nothing. But I'll entertain Ishtar's folly when that particular order of hers arrives. I won't even need my new treasures to put that whore down.)

The third thing I learned was about their relationship. Using Syr, I was able to eavesdrop on some of their conversations. From what I'd been able to hear, the main 'wife' seemed to be the woman known as Shizuka. An invaluable treasure, one who embodied an aspect of Hestia's divinity. That, and that alone almost made her more valuable than the silver treasure. Because if she could embody a goddesses aspect, then she may be receptive to another goddesses' aspects as well.

But again, ALMOST. As enticing as that idea was, I needed to keep my eye on the prize.

But that woman would be one of if not my most surefire keys to said prize. I just needed a little insurance in the event I misplayed. Because despite being able to charm others, I refused to be sloppy about it. I was going to claim the brightest gems in Orario, and to do so, I'd need a certain item to guarantee my victory.

And I knew just who to commission its retrieval to.

A knocking at my chamber door drew my attention, and I grinned when I felt who it was. "Ottar, be a dear and let our guest in."

"Yes, my goddess." Such a good child.

I watched Ottar as he walked to the door, and beckoned my guest inside when the door was opened. Looking at my guest, I couldn't help but grin even more. He took the seat I had for him, and got straight to business. "So, how can I help you Freya?"

It was simple. "I need you to procure me a Mermaid heart." My guest blinked, obviously surprised. I could have my own children fetch me something of that caliber, but that would alert other gods or goddesses. But if it were Hermes, a god whose affairs others hardly pry into, one who is both competent enough to fulfill the task, and can be very discreet with this sort of business, then it'd be fine.

"I can do that, but should I even ask?" I hummed at that.

"A good courier doesn't ask. You know that Hermes." He gave me a sheepish smile at that, and nodded.

"Alright. Payment?" Licking my lips, Hermes understood. "Alright. Though I'll still charge my usual fee." That was fine. "At the earliest, I should have it a week or two before Apollo's banquet. If everything goes right, I'll have it a month early. Is that acceptable?"

Perfect. "Yes. Yes it is. You'll receive your payment after I have my heart." Hermes nodded, then got up. He didn't reach his hand out, knowing I wouldn't take it, and just gave me a smile as he left.

With Hermes gone, it was just me and Ottar, but that was fine. I had a plan coming together, and I just had to be patient.

Soon, I'd have access to a very valuable tool.

And with it, the keys to my new treasures.

Hmm, I wonder that'll do. Anyway, we've reached cannon.

And things are noticeably different. The party is together, they have aura, and Bell seems to have found... Something.

Lili is free of Soma and has been adopted by our resident nurse and MC. Daughter, get!

[Status]

Name - Maccillian Silver Zaka

Title - The Silver King of Wolves

Level - 1

Age - 20(2,821)

Strength : F - 370(200 Restricted)-] Strength : D - 530

Endurance : F - 340 -] Endurance : E - 450

Vitality : 150,200 -] Vitality : - 150,310

Dexterity/Agility : F - 360(150 Restricted) -] Dexterity/Agility : D - 500

Intelligence/Magic : G - 265(280) -] Intelligence/Magic : E - 380

Wisdom : 705 -] Wisdom : 815

Charisma : 1,460 -] Charisma : 1,570

Luck : 360 -] Luck : 470

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