Chapter 45 - Treasure

Gardenia walked alongside her, speaking in her gentle way, "It has been some time since we've been called from the temple for an investigation. I rather look forward to it and to working alongside you."

Ash nodded slightly and they talked a bit more, pausing when they reached Gardenia's room. Ash was a little reluctant, but agreed when Gardenia offered it as a place she could remove the chain mail. They'd replaced the clothing underneath as well with something that wasn't damp from the pond. She kept the robes on so that Sidus would have a chance to see them on her despite worrying that they would end up dirty.

When she opened the door to the starseeing pond once again, she was surprised to find Yarrow and Luna both looking at the chest that she'd forgotten about. Seeing it, she remembered it being left behind by the floor boss they fought. Yarrow had stored the entire thing, something that had felt a little strange at the moment but seemed to be a normal occurrence considering he didn't even think twice about the action.

Sidus sat where she'd left him, watching the two of them check for traps or anything else to be worried about such as curse sigils. While Lucrum offered treasure for defeating things in dungeons, he was also of the opinion that someone that adventured in dungeons should be wary of free gifts. For the Earthborn, it made it a simple matter of storing the chest and examining it somewhere that was safer. For the Godsborn, it was an element of excitement, the thrill of disarming a trap and gaining whatever was inside the chest while their party kept watch behind them, at least after the first failure or two.

Gardenia moved to stand beside Yarrow, "Did you call Fel?"

"Yes," he replied, "Fi too, so we can tell them the news."

They didn't have to wait long before both of them entered. Fel saw the chest and practically glowed with excitement as she hurried towards them. She still paused to greet Lord Sidus respectfully, though. One didn't disrespect a god just because they were preoccupied.

Fi also greeted Sidus, absently grasping at a pendant carved in the shape of a unicorn horn as she did so. He recognized it immediately as part of Ash's horn and smiled gently, "The craftsman that worked on that did it justice, considering it was a material he was unused to. The temple will benefit greatly from having them," he looked towards Ash, beckoning her away from the chest so he could take a good look at her new clothing, "I know you are curious about the contents of the chest, dear Ashterra, but let me get a look at your new robes."

Ash came close, fidgeting a little uncertainly as she worried that he would dislike the robes on her. It was a drastic departure from her normal clothing choices, which were generally just simple clothes. She didn't wear robes, not even for formal functions within the temple as she was often in her unicorn form for those. Even in dungeons, she never bothered with any form of armor because she wasn't there to fight but to destroy.

His lips curved into a light smile as he examined the robe, looking over all of the interesting designs hidden within the charcoal cloth in a thread of a slightly different color. There were stars, a crescent moon, even some unicorns at play around the hem that blended in until the fabric was moved at just the right angle.

"It suits you," he said, his tone filled with happiness as if he hadn't thought colors more like his own coat would suit her.

She smiled, about to respond that she was glad he thought so when Fel exclaimed behind her. The chest was unlocked and Sidus waved her towards it to investigate. Yarrow acknowledged her with a nod as he lifted the heavy lid of the chest to reveal the contents.

It contained only two things at first glance, something in the same color as the robes she wore that was folded in the corner and a singular grimoire. When Yarrow lifted the folded item, it revealed a heavy bracelet as well as a beautiful earring.

He scowled at the chest contents, "We'll have to have them appraised," he grumbled, "It's too convenient for my tastes."

He'd been looking for an appropriate bracelet to have enchanted with some particular defensive magic for a while but only Gardenia knew that. The earring was designed marvelously, shifting through colors in a way that would look good near the new foci that Luna wore. The cloak and grimoire, he hadn't examined in any meaningful way but he had a feeling they were meant for Ash.

"I can do so," Lord Sidus offered from behind him, holding out a hand for the items. One by one he looked them over, his expression amused. Each one looked over, he handed to the person they were meant for and allowed them to examine them after their statuses were revealed. He held onto the cloak and grimoire for a few long moments, scowling at them absently before offering them to Ash, "It seems Lucrum wanted to make amends for getting you all caught up in a dungeon morph. He's done the same before."

His last statement was directed towards Ash as her perusal of the items became a bit more hesitant. She was grateful to have more time, for her magic to be put together some more and her pain to be further apart and predictable. She was still uncertain of her feelings on the god, though, and did not appreciate how overly familiar he was with her.

Given his gentle approval of the items, Ash turned her attention to them. The cloak was a beautiful thing in a very similar design to what she was wearing but with the colors reversed. The cloak itself was the pearlescent white of a unicorn's horn with stars embroidered in pale threads that only appeared at certain angles. The trim was charcoal, woven with the darkened colors of secondary horns that cleansed magic.

It concealed the majority of her body, to include hanging around her face in a way that cast it into shadow. There was also a bit of magic tied into it, the ability to completely cast her face into shadow leaving only a slight glow where her eyes were. It would allow her to use Unicorn Eyes without drawing any unwanted attention to herself.

The grimoire contained a singular spell that she didn't yet know, Create Illusion. She glanced once more to Sidus for a slight nod of approval before learning the spell. She'd look it over later, she decided, settling down beside him once more to spend some time with him before he had to take his leave.

Ash leaned against Sidus' side, enjoying his presence while she was able to. Seeming to take note of how much she missed being around him, he smiled softly and pulled her into a loose embrace. Seated together, they watched as Yarrow examined the new bracelet he'd gained while Luna absently toyed with the new earring. Gardenia stood by Fel and Fi, her expression solemn as they spoke.

Fel grumbled over by the chest, having clearly just been told about their dungeon exploration. She didn't sound terribly annoyed, considering from what she said it just shifted their free time some. Fi gently touched her arm, voicing that it would be fine, that a dungeon would be a good change of pace though she used far less words to say it.

She'd be busy as soon as he was gone, with Luna having to teach her all of the things she needed to know. Her daily routines were going to be a bit of a problem, she thought as she accepted the goblet from him once more and stored it in her inventory. Luna had so much to do already to care for Ash's physical form and her work was essentially being doubled. They'd have to sort that out before bed.