Easttale are thieves. This story is copyrighted and not authorized to be posted on their site. At this time only RoyalRoad and Patreon are authorized locations for Re: System // Summoner. I have already told them to remove it once - which they did - but now they've reposted it and removed the ability to contact them at all.

The trip only lasted two days, with a pause in the middle for Gordon and Laurence to sleep, but to Levi it felt like an eternity that passed in a haze. He spent most of it practicing converting his mana to wind, as Laurence had tried to help him to do. It still hadn't worked, but it was something to occupy his mind and keep him from bothering everyone else with constant uncertainty.

He still didn't know what he would say, or how he could possibly explain this all, but he was finally ready to try.

He yearned to see Irene again, to feel her warmth, to touch her softness. Alive, and real, and prove to himself once and for all that this was true. That he could save them this time.

That he'd never again have to look at a faded photograph to try to remember what his son looked like.

Perhaps that was why his meditation came to nothing. Perhaps his divided mind refused to settle as his long-denied anxiety pushed its way back to the front of his thoughts.

Then they were there, pulling up to the familiar house with its low wooden privacy fence across the front and neatly matched hedge trees separating it from the houses on either side.

Levi had half expected to see Irene standing on the front step waiting for him, hands on her hips and her mother standing behind her, fire in their eyes for how much worry he’d caused them.

But, of course, they had no reason to know he was coming this particular moment or going to show up this particular evening. He got out of the car, only sheer force of will keeping his legs from trembling.

“I’ll go find a place to stay for the night,” Laurence said, looking between Gordon and Levi’s serious expressions. “This seems like a personal thing.”

“Thank you,” Gordon said, tucking his phone back in his pocket. “You have my number.”

Laurence nodded, waited while Levi’s minions exited his car, then pulled out and away.

“You want me to go first?” Gordon asked.

Levi took a deep breath, then shook his head. “I can do this. Thanks.”

He stepped forward and firmly pressed the doorbell.

“And wouldn’t you know, I could not find egg rolls in a single store?”

Cassandra Jackson smiled along as her mom retold the story to Irene, but couldn’t resist the chance to interject. “You know we could have made our own, right?”

“I wouldn’t know where to begin.”

“Never stopped Cas,” Irene said, at the same time Cassandra said “Never stopped me.” The sisters laughed, though Cassandra could see the hollowness in Irene’s eyes, the underlying worry that her best attempts at reassurance couldn’t erase. But, for the moment, she could provide a distraction. They’d been through the ‘do you want to talk about it’ and the tearful discussions late into the night, more times than she could remember over anything since Peter got out of the hospital from his brief brush with near-disaster a couple years back.

“So that’s why you served sweet buns with the teriyaki?” Irene asked. “I thought it was an interesting choice.”

“Sweet buns are better than egg rolls,” Peter declared with absolute conviction.

“Well, it all worked out fine in the end. Pass the broccoli?”

Cassandra felt her phone vibrate, but disregarded it in favor of accepting the bowl of broccoli from her mother. “Thanks.” She spooned another generous helping onto her plate. “This turned out amazing, Mom, don’t let anyone tell you different.”

Peter made a face, his own broccoli sitting untouched.

“Sure you don’t want to make some egg rolls to go with it?” Irene teased.

“You want to?” Cassandra immediately grinned. “I can run out to the store and grab some ingredients if you want.” She pulled out her phone to look up a recipe, and heard the doorbell chime out just as the text notification appeared.

Gordon:

We’re here.

Cassandra’s eyes met Irene’s, and she grinned. “Someone’s here to see you.”

Levi waited at the door, Gordon hanging back. He’d ordered the minions to make themselves scarce, hiding in the shrubbery or behind the house and out of sight. The enclosed yard provided a degree of privacy and security from prying neighbors which would help prevent any of his creatures causing an unnecessary fuss.

Then the door opened, and Levi’s breath caught in his throat.

Irene.

“You’re alive,” he whispered, voice cracking. At the sight of her, he felt awash in desires that had lain forgotten for years. He stepped forward, feeling oddly shy as he wrapped his arms around her and leaned down, kissing her like they were newlyweds again discovering each other for the first time.

He felt her tears against his cheek, but they were tears of relief and she made no attempt to pull away. The half-forgotten scent of her filled his lungs and made him dizzy. Her heartbeat pulsed against his, her laughing sobs of relief intermingling with his own, and he held her like he would never, ever let her go again.

Only the fact that he knew Gordon was standing behind him made him stop and disentangle himself from Irene, leaving them both breathless. But he didn’t let go, didn’t stop running his eyes over every line of her body, every inch of her face, the exact way the setting sun lit her hair. He wanted to remember her just like this, wanted to overwrite every image of her burned and broken body with the vibrant, living, breathing, breathtaking woman he loved with all his soul.

“I missed you.” He leaned down to kiss her again, more discreetly this time.

“I missed you too,” Irene said, searching his face as she stared up at him. She put a hand on his cheek, running her fingers through the scruff that had accumulated through his week of unconcern about appearance, then dropped it back to his arm around her waist. “So it’s all true? Monsters? Dungeons? You’ve been fighting for your life for points in some game?”

Levi flinched internally at the displeasure in her voice, but another part of him sang with relief. At least she knew what was going on. She may not approve, but she wouldn’t think he was crazy. They had a starting point.

“Dad!” Peter came running at them down the hall, and Levi released Irene just in time to catch Peter up in his arms and spin him around, both of them laughing. He was so young, so beautiful, so perfect. Untouched by heartache or disaster, unhurt. Precious. “You’ll never guess what happened at camp!”

“I’m sure you can tell me all about it.” Levi couldn’t remember ever smiling this widely, his heart so full of joy.

How had he even imagined that anything was worth putting this off even a few hours, let alone the days and days wasted?

“I’ve missed you,” Levi said, planting a kiss on his son’s head.

“Dad…” Peter squirmed and rubbed at his head as Levi set him down, looking around anxiously. He caught sight of Gordon and waved a bit uncertainly.

“Peter, this is Gordon,” Irene said, stepping in. “You’ve seen him before.”

“Hi,” Peter said, then turned back to Levi. “So, we were out in a boat—“

“Let’s get inside first,” Irene interrupted. “You too, Gordon, we were just having dinner and you’re welcome to join us.”

"Bethel was rowing and Kay pushed her!"

“I wouldn’t want to impose.”

“No arguing. You brought my wayward husband back, you’re welcome to dinner. Mom made teriyaki.”

“Well, then, how can I say no?”

“When she fell over and they tipped the boat and...”

Levi smiled and followed Irene inside, one hand finding hers and holding it tight.

Soon they’d have to start preparing for the future. Once Peter was in bed, he'd explain to Irene how everything was about to change. Tomorrow, they'd have to start preparing for the coming war.

But right now, for a few precious hours, he could afford to live in the moment.

The demons had stolen enough of his happiness already. This time, they could wait their turn. For one last evening, he could let himself set the future aside. To simply relax and enjoy what it meant to have his family surrounding him, alive and well.

Childish escapades gone terribly wrong, home-cooking that tasted so familiar and yet utterly foreign. Laughter, and love.

And if he had to consciously suppress the constant pressure urging him to find something to fight, then that was a price worth paying.