“Ahh…” Reed couldn’t do anything but freeze on the spot.

Meanwhile, Alisa’s flabbergasted countenance shifted to a calm one as she closes her eyes slowly. She breaks out in a smile and stood up from the place.

“I get it now. Everything is coming together.” Alisa said with a confident smile.

“I’ve been through this many times. Yeah, no doubt. I noticed that my mind has been in the gutter lately. That must be the reason why.” She said as she walks casually around the room while observing everything.

“Yeah, that’s got to be it. I’ve practiced an apology line for Sigrun and such as to follow is this wild scene. Hmm, yeah! Though everything felt real, it is still questionable for me of why Sigrun did that or why I am calm. Possibly…” Alisa stares at everyone as if she solved something deep.

“This is still a dream! I woke up from my dream earlier just to wake up in another dream! That explains that magical sky, this perverted moments, and Reed’s lucky pervert event.” Alisa declared while nodding to herself.

“D-Dream…? What are you talking about Alisa?” Reed knitted his brows in astonishment at what Alisa's deduction.

“I suppose the real Reed would also ask the same thing. Yeah, everything is going according to what I normally perceive people Daydreaming and such. I even thought one time that Reed and Sigrun would be doing something perverted by themselves back then. Hehehe, what a silly imagination.” Alisa laughs as she crosses her arms.

“Err…um…I think I’ll check on Emeralda.” Sigrun said with a blank face to Alisa and lifelessly leaves the room with trembling gait.

“Alisa, are you okay? More importantly, what do you mean Sigrun and I doing perverted things?!” Reed bursts out as his mind caught up to Alisa’s one-sided mumbling. Nio on the other hand blankly watches Alisa as if she is a foreign creature.

“Hmm, even so, this dream is too elaborate.” Alisa stated as she squints her eyes towards Reed.

“Uh…snap out of it, Alisa. It’s not a dream.” Reed replied with a tired countenance.

“You are saying that Sigrun expressing his apology is not a dream then?” Alisa asked.

“It is not. He apologized?” Reed replied.

“You are saying that Sigrun forcing his lips onto mine is not a dream too?” Alisa asked.

“No. Wait, what?!” Hearing it the first time, Reed’s face is painted with anguish.

“You are saying that Sigrun touching and licking my body all over is not a dream?” Alisa asked.

“He…Did that?! And no, this is not a dream!” Reed replied with a fed up countenance.

“Ahahaha! Impossible. That’s too illogical. Because if this is not a dream, I would have raised a fuss.” Alisa said with a confident smile.

However, Alisa continues to walk around the room while looking at things which possible unknown or too primitive for her. Suddenly, while gazing at some wooden cabinets…

THUD

Alisa suddenly stops her movement and sweat immediately crept down from her forehead as well as her face is now boiling with pure embarrassment and possibly, a little anger.

For what has caused this, the best wake up call was her little toe stubbing a furniture.

“Uuuu…it’s…not a dream…after all…” Alisa holds onto her toe while curling in the ground as she endures the pain and at the same time, to suppress her embarrassment on how stupid she is. The kiss, the touching, every sensation comes back to her.

“Something…really did happen to you and Sig…” Reed said while his sight fell down with a shaky voice full of sadness.

“Then it is also true that you are, right now, holding a naked girl in your arms…” Alisa said as she pointed at Nio.

“Nio.” Nio said as she pointed at herself.

“Piss off. Argh…I can’t believe it. Some genius I am. A-Anyway…the kissing thing…and what I said…” Alisa’s face paled as she peeks at Reed’s darkened countenance.

“You thoughtlessly said a lot of things…but I just want to ask one thing. Alisa, do you like Sig?” Reed asked without making any eye contact. He felt his chest squeezing a little.

“No, I don’t. But what can I say, the kiss felt so good I thought my brain turned into a mush.” Alisa shows a devilish smile towards Reed.

“……” Reed didn’t say anything and only stares at Nio whom he started drying off with the towel on hand.

“For the record, between the two of us, you were the one who got a kiss from him first. Although I don’t feel any justice from what happened today, I felt like we are now even in a sense, right?” Alisa’s words suddenly made an electrifying shock on Reed’s spine.

“...Ahaha…Hahaha! Hahaha! That doesn’t make any sense now! Are you boasting that the two of us has now kissed Sigrun? Then, to complete it, how about you and I do it too?” Reed laughs but in the heat of the moment, blurted something that warrants him a blush.

“Eh…?” Alisa’s eyes widen in surprise from Reed’s sudden suggestion which he does not intend to say.

“Nio, do it too.” Nio intervened without actually knowing what they are talking about.

“I don’t know about that…Nio. A-Anyway, Alisa…that’s uh…a joke.” Reed forces a smile as he waves his hands towards Alisa with face dyed in embarrassment.

“Alright then, let’s do it.” Alisa said as she crawls closer to Reed.

“Yes?” Reed blurted out in a dumbfounded face.

Meanwhile, Sigrun walks in the corridor of his mansion while leaning on the wooden walls. To his right is a veranda that fully embarks on the outworld fantasy that the sacred mountain can offer.

A little bit away, he saw Emeralda basking in the glow of the aurora while taking a sip of an alcohol in a cup.

“Emeralda…I’m the worst…” Sigrun said as he casually finds his place beside Emeralda.

“You’ve always been. Why did you do that for in the first place? If you are horny, I can do well with as your partner.” Emeralda made a small smirk.

“It is as I said. I desire not only Alisa but also Reed. I don’t know what stirs my heart but…As soon as I saw them, struggling and desperately clinging on surviving just to see me, I felt something thumping in my chest…” Sigrun places a hand on his own chest and started listening to his own heartbeat.

“...You’re just a goddamn hypocrite who never matures. Sigrun, don’t subject them to your projection of that woman.” Emeralda said in a cold tone.

“True, you are more humane than most of the population. Hypocrisy is one proof of that. However, that’s because you are strong and you don’t have anything dear to protect or a goal to reach. You are just playing around.” Her tone gradually grew colder that Sigrun just sunk his head.

“We, of the people, the Aldieans, do our best in our daily struggles. To achieve, to succeed, to take a huge leap in our lives. We do everything we can and in a sense, we became a monster of our league for those while leaving you, the most powerful, behind with your rotting beliefs.” Emeralda lashes at Sigrun with deep words.

Receiving such brunt words, Sigrun can only close his eyes as he accepted all of it.

“That’s why, don’t force your obsession to others, not with those two. Just a simple observation has proven something about you. Even though you are cold to people who attempt for the top of this place, not that I ever saw anyone other than me but, as soon as they step in your comfort zone, you become…oddly attached to them.” Emeralda said while staring at the liquor at the cup on her hand.

“This is such an effect of your prolonged detachment from the world. Rather than calling you Hero of Aldieas, won’t the title Broken Hero fits you more?” Emeralda once again sprouted a smile as if her cold voice earlier was a lie.

“All of what you said…I’m well aware of…” Sigrun muttered those words while his face sinks into his arms as he hugged his knees.

“All of it…even with my obsession with Order. The only way I can cope with it is through my relationship with people who arrived here when there’s the alternative of going down the mountain if I liked it. Hypocrite is such a wonderful word…” Sigrun said as he clenches on his clothes.

“But please, don’t insult her, okay? Don’t insult Order. It’s not that I am going to be angry but…it hurts. Childish may I am but, it’s one thing I refuse to forget…” Sigrun’s shrill voice resounded.

“Eighty years have passed and here I was thinking you at least matured. How disappointing of you.” Emeralda whisks another berating words.

“Sorry…” Sigrun muttered under his breath.

“And as always, you never bothered to defend yourself.” Emeralda heaves a sigh.

It is as Emeralda said, Sigrun never bothered defending himself of all those words smeared at him and to his pride. On the contrary, Sigrun will most likely be a bystander to a lot of things but when it matters the most, he will voice out his opinion.

“Emeralda…” Sigrun’s words, almost a whisper, reaches Emeralda.

“What?” She simply replied.

“Thank you…” He said as he takes a peek at Emeralda.

“Hmm? For what? Did you like my scolding even though you are the older one here?” Emeralda asked coquettishly.

“No. I had a raging boner earlier. Thanks to you belittling me so much, it went down.” Sigrun said nonchalantly.

“…And here I was hoping I managed to drill some sense into you.” Emeralda could say nothing but a frigid smile as if she lost all hope.

Feeling that the atmosphere elated a little, Sigrun gently takes the cup from Emeralda’s hand and filled it again with liquor from the bottle. He then brought it to his mouth and took a mouthful.

“Hehehe, you were just fifteen years old back then when you first tasted this, right?” Sigrun chuckles as he let the liquor slips into his throat.

“This is a rice wine, right? You still have that rice paddy back then?” Emeralda queries as took the cup from Sigrun and drink her fill.

“Yeah, but right now, it doesn’t have anything planted on it. If I’m going back down, I might as well bring some things too like clothes and some of my crafted weapons and clothes.” Sigrun replied as he started thinking about what things he could take with him.

“Tone it down, you’d bring more trouble than you could ever hope for.” Emeralda said as a warning.

Sigrun nodded obediently.

From their conversation, the atmosphere died down to a friendlier and approachable one. Both talks with the familiarity with each other.

“Sorry, Sigrun. I’m really sorry. I’m nothing short of hypocrisy too. I have the audacity to lecture when I myself left you too. What could have happened if I stayed?” Emeralda squeezes those thoughts deep inside her heart.

“Ah, I have something to do. I have to go.” Sigrun suddenly said and burst away from Emeralda which left her speechless from Sigrun’s momentary panic.

Sigrun makes haste in his march. His destination isn’t somewhere inside the mansion but outside of it. Opposite from where the entrance is, his path leads to the backyard, however, not merely in size.

As if it was a land granted by the divines, the large lake reflects the heavenly world. Tall earthen monuments stand circular on the edge of the lake and in the middle, there’s a small island with a red standing shrine gate, a gallant view that astounds any people who may fall their sight to it as it exudes an atmosphere devoid of any impurity.

Sigrun stares at the gate longingly even though on the other side of it is also the lake. He takes a step at the surface of the lake which is quite shallow that it only submerges up to the shin of Sigrun.

“Tomorrow, after I had everyone rest, we will depart immediately. Before that, I wanted to see you.” Sigrun said as he continues his step one by one with careful movements.

Then, as Sigrun reaches the gate, he held out his hand towards the empty space between it.

“Mente, Corpore, Caelum.” As Sigrun uttered those words, the gate lits up in a gentle prismatic light and a transparent glow appeared between the gate.

Sigrun proceeds to enters the gate.

And then, as the bright light that was covering Sigrun’s surrounding subsided, he now finds himself in a world with nothing but pure whiteness.

In front of him is actually a hall with brick floor, streak of pillars decorated with golden carvings, floating crystals that surround the vicinity, and a huge tomb decorated with white flowers.

“Oh, what is this?” A voice of a man resounds before Sigrun can even take one step.

“Quite a perfect timing. We’ve just finished a short nap for eight years.” Another voice coming from a woman rings.

Comes descending from the ephemeral world of nothingness, two figures wearing a garb meant only for those who transcends all creation.

“Another visit?” Said by the man who dons a night-bound hair that flows up to his knees. He wears a celestial robe in which dark in color, the same with his clothes which is a loose fabric with a button holding it on his shoulder. He wears loose pants made of wool fastened with a golden colored rope.

“Have you come for another death, Sigrun?” The woman said in a delighted tone. She wears the same clothing motif with the man, however, her dress is maddeningly pure white and instead of pants, she wears a dress with its hem too long that it’s being dragged in the ground.

“Yah and Weh, thank you as always for guarding Order’s body.” Sigrun said as he went straight for the tomb.