I pulled my scythe out from the ground and hoisted it back over my shoulder. The kneeling body of Conrad Morrow was still, a look of shock on his face. Finally, he started to tremble. Slowly at first, but eventually growing in magnitude as, at last, he started cackling wildly.

I raised my eyebrow, unsure of what exactly I was seeing. “Wonderful, wonderful! Ah Jane, you weren’t wrong about the boy. All he needed was enough pressure to break through his mental barrier.”

A warm, chestnut light enveloped Conrad’s wound and it closed shut before my eyes. “Careful, don’t move around too much with that, otherwise it’ll open again. As much as I would like to blow my own trumpet, healing magic has never been my forte.”

A small laugh accompanied the remark and came from the direction of the mansion, where Jane and Bella Clairborne stood. “You surpassed my expectations Leon. You’ve definitely proved that you’re fit to help our cause!”

I stared at the smiling witch with dead eyes. How vulnerable had I become to lean on a complete stranger with clear ulterior motives like her? Now that my memories were fully restored, I had to get out of this situation and find Dantae’s blade form: Morning Glory.

My eyes wandered from Jane to Bella, and my thoughts stopped. If I were to leave, what would become of her? She would… no, I had to be firm in my resolve.

I turned my whole body towards the two demonesses, and gave them a deep bow. “Thanks for all you two have done for me. However, starting now, I must leave the both of you to pursue my own goals. I’m grateful for all you’ve done for me.”

The smile slipped from Jane’s face and Bella’s eyes grew wide. “Wait, wait a minute! What happened Leon? Didn’t you say that you’d help us take back our kingdom and end our persecution?”

I had to take a moment to think of an answer. Should I just be honest? Or should I just give them a generic, coward-like excuse? Eventually, I decided with the former. Even though Jane had plans to use me in her war, Bella did help me regain part of my memories.

“Well to be honest with you, my own goal takes precedence over yours right now. When I fell into the world… I lost my partner. We were separated when we fell into this world. In my world, I would be able to track her across any distance. However, I don’t know whether if it’s due to the ambient particles in the air, or how unstable this dimension’s space is from generations of travelers coming through, but I can’t sense her at all right now.”

Bella mouther the word “her”, while Jane’s hands were shaking due to how flustered she was. Meanwhile, Conrad just looked on at the situation with an amused smile on his face.

“So you mean that if we help you recover your partner, you’ll help us overcome the Azure King’s dictatorship?”

I gave her an incredulous gaze. “That’s a pretty optimistic view of your situation. I wasn’t planning on it, and to be honest I’m still not sure if I am the hero that was supposed to be summoned to your world. My circumstances were… pretty unusual if you’d ask me.”

“Please Leon. It has to be this year.” Jane was tearing up now, and grabbed both of my hands in between her own. She was warm, and trembling. She showed no sign of all the confidence I had been used to up until now, and to be honest, it shook me. It made me realize, I had seen this image before. Fear reducing a powerful ally to nothing more than a shivering mess.

If I refused her here, I would be betraying her, and leaving her to her own devices. I wouldn’t be any better than the comrades who sold me out. In fact, as a recipient of that same treatment, it would make me even worse to do that to someone of my own free will.

I sighed, and tore my hands away from hers. “I admit though, if I could get onto the same continent as her, I’m sure I could sense her presence. I suppose I could help you, but only after we find Dantae.”

Jane smiled and smothered me with a giant hug. “Thank you Leon, I won't forget this debt! Now tell me, who are we looking for? It should be easy with my scrying telescope!”

I pried the woman off me and dusted myself off. “We’re not looking for a who, but a what. I’m looking for a blade that I dropped when I fell to this continent.” Jane cocked her head to the side, and Bella looked relieved, but immediately directed her gaze downward.

“What's wrong?”

Conrad laughed at my question and came to stand by my side. “Well my boy, the thing is, scrying magic doesn’t work on objects, only people.”

My eyes narrowed as I turned back to face the two women in front of me. “I see. Well, I guess our deal is-”

“Not so fast boy, calm down.” Conrad clapped me on the back and pointed towards Jane’s mansion. "Let’s go finish our tea, why don’t we? Your uncle Conrad here has a plan to find your weapon.”