"Misaki, you are back. It's good to see you once more dear," an old granny said warmly from her place at a makeshift fruit stall. Misaki smiled in response. "Same to you too granny, I hope your back is well?"

"Much better now, thank you. It was thanks to your help with the fruit wagon that this old body made it back in one piece," the granny said. "Would you care for some fruit?"

"I will pick it up later granny. I'm with a few guests today," Misaki responded cheerfully, as Zenvix and his retainers surveyed the humble house presented before them in one of Ceil's residential districts. The fruit stall laid opposite Misaki's home and along the well-beaten path, numerous citizens are spending their afternoons browsing the wares of various other stalls erected neatly in a side-by-side fashion.

As the prince reflected on their short journey to Misaki's home, he couldn't help but wonder at the drastically different responses they received during their walk here. As opposed to the attitudes of respect and subservience that Zenvix received during their stay at the guest tower, these were much, much less welcoming.

"Make yourself at home. There are cushions by the table over there, have a seat," Misaki pointed, taking her imposing coat off and hanging it by a peg on the wall. Opposite the table, there was a display stand lying just below a portrait depicting a small pink-haired girl, and a man with raven hair tied back in a ponytail. He sported a masculine chiselled jaw, sharp eyes, and a muscular upper body that was bare, save for the robe hem which clothed his bottom-half. To the right where the living room opened to another space, Zenvix spied wooden dummies positioned within its pristine interior. A training room, no doubt.

Misaki set her katanas meticulously on the display stand before sitting knee-down on a cushion facing the prince and his group. "Well, if I had known that you like to stand, I wouldn't have invited you to my house. Sit." The swordswoman remarked in slight amusement, gesturing to the cushions spread around the low table.

Zenvix and his two retainers took their seats, their minds filled with questions on the happenings so far. "It was just too apparent not to ask. On our way here, there seemed to be a marked vibe of dislike in the air from the citizens we have encountered. Aversion of eyes, scurrying feet as we neared...it was almost as if we brought the plague. Is Nox so hated here?" Zenvix questioned.

"Ahhh...." Misaki spoke, her voice a notch lower than it previously was. "That would be me. It had nothing to do with you lot."

Yurisviel raised her eyebrows. "You? Why would the citizens dislike their own protector? That's like Zenvix saying he hates the moon, and the sun is now his new best friend." The prince resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "The moon spirit, Kush'tar," he corrected.

Misaki smiled gently, but in that smile, Zenvix thought he saw a passing shadow of melancholy. "Look at me. What do you see?" She asked.

Startled a little by the sudden question, Zenvix peered closer at the lady. Misaki sported a chin-length bob hairstyle that was hued in a vibrant cherry blossom pink. It further accentuated the shade of her eyes ‒ a pretty scarlet lustre. Apart from a well-honed body which even Yurisviel would approve of, the only other distinctive trait would be her strange attire. Seeking to stay polite, the prince uttered, "Well...erm...you have short pink hair, scarlet eyes, a well-trained physique....you are a strong warrior I suppose..." His voice trailed off to nothingness, avoiding the topic of her garments for now.

Misaki laughed. "Well, that was refreshing to hear. I assure you that the typical citizen's true thoughts about me wouldn't be that simple. You see me for the human that I am, just like yourself. They saw me for the monster they think I will be," Misaki said simply.

"Monster....? Surely that's a bit of an exaggeration?" Dylas asked.

The Champion of Ceil shook her head slightly. "During your stay in Ceil, have you once glimpsed the Temple of Esheria?"

"Temple....?" The prince's thoughts rewinded back to the time when he was walking along the path towards the intersection; his final destination the palace where Zila and her council awaited. There was a majestic structure built entirely out of marble coloured in resplendent gold, with a snaking queue of worshippers and a long plume of incense smoke rising towards the sky.

"If you had stepped into the religious compound, you would have experienced first-hand the faithful sermons of the priests, as they preached the Eternal War Between Light and Shadow. Esheria, the Goddess of Peace, Order and Prosperity, wages a ceaseless war against Skavesh, the God of Chaos and Bloodshed. The Evil One was said to be neither man nor woman, and yet chooses to manifest its physical form in the sickening amalgamation of both; a half-man, half-woman bearing the sexual organs of both genders. Completing the unholy image was the twisted head of a goat and the tail of a salamander, dark as night. Unable to make considerable progress in vanquishing its Light-Born nemesis, Skavesh hatched an insidious plan. To wound Esheria in a way she would never imagine. One moonless night, using dark manipulation and deception, the Evil One lured Tsenya, the progeny of light, into its devilish den. Trapped and unable to escape, Tsenya, daughter of Esheria, was raped by the diabolical god. Till this day, ardent believers in Ceil attributed raging storms to the cries and wails of Tsenya as her virginity was ripped out of her by the Evil One. 'Tsenya's Tears', they would often say, as the rain poured incessantly around them."

Misaki paused for a moment, her eyes locking gaze with that of the prince. "The foul seed, no matter how immoral, was strong. It quickened that night. Soon after, a forbidden fruit was born to the now-crazed Tsenya, whose mind capitulated at the desecration of her body by the Evil One. She was never the same again. The child, forever damned by her sinful lineage, had the pink hair of her mother...and the scarlet eyes of her father."

Zenvix's eyes widened in dawning comprehension, and Dylas spluttered. "My lady, you can't mean to say..."

"That I am the Daughter of Skavesh?" Misaki completed Dylas's sentence. She then laughed mirthlessly. "Who knows? I have never seen another pink-haired girl with red eyes. Try as I might, I couldn't remember my family at all either. As an infant, I was found by my master on a tree branch. How I got there I don't know. It was a wonder I didn't just cry myself off-balance and drop to my death. My master raised me and taught me all I knew. It was obviously unlikely that I am the daughter of such godly entities, or I would have started making my enemies disappear with a snap of my fingers, instead of prancing around with a sharp stick trying to poke them in the arse. The citizens of Ceil, however, had a different opinion. They recognized me from the religious teachings, they feared me. Funny, really. One stormy night, a woman even dropped to her knees when she saw me on the streets, and started reciting her prayers to Esheria and begging for her protection," Misaki explained, then sighed.

"Sometimes, I wish I had fallen off the tree branch that day," she muttered.

"Don't say that," Zenvix responded. "To be honest, this religious make-believe that you are the daughter of Skavesh was just complete bollocks. Being born of pink hair and red eyes doesn't conclusively make you the daughter of an evil god. Believing in such nonsense and acting in the way they did towards you was just madness. Madness and stupidity."

"That and errr...." Zenvix struggled to find better words to describe his intention. "Maybe you ought make yourself less conspicuous. You know...the idea of dressing according to societal norms. I guess that would make you stand out less and look more like a citizen of Ceil, rather than wearing the err...." his eyes centered on the latex cloth wrapped around Misaki's chest, struggling to find the appropriate term to describe the garment, before realising that his eyes stared far too long.

An uncomfortable flush of heat crept up his neck. Misaki followed Zenvix's gaze, her eyes peering downwards. Then she looked back at the prince's reddening neck, and burst out laughing. Her voice turned coy.

"Why, does it entice you so, prince charming?" she asked with a sly grin, and folded her arms below her chest.

"My sincere apologies. I was only concerned about your dress sense and how it could disadvantage you further. Didn't mean to be rude." Zenvix quickly answered.

Misaki grinned widely, before waving her hand light-heartedly. "Pardon me, I was only pulling your leg. That being said, I did have many a ruffian try to touch me, and unfortunately they did get away with it...."

"....cockless." Misaki completed her sentence, with a roguish glint in her eyes. Zenvix winced, while Dylas coughed uncomfortably. Yurisviel on the other hand, nodded slowly in approval, a look of inspiration on her face.

"In any case, thank you for your words of affirmation," Misaki said warmly. "And thank you for saving me back then in the duel. I let my guard down, thinking that Gyburn had truly given up. A costly mistake, if not for your valiant intervention."

"Think nothing of it," Zenvix responded, before his eyes centered on the curious portrait hung just above Misaki's katanas. His memory flashed back to the Hall of the Seven as he recalled Harshra's words. Shutting his urge down, Zenvix decided in favour of his better judgement - it didn't seem like an appropriate time to ask about the man in the picture yet.

"But I cannot agree with your opinion about my dress sense, however." Misaki continued, her lips curling in a half-smile. "I was taught in the Eastern way. If you had travelled to the far eastern nations in Elaria, those teachings would commonly be known as the Way of the Warrior. While I do not doubt the warriors of Western nations, the easterners have contrastingly different beliefs in the way they fight. For example, eastern warriors eschewed the use of heavy armour, preferring instead the use of light fittings and attire instead. There are a few reasons for this. Firstly, it helps them to stay fleet-footed in combat, which they treasured. Secondly, the more ardent believers would perceive armour as a sign of mental weakness; cowardice even. The more you don it, the more you are signalling to the world that you fear pain, that you are afraid to die. Or else why cover every single exposable part of your body with a clunk of metal?"

Yurisiviel nodded slowly. "I see where you are coming from, since I am not a supporter of heavy armour as well. But then again, what is wrong with fearing pain or death? Isn't that just....human?"

"Nothing." Misaki answered simply. "There is nothing wrong - you are right about that. It just boils down to a difference in beliefs. A western knight might laugh at the stupidity of the eastern warrior, perceiving that his fearless attitude towards pain will get him killed. But is it, really? An eastern warrior derives strength from his fearless attitude, spurring him to fight fiercer and harder than a typical man would. On the contrary, don the same man in the armour he so despised, and he could die even more easily, for it is not his way."

"One man's perceived weakness is another man's strength," Zenvix concluded.

"Exactly," Misaki concurred. "That is why despite many requests for me to change my dress style or don more armour, I have not acceded to them. I do not fear death if it comes, but neither am I allowing it to take me so easily. I assure you however, that the day I start wrapping myself up more conservatively would be the day that horny men weep across all of Ceil."

"That includes you, Prince Nighvicto."

Yurisiviel burst into uncontrollable fits of laughter. While Dylas patted the prince's shoulder sympathetically, Zenvix placed his face in his palm briefly before looking up in resignation. "Whaaa--? As I said, I was only concerned about your-"

"I know, I know. You are so serious it's actually fun to poke you like that," Msaki jested. "Anyway...it's time to get to business..."

"Lady Alinsky, your katanas....they disappeared!" Dylas exclaimed suddenly, pointing at the display stand behind her. Zenvix and Yurisviel looked quickly at the direction of Dylas's finger; indeed, what was only some moments ago a katana stand that held aloft the prized katanas of Misaki, was now an empty stand. Stolen by sorcery? Zenvix thought, as his eyes darted around the house in high alert.

"Relax. Those swords would never leave me," Misaki said. She lifted three fingers in anticipation. "They would be out now...in three, two, one...."

A stillness ensued where for a moment, nothing happened. Then spiritual particles coalesced, twisting and shaping up within a matter of seconds. Before long, an uncharacteristic yelp of shock resounded from the aged knight.

"Aviduz's beard!" Dylas jerked back from the presences that arose beside him. A lively voice giggled. "We did warn mistress to wear more protection, maybe put some leather armour on, but nope she doesn't care!" A young girl who manifested chirped quickly. She was dressed in flowery robes of bright amber and wore an enthusiastic smile of sunshine on her face.

"What if...one day, mistress gets killed, what would we ever do?" A second voice; this time a slower but more melancholic one drawled from another lassie who sat languidly opposite her cheerful twin. In contrast, she donned robes of navy blue and looked visibly downcast. Apart from identical facial appearances, their attitudes could not seem any more different.

"Shut up you two. Can't the both of you stay still for even one hour?" Misaki snapped, narrowing her eyes at the twins like how a mother does it towards her disobedient children. "Well, I guess this is as good a time as any to introduce them. These brats...well, they are actually my katanas. To put it technically, they are my spiritual companions, but their power lies in self-weaponization."

"Spiritual companions?" Zenvix asked, his eyes meeting with those of Yurisviel. "Wait...and you are definitely not a sorcerer by any means, so having spiritual companions that's summoned through magic isn't possible. Then..."

The prince pieced together his thoughts, arriving quickly at the only plausible explanation he could think of. Recognizing the look of comprehension across Zenvix's face, Misaki nodded approvingly, her lips curved upwards again in a tantalizing half-smile.

"Pretty sharp you are, Prince Nighvicto. It seems that you have caught on even without my explanation. Had any disturbing visions lately?" Misaki asked with a slight smile.

A vivid image of establishments zooming out and forming an intricate symbol of five blazing dots appeared once again in Zenvix's mind.