“A King!” Damon exclaimed in awe, banging on the table as he stood up, probably all too eager and excited to support Kazius in such an endeavor. “You are a good leader, I would expect nothing less from you, my friend! Buahaha!” He exclaimed loudly. Thankfully the table was built with Werewolves in mind so it didn’t break considering he was still very much transformed until morning.

“I definitely want in… I will help! What about you Caleb? You told me about The Demon King… Stories from your father. I can’t believe he was such a big shot! A whole kingdom! We can fight just how he did! Doesn’t a battle like that sound exciting?” Damon exclaimed eagerly.

Caleb seemed to still be down about the revelation that Luna was better than him at magic. He seemed pensive, gazing down, “I do think… It is about time I stop hiding behind my books… I want to become a better mage. You also helped us win what I thought was an impossible fight… I will believe in you as well… Not to mention… I could also learn more about my father this way too.” He admitted, the tired and timid man agreed. A determined glint appearing in his eyes despite his exhausted look.

Kazius was shocked at the immediate agreement from the two brothers. Mostly from Caleb than anything. It relieved him, after all… He had been afraid they too would turn on him like his old squad… But he should have known better than to listen to doubt. They weren’t like that.

“I told you before… I would help you fight my brother. To be honest, I am not fond of helping kings or future kings… But I suppose I would say I trust you… Even if I may be a fool for it…” Azanor finally spoke up, fidgeting with his cane nervously. He seemed to be keeping something to himself. Kazius had not seen Azanor look so deflated since he spoke to him about Eve.

Alice was the one that seemed the most lost. A Monster King? The Demon King? And now with Azanor’s words… She likely now pieced together that The Demon King was his brother. She had a lot to think about. She also seemed to have a blush on her face as she seemed to think about something. Still, she would look at Kazius in a determined manner. “Of course, I’ll help. I hate the Oracle and anything related to it… But we both had our ceremonies back when we lived in Ratier. I don’t want to play into his hand… But I do know I want to make a better future together with you. Human or not, I am one of you. I am your friend. Whether it is The Demon King or Ratier itself… I will fight anything by your side.” She admitted, her face still a bit red despite her determined look.

‘I am glad she wants to stay… I don’ want to be without her by my side, she was my first friend after this mess started… I do believe that my life changed for the better when I took her hand on that day…Hood or not… As sudden as things were… When she came over to me when everything was falling apart… It was almost like she was my own personal angel…’

Unknown to Kazius, he had a light pink dusting to his own cheeks as he smiled at her and nodded in appreciation and gratitude.

“I don’t understand a single thing you said, but of course I will help! You’re all my friends!” Eve chirped giddily. Kazius appreciated Eve’s eagerness, but he could note a bit more of a frown from Azanor when she said that they were all her friends. Likely upset to be referred to as a friend by his own wife.

‘You sure have it rough, my friend… I am sure we will figure out who did this to her one day… ’

With everyone in agreement, Damon ended up howling contently. He would wave his spear up and down only for Kazius to notice… It looked different.

“Damon… Hold on… Is it just me… Or does your spear look different?” Kazius asked in confusion.

“Huh? Oh! Buahaha! You’re right! Would you look at that! I was thinking it felt stronger and sharper!” Damon exclaimed as he placed it on the table.

“Vind’s symbol isn’t on it anymore…. The metal also turned black…” Caleb admitted in shock. He pointed at the blade of the spear, right at the center of it, “Vind’s symbol was there… But… It is just gone… What even is this symbol? It was already shocking when Damon came home with a holy spear one day… And now it looks like this.”

“I found it in Mount Cyklon! Kazius met Vind there! I told you; he says she chose me as her champion… Wait… Did she change her mind? I still feel my wind is just as strong though…” Damon questioned in concern, his ears going flat on his head like a kicked puppy despite his stature.

“I doubt it… You still reek of divine intervention…” Azanor stated with a sneer as if he was smelling something foul, accenting this by covering his nose, “A goddess that deals with something like an element wouldn’t be that fickle either. As far as I know, they have a very hands-off approach to things. You could go on a massacre, and she wouldn’t care. The wind is a destructive force.”

“I wouldn’t do that!” Damon exclaimed, “I would have to be in a battle! Battles are amazing but I would never hurt someone who isn’t in a battle with me.”

“I am just saying you could.” Azanor stated with a shrug.

“What even is this symbol though?” Alice questioned.

“It looks oddly familiar… I may have seen it in my vision… It was so long ago and it happened so fast… So, I am not too sure.” Kazius admitted, “Looks like an eye and some lines? Triangles pointing left, right and down?”

Azanor would stare at the symbol, “Those are-“ He began only to be cut off.

“Those are shadow tears, something you see in the banner of Seselis.” Eve would suddenly speak up as she pointed at the lines attached to the eye.

“How do you know that?” Kazius asked in confusion, shocked at her words.

“Huh? Did I say something?” Eve asked in confusion.

Azanor looked like he had a glimmer or hope in his eyes, but it quickly faded when she once again acted confused. It likely wasn’t the first time Eve has recalled a detail of something she knew. After all, Azanor was always with her while Kazius, Alice, and Damon were off training. She may have done this before considering Azanor’s reaction.

“Don’t worry about it…” Azanor stated in almost a defeated manner.

“Right… Well… Seselis seems to be my father… So I suppose it makes sense… Is this his banner?” Kazius asked, figuring it would be best to change the topic.

“No, his symbol looks nothing like this.” Azanor confirmed, seeming to appreciate moving on. “His is a Solar Eclipse with shadow tears and claws…”

“You covered the spear in your shadow before we used it for our attack, right? I think… Your shadows changed the spear somehow during all of that… This is your symbol; I am sure of it. It must have overpowered Vind’s.” Alice stated in awe as she looked at it.

Kazius would think about it, “I do think… I saw it on a banner or armor or something of the sort… During the vision… You might be right… My powers must have done something… I couldn’t tell you what though… I have no idea.” He admitted with a sigh, wishing he understood what he was… Or at least his powers. All he knew was who his father was.

‘No way I can go back to Mount Cyklon… Vind is probably livid… I don’t want to deal with her… As long as she doesn’t blame Damon, this is fine…’

“So you improved my spear? Buahaha! I can’t wait to use it more!” Damon exclaimed eagerly. “I have a symbol of my friend and king!” He exclaimed contently.

Alice pouted at this, “That’s not fair.” She stated, looking upset. “I want something with that symbol too then.”

“Alice I would love to, but it isn’t like I know what I even did…” Kazius stated sheepishly with a sigh.

“…” Alice would make a face at this, acting surprisingly childish and huffy. Then again, everyone but Kazius understood exactly why it mattered so much to the woman.

“I will see what I can do. We could always sew it onto your hood for now and then I could do something to your sword once I figure something out…” Kazius assured.

“Okay.” Alice stated, no longer pouty it seems.

“Then we should all engrave it. We do follow the same king.” Caleb pointed out.

“Yay! Team!” Eve cheered.

“Oh, okay?…” Kazius stated in confusion, not understanding why they wanted to do something like that.

‘I feel like we are playing kingdom more than anything, but as long as they are enjoying it, I suppose…’

“Alright… Well now that it is settled. We should rest… Specially you, Caleb… As for you, Damon… I intend to continue our training like before and then perhaps look at the state on the town… We need to understand the situation it is in… And increase security… If I am to have a kingdom… I need everyone’s help… A kingdom is more than just a king… But remember, right now that is just a dream. I am happy to just take care of Vargstam.” Kazius pointed out. He didn’t want to get ahead of himself… It was foolish to believe the Oracle fully or that the future was written in stone…

“Alright.” Caleb stated sluggishly, needing Damon’s help to get to bed with how tired he was, Damon taking him like he was a sack of potatoes.

With that, they would all head to bed… Today had been a long day.