God of Nothing

"...What do you think? "

Rayse looked forward, absently stroking the mane of the horse he was riding.

"Hey!" Brandon said again before slapping him on the shoulder. "I'm talking to you!"

"Ow! What is it!?" He snapped at his friend. The road's been long, and he was just about to doze off.

"As I was saying, why do you think we're going to the capital?"

"...Dunno." Was all he said. It's been a few days since they've gone on the road. Rayse hadn't been to the capital before, but at this point, all roads just looked the same to him. Miss Iona said they should arrive as soon as they got out of the forest path, but he struggled to care about anything at the moment. His magic hadn't recovered at all, and there were no signs of improvement on that front, so he's been miserable for the past couple of days.

That hasn't stopped Brandon from trying to talk to him, though.

"Hey, you okay? We can trade if you wanna rest." He patted the seat of the wagon he was riding.

Rayse stood on his stirrups and leapt onto the wagon mid gallop, not even disturbing the animals.

"...You know I can't do that, so why are you showing off?" Brandon grumbled. He got down from the driver seat, walking along the now riderless horse for a bit before trying to mount it himself. Rayse eased himself into the seat he vacated, snickering a bit as his friend struggled to get on the horse.

"I gave you tons of lessons, so why do you still suck?"

"...Shut up." Eventually, Brandon gave up and steered the horse into a halt so he could get on. He caught up to the wagon soon though, riding abreast like they have been for the past few days.

They rode in silence after that, this time a much more comfortable one. 

"...I think they're giving you a medal." Brandon suggested.

"Huh?"

"At the capital, I mean. You killed a herald, after all."

"...Miss Iona helped, you know."

"I heard you took it on pretty much by yourself, though." Brandon insisted. "Miss Iona lit the way, but you finished off Deceit."

"Dude, you mopped up the demons by the dozens yourself. If I'm getting a medal, you would be too." He smiled back at him.

Brandon puffed up his chest at that.

"Yessir! In fact, I think us three defeated the most emissaries during the battle, too! I mean, who else killed more than us?"

"...Eric did." Said a voice from inside the wagon. That immediately put a damper on the discussion. Lacey got out from the wagon, taking a seat next to Rayse.

"Oh, right." Was all Brandon could say in response.

"He was so good, for a while there he was killing them as soon as I could point them out. All with little more than a basic lightning bolt! I wish we could've seen him in his prime…" She lamented.

"Yeah… Did you know Miss Luna liked him? Said he was quite the ladykiller back in the day."

"Eric? Really? I don't see it." Brandon said, "But then again, that guy was oozing with talent. I couldn't beat him in sparring once he regained some of his skill…" He reminisced.

"I should've stabbed Deceit some more…" Rayse grumbled.

The trio sat in their own thoughts for a while, the loss of their squad members still lingering. The woods began to thin out, hopefully signaling the end of their journey.

"How're the kids?" Rayse asked, taking Lacey's hand in his.

"Finally got them down for a nap. It was a miracle they could sleep through the racket you guys were making." She smiled weakly. 

"Oh alright…" Rayse drifted off. He's been thinking about doing something for the fallen. Not even paying attention to the road, he took out Sonia's gem heart and stared at it for who knows how many times today. It was nearly depleted by the time he got it, but after supplementing it with Deceit's shadowy mana, it still played a large part in defeating a herald. Regardless, it felt so wrong for him to just keep it.

"Hey, guys?" he said after a while.

"Huh? Are we here yet?" Now it was Brandon's turn to snap out of his drowsiness. His eyes widened when he saw what Rayse was holding, but tactfully held his tongue.

"Not yet, it's just… I need you guys to come with me to Sonia's house. You know, to return this."

Lacey put her hands over his and squeezed it, gem and all.

"Of course we will." She said kindly.

"Oh, that reminds me–" Brandon pulled something out of his pockets to show them.

"Before the fight, Eric was showing me this letter he received from his parents… I think we should pay our respects over there, too."

Rayse nodded, once again reminded of his parents. As someone that had to hear about their death through a letter, hearing it from their friends like he had with Luke brought him a great deal of comfort. He resolved to offer the same to his departed squadmates.

"Anyone know where Miss Luna lives?"

"Polo would know…" Lacey answered. "But he hasn't spoken at all since the fight. He's back there, napping with the children." He pointed towards the back of the wagon.

"He still hasn't said a word, huh?" Brandon asked.

"Yeah… But I don't think it's shock, but more of a self imposed punishment of sorts. You can communicate with him just fine, he just wouldn't answer verbally." Lacey clarified.

Rayse considered that. Polo used to be the more outgoing between the siblings. It was quite a surprise to see him refuse to speak when he sought him out the other day. He remembered Polo's sad smile when he tried talking to him about his sister.

"...He'll be alright. I was like that for a while when I heard about my folks, too." He said out loud. "Let's give him time."

His friends understood that much, having experienced that part of his life. Brandon nodded at him, and he felt Lacey's hands squeezing his ever tighter.

"Oh? Looks like we're here!" One of the people in front shouted. Sure enough, the woods were starting to thin out, the path becoming noticeably more well traveled. Soon, they witnessed the capital in all its splendor.

"Whoah." Lacey said in awe, eliciting a chuckle from Brandon.

"What a bumpkin." He said. "Hey Ray, you should've accepted my offer to let you study here. This place looks super fancy."

"And miss being a mage? Fat chance!" Rayse answered. A voice in his head told him that he was no longer one, but he tried his best to ignore it for now, bantering with his friends on their way into the capital city of Mios.

__________________________________

"Uoooooohh~!!!"

There was a massive upswell of cheers as soon as they entered the city. Aleph sat up on his horse, hoping to look more the part as he led his tired group of refugees into the square. People were losing their minds. Their cheers were so loud that the horses were spooked by it. Thankfully, his companion had a solution.

"Silent corridor." Iona uttered, and instantly, the noise subsided. She looked at him with a coy smile, gauging his reaction.

"Did you set this up?" He asked, though he already knew the answer.

"Of course. Sir Carrack prepared it though. You know, for the heroes' welcome. Why? Do you find it lacking?"

Aleph looked around at the crowd. They were rowdy, but were held back by a group of soldiers. It must have been difficult to set this up with the coronation coming up. Still, it's not like he didn't approve. With all the attacks happening all over the world, people craved something to be happy about. Still, he thought something was missing.

"Hmmm. Your preparations are adequate, but let me add a few things. He shoved his hand inside his pack, where he stashed away the heralds' gem. It hasn't fully recovered its mana, but it was more than enough for what Aleph had in mind.

"Oooooh~!" The shouting grew louder, even piercing Iona's silent corridor as a golden dragon appeared out of nowhere, snaking through the sky above the weary travelers like a guardian beast. Some of his companions pointed and shouted themselves, while curiously, one of his disciples jumped up to try and ride it.

"As always, your magic leaves me baffled. How are you doing that?"

Aleph smiled. "What do you mean? You taught me this, miss Iona." He tapped his head. "It's all about the image."

Now this is a victory lap. His horse trotted majestically through the path laid out for them. They wore simple, travel worn garments but the city folk didn't care. With the news of them defeating Heralds, they may as well have been naked and have gotten the same cheers. Someone behind him set off magical sparks that shot up into the sky, a beautiful contrast to the late afternoon sky. The celebration followed them all the way to the palace entrance, where they found Vaynard waiting for them.

He raised his hand magnanimously, and immediately the crowd shouted even louder. As Aleph suspected, he was a beloved figure despite not having been crown prince until recently.

The cheers continued for a while until Vaynard stepped forward. Aleph and Iona deactivated their spells and got down from their horses to greet him. Iona kneeled, which he tried to emulate before Vaynard hastily tried to stop him.

"Aleph, please. I want none of that, not from you." He said, firmly holding onto his shoulders.

"The future king should not be saying such things, Vaynard." Aleph smiled, pulling his friend in for a hug. "I still need to do it, for the crowd at least." He said in his ear.

He broke off and quickly knelt along with everyone else, amused at the growing awkwardness in Vaynard's smile. For a man who's had his eyes set on the throne, he looks so uncomfortable sitting on it. What a strange guy, Aleph thought, shaking his head.

"We are glad to see you well, Lord Aleph." Vaynard said out loud. His noble tone carried none of his playfulness this time, as Aleph realized that he too had slipped into formality.

"Brave remnants of Kyrios, welcome to Mios."

The cheers sprang up once again. Aleph heard it quite clearly now, 

"We offer our sincerest apology, as we were not able to get to you on time." Vaynard continued. "The enemy's gambit had our hands and legs tide, creating chaos all over the kingdom.

"The battle at the front grows fiercer, sightings of dragons spotted all over our cities, an entire army, marching right under our noses! Each crisis is equally disturbing, but…" He paused to pull something out: a small blade, wrapped up in cloth. "We could not have known that it was all for this."

Vaynard unsheathed the blade, eliciting gasps from all over the crowd. Seeing it up close sent chills down Aleph's spine. The short, unassuming blade carried a blanket of pitch black mana visible to the naked eye. What's more, he recognized the blade. He turned to look at Iona, confirming his suspicions. She was transfixed, and Aleph thought he saw all he needed to.

It's the same one, he thought. It was the blade that almost killed her.