Finally, after nearly a month of travel, we were here.
Dragon Valley.
Unfortunately, there was nothing beautiful about the surroundings, as the mountainous region was nearly completely devoid of greenery while the nearby lands were scarred with the signs of battle.
Piles of ash... trails of blood...
It seems that our allies had already arrived.
Looking back at my family's carriage, I focus on the thrum of... well, it's hard to explain, but I could only call it 'divinity', similar to what I felt when focusing on my falna.
That's a divine weapon for you.
Not only a regular divine weapon, but one belonging to a missing God.
According to Mother Astraea, Gods don't just go missing like that, as fellow Gods can usually sense their divinity somewhat up in Tenkai.
So there was something... wrong, going on with Nike.
But, her sword... it really didn't look like a divine weapon, did it?
Well, even if it didn't look the part and was quite useless right now, I was now the owner of a divine weapon, just like the heroes of old.
...Heroes of old...
Shit, Take's gonna have another one of those 'hero' fits when I get back, isn't he?
That's gonna be annoying.
Putting those thoughts aside, we continue up the trail of destruction before reaching the top of the hillcrest.
"Whoa~"
The group collectively gasped at the sight, save for a few people who had already seen it such as Ariel, Iris, and Lefiya.
I myself was barely able to contain my awe.
After all... it was a pretty cool sight.
"Papa! Papa! What's that!?" Alea says while peeking out of the carriage.
Smirking at her excitement, I respond.
"That, my dear daughter, is the School District. The largest ship in the world."
Though... aren't ships supposed to stay in the water?
I know it usually travels around the world over the oceans, but Lefiya told me about how the ship visited her forest, so I guess it has land capabilities as well.
Well, not like I'm complaining.
The School District, also called the Hringhorni, is a ship that constantly travels the world, solving problems in the regions it visits while simultaneously giving real-life experience to its students.
And befitting its title as 'Largest ship in the world', it was big.
Really fucking big.
A circular hull 700 meters in diameter, it easily stretched across the horizon as its giant white bird-shaped bow extended further, hiding behind a nearby mountain.
Seriously... I knew that the School District would be helping us here, but I had no clue they'd send the whole fucking ship!
Anyways, on the hull, there were three cylindrical disks, each disk being a different 'layer', according to Lefiya.
The 'control layer', where the ship is... controlled, by the crew.
The 'life layer', where the students, teachers, and crew all live their lives, with various buildings, shops, and artificial gardens to make it comfortable for the residents.
Then, the 'academic layer', the most important part as it was a giant school.
There were various disciplines that they taught, ranging from blacksmithing to combat to administrative duties.
Essentially a floating magic academy you would see in a cliche anime.
Hmm... I should probably let the kids go there after they get a bit older.
While it would suck to have them be away for so long, the experience of the world, the opportunity to gain friends and find themselves would be invaluable, and something impossible within Orario due to our duties and the focus on adventuring.
Maybe once they're 10.
Yeah, 10 is a good age.
Actually, if I defeat the Black Dragon by then, I might even be able to get a teaching position.
'Papa-sensei' does indeed sound nice.
Anyway, School District.
Cool, big, and a very important source of education in a relatively ignorant world.
Lightly kicking my horse, I start trotting forward while looking over at my still-stunned Familia.
"Welp, standing here won't do us any good. Let's go say hi."
----- Ais POV -----
"Nice to meet you, Astraea Familia. I thank you personally for joining us on this quest."
The man talking to Sirius and Alise... Leon, I think his name was.
Anyway, he was strong.
Very strong.
On the same level as the King Ottar strong.
...But I didn't hold the same motivation or competitiveness upon seeing him as I normally would.
Why was that?
Could it be because I'm being taught by someone even stronger than him?
No... that's not it.
I felt my black flame, which had swelled up once again since joining this quest, heat up when Alise and Ryuu showed their prowess against the Poseidon Familia.
No, it was because I was finally here, and I could sense her.
"Mother..." I mutter under my breath.
She was here.
Not necessarily close, but she was here.
Then... why was I still standing here?
She was right here!
Waiting for me!
I have to-!
"Ais."
A familiar hand grips my shoulder, bringing me back to my senses.
Without even realizing it, I had begun to walk away from the group, heading straight toward the giant canyon nearby.
Glancing back, I see that everyone is looking at me with confusion and worry.
"Hey, don't look at them, look at me."
I follow Sirius' words and meet his gaze, his kind eyes looking deep into mine with understanding.
"You okay? Is it something to do with your Mother?" He asks.
Nodding my head, I feel my breath get caught in my throat as I eventually speak up.
"I can... sense her."
His lips curl into a confused frown at my words.
"'Sense her'... what do you mean by that?" He asks.
That... is a tough question.
What do I mean?
It felt like a pull, a very subtle one, a... familiar one.
The one I felt in the memories of my childhood, when I was held in her arms.
It was likely due to my spirit bloodline, but I couldn't exactly tell Sirius that, no matter how much he's helped me.
Even if he believed me, Finn and Riveria made me promise to keep it a secret, and it didn't really matter right now.
My head cooling down, I regain my senses and review the situation.
She was down there, in the canyon, likely still being held by the detestable Black Dragon.
I could only pray that I could reach her, but I shouldn't keep my hopes up.
Even if I could, I still had to kill that monster first.
It was... frustrating.
Extremely so.
To be this close...
"Ais?"
Ah, yes, Sirius was still here.
Turning my head, I make sure our eyes meet to convey my determination.
"I want to train."
I then begin walking away from the group, searching for a secluded place to further hone my skills.
Being in a carriage for most of the time, I had been unable to properly practice save for when we set up camp, so I had to get back into the swing of things.
"But that wasn't the question..." I hear Sirius say from behind me.
But I ignored him.
I needed to be stronger, faster, better.
And when I am, Mother, I'll get you back, with my comrades behind me.
I promise.
----- Sirius POV -----
That girl...
Well, I suppose I shouldn't fault her for wanting to shake off any rust.
After all, she hadn't done anything during our month of travel, as the monsters we passed during our journey weren't much of a challenge for her.
But still... what did she mean when she said she could 'sense' her mother?
She was walking toward the canyon where the Black Dragon was sealed deep below while looking incredibly forlorn, so I thought she was just saddened from remembering her parents.
But I guess it was something... more.
But, whatever.
Maybe swinging a sword will get her out of her funk.
I'll make sure to save some time for training her tonight.
"Husband, we're beginning the meeting now." I hear Ryuu say from behind me.
Yes, there was this first.
With the School District's kindness, we were given an entire building for our group to stay in for the duration of our quest, while our carriages would be kept safe by them as well.
Walking up the enormous gangway, our group splits up, with the leaders of our Familia following Leon to go over our plan of action while the rest headed off to begin unloading our things.
I was in the former group.
The inside of the School District, as it turned out, was just as impressive as the outside, with an odd mix of medieval, modern, and fantasy architecture blending into one, making it extremely... unique.
Eventually, we reached the giant tower that rose from the centre of the boat, reminding me of Babel back in Orario.
Interestingly, they had a sort of elevator in the centre that used a mix of magic and mechanics to lift us to the top of the tower.
"So, where are we going, Mr. Leon?" Lyra asks, breaking the silence.
"Haha! No need for the 'Mr.', I already feel old with all the children around. As for where we're headed, it's my office. Or rather, the Head Teacher's office, where most of the meetings concerning the entire School District are held." He answers.
Leon Vardenburg.
With the alias Ultra Page, though it was rarely used, he was considered one of the strongest people on Genkai next to Ottar from the Freya Familia.
And me, but I didn't have their popularity just yet as I was still a new level 6.
It was debated whether he was stronger than Ottar or not, the main debating point being between experience and talent.
Ottar had been fighting in the dungeon for basically his entire life and had honed his skills through constant trials in combat.
Leon, on the other hand, had not done so, remaining in the School District for the past 10 years.
So one might say Ottar was stronger, as he had been fighting for longer, but Leon had reached level 7 without even living in Orario, so what did that say about his skills and talent?
Well, it didn't really matter that much, having him here was a huge boost to our firepower either way, so I was thankful.
Reaching his office, we soon find ourselves seated on a large couch, the members of the meeting being Me, Ryuu, Alice, Kaguya, Lyra, Leon, and the girl who greeted us at the door, who turned out to be Leon's assistant.
"Well, let's begin." Leon then says.
"Uhh, what about the other teachers?" I ask in confusion.
"Ah, well, the School District has already made their plans for this quest, so just think of me as their representative. Besides, we wouldn't want to have too many people involved in the planning. If there are any complaints or suggestions you have, I'll relay them to my colleagues by tonight." He responds.
"I see... I guess that makes sense. What exactly are the plans, then?" Lyra asks, marking the start of the meeting.
----- 3 Hours Later -----
I hate meetings.
How could Lyra enjoy those things?
It's so... boring!
But at least the plan was set, so we could start fighting tomorrow, or at least start preparing to.
As I had noticed from our ride today, the School District had already made contact with the enemy and had annihilated all of the monsters that had escaped the canyon, so the outside threat was mostly dealt with.
So what was there left to do?
Essentially, ensure that an escape like this doesn't happen again, at least in the near future, by massacring all the monsters we can.
This would also handle the secondary problem that had popped up.
There were irregulars.
A bunch of them.
This was also what made it so that Leon couldn't just jump down and do the job himself, as there were simply too many, and they were too strong.
And something that even a level 7 couldn't stop?
I shudder to think of the disaster those monsters could cause if they were released into the world.
The basics of the situation were this:
The barrier holding the Black Dragon had been weakened, allowing monsters to escape from the depths of the cavern holding said Black Dragon and head into the canyon and surrounding caves.
The monsters that could fly, quickly left said canyon, bringing some comrades along as well.
These monsters were the ones that caused the quest to be issued.
Luckily, the School District got here at that point, stopping anything too disastrous from happening due to those guys, and consequently creating the graveyard we passed earlier today.
Anyways, while most of the flying monsters were dealt with, that still left the canyon crawling with beasts, and with their close proximity to each other, a few irregulars had been gaining strength by munching on some magic stones.
While they were just there for now, if they ever found a way out into the world, either from the caves or creating a landslide to crawl up, an unmitigated disaster would be unleashed on the northern parts of the world.
And that's not even mentioning the monsters in the area that had gotten stronger with the weakening barrier, which was surmised to be due to the Black Dragon's aura that had been leaking out, though this was still being verified by the scholars.
So yeah, a whole lot of shit, all because of a faulty barrier.
It had to be a God like Ouranos holding that thing steady, right?
After this is dealt with, we should ask them if they need some help.
Anyway, that was the situation, and as for the plan...
Well, it was quite simple.
With only Leon and a few other teachers being level 4 and higher, the School District would mainly deal with the surrounding monsters and make sure none escaped during the massacre.
Our Familia, on the other hand, would be joining Leon in killing every monster we could in the canyon, ensuring that we could at least delay any trouble for a long while.
So the information was known, and the plan was set.
Now all that was left was to do what we do best.
Kill some monsters.
Anyway, that would be left for tomorrow.
For now, it was time for a hot bath, some nice food, and a warm bed.
Ah... but I should go over to Ais first...
God dammit, as much as I love my three magics to death, I wish I could have gotten a cloning one.
That's not even mentioning the bedroom potential...
"Husband." Ryuu snaps me out of my delusions.
"Ah, sorry." I say quickly.
"It's alright. You've been good at masking your lust for the entire trip, so I suppose I can reward you tonight." She responds with a smirk.
I instantly stop in my tracks.
Reward?
I shake my head before continuing down the corridor, my pace noticeably faster than before.
Sorry Ais, maybe tomorrow.
A man has his duties to fulfill.
- A/N -
I couldn't find out whether Ais knows she has spirit blood in her or not, but considering the story of Albert and Aria is pretty well-known, I can assume she connected the dots. Not even mentioning how her mother could still be alive after thousands of years.
Finally, after nearly a month of travel, we were here.
Dragon Valley.
Unfortunately, there was nothing beautiful about the surroundings, as the mountainous region was nearly completely devoid of greenery while the nearby lands were scarred with the signs of battle.
Piles of ash... trails of blood...
It seems that our allies had already arrived.
Looking back at my family's carriage, I focus on the thrum of... well, it's hard to explain, but I could only call it 'divinity', similar to what I felt when focusing on my falna.
That's a divine weapon for you.
Not only a regular divine weapon, but one belonging to a missing God.
According to Mother Astraea, Gods don't just go missing like that, as fellow Gods can usually sense their divinity somewhat up in Tenkai.
So there was something... wrong, going on with Nike.
But, her sword... it really didn't look like a divine weapon, did it?
Well, even if it didn't look the part and was quite useless right now, I was now the owner of a divine weapon, just like the heroes of old.
...Heroes of old...
Shit, Take's gonna have another one of those 'hero' fits when I get back, isn't he?
That's gonna be annoying.
Putting those thoughts aside, we continue up the trail of destruction before reaching the top of the hillcrest.
"Whoa~"
The group collectively gasped at the sight, save for a few people who had already seen it such as Ariel, Iris, and Lefiya.
I myself was barely able to contain my awe.
After all... it was a pretty cool sight.
"Papa! Papa! What's that!?" Alea says while peeking out of the carriage.
Smirking at her excitement, I respond.
"That, my dear daughter, is the School District. The largest ship in the world."
Though... aren't ships supposed to stay in the water?
I know it usually travels around the world over the oceans, but Lefiya told me about how the ship visited her forest, so I guess it has land capabilities as well.
Well, not like I'm complaining.
The School District, also called the Hringhorni, is a ship that constantly travels the world, solving problems in the regions it visits while simultaneously giving real-life experience to its students.
And befitting its title as 'Largest ship in the world', it was big.
Really fucking big.
A circular hull 700 meters in diameter, it easily stretched across the horizon as its giant white bird-shaped bow extended further, hiding behind a nearby mountain.
Seriously... I knew that the School District would be helping us here, but I had no clue they'd send the whole fucking ship!
Anyways, on the hull, there were three cylindrical disks, each disk being a different 'layer', according to Lefiya.
The 'control layer', where the ship is... controlled, by the crew.
The 'life layer', where the students, teachers, and crew all live their lives, with various buildings, shops, and artificial gardens to make it comfortable for the residents.
Then, the 'academic layer', the most important part as it was a giant school.
There were various disciplines that they taught, ranging from blacksmithing to combat to administrative duties.
Essentially a floating magic academy you would see in a cliche anime.
Hmm... I should probably let the kids go there after they get a bit older.
While it would suck to have them be away for so long, the experience of the world, the opportunity to gain friends and find themselves would be invaluable, and something impossible within Orario due to our duties and the focus on adventuring.
Maybe once they're 10.
Yeah, 10 is a good age.
Actually, if I defeat the Black Dragon by then, I might even be able to get a teaching position.
'Papa-sensei' does indeed sound nice.
Anyway, School District.
Cool, big, and a very important source of education in a relatively ignorant world.
Lightly kicking my horse, I start trotting forward while looking over at my still-stunned Familia.
"Welp, standing here won't do us any good. Let's go say hi."
----- Ais POV -----
"Nice to meet you, Astraea Familia. I thank you personally for joining us on this quest."
The man talking to Sirius and Alise... Leon, I think his name was.
Anyway, he was strong.
Very strong.
On the same level as the King Ottar strong.
...But I didn't hold the same motivation or competitiveness upon seeing him as I normally would.
Why was that?
Could it be because I'm being taught by someone even stronger than him?
No... that's not it.
I felt my black flame, which had swelled up once again since joining this quest, heat up when Alise and Ryuu showed their prowess against the Poseidon Familia.
No, it was because I was finally here, and I could sense her.
"Mother..." I mutter under my breath.
She was here.
Not necessarily close, but she was here.
Then... why was I still standing here?
She was right here!
Waiting for me!
I have to-!
"Ais."
A familiar hand grips my shoulder, bringing me back to my senses.
Without even realizing it, I had begun to walk away from the group, heading straight toward the giant canyon nearby.
Glancing back, I see that everyone is looking at me with confusion and worry.
"Hey, don't look at them, look at me."
I follow Sirius' words and meet his gaze, his kind eyes looking deep into mine with understanding.
"You okay? Is it something to do with your Mother?" He asks.
Nodding my head, I feel my breath get caught in my throat as I eventually speak up.
"I can... sense her."
His lips curl into a confused frown at my words.
"'Sense her'... what do you mean by that?" He asks.
That... is a tough question.
What do I mean?
It felt like a pull, a very subtle one, a... familiar one.
The one I felt in the memories of my childhood, when I was held in her arms.
It was likely due to my spirit bloodline, but I couldn't exactly tell Sirius that, no matter how much he's helped me.
Even if he believed me, Finn and Riveria made me promise to keep it a secret, and it didn't really matter right now.
My head cooling down, I regain my senses and review the situation.
She was down there, in the canyon, likely still being held by the detestable Black Dragon.
I could only pray that I could reach her, but I shouldn't keep my hopes up.
Even if I could, I still had to kill that monster first.
It was... frustrating.
Extremely so.
To be this close...
"Ais?"
Ah, yes, Sirius was still here.
Turning my head, I make sure our eyes meet to convey my determination.
"I want to train."
I then begin walking away from the group, searching for a secluded place to further hone my skills.
Being in a carriage for most of the time, I had been unable to properly practice save for when we set up camp, so I had to get back into the swing of things.
"But that wasn't the question..." I hear Sirius say from behind me.
But I ignored him.
I needed to be stronger, faster, better.
And when I am, Mother, I'll get you back, with my comrades behind me.
I promise.
----- Sirius POV -----
That girl...
Well, I suppose I shouldn't fault her for wanting to shake off any rust.
After all, she hadn't done anything during our month of travel, as the monsters we passed during our journey weren't much of a challenge for her.
But still... what did she mean when she said she could 'sense' her mother?
She was walking toward the canyon where the Black Dragon was sealed deep below while looking incredibly forlorn, so I thought she was just saddened from remembering her parents.
But I guess it was something... more.
But, whatever.
Maybe swinging a sword will get her out of her funk.
I'll make sure to save some time for training her tonight.
"Husband, we're beginning the meeting now." I hear Ryuu say from behind me.
Yes, there was this first.
With the School District's kindness, we were given an entire building for our group to stay in for the duration of our quest, while our carriages would be kept safe by them as well.
Walking up the enormous gangway, our group splits up, with the leaders of our Familia following Leon to go over our plan of action while the rest headed off to begin unloading our things.
I was in the former group.
The inside of the School District, as it turned out, was just as impressive as the outside, with an odd mix of medieval, modern, and fantasy architecture blending into one, making it extremely... unique.
Eventually, we reached the giant tower that rose from the centre of the boat, reminding me of Babel back in Orario.
Interestingly, they had a sort of elevator in the centre that used a mix of magic and mechanics to lift us to the top of the tower.
"So, where are we going, Mr. Leon?" Lyra asks, breaking the silence.
"Haha! No need for the 'Mr.', I already feel old with all the children around. As for where we're headed, it's my office. Or rather, the Head Teacher's office, where most of the meetings concerning the entire School District are held." He answers.
Leon Vardenburg.
With the alias Ultra Page, though it was rarely used, he was considered one of the strongest people on Genkai next to Ottar from the Freya Familia.
And me, but I didn't have their popularity just yet as I was still a new level 6.
It was debated whether he was stronger than Ottar or not, the main debating point being between experience and talent.
Ottar had been fighting in the dungeon for basically his entire life and had honed his skills through constant trials in combat.
Leon, on the other hand, had not done so, remaining in the School District for the past 10 years.
So one might say Ottar was stronger, as he had been fighting for longer, but Leon had reached level 7 without even living in Orario, so what did that say about his skills and talent?
Well, it didn't really matter that much, having him here was a huge boost to our firepower either way, so I was thankful.
Reaching his office, we soon find ourselves seated on a large couch, the members of the meeting being Me, Ryuu, Alice, Kaguya, Lyra, Leon, and the girl who greeted us at the door, who turned out to be Leon's assistant.
"Well, let's begin." Leon then says.
"Uhh, what about the other teachers?" I ask in confusion.
"Ah, well, the School District has already made their plans for this quest, so just think of me as their representative. Besides, we wouldn't want to have too many people involved in the planning. If there are any complaints or suggestions you have, I'll relay them to my colleagues by tonight." He responds.
"I see... I guess that makes sense. What exactly are the plans, then?" Lyra asks, marking the start of the meeting.
----- 3 Hours Later -----
I hate meetings.
How could Lyra enjoy those things?
It's so... boring!
But at least the plan was set, so we could start fighting tomorrow, or at least start preparing to.
As I had noticed from our ride today, the School District had already made contact with the enemy and had annihilated all of the monsters that had escaped the canyon, so the outside threat was mostly dealt with.
So what was there left to do?
Essentially, ensure that an escape like this doesn't happen again, at least in the near future, by massacring all the monsters we can.
This would also handle the secondary problem that had popped up.
There were irregulars.
A bunch of them.
This was also what made it so that Leon couldn't just jump down and do the job himself, as there were simply too many, and they were too strong.
And something that even a level 7 couldn't stop?
I shudder to think of the disaster those monsters could cause if they were released into the world.
The basics of the situation were this:
The barrier holding the Black Dragon had been weakened, allowing monsters to escape from the depths of the cavern holding said Black Dragon and head into the canyon and surrounding caves.
The monsters that could fly, quickly left said canyon, bringing some comrades along as well.
These monsters were the ones that caused the quest to be issued.
Luckily, the School District got here at that point, stopping anything too disastrous from happening due to those guys, and consequently creating the graveyard we passed earlier today.
Anyways, while most of the flying monsters were dealt with, that still left the canyon crawling with beasts, and with their close proximity to each other, a few irregulars had been gaining strength by munching on some magic stones.
While they were just there for now, if they ever found a way out into the world, either from the caves or creating a landslide to crawl up, an unmitigated disaster would be unleashed on the northern parts of the world.
And that's not even mentioning the monsters in the area that had gotten stronger with the weakening barrier, which was surmised to be due to the Black Dragon's aura that had been leaking out, though this was still being verified by the scholars.
So yeah, a whole lot of shit, all because of a faulty barrier.
It had to be a God like Ouranos holding that thing steady, right?
After this is dealt with, we should ask them if they need some help.
Anyway, that was the situation, and as for the plan...
Well, it was quite simple.
With only Leon and a few other teachers being level 4 and higher, the School District would mainly deal with the surrounding monsters and make sure none escaped during the massacre.
Our Familia, on the other hand, would be joining Leon in killing every monster we could in the canyon, ensuring that we could at least delay any trouble for a long while.
So the information was known, and the plan was set.
Now all that was left was to do what we do best.
Kill some monsters.
Anyway, that would be left for tomorrow.
For now, it was time for a hot bath, some nice food, and a warm bed.
Ah... but I should go over to Ais first...
God dammit, as much as I love my three magics to death, I wish I could have gotten a cloning one.
That's not even mentioning the bedroom potential...
"Husband." Ryuu snaps me out of my delusions.
"Ah, sorry." I say quickly.
"It's alright. You've been good at masking your lust for the entire trip, so I suppose I can reward you tonight." She responds with a smirk.
I instantly stop in my tracks.
Reward?
I shake my head before continuing down the corridor, my pace noticeably faster than before.
Sorry Ais, maybe tomorrow.
A man has his duties to fulfill.
- A/N -
I couldn't find out whether Ais knows she has spirit blood in her or not, but considering the story of Albert and Aria is pretty well-known, I can assume she connected the dots. Not even mentioning how her mother could still be alive after thousands of years.
