When Anubis came out of the house, one could see that the house in question was a small cottage house with a few trees around on a relatively small island.
It was a beautiful house perfect for relaxation thanks to the open air and the calming sound of the waves.
Not far from the island was the White Pearl, Kiyohime’s flagship. Anubis could see a few dragons flying around and serving as guards, showing just how much importance was put on Sol.
Of course, rather than this flimsy security, what made Anubis smile was the heavy gaze he could feel on him.
That gaze had somewhat retreated when he began discussing with Sol but it was always there, lurking.
‘Tiamat really likes the boy. Though I also kinda like him now.’
His discussion with Sol had been far more pleasant than he thought it would ever be. If the boy had been indecisive or swollen with pride then Anubis would have given him a good punch, Tiamat’s opinion be damned, and would have severed the contract he had with Isis.
He was a father and he believed in his daughter; As such would never meddle with her love relationship. But he would not let her joke around with her life.
If after severing the contract she decided to stay with him then he wouldn’t have intervened further.
Thankfully, this hypothetical situation did not come to pass. Sol was a good boy that would not let his daughter down, be it as a partner or a lover.
‘Sigh. Now I would have really liked to have a smoke.’
It was bittersweet to see his daughter growing up and creating her own family. This was a feeling most parents had to go through one day. Watching the little chick leaving the nest was always sad.
“The stars in this realm are really beautiful. Perhaps I should change my territory a little to have more such wondrous sights? What do you think?”
The light of the stars shone with a soothing light on the beach, giving a somewhat mystifying impression. As if one was stepping on a fairy tale.
A black-haired girl walked out of the shadow with an impish smile, “I believe the dead have other problems than spectating the sights in the underworld.”
“Hahaha! Indeed.”
Anubis laughed and began to walk on the beach, Isis falling in step beside him with her hand behind her back.
The two were silent. But it was not an awkward silence. Rather it was one where the two were savoring each other's presence.
Anubis knew that despite doing his best, he was not really the best father around nor even the best husband. Mainly because of how absent he was.
Being like this with his daughter was one of the few moments of true peace he could feel and he was thankful for all those little moments.
“So you heard everything.”
Of course, they could not stay silent forever. As such Anubis opened the discussion.
“I did not mean to eavesdrop.”
Isis blushed a little.
“Oh. Don’t worry, I totally meant to let you listen to it.”
Anubis chuckled, when Isis approached he shielded her presence so that Sol would not be able to perceive her.
“Whatever he said, you are the one who needs to hear those words the most. I must say, the boy is quite passionate. Hah, no wonder you fell so easily for him.”
“Father!”
“Heh, I miss the day when you called me daddy. *Sniff* My little daughter is really a grown-up now.”
Isis could only facepalm as her father continued to tease her. But inwardly, she was full of excitement.
After all, she had been worried about how Anubis would take her relationship with Sol. She was glad that he approved.
“By the way…”
Isis looked up and saw a mischievous glint in Anubi's eyes, giving her the chills,
“I remember back then you asked me quite the embarrassing question.”
The sensation of dread continued to grow.
“What was the question again, hmm?” He tilted his head before nodding as if finally remembering, It was something along the line of, <<“How are babies made?”>> right?” [1]
Anubis smirked, “Now you must have the answer. So I wonder. When will I be able to hold my grandchildren?”
If before Isis was a little red, now she was positively scarlet and couldn’t help but hide her face behind her hands.
Anubis meanwhile exploded out in laughter while jumping back to dodge a fireball Isis threw at him. He couldn’t forget how embarrassed he had been back then when his little daughter had asked him this.
Sadly for Isis, Anubis was a very petty man. who would stop at nothing to take his revenge.
Like this, father and daughter run on the beach, one laughing like mad and the other fully intent on committing murder.
Anyone witnessing this sight would be astounded beyond belief if they were told that the two were the most powerful Necromancer in existence.
After all, the word joy was rarely associated with Necromancer.
But Anubis was different.
Because he understood death more than anyone, he loved life all the much more and taught this way of living to his daughter.
Life was beautiful.
Even though this world was rotten, dirty, and ugly.
Life was still beautiful.
As such, one should enjoy life as much as possible.
Pain and suffering were inevitable.
Loss and regret were a given.
But as long as one never gave up and continued to trudge on the road that was life, one would surely find a form of happiness and if they failed to find happiness in life—They would do so in death.
Thus was the way of Anubis.
—-
[Phoenix Realm]
While the soothing light of the stars was bathing the Dragon realm, the Blazing light of the suns was still shining on the beautiful sea of sand that was the Phoenix Realm.
Sitting in her throne room, Gabriel was looking down at her daughter that was working on the betterment of the realm.
“Why don’t you ask me?”
In the end, Gabriel couldn’t help but speak, to which Nephthys scoffed.
“You think this is the Dragon realm? We barely make enough Vira with what we get. Opening a gate from here directly to the Dragon realm would put us in the red.”
Gabriel winced. Vira, or Faith coins, were produced from faith and prayer.
Half of Tiamat’s realm was filled with different facilities used to make people happy and produce more coins. Because of this, she had a very high population which in turn brought more profit.
Meanwhile, her realm was one that was more likened to hell than anything else. This was why a great part of her income came from Bandits and the like.
Since Nephthys was the one who actually had to deal with all the money, it was normal for her to not wish to spend on useless things.
The reason for this discussion was the presence of Anubis.
Anubis was an elusive man who spent most of his time exploring the universe. So the time he could spend with his daughter and wife was quite small.
“But don’t you want to meet him?”
Nephthys bit her lips. Of course, she wanted to meet her husband. But the words that came out of her mouth were the perfect opposite of how she felt.
“Humph! I don’t care about that heartless man. If he wants to see me, he will come here.”
Gabriel could only laugh blankly, after all, she was not deceived by those words.
‘I see from where Isis got her dishonest mentality.’
Gabriel released a sigh. It wasn’t like they were forced to use a direct gate. If Nephthys went to the Crossroad and then entered the Dragon realm from there, then it wouldn’t cost much.
The problem was that it would only be possible in a peaceful time. Right now, all the fourteen territories had closed the gates that were connected to Crossroad.
The recent events were simply too great to ignore. This situation would last until the council of divine beasts was held and decisions were made.
Gabriel groaned before sighing, “I will take a loan from Tiamat.”
Gabriel could already imagine the greedy dragon cackling in delight when she will ask for this.
Sometimes, Gabriel wondered what the goddesses thought when creating dragons. Not all dragons were prideful. But all Dragons were definitely greedy and lustful.
Nephthys seemed to hesitate a little,
“Don’t hesitate. That greedy dragon will still give me a loan with zero interest.”
All she would have to sell was her dignity. The last time Gabriel took a loan from Tiamat, she had to disguise herself in a bunny suit and call Tiamat ‘Master’ every time she spoke.
But it was worth it.
This was for the happiness of her little daughter after all.
In the end, tears welled up in Nephthys’s eyes as she hugged Gabriel, “I am really grateful.”
Gabriel laughed and hugged her daughter back, “Don’t worry. Take it as a reward for all your hard work. A vacation would do you good. Your sister will take care of the realm in your absence.”
Nephthys winced, “But the only one remaining here aside from me is Neith.”
Nent was already in the dragon realm and Hathor had vanished without leaving a word. The only one left was Neith.
Gabriel shrugged, “It’s time for her to stop being a recluse. She should be able to handle some paperwork.”
Nephtys made a small prayer as an apology to her poor sister. There was no way the amount of paperwork necessary to deal with the operation of an entire realm could only be described as ‘some’.
“Hah, before you go, you should also call Nerftiti and go with her. I feel like the girl is about to become crazy because of how much she misses the boy.”
“Very well.”
Nephthys was also a little worried so she accepted readily.
Like this, everything was decided.
[1]: Read Interlude 12 if you forgot.
