"W-what?! No way! Do you not understand what you're implying, Lewis?!"
Yes, the person speaking was Beruel. Like Jane, he was accustomed to the name I had used in my past life—therefore, he kept on referring to me as Lewis Griffith.
'He's just making things more complicated for me... but I understand.'
"How can you say I should return to the Fairy Kin—I mean, Sanctuary? Don't you know that I was evicted by Jane and her followers? I'll never be allowed in there again!"
Beruel was currently worried about his place in the plan. He and Ana were meant to assist Jane, but he was hesitant to go along with it.
It wasn't like he wanted to refuse, but... he was simply being rational.
'Jane hates his guts, after all. I mean, I could stand him, but she couldn't.'
Still, looking at Beruel now, I could say that a lot about him had changed. He was now a little less arrogant, and his respect for other beings—women especially—had gone up considerably.
Surely that had to count for something... right?
"Don't worry about Jane. I'll take care of her. If she understands how important this is to the plan, I'm sure she'll concede." I smiled.
"Are you certain?" He narrowed his gaze and stared at me with suspicion.
"I am. Besides... don't you want to see her again? It's been so long, right?"
"W-well..."
Beruel's face couldn't lie to me. Even though he was trying his hardest to hide it, the pink flushes on his cheeks gave his heart away.
'He likes Jane? That's new...' I nearly laughed out loud, but held it in.
What was it about romance being in the air these days. It seemed everyone was being paired up with someone.
'Is it some kind of divine phenomenon? Or is it...?' I shrugged, after harbouring those foolish thoughts for a while.
"I'll trust your judgement, then, Lewis. You're a smart guy, after all."
"Thank you. I also haven't forgotten the bargain you made with Ana. Once this is all over, I'll resurrect your fallen comrades. You have my wor—"
"Subordinates. Fallen subordinates." Beruel sharply corrected, crossing his hands across his chest and looking as proud as he possibly could.
"S-sure... subordinates."
'Am I sure he's really changed, though?' I laughed internally.
In any case, since Beruel's issue had been resolved, I had to move on to the other teams.
"Ivan and Jerry will be stationed with the Elves." I spotted Ivan giving himself a fist bump once I made this statement.
It seemed he had an interest in the Elf Kingdom—one I wasn't even sure about.
'He was training under their General, right? I believe she had a daughter. Could it be... Was he also...?'
A smile formed on my face, and I nodded instantly. It seemed my dear Ivan was a man of culture as well.
'So you finally understand the appeal of the Elves. Well done.'
When the time came, I would have to teach him all I knew about them. That way, his chances were sure to increase.
"H-hold on, Jerry is going to the Elf Kingdom?! What about me?!"
I nearly rolled my eyes when I heard this objection. It was from none other than Ciara Epilson.
'She's always on my case where Jerry is involved. It's so exhausting...'
"You'll be with the main team. There are reasons for tha—"
"I refuse. Station me with Jerry." Her stubborn voice interrupted mine, making me all the more exhausted.
I disliked having to go through stuff like this with her every single time.
"But, Ciara, this is the most efficient method." Jerry interrupted Ciara with a sensible statement.
It made me glad that he had been paying attention to all I had been saying.
"We make a good team, don't we? During the Arcana retrieval, didn't we do very well together?" She crossed her arms and stared at Jerry.
Suddenly, the young man fell silent. His eyes widened and his cheeks became flushed with pink, almost as if he remembered something embarrassing.
Frankly, it had me interested. Neither of them had told me what happened with them during their Arcana retrieval.
Other than the issue of Legris Damien appearing, I knew nothing else of their adventure.
'Did something interesting occur between them?'
"W-well..." Jerry suddenly turned to jelly, as he lost all confidence.
For some reason, he wouldn't even look Ciara in the eye. His eyes were so distracted, and beads of sweat formed on his face.
I wasn't the only one noticing this, was I? Was this just my imagination, or...?!
"Let's proceed with the listing."
"Hey! I haven't agreed to—"
"Asa and Maro will be stationed with the Dwarves." I swiftly spoke over her voice.
Utilizing Spellcraft secretly, I diminished her sound while increasing mine. Magic was very convenient during moments like this.
Just in case she wanted to bring out her Mind Magic, I fortified my body and soul with Magic. Ciara was that unpredictable, after all.
"For the main team, there will be Neron, Serah, Ciara, Lemi, Aloe, Edward, and me." So far, the list seemed acceptable to me.
However, to appease the fuming lady who wouldn't shut up, I decided to further explain my rationale.
"Jerry and the others don't have access to the Arcanas, and by extension, a good supply of Aether."
I planned to train everyone within the week we would be using for preparations. I also planned on finding ways in which everyone could utilize Aether in their fights—even though they couldn't produce it the way they did, Mana.
Unfortunately, when up against the Nether Cult's upper echelon, those sorts of things were useless.
'I can't imagine Jerry, Ivan, and the others faring very well with those odds.'
"I plan on giving one of you four—Maro, Asa, Ivan, or Jerry—[The Magician]. Depending on your affinities with it, you'll be able to use the Arcana for your battle against whatever the Cult is planning."
Unfortunately, there were only so many Arcanas to go around, and most had already been assigned.
'Edward will be getting the [Justice] Arcana. That'll help us a lot in our battle against the Cult.'
Every other Arcana was already taken, at this point. Neron possessed two, but according to him, he had already resonated with [The Fool], so I thought it would be a waste to give it to another.
'Besides, that Arcana is dangerous. If I'm not the one to use it, I can't think of anyone else to wield it other than Neron.'
My final reason for letting him keep the Arcana was because it wasn't exactly in my place not to 'let him.'
The others who found their Arcanas were pretty much bound to them. Since I didn't ask Lemi or Ciara to cough up theirs, what right did I have to ask Neron for his?
'It's finders keepers, after all.'
Moreover, [The Fool] was extremely unwieldy and difficult to use. If anyone could crack the code, though, it had to be Neron.
'I'm counting on you.'
"With that said, the ones who will be going to the Nether Cult's Headquarters were chosen because of their high affinity with their Arcanas, their strong potential to wield Aether, and their level of power.
We needed our tough hitters at the forefront of the battle, but we also needed some people to man the other regions.
That was the rationale behind this arrangement.
"I hope you understand now, Ciara." I smiled tiredly at the defiant girl.
'Please! Please understand!' I prayed internally.
After staring at me for some time, Ciara sighed. From her tone and facial muscles, it seemed my prayers were answered.
"I understand everything you've said." She gave her verdict, bringing me relief.
Unfortunately... she wasn't done yet.
"But, I still don't agree!"
*
*
*
[A/N]
Tell me, which Ship is your favourite at this point? Or which interactions do you enjoy the most? It would be fun to hear.
