41 Unlocked, Another Talk

{Bit of a mushy chapter ahead. If you wish the Riajuu would explode then the scene break marks the mush}

In another half hour, the College was in sight. It had already grown dark, he was using Night Vision to see at this point. Yuri saw his section of the tower in the distance with the Tenth Eye since it was hidden magically. With only a couple of Teleports, he had crossed the 20 kilometers and arrived in his room. Tonilia was there, ready to draw her gifted sword but not surprised. She quickly sheathed it and welcomed him home.

"Hey, how'd it go?"

"Hehe, were you worried about me?"

"Absolutely not," She feigned. "Savos is probably right about your origins anyway, why should I be worried for an Aedric bastard?" She stuck her tongue out at him.

"How mature," He grinned and approached her. "Glad you have some faith in the right god, though." He raised his chin in mock arrogance before pulling her into a hug.

An awkward silence ensued. Yuri felt a threshold and he wasn't sure if she wanted to cross it. Tonilia was waiting for him to give her the option.

Yuri cleared his throat and backed off for now. "Wanna see a cool ritual?"

"Haha, sure"

Yuri sealed the room with several vicious and meticulous wards and a familiar bell he rung that sent letters to stick to every corner of the room. He might be invisible to gods, but the key wasn't. No telling if someone could divine it after he took it.

He pulled out the key from his inventory and let it float in midair. Tonilia grew intrigued.

"What is that?"

"A Daedric artifact I stole from a particular group"

"Daedric?!" She was slightly alarmed. "What do you plan to do with it?"

"I plan to use it and remove it from history at the same time. How responsible of me, right"

"...Be careful, please"

"I don't mess with things outside of my control, usually... rest assured. And thank you," Yuri said usually a bit quieter than the rest of the sentence.

Yuri needed to pull out his heart for this operation, but he trusted Tonilia even if he was prepared for the eventuality that he shouldn't have. A fear he hoped he would be strong enough to cast aside one day.

'Weakness... such a question I will forever ask myself. Is divorcing oneself from weakness truly strength or just a different type of emotionless and surprise-less shackle. Maybe I'll find out one day'

Yuri read plenty of fanfics. A man who reached supremacy by consuming all the greatest feats of the worlds they had grown up with, how many times had that tale been told? Yet being inside such a situation now, he wouldn't hold hopes of such a ridiculous thing till it was right in front of him. Not until he had taken each and every deliberate step toward that very end with a healthy fear of consequence and a heart free from hesitation. He would never assume.

Speaking of hearts, his was now pulled out from his chest in a familiar purple orb and Tonilia was freaking out.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!!!!!"

"Relax, this is the second time I've seen my heart like this."

"THAT DOESN'T MAKE IT BETTER! AND WHY IS YOUR HEART BLUE?!!" She was alarmed but she wouldn't be reckless and try to naively step in and do anything.

"Haha, just watch"

Yuri levitated his blue heart above a table and chanted.

"Star of the bonds, show thyself"

The black runic circles lit up in purple light and peeled off one by one, forming a star pattern in front of the heart before a pentagram was drawn in between each of the circles.

Yuri pulled the key in front of one of the circles, the right arm, and pushed it toward the center of it. Purple lightning flashed slightly at the collision while the key slowly sank into the pattern. The first part was done.

"Origin of my blood, foundation of my spirit, accept the offering I hath bestowed and consume it with impunity. Upon this sacrifice, a new blood is born. Upon this, Lord Nightingale declares."

The key turned into a 2D image of relative similarity before the star closed around his heart once more and burned. Yuri bit his lip so hard he drew blood, but he wasn't about to scream in front of his girl.

'Huh... my girl'

[Record of the Skeleton Key Obtained - 3,000 RP]

'So it works like that too, huh? Convenient'

Tonilia approached him and held his shoulder, "Are you ok?"

He looked at her and grinned, "Yeah, yeah, now I just gotta put this back. Oh, I may pass out like last time so don't panic," He assured.

She raised her eyebrow and nodded with a small chuckle before backing away slightly and watching tentatively.

Yuri pulled his heart back and adjusted it in his chest like a pro before releasing the shield and feeling a rapid ache in his chest, he felt lightheaded, he felt his veins tighten and some mysterious force flowing and working its way through every single branch of his vascular system.

He started breathing heavier and knelt on the ground, sweat formed a garrison of soldiers on his forehead and charged the brows like a wall.

Tonilia approached him and made him lay down, using her lap as a pillow for him. Thirty minutes of being comatose later, his fever broke.

He looked up and found a caramel button nose. He didn't remember getting here, but he put the details together.

"Thank you"

Tonilia stroked his hair away from the forehead it clung to, "You're welcome..."

"... You have questions, ask them," Yuri lazily beckoned.

"Why was your heart blue? Are you really an Aedra?"

"I did that myself, a ritual that turned my heart into a pure magicka generator of sorts. I'm not an Aedra."

"That isn't something that a mage can do, is it? Being a genius doesn't explain that... not that I would know"

"You would be right..."

"...You were Erebus... weren't you..."

"Haha," Yuri closed his eyes. They were standing at the cliff. Would she jump with him? "When did you figure that out?"

"There's no other mage who can do what you do. It was all too coincidental, you said you had seen me before and Erebus looked at me like you do even if the color was off. You both have that presence that dominates a room. When you brought me here I started putting it all together faster."

"I was had by a woman's instincts, huh?"

"Is Yuri Nightingale your real name?"

"God-given, I'm afraid," Lucifer was one of his favorite shows. He and his mom used to watch it, but he died before season 5 came out.

"...Do you have anything to do with the real Nightingales?"

"Absolutely not. My name is too cool for them, they should disband"

"Haha, I believe it."

"Toni..."

"...Yes?"

Yuri dragged his hand to hers above his head that was still on her lap and grabbed it.

"Do you want to stay with me?"

"Like in the College? I'm grateful-"

"Don't be coy, Toni," He softly admonished. "Do you want to be mine? Do you want me to be yours?"

Their hearts beat deeply in their chests, and Yuri heard every single beat from both of them ring in his ears.

"Because if you do, you'll have to know a few things about me"

"And if I say no?"

"I'll send you on your merry way"

"What, you won't silence-"

"Don't be ridiculous. Do I have any reason to be afraid?"

This could be the start of his first real relationship. He wasn't going to threaten her with anything like brainwashing should she say no. What kind of start would that be?

"Who are you, Yuri?"

"I'm a man who died and lived again. A champion for a God who exists outside of the understanding of this world. An outsider"

───※ ·❆· ※───

Tonilia loved him and didn't have the guts to say it. She liked how things were, she was comfortable, she was blessed. But the thought that things probably won't last put a bitter taste in her mouth every time she thought about it.

She didn't deserve him. An accomplished Grandmaster mage in the day, an experienced killer in the night, a monster in the sheets. This was a fairy tale she latched onto with a professional excuse and would eventually be forced off of. He was great to her, endearing and sweet even, but she wasn't a housewife or a master mage or an assassin who could help him.

But then he asked her to stay! He actually considered her! He was just scared to reveal what he was, and rightfully so.

He was from OUTER SPACE! She knew something was up. A womanly instinct told her such a man isn't born in this world.

But beneath such a background was a man who killed himself. Maybe gods were closer to men than she realized. If someone as capable as Yuri could kill himself, who deserved to live?

His life story was a lot heavier than she anticipated, but it was much simpler than she believed at the end of the day. Everything made perfect sense now.

"So you aren't an Aedra's bastard, you're their agent!"

"Akasha isn't an Aedra... you know what, that's fine."

Tonilia bent down and tried to kiss him in assurance, but her boobs ran into his face.

"Phthanks" Yuri's muffled voice relayed.

Tonilia's boobs released him and he sat up.

"Now tell me-"

"Why me?"

"...Wha-"

"I'm not even in the same league as you, our relationship is physical and professional, what do you see in me to be with a man like you?"

'Ha... was this how I sounded to Akasha?'

"Hahaha, do you recall me saying I was born a mortal who threw himself off a building? I got lucky to lead this life, someone with better vision than me saw something others didn't. They gave me a chance to be more. You're intelligent, you're kind, I love your personality and your focus. I reckon that every mortal has some kind of talent with a mystical art out there but they never get the opportunity. I'm giving it to you because I love you and I see a woman who deserves the world. Now... do you love me?"

Yuri was ashamed, but he read her mind before she got a chance to speak it to verify her next words. All for the best.

Tears trailed down her face as she squinted and her mouth scrunched in a pure mixture of happiness, disbelief, gratitude, joy, her emotions roared like a flood and hit Yuri in full force, causing him to mimic her tears.

Tonilia leaped at him and tackled him to the ground once more, hugging onto him for dear life.

"I love you..." She muffled into her shirt. "Thank you... thank you" She raised her face and sunk a deep kiss into him, without any tongue, they gently pressed each other and her tears got in his mouth a little bit he didn't mind.

'This is starting to feel like a shoujo manga, aaaahhhh she's so genuine it hurts! My heart of stone, it's being eroded by sugar, aaaahhh!'

He teased himself but wouldn't say it out loud because he was too grateful. The wall between them was imaginary and they had finally crossed it. He needed to build up her confidence and her body, but he knew she would do just fine. Though he hadn't told her about other worlds yet, from what he understood of her she had no attachments. It felt good... freeing... even more than flying. He let that off his chest and he had someone to truly be with unlike the other connections he had made that he would have to abandon.

She leaned up and she was sitting on his pelvis. She looked down and gave him an eyebrow before playfully hitting him.

"How dare you have an erection while I pour my heart out! Do my tears turn you on you... you monster?!"

"Hey, I was crying too!"

"I'm not the one who's turned on, you are!"

"How do I know you aren't turned on!"

And so they playfully fought, and it soon devolved into a wrestling match, which soon devolved into them sitting again and kissing softly, which soon devolved into them just resting in each others arms on the bed.

"One more thing..."

"...More secrets?"

"No, no... a very serious question..."

Yuri took a deep breath and spoke a question that would define the relationship from this day forward.

"How do you feel about harems?"