Chapter 55: Parboil

Prytaneum

Parboil​

Wayland opened up the forge in the back of the Hephaestus store for Welf, claiming he'd be able to hear if anyone came in, and then promptly sent Welf out to go fetch literally everything he needed from whatever market they used for stuff like that, saying the stock in the store was off limits. As soon as he was gone, however, Wayland began fetching tools to stock the forge with, getting it all ready. Seeing that Wayland and Welf apparently needed time to prepare, I took the chance to go hunting for supplies as well.

Hey, it was better than just standing around and I'd needed a chance to go shopping as well. I was a bit surprised when Ryuu chose to tag along, though.

"Is it really okay for you to stick around?" I asked her as we walked, making our way down North-West Main, carefully making our way through the crowded city streets. "I didn't mean to hold you up so long—Mama Mia and Syr must be pretty worried by now."

"Yes," Ryuu answered, sounding regretful. "They will both be upset. I abandoned my duties without warning."

"We can swing by, if you'd like?" I offered, feeling guilty. I'd set out from the Hostess intending to find Ryuu and bring her safely back to the bar, but like every other quest I'd ever been on, it had gotten out of hand. Now, we were preparing ourselves to fight some evil conspiracy that may or may not exist and be plotting against the city.

Ryuu was silent for a long moment

"No," She said at last. "Not while I'm involved in this. It is very likely that Evilus remembers me. I do not wish to bring any more trouble to them, Mr. Jackson."

"I think Mama Mia can take care of herself," I replied skeptically. "I pity anyone who tries to start trouble in her bar."

Ry inclined her head, conceding that point.

"True," She admitted. "However, it is not what occurs within the bar that I am afraid of."

I considered that for a moment, understanding but not sure I agreed. Ryuu wanted to avoid them to keep them safe from her enemies—I got that. I'd done that, even, or at least tried.

It kind of sucked. Avoiding your friends, staying away from the people you wanted to see the most, being alone…I'd failed at it before I even really started. It was difficult, horribly difficult, to wonder and worry and want and still stay away. That's why I'd decided I'd just crush anyone who tried to threaten them, except it hadn't worked out so well.

Then again, in my case, staying away wouldn't have kept them safe, either. They'd been involved, too.

Even so, I was pretty sure it'd be just as hard for Ryuu as it had been for me, if not worse because I thought she might actually go through with it even if it did make everyone involved miserable—and I wasn't sure it would work for her, besides. It's not like trying to cut ties would make her stop caring about them, after all, and at this point, if they did know who she was, they could probably connect the dots.

But how did I explain that to Ryuu? If you'd asked me when I first met her, I would have said that Ryuu seemed like a very calm, rational person who'd probably listen to reason. But now, at least for stuff like this, I was starting to think that I might have missed the mark a little bit—though really, who didn't get a bit irrational when it came to the people they cared about?

Still, it was worth a try though, right?

"I think they can take care of themselves," I said. "They're hardly powerless. Most of them are Level 3, right?"

"My comrades were—" Ryuu began before stopping. I waited to see if she'd continue before speaking any further. I figured it was something personal, but looking at her...I don't think it was the main issue.

"Is it about Syr?" I asked and after a long moment, Ryuu nodded. To be honest, I had roughly the same concern; if something did start happening in the city, Eina, Hestia, and Syr would be the ones I'd worry about the most, but…of them, Syr was the one I was the least worried about, for a reason Ryuu seemed to be missing. "If something dangerous starts happening, though, wouldn't it be safer for Syr if you were at her side?"

"If I am strong enough," Ryuu replied.

…She was going to fight me every step of the way on this, huh?

"That Allen guy likes Syr though, right?" I tried, changing tracks. "We could always ask him to help protect her. He's a Level 6, right?"

"…What do you think of that man, Mr. Jackson?" Ryuu asked after a long moment.

"I don't know," I said, making a face and then shrugging. "He came off as kind of a jerk, glaring at me the whole time, but he didn't do anything. I didn't give him much thought afterwards—so many things want to kill me, I can't waste time worrying about people that just dislike me. I thought he might be bothering Syr, but she didn't seem more than embarrassed and a bit annoyed. It's probably fine."

"Perhaps," Ryuu replied, actually frowning. "However, I cannot approve of that man, given how he treats Arya. And…I loathe the fact that should his intentions prove ignoble, there would be little I could do to stop him."

I bobbed my head at that, forced to agree somewhat. Having gotten a better appreciation of how I measured up in Orario, I knew that his strength was far beyond mine. I couldn't deny the fact that I'd had the same thought as Ryuu—that if he tried to do something, I wouldn't be able to stop him. But…there's could and there's would and it's important to draw a few lines between them. Even I couldn't worry about everything, because a god getting annoyed and smiting me was literally on the table; it might even come down to a contest. If I worried about everything that could ruin my life, I'd never be able to do anything.

"If he's willing to protect Syr and not hurt her, then I don't care," I decided. "And if he does, we'll just deal with him next. You can't try and take care of everything yourself, Ryuu; there's nothing wrong with asking for help if there's something you can't do on your own. Especially if you're asking a friend. You should remember that."

"Asking a friend, certainly," She replied, expression still unchanging. "But could you bow your head and ask for that man's help, knowing how much he dislikes you and what he might ask for in return?"

I shrugged again.

"I've got a lot of flaws," I said. "But pride's not really one of them. It would be irritating and I'd want to punch him in the face if he asked me to bow and beg, but if I could get Syr a Level 6 bodyguard that easily, it'd be a pretty good deal, right? I think a lot of things are unpleasant, but if it was for a million valis, I would do a lot. It's the same thing."

Ryuu took a deep breath, closing her eyes before nodding in agreement, as I'd sort of figured she would. Irritation and dislike aside, Ryuu seemed like the type who'd go a long, long way for a friend. More than anything else, what she probably wanted was just to be strong enough to protect the people she loved herself.

Hm. Thought.

"What if I could get you something that could protect the Hostess of Fertility?" I asked. "Something strong enough to protect Syr or the others if they were attacked?"

Ryuu looked at me silently as we continued to walk through the streets. Rather than answering her, I shrugged off the bag Welf had given me and handed it to, watching her face as she opened it.

"Magic swords," She said as she looked inside, a moment before the pieces fit into place. "Crozzo's magic swords?"

I nodded.

"I'd have to ask Welf," I warned her. "But he gave them to me to safe keeping. I don't want to walk around with them all the time, though, so I was thinking of a place to hide them—but if Evilus is up to something, having one on hand to protect somewhere important might not be a bad idea. It's still a magic sword, though, so someone will need to stick around and use it right."

"…You shouldn't offer something so valuable, so easily," Ryuu replied after a long moment, voice low as she closed the bag.

"If I carry them around, knowing my luck they'll end up exploding the next time I nearly die," I answered with shrug.

"One might hope that having such a weapon would prevent you from nearly dying in the first place, Mr. Jackson," She said.

"Hah," I said. "Good one, Ryuu. Anyway, don't worry about it. Whatever he says, Welf really doesn't like making those swords or giving them away, but he'll probably be willing to give you one if I ask him to."

"Why would he trust me with such a thing?" She asked.

"He wouldn't, I guess," I mused. "But he trusts me and I trust you."

"Why?" She asked, staring at me hard. "You don't even know me, Mr. Jackson. You don't know anything about me."

I was pretty sure I did. I assumed we were trying not to face the issue directly, but she'd all but told me her life story. And…and it was my life story, I guess. But I wasn't sure how to tell her something like that without sounding creepy and weird.

"…At the very least, I know you'll protect Syr and the others," I said at last. "That's why I want you to go back, Ryuu—I know I can count on you to keep them safe. Could you do that for me?"

Ryuu took another deep breath and looked away, still not answering. I didn't push any further; in the end, I couldn't make her do anything. I'd tried to convince her of what I thought was best for her, but if she chose not to, I'd tell Syr the truth and then try to keep an eye on her. I think Syr would understand, but I think she'd be happier if Ryuu came back.

"Anyway," I said, changing the subject slightly. "Rather than worrying about protecting them from an unknown threat, we should just find them and destroy them as soon as possible."

I thought Ryuu might try and caution me on the dangers of impatience, but she didn't—if anything, she seemed to agree completely. Perhaps too completely; was I going to be the restrained one in this situation? That might be too weird, even for me, but…I'd waited and delayed for a whole year while Nico tried to convince me to take the plunge into the River Styx. If I'd just gone along with it to begin with, if I'd had the power to go after Luke and Kronos before they came to our doorstep, maybe things wouldn't have happened the way they did. I regretted a lot of things and that was a big one. When it came to the Dungeon, to Orario, I spent a lot of time waiting for things to happen and reacting to them, but if the opportunity presented itself, I'd act.

"I meant what I said before, by the way," I continued. "If there's anything you want or think you need, I'll try to figure it out. Whatever it is, I'm sure Wayland, Welf, and I can manage all sorts of things if we work together. Even if it sounds ridiculous, I'll try and give it a shot. Hell, I'll try to make you wings if you want to fly."

It wasn't a joke. I'd seen it done; I'd even used them. Figuring out how to make them myself might not be impossible and while I wasn't sure I wanted to take my chances flying given how upset Zeus sometimes got, I could try.

"…Allow me a short while to consider it," Ryuu requested after a long moment, pursing her lips contemplatively.

"Okay," I answered easily, shrugging as we came up upon a shop I'd never been into before, but while Ryuu had given me directions to. "Is this the place?"

"Yes, Mr. Jackson," She answered. "If I'm not mistaken, you should be able to find anything you might need here."

"Cool," I said. "Let's look around then; I'll see if I get any ideas."