Chapter 231: The duo's resolve

"You…aren't going to put on your disguise?" Claud asked, his eyes gazing at Lily's violet hair, which was wet from a shower. "Still, it does remind of the time when we first went out together."

"Well, it didn't make sense to look like the princess when I'm alone," said Lily, reaching out to hold his hand. "And I'll be annoyed if I spent my time with you looking like the princess from now on. I'll feel that you're cheating on me with myself."

"That's…a very odd way of putting it," Claud replied. "But I'm somehow able to understand that particular sentiment, oddly enough."

Lily laughed. "That's because we're quite alike."

Leaning her head on his shoulder, she took a deep breath. "Since we used the same shampoo and soap, I suppose we smell alike too now."

"I was expecting something more romantic when you said we're quite alike," Claud replied, "but this takes the cake, I guess. So…how are we going to tell the others? Are we going to tell the others?"

"We just need to walk out of the room and they'll get it," Lily replied brightly. "After all, I'm not going to let go of your hand that easily."

"How am I supposed to go after that Moon Emissary then?" Claud asked.

Lily eyed him. "Do you have a reason to go after that Moon Emissary?"

Taking in a deep breath, Claud met her gaze directly. "…Do you believe in instinct? That there's something within you, something that seems to guide you? I…my instincts tell me that I'll regret it if I let the Moon Emissary approach Licencia. I don't know why, but that's just how it is."

"You'll regret it?" Lily repeated.

"Yeah. It's almost the same thing that drove me to go after the Third Bearer of Destiny back then," Claud whispered. "I don't know. Am I insane? Is some higher power using me as a chess piece?"

"Or is it your mind recognising the danger behind all this?" Lily held his shoulders. "I believe you. In that case, we should work on killing that Moon Emissary. But how were you intending to kill it?"

"With a lot of brute force," Claud replied.

"…You're still hiding many things from me, right?" Lily asked.

Claud nodded in silence.

"You can't tell them to me?" Lily pressed on. "Or do you not know how to tell them to me?"

"I'm worried that you can't hear them," Claud replied. "That by simply saying those things out loud, I'll harm you. Remember what Nero said? Some words, when spoken, can potentially kill anyone who hears it."

Lily rubbed her nose. "Then…I'm going to ask questions, and you reply yes or no. No lying."

Claud blinked. "Would that work? It feels like a cop-out, right?"

"But you're not speaking, and I'm just asking some questions. In fact, we should be a bit safer about this. Do you have any paper? I'll write my questions on them, and you just shake or nod."

"It doesn't work that way." Claud jumped a moment later, but it was as if there was something forcing him to spit the next few words out. "Most minds cannot withstand the implications of certain information. It is not the act of speaking, but the act of retaining the information, that is unbearable to weaker minds."

The impulse to speak faded a moment later, and Claud gripped his head. Red-hot drumsticks were bashing out a mad solo in the inside of his skull, and it took everything he had to not howl in pain and make a fool of himself in front of Lily.

"Claud?" Lily asked, her expression one of worry. "Are you…alright? You didn't seem…well, you."

Claud nodded.

"Yeah," he forced out. "That wasn't really me speaking. My instincts, maybe. But it freaking hurts. It feels like my head is about to blow up, and I'm quite sure my Authority's already increased twice."

"Authority?"

"Yeah." Claud laid his head on Lily's lap, and the agony seemed to subside. Lily, who had been surprised for a moment, immediately started to rub his head with her smooth fingers, and the pain decided to beat a retreat. "I burned enough lifespan to become a tri-folder just now, and whenever I completed a new circuit, I would receive a notification that my authority increased."

Lily's fingers paused. "Sorry, can you repeat that again?"

"Well, I received two notifications that my authority increased."

"No, not that. The first part of the sentence," Lily replied.

"Oh. I burned enough lifespan to become a tri-folder earlier on…Lily?" Claud opened his eyes at the sudden stillness of her fingers, before looking up. "Oh no. Did I do something wrong? Did something happen?"

"Yeah, you happened to me! That's a lot of lifespan! Did you really have to go this far for some Moon thing?" Lily asked. "How much time do you have left? Do you need more lifestones?"

"Wait, wait! I have enough seventy-eight years! I'm not going to drop dead just yet!"

"Seventy-eight?" Lily's eyes went round. "Wow. Where did you get so much lifespan from?"

"You've been following me around for so long, but you couldn't guess?" Claud asked. "Why, just the other day, I brought you around the city to sneak into random homes, and well, there were some awesome lifestones in your family vault."

Claud really wanted to tell her about Absolute One and Crown's true ability, but his instincts told him that she couldn't accept such knowledge yet. So, although it did hurt to not tell her everything, Claud had no choice but wait for her to get stronger.

"Oh. Well, I suppose they did do at least one good thing," Lily muttered. "Still, tri-folder…"

"Yeah." Claud rubbed his nose. "I'm now the silent protector of the Moon Lords or something, I guess. Don't go telling the others, okay?"

"A secret between us?" Lily perked up. "Yeah, that sounds fun. Something a couple will do."

"That's us, really." Claud smiled. The pain had ebbed away. "Still, I'm not sure what I should do. The Third was acting alone, and there was no body to speak of, but I'm not sure if I can instantly turn a Moon Emissary into ash. Even if I do, can the other Moon Emissaries track me down? If so…"

"You'll need to leave the others for the time being," Lily completed.

"Yeah." Claud looked at Lily. "But I don't want to leave you, now that we've made things clear. Maybe I shouldn't—"

"No. I trust your instincts. If it tells you that you're going to regret it, then act in a way that you won't regret," Lily cut in. "And it so happens that we should take a trip on our own. Like, you know, a…a honeymoon. Or something like that."

"A trip for the two of us only?" Claud asked. "We haven't gone through the marital rites yet, so I wouldn't call it a honeymoon…"

"You're a stickler for things like this." Lily laughed, before tweaking his nose. "So adorable. But we should take a trip together. We're linked in a very special way, right? They say that the fates of lovers are intertwined, and I haven't forgotten how Holy Daughter Clarissa used the Cord of Cause."

"…I'm sorry."

"Now, now." Lily smiled. "Don't be. I was already prepared for all this the moment I entered your room. I want to be part of your life, just like how you were part of mine. Maybe you don't know, but when you were with me…nothing else seemed to matter all that much. When I felt sad, you were there. When I felt troubled, you always showed up."

With some effort, she pushed Claud back up, to a sitting position. "Back then, when you were agonising over the issue of the Third, I couldn't do anything. No more. I want to do something. Not out of duty or gratitude."

She ran a hand through his hair. "But for you."

Claud didn't have any words to say to that, but there was nothing a kiss couldn't solve.

"We should get moving, though," said Lily, after the two of them separated. "And we just took a bath."

"R-right." Claud rubbed his nose, before getting up. Extending a hand to Lily, who took it happily, the two of them got down to packing the things for their hastily decided trip. It was early in the afternoon, and if everything went as planned…

The two of them would be fleeing from a murder scene come evening.

"Hmm. Where should we go, though? Can we even leave the sovereignty?" Lily asked.

"How about Lustre? I've always been curious about the birthplace of your idol," said Claud. "Or do you have another place in mind?"

"I was thinking of the Celestia Ruins, since you could fly," Lily replied. "But there's a barrier that's preventing us from entering Nihila, right?"

Claud thought about it for a moment, and then nodded firmly. Although he couldn't directly fulfil Lily's wish of knowing everything about him, he could show her his Absolute One…even if he couldn't quite speak of it.

"Maybe we can," Claud replied.

"Eh?"

"You'll understand once I give that Moon Emissary the good old one-two."

"…I'm now worried."