chapter 239

[Third Person's Po]

A Few Weeks later…

Cid crouched low, his hands carefully grasping Celeste's tiny ones as she focused intently ahead, her brows furrowed in concentration. Her little legs wobbled with each tentative step, her knees buckling slightly under the effort, but she pressed on with surprising determination. Though her gait was an uneven waddle, her movements were quick, almost frantic.

"WALKIN'!" Celeste exclaimed suddenly, her face breaking into a triumphant grin as the soft pitter-patter of her feet echoed in the room.

Cid chuckled, his voice warm with amusement. "More like running, you little track star," he teased, keeping her steady as she toddled forward.

"Alowne!" she demanded, her tiny face now set in a serious expression that was both comical and endearing.

Cid raised an eyebrow, feigning doubt. "Are you sure? You're awfully wobbly there."

"All. By. My. Self!" Celeste insisted, her tone resolute despite her toddler-sized vocabulary.

Cid sighed dramatically but released her hands. "All right, if that's truly what you want," he said, stepping back to watch.

Without his support, her movements slowed, her steps now halting and deliberate. Occasionally, her balance failed, sending her down onto all fours. Yet each time, she pushed herself back up with a determination that made Cid's heart swell with pride. She shuffled forward, her every step a small victory.

Aurora watched nearby, her face glowing with encouragement. Celeste's focus was unwavering as she waddled toward her mother, her tiny eyebrows knitted in concentration. Though her knees gave out just as she reached Aurora, her mother caught her in time, sweeping her up in a flurry of movement.

"Look at you! Already walking!" Aurora exclaimed, peppering Celeste's face with kisses.

Celeste giggled uncontrollably, her laughter filling the room like music. She threw her hands into the air in a victorious gesture. "Yay!"

Aurora held her close, her voice tinged with emotion. "You're growing up too fast, my love. Slow down, will you?" She nuzzled her cheek against Celeste's, her eyes glistening with motherly pride.

Cid watched the scene with a faint smile before he soon received a telepathic message, 

"My Lord," It was Lambda, the dark elf general. 

"Hm?" Cid hummed to inquire what she wanted to say. 

"It is done," She said solemnly, as if she had just finished a assassination mission. 

"All of the land, country, and states have now been conquered… The Entire World is now yours for the talking" Lambda reported 

"Seriously?" Cid asked in surprise. 

"That is the case my lord, these were rather easy to conquer, the humans all had one thing in common… They wanted nothing more than stability in this apocalyptic world. They wanted things to return to how things were, how the world used to be before the monsters ruined it, or at least a semblance of normality. Once they were made sure and certain that you would be able to provide that to them they instantly submitted." Lambda explained. 

"Were there any resistance?" Cid wondered. 

"Of course, that is not to say that everything went smoothly." Lambda said with a sigh, "There were those that merely pretended to submit. They were planning on abiding their time until you have returned the world to normal and sat on the throne only for them to backstab you and claim the throne for themselves. And then there were those that didn't want to get the world back to normalizy, they loved the chaotic world and didn't want to give up the power they once held" 

"Were they killed?" Cid asked with a raised eyebrow. 

"Of course not my lord, although lady sherry came really close to it when she found out about some of their plans to backstab you," Lambda said, sounding almost amused by the memory of it. 

Cid let out an amused laugh as he shook his head as Lambda continued, "We've punished those men that stood in our way by taking away their ability to wield magic. They are now as weak as before the apocalypse began" 

"I see, good work Lambda" Cid said in a sincere tone, he could hear how Lambda had become bashful. 

"I was merely doing what was instructed of me, my lord" She muttered. 

"I'll be joining you all shortly, I'll settle things down in my end…" Cid informed her. 

"Then we shall be awaiting for your arrival" Lambda said before disconnecting. 

Cid went and kissed the top of both Celeste and Aurora's head, making Aurora look at him weirdly but she smiled nonetheless at his action. 

"I'll be back in a minute~ I'll need to go and pick up the others" Cid informed her before he sank into his shadow and disappeared from where he stood. 

He appeared before the members of Shadow Garden and snapped his fingers dissolving the shadow clone which overlooked them and absorbed all of its memories. Cid almost bursted out laughing as he saw Sherry had her magic glock faced sideways pressing it against one of the men's forehead with a cold look.

"Yo!" Cid greeted them with a two finger salute. 

"Cid!!" Most of the girls exclaimed as Sherry, Rose, and surprisingly Alexia tackled him into a hug.

"I missed you all as well~" Cid said as he hugged them all. 

Alexia soon realized what she was doing and quickly backed away, her cheeks redding slightly as she cleared her throat. 

However Rose and Sherry didn't seem to care and just kept holding onto Cid with happy and content faces. 

"So was there a reason as to why you didn't stop by once in a while?" Alexia asked with a raised eyebrow. 

Cid rubbed the back of his neck as he said, "Well, Alpha gave birth and I had to stay with the little ones" 

"ALPHA GAVE BIRTH?!?" Most of the Shadow Garden members exclaimed in disbelief. 

Alexia began slapping his arm, "And you don't think we would have wanted to be there?!" 

"Sorry," said Cid apologetically. 

"So was it a boy or a girl?!" Alexia asked curiously. 

"Both actually, she had twins, a boy and a girl, named Lorion and Loriel." Cid said proudly. 

Alexia then began to shake him back and forth, "I'll never forgive you for making me that!" 

Cid rolled his eyes as he looked towards the other girls, "So how did you girls enjoy your trip?" 

Elisabeth was the one who came floating by and answered with Mary right beside her, "It was certainly an adventure~ Who would have thought that this world was once without magic. It was nice to learn about all the different cultures. It was quite alot of fun if I must say so" 

Yukime then stepped forwards, covering her face with her fan, "Thanks to this little trip I gained a whole bunch of ideas and ways to make money. So this trip was definitely worth it. Oooh, just thinking about how much my profits might increase is making me a tad feverish~" She said teasingly, fanning her face to cool herself down. 

Alexia then let out a sigh as she said, "It is a shame that most of the sites were destroyed. I bet they would have looked lovely…" 

All of the girls one by one shared their experiences and Cid listened attentively, making him chuckle at the few things they had to say. 

He then asked, "Is everyone ready to depart?"

They all nodded and gave their confirmation, and with that Cid used his shadow to swallow them all up and teleported back to Japan.