Cien and Moon

Cien and Fenrir finally reached an agreement. Fenrir would guard the village territory for an unspecified period of time.

Why? Because Fenrir only intended to fulfill this duty until his injuries were fully healed.

The time needed for his recovery was still unknown, as neither Fenrir nor Cien knew how many Heart of Ice the White Wolf needed to heal.

Once the agreement was made, Cien immediately gave Fenrir a Healing Potion. He wouldn't let the condition of the Proxy worsen any further.

Unfortunately, while the Healing Potion succeeded in closing the wounds, it couldn't fully heal the deeper injuries and lingering damages, so Fenrir remained quite weak.

In fact, Cien was convinced that he could kill Fenrir with a single strike of his Fire Sword, but of course, he wouldn't do that.

Fenrir was aware of his condition. He was grateful that his wounds were closed, and for the rest of his injuries, time would heal them.

With a slightly trembling body, Fenrir managed to stand up.

He approached Cien and expressed that he still doubted Cien's ability to duplicate materials.

"So, what do you want to do?"

<Contract. As a Proxy, I have the capacity to create a contract that will be overseen by the Goddess of the Moon herself. The agreement you mentioned earlier, one Heart of Ice every year, and in return, I will become the protector of your village. If this contract is violated, the appropriate punishment will be imposed by the Moon Goddess. So, do you dare?>

"Whoa, why didn't you mention this from the beginning? Creating new terms after your wounds are healed, isn't that unfair?"

<...>

Fenrir didn't say anything, just gazing at Cien without a flinch.

"Sigh... okay, it's not a problem for me. So, what is the appropriate punishment?"

<What do you want?>

"Death."

<...okay.>

Both fell silent, staring at each other.

Fenrir asked again to confirm Cien's seriousness, as once the contract was completed, his words couldn't be withdrawn.

Cien nodded firmly. After all, giving one material per year wasn't difficult for him with his magical wardrobe duplication ability.

With that, Fenrir began to chant.

A large circle of pale blue magic instantly enveloped the area where they stood. It was so bright that the three people who had moved away rushed closer in panic.

Anxiousness was evident on Kirana's face as she quickly moved towards Cien.

But before she could reach him, the circle of magic vanished, shrinking and seemingly entering both Cien and Fenrir's chests.

<The contract is completed. I hope your words about duplication are true.>

"Heh, and I hope you're ready to protect the village as well."

<...>

They fell silent again, staring at each other.

From the onlookers point of view, both of them seemed to be assessing each other, but in reality, they were just looking at each other without thinking about anything.

Bored with looking at Fenrir's face, Cien turned to his daughter, who approached with a pale expression.

He reassured her that everything was alright and the negotiation had been successful.

Once everyone gathered again, Cien informed them that from now on, Fenrir was their friend and had agreed to become the protector of the village.

Listening to Cien's words, the three of them were stunned. They couldn't process what they had just heard.

'Become the protector?'

'A friend?'

'What happened in the last few minutes?'

They all looked at Fenrir, who was still covered in blood. The monster's face remained arrogant as usual, but the terrifying aura that it usually emitted was now gone.

<I didn't think we ever talked about being friends?> Fenrir remarked.

"Don't think too much about it."

Cien left the three still struggling to adapt to the drastic change in their relationship with Fenrir.

Just a few minutes ago, they were fighting with each other, but now the situation suddenly turned peaceful and they were even friends. It felt absurd.

They didn't know what Cien had done, but their admiration for the Shop Owner grew even stronger.

Cien approached the edge of the lake above the crater.

The night had fallen, making the surroundings very dark. He observed the rippling surface of the lake caused by the previous tremors.

He searched for the faint light he had seen before, finding it near the center of the lake. He then knelt down, feeling the surface of the water with his hand.

In a split second, his skin touched the water, and Cien immediately pulled his hand back.

"The fu*k?! It's too cold!"

He looked at his hand; four fingers besides the thumb were coated in ice, freezing and unable to move.

He then turned his gaze to the water flowing out of the lake and gathering under the newly formed crater.

Cien's body had briefly entered the water, and even though it was cold, it didn't instantly freeze his body like in the lake.

'Ugh... if I were to soak in this lake for just a second, I'd probably die right away.'

Cien seemed to have encountered a new problem. He then saw Fenrir and the others approaching.

Kirana noticed her father's frozen fingers, "Father, what happened?"

"Calm, Kiran. It's just frozen, not really pai ... damn, it's painful!"

Cien activated the power of his Fire Glove, creating fire on his frozen fingers. He then explained to the others about the lake.

Upon hearing Cien's explanation, Fenrir snorted.

"Oi!"

<Are you stupid? The Heart of Ice is made from the tears of the Moon Goddess. Therefore, when night falls, the Heart of Ice becomes the coldest material in the world. So, if you want to get close to it, I recommend doing it at noon when the peak time of the Sun God watches over the world.>

"Ah, you mean 12 noon."

<Hmm, in addition, only those who have mastered Ice Magic up to the Master level can touch the Heart of Ice. Anyone below that, let alone ordinary people, will freeze to death instantly.>

"...this material is more troublesome than I expected. How did they from Huntara manage to carry it? Luck, perhaps?"

Fenrir chuckled, resuming his arrogant behavior while suggesting that he should be the one carrying the Heart of Ice, with an annoying expression.

Cien looked at Fenrir's irritating face with a poker face and then smiled.

"Kiran, you'll take the Heart of Ice tomorrow."

"Mm."

<! Wait, didn't I say that only those who have mastered Ice Magic can touch it!>

"Kirana is a Master of Ice Magic."

<Huh? But isn't she too young?>

Fenrir then looked at Kirana with a sense of awe.

It was the first time he had seen a human reach the Master level of Ice Magic at Kirana's age.

Mastering magic would usually take decades. For humans, reaching the Master level at the age of fifty would be considered a genius achievement.

But Kirana... Fenrir felt that she was still not even thirty years old.

'Does she have a connection with the Moon Goddess?'

Fenrir wondered, feeling even more perplexed. He observed Kirana closely, and she returned the gaze with a piercing glare.

<Are you a Proxy?>

"!" Kirana was taken aback.

"She's not a Proxy."

Without turning his head, Cien kept his gaze fixed on the faint rays beneath the lake. Then, he glanced in Fenrir's direction.

"If Kirana is a Proxy, you'd be dead by now."

Fenrir observed Cien carefully.

What Cien said made sense, but it seemed like the man was hiding something. Fenrir then realized that Cien and Kirana were father and daughter.

'These two... anomalies.'

Fenrir was well aware of Cien's strength, only at Rank 2. Yet, the aura he emitted seemed to match Fenrir's own.

Not to mention the various arrows and staff he used. Not to forget, Cien had a gift from God.

Fenrir didn't want to fight someone like Cien; it would be too troublesome.

On the other hand, his daughter was a human with almost unnatural developments. Fenrir felt there was something unusual about this family.

'Let's see. Besides, the aura around this man... feels very familiar.'

Seeing Fenrir fall silent, Cien suggested they all start setting up camp.

The place where the [Magma Zone] was earlier seemed ideal, warm and free from snow cover.

Everyone moved quickly. They pitched tents, lit a bonfire, and began preparing their meal.

After a while, the four individuals gathered around the bonfire with a pot of meat soup in hand. The warmth permeated them instantly, bringing a sense of peace to their hearts.

"Lord Millard, may I ask something?" Ian spoke up while in the middle of eating.

"About what?"

"Hmm, just a bit curious. The incident earlier has sparked a bit of my curiosity."

"No need to beat around the bush, just get to the point."

"Hahaha, alright then. Why do all three of you, despite being from Westya, have command over Water Magic? Especially Kirana, she can even wield Ice Magic. Don't Westyans worship the Sky Goddess? Honestly, even in Huntara itself, those who can use Ice Magic are rare and highly esteemed."

Upon hearing Ian's question, Cien, Kirana, and Legia exchanged glances. Upon reflection, the question seemed quite logical.

Most Westyans inherited the ability to use Wind Magic, an element associated with the Wind Goddess they worship (Westyans refer to the Sky Goddess as the Wind Goddess).

Only those from Huntara and the followers of the Moon Goddess could acquire Water Magic, let alone Ice Magic.

Of course, there was another way, like Legia.

"I absorbed a Monster Core with the Water Magic skill. Father obtained it during one of his adventures and gifted it to me on my twelfth birthday," Legia replied, then turned to Kirana.

"My Water Magic is a talent inherited from Father. I mastered it up to the level of a Master while in the military academy, then it evolved into Ice Magic," answered Kirana, who now glanced at her father.

Kirana herself, after learning about the origins of magic at the academy, became curious about how she and her father could possess Water Magic instead of Wind Magic, despite their worship of theWind Goddess.

All eyes turned to Cien, including Fenrir, who was curled up resting behind the tent.

Cien smiled awkwardly and answered honestly.

"I don't know."

""...""

Cien was indeed honest. He genuinely didn't know.

Until now, he had never thought about it because his Water Magic was too weak to consider. However, with Ian's question, he began to question the Water Magic within him.

'Could it be that the God who reincarnated me is the Moon Goddess? And that's why I acquired magic with elements under her domain?'

Cien felt like he was starting to unravel the origins of his reincarnation. Although there was still one significant question: why was he brought back to life and why did he have a cellphone in his pocket?

'If it's truly the Moon Goddess... what does she want?'