Quest 90

A while later, a messenger came and delivered the message. The message read that some of the Poseidon Familia would come along and even Poseidon himself to help and that their ship would leave tomorrow afternoon.

With this, Cirrus left the home and prepared his stuff by returning to his home. Nox had gone and bought potions along with Lenoa's stock and stored them in shadow storage.

Early in the morning, Cirrus got up and got himself ready. When he got up, he saw Lenoa already enjoying her morning tea. He said his goodbyes, went to the front, opened the door, and accidentally hit someone.

"Ow!"

"Sorry! I didn't think… Ai?"

Ai gets up, rubbing her head and cleaning the dust off her.

"Sorry I came so early, but I just wanted to see you off!"

"Really? Well… alright." He didn't expect her to be here, but he welcomed the company.

Walking through the cool morning of the city in peace was calming.

"So I heard your Familia is helping us out with Evilus?"

"Yeah, Lord Susanoo got annoyed that they were still around, so he decided to join up with your Familia! Your goddess is really pretty!"

"She is. When I first met her, her divinity really made others look rather unimpressive. Have you seen Lady Hephaestus?"

"Eupheme's goddess, right?"

"Yeah, she has an eyepatch and a divinity like a forge's fire. I ask because her divinity is like Astraea."

"Really? What other gods did you meet?"

"Hmm… Hermes is like a gentle candle, and like a gentle candle, it sways with the wind, but you know that candle is kind of warm. I met Loki, a goddess, even if her appearance says otherwise. Her divinity… hmm, it's a light shade of purple whenever she speaks. You can see her divinity wane along with her if your eyes are sharp enough to pick it up. Then Artemis, I'm sure you met her right?"

"Hm, the one with blue hair? She looked as pretty as your goddess."

"Hm, they have the same radiance… but Artemis's is more earthy while Astraea's is more… cosmic. Oh, I even met the Goddess Freya."

"Freya! Lord Susanoo said her beauty was greater than Lady Amaterasu!"

"Hm yes." Cirrus looks up fondly at the time he met her by chance, and then her words stuck out.

"I hope we meet again, Odr." 

'Odr? What is that? Is that her nickname for me?'

As he was lost in thought, Ai punched his shoulder.

Thud!

Cirrus looked to find her angry.

"S-sorry!"

"…"

"A-as I was saying, um, Freya is a beautiful goddess, but you should keep your guard around her."

"Why is that?"

"Because meeting her will make you feel as if your soul is drunk, and you will lose yourself around her."

"Really?"

Ai remembers the time Susanoo returned from a Daedalus and the goddess enamored him, Kushida felt pretty sad for a while before the others in the Familia beat him up and he returned to normal.

"… Hey Cirrus." She said, stopping.

"Yeah?" he asked, stopping ahead of her.

"… Do you think… a mortal can be with a god?"

After a bit of a pause, to really think about it, he gave his answer.

"… They can."

"Then…" she looked down. "Would you spend your life with a god?"

Another brief silence in the morning before he spoke up.

"No."

"!!" She looked up at Cirrus.

"Ai… let me tell you a secret."

He waved his hand to get closer and as Ai leaned in; he said.

"The gods envy us."

"Eh!? W-why!?" she said, surprised, stepping away from Cirrus.

"They envy us because we are mortal, with every action we take could be our last. Everything is more beautiful because it is doomed. You will never be lovelier than you are at this very moment."

"…" Ai looked at Cirrus in awe for a second and thought to herself:

'I never thought about how smart he is?'

"So, shall we get going?"

They continued their walk in silence; Cirrus would glance over and found Ai with a mix of emotions.

When they got near the southern gate, they stopped.

"Well, I guess this is where we part."

"Y-yeah… um, do you have those charms I gave you?" She admitted, a little embarrassed.

"Of course." Cirrus then reached into his shirt and pulled out the charms.

Her face lit up.

"Be sure to come back alright!"

"Of course!"

Cirrus took a step, and his magic circle appeared.

"(Exousía, Adorn: Ceryneian)!"

A deer mask covered his face.

"I'll see you later."

"Hm!"

They both waved goodbye as Cirrus headed off.

Running to Melen.

"Huff! Huff!"

'I'm ready. Can you summon me?'

"(Nox)."

From the magic circle, a white owl sprung forth.

'Sorry I took so long. I was getting a few things.' Nox said, flying above Cirrus.

"It's fine, seeing as I can just summon you on the ship."

'I probably shouldn't tell him I was watching him and Ai from a few buildings away. Fufu I wonder how this will develop in the future!' Nox thought to herself.

When they arrived at Melen's port, he found Poseidon waiting for them.

"Ah, Zephyr! And-" He leaned in and whispered over to Nox and Cirrus. "Spirit of old." He then leaned back. "I knew you had potential, but I didn't think you even contracted with a… hmm, are you are a girl?"

Nox nodded her head.

"A girl with unbelievable power! Hell, I'll try to have you join my Familia! But… I rather not get hunted by Artemis… or get caught by Astraea." He made a very concerned face as if he was remembering his past with them.

"Well, shall we get going? I would rather not have to go and fight another dangerous monster."

"Alrighty then, come."

They followed the god down the port where they arrived on the ship. He was a bit impressed. It was like a smaller warship with a mermaid at the bow of the ship.

"Uhh… why did you get a ship this massive?" Cirrus said.

"Well, it's just in case we have to fight a massive sea creature. This was one of the ships used during the Leviathan Hunt."

"It was," said Lance, with some crates in hand. "We will be ready in a bit, hey Polly!"

Cirrus looked up at the ship to see a man with swept-back brown hair and a beard.

" Yeah, Lan—!!"

As he turned his head, he accidentally hit his eye with one man carrying a crate.

"You okay!?" said Lance.

"Y-yeah! Come on up, Zephyr, sir!" He said, rubbing one of his eyes.

Cirrus walked up onboard the ship, and Polly led them to their rooms.

"Here you go, sir! We should sail in a bit!"

He walked away and somehow hit his eye again.

'Geez, it's like the world doesn't want him with an eye.' Nox said.

"Yeah."

'Polly? Why does that name seem familiar? Hmm, well, it must have been from my past life, but where?'

Cirrus entered the room to find it rather big, but, of course, not as big as the room he had during his time captaining some former desert pirates.

Cirrus put his bag on the desk and lay on the bed. Nox transformed back into her human form.

"Ahh~ reminds me of the first night we slept in the same room!"

"Ah yes… I can remember, you were as small as an owl."

"Well, I like my human form! Easy to stretch!"

"Well, you can have the bed. For now, I have to work on some stuff." Cirrus gets up and sits at the desk, pulling out various items from his shadow.

"Well, I'll be reading. Honestly, I don't know why more people aren't reading books! This was a luxury everyone wished they had had during my time, and now they have them in bulk!"

"Guess society grew enough that books are no more a luxury item as their production speed has significantly increased with the printing press."

"Good for me!"

As Cirrus worked on some magic items and Nox was reading some books, they felt the ship moving.

Cirrus looks out the window to see the scenery moving.

"… ah fuck I never asked how long the trip would be."

A young woman looks out to sea on an unknown island.

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

The sea breeze brushed past her and blew her long pinkish-blue hair.

"This slight feeling off in the distance… a god? And a spirit?" She closed her eyes and she could feel it getting stronger. "Yes, a strong one."

She held out her hand, and her hair glowed a luminescent pink.

"(A myriad vapors obscure the light. The stars of the night interrupt their destined path.

Astonished rivers retreat to their origins, and even death's god trembles in the dark.

Though the earth is shaken to its core, love is not to be commanded in this way, and the wintery fields come back to life.) [Atéleio̱tos Voyage]."

A fluctuation around the island occurred, and it was covered in a strange field of transparency, making it invisible.

They cut the sea breeze off and the young woman's hair stopped flowing in the breeze as they cut the island off from the outside world.

"If they find their way here, I'm sure the vicious whirlpools will kill or deter them... hopefully."

She then went back to stirring her pot.

She looked over to the ocean's horizon with her blue-pink eyes, and a sad look came over her face.

"… I'll miss the sea breeze; it was the only thing unpredictable."