Chapter Sixteen: Guilts Of Ares

Ares laughed and he patted Caleb's shoulder. "She reminds me of Eros," Ares said. 

"Leana Allard seems to be searching for Lukas whereabouts, I heard she even dispatched the 12 Council of the Elite Circle. You sure did kidnap the kid amidst his quest, now they thought he was kidnapped in reality."

That's actually not true, Ares went and found Lukas wandering around the Forest of Elvin, doing some kind of shady quest and distributing the Elvin's slumber. It was right for Ares to take him away, and he didn't realize Lukas was with two of the Elite Council. 

Now Lukas was being searched in thought that he was captured or something. It's a ridiculous event, so Caleb knew that Ares took the child and threw him out of this world. 

He looks like a God who kidnapped a kid who went on his quest. A nonsense imagery given to a God who literally went and took a child. 

Ares shook his head and smiled. "Can you send her a message, I was too focused on what was going on so I forgot to inform her," of course he does. Caleb heard the distress signal from his crew, and told Ares about the situation. He just stormed out and flew away like a maniac. 

"I'll really do that, before she thinks that Lukas was kidnapped by Athena."

---⌜•••⌟---

It was that time when Lyrica was looking at the dry yet beautiful town of Duchy Daryl, the town was so fascinating to watch, and while passing through them, she saw at least people looking at the big flying object above them. 

She had a mission to bring even the latest military equipment back, those equipment are too expensive to be destroyed. Although it's a humongous equipment, this also causes them to take even the largest carrier airplanes. 

Which was occupied by hundreds of military equipment. The other two carrier ships as big as the one being used by Lyrica are occupied by other Valkyries and their healing incubators. 

Fortunately, to save up space, the Valkyrie had stayed inside the incubator and saved extra space for weapons. It's like they've moved the entire laboratory inside a few extra big carrier airplanes. 

It's ridiculous but it's a mission. Even secret data had been destroyed and other extra equipment was taken. They didn't want any humans to even lay on those dangerous weapons, it's for the best of their development as well. 

Once they left the town, a mansion appeared beside it. That mission was designed in a shape of three dimensional spaces—philosophically, the architectural design is like a mansion seen in medieval times, it's vintage from an actual human mansion in England.

It's made of stones, and woods, the typical one that gives off a class feeling. Outside have gardens, few lands, and extra space. 

While Lyrica was watching from the window, she received a signal from a familiar source with a red light flickering below them. "Roll up!" she yelled at the pilot. "We have the que to land, read the red signal, that's our landing point!" 

The pilot looked at the radar. "Roger, major!"

The carrier airplane which was instructed to land uses the extra space below and landed directly below. Once the signal was repeated to the other planes, they followed the main carrier ship and landed at the exact location the main carrier landed. 

Once all of the planes landed swiftly and efficiently. They quickly get off the plane and receive a windy feeling from this world. 

"Alright, we are here," she looked at the side where she got a peak of a familiar presence. She gulped and walked towards him. 

She kneeled down. "We arrived master!" 

Caleb smiled and nodded. "It's been awhile, I mean days Valkyries, I hope you all had a pleasant trip, and welcome to Armenia."

Lyrica immediately stood up and nodded. "As you've commanded, we brought the exact 500 Valkyries and a hundred warfare equipment from the other world. This includes—" suddenly, he clicked his tongue which made Lyrica stop talking.

"Let's move that aside, I am sure you are tired," said Caleb.

"No, master, we are fine, we Valkyries don't feel tired, however—" she looked at Valerie who was with Lukas the whole trip and breathed out. "During our pursuit with the devil, we decided to unseal Valerie's restriction, and because we hadn't controlled her rage, we lost Diana which caused Valerie in a case of stress."

"Is that so?" The only thing he could say. 

For Diana is a daughter to Elizabeth, a maid working for his household. Elizabeth died after giving birth to Diana, she was somehow too weak to survive, and in order to give Elizabeth the payment she didn't need, Caleb took Diana and raised her until she became 3 years old. 

Unfortunately, Diana finds out his secret and she secretly snacks in one of Caleb's boxes and she is transported to another world. When he knew what happened and came to pick her up, she clung to Valerie's hand telling him she wanted to stay. 

That time, he found something extraordinary—something that lights up between Valerie's cold eyes—it was a hope that would change her forever. He thought she could heal her, bring her emotions back, love her and be happy.

He's not wrong, over the course of years, that bloody icy woman started to change. She doesn't cooperate with anyone unless it's Cassandra, nor laughs when Morgan tries to make her laugh, and even she started to be interested in many kinds of things.

So he decided to let Diana stay there for a few years... He didn't think that she's going to lose it... 

A hope that was written in her face was happily being destroyed by fate. "Get her some rest, also—" he pointed his thumb behind him where an unfamiliar man was standing. "Let her talk to her dad, she might want to say something to him."

Lyrica nodded and she followed Caleb's order. Once she got back to the place where Valerie was standing, she first looked at Lukas. 

"What will you do now? Go back?" She asked. 

Lukas titled his head before he breathed out. "I want to stay for awhile, I'm sure Caleb wouldn't mind."

She nodded. "Valerie, follow me," she exclaimed. 

Her quietness makes Lyrica uneasy but she couldn't do anything about it. Valerie had gone through many tragedies, It wasn't an easy path for her, nothing really was easy for her. 

The only thing she can do is nothing. Valerie will have no choice but to fix herself alone and no one can help her with that. She needed to stand up on her own. 

And the first step is to allow herself to forgive her own father. Lyrica believes that she knows what is the right thing to do. The only step she can take to leave her tragedies behind her bloody past. 

***

It was a silent encounter, Lyrica left to give them space but neither did take the first step to talk. Ares doesn't know how to treat a child, while Valerie wasn't aware that she's tensing up. Both of them don't have anything in mind, nor will Valerie talk to him. 

Ares knew that Valerie would say nothing unless he had to but he doesn't even have anything he could say. His thoughts were scribbled with what to say or will hello be appropriate? It's like his tongue got twisted.

He gulped and looked at her. Her silver hair—really resembles her mother who was as beautiful as a silver ore, even her cheeks and lips were exactly like her but those eyes—it's exactly like his diamond blue eyes, perfect and beyond comparison. 

It's one of a kind amongst those of light blue eyes, yet for some unknown reason her bare face resembles that kind of someone who has gotten herself deeply insane. His face was bad when he was in a battle against Gaia, were bloody, dark and insanely frightening. 

He bit his lip and he opened his mouth but no words came out of his lips. He wanted to ask, or perhaps comprehend the comparison of him and his daughter. He only soon remembers why, he had no idea she was suffering until now. 

How could he allow what happened a few years back—he wasn't even aware of what had happened to her. Only when she awakens that bloody Aria of hers did he know what was happening, and he never wanted this to happen.

So, how could he ask a question that the answer is obviously there? 

He clicked his tongue and shifted his gaze. Thinking about his dead wife, the wife whom he promised too and the wife he cherished so much. 

He blinks. "The child—treat her very well, she is the hope and light in my eyes, she is my treasure and yours as well." A piece of his memories suddenly played in his head, the voice he vividly remembers came to him as clear as he could ever remember.

A small piece of that memory when she takes her first touch on her daughter's little fingers. How can he forget that? A precious memory, a memory that he tried not to forget. 

Had he not forgotten it? Because he became a God once more that his memory was fuzzy, even his Mortal days weren't easy to remember. That one piece of his memory with her gives him strength to move forward.

And to look his daughter straight in the eye.