Wandering Soul: Friends in High Places
The road to Iliasburg remained clear ahead of Makoto. For the first time since arriving in this world, he was finally able to let his mind relax. Albeit, he has a whole lot of new information to sort through: monster girls, spirits, kingdoms, a religion so strong that multiple towns take their namesakes from it, so much to process. Micaela sure saddled him with a lot of useful information, but just like any history test, he was going to need some time to devote it all to memory. Actually, now that he thought about it, it was starting to sink in that life here was going to be a far departure from what he was familiar with. Traveling from city to city on foot (at least all of that time in track & field is being put to good use), making camp when not in a town. His cooking skills were basic, not considering he�fd have to do any cooking on an open fire. For the time being, he�fd probably rely on rations until he got better at it, maybe get a cookbook whenever he could. He�fd also have to try and see if he can tag along with other people during his trip as well. Traveling on a wagon sounds better than walking all the time, plus there�fs always safety in numbers.
...That line of thought was a sullen reminder that he was, for the first time in a while, truly alone. He was separated from all of his friends and on his own here in a sense. Having his friends, even just one, would be nice right now. Another reason to find others who�fd wish to travel with him. His MP3 player would only last so long with no way to charge it, so that�fs not a reliable option to ward off the loneliness. He didn�ft even plan on having it out seeing as how it would only draw unwanted questions. Sure, he had been apathetic for a good chunk of his life, but his time in S.E.E.S had changed him. He was no longer made so easily content with his music and apathy. Lone wolfing his way around didn�ft seem like a good option either given his general unfamiliarity, so finding some companions was high up on his list of priorities. Heh, even in a different world, he was still following Igor�fs advice of nurturing friendships. Well, it�fs worked so far. No reason to drop it now.
As he was walking down the road, an unusually large-leaved plant caught his eye on the side of the road. It stuck out in comparison to the rest of the vegetation. His mind idly wondered what it was doing there. It didn�ft matter though. He continued down the path ahead of him. Looking at the map now, he didn�ft have a sense for how long it was going to take to travel everywhere. There wasn�ft any way to measure distance provided on it. Well, hopefully he�fd reach Iliasburg by sundown. Ilias seemed to be a small continent. It shouldn�ft take too much longer, right?
Soon, morning turned to midday and midday turned to evening. His travel so far had remained peaceful. As he crested another hill, he finally saw a city come into view. It sat atop a rocky hill, creating cliffs that only gave access from the one side that sloped towards the ground and the lush greenery that surrounded it. There were multiple brown-roofed buildings with stony walls all the way up the hill with what he presumed to be a church at the top. This must be Iliasburg. And still with some time to spare before nightfall. Makoto continued on towards the city, not wanting to waste any more time on the road.
As he made his way into the city, he felt that something was off. It may have been evening, but the atmosphere here was too quiet. This was supposed to be a fairly populated city, not a ghost town. There wasn�ft a soul in sight on the streets, not even to close up shop for the day. Something�fs not right here. Makoto steadily made his way through the empty streets, now wary of what may be causing this. The further in he got, he could start to hear what sounded like a fight: grunts of pain, metal clashing. He steeled himself as approached the corner a building that opened up into a plaza. Whatever was causing this, it had to pose a major threat to have a whole city locked down like this. He peered his head around a corner to find numerous soldiers on the ground and a few more who were on their knees in pain.
�gIs that all that this city has to offer? Are you just going to give up as I take over your home?�h
He couldn�ft see who the voice belonged to, his sight was partially blocked by a tree. All he knew was that it was a woman�fs voice. Makoto crouched down and snuck up to the tree, peaking his head out to find the owner of said voice. It was a monster girl who radiated skill and confidence. Dull, green scales adorned much of her body, particularly her legs, tail and forearms. The parts that weren�ft green were vanilla with a red tattoo that he couldn�ft tell the details of that ran from her left cheek down to her shoulder. She wore black and gold plated armor which covered her abdomen, breasts, and shoulders, all of the leather straps needed to hold it in place, a long purple cape, and a red jewel that rested above her sternum. A similarly black and gold head piece tried (and failed) to contain the long bangs of her reddish brown hair. She had frills coming out of the sides of her head and amber eyes that knew nothing of foolishness. The sword she was wielding was massive compared to his. It was large, thick and deadly sharp. Whoever she was, she meant business.
The lizard (or perhaps more accurately, dragon) woman was staring down the few soldiers that weren�ft collapsed on the ground. She was expecting their answers. One of the soldiers shakily stood back up and readied himself.
�gI�c I won�ft let you have your way so easily!�h The woman smirked at him.
�gGood. It seems your spirit is strong.�h She pointed her sword at him. �gCome at me, then!�h
�gGraaaaaaah!!!�h The soldier charged at her, his sword at the ready. Right as he got close to her, she disappeared, much to his and Makoto�fs confusion. As quickly as she disappeared, she reappeared with a thud as the man gasped in pain and fell over. His head recoiled right before he fell. Did she hit him over the head in that time? That was absurdly fast. Actually, looking around, there�fs no bloodshed to be seen. All of these soldiers are seemingly knocked out. She�fs not killing them, she�fs exerting enough force to incapacitate them. Restraint like that is quite a feat and didn�ft exactly bode well in his mind for his odds against her.
�gBut for as much spirit you possess, you lack the skill to back it up. Now, is there anyone else left?�h Her gaze returned to the last soldier left standing. The man got up as fast as his shaky body could and ran away in fear.
�gA wise choice. But in the future, you can no longer call yourself a warrior or a hero.�h There were no more conscious soldiers left around her. �gIs there no one else left to stop me?�h From what the both of them could see, there were no other soldiers left. The silence was deafening. The decision now fell onto Makoto of whether he would confront her or not. The circumstances weren�ft good here. He knew that he was strong, but could he keep up with her? His mind recalled one of his talks with Micaela of the generals that serve the Monster Lord: the Four Heavenly Knights. Thinking back on it, this woman could very well be one of them. She also matches what he could remember of one of them: a dragon swordswoman who specialized in fire. Names only say so much, but having seen her in action, even if she isn�ft one of the Heavenly Knights, he was uncertain of his odds of winning. Still though, he has the element of surprise with his Personas, and doing anything in Iliasburg is going to be markedly harder if she�fs left unchecked. There wasn�ft much room for debate here.
�gHow boring. Well then, I�fve taken over this city. Now I�fll-�h
Makoto walked out from behind the tree and stood before the swordswoman, stepping loudly on the stone pavement beneath him to cut her off. She turned around to face him, looking him up and down with her ever serious gaze.
�gYou look strange, boy. But I see you have a sword. Do you presume to fight me?�h
Makoto unsheathed the sword at his side and held it beside him. �gI do.�h He focused on Siegfried in his mind. His strength would be needed here.
�gThen I will treat you as a warrior. You have no problem with that?�h
�gI don�ft.�h Makoto mentally prepared himself for anything. He�fd need to be careful here. Even now, her gaze was enough to potentially shake his confidence.
The dragon woman smiled. �gYou�fre not afraid. Good. Then the fire swordswoman Granberia will be your opponent!�h Granberia assumed her battle stance and pointed her sword at him. Granberia, huh? Yep, she was one of the Four Heavenly Knights.
Great.
�gHow about this?�h Granberia swung her sword at him, cleaving the air in front of her. Makoto dodged, back stepping the attack.
�gInteresting. Now, give me your best shot!�h Seems it was his move. As much as he could go all out with Norn or Odin here, he needed to ensure a clean hit. He�fd only be able to get one guaranteed surprise hit in, so he�fd have to make it count. Who knows if that�fd even be enough to win, but it�fd do something. For now, it�fs time to compare his swordsmanship to hers. He could feel Siegfried�fs Auto-Masuku making him faster and lighter on his feet. Unfortunately, he didn�ft have a way to reapply Sukukaja (or any buff to himself for that matter), so he�fd have to act fast before it ran out. Makoto gripped his sword tightly and ran at Granberia to strike. His speed was quick, but it wasn�ft as blindingly fast as Granberia�fs. He swung at her horizontally and was met with her sword.
�gYou�fre quick for a human.�h Granberia and Makoto locked eyes from over their crossed blades. �gBut how strong are you?�h Granberia began applying more pressure, forcing Makoto backwards from her sheer strength alone. Even with Siegfried, he was struggling to hold his ground. With a burst of strength, Granberia pushed her sword into him, sending him backwards by a few feet. Then she disappeared. Makoto put up his guard as best he could, unaware of where she would strike from. Thankfully, Siegfried nullified slashing damage, so at least he wouldn�ft get cut to pieces. With nary a sign to give her away, he felt her presence suddenly behind him. He had no time to react as the blunt side of her sword was slammed into his backside, sending him reeling forwards. Damn, that hurt. He spun around to face his foe again.
�gStill standing? Then how about this?�h Granberia charged him, poised to strike. Makoto braced for the incoming impact, ready to block her attack. Her sword came down from overhead, their swords clashing. Metal clanged harshly against their ears. That was a lot of power, sending him sliding back with a dull pain in his arms. It didn�ft help that Granberia had slid with him, her sword still bearing down over him. Things weren�ft looking great here. He wasn�ft seeing any opportunities to land a hit with his sword. Her swordsmanship was far better than his and she had more raw strength. As the two were sword locked once again, he knew that this was probably the best chance he had to catch her off guard.
�gCome on, boy! I thought I told you to give me your best shot!�h
Makoto gritted his teeth as he called upon Norn in his mind. For that brief moment, his muscles strained to hold his own against Granberia�fs pressure. Norn was a more magic focused Persona, lacking in strength, yet their proficiency with wind magic was by far the most potent magic he had available to him. As long as she stayed still�c �gPanta Rhei!�h
�gWhat did you-�h That was enough time. As Granberia was too focused on Makoto, she failed to react to the wind that was now rapidly whirring beside her. The air was spinning around her like a circular saw blade, two of them in fact, that pressed into her from opposite sides. For a few seconds, she stood there, enduring the pain of the wind threatening to lacerate her. The look in her eyes very quickly changed to one of pained surprise as she jumped backwards right as the spell ended. Finally, some breathing room. Plus that looked like it hurt pretty badly.
Granberia�fs face was stuck in shock as she looked at Makoto, now noticing Norn, the Sisters of Fate, floating above him. Looking back down at him, her face became gravely serious.
�gWho are you? Why can you use such magic?! I don�ft sense any monster blood in you!�h
Micaela had made him aware that magic was pretty much exclusively used by monsters and angels and that the only way pure humans could is through the aid of the Four Spirits, but he had no way around explaining that one. He was going to stick out no matter what. �gI�fm just a wandering soul who has a lot of willpower to spare.�h
�gWhat kind of answer is that? What kind of heroes is Ilias producing now?!�h
�gIlias? I have no idea, I�fm not a believer.�h
�gThen explain whatever that thing is! Why does it resemble angels so strongly?!�h
Makoto looked up at Norn. Admittedly, he can see what she�fs getting at with that point. Golden, one-winged women surrounding a giant clock. The resemblence was there, even if Norn is from Norse mythology.
�gHonestly, I only arrived on the Ilias continent a few days ago. I get why you�fd think that, but this isn�ft an angel. See?�h Makoto dissipated Norn�fs physical manifestation, leaving just him and Granberia standing there. �gIt�fs hard to explain, but think of it as an extension of my heart and soul. And besides, the angels are as much of a threat to me as they are to you.�h
�gHow so? And why should I believe anything of what you say?�h
�gYou said it yourself, I�fm just a human. I don�ft have any other way to fight effectively, but using my magic is sure to draw unwanted attention eventually. It�fs only a matter of time before the angels do something about me, given I�fm not on their side. I can�ft make you believe me, but I�fm just searching for a way home. I planned on making my way around, helping people out in the hopes I�fll find what I need to return home. The only reason I�fm even fighting you right now is because I just got here, and I didn�ft see a hostile takeover of the city helping me very much.�h
Granberia stared at him, judging the validity of his words. �gFor a stranger, you seem to know more than you should. Why is that?�h
�gLet�fs just say that I had the good fortune to meet a woman who was kind enough to help me out. The way I see it, I need the help of others to accomplish my goal. But from my understanding, aligning myself with the angels is a bad idea, so that just leaves me with humans and the ones who would more likely be able to help me, monsters. I�fm not looking to go on a crusade or a pilgrimage to kill the Monster Lord and the Four Heavenly Knights. I�fd rather be your ally than your foe.�h
�g...You�fre a total stranger, and yet I find it hard to not believe your words. Given your clothing and abilities, it does give some credence to what you say.�h Granberia closed her eyes, pondering what she was going to say next.
�gHeh, well you�fre quite interesting, I�fll give you that. Alright, let�fs say I do believe you. What do I gain from being your ally? And why should I stop taking over this city? Ilias is both of our enemies, and while your magic is impressive, my swordsmanship is far better than yours. Can you really stop me?�h
�gYou�fre right. If you went all out on me, you would likely beat me handily. But all this is doing is terrorizing humans. It�fll only make them hate monsters more and strengthen their faith in Ilias. Wouldn�ft it be better to make more people see that monsters don�ft need to be avoided and feared to live a happy life? There have to be better ways to shake their faith. The angels are your target, not humans. As for the first question, we can help each other. I don�ft know what the Four Heavenly Knights get up to in their spare time, but you seem like the respectable kind of woman that enjoys a foe she can go toe to toe with. I learn from you, you learn from me, and we both come out stronger for it. How does that sound?�h
Granberia stood there, looking him up and down, considering his words. After a good chunk of silence, she cracked a smile at him.
�gYou�fre one hell of a guy to say all of that with a straight face. It�fs not very often that I find someone who I can fight so earnestly with. You know what? Hit me with all you have! Show me your worth and I�fll consider your offer!�h Granberia readied her sword once more. Alright then. If that�fs how it is, then he�fd just have to show her his worth.
�gSiegfried!�h Makoto put his hand to his head as he cast Power Charge on himself, Siegfried holding his sword up to the sky. His body now coursed with newfound power. Granberia seemed amused.
�gSo you�fve got more than one inside of you, huh? Even better.�h
�gMaybe one of these days I�fll tell you more about how this works. You ready?�h
�gOf course! Come at me!�h Granberia and Makoto charged at each other. Even though this wasn�ft to the death, he had to make this count! Befriending Granberia would be quite a boon to him. As the two neared one another, they prepared their moves.
�gWith all my strength! Earth Rumbling Decapitation!�h
�gTempest Slash!�h
With Siegfried behind him, Makoto swung his sword from his side at Granberia as she was going for an overhead swing. As they collided, Makoto�fs sword grazed against hers, gliding down it until he connected with her right arm. He slashed at her scales, ending up just past her. Granberia�fs attack barely missed him, narrowly missing his right foot. True to its name, the earth loudly shattered beneath her sword. If that had hit him, the damage would�fve been immense. It did hit Siegfried however, causing him to vanish for the time being. The full weight of her sword would�fve been bad enough, but she can also utilize earth? She can probably use water and air as well. That�fll be noted for later.
The both of them turned around. Makoto looked at the crack in the earth while Granberia inspected her arm, looking at the sizable gash left behind. His slash had penetrated her scales. Some blood could be seen trickling out of her wound.
�gMmhmhmhm. I like you, boy. Alright. I accept your offer. I�fm not supposed to be here anyways, so I�fll leave. You�fve given me much to think about. But before I go, what�fs your name?�h Granberia offered her scaled hand to him.
�gMakoto Yuki. Thanks for listening, Granberia.�h For the first time since he began to speak with her, Makoto smiled at her. He reached out his hand and shook hers. Honestly, it was strange to be shaking a hand that didn�ft belong to a human. She still had five fingers, but her hands were scaled and had claws. A strange experience indeed.
�gJust keep growing stronger, Makoto. Don�ft make me regret this.�h
�gI don�ft intend to.�h
With that, Granberia let go of his hand and kneeled down on one knee before disappearing before his eyes. It wasn�ft the same as before, she more so faded away this time. Maybe it was teleportation magic? Oh well. This was quite an accomplishment on it�fs own anyway, making a friend in such a high place already. Surely they�fd meet again some time soon.
But now what? All that remained now was him and a bunch of unconscious soldiers.
�gHello? You can all come out! She�fs gone now!�h
Slowly but surely, people began to come out of their homes with all manners of compliments to hand out to him.
�gYoung man, how did you do it?�h �gYou saved our city! Thank you!�h �gYou must be real strong to drive her off on your own!�h
As it would turn out, being the �gsavior of the city,�h especially the capital of a continent, amasses quite a large crowd. A smaller amount of people were focusing on helping the wounded, but Makoto was kept at the center of attention for a good twenty minutes. The sun was beginning to set at this point. Fortunately, the crowd was starting to thin out now. He needed to ask somebody about a place to stay for the night. He approached a man who was still lingering around.
�gExcuse me, sir?�h
�gAh! Please, call me Cervantes. You may have heard of me before, hmmhmm. In any case, what can I do for you, lad?�h
�gI�fm new to Iliasburg. I was wondering if there was any place I could stay the night?�h
�gFor a hero like you? You should go to the Sutherland Inn at the west end of town! They have nothing but the best for brave people such as you!�h
�gThank you.�h Makoto bowed his head and set off towards the west.
After about five minutes of walking, he made it to the inn. The building looked very extravagant if not archaic to him. One of these days, he may get used to this style of architecture and stop viewing it as such. Out in front of the door, there was a welcome sign. It even had the price for staying the night here. What was it?
...2,400,000 per night? For a single person? Geez, what kind of service do they have here to warrant that kind of price? Well, that shoots down that plan. What was he going to do now? As he we was wondering this, an armed man confidently strut up the stairs to the door and knocked. The armor he was wearing looked scuffed in a few places. Looking at him closer, he was actually the one soldier that he saw run away from Granberia. A woman opened up the door from the other side.
�gHey, lady. I�fm a hero. Give me the hero discount!�h
�gAnd why should I? What kind of hero gets beaten by a monster that quickly?�h
�gBut�c but I�fm baptized!�h
�gUgh, are those fools at the temple accepting anybody these days? Go on! Get out of here!�h
The woman pushed him out the doors and down the stairs. The man ran away once more, attempting to save what little dignity he had left. As she stood there frowning at him, she noticed Makoto standing off to the side. Her expression softened as she saw him.
�gAh, the boy who saved the city! Please, won�ft you stay here for the night?�h
�gI�fm sorry ma�fam, but I�fm not baptized. I don�ft have the funds to stay here.�h
�gOh that doesn�ft matter to me, boy. I don�ft care if your baptized or not, it�fs your actions that truly make you a hero. You can stay here for the hero rate, two gold per night. I�fll bill the rest of it to Ilias Temple for making so many lousy heroes lately. Besides, I�fm the owner of this inn. Who�fs going to stop me from letting you in?�h
�gThank you for your generosity. In that case, I�fll gladly stay the night.�h
�gThen why are we still standing out here? Come on in!�h
Makoto�fs room for the night was equally as luxurious as the exterior of the inn. Lush red carpet, fancy paintings, a pleasantly soft bed, all hallmarks of the height of luxury. And as he soon found out, the Sutherland Inn�fs specialty dish, Ama-ama dango, was delicious. A superbly sweet delicacy that somehow didn�ft overpower the flavor of the dango, but he couldn�ft imagine eating it every day. As he finished the dango he was given, he rang the service bell. The owner of the inn came rather quickly. Must not be many other people here tonight.
�gSo, how are you enjoying your stay so far?�h She began to clean off the dishes he was provided.
�gIt�fs been very nice. I�fm guessing that your dango is quite popular around here?�h
�gOh very much so! It�fs made with Happiness Honey from Happiness Village just east of here. It goes over real well with anybody that has a sweet tooth. Although recently, all of my shipments for the honey have slowly stopped coming in. It�fs understandable, though. There have been fewer and fewer men there, so there�fs a labor shortage. Unfortunately, that means I can�ft make much more of my dango.�h
�gWhat�fs happening to the men?�h
�gFrom what I know, they�fve been having problems with harpies for over a year now. Say, seeing as how you dealt with that swordswoman, maybe you�fd be able to help out those poor villagers, hm?�h The owner gave him an expectant look as she collected the dishes and left the room. Well geez, she could�fve just asked him to go there instead of trying to guilt trip him. Still though, it was good opportunity for him to travel around and meet more people. Something to look forward to tomorrow. His encounter with Granberia certainly took a lot out of him. Thinking about it now, Granberia kind of reminded him of Akihiko in a sense. Maybe that played a part in how things panned out today. Well, at least he had a nice room to sleep in tonight. As the night carried on, Makoto went to bed, hoping tomorrow would bring similar results.
Makoto woke up in the morning refreshed and well-rested. A part of his mind still kept expecting the Dark Hour to occur, but fortunately it hasn�ft yet. He set off from the Sutherland Inn into town to procure supplies for his trip to Happiness Village. The weapon shop had a wide variety of armors and weaponry to choose from. The heavier armors would realistically hinder more than help him, and while he could use other types of weapons than his one-handed sword, he felt the most comfortable with them. He�fd have to keep an eye out for anything that stood out in the future though. At the tool shop, he stocked up on assorted supplies and foodstuffs. While there, the owner spoke with him.
�gHey there, hero. Seeing as how you�fre still in town, I think I have something that you might want to hear. We�fve been having problems with some bandits around here lately. There have been only a few sightings of them, but some are saying that there�fs a lamia, a vampire, and even a dragon among them! That�fs enough to scare off most people from trying to do anything about this situation, but we keep losing supplies because of them. The most I�fve heard is that they keep coming from the west, towards the Irina Mountains. If you have the time, I�fm sure people would be quite pleased to finally be free from this menace.�h
�gHmm, I do have some business to attend to today, but I�fll keep that in mind while I�fm here. Thanks.�h
�gPlease, I should be thanking you! If anybody can hopefully deal with this, it�fs the person who�fs already saved Iliasburg once before. In any case, here�fs your stuff! Come back soon!�h
Hmm, those certainly sounded like some hard-hitters. Actually, how did those types of monsters end up this far south? What did Micaela call them again? Yoma? It was a classification for monsters who had higher magical and physical power in comparison to other monsters with intelligence to boot. From what he knew, there shouldn�ft be many powerful monsters on this continent due to how strong Ilias�f presence is. For a vampire and a dragon to be spotted so close to the capital? That doesn�ft exactly add up. Regardless, he already made his plan for today. No real reason to change it now. With his supplies in tow and with the morning sun still rising, Makoto set off to the east towards Happiness Village.
Back out travelling on the road made Makoto realize something: he�fs fortunate that the climate around here is temperate. He didn�ft exactly have a change of clothing on hand. The best he could do was take off the jacket of his S.E.E.S uniform. He can do what he can to keep himself and his clothes clean, but anything warmer or colder will pose a problem in the future. There is a volcano and desert on Sentora after all. He�fd have to see about fixing that problem when he can. As Makoto walked along the road, he felt a light trembling beneath his feet. When he noticed it, he stopped in his tracks. What was causing this? The answer was soon provided to him when the earth gave way in front of him and a giant earthworm emerged from the ground! Well, it was more accurate to say it was an Earthworm Girl as where the head of the worm would be, there was a woman�fs, starting from her bare chest and up to her shaggy, brown hair. As she surfaced, she took a look around until her eyes landed on Makoto.
�gOh? A traveler? Would you mind if I wrung some semen from you?�h
�gSorry, but no.�h
This certainly wasn�ft what he was expecting to do today, fighting an over-sized earthworm. But hey, at least she was nice enough to ask first. Seeing where this was going, Makoto put his hand to his hand, a plan already in his mind.
�gAgi!�h Orpheus appeared and plucked the strings of his lyre, causing flames to burst on the earthworm girl. She was startled and recoiled from the pain and heat, squirming out of the ground to get away from the flames. �gBack off. Unless you want to dry out from the heat.�h
The earthworm girl looked rather fearful now. �gA-alright, okay!�h With that, she crawled back down into the hole she created. A dry worm is a dead worm, after all. Now that she was driven off, he could continue. A shame that he had to use force to get them to back down, but that�fs just how things tended to work here. Eventually, the road entered into a forest. No longer under the sun, the air was a bit cooler here. The conditions were pleasant, that is until another monster girl crossed his path. It looked to be a Bee Girl. The upper half of her thorax was a woman�fs, with accompanying blond tufts of fuzz around her wrists and neck, blonde hair, and two antennae sticking out from her head. The rest of her was decidedly bee in nature. Strangely enough, the abdomen of her bee body was attached to a giant honey-filled nest. Sounded handy, to an extent.
�gFufufu, a traveler? And an unbaptized one at that.�h She licked her lips as her face shifted into a predatory gaze. �gHow delicious~. I�fll spread my honey all over you and slowly lick it off. Let my tongue explore your body.�h
Sounded sticky, sweet, and not what he wanted right now. �gI think I�fll pass. Agi!�h Once more, Orpheus appeared and burnt another foe with a quick burst of flames. The Bee Girl�fs attitude rapidly changed as she scrambled away from the fire that suddenly attacked her. �gMove along. I�fd rather not scorch you.�h
�gY-you! Hmmph, fine.�h The Bee Girl retreated back into the forest, leaving Makoto to himself. Having Orpheus with him was quite useful for scaring away the weaker monsters who would attack him. If he�fs lucky, all it takes is a single hit of Agi to scare them off. He wasn�ft looking to obliterate them with any of his other far stronger Personas. To that end, hopefully luck would stay on his side for the time being. In any case, he was making good time so far. It was still midday. He should be able to make it to his destination before evening arrives. Makoto continued his brisk walk through the forest.
Eventually, the tree line broke and gave way to the small and humble farming settlement known as Happiness Village. Upon entering, Makoto saw many of its inhabitants tending to the bee farms and crops. For as normal as it may have sounded, all of the people working right now were women save one young boy, trying his best to move a bee farm down the road. The situation seemed pretty bad. As Makoto stood there, observing the village, one of the nearby women noticed and approached him.
�gWelcome to our humble village, young traveler. Unfortunately, we don�ft have much to offer to entertain you. Even worse, our shortage of manpower leaves us unable to produce much of our Happiness Honey. Truly, things are looking dire for us.�h
�gWhat exactly has been going on around here?�h
Before the woman could answer, a cry of help resounded throughout the village.
�gUwaaaaaah!!! Help me!�h
No time to lose. Makoto ran off in the direction of the cry. Further into the village, the little boy from earlier was struggling to not be carried away by a harpy. The harpy in question had shoulder length, pinkish red hair; bright blue eyes; matching straps around her body that covered her breasts and circled around her torso; two golden earrings on her wing-like ears, specifically the left one; a golden necklace with a red jewel attached to it and light brown feathers across her body. Makoto ran up to them with his sword drawn.
�gDrop the boy.�h
The harpy looked towards Makoto. �gHmm? I haven�ft seen you before. Are you a traveler?�h She looked Makoto over a few times before licking her lips. �gAlright. I�fll let the boy go.�h As she said, she released the grip her talons had on the boy.
�gRun. Get to safety.�h
�gA-alright mister!�h The boy ran off, presumably indoors where the rest of the villagers had gone. That just left Makoto and the harpy staring each other down.
�gI�fll just have to kidnap you instead~. You�fre way nicer than that boy, anyways.�h
�gI don�ft think you�fre going to get very far with that.�h
�gOh? Well if you�fre that eager, we can get to making children right here and now!�h
How straightforward of her. Looks like he had another fight on his hands. Makoto began to move his hand to his head, but he hesitated. The last thing he needed was for the villagers to be more afraid of him than the monsters he was fighting, and him throwing out magic might do that. He got away with it in Iliasburg, but he wasn�ft certain if he could here. Also, if she retreats, he�fll lose his advantage of surprise when she reports back to wherever she came from. So for now, he�fd just use his sword. Makoto went in for a swing on the harpy, but she just flew into the air to avoid him. Hmm. That�fll make this fight more complicated.
�gJust gonna sit up there and waste both our times?�h
�gWell I�fm not just gonna sit there and get stabbed, now am I?�h
�gFair point.�h Unfortunately, that left her with the advantage here. He�fd just have to wait for her to make a move and get in range of him. The harpy swooped down and rubbed her wings all over Makoto.
�gAren�ft they soft? Hmmhmm~�h Admittedly her downy wings were pleasant to the touch, but they weren�ft doing much to help her win the fight. This was, in fact, to his benefit. Makoto swung his sword at her, slicing into her thigh as she tried to dodge but was too slow to do so.
�gOw! What, not enough for you? Well fine!�h The harpy was quick to retaliate. She flapped into the air slightly above Makoto before dropping all of her weight onto him. Her talons locked around his shoulders as the force of her inertia was just enough to knock him off balance and onto the ground. That all happened a bit faster than he was expecting. The harpy chirped happily as she hopped down his body, holding his legs in place.
�gAlright, Mr. Eager. Ready to make some babies? My insides are all hot and tight for you~ Once your inside, you won�ft want to stop~�h
She is really laying it on thick here. Is this what all the other men here had to go through? Regardless, given that she had no hands on her wings, there was nothing holding down his arms. This was an easy opening. Makoto swung upwards, aiming right for her torso. It was an easy swing, a clean hit. What followed shocked the both of them.
His sword lodged itself deep in between her ribs, causing a large amount of blood to gush out of her wound. The harpy went wide-eyed as she looked down in terror and then into his eyes.
�gB�c But why?�h Tears welled up in the corner of her eyes as her body flopped over to his side. Shit. No no no no no no! Makoto scrambled up to his knees and bent over her body. She was still breathing, but it was shallow and she was bleeding out fast. Damn it, he wasn�ft used to holding back yet. He never needed to do so with Shadows, and the magic was easier for him to restrain with Orpheus. He couldn�ft let her die, she didn�ft deserve to. He wasn�ft ready to take another life so willingly. As Makoto stood up, the harpy faintly opened her eyes.
�gP-please don�ft leave me�c�h
This was going to guilt his conscience for weeks to come. He knew what he needed to do.
�gMelchizedek!�h Melchizedek manifested and cast Mediarahan on the both of them. As quickly as her wounds were made, they were healed completely. Makoto knelt down again to check her condition. Thankfully, the harpy slowly opened her eyes as she felt where her wound previously was with her wings. She looked up at him in shock.
�gWha- How did you do that? W-why?�h
Makoto shook his head at her. �gListen, I�fm sorry about that. I really am. But you�fre going to have to get out of here for the time being, alright? I don�ft want to hurt you again.�h
The harpy kept her look of confusion until she suddenly smiled at him. She got up onto her knees and pulled him into a hug. He wasn�ft quite expecting that, but he let her do it. It was the least he could do.
�gThank you. You really are nice, aren�ft you?�h With that, the harpy let go of him and got up onto her feet. She turned around and took off into the sky, but not before looking back at Makoto and smiling at him. Sigh, moral crisis averted. That was too close though. Maybe he�fd have to figure out how to seal his foes like Micaela suggested sooner rather than later. That�fd come later though. First, the villagers.
Makoto yelled out to the villagers. �gAlright, you all can come out now.�hSlowly, the villagers came out of their homes and approached him. So much for not using magic in the first place. They either didn�ft notice or didn�ft care. The little boy from earlier ran up to him first.
�gThank you so much, mister!�h
The other villagers reciprocated this praise until an elderly woman breached through the small crowd and stood before him.
�gYou must be quite skilled to drive off that harpy. You have our thanks.�h Even though it was a compliment, he wasn�ft exactly happy with how he�fd done it. �gWe�fve been suffering from the harpies kidnapping our men for over a year by this point. Ever since my husband was kidnapped, I�fve been serving as the acting village chief. But the way things are now, this village will soon be doomed without any men living here.�h
Some of the various women spoke up. �gFirst my husband died of illness, and then they took my only son, Mark. I miss them both dearly.�h �gI�fd only been married for a few months before they kidnapped my beloved.�h
�gDo you have any idea what happens to the men after their taken?�h
�gNot a single one. None of them have ever returned. Were they eaten? Kept as slaves? Nobody knows. What I do know is that we are powerless to do anything about this situation. Please, traveler. Would you be able to root the harpies out and save our village from destruction?�h
There was no doubt that he came here to solve this very problem, but he knew that he himself wouldn�ft be enough to fix this. He didn�ft come here to beat down one side into submission. If they wanted their problem solved, then they�fd need to realize they were never powerless to begin with. Their current methods wouldn�ft hold.
�gI�fd be happy to help, but I have some questions for all of you first. If you�fve been having this issue for so long, then why haven�ft you done anything about it by this point? I can�ft have been the first traveler to come here since this started.�h
The elderly woman hesitated for a moment. She opened her mouth to speak, only to be cut off by one of the younger women. �gActually, you�fre the eighth traveler we�fve asked to help us.�h
�gAnd did any of these other travelers return?�h
The woman�fs face saddened. �gNo�c�h
�gSo what? You�fve all sent seven unrelated people to their potential deaths to fix your problem?�h
The atmosphere shifted as many of the women were now averting there eyes towards the ground. The acting elder was beginning to look indignant. �gAnd what are we supposed to do? None of us are adventurers. We don�ft know how to fight.�h
�gEven so, don�ft you all love your husbands and sons? Why haven�ft you done anything in the meantime to help solve this issue?�h Again, very few of the women could even look at him. �gEven if you�fre not trained, that doesn�ft mean your powerless to do anything. Aren�ft you all tired of living under this constant fear?�h
A tense silence hung over the crowd. That is, until one of them spoke up.
�gHe�fs right. I want my son back! We all want our loved ones back!�h
�gYeah! We can�ft just keep asking random people to solve our problem!�h
The crowd�fs tension turned to murmurs of affirmation, more and more of the women agreeing with the sentiments being spoken. His words were having the effect he wanted. The elderly woman was still hesitant though.
�gEven if we all feel the same, we aren�ft equipped to deal with monsters. We�fre farmers, for crying out loud!�h
�gI still said that I�fd help, didn�ft I? It�fs just that you all need to realize that, ultimately, all of you are responsible for dealing with problems that affect your home. Even after it�fs solved, it�fs up to you to maintain the peace.�h
The voices from the crowd were growing louder. �gYeah, he�fs right! I�fm tired of living like this!�h �gIf we all work together, I�fm sure we can do it!�h Eventually, the old woman had to give in to the rising fervor of the crowd.
�gI still think it�fs too dangerous for us, but it seems we�fve reached an agreement.�h
Makoto nodded at her. �gGood. Now then, do you know where they come from?�h
The old woman pointed off towards the direction that the harpy from earlier flew towards. �gOur guess is that they have a settlement to the east, deeper into the forest. That�fs where they are typically spotted flying in from.�h
�gMmm. I have a plan in mind. Tonight, we�fll sneak in to their village. I�fll deal with any of their main threats, then all of you can rush in while they�fre surprised and contain the rest of the harpies. If they�fre disoriented, the numbers advantage should make this easy. The only thing I�fm missing is some sort of signal.�h
One of the woman near the back of the crowd spoke up. �gOh! We have the supplies to make this handy little magic cylinder that you can throw up in the air! It�fll pop real loud and light up the sky enough for all of us to see!�h
�gPerfect. I�fll go in first alone and disrupt them. When I pop that signal, that�fs the cue for you all to act. Does that work for everybody?�h
The women gave a unanimous yes to his plan. With all that set, the only thing to really do know was to wait until nightfall. There was something nagging Makoto in the back of his mind though. The harpy from earlier didn�ft really seem cruel. More so nice than anything, if not a bit forceful. He couldn�ft find many reasons to condone kidnapping, but she seemed pretty focused on, in her words, �gmaking babies.�h If she was anything to go off of, were the harpies really eating or enslaving the men? He wouldn�ft know for sure until he got there, but he felt that neither of those scenarios were at play here.
As the sun began to set, Makoto and the villagers set out deeper into the forest. They were mainly armed with pitchforks, torches (unlit for now), and other farming implements. It�fs not much, but it�fd do the job. They all traveled further east until they began to see tree houses in the canopy. They were fairly simple huts that were made out of straw and wood. It would appear that they have located the harpy village. With the magic cylinder in tow, Makoto separated from the group and snuck his way through the village. With quiet steps, he snaked his way around the bases of the trees, looking for any signs of activity or major buildings. If he could find a group of them to distract or find their leader (if they had one), that�fd be his goal. He did remember Micaela saying that many of the monster races had queens to lead them, but he wasn�ft certain if there would be one here or not. It would be to his benefit if she was though. Dealing with their leadership would mean an easy victory.
Makoto continued undetected through the village. There was barely any activity going on above him. Maybe harpies were inactive during the night? Well, early birds do get the worm, so there�fs a good chance that they go to sleep relatively early into the night. Makoto kept going until he happened upon a particularly tall tree with a house bigger than the rest sitting in it. If a harpy queen would be anywhere, it�fd be there. As he crept towards the tall tree, a voice called out to him.
�gDo you need something from my house?�h
Well there goes his cover. Makoto got up and turned to face the voice. A regal looking harpy floated down in front of him. In many regards, her beauty was striking. Long, light purple hair with a proud, pink feather on top of her head and two pink feathered ears; vibrant green eyes; innumerable pink and purple, soft looking feathers; a tuft of white feathers around the base of her neck; an ornate golden headband and necklace with some accompanying red and blue jewels; and a very light blue gown that barely covered her breasts and stomach. Was it a good thing that he was starting to get used to the way monster girls dressed? Probably. Regardless, everything about this woman screamed �gqueen�h to him.
�gYou must be the queen.�h
�gThat is correct, young man. I am Queen Harpy. I would ask what you want in coming here, but I have a feeling I already know the answer.�h
�gYou�fve gone through this whole routine before, haven�ft you?�h
�gI have, but this time, it�fs a bit different.�h What did she mean by that? �gYou can come down now.�h On command, Makoto saw another figure descend from the trees above. It turned out to be the harpy he had fought earlier! He wasn�ft totally surprised by that. It made sense that she would report back, but what exactly did this mean for him? She landed beside Queen Harpy and flashed him a smile.
�gI was told that you fought and nearly killed a certain harpy earlier today. Normally I would hate to hear such news, but the rest of what I heard intrigued me. Instead of finishing her off, you saved her life. A decision that both I and her appreciate.�h
Hmmm. Maybe if he played his cards right here, this could be resolved without any further fighting. �gRight. Again, I�fm sorry about that. I didn�ft mean to go that far. I didn�ft exactly come here to kill anybody.�h
The harpy didn�ft say anything to that, content with letting her queen continue with the conversation. �gHmhm, well aren�ft you an interesting boy. You�fre not like the other humans around here. I suppose I should formally ask what you hoped to accomplish in coming here.�h
�gWell the villagers wanted me to come here and root all of you out from your homes. Myself? I wanted to hear your side of the story. Even one encounter with a harpy was enough to clue me in to the fact that you guys aren�ft exactly malicious.�h
�gThen that would make you wiser than them.�h
�gThat doesn�ft mean I condone what you�fre doing. I�fm still here on the villagers�f behalf to figure out what�fs been going on. They need their men back.�h
�gIf they want them back so badly, then why haven�ft they come here to do so yet?�h
�gMainly because they think that they�fve all been eaten or enslaved by this point.�h
Both of the harpies were taken aback, but the Queen was more so angry. �gWhy would we do such a thing?! Do they think of us as cruel and heartless?!�h
�gProbably. I�fm not a believer in Ilias myself, but all those people have been raised under the influence of the religion for their whole lives. They don�ft know any better other than to fear monsters. I�fd wager that most of them barely even see monster girls to begin with.�h
�gTheir petty beliefs are the reason we even have to resort to kidnapping men!�h
�gAnd why is that exactly? What have you been doing with all of the men?�h
The Queen Harpy calmed herself down a bit. �gHarpies are an exclusively female race, so we need human men in order to survive. Without them, we would die out. But because of their distrust of us, none of them would willingly interact with us. We were faced with the threat of extinction, and I had to make a decision.�h
This time, the other harpy spoke up. �gAll we want to do is make the men happy and have big families! We�fd never want to hurt them in any way!�h
�gAll of them are alive and well, but it�fs not like we can afford to let them go either.�h
He could work with this. Clearly they weren�ft evil, but the situation both sides were in didn�ft give them many good answers at the time. �gExtinction is certainly a dire threat, but there had to be a better way to go about dealing with it. In fact, there still is. Happiness Village needs men just as much as the harpies do. The way things are now, one of the villages will be driven to destruction if a compromise isn�ft made.�h
�gAnd why should we compromise with them? Their bigotry caused all of this in the first place!�h
�gYou�fll just have to be patient with them. If they see that their husbands and sons are still alive, then both sides should be able to bridge the divide between them. It�fll be up to the men to mediate and convince the villagers. They�fre the common factor here. Besides, I�fm sure that the men would be happy to see their old families again. If you truly don�ft want peace, then it�fs either Happiness Village becomes abandoned and you run out of new men for your village, or we end up having to fight. Not very appealing options, are they?�h
Queen Harpy fell silent, contemplating Makoto�fs words. While she was thinking, the other harpy leaned closer to her head and whispered something into her ear. He couldn�ft hear what was said. He could only hope that it was in his favor. When she was done, the Queen Harpy looked to her subordinate and nodded her head.
�gYou argument makes a lot of good points. I would be willing to go along with this, but I have a favor to ask of you first. Based on what I�fve been told, there�fs more to you than meets the eye.�h
That had Makoto raising an eyebrow at them. �gWhat exactly are you alluding to with that?�h
�gDon�ft play coy with me, boy. For a human, isn�ft it strange how you can use magic?�h
�gIs my willingness in verifying your claim going to affect your previous decision at all?�h
�gThat would be unfair of me to do so. If you wish not to, then I�fll understand.�h
Well, having further connections to a queen, regardless of her race, could prove beneficial to him. It shouldn�ft hurt to show them. �gHm. Well I am just a human, but I can show you what you want to see. Stand back a bit.�h The two took a few steps backwards for him. Makoto once again mimicked his evoker with his hand, calling forth his Persona. �gOrpheus!�h Orpheus manifested behind him, plucking the strings of his lyre to cast Agi above the three of them. It briefly illuminated the space above them before snuffing itself out. Both Queen Harpy and the other harpy looked on in interest at Orpheus.
�gSee?! There it is again! Except this time it�fs a different one! But it still looks cool!�h
�gMmmmmm, how intriguing. A human who can use magic, and in such a strange way. What is the figure that you just summoned?�h
�gTo keep it brief, this is my Persona. It�fs the manifestation of the strength of my heart and will. My magic comes from them, and it changes based on which one I summon. Typically, Persona users only have one, but I�fm a special case.�h So that harpy did see his Persona. That was the least of his worries on his mind at the time. Thinking back, neither the Earthworm Girl nor the Bee Girl made any indication of being able to see his Personas. What exactly dictates who can see them in this world?
�gHmhm, what an interesting boy you turned out to be. As much as I�fd like to sit here and ask more questions, it would be better if we dealt with the matter at hand.�h
�gYou�fre right.�h Orpheus�f form disappeared from view. �gWe should hurry. The rest of the villagers are nearby, waiting for me to signal them. If you gather everybody here, then I�fll go grab them. I�fll explain the situation to them so they don�ft freak out.�h
�gThen we shall meet again very soon.�h Queen Harpy took off with the other harpy into the trees. Makoto began to retrace his way back through the trees to where he left the villagers. This time around, he could hear plenty of wings flapping around above him. First a few pairs and then more and more afterwards. It didn�ft take too long before he found the trees that some of the villagers were hiding behind. The ones that noticed him looked concerned. As he got closer, one of the women spoke to him in a hushed tone.
�gHey, what happened to the plan? What�fs going on?�h
�gGather everyone together, I�fve got good news.�h The woman nodded at him and set about gathering their small group together. When gathered, Makoto addressed them all.
�gGood news: all of your husbands and sons are alive and well. Queen Harpy wishes to speak with all of you to hopefully sort this situation out.�h That certainly got the crowd stirring with emotion. There were many gasps and murmurs of happiness rippling across them. The elder spoke up first.
�gThey�fve been alive this whole time? Why haven�ft any of them returned?�h
�gIf you want to find out, then follow me. Just try to keep a level head when we get there.�h Makoto turned around and began walking towards the queen�fs home again. All of the women, eager to see their loved one�fs again, followed after him. Hopefully, this wouldn�ft blow up in his face. It really is up to the men to convince both sides to get along.
Makoto led his crowd into the village. Further in, he could see a bunch of people standing in a crowd, waiting for them. Within the crowd, he could see similar groupings of a man, a harpy or two, and presumably their chicks all throughout with the Queen Harpy at the front. Upon seeing the men, many of the women rushed ahead of Makoto. He was fine with that, this was out of his hands now. He made his way to the side of the crowd, next to Queen Harpy. No matter where he looked, similar scenes played out.
�gHey mom!�h �gMark! You�fre alive!�h �gOh I�fm doing just fine, mom! I, uh, I�fd like you to meet my wife, Piana, and our daughter, Pipi.�h �gH-hello there.�h �gGrandma?�h
�gFather!�h �gHi, sweetie! I hope you�fve been doing well! Uhm, say hello to your new stepmother, Reina.�h
�gImpossible! You were that traveler that we sent out a year ago!�h �gOh, I�fm not a traveler anymore, ma�fam. I�fm happily married with eight kids now.�h
All of the villagers were rapidly realizing that not only were their loved one�fs alive, their families had grown rather quickly. Maybe too quickly, as some of them were looking tensely at each other, unsure of how to properly react. Eventually, an old man made his way to the front of the crowd.
�gAs you can see, the harpies are our family now too! It wouldn�ft be right if we let our families keep fighting each other!�h
�gChief?! You�fre alive too?�h
�gOh, I�fve never been better! I�fve never felt more alive in my life!�h
The chief�fs wife walked up to him, glaring the whole time. �gIs that so? Come over here, dear. We need to have a talk.�h She grabbed him by his ear and dragged him off to the side.
Now that the crowd was settling down, Queen Harpy addressed the villagers. �gYou see? The men were safe the whole time. Harpies can only be females, so we need the men if we want our species to survive.�h
One of the women argued back. �gDid you really have to take them from us though?�h
�gWith humans hating monsters more and more, what else were we supposed to do? All of you would�fve refused us right from the start. I didn�ft like this choice any more than you all did.�h
From the side, the village chief butted into the conversation whilst his wife was wringing out his neck (literally). �gHey, come now! We can�ft let this drag down both of our families! We should combine both Happiness Village and the harpy village into one big family!�h
The men shouted out their agreements. �gYeah, I don�ft wanna see either of our families fighting each other!�h �gYou guys don�ft deserve to be sad from worrying about us! I�fm sure we can be happy with one another!�h
The women were still trying to come to terms with these changes. �gWell, my son is married now and I have grandchildren, so it�fs hard to complain about that.�h �gI�fm glad my dad�fs safe, but now I have two stepmothers and five stepsisters?�h Acceptance was slowly making it�fs way across the crowd. Makoto was content with sitting back and watching their progress. He�fd gotten them to this point, he was confident that they�fd be able to come to an agreement.
Soon the moon hung over the village as Queen Harpy and the acting chief were hashing it out. �gWell then, we will stop sending harpies out to forcibly kidnap men.�h �gHrm. We will have men sent over to marry harpies. In turn, the harpies will help tend to the bee farms and the crops.�h It seems they�fve finally come to an agreement of sorts. Afterwards, everyone was gathered in the center of the village for a festival, dancing and drinking in the torchlight. Harpies, men, and women alike all took part in the merriment and the joining of their villages. Makoto sat off towards the outskirts of the celebrations on an overturned log. While he was happy for them, this was their festival, not his. Was the end result ideal? Not exactly, the men are still sort of being treated like sacrifices. But it was a step towards them coexisting. They could work out the kinks eventually. At some point during the night, Queen Harpy approached him.
�gYou�fve been a great help to all of us today. Are you not going to join in as well?�h
�gNah. This is for them, not for me. Besides, that�fs not really my thing.�h
�gHow humble of you. A good quality for the strongest human I�fve ever met.�h
�gAnd what gives you that idea?�h
�gI could tell just from the way you carry yourself, regardless of knowing of your capabilities. Your strange appearance and calm demeanor give away more than you think. I will say though, healing magic of that power is certainly nothing to scoff at. You certainly caught the attention of the harpy you met earlier today.�h
�gAh. Again, sorry about that. Was she the one that convinced you to speak with me?�h
�gI would�fve approached you regardless, but I will say that her vouching for you did start you off on the right foot. It�fs not everyday you meet a human on this continent that sympathizes with monsters. I assure you that she thinks quite highly of you.�h
�gMmm. Well, things worked out in the end. That�fs all that matters.�h
�gOf course. Say, I don�ft believe I ever learned your name. Is it too late for formal introductions?�h
�gOh, right.�h Makoto stood up and turned towards Queen Harpy. �gI�fm Makoto Yuki.�h
�gA pleasure to formally meet you, Makoto. Seeing as how you�fve been so helpful, I�fll allow you to call me by my actual name: Lucretia.�h
�gHm. The royal treatment, huh? I�fm flattered.�h
�gOh you silly boy~ You have no idea what the royal treatment is.�h She chuckled. Makoto just smiled at her and chose not to read too hard into it. �gIn any case Makoto, could I ask you to come to my tree house once the festivities are over so I can properly thank you for your efforts?�h Lucretia winked at him while saying that. What was she playing at?
�gYou don�ft have to go out of your way for me. I�fm already happy enough with how things turned out.�h
�gOh please, the pleasure is all mine~ Just make sure to stop by afterwards, will you?�h
...After all of this, it would be rude to turn her down. �gAlright, I will.�h
�gGreat. See you then.�h With that, she took off. For the time being, he could only guess at what she had in mind. There were a few ideas, but he didn�ft want to go assuming anything right yet. Better to just hold those thoughts for later.
As the night went on, it looked like everyone else in the village had fallen asleep. Makoto was used to staying up this late, so he was fine. With nothing else to do, he made his way up the Queen Harpy�fs tree house. At least they had ladders to accommodate for the wingless. As he made his way to the top, he heard her call out to him.
�gHmhm, you came.�h Her voice came from inside the house.
�gI said I would. What did you have in mi-�h As Makoto turned and entered the open doorway, he saw the Queen Harpy standing there. Naked. Her top from before didn�ft leave much to the imagination, but still. Whoa.
�gDon�ft you think someone like yourself deserves something special?�h
For the first time in a while, Makoto was truly stunned. He could feel the blood rushing to his face. He sort of suspected that this was going to happen. This was (to his understanding) normal behavior for monster girls, but this was far more personal for him. He was thrown off his guard here.
�gYou�c really don�ft have to go out of your way to do this, you know?�h
�gSilly boy, do you really think that I don�ft want to do this? Someone with a position like mine, as the queen of a race, we can�ft just take any man we can find. Only the absolute best of men deserve the pleasure of mating with me. However, it can also get rather lonely, watching as all of the other harpies get to have all the fun. I�fve been waiting for someone like you to come along. Someone who would make for a perfect mate for me. Call it intuition, but I don�ft believe that you are spoken for, yet. So how about you stay here with me and we can save the harpies from extinction together? What do you say?�h
...That�fs a bold proposition. For plenty of other men, this sounded like a done deal already. But�c
�gI�fm sorry to say this, but I�fll have to decline. There are other things I have to do.�h
�g...I didn�ft think you would. Just for tonight then. No strings attached, we can go at it all night long. Then tomorrow, you�fll be on your way. Would that be better?�h
She�fs very insistent on this. He could understand why given her reasons. Even so�c
�gI really can�ft. Truth be told, I don�ft belong here. On Ilias, Sentora, or Hellgondo. I�fm just trying to find my way home and help people along the way. I�c For that sort of thing, it�fd be wrong of me to just up and leave afterwards.�h Sure, he wasn�ft romantically involved with anybody yet, but he knew he�fd have to leave all of the people he�fd come to know here eventually. A relationship of that level, it wouldn�ft sit well with him to have to abandon it at some point. Besides, he�fd just met her today.
�g...I understand. It�fs a shame, but I respect your desire for proper commitment.�h Lucretia covered herself up again. �gYou�fre full of mystery, aren�ft you?�h
�gWhat can I say? I�fm just a lost traveler, trying to find his way back home.�h
�gHm. In any case, thank you once again for helping our village. Good night, Makoto.�h
�gGood night.�h With that, they parted ways for the night. He still wasn�ft used to how quickly these kinds of relationships formed in this world. It actually hurt a bit to turn her down. Her offer seemed genuine in every way, but thankfully she took his answers in stride. With Lucretia leading the harpies, he felt confident that they�fd maintain the peace with Happiness Village. That�fs enough for tonight though. It was time to rest.
Morning came and everybody was gathered near the edge of the harpy village. Spirits were high as they saw each other off.
�gThanks for coming over!�h �gSee you guys soon!�h �gYeah! Let�fs play again soon!�h �gWe can�ft wait to have all you over at Happiness Village!�h �gTake care until then!�h
It was a promising sight to see. It was about time that he set off too. Before he could leave�c
�gHeeey! Wait up!�h Makoto turned to face the voice, but he already knew who it was. It was the first harpy he met yesterday. She was hurriedly flapping her wings as she landed next to him.
�gHey! You�fre going on an adventure, aren�ft you? Can�c can I come with you?�h
�gOh? Are you sure about that?�h
�gYeah! Life in the village can get a bit boring at times. This sounds way more exciting! Besides, I already asked the village chief and the queen and they were okay with it!�h
Queen Harpy walked up from behind her and chimed in. �gI thought it would be a good experience for her. The better off she is, the better off the village is. I don�ft mean to impose her on you, of course. It is your choice.�h
An interesting offer. �gSo you know, I�fm going to be traveling all over. Through Sentora and maybe even Hellgondo. It�fll probably get pretty dangerous at certain points. Are you sure you�fre up for that?�h
�gMmhmm! I can just fly if I ever need to. I can do other things to help out as well! I can scout ahead for you, fly you places and gather food for us! And maybe some other things if you like�c�h She flashed him a wink at that last line. Hmm...
Well he had been meaning to meet some travel companions. This wasn�ft quite how he envisioned it going, but it shouldn�ft hurt to bring her along, right? Besides, a flying companion did sound useful. �gAlright, welcome aboard. I don�ft think we ever got each other�fs names. I�fm Makoto Yuki.�h
�gYaaaay! Thank you so much, Makoto! I�fm Ipeia!�h Ipeia was overjoyed, jumping in place with a beaming smile on her face.
Queen Harpy had a calm smile on her face. �gStay safe, you two. You�fre welcome back here anytime.�h
As everyone finished their goodbyes, Makoto and Ipeia set off back towards Iliasburg. It was an uneventful trip, but that was a good thing here. While walking, Makoto felt the need to bring something up with his new companion.
�gSay Ipeia, you don�ft have any�c hard feelings about what I did, do you?�h
�gWell, it really hurt at the time. It was honestly the scariest moment of my life. But then you went and saved me! I get that you didn�ft mean to hurt me that badly though. Why else would you have healed me so quickly?�h
�gRight. I don�ft think I ever would have forgiven myself if you�fd died because of my carelessness.�h
�gIf it helps, I forgave you the moment you fixed me up, good as new! A girl doesn�ft forget a guy doing that for her so easily, you know. That�fs why I wanted to go with you! That and your powers look cool!�h
Makoto took a deep breath out. That certainly helped to clear his conscience. �gGood to hear. Well, here�fs to a fun journey, Ipeia.�h
�gHehe! This is gonna be great!�h Ipeia took off into the air in her excitement, soaring through the air above Makoto. With how much optimism she had, it was hard for him to not be affected by it. With a clear mind and a new friend at his side, Makoto continued walking back to Iliasburg, filled with confidence for his future endeavors.
