CH.122 What I want to keep a secret

CH.122 What I want to keep a secret

When I pulled up to the Watchman manor gates, it didn’t take long before the gates opened. The guards didn’t even check the inside of Overdrive. Perhaps they should be more careful in the future.

“You should probably educate your guards to at least check the people in a carriage before letting them in.” I told Christina.

“Isn’t this fine? Only you have one of these golem carriages.” She said.

“Well at the moment. But someone might attempt to recreate it and use it to sneak into the manor grounds.” I told her.

“I see. Then I’ll be sure to tell them to always check the inside of your carriage.” Christina said.

“Thanks. I appreciate that you take safety at least somewhat seriously.”

As we got out of Overdrive, some of the staff was waiting for us. Not everyone was present like they were for Brandon, but most of them were still here.

“Welcome home, Madam.” They welcomed Christina home.

“Yes. I’m home.” She responded.

I then heard some quick footsteps and Alice burst out from the front door.

“Mom. You are back.” She came and hugged her mother. “Brian. You came back as well. It's so good to see you again.”

“We were only away for two days.” I responded.

“Is that any way to respond to your fiancé?” Alice asked.

“We are not engaged.” I commented.

“But we could be. Just give me the bracelet.” She said back.

“... I’ll think about it.” I told her.

I can never really figure out Alice. Does she actually love me? Or is this just her being sheltered and attaching herself to the first male of appropriate age? Or perhaps something to do with the card I installed into her?

It might be all of those reasons combined.

I’m just afraid I won’t be able to truly respond to her feelings. I know she is cute and hard working, but I really don’t feel the same kind of love towards her as I did towards Laura before our breakup.

Well, then again, going on a date with her was nice. ....

Yeah. I’ll think about it.

“Aren’t you going to tell me about everything you did in the dungeon?” Alice looked at me with anticipation.

“Well it’s not that special. Just general management things.” I told her.

“And fighting an A-rank monster.” Christina added.

“What?!” Alice yelled out. “You fought an A-rank monster?”

“Oh yeah. That happened. And Christina fought a lava golem.” I recalled the two big fights we had.

“A lava golem? Aren’t they like super dangerous?” Alice asked.

“Well compared to the sword-horn bull Brian fought, a lava golem isn’t that bad.” Christina said.

“Sword-horn bull? I don’t even know what that is.” Alice said.

“It’s just a big quadrupedal monster with two massive horns.” I told her.

“How large was it?” She asked.

“Something like seven meters tall.” I told her.

“... I’m not sure how large that would be. I’ve never seen a beast that large, so it’s difficult to imagine.” She said.

“It’s a little bit bigger than my Trojan Horse. Oh, you didn’t actually see it, so that doesn’t solve the problem.” I tried to make a comparison to one of my monsters, but Alice wasn’t there when I summoned The Trojan Horse. “All you need to know is that it was large.”

“You’d better show me this horse at some point.” Alice demanded.

“Sure. I can do that. But not while we are in town.” I answered.

“Yes. Let’s head out right now.” Alice decided.

“No you won’t.” Christina interrupted. “We just got back home. You’ll have time for that later.”

“... fine. Later it is then.” Alice agreed with not much backtalk.

I dropped my personal stuff in my room, well in the room I was staying in, and after relaxing for a bit, I was called for dinner.

“Brian.” Alice called to me as I entered the dining room. She was the first one there.

“Hey Alice.” I responded.

“Before dinner, I want to tell you about something amazing that happened.” Alice said.

“Oh, did you learn a new spell or something?” I asked.

“No. Something better.” She said.

Something better than a new spell? Could she have learned telekinesis already? Or perhaps she learned how to fly like Mana and Mahad.

“Then, did you perhaps get a new skill?” I asked.

“Yeah. It was a few days ago. A day before I left for the dungeon with Christina.” I reminded him.

“Hmm. I think Christina might have mentioned something like that. Is that really something on the level of resurrection? Is it something you really think has to be hidden?” He asked.

“Well depending on how it is used, fusion is more powerful than resurrection. When I did it with Jenna, her status value in magic multiplied by about 4. And I didn’t even use the most powerful monster for it or anything.” I told him.

...

...

“And why didn’t you tell me about this before? If I knew you could do something like that, I would have sold my soul to you, so you would do it to Alice.” Brandon asked.

...

“Yeah, I’m not a demon. I don’t want your soul. And I’m not messing up someone without their permission.” I responded.

“Then if I give you permission, would you do it to me?” He asked.

I thought about it for a second, but when I remembered how Fire Sorcerer acted afterwards, I knew I couldn’t do it. Unless...

“I don’t really think that it is a good idea. When I fuse someone with a monster, the monster’s loyalty towards me affects the person they fuse with. And if the person doesn’t have loyalty towards me, the monster won’t like it. And that could lead to all kinds of problems in the long run.” I told him. “So I guess if you swear absolute loyalty to me, I can do it.”

“Hmm. Well I did say I would sell you my soul. But at the same time I would like to keep my body for myself, so I’ll have to refuse for now.” Brandon said.

“Well just contact me if you change your mind. But can we get back on track for now?” I asked.

“Yes. We did get a bit sidetracked. Now then, I will question you about some of the dungeon details.” Brandon got serious again. “Firstly. The dungeon can produce mithril swords. Yes or no?”

“Yes. As well as axes.” I responded. I think the only mithril weapons that could be made are axes and swords. No spear at the moment.

“I see.” He responded as he wrote something down. “And the dungeon can also make magic bags. Correct?”

“Yes. A small one called a fanny pack and two different size backpacks.” I told him.

Again, he wrote something down.

“Oh yeah, it can also make magic flasks.” I added.

“Yes. Thank you for confirming that.” Brandon said as he wrote things down.

We went through more of the dungeon items one by one. The three different fabrics, cardboard, jewelry and the house items I analyzed. I didn’t mention the sleeves as they really have no use for anyone other than me and they can only be made by me or Christina. There is no trade point for the sleeves.

“Thank you. That is all for the report.” Brandon said as he moved the paper he was writing on to the side. ... yeah. They have paper, but not cardboard. The inconsistencies.

“So that was everything? Can I go now?” I asked.

“Sorry, but there is one more thing.” Brandon said as I was about to leave. “Now this isn’t something for a report or anything and is just a personal request from me. Would you take Alice with you and make her strong?”

...

...

Who are you and what have you done to Brandon?

“Are you feeling alright?” I asked him.

“Are you insulting me?” He responded.

“No. I just have no idea what you are doing. Why are you acting like this? Why would You entrust Alice to Me?” I asked, putting emphasis on some words. “You never let her do anything. You barely even let her go outside the house, right. And now you want to let her go on an adventure. So, what happened? Why now? And why with me?” I asked.

...

...

“I know you are strong. I knew you were. Ever since you took down the wyverns, I knew. But I also know with power like that comes trouble. But then what you did after the sprites came into consideration. With that, I know you will keep Alice safe, no matter what. And that is why I would like you to take her with you on your travels.” Brandon reasoned.

“I see. So that was the tipping point. I’ll accept that. But what about Christina?” I asked.

“She has always wanted her children to be free to do what they want to do. And if you are worried about Alice, you should have realized that she loves you. She wants to come with you. I won’t force you to love her, but I would like it if you could at least consider it.” Brandon said.

“... love is complicated.” I said. “I know I like her. On some level.” But I don’t love her like I loved Laura.

“Then you should give it time. Neither of you is under any rush to get married. But I trust you will keep her safe in that way as well. Until you either commit to her or she finds someone else.” Brandon said.

“If that is what you want, I can do that. I’ll take her with me and keep her safe.” I agreed. I might sacrifice some of my own freedom, but if that is the price I pay for Alice’s freedom, I think it’s worth it.

“Good. Thank you.” Brandon said.

...

...

After a few more seconds of silence, I realized we were done and I got up to leave.

“Oh, and Brian.” Brandon called.

I turned around to face him. “What is it?”

“Good night.” He said.

“... Good night.” I responded and left the room.

After I returned to my room, I had a quick bath and went to bed.