Taking over the Abyss

52- No Laughing Matter

When you woke up again, you were laying against a tree. Your vision of the Chasm was obscured by two of your loyal subjects, who had been patiently waiting for you to wake up. As soon as you reached up to groggily rub away the cobwebs of sleep from your eyes, you were met with their gentle protesting.

"If you were tired, why in the world did you decide to fall asleep here?" Enjou asked, the slight harshness in his tone stemming from his concern over your wellbeing.

Since you were still processing being awake, you took a moment to register everything. You certainly didn't remember falling asleep here. Last you remembered, you'd crawled all over Dain and then passed out on him. The memory made your face feel hot. Well, that was embarrassing. You'd have to apologize to him for that when you saw him again.

"Dunno," you said, since you had no real idea how you got here. Either you'd stumbled over and passed out again after a chain of events you had a fuzzy recollection of, or Dain had carried you and then put you down here. Enjou huffed, slightly exasperated by your lack of explanation.

"Milady, please accept my most sincere apologies for being unable to reach you when you needed it most," Leiptr pleaded, already halfway to bowing to you. He seemed genuinely distressed, having been worried sick when he was unable to check up on you like he usually could, "If I may, I implore you to return to Enkanomiya to rest properly. I, no, we would completely lost if something were to happen to you."

"Sorry to worry you like that, but I'm feeling just fine," you tried to reassure him that you were alright, feeling a little guilty over how badly they'd all been worried about you, "I just needed a little rest, that's all."

Leiptr looked to Enjou, silently pleading with the other man to try and talk some sense into you. Enjou breathed a soft sigh, "If it's a pride thing, you already know that none of the others would be disappointed if you needed to rest after any crazy events. If anything, everyone would be impressed that you managed to defeat two elites and forced them to submit by yourself."

That's right, you defeated those two Lectors. Trying to change the topic, you asked about them, "How are those two doing?"

"They already tried slacking off, so Osial yelled at them," Enjou said. He stared down at you with serious molten gold eyes, "Don't try changing the subject. If you're injured, then you need to rest."

"Like I said, I'm fine," you crossed your arms over your chest, "Besides, that's what I was doing in the first place. The only thing that happened was that I got a little dizzy."

Seeing your refusal to budge, Enjou attempted to form a compromise, "In that case, I suppose one of us will just have to come along with you."

"I must agree," Leiptr nodded along with Enjou's proposal, "If only to ensure that no harm comes to you, Your Majesty."

The two already looked like matters had been settled, leading you to make your own proposal, "How about this? I'll return to Enkanomiya by nightfall, and not a second later. If something comes up, I'll call on you. I don't want to keep you from your usual duties. I'm just planning to get to Sumeru City anyway, no more crazy adventures for today."

"My duty is first and foremost to serve your every whim," Leiptr said, raising a hand to his chest, "But... if milady insists, then I mustn't refuse her wishes."

Since he'd been by your side the longest, Leiptr had the most faith in your word. To a degree, you could understand why he was so insistent on keeping you safe, but in most situations he or any of the others could reach you within seconds. You had gotten much stronger since being stabbed through the chest, too.

Enjou was a little surprised to see how easily Leiptr had been convinced, but caved to your insistence, knowing that neither of you would get anywhere otherwise, "... not a second later than nightfall."