Author's Notes: I don't have a title for this chapter yet, sorry! If you have an idea, shoot it down in the comments below! And if you enjoy what you read, please don't forget to press the little star button!
"It's so bright..." Naito squinted his eyes as his body wafted through the chilly air towards the beaming violet light ahead of him. Around him was nothing but thick, gray mist. What a peaceful dream this was. Just himself and the music of the whistling winds. But as he peacefully floated through the air, a realization occurred to him. This was the place where met that Virtue. Was this not actually a dream? What could he have been brought back here for? The first time it was because he nearly died, wasn't it? Was he having another near-death experience? But nothing happened to him, did it?
"Worry not, child, you are fine." Echoed the booming, thunderous voice from last time.
"Are you reading my thoughts?" Naito felt a sudden invasion of privacy.
"Child, come to me." Humility didn't answer his question.
"I don't have much of a choice in that matter, do I?" his body was already wafting towards the light on its own anyway. He came to a stop once he reached the center, where the Virtue was waiting for him, sitting upon a colorless throne. "So, you're able to just summon me here at any time, I assume?" Naito asked.
"Child, it seems that you have completed the mission I gave you." The Virtue said.
Answering my questions would be nice, Naito wanted to say, but he'd rather not get on the bad side of something that could read his thoughts and bring his soul to this weird place at any time. "I did." He said.
"You approached the situation in a brash manner, judging and lashing out at Silver before getting to know him."
Naito bit his tongue. Was he about to get scolded by a jackass, again?
"Nonetheless, you realized the errors of holding onto such anger, and were able to complete your mission. It appears that your heart has become slightly humbler."
"I really didn't help much..." Naito said honestly. All he did was fall asleep in the library.
"However, you're still not ready to become a heavenly knight."
Naito was fine with that, really. He had a lot on his plate already without all this spiritual stuff. "In that case, may I return to the real world now?"
"Patience, child. There is an impending doom that I must warn you of first."
"Impending doom?"
"As I informed you, there are seven of us Heavenly Virtues. Naturally, we have opposites as well. They call themselves the Seven Deadly Sins." Said Humility.
"Deadly Sins...?" Whatever that was, it didn't sound pretty.
"Put simply, everyone in your world has what we refer to as a "Fruit of Sin and Virtue" within their heart. This fruit has a meter, per say, which can lean to the left, causing it to rot with sin. Or, it can lean to the right, ripening with virtue. These Seven Deadly Sins seek to corrupt your world with rotten Fruits, creating hell on earth."
"A world full of people who have succumbed to the evil within their heart?" Naito asked to be sure he was following.
Humility nodded. "Glad to see you're understanding, child. We Virtues can't sit back and watch as sin slowly distorts your world's balance yet again. So long as we exist however, it is impossible for the Sins to corrupt too great a many of your kind. But regardless, all it takes is the spark of one great or influential leader to cause an entire group, or even an entire nation, to fall apart."
Naito pondered on that for a moment. He imagined if he, as king of the Zodiac Empire were to succumb to whatever darkness lay buried beneath his own heart. Would this be enough of a spark to cause his entire empire to fall as well, under his own rule? Thinking of it this way, it made sense why Humility sought him out, as well as Benevolence selecting Silver. "I get the gist of why I need to be specifically involved in this spiritual war, but I have enough on my plate right now without any of this."
"I am no fool, child, I am fully aware of your own personal goal. Worry not, the next mission I have for you shouldn't interfere with your journey."
"And what's that?" he asked.
"Do you remember the obelisk you encountered in Tirdipsowl?"
Naito shuddered. "I wish I didn't...."
"That was not just any obelisk. It was one of the Seven Deadly Sins."
Naito blinked. "That...was a living thing?"
"There is another one in the jungle at the end of Noheg. Here is my humble request: find this Sin, and destroy it." Humility said, straight to the point.
Naito stepped, or, floated back. "Hey hey hey...you can't be serious. You were watching over us in Tirdipsowl, weren't you? We could hardly get through just a few Moltrogks, and that obelisk, or Sin, or whatever, it mentally tortured us! There's no way we can go through that again!"
"So, you decline?"
"Yeah I decline! How would we even destroy it, anyway? What if we the Moltrogks try to kill us, are you going to come and save us? Would destroying the obelisk even kill the Sin? What if some demon or something crazy emerges from it and eats our souls?!" Naito breathed heavily, his heart racing in his chest.
"Your fear is natural, child. Still, I hope that you will change your mind. If you do complete my request, I promise that I will make you a heavenly knight."
"May I go now?"
"First, allow me to bestow upon you a gift. Consider it your reward." Humility rose from the throne and stepped towards Naito. It lifted its front legs up and pressed them into Naito's chest.
"Hey, what are you..." Naito's body began to glow with the violet light. A cool, peaceful sensation washed over him.
"That'll do." Humility lowered its hooves.
Naito's body stopped glowing. He felt renewed and fresh, as if he had taken a good, long shower. "I don't look any different tho..." he said, inspecting himself. "Did you really give me anything?"
"If your heart is true, my light will radiate within you."
"And that means...?"
"To put into terms a child can understand," the virtue said, making Naito wonder if it wanted to tick him off, "I increased the virtue of your Fruit towards my path. Now, the humble state of your heart may spread to those around you. This essentially allows you to be the coolant to any heated argument, defusing the situation and bringing everyone to a consensus." Humility explained.
"Whoa, for real?" Naito blinked; that was quite impressive. He could name a million times in his life where that would've been great to have. "So, I can just prevent any argument? And this works on anybody?"
"Not just anybody. If there is anyone within the group that hates your guts, or anything else about you for that matter, this power will be completely nullified."
"Asides from a certain stalker, I don't think anyone hates me." Naito said. Why would anyone hate him, after all? "That shouldn't be a problem. But, didn't you say you'd only make me your knight if I completed your second mission?"
"Don't get ahead of yourself, child, you are not a Heavenly Knight yet. I've only given you a small fraction of my light. Since your Fruit is not yet fully ripened, this gift I have bestowed upon you still has a considerable chance of failing. Once, or should I say if, you complete my next mission, I will bestow the full power to you. I decided to give you this gift because I sense that a rising evil is making its way to you. One of your own kind could even succumb to the darkness."
"One of my own kind?"
"I suggest that you remain on high alert, extra caution could do you well. Perhaps, if one amongst you is ever to allow their fruit to rot, the light in your heart will able repel it."
"But who exactly are y-" Suddenly, Naito began to steadily sink beneath the mist, as if he had stepped on a trapdoor.
"Time is up, it would seem. You must awaken now."
"H-hold on...!" Naito shouted, but his voice was drowned out by soft cries and screams. He groped about for something to break his fall. Feeling his hands reach something soft and fluffy, he tried to use it to pull himself up, only for his head to slam against what felt like a wall. "Youch!" rubbing where he hit his head, Naito's eyes bolted open. "Oh, I'm back..." Though it was dark, he could tell that he was in the hotel room they had decided to stay in for a few hours to get some rest before they head back out.
"N-No...Cosena..." came the soft moan of the voice he heard when he returned.
"Alsen again." He could see her tossing and turning in the bed, occasionally hiccupping.
"Stop...no, no! Sis, stop!!!" Alsen started to scream, kicking frantically.
"Hey, hey, Alsen, calm down!" Naito shook her shoulders.
"Hngh...?" she blinked as her eyes slowly peeled open. Thank god she was a much lighter sleeper than him. "Naitey?"
"It's okay Alsen, you were having another nightmare." He assured her, patting her back as she hiccupped.
"I woke you up again, didn't I?" she wiped her damp eyes. This made the third time that her crying woke him up. Naito didn't mind though, as he intended to stay awake anyway. He feared that even though they were just resting up for a few hours, the snow would lure the girl in black to them.
"It should be just about time for us to head out now anyway." Naito yawned as he got out of bed, squinting his eyes to check the clock in the dark. "A quarter past eleven...we've still got forty-five minutes until it's time to go."
"Naitey, where's Cosena?" Alsen asked, pointing out the other, empty bed.
"She's not in the bathroom?" his eyes wandered to the bathroom door, which was left open, allowing him to see that no one was in there. "Maybe she's already with the soldiers, getting ready to go. We still have some time, you should try to get some more sleep."
"Shouldn't I be telling you that, little Naitey?" Alsen teased, though she lacked her usual big, cheerful grin.
"Are you worried about Cosena?"
"Y-yeah..." she wrapped the blanket around herself. "I can't stop having nightmares about her, and she's been acting weird lately too."
"Weird how?"
"Haven't you noticed how she's been scratching at her skin? Not to mention how her breath always smells like peppermint now."
"Peppermint isn't a bad thing, is it?" Naito loved all things mint.
"Naito, sis hates mint."
"Oh yeah, she does." He still couldn't comprehend what type of devil must have altered his eldest sister's taste buds. "People grow a taste for things they previously disliked before over time though, if I'm not mistaken."
"Maybe I'm just being a worrywart." Alsen's glum eyes went downcast. Her lips parted as if to say something, but she slightly shook her head and went silent instead.
Naito hopped back onto the bed by her side and wrapped his arm around his sister's shoulders. "Come on, don't look like that, you're making me worried too."
Welcoming his comfort, Alsen smiled and rested her against his chest. "Naitey, I always feel happy with you by my side."
"Same to you."
"So, don't you end up leaving me when everything's over, okay? Stay with me, always." She pinched his cheek playfully.
"Alsen..." he ran a hand through her soft hair, messy from her sleep. "As if you even need to ask that."
"That's a promise then?"
"That's a promise."
Moments passed as the two siblings sat together, until they realized that neither of them would be falling back asleep. After they finished their morning bathroom routines, there was a knock on the door and Cosena came in.
"You're both up already?" she asked, but Naito and Alsen both stared at her with their mouths agape. There was something shockingly different about her – her hair. No longer was it tied in the twin braids that she wore for as long as Naito could remember. Instead, it was cut down to shoulder length and she let it hang straight. "What?" she asked, twirling a lock of hair as if she had no idea what they were looking at.
"That's...different." Alsen said finally, then whispered into Naito's ear, "I told you she's being a weirdo!"
"You weren't kidding..." he whispered back.
"C-Cmon you two, it's not nice to whisper about me..." Cosena's fidgeted.
Naito smirked. His eldest sister was so adorable when she was embarrassed. "We're just left in awe at how freaking cute you look with your new hairstyle." He intentionally teased her.
"U-Uh, t-thanks...?" she stuttered.
"Why the sudden change though?" Alsen asked seriously, even though she would usually be the first one to poke fun at a moment like this.
Cosena shrugged. "Just had a whim. No particular reason. Casele did it for me."
"Ah, so that's where you've been." Naito said.
Alsen crossed her arms, not buying it one bit. "She reeks of mint again, too." She whispered.
There was another knock on the door. Cosena opened it, and Casele came in, carrying two boxes of pizza. "Good morning, my lord." She bowed.
"More pizza?" Alsen asked.
"I'm terribly sorry, lady Alsen...did you prefer something else?" Casele twitched nervously, as if she had done something wrong. "I can run and go get something else..."
"No, no! Pizza is the best!" Alsen happily flicked the box open and grabbed a slice, stuffing her mouth.
"Well, there's typical Alsen again..." Naito laughed softly to himself.
"Zento should be back within the next twenty minutes. Then we can head out as soon as you're ready, my lord." Casele said.
"What about Alile? Has she returned yet?"
Casele frowned. "My lord, please do not worry about her. She'll return when she feels like it. It's best to neither worry about her nor try to understand the way she thinks."
"As king, I can't help but worry about my soldiers."
"M-my apologies, my lord! I didn't mean..."
Naito chuckled, waving off the apology. "Geez, you apologize way too much!"
"S-Sorry..."
"She did it again!" Alsen giggled, wolfing down another slice of pizza.
"S-S" Casele almost did it again but caught herself.
"I think she forgot every other word in the dictionary." Naito joked as he took a slice of pizza.
As if she truly had forgot that any other words existed, Casele said nothing further, hanging her head in embarrassment. Alsen giggled even more.
"Alsen, don't laugh with food in your mouth. It's un-ladylike and if you keep eating like that you're going to get fat." Cosena said, snatching away the slice of pizza Alsen was about to grab, eating it for herself.
Alsen pouted. "I won't get fat..."
"By the way, Naito, what ever happened with you and that Virtue?" Cosena asked.
"That's right, I almost forgot to tell you! It visited me again in my sleep. Said that I succeeded with my mission, but I'm still not ready to become what it calls a 'Heavenly Knight'."
"You mean, we did all that for nothing? No reward or anything."
"It did give me a gift, a fraction of its power, it said."
"What type of power is that?"
"According to Humility, I now have the ability to diffuse any argument and bring everyone to a general agreement."
"That's...amazing." Casele said in awe.
"However, if someone in the group hates me, this power is completely nullified. Plus, since I only received a fraction of the power, it's not guaranteed to work."
"Then, how do you receive the full power?" asked Cosena.
"I was given another mission. You all remember that obelisk from Tirdipsowl, right?"
The girls all flinched, but nodded. Naito proceeded to inform them of everything Humility told him about the Seven Deadly Sins, and the new mission he was given.
"We have to go through that...again?" Alsen looked like she was going to be sick. Cosena and Casele did not look comfortable with the idea either.
"I think we'd better not, we already have our own mission here." Naito replied.
"I agree." Cosena nodded, arms crossed. "We can work on outside problems such as this after you've gained Nircogard's power."
A beep, beep! Sound came from Casele's pocket. She checked her phone, then said, "Zento's back. Are you ready to head out, my lord?"
"Yeah, let's go."
Outside, they found Zento waiting, leaning against a fancy, silver SUV, grinning proudly. "Ain't she a doll?" he asked.
"Whoa..." Naito was stunned.
"This is really yours?" Cosena asked, impressed as well.
"You know it! Cost a fortune, but our travel will be so much smoother now." He opened the doors, allowing them to step in. "Take whichever seats you prefer."
Naito, Alsen, and Cosena sat in the leather seats in the back while Zento sat in the driver's seat and Casele in the passenger's seat.
"Thalmar is where we're headed, right?" he asked as they buckled up.
"That's where we've all agreed on, yeah." Naito confirmed. Casele had suggested they stop there next, as her father, High Mage Zart, owned a jewelry shop there, and she figured that he might be able to give them further help regarding the girl in black. Plus, it was still heading in the direction of Kricade.
"Let's get this baby on the road then!" Zento exclaimed.