AN: oh boy. This was an interesting turn for me to write. Enjoy the chapter regardless, everyone~ If you have any suggestions, let me know! Thanks!
Preview Picture: https://pin.it/uildvzteqrv342
———
—Startling Scenery—
The raven glanced at the envelope with the documents and a plane ticket. She sighed before placing the documents into her shoulder bag. She packed a rather light suitcase before heading out to the airport. This was a rather different assignment compared to the ones she had completed before. Most of the missions involved tedious tasks such as helping citizens around the outskirts of town and picking up items from other cities. What was even more interesting were the details that were explained...
Investigation Case File #7058.
Designated Location: Abandoned farm field within the midst Ireland.
Details on Incident: Numerous complaints were sent to the police involving unusual noises coming from a closed off farm outskirts of the city within the past year. The police had investigated the general vicinity however they had seen nothing unusual. A specific citizen there said that they clearly heard a buzzing-like noise from the area as they were passing by to get to their destination.
Request: The police station requests someone from the Mage's Association to investigate whether there is some sort of magic presence inside or not. Will present them with a reasonable reward after removal of the noise.
"Something on your mind, milady?" The female leaned back into the plane seat as she softly sighed. She had arrived at the airport and already boarded the plane, waiting for it to take off. Until then, she would be in the air for an hour and a half until she reached the city of Dublin, Ireland. "Yes. I'm thinking about the details on the report. Isn't Ireland your hometown, Cú?"
She heard the male telepathically scoff. "In a way yeah. But I got nothing but bad memories toward the end of my times. Especially that annoying sadistic princess I had to deal with back then." The raven instinctively felt his disgust through his tone of voice. "Then again, dealing with the queen of the land of shadows was also quite an ordeal. Ugh... Women were always the bane of my existence back then. Somehow still is, with the exception of you, of course. You literally lit up my purpose back then. Can't quite remember how but I'm definitely treasuring it."
She smiled to herself as she folded her arms. "You have a way with your words, huh mo ridire? Do you mind if you look after me? I'm going to rest until we get there." The raven heard him chuckle for a bit. "When do I not, my love? With that lucky pendant you made for us and our connection to be this strong, you should be perfectly fine. So until the plane hits the ground once more, I'll be at your side." Yuuki hummed as a confirmation before nodding off.
———
After quite some time, the raven eventually arrived at the hotel that was assigned to her. Obtaining the key to the assigned room, she went to the eighth floor room H6 and unlocked it. Before her was a bed and a bathroom with a small balcony at the end of the room. A small desk was at the corner while a relatively small television was hidden within a cabinet. She closed the door behind her and locked it as her companion materialized, sitting on the bed.
"Ho? Not bad for a hotel, don't you say?" She placed her luggage by the desk and fell backwards onto the bed. Her body softly bounced on the furniture, feeling the comforts of the fabrics. "It's decent enough for tourists and travelers. Not exactly for me though."
When she glanced at the male, he was dashing as always. The Celtic donned beige dress pants, a navy blue plaid shirt with a grey undershirt, and black shoes. His hair fell gracefully on his back, a gentle waterfall cascading onto the comforts of the strange furniture. "So you're saying that you need more room for yourself? Aren't you acting like an actual princess for once, hm?"
He glanced back at the female, seeing her space out. Cú smirked, casually leaning closer until only a mere few inches of space was between their faces. "...I told you I'm not a princess. Not once, not ever. My parents weren't even that rich if I remember correctly." The raven lazily gazed into his eyes. Seeing that she was not swayed, he reluctantly sighed and laid down right next to her. The Celtic casually left his arm on her waist. "It seems you're really immune to my charms, huh Yuuki?"
She closed herself into his muscular chest, hugging the male as she slowly inhaled the soothing scent he carried. "If I have to be honest, I'm just really tired right now. I've been thinking a lot about how to approach this case. Something doesn't seem right when I read the details." The raven's actions made the male's heart melt just a bit causing him to have a blush dusted across his cheeks. He shifted his body as it made both of them dip into the middle of the bed.
"What part is making you question quite a bit?" Her hand weaved into his locks, eventually swirling it in a circular motion. "The noise complaint and the location. There shouldn't be any unusual sounds except for maybe possible creatures roaming around. They said it was a buzzing noise. Whether it be a mechanical device unknown to the eye or whatnot, it shouldn't be possible to reach normal citizens' ears. The location was another conspicuous detail. Why a farmland and why was it closed off in the first place?"
A concern sigh left her system as she buried herself into his chest. The vibrations of his body soothed her overclocked mind and breathing as she processed the information. "You're quite keen about the details. Instead of being here wracking nothing but assumptions, why don't we go to the area and check it out now?" A warm feeling was felt on her temple as she softly hummed at the touch. "Or, would you rather stay here and do something else instead? We are, after all, alone without any disturbances."
He instantly felt a flick to the forehead and immensely frowned. "The hell was that for, milady?!" Her emerald orbs glanced up, blinking a few times before returning back down to his chiseled chest. "I'm still on duty to complete this task, Cú..." She snuggled into him feeling very satisfied with the comforts of his warmth. "I didn't hear a ' no' though..." He smirked as he felt insignificant punches across his chest. "Sh-Shut it, mo ridire...!"
His bellowing laughter sounded within the room as he saw the female's cheeks dusted with a pinkish hue. "Those doesn't hurt me, love." He chuckled, pushing back a lock of hair behind her hair. "I can hurt you elsewhere," she growled threatening the male. He swallowed heavily before placing himself within the crook of her neck. "I rather you not, milady..."
The raven kissed his cheek, smiling at the response she had gotten. "Let me rest a bit more, okay? Then we'll go out to investigate..." She yawned as her hand wandered around to attempt to pull the covers. The Celtic stopped her hand and pulled her however closer they could get. "Just rest, Yuuki. Don't worry about anything else at the moment." She hesitated before nodding, curling up to his body. Cú grabbed the blanket and covered up to their shoulders, eventually falling asleep along with his princess.
———
After a short rest, the two left the hotel and headed toward the abandoned farm field. The raven bought her shoulder bag with small intricate items and materials that's within it. If it truly was an investigation case, it wouldn't be leaking with details that didn't make sense. As she left the city and towards the destination, she brought out her staff and enlarged it to its original size. It was best to be prepared than none at all when entering an unknown location.
However, the closer she gotten to the destination... the more nostalgic it somehow felt. She couldn't pinpoint the feeling nor the reason why. It felt that she recognized the place; that she's been there before. The scenery obviously looked peaceful—flowers began to litter the fields, tall grass appeared on the horizon...
"Hey, isn't this—" The female stopped midway of the path. "Yeah it is. It may have changed a bit but I can recall it clearly." She reached the farm, seeing cluttered debris across the area of where a cottage once stood. The memories of her parents surged through her mind, giving her a sense of lost from many years back. She felt his hand on her shoulder and glanced at him. "Oye, Yuuki. Are you alright? I'm sensing a lot of discomfort from your vitals."
Cold sweat fell from the side of her face as she slowly inhaled. "I'll be okay. Let's check the area. Can you check on that end while I check the other direction?" He gave her shoulder a light squeeze but nodding. "Sure thing. If anything arises, I'm only a call away."
The two went their separate ways and searched the area. The raven decided to search the abandoned shed a bit aways from the desecrated cottage. As she cautiously opened the door, dust flew across her face causing her to cough quite a bit. 'Has it been that long since I last been here?'
She scanned the area for any unusual object or mana signatures. There wasn't any object that seemed out of place... but there was something she had sensed. At the center of the shed were a couple of pebbles in an unorthodox positioning. To most non-magic citizens, it's just scrambled rocks across the ground. To another part of the community... it heeded a warning and a rather risky task.
'What was my father doing in here back then...' She moved the rusted garden tools aside, staring at the vague yet loosely assembled circle. 'It doesn't seem to be a devil's trick nor is it a sacrificial circle...' As she moved aside other items around the place, she felt a sharp object and instantly retracted her hand. Whatever it was, it made blood slowly seep out of the raven's hand. She hissed at the sudden wound and closed her fist rather quickly. Droplets of blood spilled out of her hand and landed on the ground, splashing onto the dirt below.
A sudden glow appeared from under her feet as her eyes widened at the scene. "I-It can't be..." Foreign symbols swiftly lit up and surrounded the female. Within seconds, gust of wind radiated from the symbols and knocked her down to her back. She shielded her eyes from the sudden velocity as she eventually saw not one, but two figures standing before her. Infamous blue hair and red eyes—there's only one person she knew would have these. But at the same time, it wasn't exactly him?
"Oya? It's mo banphrionsa. Glad to see you again," the male in the blue-clad armor spoke. He carried the notorious bright red spear on his shoulders. "Is that really you, Yuu?" The male with medieval-like armor leaned forward, trying to confirm who the woman before them was. "...Cú?"
Within a split second, her companion appeared in front of her holding his staff in an attack stance. "I'm right here, milady! Stay back and—" All three males simultaneously uttered the word as they all stared at each other.
"Ah."