“Feast your eyes on our magnificent collection!” Darek swung his arm in the direction of the displays. “Ask about any single item and it will be my honor to explain its origins!”

  In just a moment, the ladies were all around the room, admiring those exhibits. Miria led the charge, of course, practically bouncing from place to place and letting out multiple gasps of amazement and awe. Asterios, Selene, and Abyss stayed behind to talk with their short friend.

  “First, let me share our experiences from your holy land of prayer,” the fox lady began. “As I said, the Horror is defeated, and your people should be safe to visit the area once more. Especially since we eliminated a hidden source of power that lured strong predators into that spot.”

  “Praise be! We are eternally grateful for this blessing!” The man dropped to his knees and bowed to the floor.

  “Don’t thank me yet,” Selene cut him off. “In the process of investigating the details, we found underground ruins. They collapsed shortly after that, so the region is much different now. I would advise against trying to excavate it, but you should be fine digging out pieces of crushed foundation, the same that poked out of the surface in the crater you guys pilgrimage to.”

  “We dare not mess with the divine!” He shook his head with a lot of force. “If our Goddess says these are not for us to taint with our presence, then we shall respect that wisdom! We are overjoyed to have our Sacred Grounds back and will make the best use of them! It was almost impossible to mine the divine block, but if Your Prominence believes in our capabilities, we’ll use all of it to construct glorious depictions worthy of the immortal!”

  The immortal sighed and rubbed her forehead. “Do whatever you want. We won’t be staying long. One night to rest at best. Our journey takes us further into the realm as we chase after the light. If you know anything about it, or any other sites your Goddess might have visited, or places of heavy conflict between mighty creatures, speak now.”

  “I’m afraid we are a very small and local community, and there is not much we can share.” The Darkling elder whimpered in disappointment at himself. “Ah! But maybe the remnants of the Titans will help! They must have come from such harsh environments with how strong they were!”

  Jumping to his feet, the man rushed to one of the low platforms, and the trio went after him. Darek hoisted up what looked like a scary helmet at first glance. But, a closer look revealed it to actually be a hollowed-out hellish skull with long curled horns extending to the sides.

  “This has come from a Titan?” Abyss questioned him, voicing everyone’s thoughts.

  “Oh, yes! It might look like this now, but this is a legitimate Beast Titan’s skull, which shrank after its demise! You can even see the crushed hole in the form of a fist in its backside!” He rotated the fossilized bone eagerly, showing them the tiny mark the size of a finger. “We also have three of its left ribs, an elbow joint, right pinky, and its withered genitals, barely torn out of the claws of the scavengers! Maybe those would guide you to your next destination?”

  “I certainly hope not,” Asterios whispered with a stifled chuckle. “Can we even do anything with the mentioned bits?”

  “It would be close to impossible to get a spiritual reading on something so ancient.” Selene gestured at Darek to lay the skull down. “I don’t know what kind of divine abilities you expect from me, but I can’t divine from fossils. Maybe if I had some kind of a connection with them, but no.”

  “My deepest apologies.” The male bowed deeply. “Ah, but maybe this will work!”

  Already forgetting about the artifact, he was fully focused on another piece. This time, they stopped next to an exhibit that had caught Althea’s eye. The wise mentor stood next to what seemed like a piece of dark bedrock someone had carefully dug out in a circle, a splash of something faded but still a tad reddish adorning its surface.

  “Is there something special about this one?” Asterios raised a curious brow at her.

  “It’s extremely faint after who knows how many years, but I can still smell a True Dragon’s influence from the stain.” She tilted her head thoughtfully. “It’s too weak to belong to one, though, so my assumption is that it’s—”

  “Her Holy Majesty’s blood!” their guide announced with lots of fanfare. “The legends say it has rained crimson during those prolonged skirmishes, and the only rain we get in this region is Black Death!”

  His eyes widening slightly in surprise, Asterios moved a little closer and hesitantly reached out. The man noticed and eyed him in trepidation, but the fox lady glared at Darek strongly, daring him to say or do anything that would interrupt her mate’s moment. Ast’s palm rested on the rough surface of the old stone, and he brushed his fingers over the smear possibly created with his mother’s own blood.

  Did it make him sad? Angry? Anxious? Worried?

  He wasn’t sure. There was some kind of a connection, just like Althea had said, even his still fairly developing senses could tell, but that was pretty much all. Yet, deep in his heart, he knew that if someone said this was Kindra’s blood, a little downpour of scarlet would be an understatement. An ocean of crimson would cover the continent.

  And not in flames.

  ~Master?~ Tia’s concerned voice echoed in his mind.

  Asterios shook this dangerous mood off. ~Just got a bit lost in my emotions. And yeah, I can sense it too. It’s worth a try, at least.~

  They focused solely on each other, tuning out the surroundings and any unnecessary stimuli. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. From inside him, Tia reached out with her energy. After their recent moment together, she could manipulate both her and his spiritual energy with more influence, and so could he in return. As their thoughts and intentions synchronized, a new mix formed.

  Abyss noticed the change first, her gaze darting to the stone and Ast’s hand resting against it. Althea was next, followed by the girls who stood around the exhibit. They stared at Asterios with curious and intrigued eyes. They gazed at the light green aura seeping out of his chest, slowly coiling around his extended arm.

  The spiritual mist seeped through his attire, to their slight disappointment, but it hadn’t disappeared completely. A second later, they spotted it between the tiny ridges separating his black scales, creating a fierce web that overtook the faint golden traces still giving its final smolders. That energy with the color of vivid nature reached the stone, spreading all over its surface.

  Selene started to realize what was happening, inhaling sharply. The dark blemish on the excavated bedrock began brightening up in front of their eyes. In just a moment, it attained a deep crimson shade, soon turning into a very familiar scarlet hue.

  Alongside the color change came also the alteration of its state.

  No one said a word as the ancient bloodstain turned unbelievably fresh, surprisingly not dripping down the exhibit’s surface. Instead, it started coiling around Ast’s fingers as if enchanted, and he pulled back his hand. The small amount of rejuvenated red liquid gathered into a floating orb above his palm, and he finally opened his eyes to gaze upon it.

  Althea, just as stunned as everyone else, didn’t stand idle, though. She was by his side right away, offering an uncorked vial for him to store the blood. Asterios thanked her with an appreciative nod and guided the crimson liquid into the container. When it was fully gone from his grasp, he exhaled heavily.

  “I can’t believe you can do things like that.” He shook his head, staring at his fingers in awe, which still tingled with the mighty power of nature.

  ~Alone, I might not have been able to, but with a True Dragon by my side, there are few things you could call impossible,~ Tia boasted with a cheeky tone. ~But the fact that you share a connection with this blood helped a lot. I wasn’t sure it would work with something this old.~

  “Just to be clear, I can’t suddenly bring the dead back to life, right?” Asterios chuckled wryly.

  ~Don’t even try thinking about it, unless you are talking about Necromancy. Life energy can’t be used to go against the natural order. Plus, you still aren’t as compatible with this kind of affinity as you would need to be. Leave more serious matters of healing and recovery to your talented mates,~ she advised him

  “Don’t worry. I’ll rely on the more experienced and knowledgeable individuals.” He smiled softly.

  “What was that, my Lord?” Seeing that their conversation was coming to an end, Selene stepped closer.

  “A little test.” Asterios winked at her. “It looks like Tia’s life and nature energies have grown stronger after mixing with draconic ones. It might have looked like we rewound time, but I used my own blood, spiritual energy, and essence to revitalize this ancient smear. It might come in handy in the future. We have the blood of the real Kaguya at hand now.”

  A loud thud reached their ears as the Darkling leader smacked his forehead into the ground. “The divine blood of the holiest Goddess! A true miracle that shall bless her devout followers with abundance! Praise be!”

  Already somewhat used to his antics, the others just ignored them for the most part.

  “What’s all this commotion?” Miria asked, returning with Tina and Silvia in tow.

  “Just the usual.” The fox lady smirked and gestured with her gaze at the prostrating Darek. “Did you find anything interesting amongst the artifacts?”

  “Yep!” The panthergirl beamed at her and Asterios. “Umbra spotted this one! Look!”

  She brought forth half of a palm-sized disc of white marble, adorned with golden trails on one side. Right away, they all could tell that it was the same mineral as in the hidden facility. It was damaged, and its function was unclear with the left side shattered, but it emitted faintly visible particles of light.

  Asterios accepted the artifact, and the moment it touched his skin, all the remaining golden glow decorating his onyx scales rushed to his hand, seeping into the broken disc. The gold ridges present on its surface shone brighter before fading again, the motes of light increasing in amount.

  “Woah! That was pretty!” Miria clapped her hands joyfully. “Do you know what it did, Master?”

  “No idea…” He shook his head.

  “Seems like whatever it is, it absorbed the remnants of the fake sun’s spiritual energy, isn’t that right?” Umbra asked, looming over them.

  “That appears to be correct,” Abyss confirmed. “This might prove to be a valuable find.”

  “As long as we can take it,” Tina chimed in. “Would that be okay?”

  “Every item in this chamber exists to serve the Great Goddess!” Darek answered from the floor.

  “That sounds like a yes.” Selene smiled awkwardly. “Should we look a little more?”

  “I believe we have examined all the worthwhile showcases,” Umbra replied. “That is, as long as you don’t wish to learn about their history.”

  “I think we are satisfied with these.” Asterios raised his hands to stop him, bringing a few relieved expressions onto the faces of his mates. “It would be wise to find a place to take a break after everything that happened. It’s hard to judge how long has passed since we arrived in this realm.”

  “We have already prepared your quarters ages ago!” Their host jumped to his feet. “After me, please! I’ll show you the way!”

  With how fast the short man escaped from the impromptu museum, they had no choice but to follow, snickering between themselves and poking some jabs at Selene. They were given an entire floor of the tower, a few levels above. The room was fully supplied with black stone furniture and contained a massive bed with sheets made of what looked like dark mist, rolling off the mattress. The view from the square windows spanned over the entire village and certainly could be considered magnificent.

  Darek tried to ask about their meals and other needs, but the ladies politely declined and freed the dedicated guy from further service. They had everything they needed in their spatial storages. Their supplies ran so deep they could construct a fully-equipped house if only they wanted, complete with a sizable bathtub and working kitchen appliances. The room had some of those, but they all appeared to be quite… ominous.

  Miria hopped onto the bed, testing the fluffiness of the menacing fog making up the bedding. “What’s our next step, Master? Are these artifacts going to lead us somewhere?”

  “We would need more time to analyze them first,” he replied, sitting next to her and scratching under her chin. “Unless others have better ideas, that might be it.”

  Umbra hovered slowly to the empty window, facing the outside. “It’s been ages since I’ve last been there, but it might finally be time to return to my own territory.”

  “Really?” The panthergirl’s head snapped towards him. “Awesome! I can’t wait to see your home and whatever creatures we might find there!”

  The Lord of Shadows shivered, actually shivered, as she giggled to herself happily.

  Asterios had a feeling that their next trip was going to be an interesting one.

  Chapter 12

  Out of the Frying Pan Into the Fire

  As they had previously realized, it was difficult to follow the passage of time in Umbra’s ominous realm. Therefore, the ladies worried that their internal clocks would soon fall into chaos. It certainly wouldn’t matter for at least a week or two, but it was inevitable, no matter how strong mentally and physically they were.

  Outside the empty windows of their granted suite, the sky was as black and brooding as during their first hour in this world. A few of them had been hoping for some kind of change that would make it easier to process fleeting day and night cycles, but it was now clear that something like that didn’t even exist in the dimension of eternal darkness.

  The purplish dots resembling stars did cast the faintest glow onto the ground, so there was that at least. On the other hand, that gleam never subsided. No matter if they slept six hours or twelve, that tiniest shine wouldn’t change. Therefore, they needed to figure out a solution for their prolonged stay in their friend’s homeworld.

  Their interdimensional host was the first one to suggest a seemingly viable option. Having someone as powerful as Silvia, it wouldn’t be too hard for the gorgeous mistress of flames to create a miniature sun just for them. Supported by Asterios, she might even be able to uphold the technique while sleeping.

  While a seemingly viable option, it would affect those around them, which wasn’t the best outcome, both making it more dangerous for Ast’s group and more troublesome for everyone else.

  Thankfully, Tia came up with a less noticeable option.

  She offered to become their clock. Residing inside Ast’s source, partially inside his soul, she was capable of extremely precise measurement of passing time. If they agreed upon the starting point, she could inform them accurately when minutes and hours passed, matching the system they were used to from their respective realms. She would watch over their mental health by keeping them on a schedule, and as long as they abided by it, their journey would be much lighter on their minds.

  Of course, that didn’t solve the lighting issues, but Umbra came up with an offer that matched the Dryad’s suggestion well. Since he didn’t require something like sleep, always watching over them, he could envelop them in an even deeper darkness for the moments of their rest. The difference might not be huge, but it would be noticeable, allowing Asterios and the girls to still perceive the change.

  There was no need to look deeper as everyone agreed to try the combination out, starting at that very moment. They were at least partially tired mentally after not one but two challenges of the mind right out of the bat. Asterios could see his mates trying their best not to show signs of any weakness, and while it made him proud of how much the girls cared for him and his goals, he didn’t want to see his beloved push themselves to their limits without any urgency.

  So, after wrapping up their conversation on the topic, they set up their first night with Tia and huddled up on the shadowy bed. Miria ended up the closest to Asterios, snuggled tightly to his chest, and showered his sweet mate in comforting affection, knowing that she would be one of the people affected by their recent trials the most. Tina and Silvia formed a spoon in front of them so that they could both face their man with warm smiles. That left his back to Selene and Althea, who mirrored the other pair.

  Without further ado, Umbra turned the lights off, and they let themselves drift off.

  In their assumed morning, the Lord of Darkness removed the nightly curtain, and Tia roused the group awake. After many hugs, snuggles, and good morning kisses stolen from Asterios, they all sat up and confirmed that the plan seemed to work, everyone feeling fairly refreshed. Moving on to breakfast, they discussed their next step while briefly examining the artifact gained the previous day.

  Nothing came up during that attempt, thus Umbra’s plan remained in focus. It made the girls really excited, and their friend quite awkward, which they seemed to miss in their eagerness to see what the territory of the Duke of Umbra looked like. Asterios stared at his loyal familiar with a pitiful smile, knowing firsthand how much of a force of nature the ladies were when they set their minds on something.

  Finished with their morning routines, the group sought Darek to bid farewell to the community. The little guy was sad that they were leaving so fast, but didn’t try to hold them back, mentioning something about divine responsibilities and all that, making Selene roll her eyes. He expressed his hope for the artifact his people had provided to aid them on their journey and wished for another opportunity to meet. Assured that it would definitely happen, he focused on taming the crowd of Darklings who wanted to express their gratitude for the help.

  Finally escaping the range of the village, still seeing quite a lot of its community waving at them past its borders, they turned to Asterios.

  “Time to fly again?” Tina smirked softly, a hopeful glint in her charming eyes.