Mythological Mayhem (Book Two: Sapphire) [Ignis x Reader]

• XII •

At Tostwell Grill located in the back corner of the marketplace, Ignis and (Y/n) sat across from one another. They ordered two bowls of offal stew and chatted about their time with Jasper and Luca until their food arrived. They were enjoying their alone time together, but it didn't last long.

"Well, well, well," a gruff voice chuckled. Gladio sat down beside Ignis while Noctis and Prompto sat on either side of (Y/n). The shield grinned, "You two on a date?"

"We are simply enjoying a meal together," Ignis replied before correcting himself. "Were enjoying."

"Ouch, Iggy."

"You two were gone this morning," Prompto pointed out. "Did something happen?"

"Nothing of the sort. (Y/n) and I decided to have a chat with Jasper and Luca," Ignis answered. He left out some major details, but still told the truth nonetheless.

"Anything good to tell us?" Noctis asked.

"There are a couple of things, actually," (Y/n) spoke up. "I asked Luca about Costlemark. According to the rumors he's heard, the daemons that inhabit Costlemark Tower have a royal arm in their possession. Hunters believe they ransacked a royal tomb and took the sword back with them to Costlemark."

"Oh, wow! Talk about a coinkydink," Prompto chimed in. "Talcott told us about a legend that mentions a sword behind a waterfall. Noct thought it'd be a good place to check to see if there's a royal tomb."

Noctis turned his head in (Y/n)'s direction as he leaned back in his seat. "What's this other thing you learned?"

She had almost forgotten what else she wanted to tell him. "Oh, right. Luca knew about the conduit. He told us they're a spirit chosen by Brahma to be his vessel."

"Who the hell's Brahma?" Gladio inquired.

"The forgotten Astral," Ignis replied, recalling the ancient text he read many years ago. "The seventh god, known as the Creator. Unlike the other Astrals, he no longer has a presence on Eos. Not many scholarly texts mention him by name, only title."

"Aaand how do we find this conduit? Did Luca happen to know how?" Prompto wondered.

"We are still on our lonesomes in those regards."

The blonde huffed out a groan. "Too bad Luca or (Y/n) isn't the conduit." His head then snapped in the girl's direction. "You're...not the conduit, are you?"

"I don't think so, and I doubt a god would choose me as his vessel," she responded. "I'm pretty sure his standards are very high."

Gladio leaned forward, folding his arms atop the table. "Trust me, munchkin, you're as top-shelf as they come. I'm sure we all agree on that."

Prompto nodded his head with a smile. "Oh, definitely!"

She glanced between Gladio and Prompto. "What makes me "top-shelf" material?"

"You're completely selfless, kind, and can kick some serious ass. Your looks are just a bonus. You're the embodiment of purity," the shield stated as if everything he was saying were facts from a textbook.

Her brows furrowed together. "I think more than one of those things you listed has nothing to do with purity..."

"You know what I'm getting at."

"Well, when everyone's done eating, let's get this show on the road. We've gotta visit the waterfall and Costlemark," Noctis said.

"Before we depart, I do wish to browse the marketplace. We are in need of more ingredients and curatives," Ignis spoke up.