Lilia's Tale: Freyja's Endeavor

Chapter 20: Return

That sudden statement sent chills down my spine. Considering what the fight against Jor was like, I knew I wouldn't stand a chance against Leviathan.

I looked over at Jor for confirmation, and though three of his heads were staring at the sea monster leaving, one was looking at me. Its expression was surprisingly one of worry.

I knew why he was so worried, and I shared his sentiment. I looked back at Leviathan as he slowly drifted past the horizon, anxious of the future.

"Lilia," the general suddenly called.

"Yes, sir?"

"We're done here. Go back to your quarters until further notice."

"Uh, okay. What about Jor?"

"He is to leave the town's premise."

"If I may, sir," he interjected. "I prefer being allowed to stay alongside Lilia-dono here."

"You aren't allowed to."

Jor stared at the man for an uncomfortably long time before simply moving to leave.

"I shall wait at the entrance, then."

I could tell in the general's eyes he wanted to object, but he thankfully refrained. There was no telling how things could go if he didn't.

He then looked at me and I simply nodded and left towards the inn. I was still anxious from earlier and this situation only served to accentuate it, but I did my best to hold my own.

I arrived at the inn alone, Olivia serving someone noticed me and came over.

"Hey there, Lilia. Is something wrong?"

"Ah, sorry I'm just a bit anxious. What's my room again?"

"It's the 5th one in first corridor. You should have the keys."

"The keys."

I searched in my skirt's pocket and thankfully found them.

"Yeah, got them. Thanks."

"You're welcome. And if you wanna help out, feel free!"

"Help out?"

"Serving people, like old times," she laughed.

This made me feel a mix of emotions, dwelling upon them as I went back to my room. I could easily discern nostalgia, since Olivia treated me so nicely and the customer were typically nice too.

However, there was this weird little bit of happiness that felt hidden yet overwhelming. I didn't know what it was, and despite my efforts to better understand it, I couldn't isolate it. I ended up being confused and giving up, thinking of other things.

"Hey Alice."

"Yes, Master?"

"Jor really is determined to come with me, isn't he. He even said it to Leviathan."

"It seems so, Master."

"I don't get it. He told me why, yet I still can't understand why he's so hell-bent on it."

Alice didn't respond. She probably didn't have anything to reply with so she stayed silent, though I could tell she was somewhat worried.

"I mean, I'm probably repeating myself, but he's some godlike creature, I'm just some...well, not human but you get the idea. I don't want to take him but I don't have a choice anymore, do I? All cuz he told Leviathan already."

"Yes..."

I sighed. The current state of things annoyed me, but I resigned myself to having to accept them. I changed my focus to trying to find a way to minimise damages instead.