Leaving the restroom, Hazel and Evelyn walked over to Astrid, who was calmly waiting while leaning her back against the wall. Once the dark elf noticed that her partner and the mother were approaching her, she immediately straightened up, likely not to act disrespectfully toward her mom.
“You must, Astrid,” Evelyn said while pulling her hand out toward the dark elf. “My daughter told me a little bit about you. Thank you for being by her side when she was in that dungeon.”
Astrid stared at the mom’s hand for a second as if hesitant to return the gesture. However, feeling compelled, she nonetheless did and shook it.
“I...only did so because it would ensure our survival.”
Evelyn laughed softly. “Regardless, you still helped bring my daughter back home, and for that, I thank you.”
“I-it was nothing, really.” The dark elf turned away, clearly embarrassed by what was happening.
Evelyn simply laughed a little more before backing away to give her some space.
“Now then, since you girls have just recently returned from the tutorial, I’ll guide you over to the resting quarters.”
“You guys have a resting quarter?”
“Of course. In fact, you girls actually just passed it when coming over to me.”
Evelyn then guided Hazel and Astrid to the resting quarters, where they could relax for a little bit after everything that happened. And they only walked a couple of steps before standing before their current resting station, which was one of the Jetport restaurants called Shipyard Restaurant.
It had polished wooden walls and floors and various ceiling lights hung over the area. However, there were none of the tables and chairs that customers would need. The place was completely devoid of customer necessities, and it didn’t even look like much of a restaurant. It was more like a restaurant that had just shut down forever, and everything was being taken away.
Replacing the chairs and tables were multiple blankets, covers, and the like, with a few players either sitting or lying on them. Hazel and Astrid looked at the restaurant resting station with a bit of hesitation.
Evelyn noticed their gazes before speaking up. “This resting station is only temporary. I’m sure Zoe or John told you about the village we found in the airport field, yes?”
Hazel nodded at her mother’s statement. “Yeah, and she said that you guys planned to turn it into a proper settlement.”
“That is the plan, considering what those two have in store for the future. Since that mysterious System will be proceeding with the next phase when the Integration is over, Zoe and John are trying to get a head-start and have everything prepared for that. And so far, they seem to have everything coming together.”
Hazel agreed there. So far, not only did this group manage to establish their base, but they also had been surveying Portland, mapping out the changes and such, so they knew where everything was, and they weren’t just aimlessly roaming around the city.
“The blanket I rest on is over there at the corner,” Evelyn pointed inside the restaurant. “You can use that to rest for a little bit.”
Following her direction, the pair looked within and noticed a bright blue blanket lying down in the left-hand corner of the restaurant.
“Ma’am, I don’t think that...” Just when Astrid was about to protest, Hazel quickly sent a message in their chat room to stop her.
[Hazel Thatcher: Don’t try and refuse because it won’t work. She’ll only urge you to take it before giving you the mother glare. And as someone who has experienced that look, you do not want to try and challenge it, alright?]
Reading the message, Astrid gave a glance at Hazel, who looked back and simply shook her head, urging her to listen to what Evelyn said. They maintained eye contact for a few more seconds before the dark elf finally gave in.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
Turning back to face Hazel’s mom, she simply sighed and admitted defeat. “Of course, ma’am.”
Hearing Astrid’s reply, Evelyn beamed with joy, knowing that Astrid was listening. She clapped her hands together while maintaining her gleeful grin.
“Wonderful! I’ll let you two rest over there then. I need to get back to the other players that are still injured and heal them.” She then turned around and walked back over to the other players. Before leaving completely, she looked back and waved at Hazel and Astrid. “Be back soon!”
Hazel and Astrid simply waved back, knowing that they couldn’t do anything else at the moment. Once Evelyn was out of sight, the player duo sighed before making their way over to the blanket spot where she instructed them to go.
Walking past the other players who were resting like they were about to be, the pair made it over to the blanket. While the cover was big enough for both of them to sit and or lie on, Astrid simply sat next to the cover while Hazel lay on it. She tried to get the dark elf to sit on it as well, but she refused.
Hazel didn’t bother pushing the matter and simply made peace with what they had. As they sat there for a little bit, Astrid was the first to speak up.
“So, that was your mother, huh?”
“Yeah,” Hazel chuckled. “She can be a bit overbearing at times, but she has a good heart.”
“That much I could tell when she saw you and rushed over to hug you.”
Hazel nervously rubbed the back of her head. “Ah, that was a bit embarrassing, I’m not going to lie.”
While Hazel was elated that her mother was alive, it didn’t stop the embarrassment she felt when she was hugged in front of so many people. At the time, she didn’t care, but now, she couldn’t help but feel a bit self-conscious by that display.
“A mother caring for their child shouldn’t be embarrassing, especially in our situation.”
Hearing this, Hazel faltered, realizing Astrid’s hidden meaning in her statement. In a situation like theirs, many children might never see their parents again, and vice versa.
Hazel was lucky to come across her mother in such a situation. But there were likely other players that weren’t so fortunate like her.
“Not to pry, but...” Hazel hesitated to ask. “Do you have a good relationship with your parents?”
For a moment, Astrid hesitated to reply, causing Hazel to believe that she crossed a line she shouldn’t have. However, a moment later, a heavy sigh escaped her lips before the dark elf provided the witch with a response.
“While my mother isn’t overbearing like yours...she does care and worry about me,” She began to chuckle softly as if reminiscing about something. “I still remember how she got anxious and frightened about me joining the Legion.”
“I’m assuming that’s the equivalent of joining the military?”
Astrid nodded. “The Legion is a group of warriors of the Greyvolk tribe. To become part of the Legion is to become the sword and shield of the tribe. You must put your life on the line to protect your tribesman and fight your enemies with all you got.”
Hazel nodded. “Yep, that definitely sounds like the military. What about your dad, the Chief? Did he oppose you joining, or did he support your decision?”
“My father told me and my siblings that we must choose our paths ourselves, and he and mother will simply support us however they can. And that’s what we did. For better or worse.” Astrid’s face fell, leaving her looking depressed and melancholy.
Hazel noticed her expression and quickly tried to lighten the mood. “Since we’re here, we should rest as much as we can in preparation for tonight.”
Astrid looked up with an arched brow. “So, you’re still planning to summon Nycteris and fly around Portland to fully grasp our surroundings?”
“Of course. Do I need to remind you that I need to bring you back to your village?”
Hazel hasn’t forgotten her current objective involving Astrid. Right now, they were possibly hundreds, if not thousands, of miles away from Astrid’s home. And Hazel was pretty much responsible for that because of the party system.
With that in mind, Hazel wanted to try to fix this problem by bringing Astrid back to her village so she could reunite with her tribe and family. With everything that was happening, her people needed all the help they could get.
Hearing this, Astrid leaned her head against the wall, looking hesitant. “Are you sure I should be your priority at the moment? What about your mother and brother?”
“What makes you think that sending you back home will take us that long? It might’ve taken a month if we simply walked there, but we have Nycteris who can fly. Have you forgotten that he saved us so much time flying us around when we were in the City Island?”
Nycteris was a life-saver for the pair in more ways than one. Not only was Nycteris a perfect tank for their enemies, but his flying capabilities were essential for them to get around the dungeon faster. If Hazel hadn’t summoned him, a lot of time would most definitely have been wasted.
And it’s because of Nycteris that Hazel believed that they could easily fly over to Astrid’s tribe and fly back to continue her search for her brother. While Hazel did prioritize her family, she owed her dark elf partner this much after everything they had been through.
“For now, we’ll wait until it’s nighttime and then take Nycteris out for a little flying in the city,” Hazel declared, lying down on the blanket.
Instead of saying anything, Astrid simply nodded and rested alongside Hazel. As the two took their time to catch their breaths and relax, they watched as time ticked on until nightfall.
