An Archer's Promise Chapter 88: Road Back To The Seven Kingdoms Part 2 (Patreon)

Beta read and Cowritten by GamerCrusher55

Damn it, I had a long Author's note written but the app bugged and closed. Now it's all gone and I have to rewrite it again.

Aight, so didn't expect the other options to win the polls this much. But then again, it represents several crossovers in one option, so no wonder it won. I should have known.

Anyways, most commonly chosen series were, as far as I could see, Queen's Blade, Danmachi, Sekirei (kinda) and Testament. to some extent. Not surprised with Testament since it's similar to DxD and Sekirei is a fanfic popular crossover. Queen's Blade definitely surprised me with the popularity. I'll check the comments again to count back what the people are askin'.

So, I'll first post bleach and I'll do a second poll with these series as options added to the poll. There is still time till I do that, so make sure you vote or comment. I'll also need to rewatch series like Testament and Queen's Blade.

Been a while since I saw those. Testament especially, the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about that story is Basara kissing the redhead a lot, the hot teacher and the troublesome perverted succubus. -_-

I'll just read the manga first. Those tend to have details the anime doesn't cover.

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-Edge of Fürenstentum Fuchswald-

A forest stretched between the mountains thick with birdsong. The rustle of branches as deer picked their way through the undergrowth.

“—!”

Then, almost in unison, every animal froze. Ears twitched toward the same direction and heads lifted from grazing. Within seconds the clearing emptied as creatures bolted deeper into the treeline, fleeing something that hadn't yet come into view.

Minutes later, a line of carriages rolled out along the forest path, wheels creaking as the trusted horses pulled them toward a wide clearing. The convoy slowed, then stopped, the horses neighing in agreement finally letting themselves rest from exhaustion. 

Doors opened, and the passengers climbed down one by one, stretching stiff limbs after the long ride.

The first to step out from the front seat was a redheaded princess knight, walking a short distance ahead of the others, scanning the surroundings before clapping her hands together. "All right, this place is good enough! The ruins you mentioned should be close enough for us to reach on foot."

Her attention shifted toward Olga as the dark elf climbed out of another carriage and looked toward the mountains ahead. "Yes, it appears so. Reaching them by carriage it seems would be impossible. We need to continue on foot regardless, and considering how long the journey could take, finding somewhere to rest and recover our energy like this place makes sense."

Maia followed her gaze toward the mountains before looking back with a puzzled expression. "Hold on. I'm still confused about this whole matter. Why the hell is there a teleportation ruin hidden inside that mountain? And how come Celestine knew about it when the other elven queen, Evelyn who lives closer, doesn't?"

"As Celestine has mentioned, they are ancient and not necessarily known by every elf.” She said, “Besides it’s most likely these ruins were created by the ancient high elves a very long time ago."

"What?"

“It’s true.” The only high elf among them answered. Celestine gazed toward the mountain. "They were intended to serve as a secret means of transporting an army into the territory of the newly established light elves kingdom Fullstar. At the time, there was a schism between the naturally born high elves and the light elves born from the union between humans. Due to the radicality of a certain faction, the idea of the teleportation circle involved infiltrating their lands and launching an attack from within.”

“Wait! So even high elves, and light elves are at each other's throats?! Can’t you guys just get along, or is that just too much to ask of the elves.”

“Oh, no, Not at all, If I recall it was more in the lines of a little prank on the next generation, to keep them on their toes and teach them to be careful. Though, I heard the light elves didn’t take too kindly to it and developed some trauma.”

Olga could only let a tired sigh at the notion of using a teleportation circle of all things as a war prank. “Honestly, who could have thought of something so childish? You still manage to surprise me, Celestine. That is something that happened long before I was born, however, and even, I don't know the finer details or the reason why the plan ultimately failed." 

Maia clicked her tongue. "It's always something involving war and conflict between you elves. Then you turn around and blame us for being a violent species."

Olga wanted to go into humans' long history of war, but decided the recent story would just make it backfire. In the end she offered nothing to refute the accusation and only stared at Maia in a lifeless stare, leaving the redhead to glance away with a slightly awkward expression. "Well, what about our other party members?"

"Inside. Don't disturb them."

"I know." With a wave of her hand, Maia headed toward the second carriage, intending to call the others. 

Though once she looked inside, she paused with an expressionless face.

She knew Archer and Radomira occupied the interior, but upon opening the door, she was left staring in disbelief at what looked more like a private sleeping chamber than the inside of a carriage. Dozens of cushions, pillows, and blankets covered the seats and floor, creating an absurd amount of comfort compared to the hard bench she had spent the entire journey sitting on. Radomira slept on top of Archer, drooling against him while wrapping her arms around his body like he had somehow transformed into a giant teddy bear. Archer, meanwhile, had remained awake in the middle of it all, staring back at Maia with the same dry expression he always seemed to have. Mistiora and Kaguya slept gracefully on the opposite side of the bench, apparently undisturbed by any of it.

“What the fuck you guys!” Maia's eye twitched. "I had to spend six hours sitting upright on a hard-ass bench while driving the horses around, and now my back hurts and my ass feels numb. Meanwhile, you all get to sleep in some kind of luxury bedroom? Where the hell did all these pillows even come from!?"

The response came without words. Archer simply lifted one hand, gathered a little magical energy around his fingers, and produced another pillow. 

“...” Maia stared at the newly created cushion, then back at him with a completely deadpan expression. "You'll just magic them into existence? That's bullshit."

“If you’d asked me I would have given you one. Now can you please help—”

She shut the door with considerably more force than necessary. “Whatever, we've arrived. Don't let me disturb you guys, then."

…

Not soon after everyone had awakened and left their carriages to prepare for the night.

Setting up camp did not take that long, since Maia had already done this countless times along with entire armies, so it took less than an hour for everything to get set up. Maia was no slouch, that was for sure, having an intimate knowledge of what went where, setting up the tents in record time, making sure each individual had their own.  She even fed the horses and got their beds ready, allowing them to rest before they went back to Feoh if this teleportation plan worked as intended. Before Archer could even project cooking tools, she had already even set up a small kitchen.

In a way, he was impressed, all things considered. Aside from her constant flirting and lazy personality at times. Maia knew how to be reliable when it mattered. 

It was only a matter of time before a pleasant campfire was set up.

“You know, it's not every day that we Princess Knights get to spend time together outside of our meeting room inside one of the seven kingdoms.” Kaguya’s voice reached his ears, the priestess hanging by the campfire with Maia standing beside her. “Especially us two, Maia. You are always with either Claudia or Luu-Luu.” 

The Mercenary Queen wasted no time wrapping her arm around Kaguya and pulling her closer with a side hug. “Hell yeah, and with me you will finally learn the joy of drinking all night and enjoying these finer moments of festivities! Then you'll stop being a stuck up bitch and we can become best friends!” 

Kaguya kept trying to push Maia’s face away, the latter rubbing her cheeks against hers without a hint of shame.

“I know I was being friendly with you just now, but please stop touching me.” She said dryly but to no avail.

“This is called bonding.” 

“You reek of alcohol already.”

“It's mankind's best perfume.”

“My patience is waning thin.” 

“Aw, I love you too buddy!”

“Maia…”

“Did I tell you about this one time Archer and I did it on a rooft—oof!” 

A single talisman got slapped onto her face, a small shockwave exploding from the small piece and sending the Princess Knight flying in the air until she disappeared within the forest. 

“I'm okay!” Her voice sounded, this interaction leading Archer to chuckle with amusement and once again be reminded of how ridiculous that woman could be. 

“You did what on a rooftop?” Radomira asked while munching on some bread. 

“Nothing you should be concerned about.”

“I'm not worried.” She said suspiciously, “I thought smelling like Olga back then was shocking enough. But this is something else, are we a hundred percent sure you're not at least part tiefling or succubus? Or both? Because even I am not that courageous.”

“Not as far as I know.”

Alright, maybe Maia deserved getting blasted into the forest. Also, he added a mental note to reduce the amount of alcohol that women consumed. Her lips were getting a bit too loose lately. 

“Aren't you going to cook?” Radomira asked, only for him to ruffle her hair. “Mmm~ hehehe.”

“You should also get used to eating other people's cooking besides my own. All things considered, campfire cooking is not my specialty and I'm confident Maia can come up with something even better than me, since she’s experienced with the wilderness.” He genuinely meant those words, while there was a ‘kitchen’, it was nothing more than a small wooden table for cutting near the fire with a cloth rooftop covering it, in case it rained. 

And having tried what her knights made when he traveled with her before, it was quite good. 

Not that the tiefling next to him seemed to share the same thought. “Oh please, she'll just throw in some pemmican inside a boiling pot of water and call it a day.”

“What do you want me to do? Go hunt a deer and make you a gourmet meal?” 

“Yes!” She replied with sparkling eyes and a giant smile. 

Having said that sarcastically as a joke, it began to dawn upon him that she was being serious and completely believed his words. Pinching her face gently, the man couldn't help but shake his head. “It appears I have spoiled you a bit too much. You’ve got to expand your world view. By the way, where is Mistiora, wasn't she with you?” 

“Oh, I think she was going to talk with Celestine.” 

Celestine?

While he wasn’t worried that any harm would come to the dark elf, part of him felt uncomfortable not watching over those two polar opposites called Mistiora and Celestine. 

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It did not take long for him to figure out where those two were.

 Asking around eventually led him to the edge of the camp site where the horses were grazing on the grass and eating bundles of hay. Not long after, Archer found both women in the distance, though the most surprising part of it all was Celestine bowing her head slightly in greeting to Mistiora of all people. 

“So you are Mistiora, Olga’s sister…”

Being close enough to overhear the conversation was one thing, but it was not necessary to hide his presence. Still for some reason Archer did not immediately let his presence be known by the duo as Celestine continued. 

 “I have long since heard about you, for so long.”

“I can say the same to you.” the dark elf replied. “Even before Olga had talked a lot about you, I had always heard about the legendary rumored high elf leading the seven kingdoms. You are the one who led a war to kill my sister, yes. You too have quite the history it seems, both as allies and enemies.”

 “You can say that.” Celestine  nodded. Before proceeding to bow to the woman in front of her, confusing the latter who just stood there with widened eyes, growing even more confused at her next words. “I am sorry.”

“What?”

“Long ago, Olga came over to meet me. It was the first time we’d ever met. She’d asked for my aid in finding you when you disappeared. But no matter how much I tried using my divination powers I could not find you, it was shortly after that I discovered the limits of my ability to only divinate those who I’ve been in contact with at that time. Had I been more capable and had I been better at using this power, then things could have been very different, than what they are right now. You wouldn't have suffered so much and perhaps even Olga and I would have still continued being friends.”

Listening to the conversation behind a tree, Archer crossed his arms and just shook his head. Not necessarily because he fully disagreed with what Celestine was saying but because the latter part of her words had been far too optimistic. Olga had held too much hatred within her after what had been happening to her people over the years. If Mistiora were still to be by her side then it would not have guaranteed that the Dark Queen would have never been born, though even he could not say for sure. The future could have still been the same but just with one more person by her side aside from Chloe right now. 

Or maybe it would have been another Dark Elf. With how things were going, someone would have snapped sooner or later. 

“If that’s all, then I won’t blame you for not finding me.” She mentioned surprising both the goddess and even Archer himself who was curious to see what the woman was going to say. “Why should I blame someone who I didn’t even know was looking for me. Besides back then I had plenty of time to come to terms with everything, so I have long since accepted that fate and what had happened. It’s not like I liked it or am happy with it, but there is no point bringing forth these ‘what if’ questions of a future that will never come to be. Especially since now that I’ve finally been reunited with Olga, because if anything this was the kind of future I was searching for. Right now what I want… What I wish is to spend my time with the one and only sister that I have been looking for so very long. Now I no longer need to go back to what I was doing before, and that’s more than enough.”

“Thank you.” The Goddess Reborn said with a brilliant smile on her face. 

“BUT!” Mistiora exclaimed her voice filled with emotion that shocked Celestine and Archer as she continued. “I will blame you if something, if anything happens to Olga.” She added with a cold tone. “I know that many despise her for what she has done as the Dark Queen, I know that in her efforts to save our people that so many people have been hurt… but still… she represents more to me than the world itself. People of this era may see her as a monster, and a tyrant amongst many things — but to me she’s remained the same. Whether it be the words of the masses or her own, my faith in her never wavered. I… I saw with my own eyes what they did to our people and I felt the same rage as her at one point, the same rage any dark elf would feel at such sights. And so I promise you this, I don't know what you or the other Princess Knights, or even the Kuroinu were planning on doing with her, but I will do everything in my power to stop anyone from harming her any further after what she’s been through. Even if that means going against you or the world itself.” 

If nothing else, Mistiora sure had some guts, saying all that to the Goddess Reborn of all people — Archer at the very least acknowledged her courage. 

Even though he would not let that happen. 

According to Olga, her sister possessed an even purer bloodline than anyone, and that possibly meant a high potential when it came to magic just like with Evelyn. Her words were no different to promising the emergence of a second Dark Queen if the first one were to be killed, and she was saying it to the one person who was most likely to do something about it.

On the other side of such a declaration, Celestine closed her eyes, took a deep breath. “Killing her was never my plan, only to stop her war and bring sense to her. Besides, now that Shirou is by her side protecting her, he will make sure that does not happen, and with both of us together you have nothing to fear.” The blonde added without a hint of fear or any other emotions in her tone. “Now that we have that settled I will ask you, why don't you join us then? You can stay by Olga’s side and keep her safe from any judgement you deem unfair.” 

“I will always be by Olga’s side, not yours. As long as she is safe then your faction and I won’t have any problems.”

“I suppose that is fine, you two have to make up for all the time you’ve lost. Come on, I'll introduce you to the rest of the Princess Knights properly, so you can get to know each other.” 

To that, Mistiora shook her head. “I would rather keep my distance. The one called Kaguya has been growing rather interested in my capabilities to say the least, and I would rather not have such an invasive discussion.”

This little revelation ended up making Celestine chuckle. “Don't mind her. Although she may be a priestess now, she still has some moments where she shows a side of her that’s just like that of a mage, one that wants to research things she does not understand. She is quite the curious one… Actually, had she not become a priestess, she may have taken the path of a mage or a scholar, I believe that would have also suited her.”

That he could imagine, the woman certainly possessed the disposition of an intellectual more than an innocent priestess. 

“Very well, I will leave you alone for now then. I will be taking my leave, I still need to check up on Olga and the elven ruin.” 

Realizing he had been eavesdropping through the whole conversation, Archer decided to take his leave, and see what concoction Maia was cooking.

{Break}

A distance away one dark elf was nearing her destination.

The entire atmosphere back at the camp had been… strange to Olga. 

Never had she imagined that one day she’d sit by a simple campfire, not a funeral pyre along with her beloved Mistiora alongside the Princess Knights of all people, and all just to have a normal journey’s conversation. A concept so foreign and ridiculous to the version of her three months ago, that it bordered on sheer delusion.

Yet here they were. 

In a way, she found it so overwhelming that she needed to walk away for a bit, and occupy herself by getting a headstart on the transport circles adjustments. 

And so she had started her investigation of the dubious array for their departure that would decide whether they finished this journey or not. 

Time passed, as the dark elf ventured deeper into the forest. Her path continued till the trees began to thin, and she eventually reached the edge where the mountain rose directly ahead. 

“This looks familiar.” Has she been here before? Perhaps?  The landscape itself kept giving her a sense of deja Vu, yet no specific sight would jog her memory.

‘Perhaps I passed this place during the war?’ Yes, this landscape reminded her of the border between Fullstar and Sangrea, they must be at the edge of the great forest Furenstentum Fuchswald.

She stopped, looking forward to the impediment before her. The woman stood in front of a massive boulder that stood against a towering mountain that would take a day or two to travel around or climb over.

Sangrea was probably on the other side of it.

The boulder was large enough to dwarf a house and positioned so naturally against it that it looked like nothing more than another piece of the terrain. She examined the area around it before narrowing her eyes. "There is nothing here."

“Look closely.” A calm voice she recognized echoed from behind, with Olga not even needing to look behind to know who it was.

Celestine approached the boulder from behind, both former friends now standing side by side staring at it. The blonde's fingers moved across its surface, tracing an otherwise invisible pattern until ancient elven runes gradually emerged from the stone.

“Oh my,” Olga's surprise showed immediately, shocked she hadn’t noticed it, placing her hand against the markings and chanted, “Edro.” 

As soon as that particular word left her mouth, the runes began glowing, their light spreading across the boulder until the entire structure vanished in a burst of light, clearing and revealing a hidden passage. Beyond it stood an ancient elven ruin in a cavern composed of mostly carved pillars, with a large magical circle carved into the ground at its center. Both stepped inside as they looked over the remains of the forgotten structure. 

“You still remember the old language.” Celestine mentioned, making idle chatter. 

“I am a scholar of all forms of ancient elven history after all. It would be embarrassing if I knew nothing of our ancestors.” 

The language had long since withered away with the passage of time. A few elders spoke it but it was an imperfect version, with the only ones  knowing the full version probably being the person right beside her, and anyone who miraculously had lived since its beginning. 

"This is ancient, even by my standards. Just how old is this place?"

"More than a couple thousand years… I believe two and a half millennia to be correct."

‘Must have been knowledge ingrained from Celestine's past life’ Olga hummed, examining the ruins around them. "If you possessed knowledge of magic this ancient which involves hiding things in plain sight, why did you never use it against me? With magic like this, in your prime you could have created an illusion barrier large enough around the entire dark lands and forever trapped those who lived within it, leaving us in eternal limbo."

"A bit extreme wouldn't you say?”

“I prefer to see it as ironclad. You get rid of the problem before it grows out of your control. If strength or power is not enough, then quarantine the issue till it dies out.” The irony that she of all people kept telling Celestine that the Goddess should have been more ruthless against herself was not lost on the Dark Queen. “There is no point denying it, I have killed many and destroyed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. You must have considered it viable at some point. You could even do it now, I don’t exactly feel like an actual prisoner at this point.”

While Archer stated she was, in the end he needed her and so at this point treated her more like a colleague than anything else. That man was already an odd enough exception, she couldn’t imagine anyone else being so kind to her after what she’d done.

Despite that, Celestine just ignored her and merely observed some of the flowers that grew within the ruins. Plucking a black dahlia, she brought it close to her face as she enjoyed its fragrance. “I suppose we always have disagreed on the methods.” 

That they did, yet that hardly displeased her… in fact, this brought back a sense of nostalgia. A chuckle came out of her,

“What are you playing at? You and your obsession with peace should have no quarrel with using a non-violent method such as that!”

“I suppose that’s true. If only I could have used it.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well it wasn’t the only reason, but the version of me back then still held onto the hope that I could change your mind. That I wouldn't need to force you into such a scenario where you would be trapped with all those demons, and with no outlet to feed them.”

“Yet you were more than willing to work with the Kuroinu.” 

The Goddess Reborn nodded, “At that time, I had long since lost the ability to use that particular spell. Entrusting my power to the Princess Knights made that option no longer possible.”

“Humph, I cannot fathom just what you see in humans since none of that worked out for you in the end. Even now I cannot understand that.”

“Sometimes… I ask myself that question as well lately. They aren't that worth it, and the more one tries to protect them, the more one loses. A one way path with nothing to gain at the end.”

…Eh? 

Olga slowly looked back at her former friend, wondering if she heard it correctly or not. To hear Celestine of all people say something like that… no, she must have heard wrong. Though lately, Celestine acted more and more strangely.

She still remembered how she so blatantly lied about Grave Levantine’s death to the Princess Knights. Then even drained the life out of one of the few humans she’d swore to protect.

It felt like more and more Celestine began to turn into a completely different person, one not so passionate for humans then her usual self she recalled and honestly Olga didn’t know what would happen should that actually come to pass…

And the source of it all being that man who if she even implied being in a relationship with sent her into a frenzy.

Just like that she returned to normal. Olga felt all her worry drain from her upon looking at that innocent face accompanied by what many would consider a breathtaking smile as she held the flower as if to be in harmony with beauty — Olga genuinely felt like her ears and memories must have deceived her.

“You know, a spell that big is also quite complex. I did not keep constant with my magical studies unlike you. Is it so unbelievable that I could have also forgotten it even if I retained my powers.” She said with a hint of amusement, the smile on her face making the dark elf's eyebrows twitch.

Okay, maybe she had indeed imagined it. 

“I can give you many excuses, be it me having my attention divided by matters related to the Seven Kingdoms. Raising the Princess Knights or managing diplomatic relations with surrounding nations. But in the end, I suppose my younger self had been naive, it's as simple as that.”

…Celestine really had begun behaving strangely for a while since Feoh. Never would such words have come from the heart of someone so devoted to humanity for centuries. Either they were a form of jest or just something else. Believing that to be the truth, a scoff escaped Olga as she looked toward her companion. "Stop being ridiculous. Blaming it on naivety seems appropriate for you, but I was not born yesterday. There is no way for you to simply forget everything. The others may not realize it or even understand it, but I know what kind of monstrous talent you have with magic even without that goddess side of yours."

That earned a playful hum. "Me~? You're exaggerating."

"Ugh, I forgot how insufferable you can be, forget it, I didn't come here to praise you." She kneeled beside the magical formation, carefully examining its inscriptions. "Changing the coordinates will be tricky. It appears to be a two-way circle. Where would this send them if we left everything untouched?"

Celestine considered the question for a moment. "My memory is a bit fuzzy, though it should be… Katusha? Or maybe the kingdom of Eclipse. Anyway it was somewhere between those two kingdoms."

Katusha? Eclipse? That caught her off guard, those two were very, very distant kingdoms practically unrelated to any conflict occurring in the mainland of Serenus. And even she rarely ever heard about them during her time as the Dark Queen. The former Katusha was a thriving kingdom that once held great war power similar to Fullstar, a human dominated place that had its own wars to deal with, though the last piece of news had been a decline of its power.

As for that Eclipse, Olga had mainly heard about them recently due their hunts for knowledge that meddled with dark forces. When it came to those researching the dark arts, then as dark queen herself such information would arrive to her from time to time. But that was  merely a passing rumour she’d heard from a traveling merchant and nothing more. 

From what she understood, Katusha and Eclipse had been at war for some time, though the distance made confirmation impossible, and she had no reason to seek it. She had better things to do than scry on distant lands unrelated to her own war. They would likely be among the last kingdoms she conquered after the Seven Kingdoms. Few would ever go there unless they had a specific reason.

“Why those places? Why were the high elves there? I don't recall your people having any connections to them whatsoever,” Olga sighed as she studied the formation. “Was it to minimize the distanc—no, nevermind all of that, I'm getting distracted, it doesn't concern me now. I'll learn more later."

The formation itself seemed to still work, thankfully enough. All that it required was some small adjustment here and there and their destination to Feoh would not take any delays.

The dark elf moved closer to the formation and began working, casting several spells that began analyzing the structure as she determined how its coordinates could be altered without damaging the rest of the teleportation magic. She remembered back when she was saving Chloe, and how her quick use of it without prep had caused her group to fall from the sky in the first place. The fact that such an error could have been adjusted had still remained seared in her mind. A mistake that failed to reach her notice.

After a while, watching Olga lose herself in her concentration Celestine finally spoke again. "It's been a while."

"A while since what?"

"A while since I've seen you work with your spells. Seeing you this focused and seeing you… well so normal, basically. Whenever I saw the Olga in the past four hundred years, I usually found someone consumed by such sheer hatred that no one could hold a conversation with her. Well it was either that or some other emotion that was even darker along those lines." She said, something that could not be denied nor did it need to be. The Dark Queen never smiled unless it wasn't at the sight of her enemies falling. 

As for being so focused and immersed on her spells and research like how she was before with the Goddess beside her — there were only a handful of moments like these now.

"What did you expect?" Olga's fingers continued moving across the formation. "After everything that happened, why would I be smiling so care free?"

Celestine closed her eyes. "The past cannot be changed."

"It cannot." Olga affirmed, continuing examining the formation for another moment before shifting her gaze toward the goddess. "Let's stop focusing on me so much, for I'm not the only one who has changed a lot it seems."

“—?” 

The blonde looked at her with some confusion.

"Hmph, don't act so innocent. You've changed quite a bit yourself. Not just compared to the past centuries, either. Even these last few months have changed you considerably."

Understanding glimmered in her eyes, a small chuckle escaping Celestine. "Is it that obvious?"

“Oh please.” Olga smiled faintly. "So you're not even going to deny it? You always were one who could be read like an open book. I am not sure how someone like you did not get manipulated by the Princess Knights and turned into their puppet after granting them such power. Then again, I believe they are as foolish as you are, so it worked out due to a pure miracle alone."

"A miracle huh… I wouldn't be so sure about that. I handpicked them myself and in a way, they are a part of me." Celestine looked toward the distance, her expression thoughtful as she continued. "As for these changes, you can't really blame me for that. In the past few months alone, I feel like I have learned so much, yet somehow that only made me realize how little I knew before. The world is far larger than I ever imagined. Now, I feel like a frog that spent its entire life trapped inside a well, believing the little piece of sky above it represented everything that existed. So much for being called a Goddess, I was pretty much blind."

“I agree on the blind part but for other reasons.” Olga nodded, surprisingly understanding exactly what the goddess meant. "I know that feeling. I visited plenty of kingdoms during my life, but unlike Mistiora seeing different lands never made me feel that way. It came from discovering the people who lived in them, and the things they knew that I didn’t. There are so many different kinds of people out there, and now I can say Archer happens to be one of the strangest among them. Even his magic alone reignited something I thought I had lost. It is so different and versatile, unlike anything I’ve seen anyone claiming to be a human, be capable of. I feel like that little girl who used to sneak into the library whenever the elders weren't watching, stealing forbidden tomes, and spending hours studying them has suddenly come back. For just a brief moment, I wanted nothing more than to learn again. I didn't care about being a dark elf, my responsibilities, or what everyone expected from me. I simply wanted to be just Olga again."

A gentle smile sneakily made its way to her face when talking about that man. Something that had not escaped the notice of her fellow elf.

"You love him, don't you?"

“—What did you just say?!”

The question caught her completely off guard as Olga needed a few seconds to process that information. Enough time had passed that for a moment Olga froze. A minute passed before a reddish blush grew on Olga’s face tinting it marron, realizing her body wasn’t breathing when it started becoming blue. 

“Cough, Haaah, Cough, Haaah, Cough!”

Finally a fit of coughing filled the hollow cave as Olga’s lungs took back much needed oxygen.

All the while Olga stared at Celestine with an expression that made it obvious she had not expected such directness, nor her own reaction. There was no teasing hidden behind the words, nor any attempt to pry into something so private. The goddess already seemed to know the answer and had simply wrapped her certainty into a question.

“Haah… haah, where did that come from?” 

The person in front just shrugged  “Just plain curiosity.” 

“You and your curiosity, hah…” A deep sigh escaped her as she looked away. 

Love him…

Of course she knew who ‘him’ was, acting clueless was just an insult to her intellect. A moment passed in complete silence, her mind doing back and forth with dismissive answers ready to be loaded into mental cannons and delivered with denial engulfing blasts of death. 

‘Why am I even getting flustered here? I am no child… damn it, Celestine.’ 

Loving a man never was an option she considered or wanted given her role as a Queen. Dark elven men were an impossibility, and were one of the reasons their bloodline thinned with each passing generation, diluted through intermingling with other species, and creating half-elf. 

‘Hah, I suppose it's the former queen now. Does it even matter now? Even if it doesn’t, I can't show it to her.’

The conversation reminded her why she sealed her vagina, both as a form of protection and for the ritual itself, to produce another pure dark elf. Her words to Celestine back then, were in both parts deliberately vindictive but also with a trace of truth. She knew news would have eventually reached the Goddess of her prior intimacy with Archer sooner or later. In a way, she had already steeled herself for such a conversation.

Her mind immediately reeled upon the memory of her foolish actions that could very well have gone too far. 

‘What was I thinking back then? Was I really so desperate to have him beneath me?’

But still even with centuries of experience, this woman still managed to completely throw her off with mere words. So rather than just come up with some vague words, Olga grew annoyed at the uncertainty and voiced the first thing that crossed her mind, that could defend her pride while also rallying Celestine. "Ahem, Well I suppose, there is no point in denying it. Still I don’t think that’s entirely what it is. I suppose the feelings I have for him could be described as… as… interest."

“You mean romantic?” 

Romantic? Love?

Was that what she felt? Denial rose first and foremost for such an absurdity. Attraction definitely, but definitely not the way Celestine phrased it… a feeling she refused to call it love. ‘Interest, t-that feels more appropriate. Do I have the right or time to call it love?’

Her head ached and her heart remained unsatisfied. But that could not be shown, so, the woman inhaled a deep breath to calm her racing heart.

“Call it what you will. They are the same in my eyes.” 

Celestine's lips curved into a teasing smile. "You really can't help yourself, can you? Even now, you have to phrase it like some scholarly observation instead of simply admitting that you love him."

A faint frown crossed Olga's face before she drew another breath and composed herself. "Honestly, it's nothing that deep. It comes from curiosity and interest in his capabilities. Archer isn't like the humans, elves, or any other creature I have encountered. He's an anomaly. My curiosity simply led me toward temporary feelings of intrigue that I didn't expect."

"When did they start?"

To any outsider, the moments were numerous when observing Archer's history to prove how much he differed from the rest. That perhaps those were the reasons why all of this began to bloom.

His power, an aspect that could not be ignored and even his intellect. A truly confusing existence, that man was. 

“...”

All of these logical explanations came to mind yet she remained unsatisfied with all of them. When boiling it all down, she… was not so sure herself. Or rather, it happened to be a question she asked herself several times in the past. “It's funny, I actually first intended for it to be the other way around. To have him obsessed with me and wrapped around my finger.” Thinking about it now, even though it was not that long ago, the dark elf truly wondered just what was going through her mind back then. 

‘The only thing that guy is obsessed with would be looking after Radomira… both of them are practically each other's shadow.’ 

Did she feel embarrassed that a tiefling who had not even mastered her own abilities managed to accomplish such a thing with Archer? Yes, a bit.

But to be completely honest, she hadn’t given up on breaking him just yet.

“I suppose it happened rather recently. No,  perhaps more accurately I should say it began when we fought the lycanthropes, the remnants of my old traitorous army." Olga rose from her seat, her gaze drifting toward the window as she considered the memory. "During that fight, for the first time, I genuinely thought that perhaps living like this wouldn't be so bad."

After that, only then did her attempt to seduce him begin. ‘And what happened that night, did I really almost…’ 

No, not the time to doubt her own drive to go that far. Even if there was more to that, it was pointless to think about it further now. She turned back toward Celestine, returning the question with the same bluntness.

"So then, I take it you are asking because you love him.”

"Very much so." The answer came without hesitation. The Goddess Reborn tilted her head slightly, studying her reaction before asking, "Do you hate it? The idea of me loving him?"

Several seconds passed before Olga finally released another sigh and shook her head. "No. I wouldn't."

The response clearly caught Celestine off guard. "What?"

What a funny expression, entertaining in many ways. Olga chuckled at the surprise written across her face. "First of all, you loving him or dozens of women loving him makes no difference. He might be a debauched man who sleeps around with two elves with an excuse of recovery—”

“—Please stop bringing up that part.” 

The blonde went completely ignored, “But he is not someone who opens his heart to anyone. Even after so much effort, I barely managed to accomplish anything, let alone make him look at only me and I doubt you'll be any more successful. Besides, I am not really that surprised?”

“What do you mean?” 

“I said I’m not surprised you love him nor do I hate the idea of it. Look at it from a broader perspective. It would've only been a matter of time before you fell for him. That man embodies practically every annoying quality that you happen to like."

“If he and I are that similar in your opinion…” Celestine narrowed her eyes. "If that's true, then why do you love him? It can't simply be because he's powerful or possesses powerful magic. I know you aren’t that simple."

"I still wouldn’t say it like that, but at this point does the reason for my interest even matter?" Olga settled back down, her tone losing some of its earlier playfulness and now bordering on irritation. "What you need to know is that I have some temporary feelings of curiosity for Archer. That's all. It's only a fleeting part of my life, and I know these feelings will eventually fade with time. I call him a monster and don't see him as a human, yes, but he still has the minuscule lifespan of a human. If I get too attached, I'll just end up alone in the blink of an eye."

A particular light flashed within her rival's eyes at those words. “There are ways to extend one's lifespan and he is… he won't be dying anytime soon — even if he tried.” 

That got her attention, was there something Celestine knew that she didn't? From her tone, it did not sound like it was a simple matter of her promising to extend his life or anything like that. But before she could pry any further, another question struck her senses out of nowhere. 

"Did you try to sleep with him?"

The blunt question immediately wiped away Olga's composure. "What kind of question is that, you idiot!?" Much to her chagrin, heat grew on her face. A blush she wanted to avoid showing. “It has nothing to do with you whether I slept with him or not!” 

That reaction alone proved more useful than an answer. Celestine's eyes widened as realization dawned on her. "Olga… you… y-you broke your seal!?"

Bang!

A blast of condensed magic flew from her staff and struck the nearby wall, not hitting any of the important parts of the formation. “I am getting the feeling that you are purposefully trying to annoy me, Celeste.” She muttered silently before standing up. "No, I haven't broken it." Her hand moved to her stomach, tracing the seal beneath her clothes before showing it to the goddess. "It's still here."

Celestine clearly wasn't convinced. "But you thought about removing it, didn't you?"

A bitter laugh escaped Olga. Had she lost her edge lately? For this woman of all people to read her like this, how shameful. "I truly am a failure, aren't I? That seal represents more than my virginity. It represents the future of my people, everything I have carried for them. Yet I still found myself thinking about removing it just to throw all of that away."

"But you had the thought. You still have the thought of removing it."

Olga nodded, then shook her head as if trying to dismiss the contradiction within herself. Their eyes met, and for a moment neither needed to explain what the other already understood.

"We're both failures in our own ways, and we're both looking for the same thing. If this had happened in the past, you wouldn't have even considered establishing a relationship with a human, despite everything you've done to protect them. And even if that somehow happened by some miracle, you would've probably said something idiotic about sharing him. But that won't be the case now, will it?"

The grin on her face grew as she saw Celestine's fists tightened, but she offered no reply. Olga understood anyway. She stepped closer until the space between them nearly disappeared as their chests practically pressed against one another, then reached up and caught the goddess beneath the chin, gently forcing her to meet her eyes. "I can see it in your eyes, jealousy. So much jealousy and desire. You want him for yourself, don't you? You want him to ravish you. The dignity of a Goddess is nowhere to be seen. The Goddess herself is most likely rolling in your soul with disbelief at your actions."

“...”

Yellow eyes stared back at green, Celestine's expression gave her answer before the small nod finally confirmed it.

"While I didn't break the seal, I did get a taste of him. It's addictive, and made me experience a fire I never imagined possible. I always wondered what it felt like to lose oneself to pleasure and I did, had it not been for Mistiora bringing me back to my senses — the Olga before you would have been a very different individual." A faint, knowing smile touched Olga's lips. "You're capable of being selfish after all. But you are unable to get it, that infuriates you, doesn't it? You hate me right now. You hate that redheaded Princess Knight and you would hate others who slept with him."

“...What are you trying to say, Olga.” 

Celestine whispered quietly, but the former Dark Queen could already see the conflict playing across her face.

“I have gotten a certain understanding of Archer. He is a block of ice at times, only once in a full moon melting away for others. But I believe I found a way to melt it at any time. If I wanted to, I could go to him and the both of us turn into wild animals in heat until the morning sun rises. But you can't.” Dainty fingers gently intertwined with the Goddess, now allowing her to escape. “If you swear your allegiance to me, if the Goddess Reborn agrees to bow her head to the Dark Queen.”

“You're lying.” So she said, but her words lacked any conviction.

“Life would be easier for you with me as your Queen, wouldn't it?” Olga leaned in close to her ear, “Then we can work together to have him wrapped around our fingers. To have him think of nothing but us, for his mind and ours to melt with pure pleasure~” Her hot breath caressed her nape and made the woman visibly shudder. A reaction that only made the smirk on Olga's face grow. 

“Y-You are messing with me.” Now the blush on Celestine's face matched the one Olga had earlier on, vindication for getting pushed around by those questions earlier. She wanted to see the blonde beg, to see her break down with despair at how big the gap between them truly was. 

And the only way she knew how to get past her mental defense was through this current method. 

“I could be. But I could also be telling the truth. You will only know that upon agreeing with me. But if you waste too much time and try to charm that man with no success, then I’ll make sure Mistiora is not around the next time I lose myself to pleasure. I guarantee you, Archer won't push me back.” 

“Olga…” Now, her tone sounded more like a warning than anything else. Seeing the jealousy in those eyes had proven to be an intoxicating experience. Someone so pure and detached from such things in the past, now suffering because she lacked them.

"Don't expect him to come to you." The words carried a meaning that Celestine, especially, could not misunderstand. Archer himself wouldn't prove easy to win over, and Olga knew that better than most. "Archer isn't an easy target. If Chloe manages to break through that wall tonight, it'll be quite an accomplishment."

"Chloe?" Celestine's eyes widened. "You mean…”

This time, Olga finally let go and went back to work on the formation. “I told you earlier, didn't I? I know how to melt the ice around his heart. And if I'm correct, you will see the result of it tonight.” 

{Break}

(Around the same time)

The sound of rocks striking the creek broke the quiet of the evening. One skipped across the surface before sinking, sending a set of ripples outward, followed by another that landed almost in the same spot. Beyond the water, the forest had settled into the usual nighttime noises, insects chirping among the trees and the occasional rustle coming from somewhere in the distance. Chloe sat at the edge of the creek with her knees drawn up, picking another stone from the ground and throwing it with considerably more force than the others, only for it to land in the same stretch of water. Her face remained blank throughout it all. No anger, no sadness, no frustration, just the same stoic expression that made it difficult to tell what she had been thinking.

Plop

Another rock got thrown, the girl observed it in silence. Doing so until she heard the sound of footsteps drawing closer and closer. 

“What do you want…”

Archer approached from behind and stopped several steps away, watching her for a moment. It did not take an expert to realize that something clearly bothered the woman, though he already had a good idea of what it concerned. Rather than forcing the conversation, he allowed the quiet atmosphere to continue until Chloe finally broke it herself. "If you have something to say, then say it. There's no point in standing there like that."

"I don't have anything to tell you." He folded his arms, his gaze remaining on her. "I was mostly hoping you'd have something to tell me instead. Share some stories and I can help you get it off your chest."

Splash!

Another stone disappeared into the creek. "What's there for me to even talk about? You already know everything. My queen gave you the details."

That she did. Judging by the way she continued throwing rocks, Archer figured she intended to leave things there. He had barely taken a step, however, when the dark elf woman spoke again. "Actually, there is something." She glanced back at him, hesitation briefly crossing her face before she looked toward the water again. "Would you mind having a small sparring session against me?"

Oh? Not that unusual given it had been a while since their last little duel. Still, he felt that the timing felt strange, but her words were genuine and he had no issues indulging in her request. Chloe needed an outlet for whatever had been building inside her. "Of course."

They moved toward a larger clearing, with Radomira tagging along behind him. Arms wrapped around him as her chin rested comfortably on his shoulder. Sounds of wings flapping as she floated around with the rest of her body hovering just above the ground. Her attention remained fixed on Chloe as he walked behind her. "Chloe looks weird."

"She's got a lot on her mind."

Floating behind him, the winged girl nestled her head against his. "Don't go too hard on her. Actually, never mind. Go extremely hard on her. Make sure you hit her in as many places as possible."

The request caught him completely off guard. Archer turned his head, trying to determine whether she had been joking, but the serious expression on her face only made the whole thing stranger. "Where did that come from? Do you two have some bad blood that I don't know about?"

"No, there's no bad blood. I'm actually doing her a favor and this might help her actually. I guarantee you, she won't dislike it. Trust me."

Seeing her make a wise face like a teacher trying to impart some guidance to their student brought a smile to his face. 

"Because she's a masochist?"

“Ah. How did you…”

The reaction answered the question before any words could. Radomira's eyes widened as she turned toward him, her expression practically screaming, How did you know that? Archer had to suppress a laugh at the sight. "I've sparred and fought against her several times. I'd have to be an idiot not to notice the strange behavior. At first, I figured it came mostly from her rage and anger. Her face would turn red, her breathing would grow heavier, and I assumed she simply got worked up during the fights. But during our more recent sessions, she's become increasingly bold about it and at times even let herself get hit. I don't believe she did it consciously, but for someone of her caliber, it did not make sense until I came to this realization. Not to mention that Chloe isn't exactly good at hiding her smile or the way she looks forward to getting hit."

“Damn it, I was trying to be subtle about it for nothing then.” 

“I appreciate that you tried for her at least. But do tell me, how did you know what a masochist meant?” 

“Mistiora told me.” 

Not that surprising, aside from him, Radomira spent most of her time with her. Someone like Mistiora would know about such things and share them with her.

As for himself, he had encountered people with an unhealthy fascination for pain before, although the severity differed from person to person. Some took it so far that getting pierced by a sword somehow brought them more pleasure than pain. Thankfully, Chloe did not appear anywhere near that extreme. Whatever her particular issue might be, she still understood the difference between sparring and deliberately getting herself heavily injured purposefully.

The tiefling suddenly wiggled around as she observed the weapons he had traced closely. "Is that why you keep using that scary bamboo sword? The one with the tiger stripes? You've been indulging her this whole time!?"

Archer projected the same wooden bokken and used his free hand to ruffle her hair. She immediately leaned into the touch, rubbing her cheek against his hand with the contentment of a cat. "Go sit with Mistiora. She looks lonely over there."

A small huff escaped her. "Fine. Have your fun."

She flew off toward Mistiora, waving back before leaning in one last time to plant a quick kiss against his cheek. Archer shook his head as he watched her leave. That latest habit had started because Maia kept doing the same thing, and naturally, the younger woman had decided to copy her.

Chloe had already reached the other side of the clearing and stood waiting for him. Archer projected a second wooden sword and tossed it across. She caught the weapon cleanly and examined it for a moment before raising her eyes toward him. "The rules are simple and the same as before. The first person to concede loses, or the match ends if one of our practice swords touches the other's head or strikes a vital area."

"Why can't we use real swords this time?"

"Because these are just as durable as the real things, and with them, neither of us needs to hold back. I feel like you have some steam to blow out."

"I'm almost half a century old and yet you think I'll fall for such lies. Fine." Uncertainty crossed her expression as she studied the wooden blade. "Isn't that more of a handicap for you? I've always gone against you while you held back. Now it sounds like you're giving yourself permission to fight seriously."

Archer rolled his eyes. "Just trust me. These are more useful than an actual sword for training. I don't just use them cause I underestimate you, I can strike areas where your defense has a weakness and make you remember them instead of simply stunning you or forcing your way through with a blade."

The young woman advanced, but something immediately caught his attention… ‘Slow.’. Chloe brought the practice sword down in a straightforward strike, and Archer raised his own horizontally in front of his face, catching the blow before using enough force to knock her weapon aside. 

“Hah!” 

The next exchange came quickly. Chloe recovered from the deflection, drew her sword arm close, and thrust the wooden blade straight toward him. Archer leaned aside, letting the point pass so close that it brushed against his clothes, then answered with a light tap against her arm. The contact looked harmless, yet Chloe immediately released her weapon and staggered backward several steps, staring at him in disbelief.

"Ouch! How did that hurt so much more than before!?"

"It's a special training sword that will hurt more each time you get hit."

“Aah!”

She looked down at her arm as though expecting to find some explanation there, but the match resumed before she could dwell on it. Their wooden blades met repeatedly as they moved around the clearing, Chloe pressing forward with a diagonal cut toward his shoulder before he sidestepped and brought his sword across to catch hers. The dull crack of wood echoed through the trees, followed almost immediately by a reverse strike as she spun on her heel and attacked from the opposite direction. Archer ducked beneath it and swept his leg across the ground, forcing her to jump backward before his foot could catch hers. 

Rather than giving him room to breathe, she came forward again with several quick thrusts, each one redirected by small movements of his sword. Her attacks gradually became faster and less predictable as frustration pushed her harder, a feint toward his left followed by a sudden pivot in the opposite direction. The attempt still failed. Archer turned with her and absorbed the strike against his wooden blade, then answered with a quick thrust toward her stomach. Chloe twisted away, but the tip still caught her ribs, drawing a wince from her before she immediately resumed attacking with overhead strikes and low sweeps.

One exchange ended differently. Archer angled his sword against hers and allowed Chloe's blade to slide down its length instead of meeting it head-on. Before she could recover her balance, his leg slipped behind hers and caught it at the right moment. “No!” Her footing disappeared, and she crashed onto her back with a loud thud. The wooden sword slipped from her hand as she remained sprawled across the grass, staring toward the night sky. Normally, she would have already been back on her feet, yet this time she made no attempt to move. 

“Hah… hah… hah…” Her breathing remained heavy, and the exhaustion in her expression seemed to have little to do with the sparring itself. "Hah… fuck. What's the point? It feels like I'm performing worse than before."

Archer crouched beside her, resting the wooden sword against his shoulder. Instead of immediately answering, he plucked a couple of leaves from the grass and dropped them onto her face. Chloe frowned and blew them away, but even that minor annoyance failed to convince her to get up.

"You're not enjoying the fight like you thought you would, are you?"

"No. It doesn't feel the same."

"Joy and hobbies can turn gray and pointless when something more troubling occupies your mind. There's no point pretending what happened in Fullstar won't affect you just because you'd rather keep doing what you've always done. Deal with those feelings first. Everything else can wait."

Chloe turned her head toward him, looking genuinely puzzled. "What are you, a counselor?"

"Might as well be, considering everything I've been doing with the people here. I've solved plenty of problems the good old-fashioned way with exploding swords and enough magic blades to fill an armory, but I've learned that some problems would've been easier if I knew how to communicate properly. Lately, I'm getting better at it."

A faint smile appeared on her face. "Could you have communicated with my queen in the beginning if you hadn't destroyed her castle?"

His mouth curved into a smirk. "I could've tried, but I have a feeling you would've ignored every word and gone straight for my throat while calling me a worthless human. Besides, I had orders to kill the Kuroinu Mercenary Group, so that part wasn't exactly negotiable."

"I wasn't that bad."

"No, you were worse."

The exchange earned him another look, but neither bothered continuing the argument. Chloe's expression gradually returned to the distant one she had worn beside the creek. When she finally spoke again, her voice carried none of the earlier irritation.

"Mandeville is no more." That immediately drew Archer's attention. He knew exactly who she meant, and there was no reason to make her spell it out. Instead of filling the moment with unnecessary questions, he remained beside her and let her continue at her own pace. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what? That man deserved to die with everything I learned about him."

"Because I did it by myself. I didn't wait for us to do it together. Are you angry?"

"No. I'm not angry, and I'm certainly not disappointed. If anything, it's the opposite." The surprise on her face told him she hadn't expected that answer. "I heard what happened. You handled yourself remarkably well. Instead of charging into an entire army alone, you rescued someone who could help you from inside, arranged a trap that created enough chaos to pull attention away from your real objective, and used that opening to reach your target. You needed some help from Olga, sure, but for someone in your position, that's progress."

"I'm second in command of an army that nearly conquered the seven kingdoms. That's good enough? Doesn't that sound more like an insult?"

"Nearly is a strong word. Commanding a demon army and working alongside a mercenary like Leona while keeping yourself hidden are two very different things."

Chloe remained thoughtful for a moment, her eyes fixed on the stars above them. "When I first saw him, I remembered everything from my past."

Archer lowered himself onto the grass beside her, leaving the wooden sword nearby. Neither needed to look at the other as they stared into the night sky, the trees surrounding the clearing and the distant sounds of the forest creating a quiet backdrop for her memories.

"My memories of him are not pretty to say the least. "

"Do you still hate humans after confronting him? And I'm human too." She had made that point clear several times again and again.

"Perhaps I wanted to hate them. I certainly had enough reason to." Her fingers tightened around the wooden sword before relaxing again. "A few days ago, after seeing him after so long... Mandeville to the moment I drove my knife into him and kept punching his face until I heard his skull crack, my hatred never once turned toward humanity as a whole. It stayed focused on him. Just him. Yet after finally achieving the thing I'd wanted for so long, I still felt hollow."

"Do you regret killing him?"

"Not for a second." She did not waste a second for the answer to come without hesitation. "I'd do it a thousand times if I had the opportunity, even if I could turn back time and make the same choice again. That's what confuses me. Maybe I let him die too easily. Maybe I should have kept him alive longer, and made him suffer before finally ending it. Perhaps that would have given me the satisfaction I wanted. Maybe throwing him into an orc pit would have felt better."

A slippery slope, going down that path came with more cons than anything else. The thinking about the handful of people that made this choice made Archer shake his head. "None of that necessarily would have given you what you wanted. It might have done nothing except leave you carrying even more hatred afterward or turning you into a different person entirely. And I'm not going to tell you that forgiveness would've been the better answer, because I don't believe that either. You simply expected too much from what would happen after you finally got your revenge."

At that, Chloe hummed with him. "I… think so." The admission was followed by her rising and retrieving the wooden sword she had dropped earlier, brushing a little dirt from its surface before looking back toward him. "One more round?"

"Alright."

The second sparring session began with considerably more intensity. Archer moved with the same speed he had shown throughout their previous sessions, the wooden sword following his movements naturally as he shifted between attacks and defense. Not necessarily trying to go too hard on her, Chloe responded with everything she had, driving forward and even abandoning her defense to some degree. 

Of course, he capitalized on that. 

“Ah!” A strike came toward her shoulder, forcing her to bring her sword up and absorb the impact through both arms before Archer followed with a low sweep. She jumped back just in time, landing several steps away before immediately advancing again.

A diagonal slash came toward his midsection. Archer shifted aside and raised his sword to intercept it, the two wooden blades colliding with a dull crack. Chloe immediately rotated on her heel and brought the weapon around from the opposite direction, but he ducked beneath the swing and answered with a short thrust toward her side. She twisted away, avoiding the full strike, though the tip still caught her ribs. Instead of retreating, the hit only seemed to drive her forward. Overhead strikes followed one after another, mixed with low attacks designed to force him into changing his stance, and each time Archer found an opening, another attack came immediately afterward.

‘She’s getting better at least, no longer relying on pure force like before. But her grip is still a bit too loose.’

The exchange continued until Archer struck the back of her hand with precise timing. Her fingers opened from the impact, sending the wooden sword tumbling across the clearing. “Tch!” 

Poof!

Before she could recover, a small sphere in her other hand burst apart and released a thick cloud of smoke that immediately swallowed the area around them.

"A smoke screen, huh? Not bad."

The sound of footsteps came faintly through the haze. Archer could barely see anything, but his enhanced senses picked up the movement circling around him rather than coming straight from the front. A normal person might have lost track of her completely, but the faint disturbance of her steps gave away her position. Chloe suddenly lunged through the smoke, and he raised his sword in preparation to intercept her.

Then he stopped.

‘No… this is fine.’

This didn't need to become a serious fight. She had already spent the entire evening carrying around enough frustration, and if winning the spar helped her release even a fraction of it, there was little reason to deny her that opportunity. The wooden sword lowered as the approaching silhouette emerged from the smoke, and Chloe collided with him a moment later, knocking both of them to the ground.

“Oof!” 

Both fell to the ground with an audible thud.

When the smoke finally began to clear, Archer found himself lying on his back with Chloe above him, breathing heavily. Surprise filled her expression. She had clearly expected him to counterattack, yet instead he simply looked up at her and decided to give her the words she clearly needed to hear.

"Congratulations. You won."

For several seconds, she remained frozen there, trying to process what he had just told her. Her face gradually turned red as loose strands of blonde hair slipped free from her ruined ponytail and fell around them. The sparring session had torn the hair tie apart somewhere along the way, leaving her hair hanging freely around her shoulders and brushing against his face whenever she moved.

“You...”

Slowly, Chloe lowered herself until their lips met. The first contact proved awkward, her lips tense from uncertainty rather than confidence. Archer placed a hand against her back, and that simple reassurance allowed her to relax. “Mmmm~!” The kiss became softer as she stopped overthinking every movement and simply allowed herself to experience the moment.

When they finally separated, Chloe remained close enough that he could see the uncertainty returning to her expression. "C-Can you… um, can you please do the same thing you did for my Queen that night? Just this once… I won't ask for anything else, and I promise I won't cause you any trouble. I just want to forget about everything for a little while."

Her voice quivered, she seemed almost certain he would refuse, yet Archer could see how much she wanted the chance to escape her own thoughts, even if only temporarily.

"Well, you did beat me. Technically, that means you deserve a reward."

Her eyes widened. For the first time that evening, that lost expression disappeared completely. A smile slowly formed across her face as tears began running down her cheeks.

"There's no need to lie to me. I'm not that stupid. But I'll accept it."

She leaned down again, and this time there was no hesitation when their lips met. Chloe simply held onto him, her hands gripping his shroud as though afraid that if she let go, the moment would disappear and everything she had spent the evening trying to escape would come rushing back.

—---

Also, I got some beautiful images from Archer Supporter that will be shown in the upcoming lemon with Chloe. If y'all are curious and want to see them early then just message me.