Chapter 1077: Funeral
Alice took a deep breath.
She stood before a gravestone placed just outside of the city. Unfortunately, she didn’t know where Renna would prefer to be buried.
She didn’t know where the World Tree was, and she didn’t know if Renna had any extended family.
"I’m not a very good friend, am I?" Alice smiled bitterly.
Letting out a sigh, she sat next to the grave. On it was marked a single line.
Here lies Renna, Lord of the Sacred Grove.
A simple gravestone. One that Alice didn’t know what she should have written on it.
Should she have mentioned her love for alcohol? Or was that too disrespectful towards the dead?
She reached into her pouch and pulled out a single bottle.
A bottle of pure luxury, one that you can’t get anymore.
The most expensive mead in the world.
Ayrian Mead.
"You know... I had offered you this bottle before we parted ways. I thought that after baiting you with that first sip when we met on the first day, there was no way you would refuse." Alice chuckled, opening the bottle and taking a light sip.
"And yet... You refused. I saw a bit of hesitation in your eyes, but you actually turned it away. Do you still call yourself an alcoholic like me?" She laughed, her voice filled with bitter regret.
"You said that this stuff I can’t get anymore shouldn’t be wasted on someone like you. That you still had a bit left." A sad smile hung on her lips.
"Liquid gold, you called it. I agree. Stuff like this is rare, but... So are the people who I can share it with, you know?"
She reached her hand over the gravestone and poured some of the mead over it.
"The people around me, they’re not connoisseurs of mead like you and I are. They don’t see it the same way we do. They don’t love it the same way we do, drinking buddy.
"I offered you a second bottle because I knew you would appreciate it just as much as I would. And yet you turned it away. Sigh~ What a shame." Alice shook her head.
"I even told you not to beg me for another bottle. Now look at me, pouring one out even though you can’t even enjoy it anymore. But...
"I suppose that’s just me listening to you. You said you could always tempt me to drink with you. That I wouldn’t enjoy a good drink without anyone to share it with. What was it that you said? A drink tastes better when shared between two people?"
Alice took another sip.
"Now look at us. Can you even call this sharing it between two people?" She shook her head.
"To us who came before." Alice mumbled, pouring another one for Renna.
"And to the me that remains...
"I didn’t think it would happen, you know? You might not know a lot about me, but... I’m pretty proud of my strength. After Lilia, ah, that was my first friend by the way. I had met her when I was still just another slave in the colosseum. A fighting ring of sorts.
"After I was forced to kill Lilia, I... didn’t think I would lose another friend. I vowed not to lose another one so long as I could do something." Alice closed her eyes, allowing the wind to blow against her hair.
"Though... controlling everything is difficult in the end. Things happen where the eyes don’t reach. And I’m sure I’ll make many more mistakes in the future as well."
Opening her eyes, she glanced up at the sky.
"Do you blame me? For asking you to investigate."
Silence.
"Well... I suppose even if you do, I can’t exactly find out, can I? But that’s fine. I’ll take responsibility for this." Alice stood up.
She took a third sip of the bottle before pouring one more for Renna.
"I said that we’ll go for a drink after we resolve the Void issue. Though it’s a little premature, you can’t exactly blame me, can you? But~ if you really want to, you can just come here and knock some sense into me." Alice let out a chuckle.
Once again, there was no response.
"Honestly, I would love to tell you that I’ve resolved our issues, but... There are still a lot of things to deal with. I’m about to go for another meeting with the royals. Hopefully, we figure out what we’re doing this time. Any more delays and I’ll lose my mind, you know?
"Meetings were never my favourite. Plans? I rarely had them. I just winged it and hoped things worked." Alice waved her hand with a casual laugh.
Placing her hand against the top of the gravestone, she kneeled.
"I’ll keep the World Tree safe as well. Don’t you worry. I still have the stick you gave me. Since I caused your death, I’ll take over your responsibilities. I promise.
"What was the blessing you gave me again? Right... May the World Tree bless your endeavours. May you reach the life you seek." Alice smiled.
She hoped that if Renna was to live another life, it would be one filled with joy and blessings.
"I’ll leave you the rest of this bottle. Don’t drink it all at once now." Alice carefully placed the cup down and stood up.
Giving the gravestone one more glance, she turned around and left.
In that moment, a strong gust of wind crashed against Alice’s back. Her hair was blown forward as, for a moment, it felt as though Renna had just given her a pat on the back.
Turning around, she saw the bottle tipped over, its contents soaking the ground around the gravestone.
". . . Jeez, aren’t you impatient? I haven’t even left yet." Alice held back her tears.
She could almost see Renna sitting on the gravestone with her hearty grin while holding the bottle.
"See you around, Drinking Buddy." Alice forced herself to turn around and gave a small wave.
###
"Feeling better?" Allura asked with a small smile.
She was waiting at the bottom of the hill where Alice had chosen to bury Renna. A hill that granted her a perfect view of the city.
"Mnm, better. There’s a lot of things I have to be responsible for now." Alice chuckled as Allura nodded her head.
"That’s just how life is. When you take over for someone, their responsibilities become yours. Your actions now represent both of you. That is the weight of life. Don’t dismiss it, don’t ignore it. Accept it and walk with your head held high." Allura patted Alice on the head.
"Do you ever feel... burdened by your responsibilities?" Alice asked.
"What kind of question is that? Of course I do. At the end of the day, I’m a human like everyone else. Well, not exactly, but you know what I mean. Just because I’m an apostle doesn’t mean I don’t feel emotions." Allura shrugged.
"There are days where I feel like I can’t move at all. When these burdens become shackles around my limbs, holding me down and stopping me from moving." She exhaled deeply as a cloud of smoke drifted into the air.
"But to live is to walk with those burdens no matter what. It’s why you add people into your life so that you can share the burden. What was heavy for one person becomes manageable with two." She grinned.
"In that regard, you have plenty of people here to help. Including myself." She reassured Alice as Alice nodded her head.
"I think our most important task right now is to figure out a way for the Void to separate itself from the Nightmare. And by extension, we need to check up on the World Tree. With the Royal Family’s connection to the elves, I’m sure that’ll resolve itself once the alliance is agreed upon." Allura thought out loud.
"I have a branch with me, and I’m sure the elven Abyss Lord has already reported Renna’s death to the King. I think once I show them her emblem, it should help to some extent." Alice pulled out the branch of the World Tree along with the Royal Guard’s emblem.
Tapping her finger for a moment, Allura opened her mouth.
"Don’t worry about that. Let Nalem handle the negotiations. I know you’ve had to do a lot of these things yourself since you travelled mostly alone or with a small group, but he’s a pro at this. Instead, we have something more important to deal with." Allura grinned, giving Alice a thumbs up.
Alice tilted her head in confusion.
What else was more important than negotiating with the Royal Family and sorting out the Void?
Alyss rolled her eyes.
Cayla blinked in surprise.
Based on Alyss and Cayla’s expressions, it was clear that it was something obvious. Something that she would’ve been occupied with a lot in the past, yet not so much anymore.
"Since it was a chaotic situation, we didn’t have much time to fully catch up. I saw what you were capable of during the fight, but I don’t think that was everything, was it? A lot of your abilities must’ve been held back due to certain circumstances that might’ve appeared during the fight.
"So while Nalem is negotiating, I think it’s about time you told me about all the Sigils you’ve gained in your time away." Allura chuckled.
She was happy that Alice wasn’t thinking about fighting all the time. It meant that there were more important things in her life than just strength.
"And once I get a full understanding of what you can do, I think it’s about time we move to the next step of your training. Finding new combinations that work, along with learning about how to tap into a certain skill." Allura gave Alice the thumbs up.
"It’s about time momma teaches you how to use Oblivion."
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