Inviting Zephyr into her room above the guild's main hall, Glyea offered him a chair and took a seat at the edge of her bed. Waiting for him to settle, she crossed her legs and reached for her bedside table. Grabbing an envelope from it, she quickly reached inside and took out a letter.
"So? What's this about?" Zephyr asked, sliding his chair closer to her.
Glyea's eyes scanned the parchment in silence a little longer. Then, folding the page, she passed it to him.
"A message from the capital," urging him to read the letter, she folded her arms. "The roundtable assembly wants me to come back. Usually it doesn't mean much, but I have a faint suspicion that something's going on."
Listening closely to Glyea, Zephyr scanned the page and found nothing of particular interest.
"And what would that be?" He asked, lifting his chin again.
Heaving a sigh, Glyea turned her gaze to the note in Zephyr's hand.
"I'm still only a student at the roundtable assembly, and this deployment was meant to boost my folder. Which means, I can't abandon this position until my task is complete, or there's no point in me doing any of this. No extra points, no nothing..." Looking into Zephyr's eyes, she flipped her legs on the other end. "Still, the letter says that I would be given the full benefit of this deployment. Either that's a lie or something else is going on."
"What are you getting at?"
Dropping her hands, Glyea placed them on her knees.
"What I am getting at is that this town is in trouble. I don't know how exactly, but my best guess is an approaching monster army." Pulling herself up, she grabbed the letter from Zephyr's hands. "And as an investment of the assembly, the sages don't want to lose me. Magic knights are amongst the rarest of classes, so it only makes sense that they wouldn't want me to stay behind, even though warning the capital in case of monster invasion is kind of the whole point of my deployment."
Squinting his eyes, Zephyr got up as well. Carrying a hint of confusion in his gaze, he asked.
"And you gathered all that from the letter?"
"I know it sounds far-fetched, but trust me. The assembly hates giving free points more than losing one of their students. It's how they keep the facade of superiority about themselves; otherwise, they would lose their reputation."
"And why are you telling me all of this?" Zephyr asked with his eyebrows raised.
Shrugging, the woman looked around her surroundings. Perhaps unsure herself, but she had to ask.
"Maybe you should come with me?" Returning her attention to the devil, she added. "I don't know, but I thought I should tell you just in case I'm right. I have to head out either way until the threat clears, because trust me, those assholes are gonna send me back on another assignment before giving me those promised points. And if this place still stands by then, maybe I'll be here once again."
"If I didn't know better," taking a step closer, Zephyr grabbed Glyea's hands. "I would've assumed that you almost care for me. Is that why you think I should come with you? To be by your side instead of dying here when the army comes?"
Slapping his hands, Glyea rolled her eyes.
"Don't flatter yourself, you rascal." Her words were accompanied by a smile, one that she was struggling to put down. "And why is it so bad even if I do care to bring you with me? Don't you wanna stay alive as well? I know you're strong, but you're no army, Custer."
As her eyes returned to Zephyr's face, Glyea tried not to show any emotions. Yet struggling between being a stubborn tease and a woman who was slowly falling in love with a devil, she couldn't mask her anxious heart.
"Just…" With a sigh, she grabbed his hands herself. "Come with me."
"You know I can't leave the shop," Zephyr replied.
"Why not? It's just a shop!" Glyea protested, squeezing his hands even tighter.
"Because I have things that need doing."
"And what about me?" Silence blanketed the moment between the two; their feelings and their sense of duty were far too complex to be defused so easily. "I want you to come with me… You can bring your slaves too if that's what you're worried about!"
"I can't, not now–" Pulling his hands out of her grasp, Zephyr clasped her face between his palms. Leaning closer to her face, he brushed his lips against her before saying in a whisper. "I'll be with you soon. But for now, you need to do what's best for you. I wouldn't want you to ruin your career for me."
"Bastard…" Averting her gaze, as well as her lips, Glyea stared into nothing with a wet gleam in her eyes. "Fuck you, I thought that you liked me. I thought you would come with me."
The quiver in her voice spoke of what she could not. A raging affection towards the devil was pricking at her heart, and like a lovesick teen, she wanted him to be with her–whenever and wherever.
"How long until this army's here?" Hearing the question, Glyea's eyes narrowed some more.
"A month, probably, they've given me until then to get back. But I'm not going to stay behind and find out."
"What happens if this army disappears? Will they allow you to stay?"
"I guess, but," looking at him again, she wiped her tears. "I doubt that's gonna happen out of thin air. That's why I was asking you to come flee with me. You can stay in my brother's house for a while. I will visit you whenever I can get a break from the academy."
"One last question," grabbing her by the arms this time, Zephyr made her stand still so that she was looking into his eyes.
"Wh-what?"
"How would you like to take credit for killing an army of monsters?"
"What…" In utter disbelief, Glyea stood petrified.
A war was coming to Luminos, and its champion was already chosen.