Eris, Sylphiette and I found ourselves on a small, remote island just north of East Port. Randolph didn't exactly say what time he was going to arrive so I've spent the morning exchanging messages with him on the lithograph stone.
Randolph had originally planned to sail out to the island to meet us, but we decided to meet on the coast instead. With our magic, we could sail across the strait much faster than he could. I quickly conjured a large clump of stone and shaped it into a rudimentary sailboat - one just large enough to carry the three of us comfortably. As for the sail, I crafted it out of stone just like the boat. You might not expect something like that to work, but thanks to the fact that casting magic spells doesn't cause recoil, Sylphy and I were able to take turns pushing ourselves forward at high speeds using the [Wind Blast] spell.
It took us a little over half an hour to reach the coast. I messaged Randolph once again, only for him to be surprised about how quickly we crossed the Strait of East Port. He was almost at the coast himself, but he thought he'd beat us here by several hours.
We decided to meet in Marlaea, a small town near the coast. As handy as the lithograph stones are, they don't come equipped with GPS. It's much easier to meet at landmarks. It didn't take long after reaching the city that a savory aroma caught my attention.
"Are you guys hungry?"
"Yeah", Eris answered.
"Shouldn't we wait for your friend to join us?", Sylphy asked.
"Nah, if I mentioned being hungry in front of him, he'd probably offer to cook something up himself."
"You don't like his cooking?"
"Rudeus has always been a picky eater."
"I'm not picky! Randolph just has... a unique taste when it comes to food."
The savory aroma led us to a street vendor selling grilled, freshly caught fish. I bought a plate for each of us. As we sat and ate, I couldn't help but notice Eris' excited smile.
"I take it you like the fish."
"It's great."
"To be honest, mine's pretty dry", Sylphy admitted.
"It's got a gamey aftertaste too", I said in agreement.
"It's just like the meals we used to eat when we adventured across the Demon Continent. I feel like if I look behind me, Ruijerd will be right there watch- Eep!"
Eris jumped up out of her chair startled, when she looked behind her only to see a gnarled, bony hand inches from her shoulder, attached to a man with a gaunt, almost skeletal face.
"Oh my. I'm sorry to have startled you, Miss. I was just about to announce that we've arrived."
"We?", I asked the Death God.
As if to answer my question, Aleksander Rybak, the North God, stepped out from behind him.
"Been a while, Magic God."
"Hm. Not long enough, if you ask me."
He laughed as he casually pulled up a chair and sat across from me - directly between Eris and Sylphy.
"Who do you think you are!", Eris shouted at him.
Sylphy meanwhile scooted her chair a bit further away from him as he had wedged himself right between them.
Ugh.., Randolph sighed. "Where are your manners, Alex. You promised you'd behave yourself."
"Don't be like that. I'm just saying hello. We're all friends here."
"Rudeus, who is this guy?", Eris barked in annoyance.
"The man behind you is Randolph Marianne, the Death God. As for the annoying kid, his name's Aleksander."
"Kid!? I'm at least twice your age! And what about my title? I'm the North God!"
Eris and Sylphy both gave him skeptical looks, which only seemed to fuel his anger.
"Calm down, Alex. That temper will be the end of you", Randolph said as he rested his hand on Aleksander's shoulder.
Psha!, he exhaled. "You're right. Sorry."
"You seemed to have matured since we last met", I said, slightly surprised by his quick recovery.
"I've had plenty of time to do some self reflecting. I realized that I've been approaching my ambitions all wrong. I owe you an apology, Magic God."
"Just call me Rudeus."
"Very well, Rudeus. I apologize for my actions. Chasing fame and fortune, I hunted down an innocent man and then held a grudge against you for defeating me in a fight that I started."
Aleksander bowed as he apologized. His tone and gestures indicated that his apology was sincere.
"Well... I suppose that I should forgive you... for Randolph's sake if nothing else."
Aleksander's serious expression immediately lightened into a smile.
"By the way, I heard you've been climbing the ranks. Tell me... did the Sword God put up a better fight than I did? He didn't, right? I mean, I had you on the ropes both times!"
So much for his sincere apology...
"You'd stand a good chance against him, I think. If you had the King Dragon Sword, that is."
"I'll get that back eventually. But, for now I'm content with what I have. You were right when you said that I was using the sword's power as a crutch. I've started my training again from scratch. I'll take my sword back once I've gotten strong enough to beat you without it."
"You've got a long road ahead of you in that case. It's not like I've been sitting around idly these last few years."
"I wouldn't have it any other way."
'Why does it feel like I've just made an eternal rival? Does this guy think he's Vegeta?'
"Um... I really appreciate you taking the time to come help us, Randolph. It's nice to see you again", Sylphy said in a welcome interruption.
"Think nothing of it. I'm sorry to hear about what happened with Vita. I must say that I'm surprised that you managed to fight off his control on your own. The only person I've known to do that is my predecessor."
"Well, it was mostly Rudy who defeated him. Vita told me that he was releasing control of me to bargain with Rudy, but we have no way of knowing if he's truly gone for good."
"Hmm, I can see why you're concerned, but truth be told, I doubt that he's hiding dormant within you. Just to be safe, however, I would recommend wearing this ring. If Vita were to try to exert control over you while you wear this, the ring will break his illusions and destroy Vita's body in the process."
Randolph handed Sylphy a metal ring, with bone adornments. Sylphy looked down at the ring in dismay as though to say 'Do I really have to wear this?' Still, she thanked him for the gift and slid it onto her finger. The moment she slid it on, the ring shrank in size to fit her hand perfectly.
"Thank you. This makes me feel a lot better."
"Think nothing of it. If it eases your worries, I'm glad to have finally found a use for it."
"Well, it was nice seeing you again Randolph. Stay in touch", I said as I stood up from my chair.
"Leaving so soon? I was going to invite you guys over for lunch to see my new and improved restaurant."
"We should go Rudy. We haven't seen Randolph for years and he came out all this way to help me."
"Don't feel pressured to come. You did just eat after all."
"So they can just come to see your new place", Alex chimed in. "We could spar a bit. I'd like to show him just how much I've improved. Besides, I'm getting tired of just sparring against you every day."
"You're on!", Eris answered in my place. "I'll take you on to see if you're worth Rudeus' time."
"Haha! I like your confidence. Let's see what you've got!"
"Not here!", I scolded the both of them. "We're in the middle of town. You guys are making a scene!"
"We don't have any plans today. I'd love to see your new restaurant."
"And then we'll spar afterwards", Eris added.
"Hmm. Truthfully, that doesn't sound like such a bad idea", Randolph mused. "After shaking the rust off these last few years with Alex, I find myself curious how I'd fare against you. I've never met a mage who could spar with an elite swordsman."
'Maybe this could be a good opportunity to test how well I can use my newly minted battle aura in actual combat.'
"You know, I think I'll take you up on that offer. Just so long as this remains a friendly duel. I wouldn't want anybody getting hurt."
As I said that last sentence I was looking directly towards Aleksander.
"What? You getting scared already?"
"Scared for your safety", I quipped back.
"Haha. Well, you don't have to worry about me. I'll heal up from just about any wound. Don't you worry though, I'll take care not to hurt you."
Before I knew it, the five of us were riding together on a carriage towards East Port. Just what have I gotten myself into?