The Veyne house felt warm inside. Candlelight flickered across the wooden table in the main hall, casting soft shadows on the walls. The smell of simple stew lingered everywhere inside the house, mixing with the faint scent of soap from the washroom. Outside, the village had grown quieter as night settled in, but inside the house, the air carried the easy rhythm of Lys's family.
Mira sat with her elbows on the table, chin resting on her hands. She looked around at everyone and asked the question that had been sitting in the room for a while. "Do you think the preparations they are making at the guild will hold? Will the strike mission actually work?"
Lys leaned back in his chair, staring at the candle flame for a moment. "I don't know, Mira. And don't ask me those questions. How would I know?"
The answer came out honest, without any attempt to sound irritated or certain. Mira raised an eyebrow and leaned forward, a teasing grin spreading across her face. "Oh? So you're not rushing out there right now to play hero and save the day yourself? That's new."
Elara reached over and swatted the back of Mira's head lightly. "Stop that."
Lys gave a small smile and shook his head. "Yeah, I would have jumped at the chance before, right? Maybe before I would've run straight to the guild, grabbed my sword, and tried to force my way onto the team."
"But now… I understand the real danger of acting without thinking. I'm not as strong or as lucky as I once believed myself to be. Going there right now would probably just make me a liability instead of actual help. And lately I realized I'm still too inexperienced next to people like Rhuvia and Vessa. So, I guess, I'm just letting them do what they can do best, and will probably focus on what I can do best at the same time."
Mira's teasing grin softened into something warmer at hearing Lys's reason. "Hmm, so you finally grew up, huh? Guess almost dying to that hobgoblin really did the trick."
Elara swatted her again, this time a little harder. "Mira!"
Tresta sat a little apart from the group, watching the exchange quietly. A small smile touched her lips as she took in the warmth between them, the casual scolding, the teasing, the easy way they sat together. She didn't say anything, just observed from her spot near the edge of the table, clearly moved but not yet ready to step fully into it.
Elara noticed and waved her closer. "Tresta, come sit with us. There's plenty of chairs here, too."
Tresta shook her head gently. "It's okay, I'm fine here."
Selene stepped out from the washroom, hair still damp and wrapped in her bathrobe. She looked at Lys and pointed toward the washroom. "You should go bathe too, Lys. You're starting to smell like old sweat all over."
Lys stood up without argument. "Yeah, I feel it. Be right back."
As he left, Selene settled into his empty chair. Mira turned to her right away. "So, how's Sara doing?"
Selene nodded. "She'll recover, don't worry. That was just ordinary mana backlash from using too much power too fast after years of holding back, I guess. The same thing that happens to any caster who overextends, just more severe in her case because of the scale of the magic and the long period of disuse beforehand."
Mira tilted her head. "Hmm, mana backlash, huh." She said it casually, like she had heard the term before but never seen it up close.
Selene confirmed with a small nod. "Don't worry. She's already been treated by me. She'll be fine with just resting for a couple of days."
Mira looked surprised. "Hmm, I didn't know Tier-2 priestesses could treat mana backlash."
Selene straightened a little, a flash of pride showing on her face. "Hmph, don't you know! I'm not just any Tier-2 priestess. I can heal people, raise ward barriers, sense and remove minor curses, and many more. Though I hadn't seen and treated any mana backlash before, but lately I've put in the work, so I'm getting better than most at my tier by now."
She turned toward Tresta then, her expression gentler. "Speaking of curses… I can sense a strong one on you. Is it really there?"
Tresta met her eyes, gave a small nod, and a simple reply. "It is."
Hearing the short answer, Selene didn't push for more details. She simply asked, "So? How have you been adjusting to this household, Miss Tresta?"
Tresta answered simply, her voice genuine. "You can just call me Tresta. No need to add a miss on it. And yes, everyone has been kinder than I expected. So, I'm not having trouble settling in."
Inside, Tresta hesitated. She almost wanted to explain the full situation with her curse and Lys's promise to remove it, but she caught herself before saying anything. She wasn't sure whether Lys had told his family about anything related to it yet. With everything that had happened today, she guessed he probably hadn't had the chance. So, she stopped herself before saying anything further.
Selene and Mira both noticed the brief hesitation. A flicker of curiosity passed between them, but neither pushed. They let the moment pass gently instead of forcing it open.
The candlelight continued to flicker across the table as the house stayed warm around them.