"May I ask you something?" Irene asked, hands folded over her lap.

"You just did."

"Not… not what I meant," Irene sighed, her eye twitching. "E.O.N. above, you really haven't changed one bit. If anything, you're worse now."

"Responsibility kills creativity," Rory said, winking at the woman.

"I… you know what, ignoring that. This other founder-"

"Zoey," Rory said.

"The Vanguard," Irene corrected, the thought of referring to another founder so casually too much for her to swallow. "How deep does our alliance go?"

"Ehh, are you asking me to predict the future?" Rory tapped his chin as he thought for a while. "She is my friend."

"And?"

"And what?"

"What else?"

"Is there anything else to say? She's a friend, not an underling, an employee, or my boss. Just my friend. You cooperate with friends, and sometimes you fight with friends. I'm not in charge of what she wishes to do. Anyway, for the near future, she is with us, if that makes you feel any better."

Irene frowned but remained silent.

"If you're worried about the other founders, for now let's worry about immediate concerns, ehh?"

"How can you be so lackadaisical?" Irene blurted, before scowling at herself.

"You want my advice, something I only really learned and digested over the last few decades of being nearly alone?"

"What's that?"

"If you force something, you will only drag yourself down. Challenge yourself, but don't undermine your own path. Most will fail ever to challenge themselves. Heck, I'd bet it's why you've grown as fast as you have, even without being a combatant; every day is a fresh new challenge for you, that deep down you refuse to admit you relish."

Irene faltered for a single instant, her eyes betraying the truth that Rory was spot on.

"Just keep doing what you feel the desire to do. Once you become too bogged down in what you 'need' to do, you will find your steps that much heavier."

Feeling rather proud of himself for his moment of wisdom, Rory turned around, preparing to leave, when Irene called out.

"Mr. Rory?"

"Yes?" Rory asked, turning back around.

"Viviann… You should be aware of what happened, correct?"

"A mistake, on two levels." Rory sighed. "She made a gamble that wasn't as well thought out as she assumed, and I never considered the reaction I took."

"But do you know what happened after?"

"She died," Rory said plainly.

"No, after."

"Excuse me?" Rory frowned, fully crossing his arms. "What do you mean by ' after?"

"Well, it might be easier to show you." Flicking her wrist, a tome suddenly dropped onto the desk in front of her.

"Isn't that my tome of inscriptions?" Rory asked, recognizing the book.

"Yes, but not the same as you left it. It was used as the catalyst for the ritual attempt at drawing from your significance as the Architect. Like playing tug-of-war against an adult as a kid, she didn't have the 'weight' to resist when you pulled back. So, what do you suppose happened?"

"I assume I gained what was hers," Rory answered, not feeling remotely pleased about that reality.

"No, while you likely gained some ascension energy for…. Her demise, as you would a monster, the collective essence of her being was instead infused within the very catalyst she attempted to use, and, well... Perhaps give it an examine."

Curious, Rory did exactly as Irene suggested, examining the old tome.

Tome of the Failed Ancestral Usurper

Grade: Rare

Once a mere tome of instruction, the most notable aspect of the tome was that it was left behind by the founding father of inscription. After the failed use in an attempted usurpation ritual, the tome was infused with the essence and significance of the attempted usurper. While the physical contents of the tome remain unchanged, the infusion of life's worth of an early apprentice of the founding father of inscription alludes to potential boons to one who may resist the damned nature of the tome.

Rory remained silent, lost in thought and memory of the woman. It wasn't as if she was some especially important person to him in the grand scheme of things; she was not love lost, but they'd shared physical intimacy, and she'd otherwise been a genuinely enjoyable person to be around.

"Would you take this off my hands?" Irene asked after several moments of silence. "Initially, we had plans to store it somewhere safe, but we didn't want any potential curiosity to lead to its discovery. It's not exactly a forbidden item, but its allure could prove dangerous in the same way that led Viviann to her demise. For that reason, I've held onto it for some time, with an organic inventory skill, I was the only one who could keep it stored away."

For a moment, Rory was curious about the inventory skill Irene had just shown off and referenced, but now wasn't exactly the time to ask. Instead, he gave a slow nod.

"Sure. I don't see a direct use for myself, but at the very least, I can safeguard it."

"Thank you. We hope that you may be able to find someone suitable for it, which brings me to another request. Right now, things are still, to be frank, a mess after everything that occurred during the most recent siege wave. Once things have settled down, though, would you perhaps mind making an appearance? Both for the general population and perhaps for our artisans? Part of the reason we ended up in such a rough spot was that tier-wise, our artisans couldn't keep pace."

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.

"I'm really not the best teacher," Rory said, trying to temper her expectations.

"Oh, we're aware. At this point, we have proper teachers, so don't mistake this as a plea for you to take up some new profession. Maybe just a demonstration would be more accurate of what we're requesting."

Rory wanted to push back, but given that a lot of this mess was his fault, with a sigh, he hung his head.

"Sure, I can play along. Anything else before I can make my dramatic exit?"

"Please don't make a dramatic exit," Irene immediately said.

"There goes my plan to disappear in a puff of smoke."

Irene stared at him for several seconds, clearly trying to gauge his seriousness, before Rory raised his hands.

"Levity. I was joking."

Turning around, Rory left the room. Walking for several seconds, he turned to look at the fairy on his shoulder.

"I almost forgot you were here." Rory snorted, amused at just how silent the fairy had kept.

"I don't want to go back to my room," Astra answered, as if stating the obvious.

"Right," Rory snorted, amused.

I forgot I made that threat.

"Where are we going next?" Asta asked, as Rory continued his purposely slow, measured walk back to the front entrance.

"Well, I met with Gil, even if that wasn't the original intention, I met with Mariah, and I met with Irene. That leaves Marcie, John, and Greg from the original group."

"Ohh, I like that Greg guy!" Astra immediately said.

"Really?"

"He is a loyal follower who sometimes has me sent tasty treats."

Translation: John feels bad for Astra and, well, sends her tasty treats.

"Alright, then we have our next destination."

"Where is he?"

"No idea," Rory answered truthfully. "We'll just have to explore for a bit."

"Yay!" The little fae cheered before she coughed into a tiny fist. "I mean, yeah, let's do that."

Adorable. She wants to explore.

Finally nearing the end of the extended hallway, Rory gave a quick nod to the secretary before exiting to a scene he would have preferred to have avoided.

"We welcome Lord Founder!" A voice called out, before a chorus of nearly twenty people responded in echo.

"We welcome Lord Founder!"

Oh god. Anything but this.

Scattered in front of the building, there was clearly some religious group, wearing what may as well have been bathrobes in his eyes.

And the object of their worship?

"May the Divine Lord Founder bless us on this wondrous day, for by his grace, we are saved!"

Oh, oh, no. This, anything but this.

"May the Divin-"

Pointing skyward, Rory flexed his intent for a moment as suddenly clouds began to gather, before moments later a bolt of lightning shot downward, disrupting the prayer service. Taking advantage of the explosion of noise and sound, which he'd made sure not to hit anyone with, Rory vanished, escaping as quickly as he could. Escaping a short distance away to behind a nearby building, Rory poked his head out as he took in the aftermath.

"Why'd you run away?" Astra asked, whispering into his ear.

"Didn't want to deal with that."

"But they were worshipping you?"

"Yeah, and that was not something I was interested in."

"Oh…. I could have eaten them?"

"No," Rory said, shutting the idea down. "By the way, when you say eat, do you mean literally?"

The image of the small fairy eating someone was equal parts amusing and horrifying to Rory.

Rather than answer, Astra pointed at a nearby stone on the ground, as it was suddenly yanked toward her. Before it could ever touch her, it burnt up, incarnated into a stream of pulverized gas and dust that she inhaled.

"Ahh, gotcha, so precisely the same as when you were a star."

"I still AM a star!"

"Right, right," Rory said, raising his hand placatingly. "So, why don't we go find Greg now and get you some snacks?"

"Yay!"

"By the might of the Divine Lord Founder, we have witnessed a miracle today!" Remossa preached, raising his arms overhead as he and his flock stood around the small crater in the ground formed by the Divine Smite of the Lord Founder.

"By his might!"

"Go now and preach the good word!"

"I think this is the place," Rory said as he looked at what was very obviously a restaurant. New universe, but some things stayed the same, such as the love of good food. While Rory could go exceptionally long without eating, he still liked to eat for enjoyment more often than was strictly required.

"How do you know?" Astra asked.

"Probably the big ole sign that has his name plastered across it."

"Oh."

Amused, Rory snorted before he made his way to the front door. Standing next to it was a large-looking man, clearly a 'bouncer' of some sort.

"Reservation?" The man asked as Rory approached.

"Reservation?" Rory repeated back at the moment, momentarily taken aback.

"Yes, reservation," The man said before frowning at Rory. "Huh, do I know you? I feel like I've seen…." The man drowned out, his eyes suddenly widening. "Lord Founder?"

Oh, please, no more.

"Just Rory is fine,"

"I apologize. We briefly met a few times when I was younger, but, well, I was still a teenager." The man seemed uncertain about what to do, unsure whether to bow, shake hands, or lower his head.

"It's fine, just fine."

"Whose the pet?" The man suddenly asked, looking at Astra as Rory internally winced.

Oh no.

"Pet?" Astra said, almost as if she were tasting something particularly vulgar. "Me? A pet!"

"Alrightttt," Rory suddenly cut in, not wanting to deal with the current situation. "Do me a favor, uhh, Julian?"

"Doug,"

"Doug," Rory corrected. "You go let Greg know that I am here. Meanwhile, my small compatriot and I are going to walk in and find the spot farthest away from where anyone else might be. How does that sound?"

"Uhh, whatever Lord Founder says."

Yeah, I really, really, hate that.

The man opened the door for them, ushering them in before he trailed in after, separating away from them as he beelined to wherever Greg was. Leaving Rory to his own devices, he looked around the restaurant. It was strange, as overhead there were lanterns of sorts that very clearly gave Rory impressions of mini suns, infused with solar and heavenly energies that Astra seemed to bask in.

"Oooh, I like this place."

"Uh uh," Rory nodded as he continued to observe. For as bright as the lanterns seemed, the restaurant was otherwise cloaked in shadows. "Lots of space themes going on."

"Because I'm a star!" Astra said.

"Yeah, that's definitely the reason," Rory lied.

Finding a table, situated in a corner out of direct line of sight of almost anywhere in the restaurant, Rory took a seat. Astra, meanwhile, floated across the table before dropping cross-legged onto the other side.

"I'm hungry," She said, looking at Rory with wide, round eyes.

"Good thing we're here to eat."

"But I'm really hungry."

"Are you normally always hungry?"

"Yes!" Astra confirmed before patting her stomach. "Normally, when I'm in my room, I get fed with constant bits of sunlight or starlight from outside. It's not very filling, but it keeps me from ever getting too bad."

"But you've been away from your room nearly all day."

"I'm hungry," Astra said as a way of agreement.

"Here," Rory pulled something from his inventory before passing it over to the small star fairy. "Try that."

What Rory had passed over was nothing more than an ingot of promethium. He was certain by Ehkorrus standards that feeding an entire ingot of the rare-grade metal would be like using a bar of gold as a doorstop, but he had plenty of the material back in his volcanic base.

Inhaling deeply, the ingot was drawn forward, though Rory noted that it seemed to slow, as if she was forced to take her time before it was pulverized into space dust and sucked down her gullet.

"Yummy!" Astra said, cheering up. "Not tasty like human food, but it has a lot of oomph-" Astra spread her arms wide as she tried to convey what she meant. "-and that's yummy."

"Uh uh," Rory said. "You know, you might like my other place."

"Other place?"

"Oh yeah, lots of tier seven monsters, and the pneuma there is a lot thicker, oh, and higher-grade materials are more common."

"Oh!" Astra floated up, excited for a moment before lowering herself back down. "But I'm probably not allowed to leave."

"Well, for now it's temporary; there is lots of time," Rory answered. While he could have decided to bring the small fairy, her 'natural space' was still within the city, and while he could relocate her spatial anchor, there was no relocating that aspect of being a star. The fairy likely needed to consolidate her strength further, tier seven at the earliest, before bringing her further away would be an actual possibility.

Additionally, she represented the full industrial might of Ehkorrus. Removing her might be a bit controversial, even if only for what he considered a short time.

Mulling the thought over, it was only minutes later that a figure appeared, quickly approaching before standing several feet away.

Grinning, Rory ushered the man closer.

"Well, if it isn't the world's first and greatest chef," Rory said.

"Founder Rory," The man, Greg, gave a short bow. "It's a pleasure to see you once more. Many had feared that you had either passed on or never truly existed, so for you to have saved us all was rather timely."

"Yes, yes," Rory said, waving off the praise. "But I'm here on more important business than those small details."

"Oh, and what could that possibly be of such importance?"

Rory and Astra looked at each other before answering in sync.

"Food."

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