Mikella's eyes widened to the point of nearly popping out of her skull. Cloud and Val appeared out of thin air in this section of the city and took them all by surprise.

Well, mostly Zeke and herself. The others only saw new visitors they never met before. The otherworlders saw the new visitors, and she wasn't at all surprised that they stood stock still and stared at them.

Certainly, the Journeymen here weren't bad to look at, and after meeting the Masters, their standards for beauty would've been destroyed at this point, but despite the rampaging sense of style the Tarials and themselves had, there was something about Cloud and Val that made everyone pause and stare. Perhaps they were just naturally good looking people even without the system.

But all of that was put to the side as she ran over to where Val was, and tackled her into a hug.

"Val! Oh my god, it really is you!"

"Hey, Mikky!" Val cooed, hugging her back just as fiercely. The hug would've crushed boulders, but the two women knew well enough how to handle themselves.

Zeke and Cloud, of course, went for the manly arm shake, their smiles plastered on their faces. And for Zeke, it was easy enough to see all the fatigue and stress that has been building up this whole time just fading away.

It was the same for her. While their increase in power kept growing so far, the fact that they saw their old friends again made everything a lot easier to manage now. She certainly didn't want to push all the work on training the otherworlders to them, but it was a nice thought to think of having Val being around to help train them.

Cloud being around to train the mages would be perfect as well, and with Zeke along the way, the chance of them improving by the dozens would sky-rocket.

But more than anything–she was just glad to see them again in good health.

"What are you guys doing here?" Mikella asked once the two women separated. "How did you guys get here?"

"In the same way you guys did," Val mentioned, getting Mikella to realize the implication.

"Cronus? He was just here yesterday! Why didn't he tell us that you were coming?" Zeke said exasperatingly with Mikella joining in the sentiment.

"You know how he is, he likes to make things into a surprise if he could," Cloud shook his head ruefully. "Trust me, I had to put up with that kind of attitude when I trained under him. He can be… extremely hard to deal with."

There was the time when Mikella saw Cloud panicking when he received the letter that Cronus was coming over, only to find out that the letter was sent on the very day that Cronus would arrive. He could still remember that curse to the sky as clear as day.

"We really wanted to warn you beforehand, but it got difficult when Cronus refused to do so. Eventually he said that you would be glad to see us either way, and since we're at his mercy all the time anyways, it was better than just leaving you out to dry."

"Or leave us stranded in the middle of a monster-infested dungeon for shits and giggles."

"He only did that to us once, and Isabelle made sure to chastise him for doing so," Val assured, putting her hand on his arm.

Mikella was still trying to comprehend that what Cloud said wasn't a joke, but an actual example of what Cronus did.

"You're right, you're right. But enough about Cronus," Cloud said before smiling at the two. "Tell me what's going on in your lives. We heard the gist of everything, but it's better to get it in person than some letter from a jackass."

Mikella and Zeke stared at each other, speaking silently while thinking of all the things that occurred in these past few months here in Arcelot.

"There's a lot of ground to cover," Zeke said, scratching his neck. "It might take a bit of time to explain it all."

"For now, I wanna know something," Mikella continued. "Where are you guys staying? I'm guessing you can't go back and forth so easily every day, right? Also, is it just you two? Or are there others coming in?"

"There will be others, there's no doubt about that," Cloud explained, rubbing his naked chin as he continued. "For now, it's just us, and you're right that we need to find a place to stay. In fact, we're the ones that got the first pick to come here to let you know while we're settling things in Eve Glade. Things have been getting hectic lately and we needed some folks to take care of a few things."

"Such as the abundance of new Journeymen popping up," Val said eagerly, a grin on her face. "And the kingdom's basically in a tiffy and wanting to know more by sending more officials down our throats."

"What?!" Mikella shouted. "How many are we talking about?"

"Oh about a few dozen, from Zacharia's retinue," Val said. "But I'll let Myra and Piker let you know the rest. I want them to be the ones to surprise you. Us old folks need to stay out of it."

"Ooh, you're such a ball buster, Val!" Mikella pleaded. "How can you do that to me?"

"Just knowing so many of them turning into Journeymen in just a short time is good enough," Zeke offered, though that still didn't satisfy Mikella in the slightest. "But since you guys don't have a place to stay, do you want to stay here instead? If you want your own place, I can scrounge up the mana to make a place for you."

"Yes… that's definitely something I wanted to ask about," Cloud said, his voice trailing off as he peered at every corner of the emergency housing with those striking eyes. No matter how much time passed, there was something about that gaze that still sent Mikella shivers sometimes. "I heard from Cronus that you somehow managed to fuse a skill to make a new barrier… is that true?"

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"Oh, yeah…" Zeke smiled sheepishly. "Like I said, there's a lot to explain. But for now, let's say I improved enough to make something decent for a temporary time."

"Actually," Tir suddenly spoke up in the corner of her vision, catching Mikella's attention. It was clear that Tir was not present in front of them, probably figuring out how impossible it was to explain who or what Tir is in just a few seconds. "Now that Zeke improved his skill into Mana Weave, he can probably make a better house than all of this combined."

"You're fucking with me," Mikella spoke back with her own mind, which to her surprise got Tir to shake his furry little head.

"We hate to trouble you, especially after only just seeing us right now with no preparation whatsoever," Val said, genuinely feeling guilty as she looked around herself. "And right after having to deal with so many people on your own. So these are all…"

"Yeah, they're otherworlders," Mikella offered. "Same as us."

"Same as you… gods, I hope they really are."

Cloud let out a heavy breath that felt straight from his very soul, with Val's usually glowing expression also falling to the same kind as his. Zeke and Mikella noticed this instantly.

"Hey, what's up?" Mikella asked. "You don't sound very keen."

"I'm sorry, it's just…" Val said, though her expression still didn't seem energetic as before. "After you guys left, some things occurred on our side too. Which included a very familiar, but totally different experience as when we met you two."

"I don't know whether Eve Glade is lucky or not, though in this case, it's definitely not–Two more kids showed up in our city, and they also had the same experience as you two. Considering what we heard from them, they are in fact otherworlders as well."

The two stared at Cloud and Val with incomprehension. Though considering everything that happened so far, it wasn't much of a surprise anymore.

In other words, two otherworlders showed up to their city, just like when they did when they first met the Lords.

"You're kidding me," Mikella said in astonishment. "Did they have a kid? Or is it just the two of them."

"Gods, I would pity the child who had to put up with them this entire time…" Val suddenly said, as though the idea was nightmarish.

Something was tickling in the back of Mikella's mind, and it was telling her that she is not gonna like these two otherworlders.

"I'm guessing those two don't really act decent?" Zeke offered, shrugging. "I mean, how bad are we talking about?"

"Enough for me to believe that if it wasn't for you two being our first otherworlder experience, I would consider every single one of you as awful as they were."

"And we met with lots of people, you two. Those two take the cake when it comes to dealing with them on a sociable level."

Zeke grimaced, and Mikella wanted to scoff at the two. If they were so bad that even Cloud and Val, with their long experience, were acting like this–she had little expectation that she would be easy friends with them.

"But we know how important having more otherworlders around is for you two. So we also considered bringing them over to meet with you… Honestly, I'm not sure if doing that is considered kind or not," Cloud said earnestly, a look of guilt on his face.

"Well, thanks for warning us, at least," Mikella said, her tone dampened at the mere thought. "We had some issues but thankfully nobody here are any bad."

She said, but she still can't help but think something else is going on. She looked at the two, and after noticing her stare, looked ready for something.

"But you being here just to see us isn't the only reason why you're here, right?" Mikella asked. "What else are you guys here for?"

"Well, it's not anything suspicious," Val said. "We just heard some good news about Clara."

"Good news?" Mikella tilted her head. "What about?"

The two looked back at each other, this time looking as stumped as they were.

"We… thought you knew," Cloud said carefully. "Cronus told us that Clara is intending to go to the academy to learn. So, after a lot of time considering, we figured it was about time for us to bring Ana over with her. We wanted to see her off as much as we can and not really leave her all alone in this big country if we could help it."

The words continued to turn muffled as Mikella took in the news. Once she heard the supposed good news, her mind stopped working as she considered Cloud's words.

"Clara is… going to school?"

Right before Mikella and Zeke could even ask about such a thing, the door was knocked again, but this time it opened easily as Clara, the very person they were talking about, entered with a big smile on her face.

"Hey guys! What's up with…"

Clara instantly turned silent as everyone stared at her, particularly the Journeymen who noticed her coming. Her eyes widened when she saw the lords of Eve Glade there, and Mikella was so sure that Clara would just jump in and hug them.

But instead, she stood still like a statue. Just when she was about to ask what was wrong, another person came in.

Alissa who looked so close to Valorie, all except the clothes they wore and the glasses, stepped through not thinking much of it.

But when she faced the lords, and at Valorie in question, it was as though the entire housing froze in time.

Mikella knew her social cues, but sometimes she can miss them. But one had to be absurdly blind to not notice the tension rise as the twin sisters met for the first time in who knows how long.

Valorie stared straight at Alissa, and Alissa stared back at Valorie. The mood became extremely cold as a war was felt occurring between the two without a single word being uttered.

Even Cloud looked pale as a piece of paper as the twins kept staring at each other. Finally, one of them spoke up.

"Alissa," Val said, her voice caught once again after speaking her name.

"...Valorie, Cloud" Ali said, her tone still and poised. "What a surprise. Though if I know Lord Cronus, I should've expected you two would come sooner or later."

Her words were cool and pristine, almost like how when she first met her back a few months ago. However, there was a coldness to her attitude that felt almost alien to her. After living with her at her home for so long, this was the first time she ever felt so… distant, and utterly cold.

She closed her eyes, and after a breath, opened them again. "I'm certain Zeke and Mikella will explain what had happened. For now, I'll leave Clara here and get started on my duties."

"W-Wait!" Val stretched her hand out when Ali was about to turn around and face the exit to head out. "Ali, please, at least let's talk a bit more. It's been so long and–"

"There is nothing to talk about. And do not speak to me so casually. You made that very clear yourself all those years ago."

The last bit of words carried enough resentment that Mikella's core shivered. Those are not the words of a loving sister, or even someone who had a grudge over something that occurred a long time ago.

That was a deep-seated grudge that would turn any relationship hostile, no matter how close one was to another. Those words silenced Val to the point where Ali left the housing, leaving everyone behind.

The scene made everyone pause, not sure exactly what occurred. The only ones who know about it were the lords, and both Zeke and Mikella who only heard a handful of what happened between themselves and Ali. And so far, Ali really, really hated their guts.

"Ali… gods, she really hates me."

Val said, ruffling her black hair a little in return. According to what Mikella saw and felt, that was just the tip of the iceberg.

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