Tale of Discovery

Chapter 156: Improved Bodies ; Visiting the Chambers

As if the scene from a moment ago was just a dream, I find myself back in the room with a dazzled Gramont stiffly standing nearby.

"Gramont," I call out to the man but get no response at all.

Letting out a sigh, I use Creation to produce a bed and telekinetically throw him onto it. The rest isn't my responsibility.

Having gotten what I came here for, I place the Grimoire of Truth in my storage ring and leave the room. Then, as I'm about to teleport back to the castle, I sense a keen gaze.

I look over, only to be met with the curious sight of Laura who's hiding her body behind a wall.

"I can see you," I say in a voice loud enough for her to hear before swiftly appearing behind her.

Then, before she can react, I lift her from the ground, earning me a cute yelp from the little girl.

A few seconds later, Laura seems to enjoy her current state as she hugs me tightly.

Finding her adorable, I hug her back and stroke her back.

"Did you win?" a soft voice resounds within my ears after a short while.

Pulling my head back, I peer into her silver eyes and say pridefully,

"Naturally."

This seems to make her happy for some reason, however, that doesn't last long as her expression suddenly turns downcast.

"What's wrong?" I ask her.

"Are you going to leave now?" she asks me as the atmosphere suddenly turns heavy.

I take in a deep breath and say bluntly,

"That's correct."

Right after the words leave my mouth, Laura presses her head against my chest and asks,

"Will you come back?"

I take a moment to think of a response before answering,

"Yes."

"Really?"

"Of course. I wouldn't lie to you," I say while patting her head.

Well, all it takes is one teleportation and I can easily get back here, so there is no point in letting her down.

I place Laura down before kneeling and kissing her forehead.

While patting her head, I hold her small hands and say,

"Take care, okay? You will become an amazing magician if you keep on practicing, you know?"

"Magician?" she mutters while looking down before suddenly lifting her head and beaming me a smile.

"I understand!" she says in a more cheerful tone.

Nodding my head, I pat her head once more before getting up on my feet and saying,

"Goodbye, Laura."

As a response to my words, Laura lifts her arm and slowly waves at me as a gateway appears behind me.

And so, I step into the gateway while waving back at Laura.

---

Now that I'm back in the castle, I should head to the chambers where Matilda is being kept.

With my current objective set, I begin making my way to where the chambers are.

However, on my way there, a loud crashing noise attracts my attention.

Curious, I use Clairvoyance to check out the source of the noise, only to find a dozen or so soldiers lying on the ground around a crater.

At the center of the crater, I find Ddraig who's covered in yellow electric currents while her eyes are glowing in yellow.

Finding this intriguing, I directly phase through the wall and fly over to where they all are.

"What's going on?" I ask the moment I'm close enough for them to hear my voice.

Ddraig is the fastest to react as she turns her head and says in a confident tone,

"What else other than training these weak humans."

Hearing her words, I raise my brows and say,

"Why?"

"Because I felt like it," she casually responds.

I highly doubt that's the case. There must be something that's she not willing to tell me at the moment, be it due to the presence of the soldiers or just her sentiments.

"Let's go inside," I say before gesturing at her to follow me as I walk toward the main gate.

Once Ddraig has caught up to me, I ask her,

"So, what's the real reason that you were 'training' them?"

Nodding her head once, Ddraig adopts a serious expression as she asks me,

"Tell me, 'Victor'. Who are you?"

Surprised by the question, I remain silent for a few seconds before saying,

"That's something I'm trying to find out myself Anyway, why are you asking me this?"

Taking in a deep breath, Ddraig begins to explain to me her experiences while residing in her current body.

First and foremost, she isn't required to consume any food to function. That's not all, as, even if she eats, the consumed food seems to dissipate, reminding me of my own body.

Then, there is the fact that her powers seem to be enhanced, as she claims that it normally would've taken her way longer to achieve the current state she's in.

And finally, there is the fact that her keenness to serve me seems to be growing by the moment.

The last part worries me a little, so I ask her,

"Are you saying that you're being brainwashed?"

Fortunately, she denies the notion and begins to explain what she meant,

"It's like, my powers seem to grow if I serve you in some way, causing me to have thoughts of what it would be like if my power continued to grow."

"And thus, the keenness for serving me, huh?" I say.

I shouldn't have screwed around with my Creation before knowing about its exact capabilities, but now that it has been done, I can't do much.

Well, Guiche seems like he will be useful to me and my kingdom in the future, so there is no problem if he has a body produced by Creation.

However, I can't say the same about the two guys back in the Rift.

Issei Hyoudo and Saji Genshirou.

The former of the two should be in a broken state, so there isn't that much issue.

Nevertheless, that leaves me with the latter who's a part of Sona Sitri's peerage.

Forget it, I'll deal with this matter once I return. Be it sending Saturnus to assassinate him or some other way.

"So, Ddraig," I say once I've shifted my focus back to reality, "Is this all you've been up to these days? Practicing your powers and 'serving' me?"

As Ddraig nods in confirmation, I begin to think of ways that Ddraig could serve me while I'm away, but can't think of anything.

Tempted to ask him, I open my mouth and am about to do so, only to be interrupted by an abrupt voice calling out to me,

"Father!"

Turning my head to face the source of the voice, I find Aruru who's diving towards me from the sky at an incredible speed.

Shaking my head, I wait for her to be close enough before using Vector Manipulation to stop her movement and hug her.

"What were you doing?" I ask her while patting her back.

"Flying with Sister Gabriel," she responds while pointing at the sky.

Looking over, I find Gabriel gracefully flying down to where we are.

Upon landing, she walks over until she's a small distance away from me and says while bowing a little,

"Welcome back, Father."

While pressing Aruru's head against myself, I pull her close to myself and kiss her supple lips while ignoring the pointed look I'm being given by Ddraig.

Knowing that this isn't the time to be making out with my precious daughter, I end the kiss on a short note and pull my head back before saying,

"I'm going to be heading over to the castle's chambers."

Nodding her head, Gabriel pulls Aruru over and says,

"Then, we shan't disturb you any further."

Nodding my head, I begin walking toward the castle with Ddraig following me close-by.

---

"She's here, Your Highness," a soldier says while pointing at a metallic door that's sealed shut.

"Okay, open the door," I instruct.

Without the slightest hesitation, the soldier opens the door and stands aside.

Ddraig and I both walk inside and the sight that meets my eyes surprises me a little.

The once calm and composed Matilda is now sitting at one end of a slightly worn out bed with a world-weary expression on her face, while staring at the wall in front of her.

"It has been a while, Matilda," I say.

However, this earns me no response as Matilda continues to stare at the wall.

Letting out a sigh, I snap my fingers as I use Elemental Magic to throw a water-ball at her.

This action of mine shocks her as she immediately looks my way and says in a hostile tone,

"What do you want from me?! I already gave you all the information you wanted!"

I shake my head before walking forward and pulling the Grimoire of Truth out before asking,

"Have you ever seen this before?"

Matilda observes the book in my hand for a few seconds before her eyes widen as she asks in a terrified tone,

"Where did you get this from?!"

Shrugging my shoulders, I say,

"I won this from a duel with the Chevalier of the Gramont family."

Hearing my words, Matilda squints her eyes as she mutters in a hateful tone,

"So, it really was in their possession."

As I'm about to ask her further questions, Ddraig who has been silent this whole time says,

"I will take my leave."

"Sure," I say.

The moment Ddraig leaves the room, I create several barricades before using Telekinesis to block the door and forming a barrier around us.

Then, I look into Matilda's now-anxious eyes and ask,

"How is this book related to Tiffania Westwood?"

This time, my words send Matilda into a stupor as she remains stunned for a dozen or so seconds before she looks me in the eyes and asks in a slightly angered tone,

"You met them?!"

Confused by her words, I ask,

"Met who?"

"The elves!" she replies as a raged expression appears on her face, "They told you, didn't they? Only she can open the three Grimoires and other nonsense."

Three Grimoires? Only Tiffania can open them?

This sure has been useful information.

"Matilda," I say with a smile on my face, "Thank you for the information."

"Huh?"

"The truth is, I have yet to hold a conversation with elves," I explain as the images of the five children I caught appear in my mind, "So, I'm grateful for the information."

A strange expression appears on Matilda's face as she doesn't know how to react to my words.

"Anyway, I'm going to be going be visiting Tiffania soon," I state, "Would you like to join me?"

Having regained her clarity, Matilda looks me in the eyes before glancing at the Grimoire of Truth and asking in a serene tone,

"What are you planning?"

Shrugging, I reply while grinning,

"Nothing much. I'm just going to be visiting my dear cousin."