[F7-PP] Eye of The Dragon <<DHA: 7>> (Telrenya)

[Jomei 0]

Continued from [F6-PP] A New Dragon <<DHA:6>> (Telrenya)

Despite the hardened skin of Enywas, and the two players that Jomei and Erin had ran into during their journey to find said dragon, the quest had been completed quickly and with ease -- just as the past five had been. The swiftness that the two had run the past two hunts left them with plenty of time to move onto the next floor to find another dragon. 

A ball of blue light appeared atop a small platform located in the surface portion of Nimbus, as Jomei and Erin's digital bodies materialized in front of the light. The Irishman let out a shaky breath as the significantly colder air of the mountainous region bit at his exposed arms. Raising his hand upward, the man summoned his menus, and selected the overcoat that he had dismissed earlier in the day. After tapping on the item, the long green jacket appeared over Jomei's sleeveless shirt, the armor on his shoulder repositioning so it sat atop the sleeve of the coat. 

"I have a feeling I might know where this dragon is already." Jomei said as he rose a finger to his chin and gently tapped at the skin, his head scanning the mountain ranges that surrounded the city. As his eyes locked on the tallest mountain, known as the eye, his finger dropped to point at the large natural structure. "I've heard of players talking about a monster that spawns somewhere on the mountain.. everyone thinks its at the top, but no one ever as found it. But I think its probably more towards the bottom.. and I also believe, it may be the dragon that we are looking for." he turned his head so he faced the woman yet again. "Up for a little hiking?" he asked with a smirk.

[Telrenya 0]

Another floor, another change in climate. Out of all of the different environments they'd found themselves in lately, Telrenya decided she much preferred Nimbus to the snow, sands, and rainforest they'd been trudging through. In just the past two days, they were now on their way to take down a fifth dragon. The sense of progress and accomplishment was incredible, but all the activity was sure to take its toll on the girl. And she could only imagine the strain it was putting on Jomei. Whether or not the man was a veteran or frontliner, there was only so much their digital bodies could take.

After jotting down a mental note for a stop on her way home today, Telrenya focused her attention back to the task at hand. She followed Jomei's gesture to the most impressive of the mountains they were surrounded by, letting out a breathy "Whoa..." when she set her gaze on the structure. She had to urge herself to tear her eyes away from the peak in the distance to turn her head towards Jomei. She let out a small chuckle, a bit intimidated after all of her thoughts of how exhausting the combination of quests had been. Steeling herself for the journey to the seventh dragon, she gave a nod. "Got it, sounds good to me."

[Jomei 0]

With Erin's agreement to move forward, Jomei's attention turned towards the large stone gates that closed off the outer fortress leading to the inner caverns that was Nimbus. The grassy fields that the two walked along consisted of rolling hills, with large rocks bad boulders littered about the green hills. Far off in the distance, in every direction were mountains of varying sizes, the taller of the giants topped with a coating of snow, while the tallest --and their destination-- pierced the clouds as they floated by the what was known as The Eye. A small groan sounded out from the ginger as his eyes fixated on the tallest mountain yet again, "I'm really hoping we don't have to climb all the way to the top.."

The dirt path led the two straight through a small gathering of buildings, consisting of a forgery, a farm, and a house. All of the inhabitants of the tiny village were much shorter, and stockier.. assumed by Jomei to be Dwarves. One of the Dwarves, who seemed a bit more built that the rest, with a long braided blonde beard, took notice of Jomei and Erin as they passed the path through their small home. "Guid day! ye tois!" the man called over to them, before taking small, yet strong steps towards the two players. Jomei slowed his walk until he came to a full stop beside the Dwarf, once he had caught up to meet himself and Erin. "Ur ye thinkin' abit gonnae up 'at moontan thaur? the dwarf said, his accent as strong and booming as his stature. Jomei took a moment to decipher what the man said before nodding, "Up towards The Eye, yeah." The Drawf let out a heavy sigh, before shaking his head, "Ah wooldn't. Bin a lot ay rock slides lately, killed a coople others cuple days ago. someain e'en said they heard some kin' ay soond.. loch a dragon." The Dwarf's words were even harder to figure out than the last.. but what he could get out of it where that there were falling rocks to watch out for, as well as the possibility of a dragon. "We will be careful. Thank you for the warning." Jomei said with a polite nod of his head before continuing on out of the small town.

[Telrenya 0]

Telrenya stopped aside Jomei when the bass of the Dwarf's voice reached their ears. The masked woman turned her attention on the NPC, the accessory over her face hiding away her confused expression as she struggled to understand a few of his most heavily accented words. Jomei took the lead of the conversation, which was kept brief while Telrenya caught some kind of warning about rock slides. She grimaced behind her mask, only hoping that their task on this floor wouldn't turn out to be as treacherous as the fourth.

As they made their way past the village and drew closer to the base of the mountains that housed the highest peak, they began to pass by the rocky formations that sloped upwards to form the shortest edges of the impressive range. Telrenya's neck craned after her eyes trailed upwards, trying to catch a glimpse of the tallest points before she was forced to turn her attention back forward.

After passing through a small valley that lay tucked away between two shorter structures, the duo had began their trek up the side of the tallest mountain. At least at its base, the terrain wasn't difficult to traverse, with several stable paths that had likely been used by many players before them. Even so, Telrenya wasn't excited by the undeterminable amount of time they'd have to spend hiking over mountains before they'd find their target. Lucky for her, Draigoch seemed to have other plans in mind.

Several minutes passed before Telrenya caught sight of a blurred motion in the corner of her eye. They looked carefully to the open air around the side of the rock formations, just about to brush it off as a bird or some other harmless creature, when the jasper hatchling made another appearance. Green webbed wings carried Draigoch through the air as it circled around the mountain's edge, banking the corner while its bright blue eyes fixated on the players. "Jomei! To the left!" She called, reaching for the hilt of her rapier as the dragonling sped towards the Irishman.

ID#: 95208 | MD: 6(+2)(-4)=4 - Miss!

[H:0] Telrenya: 660/660 HP | 66/66 EN | 12 DMG | 4 ACC | 3 EVA | 59 MIT
[H:0] Jomei: hm

Draigoch: 400/400 HP | 115 DMG | 2 ACC | 2 EVA | 65 MIT | 9-10 MD deal 60 unmitigatble DMG

[Jomei 0]

Following the dirt path cut out between the green hills, littered with large stones and boulders, Jomei and Erin soon found themselves walking in a deep valley created by two of the shorter mountains that made up the floor's mountain range. The path they walked seemed to lead directly into a trail up the largest mountain in front of them. Jomei had noticed that the steep path was filled with small craters and large chunks of rock, signifying that the drawven man from earlier was not wrong about the rock slides.

While the ginger's eyes were fixated on his front, he heard Erin's voice call out from behind him to watch his left. Turning his attention in the direction she mentioned, Jomei saw the jade colored dragon soaring in their direction. As it neared the two players, seeing each of them reaching for their own weapons, it broke off its approach and flew up the path, hugging close to the steep wall.

"Got it." Jomei shouted as he activated his charge skill, chasing after the flying dragon. The beast's flight path was just a bit out of Jomei's reach above him, so with the advanced boost from the Charge, as well as his Acrobatics enhancement, Jomei planted his boots against the stone wall of the mountain and ascended a few steps. Bending his knees, the man launched himself forward, the tip of his blade meeting the webbed wing of the dragon, causing it to descend in its flight. Jomei followed suit with an array of slashes and stabs, knocking their enemy to the dirt. 

As it hit the ground, it struggled back to its feet before taking off again, flying off over the side of the mountain before returning back to where the other two players were. "It's coming back, get ready!" 

ID: 95239 | BD: 8 (+4)(-2) = 10 Hit Charge! | Over Radiation: 14x17(+5) = 308 (-65 mit) = 243 DMG

[H:0] Telrenya: 660/660 HP | 66/66 EN | 12 DMG | 4 ACC | 3 EVA | 59 MIT
[H:1] Jomei: 1210/1210 HP | 132/132 EN | 17 DMG | 4 ACC | 4 EVA | 52 Mit

Draigoch: 157/400 HP | 115 DMG | 2 ACC | 2 EVA | 65 MIT | 9-10 MD deal 60 unmitigatble DMG

[Telrenya 0]

With her rapier at the ready, Telrenya's eyes danced across the battlefield. After run-ins with six baby dragons, most of which were encountered over the past couple of days, she was starting to grow more accustomed to their battles, even despite the changes in climate on each floor. She watched and waited, trying to determine Draigoch's attack patterns as it diverted its path along the mountain's edge.

As Jomei sprang into action, she observed the Irishman while he closed the gap between himself and their target. His careful and precise movements were impressive to say the least, and the disguised woman felt her heart beating a bit faster in her chest as she stared at the powerful display.

"O-On it!" Telrenya called back, snapping herself to attention. The girl automatically lowered her stance, her eyes tearing away from Jomei to find the jasper hatchling that darted back to the skies. It circled around the mountain's edge before closing in on them again. Telrenya took a step and a half back, working to predict the dragon's movement before she would turn and break into a run. She carried herself to a raised ledge, several slabs of stone jutting out from the walls to serve as a platform for the girl to boost herself within range of the dragon in flight.

The tip of her rapier slashed across Draigoch's outstretched wing, then another on the opposite side. Finishing the delta attack, a third slash landed before her shoulder pulled back for a single thrust in the center of the dragon's body. Seconds later, the soles of her boots along with Draigoch's injured body crashed back against the uneven terrain.

ID#: 95292 | BD: 5(+4)(-2)=7 - Hit! Delta Attack (x9) +Charge Active | MD: 4(+2)(-4)=2 - Miss!
(12 base) + (3 charge) = (15 DMG) x (9 sword art) = (135 DMG) - (65 MIT) = 70 DMG

[H:1] Jomei: 1210/1210 HP | 132/132 EN | 17 DMG | 4 ACC | 4 EVA | 52 Mit
[H:1] Telrenya: 660/660 HP | 66/66 EN | 12 DMG | 4 ACC | 3 EVA | 59 MIT

Draigoch: 87/400 HP | 115 DMG | 2 ACC | 2 EVA | 65 MIT | 9-10 MD deal 60 unmitigatble DMG

[Jomei 0]

Soon after hitting the ground, Draigoch had recovered and was back into the air. Once his own feet were secured on solid ground again, Jomei quickly turned to watch the dragon soar past the masked woman. Erin was quick to react however, tracing Draigoch's flight path until it turned back around. Breaking out into a sprint, Erin launched herself off of a few stone slabs jutting from the mountainside to close the distance between herself and the dragon. Her rapier easily cut through the thin scales of the dragon, lowering its health bar until it turned red.

With a pained cry, Draigoch crashed into the ground, struggling to get back up to its feet. "Not so fast." Jomei grunted before running forward at the downed beast. Before the dragon had a chance to raise itself back up into the air, Jomei's blade cut deep into its jade wing. With a quick spin of his wrist, Jomei then brought the tip of his rapier down on the other wing, followed by a swift cut across the chest. Finally, with a quick pivot on the ball of his foot, the Emerald Duelist brought his sword into a final jab, directly into the center of Draigoch's chest. 

Immediately, the dragon burst into fragments that rained down on the rocky terrain. With a couple of steps back from the edge of the mountain, the ginger returned his rapier to the scabbard on his hip. "Alright.. I think that's it for the day.." Jomei said with a breathy chuckle, exhaustion finally hitting him from tackling three of the dragons in a matter of hours. The blue sky above them had already begun to darken, parts taking pink and orange shades as the sun started to descend behind the peaks of the tallest mountains on Floor Seven. The ginger turned to face Erin with a smile, "Good work today.. Looks like we only have two left now. Let''s head back for now though." 

ID: 95314 | BD: 3(+4) (-2 EVA)  (+2 Savvy) 
Delta Attack: 9x17 = 153(-65 Mit) = 88 DMG

[H:1] Jomei: 1210/1210 HP | 118/132 EN | 17 DMG | 4 ACC | 4 EVA | 52 Mit
[H:1] Telrenya: 660/660 HP | 66/66 EN | 12 DMG | 4 ACC | 3 EVA | 59 MIT

Draigoch: 0/400 HP | 115 DMG | 2 ACC | 2 EVA | 65 MIT | 9-10 MD deal 60 unmitigatble DMG

[Telrenya 0]

"Yeah, I agree." Another day of dragon hunting. Telrenya was already wishing she was back in bed, the amount of progress and sense of accomplishment only barely outweighing the regret she felt from giving into Erin's trick, or prank, or whatever that was. The girl sheathed her rapier at her side, and as they made their way back down the small valley a stray thought voiced itself. "I wonder what happens once we collect all nine of the gemstones..." She recalled inspecting one of the small prizes she had collected, noticing that its vague description seemed to allude to some kind of challenge or prize once they'd gathered all nine of them.

The trip back to Nimbus was as uneventful as the journey to the mountain's edge, and Telrenya nodded to Jomei once they had entered the safe zone. "Thank you again, I'd better get going." She extended the gesture with a quick bow. "Just let me know when to meet up for the next."

Offering the Irishman a small wave, she turned to wander past the teleport plaza, deeper into the city carved into the mountains. She would roam the streets of Nimbus for a bit, spending a short stint of time just relaxing and clearing her mind before she would head down to Delilah to a stop she already had in mind before she would head home.

[Jomei 0]

"From what I heard, theres some mysterious castle on the tenth floor" Jomei replied to Erin as they began their descent back down the mountain side, "I don't know what the gems have to do with it though.. maybe they work like some sort of key to get inside?" He was merely recalling off of the little information his broker had given him when he first accepted the first of the quests in the anthology. "My guess is that theres one last big boss that we will have to take on..But with how we've been handling these dragons so far, I'm sure it'll be no problem for us." the man looked over his shoulder to Erin with a small smirk, confident in both of their abilities to finish the quests. As he turned forward again, he felt a small twinge of guilt in his gut.. he promised Telrenya that he would help her get stronger.. Would this have been an appropriate questline to bring her along with? With the amount of experience he was gaining from these dragons, it truly would have helped her to gain some levels quickly. His chin dropped with a small sigh, for it was too late now.. she would have had to complete the other seven before being able to join them.

Passing through the valley of the two mountains and the dwarven homestead yet again, Jomei and Erin found themselves walking through the large stone fortress that guarded the main entrance to Nimbus. Exchanging a small nod and a wave, the two parted; Jomei immediately warping back up to Taft, while Erin moved into the cavernous city. Jomei was eager to return home, exhaustion slowly creeping up on him. He could feel the stiffness in his legs with each step, constantly walking to and from each town as they completed three quests. "Would have been hell of a workout if this game even worked like that.." the man said under his breath, turning the all too familiar road that led straight to their house.

After fumbling through his pocket for the key, Jomei entered his and Tel's household, shutting the door behind him. "Estelle, I'm home." Jomei spoke in a louder voice to see if the woman was home or not. When he did not hear any sort of response, he figured she was still running her errands.. possibly down at her shop. First moving to his bedroom, Jomei opened his menus with the intent to switch out of his battle attire. As his finger hovered over the un-equip button, his eyes shifted to the bathroom across from him. "It has been a long day.. I might as well freshen up." he said to himself before moving into the bathroom and shutting the door behind him. A thinner door inside of the larger bathroom opened to reveal a simple shower and tub. Closing the door behind him, Jomei removed his clothing and turned on the water to the shower. 

[Telrenya 0]

Alone with her thoughts, Telrenya let out a long and breathy sigh. Despite how much her legs told her they didn't want to carry her any more, she circled around the small shopping district that Nimbus housed before making her way back to the teleport plaza. She called out the name of the third-floor city, her avatar disappearing as it was moved further down the floating castle.

She was quick to head to her shop, traversing the familiar streets of the Elven city until she found herself in front of the humble building. After slipping inside the girl leaned her shoulders back against the door and pulled a hand up to remove the silvered mask from her face with another sigh of relief. "Man, this has been rough..." She mumbled in a small voice, bringing her free hand through the air to summon her menus. With a few taps, her head-to-toe leather armor was replaced with a pair of black tights and a sleeveless white dress with a couple of gold accents. The casual attire was incredibly more comfortable after spending so long keeping herself ready for combat, and Telrenya felt her arms automatically lifting themselves over her head in a much-needed stretch. She let out a breathy sigh, "Alright, back to business!"

The woman locked up her shop and headed for a particular building she passed by nearly every time she found herself on the floor, but hadn't yet had the chance to pay a visit. An eager smile crept over her features as she had just the treat in mind after all the excitement of the past couple of days.

A short time later, Telrenya balanced a white box with a soft pink ribbon on her left palm while her free hand worked to unlock the door of their home in Taft. Having finally returned, the blonde took a step inside and hurriedly opened her menus again to unequip her shoes. "Nick, it's me," She called, moving herself to the kitchen to set the simple-looking box down on the counter. With a satisfied breath of air through her nose, she then turned and headed for the stairs down the hall. "Did he already fall asleep...?" She wondered aloud in a tiny voice as she climbed the stairs to their bedroom.

[Jomei 0]

Turning the waist level knob under the head of the shower, thin streams of water rained from the small openings in the shower head. With all of his clothes now discarded, the ginger stepped under the water, letting the warm water rinse away the stresses of the day, as well as the stiffness he felt in his muscles. Olive eyes closed as droplets of water fell over the lids, his hands raising to his head pushing the wet ginger fringe from the front of his face so it slicked to the back of his head. Because of the Cardinal system, players did not need to regularly shower.. as well as other normal day tasks they would have needed to attend to in the real world, aside from eating and sleeping of course. However, the house still provided a shower and bath, and Jomei was very thankful that he could enjoy the relaxing feeling of the warm water raining onto him.

Now feeling fresh and clean, Jomei shut the shower off, the remnants of the water seeping into the drain at his feet. Reaching behind him, Jomei grabbed a white towel from the rack next to the door. As the man wrapped it around his waist, he heard the sound of movement on the lower floor of his house, most likely Telrenya returning home. With a smile on his face, the man walked to the bathroom door and opened it, stepping out into his bedroom. He planned on drying off and getting changed before moving to greet the woman, but he felt he should at least let her know that he was home and freshening up. He called down to the woman, turning towards the doorway to their bedroom. "I'm just getting out of the sho-"  

Stepping into the room as Jomei turned around was the blonde herself. The man froze in place, the white towel still wrapped around his waist, chest and body still dripping wet, and hair still pushed to the back of his head. It took the man a couple of moments to register exactly what was going on, before his eyes went wide and cheeks flushed red. "S-sorry!" he shouted, as he turned back around and rushed into the bathroom, closing the door behind him. Jomei brought his hands up to his blushing face for a moment, before removing the towel and equipping a casual green, long sleeved shirt and a pair of black pants. Running the towel through his hair a couple of times, he styled his usual unruly hair the best he could, before opening the door and returning to the bedroom where Telrenya was, his cheeks still pink. "I-I didn't realize you were coming upstairs. Sorry."

[Telrenya 0]

No sooner than she entered the bedroom, Telrenya heard the familiar voice of the Irishman, though a bit louder than she had expected. Standing just a pace or two inside of the room, the girl turned her attention to the bathroom door where her eyes landed on Jomei. With droplets of water still running down across his bare skin, Telrenya's eyes widened and her cheeks grew hot all the same as she took in the sight. Where the flustered man retreated back into the other room, she stood still, rooted in place while the fingers of her right hand drifted up to meet her lips.

With the image of her boyfriend's half-naked body burning itself into her mind, Telrenya struggled to get the gears in her head turning normally again. She tore her eyes away from the closed bathroom door, a hand still held close to her chin while she wondered whether or not she should move herself back downstairs. Before she had made a decision, she snapped back to attention with the sound of the door opening again. She, too, still held onto a soft blush when her eyes met his again, and she hurriedly replied. "No no, I'm sorry! For...walking in on you, basically." Her volume dropped, and she averted her gaze while the color on her cheeks grew a deeper scarlet. It was only a second or two until her chocolate-brown eyes turned back, and she couldn't help but let out a small giggle that did well to release a bit of the tension. Telrenya was left with a shy smile, and she finally moved to close the distance between them. Once she was in front of him the blonde raised herself up to place a quick kiss on Jomei's warm cheek. "Well, I have a surprise," She started vaguely, smile stretching wider as her heels dropped back to the wooden flooring. "I figured after so much dragon hunting you might like a little treat, so I brought something home with me."

[Jomei 0]

A hand found its way to the back of his neck, scratching at the skin that his still damp hair clung to. Olive eyes shifted away from Telrenya's for merely a moment, before his lips curled into a smile. The same moment that Tel giggled, Jomei let out a small laugh of his own, both finding humor in the situation. The man released one last chuckle as his eyes looked back into her chocolate brown gaze, "Well.. I guess sooner or later you were bound to see me like that." his blush remained, but the awkward tension had disappeared, "I hope you enjoyed the show at least." he continued through a laugh as the girl approached him, trying to throw a quick flirt in as he usually did. 

Jomei's eyes remained on the girl as she stopped in front of him, his chin dropped towards his chest so he could continue to keep his eyes locked with hers. Raising herself up, she gently planted her lips on Jomei's cheek, the feeling of her kiss still giving Jomei that fluttering feeling in his gut. Her voice was soft as she told Jomei that she had a surprise for him, "Oh?" his eyebrows rose in wonder and excitement, eyes shifting back to hers as she lowered herself back down to the ground. His right hand up to Telrenya's rosy cheek, gently running his finger along her temple, to move her golden curls behind her ear. "I do like surprises." he said with a chuckle.

[Telrenya 0]

"M-maybe," What was intended as a teasing flirt back ended up as a shy stammer, her cheeks still hot as the image seemed keen on lingering in the front of her mind. Her attempt at playing cool immediately failing, Telrenya tried to shift her attention to the topic of her own surprise, the gentle touch of his slender fingers against her face and hair doing well to pull her back to the present.

Her smile stretched wider and grew warmer with his soft movement, and she giggled alongside his chuckle before reaching her hand to take his. "Perfect, then follow me." She led the man away from the bedroom and down the stairs to the living room, where she turned on the light now that the sun had all but finished setting behind the mountain peaks of the eleventh floor. She continued until she reached the counter that separated the two rooms, and she released his hand in order to circle around it and place herself in the kitchen.

"Ta-da!" With a hand on each side of the white box, she pulled open the lid to reveal a round, white cake decorated with plenty of strawberries. Telrenya beamed as the pastry's sweet smell was quick to fill the air, and she set the lid of the package down beside it before moving to prepare some tea for each of them. "There's a bakery in Delilah that I always pass by from the teleport gate to my shop," She explained, going through the familiar motions to set a kettle of water to boil and pull out a pair of mugs, as well as small plates. "With all that's been going on I finally decided to check it out. And now that I did, it's going to be hard not to become a regular there." She laughed, recalling the many tempting treats the shop had to offer.

[Jomei 0]

Jomei's smile formed from a smirk when he felt the blonde's hand gently grab his that hung at his side. Immediately, the man was led by Telrenya back down the stairs of their house and into the living room at the other end of the main hall. With the sun's light no longer entering through the windows of the living space, the normally bright and vibrant room was darkened by the blackness of night. However, a simple flick of a switch on the inside of the door brought back the off-white color to the walls and furniture. Leading him to the other half of the room, Jomei's eyes were drawn to a small white box with a white ribbon attached to the lid. Releasing his hand, Telrenya rounded the counter and presented the contents of the gift to the man after removing the lid. 

Inside was a cake, covered with a white frosting, and topped with strawberries and dollops of cream. "Ooooh." Jomei exlaimed in delight, leaning in to get a better look at the sweet treat. "That looks amazing." His eyes returned to the blonde as she stepped to the stove behind her, prepping the kettle to make the two a cup of tea to go with their cake. As she set the two plates down next to the box, Jomei rounded the counter as well to take out a knife and two forks from the drawer aside from where the blonde was standing. His hand placed itself on her opposite hip, as his other hand found the handle to the drawer to pull it open, taking out the utensils. Before returning to the cake, he brought his head over Telrenya's shoulder and planted a kiss on her cheek. "Thank you love." 

Returned to the boxed treat, the man removed the cake from its container, and cut two small slices, one for each of them. As he waited for Telrenya to finish with their tea, the man cut a small piece of the cake with the side of the utensil before sticking his fork into the soft pastry. Jomei then rose the small morsel to his mouth, sliding the piece off of his fork with his teeth. "Mmh.. Yeah, we may have to make that place a regular.." 

[Telrenya 0]

Her expression brightened again when she felt his lips graze against her cheek, and she let out a small, satisfied hum as she carefully poured the hot water into each of the mugs. The aroma from the pair of herbal teas was quick to spread and swirl alongside the fresh fruit and cream of the cake. Setting the kettle of near-boiling water aside, Telrenya circled back around the counter after shifting each mug slightly forward. The girl picked herself up onto one of the stools that sat aside the counter and leaned forward over the portion Jomei had cut for her. "Of course," She replied to his thanks with a bright smile, glad they were finally able to relax together again. "Since we didn't get to be lazy today, we can make up for it with cake~" She chuckled, taking her fork and helping herself to a bite.

"Mmm!" She nearly squealed with delight as the sweet cake practically melted in her mouth. "Ahh, what have I done?" She asked in a playful tone, setting the silver utensil down to switch her attention to the mug of tea beside her.

"So, you've been doing a lot of those lately. The dragon quests, I mean," She started. Perhaps it wasn't the safest topic of conversation, but Telrenya could think of little else to say with the past days' events still very fresh in her mind. She brought the edge of her cup close to her lips, finishing her thought before she would take a drink of the amber liquid. "Do you think that chain will be done soon? Or you'll get anything shiny out of it?" She chuckled softly, keeping a light-hearted tone.

[Jomei 0]

"Hmm..." Jomei playfully hummed, pretending to think over the ultimatum that Telrenya had stated, replacing their lazy day with cake. The ginger tapped his chin a few times before smiling, "Well.. doesn't mean we can't have both." With a small chuckle, the man continued, "I'm thinking about taking a couple of days off from the quests with Erin, since they've pretty much been back to back the past few days. So we can have that lazy day after all." Reaching for his cup of tea, Jomei wrapped his fingers around the ceramic mug before lifting the steaming liquid to his lips. Gently, he blew over the top surface of the tea before placing the rim of the mug against his lip and tilting it as to pour the amber liquid into his mouth. Olive eyes closed in satisfaction at the combined tastes of the herbal tea and the fruity cake. 

After lowering his mug yet again, Jomei took another forkful of the white cake and brought it to his mouth yet again. His eyes darted back to Telrenya when she asked about the progress on the dragon hunter quest line. The man swallowed down the mouthful of cake before speaking, "Yeah actually, we are almost finished.. Just finished the seventh dragon today. Theres two more dragon hatchlings to find, but after that theres a tenth quest.. has to do with some castle on the tenth floor I think."  Jomei let the silence linger after speaking for a moment before sighing, his lips curling downward into a small frown. "I.. have to say I feel a little guilty..." his eyes focused on the counter top in front of him, "They haven't been that tough of quests.. and we've both been getting a lot of experience out of them.. I should have asked if you wanted to tag along. And I'm sorry." 

[Telrenya 0]

"Hmm, sounds good to me." The blonde agreed to the idea of lazy days at home together. Both of them had been more active since the holiday festivities came to an end, so the thought of a break was a welcome one. In the few seconds of silence, Telrenya wondered. 'Maybe I should hold off on the whole 'Erin' thing for a while after this...' She stared into her tea before taking another sip. It wouldn't hurt, right? Letting her 'Erin' fall to the wayside for a bit, allow things to calm down and focus on the strength of her relationships rather than the strength of her avatar. Maybe she could honestly focus on her Artisan shop and do a part in crafting for other players who needed the equipment.

But how long had it been since their encounter that spurred her to grow stronger? How much time had already passed from when she made that decision and took on a disguise? And still she hadn't done anything to contribute to the frontlines. Could she afford to take a break? And if she didn't, how much more trouble would all of this cause?

"Huh?" Jomei's dimmed tone snapped her from her thoughts before they could consume her. She blinked before her brows turned upward with concern. She listened to his confession of sorts, and was left surprised by his words until she found her own. "W-what? Oh Nick, no no, don't be sorry!" She was quick to try and ease his sour feelings, reaching out a hand to curl her fingers gently around his forearm with a small, reassuring squeeze. Telrenya took on another soft smile, "Don't feel bad for that. I'm sure there are tons of quests I can bug you to help me with." She teased.

[Jomei 0]

Eyes averted from the counter top that held their cake and tea when Telrenya quickly replied to Jomei's guilt, reassuring him to not be sorry. He looked into her chocolate brown eyes for a moment before his lips curled into a soft smile, even more so when he felt her gentle touch upon his forearm. With a chuckle, the man shook his head, "Of course. You know I'd be willing to help you with anything you wanted to do." Returning his attention back to his cake, Jomei continued to work on finishing what was left, not allowing much time for talk in between. The small plate now empty, Jomei brought his tea to his lips yet again,  tilting his head back until the cup matched the emptiness of the plate. After waiting for Telrenya to finish as well, Jomei took the dishes from the table and brought them to the sink in the kitchen, quickly washing them off. 

It was not long before the man felt a large yawn rising up from his chest, before forcing his mouth to open wide. "Didn't realize how tired I was.." Jomei said in a tired voice, "I guess working at three quests in a single day will do that to you." Making his way back to the other side of the counter where Telrenya still sat, Jomei let his arms slide around her waist, holding her in a tight embrace while letting his chin rest on her shoulder for a moment. "I'm just happy to be back home with you Estelle." He held her in his arms for multiple long moments, never wanting to let go. However, as exhaustion began to creep up on him, his arms slowly slipped out from around her. "Well, I'm gonna head up to bed.. it's been a long day." Jomei knew it was still a little bit early, only just past sundown, so he would not be surprised if the blonde planned to stay up for a bit longer. Jomei on the other hand, longed for the comfort of his bed, and the eventual comfort of Telrenya snuggling in next to him. Entering the dimly lit bedroom, Jomei immediately made his way towards the bed, letting his body crash against the mattress. 

[Telrenya 0]

Her smile widened, shifting from one of gentle concern to a more genuine happiness as his mood seemed to lift again. After they had both finished off their cake and tea, the corner of Telrenya's mouth pulled once again into a half-smile at the sight of the exhausted man. His yawn infected her, and just as she had moved her hand from her mouth to the corner of her eye to wipe away a bead of moisture she felt Jomei's arms wrapping themselves around her. "Hmm~" The girl let out a contended hum at the comfort of his embrace, sliding one hand over the sleeve that covered his forearm while the other traveled up to the side of the ginger's head as it rested on her shoulder. She ran her fingers through his hair a few times, closing her eyes while she leaned her temple against his and simply enjoyed his hold. "Mm, me too."

"Alright. I'll probably be right behind you." She chuckled softly, sliding off from her seat and bringing her arms over her head in a lengthy stretch. Her gaze ran over the kitchen to the brightly-lit living room as the Irishman disappeared into the hallway. Telrenya's shoulders dropped slightly, and a troubled expression was quick to take over her features. "What would you say, if you knew it was me..." The words came out in a whisper, and the blonde lifted a hand to press her fingertips against her temple. "What am I doing?" She asked herself in a defeated tone.

Several minutes later, after taking some time to try in vain to dispel her troubled mess of thoughts, Telrenya made her way back to the bedroom. When her eyes fell on Jomei already landed on the soft blue sheets she couldn't help another soft, tired smile. The girl slipped away into the bathroom for her third wardrobe change of the day, swapping her dress and tights for a cream-colored nightgown with dark magenta accents around the collar and high waist. Bringing herself back to the main room, the blonde climbed into bed beside Jomei and pulled herself close to him.