CHAPTER 31: TAKE THE HINT

Lyra was jealous of Isobel Greaves.

Not that she was in an intimate relationship with Lloyd, but that she’d gotten to see a side of him that Lyra hadn’t. That she’d experienced Lloyd in a way that Lyra herself already hadn’t. As wild as the thought was, Lyra imagined that if she and Lyra had already been in a casually intimate relationship, she’d have absolutely no problem with Lloyd and Isobel. She’d ask to watch a few times and join a few others, but other than that, what they did would’ve been no skin off her back.

As things were now, though, there was a gap between herself and Lloyd that hadn’t been there before Isobel Greaves showed up. The Lloyd of just a few days ago, who’d secretly been too scared to open his heart up to someone in the way he did with Meredith the Life Warden was gone. In his place was this new Lloyd. The one who’d theoretically be fine with being away from Lyra to be with Isobel! Where’d her little Lloyd go...?

"That Lloyd was codependent on me. It’s better for him to start putting himself out there like this."

Even if, deep down, Lyra knew her place was in the background–at least for now–, it was still a culture shock. The little boy she’d grown up protecting was veering off the beaten path now. Lyra wanted to be happy, but it’d take a minute before she could truly tell herself she was. For now, she’d just have to settle for "content". Content with the fact that Lloyd is growing. Content with the fact that he’s becoming a new man. Content with the fact that he’s going to be seeing and experiencing things with other women that he hadn’t with her.

Maybe if she’d gone with her gut a few times in the past, things would be different right now? What if she’d confessed to feeling a certain way about him years ago? How would he react? There was a time once when they’d both been drunk in the hotel room, and the jokes they’d made to one another were a bit more provocative than normal. What if she’d made a move then? Just earlier, they’d been lying together on Isobel’s bed. She’d aroused Lloyd with words alone. He was stiff as a board. Everything in her told her to touch it. Stroke his cock all while whispering her fantasies in his ear. Make him explode while kissing his neck. What if she’d followed through with that...? Would things be different? Would she not have to simply be "content" with the way things currently were...?

"You know what?!" Lyra shouted to no one in particular, startling the few goblins who remained. "I’m done moping about this. What’s meant to be will

be! I’ll wait my turn! I’m a goddamn Time Sorceress. I’m literally patience incarnate!"

The surrounding goblins screeched their indignation in response. Lyra didn’t care. She gathered aura in her hands and, in a move not unlike what Isobel did moments earlier, blasted it at the nearest cluster of goblins. The blast whipped through the air like a lightning bolt, detonating on impact with a thunderous crack. More goblins rushed from behind. Their fate was the same, with Lyra whirling on them and blasting them with the Lightning Wave faster than they could possibly dodge. More and more goblins came rushing from every direction, reminding Lyra that the Quest had only asked for thirty, but that was fine. The influx was a welcome distraction.

Lyra lost track of all the goblins she’d killed by the time she was finished. By technicality, this Quest could’ve been considered a 4-Star due to just how many goblins she’d mowed through. There was no way a 3-Star had the endurance to complete a Quest like this! Maybe House Quests had different rating criteria? Lyra figured she’d have to ask Isobel about that.

And just like that, recollection. Every thought she’d pushed to the back of her mind came rushing back. She was doing so well. How unfortun–

A deep, guttural roar sounded from nearby, followed by a series of rumbling stomps from a creature that had to be as tall as the trees surrounding her. It wasn’t long before the source of the noise made itself present. An unusually large, ten-foot-tall goblin as wide as a damn boulder waded through the trees like cheap curtains with fangs bared and aura emanating off of it like a blazing sun. The creature was dressed in what had to have been oversized beige bed sheets. When it finally approached Lyra, it stopped before the swathes of goblins between them, staring angrily at the deluge of charred, sliced, disintegrated, and beaten goblins splayed out on the forest floor.

"Y-y-y-yyyyoooouuuu," the goblin managed to utter. "K-k-k-k-kiiiilllll...?!" It roared again, anger clear in its voice. "You kill! You kill! I kill you! I kill–"

Lyra charged a Death Beam in her fingers, then shot the laser-beam-like attack through the goblin’s heart, killing it instantly. It fell to the ground with a loud thud, kicking up dust as it collided with the ground. She approached the dead creature, kneeling down by its head.

"You guys are gonna respawn in like, a day or two, tops. I know you’re listening to me from out there. Goblins aren’t native to Podros. They’re from Ublar. I know you probably like things here, and you got used to how they are, but you..." Lyra took a deep breath. "You have to take the hint. This place isn’t for you anymore. I’m sure you want to make a home here, but you can’t. You need to let it go. The best way to take care of your people is to let them thrive in a place they’re meant to be in, not by trying to make them thrive in a place they can’t. If you stay here, you’re just gonna keep getting Quests taken out to remove you from the area since you’re technically an invasive species. Please, just... take the hint. It’s for the best."