CHAPTER 66: 66. VISITING THE GUARDIAN BACK

"That’s not it," Seraphine said. "That’s called emotional intimacy, Greg."

"And that’s the base of something more."

"But I don’t know if she feels that way about me," Greg said as he looked up. "And even if she did, what should I do about it?"

"She likes to go on adventures. She travels all the time and puts her life on the line in dungeons. I work as a blacksmith, but I won’t make weapons. How would that even work?"

Greg couldn’t quite figure out why Lylia and Seraphine were looking at each other. And of course it was too late for him to back down now because he just said something that’s supposed to be kept as a secret.

Both Lylia and Seraphine giggled, but it had some deeper meaning inside it that they felt a little jealous knowing Marina beat them both so easily like that to grab Greg’s heart like that. However, Marina was also their closest friend, so they had to respect her feelings, especially after hearing Greg express them himself.

"You’re thinking too much about it," Lylia said softly. "Love doesn’t have to mean that you know everything."

"It’s about finding someone who is worth working things out with."

"And for what it’s worth," Seraphine said, "Marina seems like the kind of person who would like to have someone stable to come back to."

"Someone who stands for safety, home, and peace." Seraphine smiled.

Lylia said with the same smile as Seraphine, "Someone like you."

Greg looked at his beef stew, which was getting cold while they talked. "Forget I said anything! My mind is on the fucking verge of collapsing right now that I start to say something that isn’t real!"

Greg doesn’t want to get bothered by the thing called love because it’s going to ruin his peaceful activity at his workshop, especially after seeing the faces of Lylia and Seraphine, who are clearly trying to hide their jealousy. "Please, can we just eat lunch now?"

Lylia said, "Only if you promise to talk to Marina about this when she gets back."

"I’m not making any promises."

"Greg..."

"Okay! Okay! Fine... jeez..."

"I’ll think about bringing it up if the time is right and she doesn’t think I’m acting strange."

"That’s the most noncommittal commitment I’ve ever heard," Seraphine said with a smile. "But I’ll take it."

They finally ate, and Greg had to admit that the stew was as delicious as they said it would be. The talk turned to more lighthearted topics, like Seraphine’s new research results and Lylia’s plans to add more items to the restaurant menu. But Greg couldn’t quite shake off the heaviness of what they had talked about.

Greg stayed at the restaurant after lunch while Seraphine went back to the workshop. Lylia was cleaning the tables and humming to herself.

"Hey," Greg said. "May I ask you something?"

"Oh? This is so rare coming from yourself, go ahead."

"Do you ever wish you hadn’t done it? For example, do you regret giving up the sword to pursue a peaceful life as a chef?"

Lylia stopped cleaning and thought about the question for a moment. "I miss how simple it was sometimes. The sword had clear goals and ways to reach them."

"But this? She waved her hands around the restaurant. "This is harder in many ways."

"You have to be patient, take care of yourself, and go to work every day, even when you don’t want to. But it’s also more fun."

"I’m making something that will last and help people in a way that fighting never could."

"So, no regrets?"

She said, "No regrets. Why do you want to know that?"

Greg said, "I’m just thinking about my options. About the people we meet and the paths we take along the way."

Lylia smiled as if she knew. "You are thinking about Marina again."

"Maybe."

"She will come back, you know. You should tell her how you feel when she does."

"What if it makes things different?"

Lylia said, "It will change things."

"That’s the point. The question is whether you are brave enough to let it."

Greg didn’t know how to respond, so he just thanked her for lunch and went back to the workshop. But halfway there, he stopped and went back.

"Actually," he yelled to Lylia, who was closing up for her afternoon break. "I was thinking about going on a little trip."

"To that village where I left the Guardian Reborn. Want to join? You and Seraphine, of course."

Lylia’s eyes lit up. "I’d love to. When?"

"Tomorrow morning? I want to check the Guardian and the village to see how they’re doing. It’s been a few weeks, and I’ve been wondering about it."

"I’ll tell Seraphine. This should be fun."

...

The next morning, the three of them left early and followed the road to the village that Greg had almost died to protect. The weather was lovely today, with clear skies and a light breeze, which made the trip enjoyable. Lylia seemed happy to be out of the kitchen for a day, while Seraphine spent most of the walk thinking about how the Guardian could work on its own.

"Do you think it’s still working?" Seraphine asked. "Autonomous magical constructs can change over time."

Greg said, "It better be working because I almost killed myself making that."

"Stop saying that, Greg," Lylia said in a dry voice.

"Yeah, please stop saying that!" Seraphine also said the same thing with the same dry voice as Lylia.

"Alright, sorry." Greg knew that kind of word is so sensitive for his friends.

As they reached the top of the last hill that looked down on the village, all three of them stopped, and they saw the village had changed a lot. There was a thriving settlement where there had once been broken walls and damaged buildings.

There were people everywhere, far more than Greg remembered. New buildings had been built, the walls had been rebuilt and strengthened, and there were people everywhere. The Guardian Reborn stood in the middle of the village square, its giant shape shining in the sun. Kids were playing around its feet without being scared.

"Wow," Greg said.

As soon as they got to the village, people started to recognize Greg. A crowd started to gather, and people started to shout excitedly.

"It’s him!"

"The blacksmith who saved us!"

"Master Greyson is back!"

"Get the elder!"

In a matter of minutes, they were surrounded by thankful villagers, all trying to thank Greg at once. The village elder pushed through the crowd. He was older than Greg remembered, but his eyes were bright and cheerful.

"Master Greyson," the old man said, holding Greg’s hands. "You’ve come back to see what you’ve done."

"I just wanted to check on the Guardian," Greg said, feeling a little overwhelmed. "Just to see if it was still working."

"Working?" The old man laughed. "My boy, that Guardian has been a huge help."

"Come, let me show you."