-----
With Aegir''s new Powers and aid, it might be not as hard to deal with the problems that are waiting for us within Muspelheim, thend of mes is, after all, covered on mes, the power of Primordial Seas will be quite useful, without a doubt.
Although I had many questions to ask her, we''ll have to leave that forter, we had to go for now. Ariel ran towards Sapphire and Triton, hugging them both.
"I''ll get going now, Sapphire! I have to apany Drake on his journey now that Papa Aquarius gave me this mission." She said. "I''lle back one day too, to see Triton grown up!"
"Take care, Ariel, have a nice trip, and don''t do anything mischievous!" Sapphire said.
Bedra and Kate were currently saying their goodbyes to the friends they made in this country, Rose, Coral, and Eleanor, and well, all the kids at the orphanage.
"Bye-bye, Bedra, Kate!" Rose quickly hugged the two tightly. "Thank you for everything, really!"
"Rose…" Bedra''s eyes were holding their tears back. "W-Will I see you again one day?"
"We have to!" Kate said, nodding.
"Hehe, of course we''ll see each other another day,ter, when you and your daddy aren''t so busy." Rose smiled. "I… I also wanted to kind of apologize a bit…"
"Apologize?" Asked Bedra.
"Why?" Kate asked.
"W-Well… At the beginning, I was… kind of jealous of you two, and I kind of said a lot of rude things." Rose sighed. "I am sorry… I really didn''t mean it, I have grown to love you two so much as my friends… You''ve done so much for us… I simply can''t express everything into words."
Bedra and Kate blushed a bit, and then smiled, giggling. Tears quickly started flowing from their eyes.
"It''s fine!" Bedra giggled. "We knew you didn''t mean it, Rose''s a good girl!"
"Yeah." Kate nodded. "You''re our best friend! Forever!"
"Hmm!" Rose nodded, beginning to cry herself. "We''ll be friends forever and ever!"
Coral smiled in the back while crossing his arms, a small tear flowed from his eyes.
"Coral, what are you waiting there for?!" Rose asked. "Eleanor,e here too!"
"E-Eh? Me?!" Coral asked, as he was suddenly hugged by Bedra and Kate too. "Uwaah?!" The rascal must have been embarrassed of being hugged by my two beautiful daughters, because he blushed instantly.
"Thanks for being there for us as well, Coral!" Bedra said. "You''re our best friend too!"
"Yeah! Please protect Rose, she''s a bit reckless sometimes." Kate said with a nod.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
"Ahahah… W-Well, yes, I will, don''t worry about it." Coral smiled. "I am d you see me as a friend… I do as well, let''s meet again one day, and let''s go on a big adventure together!"
"Yeah!" Bedra was instantly cheered up by the idea.
"Nn! Our own adventure!" Kate nodded.
Eleanor timidly walked towards the two.
"Erm… I-I…" Eleanor began fidgeting a bit.
"Eleanor''s also a best friend!" Bedra said.
"Yeah! Hug!" Kate and Bedra hugged her.
"Eeeh?! Me too? B-but I… We were enemies before and I… I did bad things…" Eleanor felt rather depressed.
"Doesn''t matter!" Bedra smiled. "We''re all friends now, you did those things because the bad deep one was controlling you!"
"Nn! Eleanor is a good girl, you will help Rose and Coral, right?" Kate asked.
"O-Of course!" Eleanor nodded. "I will do my best to assist the next queen! T-Thank you… for your friendship, it really means a lot…"
"Nn! No problem!" Kate smiled.
"Let''s meet again another time, you can alsoe into an adventure with us too!" Bedra said excitedly.
"Heheh, I would dly do so!" Eleanor smiled.
Anastasia and Sapphire nced at the children say goodbyes while containing their own tears, and quite honestly, I was doing the same with Bedann and Miranda at my side, while Aegir was admiring the scene.
"Alright, time to go, Bedra, Kate." I said. "There''s a whole continent waiting for us to explore."
Bedra and Kate let go of their friends, and slowly walked to my side, holding my hands, as we slowly walked back inside of Fuyu through an ice-made bridge connecting to the port.<novelsnext>please visit </novelsnext>
"Byeeeee! Please take careeee!" Rose cried, waving her hands.
"Have a nice trip!" Coral said. "I am sure you girls will be able to beat anything in your path!"
"Good luck! I-I hope we can meet again!" Eleanor said.
"Bye-byeeee!" Bedra waved her hand. "I''ll miss you all!" Tears flowed from her eyes.
"Nn! M-Me too!" Kate cried.
"Thank you for everything, Drake!" Sapphire said.
"I hope we can meet again, someday." Anastasia nodded.
"Buwah!" Triton roared, ring at me from afar.
"Of course! Once I am a bit freer in my scheduled, I''lle pay a visit, you have my word!" I said with a giggle.
"Take care!" Bedann said. "I hope we can see each other again, Sapphire!"
"Yeah! Please make sure to protect the ind well!" Miranda said.
"Of course! I''ll do everything I can! I am… I am no longer alone!" Sapphire smiled radiantly, as the ship slowly began moving away faster and faster.
Slowly, the ind became smaller in front of our vision, until it was already in the long distance, beyond the endless horizons of the sea…
"Are you two okay?" Bedann asked our daughters, quickly carrying Bedra in her arms.
"Aw, look at you, all covered in tears and snout!" Miranda sighed, cleaning Kate with a handkerchief.
"I-I''m fine! I''m not sad…" Bedra said. "Because I know I''ll see them again one day!"
"Nn!" Kate nodded. "M-Me too…"
"Hahaha, that''s the spirit." I nodded. "Don''t worry about it a single bit, I''ll make sure to bring a beautiful future for all of you children, a future where all you canugh, y, eat to your fillings, and enjoy life in peace… I''ll fight for that future, with my life."
I looked into the horizon, as the moon began glowing atop the night sky. Aegir stayed in silence while floating above me, looking at the sea with a smile, sighing a bit.
I could tell she had a slightly saddened expression in her face. Despite not having beenpletely conscious, as the fragments themselves, she probably experienced many of the things we did, and grew attached to these people and this ind…
"Goodbye for now, Aquarius Archipgo…" Aegir sighed. "I might be gone from there, but within the seas, my will resides. I will protect you all, it is the least I could do, my old friends…"
She suddenly waved her hand, conjuring a divine power and imbuing it into the seas. In the distance, the entire ind gained a blue aura, which formed into an invisible barrier of divine power that was constantly fueled by the seas surrounding it…
"A-Amazing, is that a divine barrier that fuels on the sea itself?!" I asked.
"Heheh, amazing, right?" Aegir was proud. "It is one of the few things you''ll learn to do now that you have me with you, Dragon King~ Now! How about something sweet? I want to eat all the delicious things you''ve been eating all this time in front of my noses!"
"Right, right~" I sighed. "I guess I''ll make you some sweets. Girls, do you want some too?" I asked everyone.
"I wouldn''t mind some ice cream." Bedann giggled.
"Pudding for me!" Miranda raised her arm.
"Cheesecake!" Kate said.
"Beef!" Bedra said, drooling.
"Bedra, that''s not a sweet though!" Laughed Bedann.
I have not realized it until now, but it looks like I''ve made my own, beautiful family to belong to and always feel apanied with. At their side, I''ll never be alone anymore.
-----
Author''s Note: And with this we have reached the end of this awesome arc, which I had so much fun writing! I did my best writing these new side characters, the lore behind the ind, and the new enemy that showed up, the Deep One. This was also a storyline meant to show Bedra and Kate''s growth, and to give them some meaningful friendships that would help them develop as characters, and not to be just babies anymore.
Now the future seems to have endless possibilities, onwards to Muspelheim, the Continent of mes! In here, Drake and his family and friends will face countless new challenges and enemies, and also find brand new allies… maybe even a peculiar fire dragon with otherworldly powers will join him.
And I do wonder, what''s that bastard of Greenwood plotting now? He''s sure a tough nut to crack, and he mighte out with even more powerful challenges for Drake in the future.
Well, it''s not like Drake will give up either.
Thanks for reading so far.