in magic school right now and we were still basically kids when we last saw each other, so i wanna visit her there soon."

"that sounds wonderful. i hope you two will be reunited soon."

there was a comfortable silence after that, and the two of them simply enjoyed the sunset.

[name] then stood up from where she sat and turned her back to laios.

"well then... i shall get going now."

laios stops her, grabbing her hand before she could walk away.

"wait, take this."

[name] raised a brow as laios placed something on her palm, and she was surprised to see a simple golden ring.

"i may or may have not stolen that while salvaging washed up treasure on the shore three days ago..."

laios rubbed his nape sheepishly, before raising his hand.

"i have one too. see? it's like matching friendship rings."

[name] slid the ring in, the corner of her lips lifting slightly as it perfectly fits her ring finger.

"thank you."

laios grins, giving her a thumbs up.

"well then, farewell... friend."

[name] bows her head slightly, before walking away while waving a hand over her shoulder.

"goodbye..."

and so he watched her walk away, sneaking in and climbing aboard a ship before disappearing from his sight.

laios stays there, sitting as the ship sails away to the distance, until the sun fully sets, and the moon rises up to play in the night sky.

"friend, huh?"

after a few weeks of travelling in the sea, stealing food from the shipmates and sleeping on hidden rooms, [name] finally reached a new island.

hiding behind giant wooden boxes, [name] held the bag she stole from one of the men aboard, filled with food and a few gold coins she snatched from the captain.

they have way too much treasure anyways, it won't hurt anyone if she were to take some.

she gazed at the island that they were approaching, her bored eyes studying the crowd of people on the port. there were way too many for her liking.

sneaking off of the ship was a problem for [name] though. the moment the ship anchored by the port, the main mass was crowded with the very same men she had been avoiding for a week now.

the only choice she had was jumping off to the side and swimming to the shore to avoid being spotted by anyone, but of course she wouldn't do that. the moment she drops in the water, she'll probably just float and die.

"what the.... who the hell are you?"

[name] cursed, looking up at the gruff man with a blank face.

"...hello."

let's just say things didn't end well. [name] yelped in pain as she was lifted up by her left arm, dangling around as the man made his way to the port, jumping down the ship.

she felt a sharp pain on her side, the stab wound that was barely healed throbbing as the man raised her higher until she was eye to eye level with him.

"so we got a thief, eh? and an elf of all things? i thought your kin are all noble and rich."

[name] winced but didn't really fight back, limply hanging from the man's grip.

"got nothing to say for yourself, thief?"

"...you reek of alcohol."

the man glared at her.

"hah?"

"you reek of alcohol... i hate alcohol."

[name] huffed, the glint in her eyes becoming judgemental and uncomplimentary, almost as if she's indirectly insulting him.

"you damn elf!! what're you looking at me like that for, huh?!"

[name] let out a choked gasp as she was slammed on the ground, and she coughed and rolled on her stomach, trying to scramble to her feet.

"dirty rat... i smell like alcohol?! you smell like a damn sewer, you have some guts insulting me!"

this grabbed people's attention, some of them watching in concern while some whispered among themselves, growing curious at the scene before them.

[name] is no stranger to the hushed whispers and gossip, and judgemental eyes merely watching as she was helplessly humiliated. but this time, she was worried.

there was not a single elf in sight. all of them are either a tall-man, a half-foot, or a dwarf.

and they are all looking down at her.

"an elf...? it looks filthy, must be a runaway criminal."

she heard someone whisper.

"it looks like it can rack up quite a lot of customers, don't you think so?"

another came from two men who were smirking and laughing at her demise.

"just kill it already if it's a criminal..."

the last comment made her flinch, and she pushed herself off from the ground, only to be stomped back in place, a boot on her back forcing her against the ground, emitting a pained groan from the girl.

"well? how do you like it, woman? you damn elves always look down on us other races for having a short life-span and weaker magic energy. how does it feel to be looked down upon, huh?"

"i don't... look down on anyone. except for you, of course."

[name] huffed, a strangled cry slipping out her throat when the man placed more pressure on her back, and she felt blood soaking her clothes from her stab wound that probably opened once again.

"stop that, please!"

[name] looked up when someone amongst the crowd shouted out of nowhere, and they cleared out as an old woman walked up to them out of nowhere.

she seems to be a gnome, and she was surrounded by a few tall-man wearing the same blue robe as her.

"please take your foot off of the young lady, sir."

"hah? and who are you?"

"that is not important, sir. please, do not hurt this young lady any further. she is my grand-daughter, and she suffers from an illness that makes her act quite... differently."

the gruff man's face scrunched up in confusion, and he took his foot off of [name]'s back.

[name] was confused too, actually. who the hell is this woman and what the hell is she talking about? she doesn't know.

"oh, my dearest. are you alright? we've been looking for you for weeks! you snuck off on your own again?"

the elder woman gently pulls her up, holding her steady by her arms.

"uh, what..?"

"oh dear, i shouldn't have taken my eyes off of you... i'm sorry, everyone. my dear grand-daughter doesn't mean any harm, she doesn't know any better! she has the mind of a child, please excuse her."

"what?! no i don't-"

"shush now, my child. let's go home."

"hold on, old lady."

the man glared at them, glancing between [name] and the old gnome.

"grand-daughter or not, that damn elf stole some stuff from us. you think i'll just let her off the hook?"

"oh, that's not a problem at all, sir. cece?"

the old woman gestured to the woman tall-man who nodded, approaching the man with a sharp glare in her eyes.

"here, you pig."

she huffed before throwing money in the air, gold coins and paper cash flying all over the place, shocking the man.

the crowd gasped and tried to pick up some for themselves, only to be swatted away by the gruff man.

"oi, hands off!! that's mine, i'll kill you!"

"let us go home now, dear."

[name] snaps out of her startled state as the old woman began tugging her along, and she stares at the man for a few more seconds before following her.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

"-and that's how i met [name]."

"so she met laios before you?"

"wha- what're you trying to say here, chilchuck?"

the half-foot snickered and avoided being hit by ambrosia as marcille rolled her eyes in annoyance.

"anyways, as i was saying... she came around the same time that i did, and actually... the very first time i saw her was when she accidentally set my room in fire. [name] specializes in potion making and alchemy, and the head mage supported her whole heartedly. she's a very talented alchemist."

"can't say i disagree with ya'. her potions really saved our ass a million times already."

the touden party walks through the halls, on their way to the fourth floor of the dungeon.

"i wonder, does [name] have a specific favourite meal?"

senshi asked marcille, who looked up in thought.

"well, it's hard to say... she barely eats, and she's very picky. but from my own experience, she'd eat anything and end up liking it. the only thing she refused to eat back then is lamb meat..."

"is that so? hmm, i was actually thinkin' of making a meal that she'd like next time we hunt for food."

senshi says, adjusting his hold on his axe.

"lamb? huh, that is oddly specific..."

chilchuck scratched his head in confusion.

"i don't know either. she never physically refused any other food except for that."

marcille sighed, reminiscing the time where she made an effort to actually cook, only for [name] to quite literally throw the bowl down on the floor with a disgusted scowl.

laios was pretty quiet the whole time as he keeps the same pace as [name], who looked like she has a hangover. ever since the tranquilizer wore off, she'd been looking miserable.

she looked like she pulled an all nighter for a week without coffee.

"would you like me to carry the bag for you?"

laios asked the girl who huffed through her nostrils, a nonverbal way of refusing.

"alright, just let me know if you get tired."

laios can't help but wonder why [name] had become nonverbal, since she hasn't spoken a single word ever since their reunion.

he could only assume that it had to do with her hybrid form. with the couatl mixed in with her body, creating a creature that doesn't have that much record of its existence, laios could only create theories of his own.

his best guess is that she lost her ability to speak with the overwhelming amount of changes on her body.

his logic is basically snake = 70% while human = 30%, therefore she could only perform 3/10 of what she used to know as a human.

'maybe i can teach her how to speak again?'

he glanced at [name], before nodding his head.

'it could be possible. but is it really a smart decision?'

his mind wandered to a scenario in which he successfully taught [name] how to speak again.

"laios... let me turn you into a monster."

laios flushed red, and he cupped his face.

'yes. i must teach her.'

while walking, his gaze couldn't help but wander back to her hand.

she was missing her ring, the very same ring that he gave her.

laios sighed, lightly bumping against [name].

"looks like you lost your ring when you grew big, huh?"

[name] looks at her hands at that, confusion written all over her face.

"look, i still have mine."

laios chuckled, raising his own hand to show [name]. she scratched her head before attempting to press her larger palm against laios, and he laughed.

"don't worry, we can just get another one."

laios gave her a high-five which slightly startled her, before she did the same and almost knocked him over, eliciting a small laugh from the giant girl.

"what're you two laughing about?"

marcille looks back at them curiously, and laios regains his balance with a chuckle.

"nothing, nothing. we're just goofing around. isn't that right, [name]?"

[name] hummed, poking laios repeatedly.

'i'm glad we met again, [name].'

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

-LORE DROOOOOOOOOP

idk i tried exploring a different writing style but i dont think it worked lol

the song i put at the start is the theme song for [name] and laios for me, and yes it's canon in this book >:P

anyways WE HAVE A NEW FANART AND I'LL POST IT SEPARATELY BECAUSE ALL FANARTS DESERVE A SPECIAL CHAPTER OF THEIR OWN HEHEHEHHE

by the way, what do you think about holm? ;-; idk i immediately found him cute the first time i saw him but when i saw his human form? HOLY SMOKES PLS PICK ME SIR

look at this. why does laios look like that one meme with the bald guy 😭

anyways here's your daily dunmeshi meme (my personal fav, this legit made me cry laugh) :D