Amelia and Ophelia: The Former Grand Duchess and Saintess.

In the city of Olertin, the capital of the Halkare Empire, there lay a housing district that has a building that is unlike the rest. This building is a large estate and It is several floors larger than the homes within the residential area. This massive estate was not the home of a single person however but rather a pair of women and a vast amount of children aged 5 to 18. This was the Olertin Orphanage and it was run by the two mothers of the reigning empresses of the empire, Mother Felice and Sister Mary.

The two of them were standing on the front lawn of the orphanage, alongside the children who were playing with now another, Mother Felice was clad in a massive black overcoat with a smaller black vest over a black long-sleeved polo finished with some black slacks, all of which perfectly hid her voluptuous, curvaceous and well-endowed body from view. She even had her flat dress shoes on which was a choice of comfort. Her silver hair cascaded down her back and her beautiful but scarred face held a small smile as she watched the kids with a protective gaze. 

Her eyes shifted from the kids running around to the woman playing with them, the woman who was her beloved, and her fellow caretaker of the orphanage, Sister Mary. She was clad in a nun's outfit that hid her curvy and busty body from view thanks to its large size and a matching nun habit that covered the usually flowing and silky brown hair. Her smiling face made the silver-haired former paladin smile as she felt a sweetness taking over her heart. 

"Come on Mama! you gotta hide better than that!" A young girl shouted as she pointed at Sister Mary barely hiding behind a bench that was on the lawn 

"Fufufu, it seems you caught me" Sister Mary giggled as she stood up from behind the bench 

"Hehehe! Mama is so clumsy" Another child chimed in before they made their way to her and tried to embrace her

"Yes, Mama truly is" Sister Mary replied as she crouched down to their height and hugged them both at once, kissing the top of their heads and ruffling their hair which made the kids giggle with delight. 

Standing back up, she saw the children run off to do some other thing and when she saw Mother Felice looking at her, Sister Mary smiled as she walked over to her and stood beside her. 

"Liked what you saw?" Sister Mary asked in an amused tone 

"Oh? Saw what?" Mother Felice replied, her tone also holding amusement although her face did not show it 

"Seeing me silly!" Sister Mary added as she glanced at her beloved 

"Maybee...give me a kiss and I shall answer" Mother Felice replied

{!} 

The silver-haired caretaker's eyes went wide as her beloved suddenly grasped the collar of her overcoat and pulled her in for an intense and loving kiss, both of them using their tongue and further deepening the kiss the more it went on. Once they were done, Mother Felice pulled herself away and she was blushing profusely. Meanwhile, her beloved had a much more craving and desire-filled gaze in her eyes as she kept looking at her beloved who was still reeling from the kiss. 

"Fufufu, look at you. Always with that cold gaze, but now...I can clearly see the woman I fell for all those years ago" Sister Mary added as she carefully caressed the left cheek of her beloved with the back of her right hand, biting her lower lip and smiling as she could see her beloved blushing 

"You are such a vixen" Mother Felice replied weakly as she could feel her whole body slowly weakening and wishing to be in her beloved's arms 

"Fufufu, I love you" 

"I love you too" 

{!} 

Before the two of them could kiss one another once more, an alarm rang out from the house, catching both of their attentions and their gazes as they turned to the house once they heard the repeated and loud ringing. 

"Right. Everyone inside! Lunchtime!" Mother Felice shouted as she looked out at the lawn

The children stopped what they were doing and everyone began walking or running back towards the house. Toys were either left on the lawn or were placed inside the box by the door the children were going through to go back into the house. Once all of the children were inside, the two caretakers looked at one another and began walking back into their home, while Sister Mary's shadow spread out across the lawn and dragged what was lying around and placed them back into their rightful places. 

Once inside, the two caretakers joined the kids in the grand dining hall of the estate. The children were moving around and setting up the massive long table in the center of the room that was to accommodate all of them, the sounds of their little feet pitter-pattering across the hardwood floor and the clinking of plates, utensils, and drinking glasses filled the air with their sounds. The kitchen nearby had the older kids from 16-18 years of age cooking for lunch, while usually done by Liliana who lived here as she wanted to live with her step-sister Mary but she was currently doing her duties as head of the Church Of Life and so was not around for today. 

After a few minutes of setting up the tables, the food from the kitchen was brought out by clones of Mother Felice who took over the duties to allow everyone to get seated. Placing on the table platters of fish, meat, rice, and vegetables that all gave a savory smell and that made the kids have watery mouths and tummies rumble just thinking about eating the delicious food before them. 

"Righ everyone. Let's say a small prayer" Sister Mary said as she and her beloved took their seats at one end of the table 

The kids then held hands with one another and bowed their heads and closed their eyes, something that Mother Felice and Sister Mary did as well. 

"Thank you for thy blessing oh Gods above and below. May you continue to watch over us. Amen" 

"Amen" 

With that, lunch began. 

.........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

After lunch, the two caretakers sat on the porch at the back of the estate and looked out at the backyard. It had a small garden that had some of the kids tending to it, while the rest was just a grass lawn with a small playground for the kids to play on and around. The two of them sat side by side, each in their own rocking chair that swayed back and forth gently, the creaking sounds of the chair rocking filled the air near them as they had their hands in each other's grasp. They kept their gaze outward towards the kids playing and practicing in the backyard, seeing some of them practicing their swordsmanship with one another, or trying to practice some magic they were reading from a book. Although many would see this as a very hard job, watching numerous kids at once both in the backyard, inside the estate and in the front yard, for the two of them who had seen so much chaos, blood and death, this was peaceful. 

"To think...that the person I was assigned to kill, the Great Commander Of The Order Of Histy...would be the same woman I would end up loving and sitting beside here and now...life is truly strange" Sister Mary remarked as she tightened her grip on her beloved's hand 

"Well. Life is full of mysteries my dear. One moment I have you by the neck with my blade, the next I am at your mercy on the bed...one can only imagine what hell we have been through" 

"I believe you saving my sister helped a lot" Sister Mary said as she interlocked her fingers with her beloved 

"Oh you think so? I thought it was because of my great charm" Mother Felice replied as she brought up her lover's hand and kissed it gently, making Mary giggle in response 

"There was also that" The former assassin replied with a smile as she moved in and kissed Mother Felice on the lips 

{!} 

While they were busy spending some quality time together for the next 30 minutes, they were interrupted when one of the children playing on the front lawn suddenly burst through the door, the fear on his face evident as he ran towards his two mothers. 

"What's wrong little Lanc?" Sister Mary asked as he stood before both of them 

"There are some big men outside Mama! They look scary and were asking for you both!" Lanc replied, his body shivering in fear as he thought of the burly band of men standing outside the estate 

"Are there now? What do these burly men look like?" Mother Felice asked as she stood up, using her Conjuration Magic to make a purple mace in her hand 

"They all have weapons and armor that make them look like bandits!" The young boy replied 

"All right then, what about the rest of you guys who were on the front lawn?" Sister Mary chimed in

"The bandits have them!" Lanc replied

"And what do these bandits look like Lanc?" 

"Ummm...they are all big and scary! They have weapons and big armor and they are all just standing outside the gate!" 

The moment those words left his mouth, the two caretakers relaxed a bit as they realized what little Lanc had probably seen were a bunch of adventurers who had come to the orphanage, although it was weird that they had come at all. Considering that most of the orphans who wished to become adventurers were currently still in training and those who were adventurers had their hands full doing some quests in cities that were not Olertin City. 

"I'll go check them out" Mother Felice said as she patted the head of the young Lanc and left the backyard porch 

Going through the house, Mother Felice arrived on the front lawn and what she and Sister Mary assumed was true. There was a group of adventurers just standing outside the gate and the other children were busy with one another and not even minding the adventurers who were just waiting for her and her beloved to appear. Although the closer Mother Felice got, the better she saw what had scared little Lanc, the leader of the group was the one waiting in the forefront and he was not a really pretty sight as his well-built and buff body that was exposed by the leather and iron armor he was wearing, including his bald head that had several scars made him look intimidating and even scary in some cases. 

"Hello there! I am Mother Felice. Can I help you?" She asked as she stood before the group after exiting the gate 

"Ah! Miss Felice! I am Granite, leader of Grantie's Company. I am here to ask for some help" The man stated as he straightened up and looked at her, the rest of his band of burly men doing the same 

"Mhmm, I will see what I can do, but that depends on what you are about ask me" Mother Felice replied as she crossed her arms and shifted her posture slightly 

"Someone by the name of Alistair who commands the Paladins in the church has asked us to ask you to accompany us to a nearby dungeon" Granite said 

"Ohh, why? I believe Alistair and her paladins are more than capable of accompanying some fine adventurers such as yourselves" Mother Felice replied, using her <Appraisal> and seeing the party before her were all B-Rank in strength 

"She told us that the Paladins are undergoing some scheduled training for today and thus told us to ask you. I had my doubts but considering that I cannot read your stats, I am convinced that you are undoubtedly someone of much greater strength than me and my company could hope to match" 

"You flatter me...what is this dungeon we are going to?" Mother Felice asked 

"Ah! It is one of the stronger B-Rank Dungeons with monsters close to A-Rank. We have been tasked with mapping out the dungeon and the monsters within the dungeon"  Granite answered her 

"Hmmm, and why couldn't you requisition an Imperial Mapper to assist you?" 

"Oh, all 24 mappers are currently busy Miss. It's why we went to the Church to ask for help and now here we are" The bald man answered her, his eyes betraying nothing but the truth and Mother Felice's years of experience told her that this man was not lying 

"Haaa...alright, I will accompany you, on the condition that I bring along someone with me. It has been a while since we have stretched our wings. Is that alright with you?" The former Paladin Commander asked 

"Oh! Of course, we do not mind" Granite replied with a small nod as he understood the request 

"Thank you, I will just get her and we can go" 

.........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

An hour later, they reached the dungeon that Granite's Company was supposed to map, the entrance to the dungeon was a large opening on the side of a mound of trees and along a small dirt path that led to a nearby village. Although Granite was perfectly fine with having two women follow along with them, his company of burly men was not so receptive. 

"Granite, having these two will only slow us down man. Hell, they will probably get a portion of the cut!" A tall and burly man said as he tapped his twin daggers on his shoulder

"Can you read their stats Armby?" Granite asked, not even looking back 

"No...."

"Then shut the fuck up. If you can't read them and I can't read them, its safe to assume they can fold us if they wished. Also, guild regulations clearly state we need some backup in case something goes wrong, and they are our cavalry. Plus, guild regulations also state that they will get a separate payment so no need to worry about that" The group leader added as he finished getting ready to move out 

"Flattered for being thought as such, thank you Mister Granite" Sister Mary replied with a small bow that the bald man returned with a nod 

"Right. Granite's Company! Let's move out!" Granite shouted as he led from the front, with the rest of the company following behind him and Mother Felice and Sister Mary following them 

Entering the dungeon, five minutes didn't even pass before they found themselves in a massive chamber that was lined with barely visible ruins that created a massive arena in the center of the room. There were several statues, all of different forms of degradation and disrepair, with some missing limbs and heads. 

"Hmmm...this is different from the usual" Granite commented as they entered the chamber

"Everyone weapons up and get ready for anything" He added as they all drew their weapons, a mix of swords, axes, bows, and magic all at the ready 

{!} 

Suddenly, jumping out from the shadows behind the statues and dropping down from the ceiling were goblins dressed in pieces of plate armor that loosely covered their green bodies and were wielding some scraps of metal tied to pieces of wood that resembled swords. These were Goblin Soldiers and if these poor bastards were around, it meant that a King Ogre was also around but deeper within the dungeon. 

"Alright! Everyone split into pairs! Take down the bastards with your battle buddy!" Granite shouted as he slashed one goblin across the chest, his blade destroying the dented plate armor that was acting as protection. 

As the adventurer's party attacked the goblins in the chamber. Mother Felice and her beloved walked over to one of the ruined statues. Looking at the ruined marble with a bit of sadness. 

"Hmm, usually, dungeons don't have such things like this statue...most are just filled with monsters that have no relation with one another...but this, this is different" Mother Felice remarked as she looked at the ruined statue 

"True...With the way how dungeons are randomly created by the world...this one seems almost, special...in a way" Sister Mary agreed 

"You think it is akin to one of those Thematic Dungeons that are so spoken about in the guilds back where we came from?" Mother Felice asked 

"I do believe that, who knows...maybe once they clear this dungeon, it will close forever or it will be a permanent Thematic Dungeon that many will be able to experience" The former assassin replied with a nod and a smile 

{!} 

While they were busy chatting with one another while keeping their eyes on the ruined statue, a group of six Goblin Soldiers dropped down behind them from the ceiling, their sharp weapons at the ready and the glints of fury in their eyes betraying no fear of the two women before them. But as they charged at the seemingly unaware women, the shadows on the floor beneath them suddenly sprouted several mounds filled with rows upon rows of sharp teeth that began ripping the goblins to shreds, eating away at everything they could get their mouths on, leaving nothing but the screams of the goblins as the only reminder they existed at all. 

Some of the Granite's Company members saw what had happened and were horrified by what they saw, more so when they saw the mass of shadow retreat to the shadow of Sister Mary like nothing ever happened. Even Granite saw this and was both surprised and horrified at the same time, making a mental note not to do anything stupid that could earn their ire.

The two caretakers then turned their gazes back to the adventurers doing their job and they were simply content with just letting them do all the work as after all, they were the cavalry and would only step in if things got too bad. They watched as some goblins were easily torn apart by single slashes fired off by the adventurers and watched as some goblins were incinerated, frozen, or electrocuted to death. All in all, Granite's Company was showing them why they deserved their B-Rank status and that was good enough as both of them surmised internally that this B-Rank dungeon had a lot more secrets and surprises to spare and they would be needed soon. 

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter featuring Mother Felice and Sister Mary! I hope you enjoy the little story of theirs!