NOVEL SIMPLE Chapter 162: Vorthos
[Dragon peaks]
Standing in the hall leading up to Irsyr and Edylia's secondary audience chamber, one designed with a humanoid form in mind instead of their true forms like the main one, Jennia leaned against one of the pillars that stood along the central path leading from the entrance to the audience hall.
Keeping her eyes on the door leading to the audience hall, she mentally went through the conversation after their most recent arrival at the dragon peaks again and again.
After Alicia had proudly told Darganth about her successes in the weeks since his departure, the conversation had initially remained ordinary. Sharing the story of their travels with Alicia, they answered her enthusiastic questions about how the wider world was.
Throughout it, Alicia couldn't contain her excitement to explore the four continents herself, something she wanted to do since her arrival on Ikrus. The only reason she wasn't already doing it had been Darganth's insistence on having her reach an acceptable level of power first due to the dangers such a journey carried with it.
In the end, Alicia had agreed with him, even though it took some convincing. Since then she had regularly shared her progress with Darganth, hoping every time that he would finally deem her capable of protecting herself.
The day of their return was no different, with Alicia nodding in disappointment when Darganth's answer didn't change. Still, she accepted it as she knew that he was doing it out of care for her well-being.
And instead of dwelling on it, she turned to the new addition to their group, Serania.
"Alicia." Alicia said, introducing herself.
"My brother told me about you, great we can finally meet." She added and extended her hand as a greeting.
"The pleasure is all mine." Serania responded.
Stepping next to her, Darganth and Allaire joined the conversation together with the freshly arrived Yldra. Just as she was about to do the same, Jennia was stopped when Edylia spoke next to her.
"Before you go you should know that your father reported back today, he finished his mission and is on his way back." She said, unceremoniously dropping the bomb on Jennia and catching her by surprise.
Freezing up in response, she whirled around toward Edylia.
"When?" She asked impatiently.
"In a few days. But I'll share the details with everyone later, I'm just telling you now so that you have a few more hours to prepare yourself." Edylia said.
Nodding in gratitude, Jennia absentmindedly followed after her and joined the others. What followed were hours that she only remembered as a blur, with her thoughts being so occupied by the news that she couldn't fully focus on the present.
All of this led to her now standing where she was, staring at the door where her father was giving his report to Irsyr and Edylia. Crossing her arms and tapping her fingers impatiently on her forearm, she waited for them to finish so that she could confront Vorthos.
Waiting for over an hour and growing increasingly frustrated throughout it, Jennia perked up when she saw both wings of the door swing open.
Taking a deep breath, Jennia stepped away from the pillar and into the central pathway. Narrowing her eyes and keeping them fixated on the shadow that obscured what lay beyond the doorway, she kept her arms crossed as she waited for Vorthos to step out of it.
And though it took a few seconds, he soon emerged from the audience hall. Walking toward her with unsure steps and a nervous smile, he avoided meeting her gaze as he approached.
"Hello, Jennia." He said in an apologetic tone as he stepped before her.
Huffing in response, Jennia didn't answer him immediately. Instead, she looked at him with a frown, visibly annoyed by his greeting.
"Don't talk to me as if you know me, you don't." She snarled after a few seconds.
"I know." Vorthos admitted, "And I regret it."
"Too bad, because it's entirely your fault. You can list your excuses all you want, it won't change anything. The only reason I'm even speaking with you is to get closure for myself and tell you to your face how much I despise you." Jennia said.
Nodding with a dejected sigh, Vorthos wasn't surprised at all by her words.
"Understandable. Still, I want you to know that I'm proud of the person you've become. And you did it despite having as miserable of a father as I am." Vorthos told her.
Surprised by his heartfelt words, Jennia stood frozen in place as he walked past her with the intention to leave.
"That's all?" She asked confused.
Turning around to again face him, she watched as he stopped and also turned around with a complicated expression.
"No attempt at asking for a second chance, just … self-pity and resignation?" Jennia asked angrily.
"Yes. I left you and your mother behind because I was too cowardly to attempt to convince Irsyr and didn't tell Enilla that I had to go due to my fear of her reaction, so now I have to live with that choice. And part of that is that I can't and won't try to demand a second chance from you.
Don't get me wrong, I would love it if you two were to give me one, but I won't try to convince you of it. Just know that I'm sorry and that I'll love you no matter your choice."
Pausing for a second as she felt the sincerity in his words, Jennia forced herself to ball her firsts a moment later.
"Your words are too little and too late." Jennia said as she turned away from him.
"Everything is after what I did. But I don't want to keep making the same mistake, so I had to get it together and start my apology with something." Vorthos said before silently turning to leave.
Following him with her mana sense as he left for the outside, Jennia felt a storm of, sometimes conflicting, emotions welling up within her. Wishing away the small tears that formed in the corner of her eyes, she was relieved as she felt Darganth teleport to her.
Stepping into his embrace, she leaned against his chest and let her emotions run free.
"Why do I care?" She asked in a helpless tone as tears started running down her cheeks.
"After missing my entire life I shouldn't care about him or about what he says? So why does a part of me want to forgive him?" She continued.
"Because emotions aren't logical. But just because you care for him or if you were to one day forgive him, it doesn't mean you can't still hate what he did. Second chances aren't about erasing the past but seeing that the person has changed since then." Darganth said comforting.
Answering with a murmur of affirmation, Jennia nonetheless stayed in the safety of his arms.
Meanwhile, Vorthos stepped outside with a sorrowful expression. Staring at the sky as he wallowed in his misery, he didn't even notice a second presence arriving.
"I take it didn't go well." Enilla asked as she approached him.
"No, but I expected it." Vorthos said.
"Well, she was too young to remember it when she last met you so there are no fond memories that work in your favor. Hell, part of me still loves you for some reason but I nonetheless get the urge to punch you in the face every time I see you so the fact that she didn't could already be a good sign." Enilla said bluntly.
Smiling wryly, Vorthos drew at least some hope out of her words.
"But you think there's some hope for me?" He asked.
"Yes. Though I don't yet know if I'll ever even consider giving our relationship a second chance, a few years ago I wouldn't even have talked to you and now here we are. Jennia might take a bit longer but considering that I am giving you a second chance, she might do so too." Enilla said.
Nodding with a small smile on his lips, Vorthos felt relieved by just the possibility.
"But don't get your hopes up that it's likely to be anytime soon. She can reasonably expect to live for all eternity with Darganth by her side, so while negative emotions among mortals often fade already within their lifetimes, she'll likely hold onto them for longer." Enilla said.
"That's something I can live with. Whether it be ten or ten thousand years, I'll gladly wait that long for just the chance to make it up to you. As recognized it yourself, we have endless time so the eternity that lies beyond will always be longer." Vorthos said as a small smile bloomed on his face.
