Chapter 65

Previously in NWC-

Reno, CeCe, and Luna discuss the power shards and why Luna can't detect them from a distance. Luna reveals her true identity to CeCe and is asked for proof. The proof they use is by having CeCe pass on her spiritual understanding of the spell Ventus. The plan, however, goes poorly and they don't verify whether or not it worked...

The party continues silently. Even when they stop for lunch nobody says a word. After a bit, Luna and CeCe begin to calm down, but Reno remains angry. "(I am so ashamed of myself.)" Luna thinks to herself, a feeling of guilt building in her as she sees Reno sulking the entire time. "(I should fix this.)" Luna works up the courage to finally speak, breaking the long silence. "Reno, I need to speak to you."

Reno glances over, speaking with a flat tone. "Oh? I'm allowed to talk now? Not gonna treat me like a dog again?"

Luna manages to not get angry, maintaining her composure. "CeCe, Medusa, I need to speak to Reno about something, we'll still follow, but we'll be a bit behind. Is that okay?" CeCe and Medusa nod their heads in unison, building some distance between them. Luna waits until she feels comfortable with the distance and begins speaking again. "Reno, I'm sorry I spoke to you like that."

Reno's taken off guard for a moment, completely expecting the complete opposite of an apology. He scratches his neck awkwardly and shrugs his shoulders. "It's whatever."

"No, Reno, it's not whatever. Please don't try to downplay the issue. I've treated you poorly."

He sighs, speaking with a slight hint of happiness. "It's fine, really. All you did was tell me to stop talking, not like you said anything bad. My body still hurts, even with Medusa's mystery medicine, so I'm a little short tempered right now. I should've just sucked it up and let CeCe teach me the technique."

"(He's seriously trying to take the blame for this? Now that I think about it, he always ends up giving up and taking all the blame. I can not allow this to continue.) No, Reno, you had every right to refuse. We shouldn't have forced you to do it if you were uncomfortable."

"It's not that big of a deal. It was just a minor little thing. I think we're all ready to be back home."

"I'm not just talking about today. I've behaved rather poorly for quite a bit now. You've risked your life to help me twice now, and all you get in return is my attitude. You even found a lead all on your own and I responded by getting angry and prioritizing my own safety. I've been taking you for granted and I genuinely wish to improve myself in the future."

Reno stutters, not sure how to react to getting a genuine apology. "It's fine, seriously. Let's just act like it never happened and then we'll be good, alright?"

Luna sighs, feeling the guilt in her welling up. "If that is what you wish, then I will agree. However, before we do that I would like to say thank you, genuinely. Your help has been invaluable and your presence is dear to me. I quite literally would not be where I am if it weren't for you, and I promise to be better."

Reno goes completely silent finally. He avoids looking at Luna as he thinks to himself. Finally, he speaks. "Thanks, Luna. I appreciate you too." They continue to trail behind CeCe and Medusa for a bit longer before Reno speaks again. "If you don't mind me asking, why'd you get so mad anyway? I felt the same way I felt when you taught me Aqueous, so I'm assuming I learned the spell. We got the results you wanted but you were still angry after CeCe and I fell over."

Luna is thanking the Universe that she doesn't currently have cheeks, otherwise they'd be as red as a beet. "That's- I just… I was worried. I lashed out from the surprise and I was wrong for it."

Reno gives Luna a skeptical glance. "Because you were worried? I've hung around you long enough to know the tone you were using was definitely an angry tone, and not the one you use when you're worried."

Luna's heart turns slightly at his comment. "(He really pays attention enough to tell the difference in my tone?! What is this feeling? This pressure in my heart that makes it beat faster? It can't be… I must be getting sick.) I think you're just correct. I think we are all a little tired."

Reno nods his head, happy with her answer. "Well, I guess we should be getting back up there. Medusa is probably getting extra curious." Reno points towards the two walking in front of them. Medusa had turned her head slightly to look at them and turned it around quickly after seeing Reno point in her direction. "I really appreciate you having this conversation, Luna. I thought you were getting tired of me, in all honesty."

"My goodness! I could never get tired of you! You might be a bit irritating at times, but I wouldn't say I'm getting tired of you."

"So… are we good?"

"If you're asking if we can move past the last week, then yes, I would love nothing more than that. Truth be told, CeCe doesn't produce as much heat, so I've been slightly cold the past couple of nights."

With that, they pick up their pace until they catch up to the others. CeCe glances at Luna, grinning. "He's smiling now… what'd you guys talk about, hmmm?" CeCe raises her eyebrows in a suggestive manner, her voice full of curiosity.

Luna giggles slightly and looks over at Reno who was happily playing with Medusa as they walked. "Nothing in particular."

CeCe pouts, crossing her arms. "Lame~." The rest of the day goes by quickly. The group is still relatively quiet, but the overall morale of the party has increased significantly. The rest of the day passes them by and they reach the spot they'd used for their camp on the way to the ruins. "Looks like we're halfway there! Let's call it a day here, yeah?"

The party agrees, stopping and setting up camp. Reno only takes a couple of minutes to put his tent over. After he's done, he calls over Luna. "Hey, Luna!"

Luna flies over, speaking with a voice of curiosity. "Yes? Did you need something from me, Reno?"

Reno holds his hands out, displaying the tent. "The tent is up, and it only took me a couple of minutes instead of half of an hour!"

Luna chuckles as she observes his handiwork, impressed by the drastic change in time needed to set up the tent when compared to his first attempt. "I see you've gotten the hang of it! At least I can sleep comfortably knowing I won't wake up outside!"

"Oh, shut it!" Reno playfully pokes Luna as they both chuckle.

CeCe watches from afar, smiling. "About time they stopped arguing." CeCe sets up the fireplace, allowing Luna and Reno to continue their playful back and forth. The party enjoys their dinner before getting in their tents, quickly falling asleep. CeCe giggles quietly as she watches Luna enter the other tent with Reno and Medusa. "Best of luck, Loon~!" She whispers to herself before entering her own tent.

Luna takes her place in the sleeping bag as if it were any other day. "Goodnight, Reno. Goodnight, Medusa."

Medusa lazily waves a vine as she begins wrapping around Reno. "Guh nii!"

"Ah! She said goodnight! Goodnight Medusa! I'm so proud of you!" Reno is unable to hide his excitement, shouting as his heart fills with a sense of pride. He yawns, causing his excitement to die down enough for him to fall asleep. "Goodnight, Luna." The night is uneventful as the party sleeps throughout the night. That night, the tent seemed slightly warmer than usual. Morning comes and everyone packs up, setting out on the last leg of their journey. Reno does his best to pass the time by making idle conversation. "So, CeCe. What are you going to do with the treasure? You said it was worth a lot, but how are you going to find someone who wants it?"

CeCe puffs her chest out with pride and smirks confidently. "I'm a much more skilled merchant than you think! I can find a buyer for almost anything! I could pick up any random rock and sell it if I wanted to! I actually did it before because I wanted to test it out."

"Damn, you're out here just stealing at this point."

"Hey! I did not steal from them; I made a legitimate transaction!"

"You sold them a rock!

Luna, who'd been listening in, suddenly pipes in. "Depending on the person I might agree. To whom did you sell it?"

CeCe stifles a laugh as she answers the question. "Some rich idiot~!"

Luna sighs and turns to Reno. "I'm going to side with Reno on this one. Even if the individual in question is-" Luna is suddenly cut off by Reno.

"Oh, he was rich? He deserved it." Reno flashes CeCe a thumbs up.

"What?! I was JUST about to agree with you and you switched right at the last second?!"

Reno shrugs his shoulders. "They're rich. I don't like them already. Rich people are the worst!"

CeCe laughs as she watches Luna and Reno go back and forth about morals, not even noticing how much time was passing. Finally, after a short while, the team returns to Bambadale.

TO BE CONTINUED...