From Human to Skeleton: Revived with Infinite System Crystals

Todd looked up, surprised and relieved. "Nana! You're back!" The scent of roasted meats and freshly baked bread filled the air, mingling with the tang of ale and the faint smokiness of the inn's hearth. The warm, golden light from the lanterns cast a cozy glow over the wooden tables and stone walls.

"Oh, and Elithira, I'm surprised to see you," Todd continued. "And who's this tall redhead?"

Sanguina's eyes narrowed, her hand moving to unsheathe her blade. "What is a monster doing here?!"

"A monster? This is Todd…" Nana said quickly. "I mean, yeah, he might look like one a bit, but he's the nicest guy you'll ever meet if you're nice to him."

A loud clatter interrupted them as a kettle slammed down from behind Todd. General Mattison, covered in bandages with rosy red cheeks, staggered forward, a broad grin on his face. "So, how is everyone doing? I heard there was a lot of fighting, but all I see are hot babes in front of me!" His voice was slurred, and the strong scent of alcohol wafted from him. Your next read awaits at empire

"Everyone should slide over for a drink, especially the red-hot ones!" he added with a wink, his bandaged hands gesturing toward the table.

Sanguina gave an annoyed look. "And who is that?"

Nana laughed, shaking her head. "That is General Mattison... I, uh, he's a wild card. You can just ignore him for the most part."

"Ahhhhh," General Mattison groaned, slamming his head back on the table. "Todd, how are you able to drink so much?" He let out a slight burp, his face remaining plastered to the wooden surface.

Todd chuckled, patting General Mattison on the back. "Takes practice, General. Takes practice."

The inn was bustling with life. The crackling fire in the hearth provided warmth against the chill of the night outside. The aroma of hearty stews and spiced wine filled the air, creating an inviting atmosphere. Laughter and chatter echoed around the room, blending with the occasional clink of mugs and plates.

Nanako face-palmed as the group just watched on awkwardly. Fiera watched, slowly shaking her head. "How did he ever become a general… I suppose I should do a better job overseeing things on this world…"

Nana chuckled. "Perhaps. Who are you again?"

"Oh, um, you're friends with Ty, right?" Fiera replied, a bit flustered.

"Yes, we were sent here together," Nana said, walking up to the front of the counter. "We are here for our rooms."

An old lady behind the counter looked up and smiled warmly. "Oh, I remember you. You helped me back when I first met you when those clover people attacked me."

"Oh, old lady, I'm glad to hear you are doing better. Hopefully, you didn't sustain too much damage?"

The old lady gave a light chuckle and shook her head. "No, no, not at all. After what happened, I was interviewed heavily and moved closer to the kingdom. Something about letting a younger, more capable person run an inn that far from the main walls. So, in that regard, life has been better since then. Thank you.

I heard rumors that the skeleton man was kidnapped… is that right?"

Nana sighed, "Yeah, but hopefully we will take the first steps tomorrow to bringing him back," she stated, gripping her fist. "But honestly, after such a long day, we're going to grab one more night of sleep and hopefully check off a lot of things off the board."

The old lady nodded understandingly. "I see, that is great. I got word that you and the group would be coming. I must say you have made some beautiful young friends." She turned around, grabbing some key cards. Handing them to Nana, she said,

"These three cards should suffice. You will have three rooms in total, doubled up, in the farthest room down. Rooms 106, 107, and 108. If you need anything at all, like extra blankets, pillows—you name it, and I will be happy to help. We also have breakfast at 6 a.m. if you want to grab some food before starting your day."

Nana nodded, noticing the old lady was wearing a light reddish-pink kimono with her wrist slightly showing, revealing a black mark slightly peeking from her right wrist. The soft fabric of the kimono rustled as she moved, adding to the serene atmosphere of the inn. The gentle scent of lavender wafted from her, mixing with the other comforting smells of the inn.

Nana tilted her head slightly and asked, "What's that on your wrist?"

A bead of sweat rolled down the old lady's face as she clutched her wrist for a moment. She then rolled her sleeve up before removing her hand and said, "Oh, it must have been a marker stain. Nothing here anymore." She gave a chuckle and showed her wrist to Nana.

"Oh, sorry. I've just been a bit paranoid lately. But thank you," Nana replied.

"Of course. You all have a good night," the old lady said warmly.

Nana then turned her attention back to the redheaded girl. "Who are you again?"

Bending down to Nana's ear, the girl whispered, "Well, I don't need to keep secrets from you since you're from my father's team."

"Fath—" Nana started to say.

"I am the goddess of this planet and I oversee its development. In other words, I am like the goddess here. But I changed my form to better blend in," the girl explained.

"So, wait… that would make you the one that Ty ran into a while back, correct?" Nana asked, her eyes widening in realization.

Putting a finger to her lip, Fiera nodded. "Yup, that is correct."

"What exactly happened? He was very nervous talking about it," Nana asked, tilting her head in curiosity.

"Oh, not much," Fiera said, yoinking the card from Nana. "Lady Nana, he was probably just nervous about me giving him a kiss. He really fell for the naïve type." She put her hand over her mouth, giggling before walking down the hallway.

Sanguina and Elithira, hearing this, both coughed as Nana stood there in slight shock. "You kissed him?!" she shouted, rushing after Fiera.

The old lady behind the counter called out, "Please don't break anything, as that will come out of the kingdom's wallet."

Elithira chuckled as she walked past. "No worries, I'll keep them in check."

As they continued down the hall, Elithira put a hand on Todd's back. "How have you been holding up? What's that mark on your wrist?"

"Oh, this?" Todd glanced at the mark. "I stood some type of trial, and they found me guilty and placed this mark on me. I have to work and help the kingdom, or something bad happens. Not sure what it is exactly, but I actually have fun with the work, so it's no big deal."

Elithira leaned in closer to Todd, who was sitting down with a drink in hand, while General Mattison was face down on the table. "What's more, we've had very little luck getting the Cross Link Blade, but I'm pretty sure we found where it is," Todd said, his voice low.

"Oh, do tell," Elithira whispered, her interest piqued as she leaned over his shoulder.

Todd took a sip of his drink before continuing. "It's in King Griswald's throne room with six other blades, I believe. But the problem is they are all turned to stone, and they will only come back when the users come back."Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Elithira frowned, her brow furrowing. "But if the users haven't died, then... what are we to do?"

"So we've been sort of stuck," Todd admitted, his frustration evident. "King Griswald did say that helping kill the Dragoon might help with restoring the blade, kind of like it awakening on its own when a need has arisen."

Elithira's eyes narrowed as she considered his words. "If that's true, then we must focus on eliminating the Dragoon.

"However," Elithira continued, "I'm not sure how much of that I trust. At least tomorrow, I will be able to retrieve Ty's skeleton finger and hopefully track him down. At least that's the goal."

Todd, looking puzzled, said, "His finger? Now that you mention it, I do think I saw him missing a finger. Also, I wonder what happened to his Kama blade?"

"His what?" Elithira asked, raising an eyebrow.

Todd turned around, his drink still in hand. "Oh, you probably don't know. We were all blessed with weapons at some church and given weapons. Nana got some sort of wand, I got a staff… very fun to twirl, and Ty got some sort of Kama blade that acted on its own. A few times, I thought he might have been throwing around a mini scythe, haha."

Elithira's eyes widened slightly with interest. "A Kama blade that acted on its own? That sounds quite powerful."

Todd nodded, taking another sip of his drink. "Yeah, it was something else. Ty seemed to have a special connection with it. I wonder if it's still with him, wherever he is now."