An Apology

Verona is sitting at the table and looking down at her hands. She looks up when she hears the door open. Gaia motions for me to sit across from Verona. Gaia stands next to her.

"Sorry for attacking you Eric." Verona says, clearly embarrassed. "I miss judged the situation and thought it was a trap. I saw the Mana Trails of two others, both with magic I didn't recognize. I thought they were Devils too and were waiting to ambush me. Normally I would've ran and kept an eye on you. But I needed to know how you had Gaia's blood. So I thought I'd take you hostage." She says and Gaia smiles.

"It's fine Verona. I probably would have done the same thing." I tell her and she sighs with a bit of relief.

"Eric, I'm going to help you fight with the Demon God." She says after a few moments. Her voice is filled with determination and confidence. Gaia sighs before turning to me.

"She won't take no for an answer. I already tried." She says and Verona nods. I chuckle before smiling.

"I had no intention of telling her no. From what I've seen, she's good in a fight." I say and Verona nods proudly.

"Eric, I'd like to give you something as an apology." Verona says and I shake my head no.

"No, it's fine." I reply and she smiles.

"I'm not just doing this as an apology. I'd like three things in return. But most of it will help with fighting the Demon God." Verona says and I sigh.

"What do you want?" I ask causing her to smile while Gaia sighs.

"Firstly I'd like you to make me a Citizen of your Domain. That way I can visit Gaia. Secondly, I want you to learn the spell I made to contact Gaia. That way we could call each other from a distance. Finally, I want to study you and the other two who were with you in the Slime Dungeon. It won't be dangerous or anything, so don't worry." She says and Gaia chuckles. Honestly, most of that will be a big help. If she can take on the Devils that'll be amazing. Not many others can handle the Devils one on one, not to mention the Demon God. If I can get Bergeth then I'll feel much better. I think quickly before nodding.

"You have a deal." I say and she smiles. She raises her left hand into the air. It disappears into the air, and when she pulls it out she's holding a ring.

"Here, this is a ring I made as an experiment. I expect it'll be useful to you." Verona says while handing it to me. "Use the skill you used earlier on it. The one that's like Analyze." She continues and I use Observe on the ring.

Verona's Core Experiment V0.91 Lvl ???, Mythical

This ring was made around a magical Core containing nothing but Verona's raw mana. The metal is made from Steel that she infused with her mana. It has the ability to answer one's questions. It gives its wearer +30 INT, +20 WIS, and +10 LUC. Hidden Properties: You may ask it one question and it will answer it. The more vague the question, the more vague the answer. It requires twenty-four hours before it can answer another question.

While reading the description I made Verona my Citizen. When I look back I see her holding a bracelet. The bracelet is made of vines and is decorated with small purple crystals. She puts it on with a smile before Gaia pets her head. I see her blush a little but she doesn't try to move away. She clears her throat and Gaia stops petting her.

"Eric, sorry in advance for how insensitive this is going to be." Verona starts before sitting straight and sighing. "But Gaia has told me you're the son of the woman who was helping her. The one who sealed the Demon God. Does that mean you're also one of the Mythos?" She asks. When she says the word Mythos, I see her face twist with pain. A moment later a trail of blood streams down from her lips. Gaia immediately places her hand on the back of Verona's head and heals her with a warm green light.

"Are you okay?" I ask and she smiles.

"Yes, but you heard what I said. That means you are one." She replies. half talking to me half thinking aloud. "Don't worry about the blood. This is what happens if someone not of that race says its name."

"How do you know of it?" I ask and she smiles proudly.

"Through a lot of trial and error. Your mother let me study her on a few occasions. During those, she tried to tell me the name of your race. It was tough though. If she wrote it all I'd see is a blur. She tried saying just the letters and not the word, but that didn't work. Eventually, she used her School of magic to create the letters out of dark grey energy. That was the only way I could understand it. Now then, do you possess the ability to use multiple Schools of magic? Even ones humans can't use?" She asks and I nod.

"Yeah, I can." I say and her eye sparkles. Her eye with a start literally starts to sparkle. "What's with your eye!? Are you okay?" I ask her, suddenly worried if her eye has some sort of magical backlash.

"Yes, it happens when I get excited." She says while calming down. "And in case you're wondering, this eye can see mana. Much like a Sensor, but I can focus on certain types of mana too. That way I can track them." She says and I nod. "So Eric, do you know the School your mother used? The one with the dark grey energy." Verona asks and I nod. "Could you show me? Your mother struggled to use that magic."

"What do you mean she struggled?" I ask her and Gaia steps forward.

"I'll answer that." She says.