The Root of Conflict

A worn, single slab wooden table sat in the middle of the room. A hearth with a pot simmering above it sat at the far end, flanked by two doorways I assumed led to bedrooms given the dried goods and dishes covering the shelves and tables lining the room. The floor creaked in certain places I stepped and the dim lighting made the house feel like I was being lured by a Yuki-onna.

"Don't mind the clutter," Lucinda said. She grabbed two more carved bowls from a nearby shelf and placed them at the table beside the two that were already there. "Try and make yourself at home. I know it's not much."

"It's lovely," I replied. I meant it, too. Compared to camping in the freezing cold, her house was a five star hotel. "Thank you for letting us stay."

"Just know I'm watching you," the rabbitman, Taro, said coldly. "Any funny business and…"

I didn't bother listening to the rest. I knew his heart was in the right place, but he had no idea who he was threatening. I wouldn't even need Yahime's help to lay the man out. The same could be said of the rest of the villagers as well.

"What did I tell you?" Lucinda slapped her son's ears again, making him shrink back. He was a momma's boy for sure.

"Sorry, mother. I just don't want her to trick us. You're too kind for your own good. They're human. We can't trust them."

"One of them is human."

I swallowed hard and looked at Yahime. She looked human to me, more or less. Hell, even if she wasn't, her skin wasn't any darker than Lucinda's fur.

"She's—"

"An angel, isn't she?"

Angel? I could see how someone could see Yahime that way. Dusk were the daughters of the Goddess of Souls.

"It depends what you mean by angel," I responded, testing the waters.

"A daughter of the goddess. Dusk I think they're called now."

Now? What were they called before? Bixey was older than this woman and she called Yahime a Dusk. Then again, Bixey traveled and knew modern trends.

"How did you know?"

Lucinda laughed and stirred the pot over the fire.

"When you get my age, you learn a thing or two. Not to mention my old bones can practically feel her calling me to the Twilight."

"Mother! Don't say things like that. Your health isn't that bad. You've got decades ahead of you!"

"My dear Taro… When my time comes, it will come and you need to accept that. Death is a natural part of life. You know that."

Taro slumped and he rested his forehead on his palms at the table. His concern was palpable, sincere and warm with love. Had I ever felt that way towards my own mother?

The scent of the stew Lucinda set in front of me was divine. Despite being a bit watery with little meat or vegetables, the herbs she'd mixed it made it smell like a thick and hearty meal.

"Thank you. And you're right. Yahime is a Dusk."

I nodded to Yahime who was still standing awkwardly and watched as her clothes melted into her skin and she grew taller. She stopped when her head smacked the ceiling. That didn't stop Taro from letting out a shrill scream.

"Monster! Get behind me, Mother!"

"Hush," Lucinda said, filling the rest of the bowls. "Don't disrespect Lady Vide by calling her daughter a monster. Though I am curious how she's here."

"protect… kyomi…"

Stew spilled onto the table as Lucinda stared at Yahime and overfilled the bowl in her hand. She dropped it cursing and wiped her hand on a rag hanging beside the hearth.

"I never knew angels could speak!"

I raised my hand to quell her excitement.

"She only started speaking recently and doesn't know much, so if you're hoping to learn about the afterlife, you won't get any answers."

Lucinda's ears drooped momentarily before she refilled the bowl she'd dropped.

"I suppose knowing too much would ruin the fun," she laughed. "Now tell me more about what happened at Edgeton."

In hindsight, I should have insisted on waiting until after the meal to talk. The more details I gave, the more my appetite shrank and before long my ravenous hunger had vanished.

"I can't believe… That fool of a boy. How could he do that to the other young ones? They were his friends, our friends. I know life is hard in Stonewood…"

"I don't think having a difficult life was why he went so far," I said. "I think, and I hope you don't take this the wrong way, Shiro was twisted from the start. Given everything that happened, he likely joined the resistance to satisfy his ego more than actually help anyone."

"But to do that to the others…" Taro's face was pale beneath his fur. "I almost… If it weren't for mother…"

Neither spoke. They only looked at one another with teary eyes.

"And what of Bixey? Were you able to give her a proper burial?"

I'd been dreading that question. A lie? The truth? A crossroads stood before me that I wasn't ready to face.

"I was—"

"fox… inside…"

I held back a scream. Why? Why, why, why?!

"Inside? Then Bixey is…?"

I nodded in defeat. "It wasn't intentional, but Yahime absorbed her soul. I'm not sure what that means for Bixey."

Both the rabbitfolk shrank away from Yahime. I would have done the same.

"I'm sure… I'm sure it was meant to be," Lucinda said quietly. Her voice was shaky, like she was trying to convince herself. "We don't know she's gone forever."

"I agree. Yahime is changing every day and I truly believe there will be a time when she can release Bixey's soul to be reincarnated."

Taro opened his mouth only to close it. I had the feeling everyone at the table wanted my words to be true.

"What about the bandits?" I asked, trying to change the subject. "What do they want with Stonewood?"

"They won't say," Lucinda replied. "They only demand we let them occupy the village while they search the mountains behind it. It's absurd! First they exile us up here and then they want to throw us out again."

I dove through my memories of Royal Hearts. Had there been a time when Richard traveled to Purga?

The epilogue.

Once the player finished the main story of Royal Hearts with every lead's good ending, new stories were unlocked that took place after a year long time skip. In Richard's epilogue, he tells the player that he went on a journey and gives them a pale white orb that, in-game, looked like a pearl the size of a baseball. He never specified where he got it, only that it had been difficult and that the substance it was made from would lead the Goldsplain Empire into a new, golden age.

Thrilling, right? From there, the story became fairly generic with a focus on the continued romance. The orb, called an Essence Stone, was somewhat useful, giving a decent and permanent buff to the player's combat score and once unlocked more were available in the cash shop. I almost missed rent the month they were released.

"Do you know what Essence Stones are?"