It had been years, but Adol had finally made it back to Felghana.

He was going from Garman to Ispani and decided to make a stop by Redmont, not really to check up on them, as he was sure they had recovered from the events that transpired last time he has there, but because he missed the place. He was curious what happened to all the people he met there. He always felt some remorse for leaving the region so suddenly, and he regretted not staying just a little longer.

But deep down he knew, he was really there to see Elena. He had thought about her many times during his travel, not necessarily in a romantic way, although the thought had crossed his mind. Adol fell in love easily, but he always knew to keep it hidden, buried, sealed away within him. He didn't want to hurt anyone by professing feelings that he knew he couldn't follow up on.

He was a nomad. It would be impossible for him to settle down, and the women he met during his adventures were always too attached to where they lived to follow him, so he settled for being alone most of the time.

Not to say that he never slept with any of them, but he never could offer them the stability of a relationship. They understood that and were still content to share some intimacy with him, even if fleeting.

But when he thought about Elena and Redmont, he wondered if settling down wouldn't be so bad. Living the quiet life seemed more appealing now that he had seen so much death and destruction. But could he live knowing all the evils he could be stopping instead?

This is what he was thinking about as he was approaching the town.

"Adol? Adol Christin?" Adol got pulled out of his thoughts by the town guard.

It was Gardner, still at it, keeping the town safe. It was probably a much simpler occupation than when he was last here. A lot less monsters roaming around.

Adol greeted him. "I can't believe you are back! I could recognize that red hair of yours from a mile away! What brings you to Redmont, son?"

Adol explained to him that he was on his way to Ispani and that he had been wanting to come back here for a while.

"Be sure to go visit the mayor if you have time. Everyone is going to be so glad to see you Adol. You know, since you left, we've rebuilt the town and more. We've expanded it even. It is much busier these days. Anyway, it is getting late and you probably want to get some rest at the inn, so I won't bother you much longer. Glad to see you young man!"

Adol smiled and told the old soldier goodbye.

He headed for the Inn, when all of a sudden he heard footsteps behind him. He turned around and saw a young woman in a white uniform with gold accents, and a sword sheathed by her side. She had blond hair that went down to her shoulders, and a scar on the right side of her face.

Even though she had changed, he recognized her instantly: Elena.

"Adol? Adol is that really you? You're back!"

Adol was left aghast by the change she had gone through. She probably had quite the story to tell

"It's been so long! I have so many things to tell you about! But it's so late right now, and you're probably exhausted from all the travelling. Meet me at my house tomorrow once you got some rest, ok? It's the same house as before. I'll be off duty so we'll have all the time we need to catch up"

Adol nodded. She smiled and walked away.

He definitely needed the rest. The road had been long and somewhat tortuous. He entered the Inn, said hi to Mams and got a room; And although he was tired, morning could not come fast enough.

He woke up some time later; The sun was already up. He got dressed. Something casual, he was not going to wear his suit of armor today. He put on a white shirt and some red pants, laced his boots, splashed his face with water and got out of his room.

He remembered the way to Elena's house. It was past the mayor's house, where she grew up with Chester.

Chester, another name he could not forget. A man who realized too late that his quest for vengeance was hurting the people around him. A hero who sacrificed himself to stop evil from taking over Felghana. Adol wondered which Chester the people of Redmont remembered him as.

He quickly arrived in front of Elena's House. Redmont was a small town after all, even if it had expanded since the last time he was there.

Adol knocked. He heard someone coming towards the door. Elena opened the door. She looked radiant. She was wearing a white dress that got to her knees, with really short sleeves that stopped little past her shoulders. She was still wearing her moon shaped pendant.

She smiled. "Adol!" He tried not to stare at the scar on her right cheek. How did that get there? What had happened?

"Come on in! I'm making some herbal tea. Will you have some?"

Adol nodded.

She directed him towards the center of the room, where sat a small wooden table with a couple chairs. He pulled up a chair and sat down. In the corner of the room he could her uniform hung on the wall, as well as her sword.

She brought the teapot and some cups and proceeded to sit down facing him.

"I imagine you have many amazing stories to tell. Not to brag but I may have some myself!"

She laughed. Adol smiled. It felt good to be back.

"A lot has changed since the last time you were here. You may have noticed, but I became one of the Count's knights! It's actually been a little over a year. Before that i spent a lot of time training with the Berhardt. You remember him right? Dogi's old master."

She paused for a moment. Her expression got a little melancholic.

"He was Chester's too… You know Adol, I miss him a lot. He may not have been perfect, but he was my brother. But I try not to dwell on the past. It was difficult but I've managed to move on, to follow up on my promise to be stronger."

She lightened up a bit and looked at Adol with determination.

"This is why I trained in the art of battle. I wanted to be stronger. I wanted to be like him, and like you Adol. Your bravery inspired me to become who I am today and i'm grateful for that."

She looked away for a second and laughed.

"Sorry to dump all of that on you. Really i'm doing good. I've been serving the people of Felghana, and i feel like i have a purpose now."

She proceeded to tell him about all sorts of scuffles she got into as a knight Count McGuire.

Adol enquired about her scar.

"Oh this? I actually got that about six month ago. We were patrolling the area south of the quarry when we spotted a squad of Romun soldiers. As soon as they saw us they started attacking, so me and the others retaliated. It was not a pretty fight, we were slightly outnumbered."

She touched the scar.

"One of them lunged at me from the side while I was fighting another and I did not dodge in time. So I got cut. I can't complain too much about it, some of my men had it way worse. We pulled through though. Plus I've come to like it. It makes me look tough."

"You may have noticed, but the Romun Empire has been getting really aggressive lately. We've been trying to rally the local Lords to form a unified army, just in case they decided to invade. But I'm not too worried about it. If they ever come back we'll kick their butt!"

Adol was impressed. She had always been brave, but now she had become a true warrior. Maybe it was the blood of Genos running through her veins. She seemed to have found her purpose.

"But what about you Adol? I'm sure you have many fantastical stories to tell. You've been on the road ever since, no? No way you haven't seen your fair share of trouble."

She was palpably excited.

And so Adol told her about his travels: through Xandria, Greek, and Garman. He told her about the evils he'd encountered, the wonders he had seen, and the people he met. Elena listened to him with attention.

Once he was done, she looked down at her hands and her expression turned a little melancholic.

"You know, sometimes I wonder what would have happened if I tried to follow you and Dogi. I wasn't not strong enough then, and I knew it, but the thought had crossed my mind. After Chester's death I felt like nothing really tethered me to Redmont anymore. It took me a while to rebuild these connection. But even then, sometimes aimless adventure seemed appealing. And if I'm being honest, I missed you. A lot."

Adol blushed a little. So did she.

"You just disappeared so soon after barging into my life and it really left me feeling so lonely for a while. I don't blame you, I understand why you did it, but in a way I'm relieved you came back. I worried sometimes I had just been a blimp in your existence, that you would have forgotten about me."

Tears started forming in her eyes.

"That's really selfish of me I know. It's your life after all, and you're free to conduct it however you want. But now you're back, and even if it is temporary, at least I know you haven't forgotten about me."

Adol wanted to reassure her. He told her he couldn't forget about her, and that he regularly thought about her, and about coming back here.

She looked relieved, like even though she said his return dispersed her worries, she still needed him to say she mattered to him.

She smiled and a single tear rolled down her cheek, right over her scar.

"God I missed you."

She got up, quickly got around the table, and hugged him.

"I missed you so much."

He was a little surprised, but nothing in years had felt righter than her warm embrace. He gave in and hugged back. She pushed her face against his chest, and let out another tear or two. They stayed like this for thirty second, maybe a minute. To both of them it felt like forever. She then lifted her face and kissed him.

"I've always wanted to do that."

Both their faces were as red as can be. They both looked away for a second and then Adol pulled in for another kiss. This one longer, more intense. He just realized he had also been wanting to do that for a long time.

He looked through the windows. Night was approaching.

"You're not leaving now, are you?"

Adol shook his head.

"Good."

She grabbed his hand and led him to her bed. She pushed him down and kissed him again.

That night they spent together, in a tender embrace, enjoying each other. It felt different than usual, more emotional, more intense. He had never felt that in all his years as a young man. What did it mean?

Once they were done they held each other close, as close as possible, basking in each other's warmth, and fell asleep.

Daylight started pouring through the window, which woke him up. He slowly opened his eyes to see that Elena was still there, sleeping peacefully. He stared at her a little, touched her hair, and caressed her scar. It did make her look tough. She woke up and grabbed his hand, then kissed it.

"Hi."

She had a small, delicate smile on her face. This image would be burned into his memory forever, he knew it. This felt good, this felt right. But he could not stay any longer. He had so much to see and explore.

"What are you going to do today"

He turned his head away. He couldn't look her in the eyes right now. He really did not want to break her heart. This is why he had always kept his feelings to himself. But it was too late.

"Oh."

Her smile vanished.

"I understand."

She got out of bed and got dressed. He stayed a little bit longer. She went on to cook something for breakfast.

They ate in silence. He felt bad. She felt worse.

Really, she understood. She was prepared for it. At least she thought she would be. Some part of her did hope she could convince him to stay, at least longer. But he had places to be, adventures to live. And she was not ready to leave Felghana. Not yet. So she did not offer.

She helped him pack and once he was ready they left the house. She followed him to the entrance of the town.

"I know I can't convince you to stay, but if you ever come back around here, please seek me out. One day I'll be ready to follow you in your adventures. If you'll have me"

Adol said he would like nothing more in the world.

She let out a couple tears. That was all she wanted to hear. She was happy to know he cared about her, but also devastated by his departure.

"Please, don't forget about me."

He promised he would never forget about her. How could he? The way he felt when he was with her, it would stay with him forever. But for now he had to leave, and see the world, discover its secrets, and vanquish its evil.

And so it was time for them to part, again.

As she watched him slowly disappear in the distance, his red hair flowing in the wind, she was already waiting for his next return in Felghana.

The End