Chapter 100: 100

As Arya and I ascended the steps I got a better look at the divided village. At first I had thought that it was split simply because of the waterfall, but as we climbed higher the more I realized that the two sides were inverted reflections of each other. The right side was full of brightness, vibrancy, and noise, the buildings grown with beautiful plants that were in full bloom, with plenty of Elves moving about on the bridges occasionally giving the two of us glances and whispering something to their peers. The left side was duller in comparison, being grown from more muted and darker plants. There were only a few Elves active and moving about, but I did manage to catch a glimpse of Elves inside the buildings who looked as if they had been rudely awakened during their sleep. 

I hadn't expected the Yin-Yang Clan to be so literal in it's division of Yin and Yang. The right side was clearly a representation of Yang, while the left was Yin. I was also willing to bet that the Yin side was far more active at night, since that was a part of Yin's representation. Despite the fact that the stairs seemed to go up for an eternity we soon arrived at the small outcropping where the shrine-like building was. I had expected the waterfall, which formed two small rivers that flowed off the outcropping, to be much louder, but it was almost silent, and instead sounded like a fountain rather than a force of nature.

Arya gripped my hand and gave it a squeeze as she looked at the door. I returned her squeeze to reassure her, the one time I'd met Kavir he didn't seem like a stubborn and foolish man like Alcrem. He'd also been the one to push so hard for our relationship in the beginning. However, just because it seemed like there shouldn't be an issue getting him agreeing once again, it didn't mean that there wouldn't be an uphill struggle to do so, especially considering Alcrem had done or said something that had changed his mind.

As we entered the building we were greeted by a white robed priest, a hood obscuring his features. "Greetings. Your father thought it would be a few more days until you arrived, but it is fortuitous that you have come early." the priest bowed as he spoke in Elvish to Arya before gesturing at me. "And who is your guest? I do not believe your father heard you would be bringing someone here."

Before Arya could say anything I took a small step forward. "I am Vellithra Eldur, third daughter of Duke Alcrem Eldur. I've come to bargain with Kavir." My voice was steady and confident, something that could be attributed to not only my time as a noble here, but also Velen's life of rigorous rules of rank, and Vellastria's confidence in herself that allowed her to seduce royalty.

The priest failed to respond for a moment before recovering himself and offering bow similar to the one he gave to Arya. "I'm sorry I was unable to recognize a daughter of the Rymiz Phoenix. I shall guide you and Aryas'aules'dukra to see him."

Arya and I followed the priest as he lead us into the back of the shrine and into an empty room where he set two pillows down and gestured at them. I followed Arya's lead as she knelt on the pillow, the priest bowing once again. "The head will see you shortly, please be patient." he said while backing out of the room and returned to the entryway.

I found the entire thing strange. I had never really asked or thought about Arya's clan, but in my mind it had been a stock photo of an Elvish village, yet my expectations had been tossed aside several times already. I didn't know if it was just her clan, but rather than a village it felt more like a monastery, or maybe a pilgrimage town. It seemed that they had an almost theological system where their beliefs were part of their government, something I thought I would only see in the Divine Cities at the base of the seven World Trees.

It didn't take long before what I had thought was a wall in front of us, split open to reveal a slightly raised area where I could see Kavir seated on a pillow similar to the ones me and Arya were kneeling on. He looked just as I remembered, though rather than the traveler's clothes he had been wearing previously he was now in a simplistic white robe with a black sash tied around the center. "It is good to see you my daughter, and welcome, thirdborn daughter of the clan of the Phoenix, Eldur." His voice was stiff and formal, similar to when he had apologized for Arya killing me. "And what business brought you before me, Lady Vellithra Eldur? A delivery from your father perhaps?"

The stiff formality was annoying but I could only bear with it despite my desire to simply ask what he was referring to and getting straight to the point. "No." I said shaking my head before looking Kavir straight in the eyes. "I am here for to ask for your approval to marry your daughter, and for you to once again bargain with my father to acknowledge the marriage once again."

Kavir blinked in confusion as he looked at me before he looked at Arya, who was trying to hide both the flush of her face and her excited expression from hearing my declaration. "I-" Kavir started before stopping and shaking his head. "Let us do away with the formalities?" he asked as his vision returned to me. I nodded in agreement as I would much rather have a casual discussion than a stiff and roundabout formal one.

Kavir nodded his head thankfully before standing up and coming down to our level and stopping in front of Arya, before kneeling down and pulling her into a hug. "I'm glad to see you." he said as he separated while still putting his hands on her shoulders. "What changed since your last letter? I thought you and Vell didn't get along?"

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It was now mine and Arya's turn to blink in confusion at his words. Our relationship had indeed soured for a moment, but only because Arya had heard that we were no longer to be engaged and wanted to distance between us. Arya shook her head as she looked at her father. "The last letter I sent should have stated that I was planning on coming here with her. It also should have mentioned..." she trailed off, glancing at me for a moment before turning back to her father. "We cultivate the Universal Yin-Yang Revolution. Unprotected. Every day."

I could practically see the cogs in Kavir's head ceasing to turn, as if he was a machine that had broken. It took him a substantial amount of time to recover as he looked between me and Arya. "How? No, never mind." he shook his head as if he couldn't believe what he'd been told. "Does this mean I'm going to be a grandfather?" Arya looked at me once again as she was unsure of how to answer the question, not that I could blame her, it wasn't like I worked like a normal woman after all.

"Not yet." I said, drawing Kavir's attention to me once again. "I can't be sure, but I don't think I can bear children in the traditional method, I don't have the required organs to do so. However, I'm almost positive that I can do it like a Womb Slime, but I have full control over who it happens with."

The expression of bewilderment never seemed to leave Kavir's face throughout the entire conversation as he continued to learn more and more surprising facts. I'd actually only found out that I didn't have ovaries or the other equipment quite recently actually. One day I'd been curious as to why I didn't have a period, so, like any sane person, I performed a small surgery on myself via threads to explore the internals of my body. While it didn't come as a surprise, my anatomy was completely alien compared to anything I'd seen before. I wasn't really bothered by this, while it might have been a problem if I needed medical attention, if I suffered a wound that could actually harm me, I'd probably be screwed since I was reliant on my practically unkillable nature.

We continued to talk to Kavir as we learned that there had been a complete disconnect between what Kavir knew and what we knew. The letters between him and Arya had been completely falsified to each side and none of us could figure out why. My money was on Alcrem. I didn't understand what he was after, but for some reason it seemed like he was trying to keep me and Arya apart. I didn't have enough information to know his endgame, but I was done playing his game. 

The only thing I needed to know was what he had offered Kavir that had made him change his mind. When I asked Kavir about it, he was silent for a moment, before responding. "Within the next month, a special sub-dimension opens that we call the Well of Balance. It is a source of both blessings and curses. It was from there that my family line became cursed with the Sacred Yang Body, it is also the only place that can remove it. Your father offered me the feather of a Phoenix, a worthy offering to remove the curse."

I was extremely conflicted as I heard the information. If he was telling the truth, which I believed he was, Arya could be free of the Sacred Yang Body, she would be able to do whatever she wanted without worrying that a slip or a bath would cause someone's death. But the entire trade was based on the dissolution of mine and Arya's relationship. And I seriously doubted Alcrem would be willing to hand over the feather as a wedding gift, though I wasn't above asking.

"Is there no other way to remove the curse?" I asked hopeful that I wouldn't have to resort to asking something of my adopted father.

Kavir nodded. "The reason I originally wanted the two of you to marry is because the Well of Balance has a trial that can only be undertaken by two people, one with a body of Yang, the other, a body of Yin. Passing the trial grants both of the participants a wish, one worth far more than the feather of a Phoenix. However, no one knows what awaits in the trial, and we only have record of it being completed once, by a married couple who refused to tell anyone about the trial whose wishes were selfless and have allowed our clan to prosper, even during the Hell Invasion and the Forsaken Calamity. No other pair of people have ever returned from the trial, so we can only assume it is deadly."

I understood why he had agreed to Alcrem's request now. One removed the curse with only the promise that I and Arya wouldn't be together, while the other would force us to risk life and limb, something that he likely had thought impossible for me due to the false information that had been fed to him. However, the situation was different now, and Arya wanted to give it a go. While it might be dangerous, I was confident in my ability to not die, and there was a chance that not even death would stop me.

Since Arya wasn't against it I was fine with challenging the trial, nothing ventured nothing gained after all, but I still planned on sending a letter with Kavir to see if we couldn't get him to agree to the marriage and to use the Phoenix feather as a dowry of sorts. Now we could only wait for a response, and for the Well of Balance to open.

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