Chapter 23: The fall of the Von Claus Duchy
Many tears are shed. Tiss is having a lot of trouble processing the loss of her family and home. Hopefully Elyssia can explain things properly. After maybe ten minutes, Tiss steadies her breathing and sits up straight, trying to keep the tears from falling. She’s still letting out a few streams, but she’s not crying as uncontrollably.
Elyssia returns a few minutes later. She takes a seat on the lone stump and then calls out a collection of mushrooms from her Item Box.
[Elyssia] "I found some decent ones. All are common quality, but they should be plenty delicious."
Elyssia snaps her fingers and sends a spark arcing through the air to the fire pit between us. She waves her hand to call out a metal stand, a skillet, a spatula, and some butter from her Item Box.
[Elyssia] "I’ll cook us up some omelets. Then we’ll talk."
She grabs six eggs from me and sets them aside while she starts to prepare some food. I look over to Tiss, who is wiping tears and trying to keep her cool. I rest my hand on her thigh and try to look into her eyes. Tiss meets my gaze, but is having trouble keeping her eyes locked with mine. She’s distracted and anxious.
[Wade?] "I’m here for you, kay?"
I whisper this to Tiss and she nods her head in response, sniffing loudly and trying to hold back more tears. Her hand falls to her lap and rests over top my hand. Her palm is soaking wet. It’s a bit awkward and uncomfortable, but I don’t mind it. Together, we wait for Elyssia to finish up cooking something to eat.
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[Elyssia] "Eat up, darlings!"
Elyssia hands over two plates to Tiss and I. Each has a two-egg omelet with sautéed mushrooms. The status screen that opens when I receive the dish says that it’s rated at Exquisite quality.