Although Ayna was relieved when @Chrys agreed with her plan, she was caught surprised when he approached her. Still, she maintained her composure and stood there coldly without doing anything, even though her mind fumbled for ways to push him away, including pumping a million volts into his wretched flesh. But she was frozen by that eye contact of his, steely and unnerved. What the fuck is he doing? Is he going to—
Their journey back to civilization, back to Regalion in Dunnstads, was peaceful. There were no ambushes meted out, and apart from the occasional squabbling between Ayna and Chrys, everything else was smooth sailing.
While the rest of her crew waited at the port, the magia captain took the three adventurers with her to meet the noble that wanted to procure the scepter. It was a rather boring scene, with the noble ignoring everyone else but Ayna, with whom they were making the deal. The noble took their time inspecting the item, and though he stopped with a look of dissatisfaction, his offer was still more than anyone had expected. And so, Ayna coolly accepted and made the trade.
On their way out of the noble's villa, after their treasure was fenced for a lot of gold, gold that was divided into three parts as promised—a third for the ship, a third for the crew, and a third for the additional adventurers, Ayna couldn't help but try and satiate her curiosity while Dolly narrated to Cymry her economic exploits.
"So what now? I suppose this is where we part ways with each other, Chrys. Me and my crew, Dolly, Cymry, and of course, you. I take it you'll be taking all that money and spending it on your...vices?"
Ayna had no idea what vices Chrys had, but considering that he was a man, she believed he'd have so many, including that of the flesh. He didn't seem like he'd be an exception, just more of the same really, though he was at least reliable when it mattered. Plenty of adventures would've gone awry if Chrys had not protected her as well as Kamala and everyone else that needed his earthen shield. This one was over. Time to embark on a new one. Hopefully with less shark monsters.
