Chương 132: Chapter 126 Part 1 - Pouring Love

Freya"Freya, haven't seen you in a while," the fairy goddess said as Freya approached.

"Sophiana," she said with a nod. The domain around them was gentle just the way Sophiana preferred. Soft light drifted through open air, and flowers grew without the need for yucky dirt. Freya had always found it a little too pleasant.

"You seem…" the flighty woman began, "more." Leaning in, staring up at Freya's face, inspecting it.

"More? All I said was your name." Sophiana gasped.

"Freya, no way." She gave a knowing grin.

"Is that why you came to see me!?"

"This was a mistake." Freya turned around. The love goddess appeared in front of her, holding her hands up.

"Wait wait wait. I'm not trying to make you uncomfortable. Please, just… let's just sit and chat." Freya sighed and sat down. A chair appeared beneath her as she lowered herself, which was the standard courtesy between gods in each other's domains. The trust that the host god would create something to sit on, and the expectation from the visiting god to have somewhere waiting for them.

"Good. Good. Now how can I help you?" Sophiana seemed to be squirming with excitement. The fairy was already invested in whatever Freya was about to say. Her wings gave a faint, eager flutter behind her, and her expression had gone bright in that way. It made Freya consider leaving again. Freya sat silently a moment, collecting her thoughts.

"Your assumptions, they are correct. I found someone and… we are in love." Sophiana began vibrating with excitement.

"Yes yes yes. Tell me everything, who is it? Maybe Drottna? I know you two were close for a while."

"No. No. Uh. It's not another god," she explained. Sophiana's eyebrows furrowed in shock and something close to fear for her friend.

"A mortal? Freya I…"

"I know," she said.

"This girl, she's beyond words. Her birthday is coming up and that's part of why I'm here."

"Her…birthday." The concept wasn't lost on Sophiana, but it was a strange thing to discuss between two gods in a domain. Mortals had birthdays. Gods had beginnings, origins, ascensions, awakenings, and other messy events.

"Yes. I want to get her something special. Something to cement my love for her. I…" Freya shrugged.

"I don't know what that is."

"And this girl loves you back?" she asked. Freya smiled before she could stop herself.

"I'm pretty sure," she said. She felt stupid, grinning like a fool in front of Sophiana of all people, but it was Chelsea causing it, so she found she didn't mind.

"Tell me about her. What is she like? What is she into?"

"She's a demon first off. She is the sweetest, most kind person I'm pretty sure to ever walk Palonda."

"And she's a demon?" Sophiana asked. The way she asked wasn't judgemental but there was a bit of skepticism.

"Yes." Freya explained.

"For instance, for almost a year now, she's been going around to different cities buying orphanages and fixing them up." Sophiana stood so quickly the chair beneath her poofed out of existence.

"Are you talking about Chelsea Wixx!?" Freya stared at her, mouth slightly open.

"Yes? How do you know that name?" Sophiana looked at her as though Freya had just explained she had been dating the sun. The love goddess started pacing back and forth.

"Let me explain something to you about love. It's not all romance and happily ever afters. One of the most powerful forms of love is that between parent and child. Chelsea has changed the lives of hundreds of children without parents. I receive more prayers about that woman than anyone else on the planet and they are true adoration, not the offhanded mention of a king or queen. Wait, how do you know her?" Sophiana asked.

"I thought I was the only goddess to know of her."

"She is one of my Valkyr," Freya explained.

"No way," Sophiana said, slowly getting closer.

"And she's a demon? Let me guess, she's umm let me remember your concepts. Is she Passion? Or no… Virtue. I bet she's the Valkyr of Virtue." Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"Havoc actually."

"Really? The Valkyr of Havoc is responsible for creating enough love to sustain me. Incredible." Freya furrowed her brows.

"Wait. How do people know she's the one doing it. Everytime she buys up the properties she always does it anonymously." It was Sophiana's turn to stare at her with her mouth open.

"She's the mystery person too!?" She yelled.

"I had my suspicions she was the mystery person but having it confirmed feels amazing. I think I have something you can give her. One second." Sophiana walked five feet to her right. A small table took form in front of her. She swiped her hand across it, and a simple necklace with a locket appeared. Then she snapped her fingers, summoning a bubbling flask onto the table. Freya watched as Sophiana opened the locket and began pouring the yellow liquid inside. Freya's eyes bulged.

"Sophiana! That's too much!"

"No. It's not even a fraction of what I have stored up from that girl. Honestly, this is just under a day's worth of what she accumulates. She deserves to get some of it for doing such a wonderful job." Sophiana waited for the last bit to pour in, then quickly snapped the locket shut. She held it out for Freya.

"I assume she already has your blessing? Do you mind if I give her mine too?" The fairy seemed to have a mischievous look on her face for some reason. Freya stared at the outstretched piece of jewelry. The locket looked simple enough, but she could feel what had been sealed inside it. Even for a goddess, it was a dangerous amount of love given physical form.

"You would be willing to give her your blessing? I mean, yeah she would love it." Freya gingerly took the locket as if it were a venomous snake, holding it out away from her body.

"She sort of collects them. She has mine and Bodarex's."

"Eww. Though, his is pretty good if she's lower leveled. But still. Eww."

"Thank you Sophiana. Truly."

"Of course." She skipped over and gave the massive woman a hug. Freya stiffened at first, then accepted it with a tired sigh.

"Even if she is a mortal. I am happy you found a piece of happiness. Even if it's for such a short amount of time." Freya exited and found herself lying next to her demon. Chelsea was asleep, curled into the bedding with one wing half-spread beneath her and her dark hair loose around her face. Freya remained still for a moment, letting the quiet settle. After Sophiana's domain, the room felt warmer and more intimate. She brushed some of Chelsea's hair behind her ear. Chelsea's eyes opened just a bit.

Freya hated to admit it, but she really had waited until the last minute. Chelsea's birthday was tomorrow. She had it planned. She would take her to Belonjo first thing in the morning to have Chelsea finally get her S-class merchant license. There, she would give her the ultimate gift of love and have Sophiana bless her. Then they would head to the Wixx manor for a celebration. Chelsea smiled at her and fell back asleep.

"Sleep little eighteen year old demon. Tomorrow you will wake up nineteen," Freya whispered. Chelsea"Good morning," Chelsea said, leaning into Freya for a kiss.

"Hey there birthday girl. Show me with your hands how many you are now!" Chelsea kept her eyes closed and lifted her chin with exaggerated dignity.

"Sorry, a true lady never reveals her age."

"I have a fun day planned. Get dressed. Maybe wear a dress? Something you feel pretty in. That way everyone knows it's your birthday," Freya shook her slightly, waking her up more. Chelsea opened one eye at her. Freya looked entirely too proud of whatever she had planned, which meant Chelsea was probably about to be spoiled. It had only been within the last couple months that Chelsea had gotten over her fear of not wearing armor at all times. Even now, some part of her still wanted some of it on.

Instead, she settled with just rings. It helped having the literal goddess of battle by her side at all times. Chelsea dressed in the gown Maggie had made for her. She still hadn't been able to bring herself to rip it, so it remained whole and exactly the same as the day Maggie had given it to her. Her enhancement still made it fit perfectly, shaping the fabric to her body without pulling or pinching, though it gave her no attribute points.

Her shoes, evening gloves, fascinator hat, and various jewelry on the other hand, gave her over six hundred charisma before her titles did anything at all.

"All ready," Chelsea announced.

"Me too," Freya announced as well. Chelsea turned around and stopped. Freya wore a dark, fitted dress with structured shoulders, a high collar, and silver fastenings running down the front. The waist was tailored, the sleeves were long, and the skirt fell cleanly around her legs with enough room to move. It was by far Chelsea's favorite.

"Oh my gods. You're so dapper! Stop it."

"C'mon," Freya said, grabbing her hand.

"Let's get started." The morning passed in a blur of travel, greetings, and the sort of nervous excitement Chelsea only felt before a test. By the time they reached the Merchant Guild branch, she had already guessed at least part of the surprise. Freya's terrible attempt at casual behavior had given it away, along with the fact that she kept glancing down at Chelsea whenever the guild building came into view.

Chelsea found this strange as Freya was blind and could see her through her area of influence which required no head movement. Chelsea didn't pay it much mind. She was too excited. She minded even less when the assessment began. The room was neat, formal, and quiet. Just like most merchant's guilds. Chelsea settled into the test with the same focus she always did. The questions were better than most. A few even made her slow down and consider the wording.

That pleased her enough to keep the disappointment away for almost half the exam. When she finished, she knew it had gone well. The strange old man with fox ears and a tail reviewed the result with his brows raised high.

"Well Miss Wixx," he said at last.

"In all my years, as the guild leader of this branch, I've never seen anything quite like today. You say nine minutes twenty nine seconds is your new best time?"

"Yes sir. My old time was nine minutes thirty six seconds. I got it at the Acarr branch two weeks ago."

"Seven seconds, when talking about these times is definitely impressive," he replied.

"It is with great honor, I officially give you this, your S-rank card. Congratulations Miss Wixx." He pulled out a gold card with an S on it. Chelsea's eyes lit up the moment she saw it. She had held more money than she knew what to do with, worn gear that made merchants drool, and bought buildings the way other people bought a cool pez dispenser. Somehow, the little gold card felt special the most special.

"I feel like this has taken forever to get," Chelsea said. She took the card from the guildmaster, holding it carefully between her fingers. Title upgraded: The S-Rank Merchant.