Felix quickly dressed himself, briefly lamenting the loss of his original clothes. These ones were of similar design, a red tunic and leather pants. The difference, however, was the quality. They felt…sturdier, as if made from stronger material.

He gave Eri a raised eyebrow. "Where did these clothes come from?"

"The kobolds– And before you ask, I don't know where they got them from. Frankly, I have no intention of finding out. Some questions are better left unanswered."

"You're probably right," he said with a sigh. "Anyway…" He patted his new pockets and realized that they were empty. "Wait, what did you do with–"

She opened a pouch and pulled both a key and ring out. "These?" she said.

"Yeah," he answered, narrowing his eyes. She seemed particularly intent on the ring. Cautiously, he took both items from her and inspected them.

"That ring…" Eri gave him a complex look, one that was a mix between curiosity and hesitation.

Odd– Oh, I don't think I told her about it… "Right. Remember that elf that we found? The one that Aluin had to be summoned to help with?"

She nodded, seemingly putting it together. "That's his?"

"Yeah, and I've been meaning to return it to him. Definitely doing that today," he added with a resolute tone. "But first…" He held up the key and gave her a grin. "Want to check out the third floor?"

She blinked before staring down at it. "Sure– I mean, are you sure?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Are you sure you want to do this? After the journal… I thought maybe you'd want some time to process everything."

Felix's grin faltered. "The truth, Eri, is that I'm not sure I'd ever have time to process everything. So much is happening to me right now. I have my memories back, I've pulled off a great miracle and now Yarnel wants me to do it again. Then there is you, you're pregnant and I can't help but feel compelled to lock you away here in my room.

"If I don't do this now, I may never get the time…" His smile came back. "Besides, I think I know what's up there already."

Eri furrowed her brow. "You do?"

He nodded. "I think so and I want to confirm it."

"What do you think is up there?" she pushed, her curiosity growing.

"Well, Aluin told me that is where Fea did her enchanting…" he trailed off, giving her a teasing look.

She crossed her arms, annoyed. "I know that was Fea's little workshop… But what do you think is up there? Are you not going to tell me or is it that you don't actually know?"

He shrugged. "I guess you'll just have to come with me to find out," he said nonchalantly and started making for the door.

I hate you sometimes, she responded through their bond.

You could always peer into my mind–

He felt her mentally roll her eyes. Yeah, yeah… Forgive me for trying to give you privacy within your own mind.

They stepped out into the hallway, immediately running into Eri's guards. They gave them a salute but Eri simply waved it away.

"We're going up to the third floor– Alone. If you must, wait here," she pointed directly at the floor.

"Yes, Your Majesty," they answered, giving another salute.

Felix held back his amusement as he watched the exchange. The poor guards were only doing their job, which they were still new at. Stepping past them, he and Eri climbed the staircase to the third floor. It ended right in front of a locked door…

At first glance, there didn't appear to be anything unusual about the door. There were no extravagant patterns nor was there any indication of what laid beyond. Truly, Felix only had Aluin and Eri's word about what the room was.

Gazing down towards the handle, there was one final detail to note… There was no physical lock. Hmm, interesting. I wonder if it's like the journal?

He raised the key and inspected it. It was enchanted, that much he knew. The mana faintly pulsed throughout it. But, what will happen if I press it against the door?

Before he did, he pressed his free hand– his healed hand –up against it. It tingled, but thankfully the needling sensation had mostly passed. Still, it was the mana that he was feeling for…

He found it, pulsing in rhythm to the key. For a moment, he considered using his mana sight but quickly thought better of it. Yarnel would call for him eventually, and he did not want to waste a single drop of his mana until then.

"Are you okay?" Eri asked, peeking out from behind him.

"Yeah, sorry. I was just…curious." He took a deep breath, suddenly feeling his nerves ramping up from the anticipation. "Time to see if I was right or not."

Felix touched the key to the door–

CHINK!

The door flung open inwards, revealing a dimly lit room beyond.

"Whoa." He took a subtle step inside, and then another one… Soon he was firmly in the room and slowly taking it all in.

The room was large, possibly the largest room of the manor, and it was absolutely packed. Four tables, alone, made up the length of one the longer walls. And they were piled with mysterious items, equipment, and ancient looking tomes.

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On the opposite side a large…board hung. It was filled to the brim with writing, of which there was no doubt that it was Fea's.

His eyes were drawn down to the center of the floor. There was a large circular drawing with various runes drawn around it. A ritual circle, he realized.

Mesmerized, he slowly approached it and kneeled down. Reaching a hand out, he lightly touched it. Fea's mana reacted to his and mingled, almost as if it was hugging an old friend.

"Be careful, messing with a ritual circle can be dangerous if you don't know what you're doing."

"I think it's fine. I don't feel anything strange, just residual mana. It isn't powering anything." But he still heeded her warning and pulled his hand away, feeling the two separate sources of mana desperately trying to cling together.

Strange, very strange… He had never felt anything like that but it was possibly due to the nature of the ritual circle itself. I wonder if she used this in the process of bringing me back.

"What's over there?" Eri asked, causing him to look up and towards the furthest wall.

There were two mysterious cloth-draped objects that were almost his size. Felix's eyes lit up at the silhouette of one of them. Could it be? His excitement got the better of him and he quickly made his way over.

"W-what is it?" she asked, catching up to him.

He turned his head toward her even as he reached up and grabbed a hold of the cloth. "This," he answered dramatically, "is what I was hoping for!"

In one swift motion, he yanked the cloth away and revealed…

Eri's eyes went wide in shock as she immediately recognized what was in front of them.

"My armor!" Felix shouted.

There, dressed up on a purpose built stand, was his armor. He brought his attention back to it, studying and taking in every detail. His cuirass was in immaculate condition, polished to a shine. He could not find a single dent, scratch, or blemish within the metal.

Gazing downward, the rest of his gear looked to be in the same condition. That is, until his eyes caught the sight of a scabbard and a hilt of a sword. Unconsciously, he started to reach for it–

"If this is your armor, then what is this?" Eri asked, coming around him and stopping in front of the other draped silhouette.

"Huh?" He blinked, completely forgetting about it. He watched as she carefully pulled the second cloth off.

Both let out a surprised gasp.

What Eri revealed was another set of armor. Only, this one was stark white. Not only that, but it was clearly made for someone of a more sleek and slender build. A simple silvery crown rested atop a stand.

"Fea's armor?" Felix questioned, never having seen the Dragon Queen in any armor. But whose else could it have been?

"Well, it's definitely made for someone with a larger chest…" Eri responded, feeling just as confused as him. She brushed a hand against the cuirass–

There was a flash…

ZAP!

Startled, she tried to pull her hand away. However, there was nothing but an empty armor stand in front of them.

Felix opened his mouth but Eri let out another gasp. She was staring down at her splayed hand.

"What is–" He cut off his question as he followed her gaze. There, on her ring finger, was a…ring. A silver ring that shimmered even in the low light.

"Did… Did the armor… Did it just become a ring?!" he exclaimed in disbelief.

Eri gulped and pulled her hand towards her, carefully inspecting the ring. "I… I think so– I've heard of such enchantments but only as something mythical." She turned her head towards him. "In your memories, do you remember Fea ever having a ring like this?"

Felix slowly shook his head no. "I shared my memories with you, and something like that… Something like that would stand out." He pointed to how it gave a faint but noticeable glow.

They fell silent as he came up with the next question. "What happens if you activate it?"

Stiffening, Eri gave him a worried look. "I-I don't know… Do you think it would be a good idea– I mean, I'm not even sure how to activate it."

"It can't be that hard, and why would you think it wouldn't be a good idea?"

She gave him an astonished look. "Because it was her armor!"

"And? It clearly responded to you," Felix pointed out. "I wouldn't be surprised if Fea did this intentionally. She put a lot of planning into my return."

Eri wanted to object, she wanted to say how preposterous of a claim that was. But then, she remembered how Master Aluin had schemed to make her the next elven Queen.

Felix gave her a smirk, fully knowing what she was thinking. "No doubt that she helped him like he helped her."

She stepped away, averting her eyes in the process. "I hate that you might be right about that. But… But if that is the case…" She lifted her hand up and peered at the ring.

"I suppose I can give it a try…"

Felix watched on with baited breath as Eri closed her eyes. A low melodic hum began, her voice sending shivers down his back. But he wasn't the only one reacting… The ring, its shimmering glow stabilized then–

Another bright flash.

Wincing, he looked away, but when he brought his eyes back onto Eri, her dress was gone. Now, she was wearing the white armor.

He let out a whistle. It didn't seem to only fit her, it looked like it was made specifically for her. The chest piece melded perfectly against her upper body, the flexible joints were exactly where they should be, and most of all… The armored sleeves and greaves conformed to the shape of her toned arms and legs and–

Felix looked up and shook his head. "Damn, it looks good on you," he admitted.

"Oh? Like what you see?" she teased, even as she inspected the armor herself.

"And what if I do?" he shot back.

Eri rolled her eyes and gave him a knowing look. "Later… Besides." She pointed to his armor. "Why don't you poke it and see what happens. I doubt her– my? –armor is the only one that can shift like this."

He perked up at that, already having forgotten about his armor. "Right! I wonder if she's made any other modifications…" he muttered as he brought his attention back to why he had come up here in the first place.

Raising at a hand, Felix placed it gently onto his cuirass–

There was a ZAP, followed by yet another bright flash…

"Huh… That's weird," he said, completely baffled. His armor was indeed gone, but there was no new ring on his hand. He only– Wait!

Blinking, he furrowed his brows and narrowed his eyes. He wasn't wearing a new ring, but he was wearing a ring.

Eri leaned forward. "What's wrong?"

"Uh, I think… I think my armor…is being stored in the ring." He raised his hand to show her.

"Of course, that's what–" She realized what he meant. The ring she had given him was now storing his armor. "H-how… How is that– I never…"

"I don't know," he said calmly, too calmly. "But I'm not even going to question it. Instead, I am going to test it."

Without taking his eyes off the ring, Felix guided a tiny amount of mana from his core to the ring. Please work for me…

In an instant, in the blink of an eye, his new clothes were gone. They were gone and replaced by an old, nearly forgotten, feel.

Felix was wearing his armor and it definitely had been modified…

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