—
Dante had positioned himself comfortably, hearing out her story in full and taking mental notes for himself. Iris looked down at the ground as she twiddled her fingers between one another. Seemingly opening up an old wound she forgot about until then.
"Sorry…if that was a lot to take in…"
"Don't worry about it…I think I understand you a bit more now."
"Really…?"
Dante quickly sat up from his position and crossed his legs, sitting by Iris and looking at the fire which had stayed ablaze for some time. Iris looked at his face which was illuminated by the flaming embers in front of the two. He swayed back and forth as he held onto the tips of his boots, clearly thinking of what to say next. His expression was soft, yet not completely aloof at the moment.
"No wonder you're the way you are…it must be hard not having her around huh…?"
"You'd…be correct."
"We're in the same boat then, in those terms at least."
"Whatever do you mean?"
"I don't have my parents either…All I have is Rita and my village."
"R-really now…who's Rita…?
Iris softly moved her hair from her eyes to look at him earnestly, making sure to pay attention to his words as he'd done for her. Though a small blush placed over her face at the mention of another woman. She'd known Dante seemed pretty good with an important noble like Terra, or hitting it off quickly with someone like Azuri. She questioned to herself just how popular he was amongst the girls within the school. Though she knew she had no right to worry about those sorts of things in their current situation.
"She's my mentor, she took care of me since I was a baby, hehe."
'Oh, I see. She must've trained you then…right?"
"Yeah, everything I know is thanks to her. She's pretty rough, but she means well…would you want to meet her sometime?"
"WH-What? Meet her?"
"I mean yeah…would there be an issue…?"
Iris was shocked at the proclamation, and how casually he'd ask her to meet someone as important to him as not only his mentor, but his caretaker. Within her mind, it was as if he'd asked her to meet his family. She covered her face and turned away quickly. Dante was confused as she seemed to be trying her best to avoid looking him in the eye.
"No way, no way, no way. That can't happen, no it's too early for something like that. What's wrong with him, seriously!?" She thought to herself as Dante tapped her on the shoulder.
"Uh…Iris…? Ya there?"
Iris quickly shot back into her original position with a shaky smile, as one of her freakouts had been seen in full sight. She coughed quickly and readjusted herself before responding back to him in a swift manner.
"Y-yes, I was just taken aback."
"I see…my bad, that was pretty inconsiderate. You don't like things sprung on you from what I know."
"You'd…be correct."
"Understood, I'll be more careful from now on."
"But—I wouldn't mind seeing what…Riverant is all about…well, if we can make it out of this dungeon safely….and with our lives."
"You're right."
"Now…if you wouldn't mind letting me finish healing you up…I don't feel the scar is fully sealed yet."
"Oh— right, healing."