Her response is immediate. It warms his heart.

It is a story he can tell, but it is not a particularly memorable one. It is the purpose of the Legendary Pokemon he serves, the obligation of the sheriff he admired and the blade-wielding Zacian that the admin helped crown. Ultimately, it is the necessity of their species.

If they were to survive this war, they must best the god that threatened the world millennia ago. Even if it kills him. Even when it kills him.

The march will continue. Even when the world is broken and remade and the war is done, the admin will ensure that people like Absinthe have a place in it, even when he does not. That is the purpose of heroes, after all. That is the request of Zacian.

"Of course. It's a long story, though." A deep sigh. It's one that is bigger than both of them. A missing past is much more manageable in comparison. "So you'll have to bear with me."

The two boxes are collected. In his mind, it was a good visit. Productive. Not because of the chemist's production, but because Absinthe's gaze didn't bore into his skull like a drill. There was a hint of warmth, a dream of spring. The day that it became summer would be a happy day indeed.

As he prepares to leave, he leans against the doorframe.

"I'd appreciate it," he said with a wry smile and an inclined head, "if you'd let me start a tab on my next visit."

His eye sparkled mischievously.

---

Absinthe Blackwood