《Atem: The path of their lives》


 Chapter 1 – The dreaming girl’s view

    Atem: The path of their lives


    Chapter 1


    The dreaming girl¡¯s view


    Limitless.


    The expanse I see everytime I look into the distant horizon beyond my village¡¯s outskirts¡­the potential of every living being.


    All the joy and pain in this world. They¡¯re all limitless.


    Would you believe it? The adults say that the earth we walk on is older than a hundred generations of people combined could ever be.


    Yesterday I hurt my leg while running around and felt the most intense pain in my life. I screamed like a baby and before I realized it, my eyes were full of tears. Just like that, all the humans in the world have suffered for as long as imaginable. I read about it in one of mother¡®s books once when she had forgotten to hide it after going out. With only our fragile bodies, fighting nature. Finding food. Building houses. Creating civilizations. Surviving.


    Having to fend off unbeliveably scary and big monsters everywhere we go. Scaling mountains and brooding through endless swamps no matter whether it be freezing cold or boiling hot, only to find a place where we could settle. Always living on the border between life and death and reveling in both happiness and suffering alike.


    And it¡¯s not just humans. Everyone has it equally tough.


    Even those that are a bit more physically gifted than us humans, like those people with scales that sometimes come to visit or the ones with tails and fur that bring us new food and things to buy every month.


    My father often says: ?To struggle in vain against what has been forced upon us is natural. Not giving up means that we are alive.¡°


    Luckily, one day we found a way to fight back against the unfairness of this world.


    Or maybe it found us.


    ¨C  ¨C


    Today, mother shattered a giant boulder without even touching it and saved the man trapped beneath it.


    [?????]


    With just a sound, even though it sounded like gibberish to me.


    ?A thousand thanks, mrs Andern! I thought I was gonna be a goner for a moment there!¡°


    It only took a moment.


    ?Be quiet, Simon. More importantly, where do you need me to heal you?! I¡¯ll have it done before the rune scribes get here.¡°


    For people like her, to shatter the unfairness of our world is only a matter of speaking. Even though I can¡¯t understand it yet. Not even when father does it.


    It was the same when I hurt my leg. Mama rushed over to me and muttered something under her breath. After a while, I realized I was screaming just for the sake of screaming, since all the pain was gone. My leg was fine. It was Incredible.


    It¡¯s just like that wherever I look around.


    When I wake up I¡¯m greeted by the sight of a water stream flowing directly upwards.


    Once in a while, when I¡¯m allowed to go with my father into the city, I see a giant tower with glowing blue markings all over it and boats slowly flying from one district to another. People bringing forth water out of thin air to water the crops.


    When mr Romanti waves his fingers in the air, it comes gushing out, seemingly appearing out of nowhere.


    That is the power of intent.


    Or so they say. I don¡¯t quite get it, but it feels as if there is nothing we can¡¯t do. As if an infinite amount of possibilites is stretching out in front of me. It all makes me so happy that I can¡¯t help but grin from ear to ear every day.


    That¡¯s the kind of world we live in.


    ?Bea! Beatrice! Uh, where has that girl run off to again? She should already know that it¡¯s time to eat.¡°


    Ah, I forgot.


    ?Papa! I¡¯m up here! I¡¯ll get down and come home right away.¡°


    The grey haired man turned around, instantly recognizing the voice resembling the piercing but soft carressing of the wind, only to let out a small sigh followed by a laugh.


    ?Her favorite spot, huh¡­¡°


    As the energetic young lady ran down the small hill on the border of her hometown, he prepared to go back home with her.


    ?Gone daydreaming again, weren¡¯t you?¡°


    ?I was just thinking about how cool papa and mama are while helping others. I wanna be like that too!¡°


    A boisterous chuckle filled the quiet sunny meadow.


    ?You still have time for that, Bea. You will have to learn many important things before you can even think about it.¡°


    The girl¡¯s bright smile then turned into a sour pout.


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    ?Learn, learn, learn, that¡¯s all you ever want me to do¡­ but hey, I¡¯ve got a better idea! You can go on ahead while I take it through the village square. I¡¯ll be fast, I promise.¡°


    ?Well¡­ why not. After all, it won¡¯t be me you¡¯ll be apologizing to if you¡¯re late.¡°


    ?Great, thanks!¡°


    Now standing alone, the man took a deep breath and smiled as the child standing beside him just a few moments ago disappeared between houses.


    ?On the other hand, maybe I shouldn¡¯t have agreed to that. Perhaps I¡¯ll be the one getting punished instead of her¡­¡°


    ¨C  ¨C


    The warm breeze hit my face and combed through my hair as I sped past the scurrying townsfolk and wooden houses.


    I love this. I want to go see Gil and the others. The old man, too.


    ?Hey, young lady, over here!¡°


    Speak of the devil.


    I stabbed my heels into the ground and sharply stopped in my tracks.


    ?Good day, mister Fern. How¡¯s the fence from the other day?¡°


    ?Much better than after that storm, thanks to you all. Make sure to stop by sometime¡­and oh! Young Gil passed by earlier, said he was looking for you. I¡¯m pretty sure you can find him by the fields.¡°


    ?Got it. I¡¯m also looking for him, so I¡¯ll be on my way now. You can count on me coming over, especially for that pie you always make. Well then, have a nice day!¡°


    ?Sure, you too! ¡­Guess I have to get baking for her again.¡°


    Turning around, I took off in a mad dash once more.


    The heat was the most intense at that time, since it was the middle of the day. I could feel my tongue drying out and started regretting not taking the shorter route with my father.


    The fields, huh? I gotta be quick, or else mother will lecture me again.


    ¨C  ¨C


    The sunshine sharply stabbed me in the eyes as I stopped to catch a breath and looked around.


    Ah, there he is. I haven¡¯t seen him in a while.


    ?Gil!¡°


    His tall and robust physique revealed him wherever he went. The closer I got to him, the more distinctly I could make out his features: short golden hair, eyes as blue as the sky, a bronze skin tone and scratches and minor scars all over his arms partially covered by the long sleeved cloth jacket he was currently wearing. But most importantly, a warm smile.


    Or so I thought, but for some reason, Gil wasn¡¯t smiling that day.


    ?Bea, finally.¡°


    The muscles in his face seemed to relax for a second just for him to start growing pale right after.


    ?What is it? Is something the matter? You don¡¯t look so well.¡°


    ?No, it¡¯s nothing. I just¡­¡°


    His gaze fell upon my eyes and it felt as if he was staring directly into my soul. As if he was finding the courage to say something but seemingly couldn¡®t. After a few seconds he curled his lips upwards and I felt a reassuring air spread around him, exactly like usual.


    ?¡­I just wanted to spend some time with you. The weather is nice today and I¡¯ve got some time on my hands.¡°


    He¡¯s back to normal. Now is my chance.


    ?Sweet! Then carry me! Carry me!¡°


    ?Of course, my princess. Come on.¡°


    The boy nearing the beggining of his adulthood sighed briefly before kneeling down and putting me on his shoulders only to stand up and spin around with surprising ease.


    ?Hahaha, yes, just like that! I see you haven¡¯t lost any of your strength, my loyal knight! Now onwards, towards lunch!¡°


    ?¡­And where would that be, young miss?¡°


    ?Why, where papa and mama are, of course!¡°


    ?Right.¡°


    Following those words, we started leaving the green fields full of farmers and crops behind, the sun warming up our backs along the way. With my head above all the other adults, carried by my best friend.


    It¡¯s been some time since we last did this. I missed it. Gil is older than me but he¡¯s the one I have spent the most time with in this village.


    ?How is your adventuring going? That lady with the bow you brought along last time? And your mother, how is she? And¨C¡°


    The boy chuckled as he was assaulted by an onslaught of questions.


    ?Curious like always, I see. Slow down.¡°


    ?Sorry.¡°


    ?It¡¯s fine, I¡¯ll tell you everything. I haven¡¯t been getting much money from contracts and such lately, since it feels like the monsters have been growing stronger everyday. When it comes to Emily, she separated from me and went east to the Pelagus continent. Said she wanted to teach people how to defend themselves better.¡°


    He stopped talking for a second, as if he was carefully thinking about what to say next.


    ?As for my mom¡­ she¡®s in a pretty bad condition right now, but I have a feeling that she will get better soon.¡°


    ?So that¡¯s how it is. If you think so, Gil, then I¡¯m sure it will all end well.¡°


    His only response was an ambigious sound that seemed neither affirmative nor discouraging.


    After walking a few dozen steps ahead, he started talking again, as if to destroy the awkwardness between us.


    ?What about you though? I hope you have been studying rigorously. You¡¯re not gonna live out your whole life here and if you want to protect yourself, you¡®ll need to at least be as strong as your parents. It feels like that¡¯s the minimum these days.¡°


    ?Everyone keeps telling me that¡­¡°


    I¡¯ve just been delaying my duties so that I can laze around lavishly everyday, but I suppose there¡¯s some truth to what they say.


    I should study more. I used to do so but was too young to find it captivating enough for me to continue. Studying languages, history and the world around me. That¡®s what is required for me to able to help others, just like mother. She says experiencing all sorts of sensations and feelings is a part of it too. The biggest nuisance, though, is the amount of books and scriptures I¡¯m supposed to read through until I leave this town¡­. they can be interesting, but usually they¡¯re just very bland and tiring.


    However, I want to help. I want to chip away at the limitlessness of this world. I wish to be like them. That¡¯s why I will do it, even if it¡¯s annoying. Even if I have to get out of my comfort zone.


    ?¡­Alright, I¡¯ll start again¡­tommorow.¡°


    ?That¡¯s better than nothing. I think this is the right path for you, since I doubt you would make a great swordswoman with those weak little arms.¡°


    ?Hey!¡°


    He smirked a little as he teased me.


    ?At least they¡¯re not all scarred like yours.¡°


    ?These are the marks of a warrior, mind you.¡°


    ?Whatever.¡°


    Our little banter continued on for a while before it started escalating. After a while, Gil seemed just about ready to end our one sided disscussion about why he wouldn¡¯t make a good husband for any of the girls his age.


    ?Ahh, cut it out already, Beatrice! I don¡¯t have the willpower left to listen to the ramblings of a sassy child.¡°


    ?Hah! That¡¯s why the bow lady left you!¡°


    ?Why, you little¡­¡°


    For a moment, he seemed to forget that he was carrying me and accidentally loosened his grip on my legs, only for me to start falling backwards.


    ?Woooaaa¨C¡°


    ?Watch out!¡°


    I closed my eyes, expecting a hard fall, except it didn¡¯t come. Instead I felt a familiar feeling as I ended up in the strong arms of an aspiring swordsman.


    ?That was close. Hey, don¡¯t tell your dad about this, okay?¡°


    I wanted to affirm him that I wouldn¡¯t even think of mentioning this to anyone, but then I saw a shadow looming right over him.


    ?No need to say anything. I saw it all.¡°


    It was father. Right behind him was our house.


    We¡¯ve come all this way without even realizing it¡­


    I didn¡¯t have the leisure of appreciating that fact though, because I quickly realized what was going to come next.


    ?I wasn¡¯t expecting you, Gilliard, but I¡¯m more than willing to teach you both how to behave properly.¡°


    He¡¯s angrier than usual. That means mother must have lectured him already.


    ?Not to mention, the food has gone all cold while you lot were strolling around.¡°


    Heh. I¡¯m in trouble.


    ¨C  ¨C


    Having repented and learned our lessons, both of us took a seat at the dining table and enjoyed a fine meal.


    In the end, it didn¡¯t end that badly. Even though after father¡¯s scolding came mother¡®s¡­more importantly, today was fun. I hope every day stays like this.

 Chapter 2 – The naive boy’s view

    Atem: The path of their lives


    Chapter 2


    The naive boy¡¯s view


    The sun rays pleasantly warmed up my belly as they shone through an open window in our house right onto me, unavoidably heating up it¡¯s old wooden frame along the way.


    I¡¯m glad the weather cleared up recently, since it used to be much cloudier. I¡¯ve been waiting for the cold to go away so that I can finally go play outside with the others, given that the city¡¯s surroundings should be pretty safe right now¡­ By all means, I should be happy that such a time has finally come, but I¡¯m bound to a fate of endless, depressing and mind numbing¡­


    ¡­boredom.


    In the midst of such thoughts, a voice drifted to me from the other room.


    ?It¡¯s so cold here... Heeey, come heat up the fireplace like you always do! Quickly!¡°


    I clicked my tongue as I got up from the comfortable woolen sofa I laid on and began walking towards the living room.


    ?Aaaaah, sure, sure! I¡¯m coming already.¡°


    Somehow, my little brother got sick just a few days ago and now I have to take care of him with my parents. Honestly, It¡¯s such a pain. I have to stay home and not do anything but listen to his requests and do whatever mom tells me to. I hope I¡¯ll be able to go out soon.


    After seeing him all curled up in his bed, I kneeled down near the stone fireplace in the middle of the room before extending my hand out to the engraving carved upon one of the stones supporting it, all while my brother watched on with his breath held back and eyes full of anticipation. I could practically feel his excitement as I touched the cold rock and the marking began to grow blue.


    I just need to run a little numen through this and¡­


    ?Whoa!¡°


    A flame was born between the wooden logs. It burned majestically for as long as my hand remained in place and quickly died out when i noticed the wood catch on fire before stepping back.


    ?You did it again. So cool¡­¡°


    ?That was nothing, Lear. Someday you¡¯ll be able to use runic tools too. Maybe even as well as me!¡°


    ?I know, but I always mess it up. It¡¯s amazing that you can do it so easily.¡°


    Upon hearing his words, I let out a proud laugh and straightened my back.


    ?I know, right? Don¡¯t get disheartened at the sight of a genius, though.¡°


    Even if it¡¯s a pain taking care of him, I don¡¯t mind listening to my brother¡¯s praise every time I put such a tool to work, nevermind the fact that it¡¯s so easy. We¡¯re lucky to have a few of them at home, since our mom has a highly valued job.


    Without me noticing, a fragrant aroma reminiscent of the scent of blooming white lilies spread over the room, but no footsteps could be heard accompanying it. I knew that smell very well.


    ?Don¡¯t get so full of yourself, Jino. I¡¯m glad that you¡¯re helping your little brother, but you shouldn¡¯t get so conceited by just using a prewritten rune. It would be much more impressive if you could do that manually, don¡¯t you think?¡°


    With a gentle but strong voice, my mother casually scolded me about the earlier conversation as her long dark blue hair flowed around me. I didn¡¯t expect her to hear me.


    Still, what¡¯s so wrong about that?


    ?Alright, alright.¡°


    I agreed rather timidly because of the natural aura of authority around her, but I don¡¯t like this. I shouldn¡¯t get reprimanded for being a role model for Lear. Someone has to show him what a great person looks like so that he can look up to them. That¡¯s right! I¡¯m doing this for him. Besides, it¡¯s not my problem that I¡¯m so good at what I do.


    ?You know¨C¡°


    A loud cough cut me off. Mom immediately sat down on the edge of the bed upon which a small sick boy laid, resting with his head covered by a wet blanket.


    ?Relax, honey. You should feel much better after drinking this.¡°


    Saying that, she handed him an awfully aromatic cup of smoking hot tea.


    I¡¯ve never smelled anything like that before. I wonder why she doesn¡¯t brew it for us regularly.


    ?Jino, pay attention now.¡°


    My body tensed up a little when I heard her adress me so directly. With her back turned towards her youngest son, she began speaking in a powerful tone, making it obvious that she was used to commanding people.


    ?I¡¯ll have to go out into the city now. There¡¯s a certain person I have to meet with. If things go well enough, then you¡¯ll have a new private teacher. Since your dad is yet to return from the Merchant¡¯s guild, it falls unto you to stay here and take care of your sibling.¡°


    Standing up, she tied her hair up into a bun behind her head and put on a light blue colored cloak with a pattern of yellow and silver lines interlocked on it diagonally. I got one last good look at her soothing smile and well defined features as she parted her lips to speak for the last time.


    ?His condition won¡¯t worsen anymore. Just help him with what he needs and wait for me to come back. Until then, bye.¡°


    ?Sure, see ya.¡°


    The thick wooden door made little to no sound as it closed and I was left standing alone in the hallway before long. My exasperated breath was currently the only thing resonating throughout the house. That and the infrequent coughs coming from the living room.


    I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m stuck here alone now. At least there¡¯s a chance that kid will go to sleep and I¡¯ll have some peace for once.


    Thinking that, I approached him with a woolen blanket I had picked up along the way and covered him up in it, but Lear reacted indifferently.


    Hey, don¡¯t tell me ¨C has he hit the sack already?


    ?Psst, are you¨C.¡°


    ?JINO! ARE YOU THERE, JINO?¡°


    I got startled when my soft whispering was abruptly cut off by a childlike shout coming from beyond one of the windows.


    What was that? Seriously? Which idiot comes screaming out your name outside of your house?


    ?Come on out, I¡¯m waiting.¡°


    Both feelings of irritation and relief showered over me as I slowly started recognizing the child¡¯s voice before opening the door and having a good look at the person in front of me.


    Ah, it¡¯s an idiot I know.


    The first thing I noticed on him was as always the black marking stretching out in a line from below his left eye up to the end of his forehead, where it was being covered up by some of his disorderly dark hair. Wearing a comfortably looking green linen shirt with a hood, he carried around a leather pouch strapped onto one or more of the few brown belts around his waist. The right side of his face wasn¡¯t obstructed by any hair and created a clear contrast with the other one. His green eyes looked at me elatedly as his name rolled off of my tongue.


    ?Dean!¡°


    ?So you heard me, great.¡°


    ?What are you making such a racket for, huh? You¡¯re gonna wake up my brother.¡°


    ?Why exactly would he be sleeping¡­in the middle of the day? Anyway, have you forgotten? It¡¯s happening already.¡°


    Hm? What does he mean? I hope I didn¡¯t forget about something big and missed it.


    ?Just tell me already.¡°


    ?So you really did forget. Hah! I can¡¯t believe it. Try guessing then.¡°


    He suddenly started jumping up and down with excitement as he mentally tortured me.


    ?Is it a festival?¡°


    ?Nope.¡°


    ?Is the Crown guard passing through town?¡°


    ?Wrong again.¡°


    I feel like I¡®m starting to remember. I think it had something to do with a fight¡­


    ?Wait, has he finally arrived?¡°


    A fire of excitement swelled up inside me when I saw his eyes light up before he even answered.


    ?That¡¯s right! Some famous warrior is here to challenge Evinruth in a duel for his title. They should be starting right about now, but we can still make it if we hurry!¡°


    So it¡¯s today. How did I not realize that?! I really want to go, but I don¡¯t know if I can leave Lear here alone. If he wakes up in need of something and realizes that he¡¯s all alone, he¡¯ll definitely freak out¡­ I¡®ll have to tell him that I¡¯m going to stay home.


    Before I could open my mouth, Dean had already closed the distance between us and was practically right beside me as his next words reached my ears.


    ?You don¡¯t have anything important to do, right? This one should really be worth watching. Besides, we agreed upon going way back, remember?¡°


    I paused for a second as his words resonated in my head.


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    When you put it like that¡­


    ?Right, of course I don¡¯t. I won¡¯t let you have all the fun to yourself.¡°


    For now, Lear will have to get through it alone. I¡¯ll be right back anyway.


    ?That¡¯s what I wanted to hear. Let¡¯s run then!¡°


    ¨C ¨C


    After passing through a few districts of our city, we abruptly came to a stop when the joyful boy ahead of me saw and started coming closer to one of the alleys along the main road.


    I wonder what¡¯s going through his head when we¡¯re nearly there.


    ?What¡¯s the matter, Dean? Do you know a shortcut around here?¡°


    ?¡­¡°


    No response. I should go check out what got his interest.


    As I walked towards him, I began hearing multiple voices coming from the direction we were approaching. These voices. These sounds. The more clearly I could recognize them, the more I started to sweat. I soon caught up with Dean and got the full picture of what was happening. The hairs on my skin stood up as I did so.


    ?Filthy whore! You¡¯re even worse than your mother!¡°


    ?You think you can just walk around here so nonchalantly and insult people, you little quarter breed?¡°


    Three men were beating up a small long haired child in messy rags disguised as clothes. Aside from its hair color being split apart unevenly between grey, brown, and white as the most dominant one, a tail was sticking out from behind it¡¯s back. If it wasn¡¯t for the feminine grunts and shrieks of pain coming from it, I wouldn¡¯t able to tell that she was a girl. Especially not with the well built phsyique she clearly had.


    What now? Is helping her a good idea? We definitely can¡¯t beat those guys in a fight and there¡¯s no other way to make them stop. I don¡¯t wanna get hurt. If something happens to me, I won¡¯t be able to return to Lear and everyone will be scared for me.


    Dean swallowed his saliva nervously and took a step forward, as if he couldn¡¯t bear to watch any longer.


    ?We have to go save her.¡°


    So he says, but his entire body is shaking. I can tell from a glance that he¡¯s deathly afraid of going into that alley. I can¡¯t let him go.


    When I tried to stop him by placing a hand on his shoulder, I realized just how severe the situation was. It wasn¡®t just him that was shaking.


    ?Stop defending yourself and die already you little shit!¡°


    I looked at my fingers as more insults and moans of anguish traveled to us.


    They¡¯re all shaking like crazy. Not only the fingers, my legs are also at their limit. I¡¯m even more petrified than Dean¡­ We need to leave.


    ?F-Forget about it, we should go. Come on, move!¡°


    ?Huh? But¡­this isn¡¯t right¡­¡°


    ?I don¡¯t care! We have to go!¡°


    He was trying to resist my attempts at dragging him away, but they were working. He kept losing his strength little by little as we continued getting further away from those voices. All the fear I felt just kept screaming one thing at me: Don¡¯t interfere.


    With those words pumping power into my arms, I kept on pulling my friend away. After a while, we got back to the main road and walked until we could only hear the loud chatter of the people gathered up in the town square.


    ?Jino, we left her there like idiots! Maybe we could have saved her. There was a chance of distracting them and letting her run away, but instead we were the ones who ran! That¡¯s just messed up! Are we¡­bad people?¡°


    No. We didn¡¯t do anything wrong. I¡¯m sure of it. It has to be right.


    ?Don¡¯t think about that anymore. There was nothing we could have done. Even if we had joined in, we would have just ended up as their playthings. Besides, she must have done something to deserve that beatin¨C¡°


    Before I could finish that vile sentence, the not so distant loud clanging of metal completely deafened the both of us along with everyone around and my words were lost in the wind without anyone hearing them.


    That must be it. The duel is happening right over there. We should go look closer.


    ?Hear that? We made it, so cheer up. Let¡¯s get a better view on them, quickly!¡°


    I tried to motivate Dean a little and then hurriedly passed through a crowd of all sorts of people. After what felt like a suffocating eternity, I could finally see them in front of me. The man renowned for his prowess with the sword as the ?Zephyr¡°, greatest of the continent, and a man in an agile looking suit of silver plated armor with a spear were engaged in fierce combat. Many come to challenge him yearly but only a few can keep up after the first few seconds. Dad even said that the current generation Zephyr is the reason why our kingdom is thriving even in face of all of the recently growing countries. That¡¯s precisely the extent of that man¡¯s might ¨C of Evinruth Velis.


    He was crouching down with the center of his gravity lowered while his opponent fought with a stable straight posture. Blow after blow, he let loose barrages of slashes in rapid succession against the polearm user with such power that I could barely register the true shape of his sword. However, the challenger was not budging. Each strike the Zephyr unleashed was met with the same fierceness and strength while the air around their weapons swerved a little every time they clashed.


    ?Wow¡­¡°


    ?YEAH! DON¡¯T LOSE, ICARIUS!¡°


    ?SHOW HIM HE¡¯S NOT WELCOME HERE!¡°


    Shouts of encouragement and gasps of amazement came out from the crowd in equal mesaure as their battle grew more and more intense. For some reason, the continent¡¯s greatest was being pushed back.


    It feels like that spearman isn¡¯t just blocking, but also sneaking in counterattacks before having to defend again. With the spike on the other end of his weapon, he¡¯s attacking in an irregular way whenever he isn¡¯t being assaulted. It¡¯s as if he were trying not to let his foe catch his breath for even a second.


    Wounds and blood were starting to appear on Evinruth as I tried to keep up with what was going on.


    Don¡¯t tell me, has he finally met his equal against this odd fighting style?


    ?Arrogant fucking fly.¡°


    What? Did he mutter something?


    I already couldn¡¯t follow their attacks before but now it seems like they¡¯re both even faster¡­ No, it¡¯s not that. It¡¯s Velis that¡¯s getting faster. The competitor is just trying to catch up to his speed. He still manages to score a strike on him every now and then, but it doesn¡¯t feel as if there is no way for the sword master to win anymore.


    ?AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!¡°


    With a fierce shout drowning out all the other noise, the spear user¡¯s body looked as if it was about to reach it¡¯s limit as he continued upping the potency of his every attack.


    Then the Zephyr stopped his blade and just barely dodged the incoming strike. Expecting to be intercepted by Evinruth¡¯s sword, the spearhead cut off a few golden hairs from it¡¯s feral enemy¡¯s head and burrowed deep into the ground.


    ?Wha¨C¡°


    An ominous figure appeared behind the confused man in silver armor afterwards and released an extremely bloodthirsty aura. I instinctively took a step back from the two of them.


    The sound of flesh tearing echoed throughout the crowd as the unrivaled swordsman moved and an object flew high up into the sky. In that same instant, the challenger broke the ironlike shaft of his spear with a knee kick and nimbly jumped back. Before either of them could close the distance between each other, the spiked lower half of the contender¡¯s weapon flew straight at Evinruth¡¯s face and was effortlessly deflected just as quickly as it was thrown. The challenger¡¯s face then grew pale as he reached behind his back for something and couldn¡¯t grab it.


    ?What are you trying to reach with that arm, dumbass. I just cut it off.¡°


    He¡¯s right¡­that guy is missing an arm. Not only did I not realize it, but at their speed, even he wasn¡¯t aware that it was severed long ago.


    Now on the ground, the weaponless fighter began crawling away.


    ?S¨CStop...Don¡¯t come any closer!¡°


    Ignoring his mumbling, the already victorious master drew closer to his prey and pulled back his sword as if to stab. Possibly as a last attempt at survival, the downed man laying on the cold stone pavement of the town square reached for a small crossbow strapped onto his waist and unleashed an iron bolt enveloped in a slight blue glow at his adversary from nearly point blank range.


    Evinruth cocked his head back a little as the bolt hit him dead on and began sticking out of his mouth.


    Did he really defeat him like this after all that?


    ?Hehehe¡°


    Laughing, the Zephyr regained his usual posture and revealed that he had caught the projectile with his teeth alone and spit it out afterwards.


    ?Nice try, worm.¡°


    ?An engraved bolt¡­in that instant...¡°


    The defeated man then let out a few final words before his cut off arm finally fell to the ground and he lost consciousness.


    ?What a letdown. Tend to his wounds, I ain¡¯t finishing him off like this.¡°


    Saying that, the monster hailed as ?The undefeated genius of war¡° walked away from the present onlookers and guards gathered all around him after expressing his displeasure.


    I can¡¯t believe what I just saw. So that¡¯s the pinnacle of strength, huh? It¡¯s hard to accept that he¡¯s a human and not a beast in the skin of one. I¡­I want to achieve such a level as well. Where is Dean though? I need to hear what he has to say about that fight. I¡¯m sure he¡¯s as thrilled as me!


    After looking around and calling for him without results, I waited for the crowd to disperse and soon found my friend. Except, I didn¡¯t think he would end up like he did. Curbed up in one of the town square¡¯s corners, he was staring straight into the ground while covering his forehead.


    ?Uh, buddy, is everything okay?¡°


    I approached and tried to get an answer out of him, which came only after a while of silence.


    ?Too many people. I can¡¯t be around so many people.¡°


    Damn it, I forgot. I was so overwhelmed by the current events that I didn¡¯t realize Dean had such a problem.


    ?What if they see my mark? They¡¯ll loathe and despise me at best, rip me apart at worst. You just ran ahead and left me behind alone, Jino¡­ just like with that girl.¡°


    ?I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t realize¡­the fight was¨C¡°


    ?Forget about the fight, let¡¯s go home.¡°


    ?R-Right.¡°


    I feel sick.


    Dean¡¯s family, the Lucia clan. Everyone collectively shuns them and marks them as untrustworthy. I¡¯m not sure about what¡¯s the deal with them but they apparently acted against our nation in an act of betrayal once and from then the clan members have been getting marked with a special ink at birth. No matter the race, the people would become furious if they saw a Lucia walking around without supervision. I knew all that yet I ignored it completely. First that alley and now this. I¡¯ve been doing nothing but making mistakes today and it makes my stomach turn.


    Whatever, let¡¯s just go already.


    ¨C ¨C


    After taking the same route back to our house, we arrived home without any more issues. Nothing like what we had seen before was happening on any of the side roads and nobody approached us. Slowly but surely, we made it to our destination while dragging our feet behind, both of us exhausted physically as well as mentally.


    I couldn¡¯t let Dean go home alone in the state he was in, so I accompanied him and then hurriedly returned to my house.


    My house, that¡¯s right. A few hours passed by since I was last here. Wasn¡¯t I supposed to be doing something important here? I have an odd feeling about all this.


    It only took me a second to realize what was wrong when I opened the front door and saw my dad crouched down near Lear¡¯s sickbed. A cold sweat ran down my back as I understood another one of my mistakes. So much happened that day that I had completely forgotten I was supposed to be taking care of my little brother.


    The door slammed shut behind me.


    ?Where have you been, young man?¡°


    Jumping back a little from the shock, I turned around and saw a familiar blue haired woman with a muscular physique standing next to me. Even scarier than my mom was the presence of the tall hooded man behind her, who I only noticed after staring at him for a short while, as if he had completely blended in with his surroundings.


    ?I can explain. I only went out to¨C¡°


    ?Your excuses don¡¯t matter. I only wanted one thing from you and yet you couldn¡¯t listen to me. Charles, Jino has returned!¡°


    My father turned around after hearing his name get called out and swiftly replied as carelessly as ever when he understood the situation.


    ?Finally! That means all is well, no? Just don¡¯t give him too much of an earful, my dear.¡°


    Hearing those words, I started slowly approaching a chair backwards as my mother drew closer and closer to me until I was eventually forced to sit down and have my back get pushed against the wall.


    A firm slap then hit my cheek and a biting pain spread throughout it.


    ?How could you? He¡¯s your one and only family! Once we aren¡¯t around to protect the both of you, it will all fall down to none other than you, yet you prioritized something else over taking care of your sick brother who could have gotten hurt? Remember my words!¡°


    I¡¯m scared. I didn¡¯t mean to cause all this.


    Reflexively putting my hand on the hurt cheek made realize I had already started crying as tears ran between my fingers.


    Another slap came flying at me. This time, I closed my eyes.


    When instead of an impact shaking me up I felt the tender caress of my mom¡¯s fingers sweeping through my hair, I looked up. There, I saw the face of a desperate woman with tears in her eyes.


    ?Protect him! Even if you forget everything, never forget about your own blood! Please, Jino, don¡¯t worry me so much¡­¡°


    I felt immense and irreplaceable warmth spread throughout my body as she hugged me.


    I¡¯m sorry, I won¡¯t make that same mistake again.


    ?Mhm, I-I won¡¯t forget! I promise so please, please stop crying!¡°


    My mom then slowly pulled away from me and wiped down her face with a tissue. She stood still for a few moments afterwards before taking a step back, allowaing the hooded man to step forward.


    ?Your regret is genuine, child. Good.¡°


    Just who is this person? What¡¯s he even doing in our house? It¡¯s so embarrasing that he heard all that. If he¡¯s some hoodlum I¡¯ll show him the way out right now.


    With the usual stern but joyful face now not showing any hints of her sorrow just a few moments ago, my mom raised her head along with her voice and spoke in a strong tone.


    ?I¡¯m not sure if you deserve it after today, but this is the person I talked about this morning.¡°


    At those words, the man lowered his hood and pure white hair emerged from underneath it.


    I don¡¯t really get it, but he looks as if he could be both 60 and 20 years old at the same time. His body looks well trained too.


    A pair of eyes that resembled the mystery and madness of a faraway night sky coated in grey and dark purple stared at me right after I had such thoughts. It felt like those eyes could understand my every emotion.


    ?My name is Arius Argenti. Based on Claire¡¯s, your mother¡¯s, reccomendation, I shall be teaching you about everything and anything that this world has to offer.¡°


    He stretched his hand out to me.


    ?Now then, shall we begin?¡°

 Chapter 3 – Unwanted visitors

    Atem: the path of their lives


    Chapter 3


    Unwanted visitors


    Beatrice¡¯s view


    ?Quasso¡°


    The boulder in front of me shaked a little as my voice reverbrated through the air and cracks began to appear on it. Even so, it did not break.


    ?Not again¡­I still can¡®t get it right.¡°


    I made sure to emphasize my words with numen and envisioned the shattering of a rock, but the effect was not what I had desired. Something still seems to be missing.


    It had been a few months since I started studying and training with my parents nearly every day. At first, all I did was read boring books and listen to lectures from them, but soon enough I found myself enthralled by the world that they opened up to me. Each day became very similar, but never boring. Practice during the day, theory at night.


    When the sun was out, either my father or one of his friends took me to different places quite some distance away from the village where no one lived to show me lots of new things. They showered me with new sensations and let me look at how they can change the shape of the world around them with only their intent.


    The smell of flowers I had never seen before. The soft fur of animals I had not even known existed. Standing head first against the furious wind with my feet firmly planted on the ground. Watching as water froze under my nose only for it to melt in the next moment.


    Since father had been very busy at times, it was mostly mister Romanti, the local priest and my strictest teacher, who let me experience all those wonders. He oversaw most of my training and gave me lots of useful advice. I¡¯ve spent a lot of time with him in the past two years and have grown surprisingly used to him, despite his stern yet caring behaviour.


    After tiring myself out throughout the day, I would come home exhausted just in time for mother to teach me basic skills and help me understand the words I wish to use in the future, aside from telling me about the world from time to time.


    It sounds boring when put like that, but it might have been the most fun part of every day, since her lectures were closer to tales than anything else.


    Tales of how the world came to look as it does today. Of the blessings given to us and the many wars fought over them shaking up even the very continents. How the twin kings of the south discovered underground labyrinths. How mother¡®s people, those who share white hair along with unusual amounts of innate numen reserves and the talent to control it, lived in booming cities and lands full of vast natural riches, only to be driven to the brink of extinction when the remaining races became jealous and envious of their power and natural strength. Right when they were pushed to their limit, unable to peacefully stay in any place on the ground, they thought of something unprecedented and conquered the sky, just for them to lose everything again and dissapear for good. Some of them, however, decided to live out the rest of their lives in my village, where they could be at peace.


    Well, that is the simplified version. They all take care of me and teach me the power of those closest to the truth of this world.


    Wordweaving.


    It is precisely because they support me so much that I¡¯m eager to improve. I wish to go out into the world and take a look at all the different kingdoms written about in the books I have read. I wish to see how people live in the lands where trees stretch above the clouds and create mazes of wood, in those where mountains form a shield wall from the outside world and those where rain never comes. Most of all, I wish to witness with my own eyes and ears why people hate and despise each other. Why they fight. If I do, maybe I will be able to understand why so many kind individuals kept getting driven into a corner until they ended up here.


    That¡¯s why, I¡¯ll give it another go.


    ?Qua¨C¡°


    ?Lil miss, hey!¡°


    ?¨Cswoah!¡°


    My voice trailed off in the middle of speaking due to the sudden interruption and turned into a surprised shout. The ground under my feet shaked in rhythm with the rocks before me and I jumped back a little.


    What was that?! Just what is someone doing disturbing me out of the blue like that?


    I turned to look at the person at around the same time that I subconsciously confirmed nothing bad would happen due to me botching the incantation and watched as they began explaining themselves.


    ?Wai-wait, wait, calm down, I didn¡¯t mean to throw you off like that.¡°


    Ah, that rushed manner of talking. I know only one person who speaks like that¡­and has a tail.


    Out of breath and sweating from the numerous attempts at splintering a stone with weaving, I replied curtly.


    ?So it¡¯s just you, Bern. Come on¡­¡°


    ?Sorry, I just wanted to see you cause you didn¡¯t come to the town hall this morning.¡°


    ?That¡¯s nice of you, but something could have gone very wrong if I wasn¡¯t able to control myself. Even for you.¡°


    ?I see, that¡¯s kinda scary. I take it as this is where you ¡°secretly¡± train? I see you¡¯ve done a heap of work.¡°


    The beastman caressed the pair of furred triangular ears sticking out forward from above his brow as he asked a question he probably already knew the answer to and looked behind my shoulder. His dark orange hair with traces of gray covered the nape of his neck, sort of resembling a mane. I believe he once mentioned that this particular color had been inherited by his tribe. Aside from the ears, tail, slight fangs and tiny whiskers, he resembled a human with a very well built body.


    I won¡¯t be able to train anymore now that he¡¯s here though.


    ?Yup, that¡¯s correct. However, how did you find this place? I thought I hid myself pretty well this time¡­¡°


    ?Gyahaha, sure you did. Did you really think your parents would lose sight of you? They¡¯ll let you roam around but they¡¯re always keeping an eye on you so you don¡¯t run into any trouble. Besides, you know you shouldn¡¯t practice this kind of stuff alone, right?¡°


    He laughs in a really unpolished way, this one.


    ?I shouldn¡¯t¡­but it¡¯s way more fun like this.¡°


    Finally catching my breath and regaining my usual posture, I continued speaking.


    ?Are you truly so afraid that I¡¯ll hurt myself? Whenever there¡¯s anyone to help they always point out so many mistakes I¡¯m making that I can¡¯t focus at all. Anyway, I know you¡¯ve taken guarding my family and the village very seriously, but surely you didn¡¯t come all this way just to check up on me. Is something the matter?¡°


    ?Clever girl. Let¡¯s start walking back while we talk.¡°


    ?If you say so.¡°


    There goes my free time. I¡¯m sure I could have done it in just a few more tries¡­I hope.


    We moved away from the meadow where I hid myself as Bern whistled in amazement upon seeing the dozens of cracked boulders and the debris of countless small stones that we were leaving behind.


    It may look impressive at first glance, but the truth is I didn¡¯t achieve what I wanted, so there¡¯s nothing to be amazed at.


    I was broken out of such thoughts when his low pitched voice reached my ears.


    ?The Star oath celebrations are drawing near and everyone is preparing for them. Sir said he wanted to talk to you about something in relation to that, since you missed today¡¯s meeting regarding it. Most of the residents are out and about scurrying all over to get the food and goods they need from other cities.¡°


    ?So that¡¯s how it is. Is that why most of the guardsmen are also gone nowadays? There used to be way more of them.¡°


    ?Yeah, my men also need a break to visit their families back home once in a while. This is the best occassion for such a rest.¡°


    ?And what about you? Doesn¡¯t the ever vigilant captain require some lazing around too? Don¡¯t push yourself too much.¡°


    ?Heh, ya don¡¯t needa worry about me, Bea.¡°


    He seems a little flustered by that. Even the way he spoke just now felt a little different.


    It was a funny change, yet for all that he recollected himself and resumed talking right away.


    ?I feel at home here. More importantly, I¡¯m indebted to Sir, your father. The mistress too, of course. They saved me when I most needed it. This is the least I can do for all of you.¡°


    ?Saved, you say? I wonder what they used to do before settling down here. I¡¯m sure they did tons of great things for everyone. Of course, you should tell me more about your past too!¡°


    ?Who I used to be or what I used to do isn¡¯t important anymore. I prefer who I am today, so let¡¯s stick to the new Bern and let the old one sleep, aye?¡°


    ?Whaaat, but I wanted to hear cool stories about how you traveled around the world and got so strong¡­I guess I¡¯ll get them out of you later.¡°


    Seeing my slight pout, he looked away for a while and began talking in an overly serious way, as if to deliberately contrast his earlier tone.


    ?I don¡¯t have any that are fit for a child as yourself. Listen, lil miss. Sometimes you musn¡¯t dwell on the past and what used to be. You will make many mistakes in life, one after another, but don¡¯t waste time wallowing in regret and self pity. I used to do exactly that, so I know what it brings. Instead, cheer up and think about what you can do now. That kind of thinking will take you far.¡°


    ?¡­¡°


    Left speechless, I quizzically stared at his back.


    He speaks with such sincerity that it feels as if each of his words carries an immense burden. I don¡¯t know what brought this on and don¡¯t really understand what he means, though, What a roundabout way to excuse himself from storytelling.


    Supposedly to ease the sudden heavy atmosphere, he turned around at me and laughed a little before going back to his usual energetic demeanor and steering the conversation elsewhere.


    ?But wow, you really walked a long way to get here. It¡¯ll be way faster if you sit on my back as I run, so come on, gyahaha!¡°


    He kneeled down and lowered his back so that I could sit on it, reminding me of my loyal knight.


    ?Yeah! I¡¯ll never refuse a piggyback ride.¡°


    ?This¡¯ll be a bit different from your usual ¡°piggyback¡° ride though, so steady yourself.¡°


    ?Hm? What do you¨C¡°


    I climbed onto his back and was suddenly thrown backwards as he got on all fours and started running like a wild animal, with the only thing preventing my fall being the steel cleaver-like sword strapped onto the back of his waist inside a sheath and my quick reflexes allowing me to grab onto his shoulders.


    ?Woah, woah, woah! This is¡­¡°


    So dangerous and so fast! I nearly fell off and something could have happened to me, yet I feel something unlike anything I have ever experienced before. The wind is hitting my entire body so furiously with each tree we pass that it feels like it might blow me away any second now, but I can¡¯t help feeling a little excited.


    ?¡­this is awesome!¡°


    Soon enough I was riding atop a beastman running at full speed with an unexpected excitement and joy at discovering this new method of travel.


    I doubt he¡¯s even listening to anything I am saying with all the focus he has to put into not suddenly crashing into something, but it doesn¡¯t matter. From now on, Bern will be my glorious steed.


    It only took us a while to get through the dense forest leading out of the meadow onto a plain from which we could see the village again. When we arrived at it, he slowed down a little so that we could hear each other again and touched upon a topic which I had not dared to bring up in the past two or three weeks.


    ?Listen, do you have any idea where Gilliard is? I haven¡¯t seen him at all lately even though he¡¯s still supposed to be in the area. He hasn¡¯t come to say his farewell yet either, so I doubt he went adventuring again.¡°


    ?No, unfortunately I haven¡¯t. He hasn¡¯t told me anything about what he wants to do right now¡­ I have been worrying about him quite a lot every day. Maybe that is one of the reasons why I cannot focus as well as I would like to during training.¡°


    ?Is that so¡­ that¡¯s all unlike him.¡°


    Quite some time has passed since I last saw him, not to mention he already looked rather unwell back then. I hope he hasn¡¯t gotten himself into any trouble, that guy.


    My loyal mount then looked completely lost in thought. It was only after a while that I decided to break the sudden silence between us.


    ?I¡¯m sure he will come to tonight¡®s celebrations though, so cheer up!¡°


    ?And what makes you so sure of that?¡°


    ?There is no way he would miss out on that event. It is his favorite time of the year. He has a special connection to the stars, after all.¡°


    ?Just don¡¯t get your expectations up too high, lil miss. Reality often hurts less like that.¡°


    Where is all this skepticism coming from? He¡¯s making me even more worried now.


    ?He will come, I¡¯m sure.¡°


    ?Right.¡°


    Sometimes It feels like Bern worries too much. I doubt I would get anywhere with such a concerned attitude.


    We started slowing down until we came to a stop near a familiar wooden building with a spacious garden.


    My house. It¡¯s quite big when I look at it like this. It has two floors and there¡¯s a well paved out road in front of it, creating the impression that the people living here have enough money to get by. Not to mention the wonderful smell of blooming lilies coming from the garden that follows you everywhere around it.


    If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    I would have appreciated it a little longer, but was suddenly forced upon my feet when Bern stood up and helped me get on the ground. Not too late after that, a pair of men started approaching us from the house.


    ?Well, that¡¯s my cue. The sun is starting to set and it looks like Sir has plenty to say, not to mention that priest who manages to send shivers down my spine everytime¡­ I¡¯ll go patrol the borders and then hole myself up by the main gate. You¡¯ll find me there during the night.¡°


    ?Going away already? Don¡¯t tell me ¨C are you scared of mister Romanti?¡°


    A ?pfft!¡° sound could be heard as I suddenly laughed at the idea of a grown adult beastman turning into a wimp in the face of a usually reserved balding man¡¯s scolding.


    ?Hey, cut that out! Even just the way he speaks doesn¡¯t sit right with me, besides¨C¡°


    ?Anyways, thanks for bringing me out here. I will make sure to bring you some gifts from one of the foreign merchants later.¡°


    I cut him off before he could start a rant and watched as he made a face of relief and slight irritation, as if he didn¡®t like being interrupted but was glad that he didn¡¯t have to talk more about that subject. His eyes widened a moment later for some reason.


    ?Sure. Take care, lil miss. I better hurry.¡°


    Bern¡¯s characteristically loud and decisive voice dropped in intonation as if to signify that he was done talking. Before I fully realized it, his presence had completely dissapeared and was instead replaced by the dignifed yet currently angry face of my teacher, Bartholomew Romanti.


    ?What imprudence! Missing out on the rally and our daily training, I would have thought you went missing if it weren¡¯t for how often you act like this! Were you perhaps training alone again? How self centered. Couldn¡¯t that carefree mercenary had intervened earlier? If you truly wish to hone this craft, you must quit with your capricious behaviour at once, young lady.¡°


    Here it goes again. He tends to get riled up even more than my parents when it comes to training.


    ?Yes, mister Romant¨C?¡°


    ?You could have severely injured not only yourself but those around you as well, had you made any mistake. Truly¡­¡°


    I must have heard him say something like that a hundred times by now.


    Making circles around me, he started examining me and checking if I had hurt myself in any way.


    ?¡­at least it would appear that nothing grave has happened to you. Splendid.¡°


    Obviously, I wasn¡¯t harmed at all and he soon calmed down just in time for my father to approach the both of us. His pleasant and welcoming aura resonated along with the tender gruff timbre of his voice and seemed to instantly soothe both my body and mind alike.


    ?You sure chose a great day for running off again, Bea. I was hoping you would hang around at least today, but I guess no festivity is great enough to keep the aspiring scholar Beatrice from her duties.¡°


    I smiled and puffed out my chest before realizing he meant that last remark jokingly.


    ?But I wanted to be able to do something cool too! Everything we¡¯ve been doing lately has been so boring, just basics and theory. I wanted to try something more useful than creating water or wind for once and nearly ended up cracking a massive boulder like mama that one time!¡°


    My teacher then butted in again, this time with a face full of contentment, as if he was delighted that he could repeat sentences learned and memorized long ago from exhausting manuals.


    ?Such applications are far too above you as of right now, child. Not only are they more complicated, but you will not be able to weave into existence something which you have not yet experienced, and so we will be sticking to the ¡°boring¡± basics and theory. Besides, in what world is water not useful? It is what gives us life in many forms and can supress those seeking to smother it. Remember that you are not learning all this just to flaunt around your might.¡°


    I took a small step back and briefly thought about his words. Sighing, I looked up at the two of them and remembered how impressive mister Romanti looks when he¡¯s helping the villagers water the crops or tilt the land.


    ¡­He¡¯s right.


    ?That¡¯s enough of that today. Could you leave just the two of us alone, Barthy? It¡¯s time we talked about that, you know.¡°


    ?Ah, of course. In that case, I shall head over to the town square and see if any of the goods pique my interest. Goodbye, you two. We must further disscuss the matter of your solitary practice when the time comes, miss.¡°


    With those words, yet another person left us and I soon found myself in front of the door to our home with my father beside me.


    I have to say, I really do not understand why mister Romanti is making such a fuss about all this. I did nothing wrong. If anything, I should be getting praised for my diligence.


    ?You won¡¯t reprimand me, papa?¡°


    ?I won¡¯t. I know you would continue with it anyway. Heh, you inherited that trait from your mother. Besides, there are people more suited for that than me.¡°


    Following him inside the house, I found myself in the living room where my mother sat near a lit fireplace.


    ?Although, we¡¯re not here now to talk about that.¡°


    With that, she joined our conversation as if she had been listening to everything all along.


    I hope we can get this over with quickly so that I can go back outside soon.


    ?Take a seat, Bea. It¡¯s time we told you more about where we come from. About ourselves and hopefully, about you.¡°


    She continued and I did as instructed. The stars shone in through the open windows right at us and crackling sounds could be heard coming from the burning logs. There was an oddly nostalgic and friendly atmosphere in the room. I couldn¡®t quite explain it, but it felt almost like we were to disscuss something I was aware of but didn¡®t fully understand.


    ?Do you know what we¡¯re celebrating tonight? It¡¯s an important event after all.¡°


    ?The oath made between the first Vesper king and the night, which resulted in the birth of the stars. They create light for us even when the sun is gone and in turn we commemorate them and their creation.¡°


    ?I see you¡¯ve read your fair share of books, however that¡®s only a part of the truth. It¡¯s glamorized so that bards can sing about it and poets can pass it down to children in fantastical poems. In reality, the oath was forged not with the night but with its creator, the primordial godess Tenebra. That day, she gave birth to the stars and out of her blood and stardust fashioned out her avatars, which she sent down to us.¡°


    ?R-Really? Why haven¡¯t I heard of that before?¡°


    ?Simply because there was no need for you to know yet. Most people in the world know about this but worship her creations rather than herself. Although she is recognized as a great deity, she doesn¡¯t have a large devoted following¡­¡°


    My father stood near the fireplace, leaning against its warm clay bricks while nodding his head along to my mother¡¯s words and quietly listening.


    ?¡­what¡®s less known is that she also gave birth to the progenitor of wordweaving, the being that bestowed upon us the art of incantations.¡°


    ?Sidereus.¡°


    I exclaimed abruptly but confidently. There is not a single person in the world that doesn¡¯t know that name.


    ?Correct. The person he made contact with upon his arrival to this earth was the first Vesper king, who he taught how to control and materialize numen, the celestial energy all around us, in the form of speech, just like he taught others later. That alone is the act which made everyone rever and worship him as a deity. Though contrary to common knowledge, he was not fully a god, as they say he could bleed like any other.¡°


    This feels like another one of mother¡¯s tales about the world


    ?But how do you know so much about that? You said it¡¯s not written about anywhere.¡°


    ?It has been passed down in my family since time immemorial. My distant ancestors were related to that king and witnessed it with their own eyes. Just like him, they were of royal blood, however it has diluted so greatly in my family since then that it¡¯s not even worth mentioning.¡°


    There was a while of silence, as if she didn¡¯t want to talk about a certain topic but was determined to force herself into it anyway, which she did shortly after.


    ?Unlike my family, I escaped the capital with a few others during the second Runic war. I¡¯ve told you before that the last Vespers live in this village with other races, but¡­ I might be wrong. If they found a way to live in the outside world without being constantly persecuted, then there still may be others.¡°


    ?Persecuted?¡°


    Now the only person in the room who had yet to say a word eagerly stepped in.


    ?That¡¯s right. While wordweaving served as a useful asset to the common folk at first, they soon began to grow wary and envious of it. Everyone wanted to control this power, however only a select few had the potential for it. After both the great wars, all the races were so equally frightened of its capabilities that they started ostracizing, banishing, and in the worst cases hunting down those who wielded it. This was especially true for the already hated Vespers, given that they were the first ones to learn and master it. Even though I¡¯m just a human, people wouldn¡¯t take kindly to me if they were to find out that I can weave.¡°


    ?In the past, some abused this power for their own gain without regard for their surroundings or others. Many places in the world have been permanently scarred by it and it even influenced the way the continents are shaped today. Cities were wiped out, landscapes were reformed. You might have seen some of their work already, like the waterfall in our village. If you can¡¯t logically explain it, it¡¯s likely a product of weaving.¡°


    That¡¯s¡­ scary. I never thought people would use this amazing power for harming others. I¡¯ve never seen it used in such a way. Why should I be hated by everyone else just because I am able to control something like it? That feels unfair and doesn¡¯t make sense. This all feels a little odd anyway¡­ why would they teach me all that they have if they had known about the dangers of it? Are they just exaggarating?


    A bead of sweat ran down my forehead and I realized just how damp my palms felt.


    I have a hunch already, but I need to ask anyway.


    ?So why are you telling me all this?¡°


    They exchanged a short glance between each other.


    ?What was all that training for?¡°


    I spoke up again and then, nudged on by his wife, my father kneeled down in front of me so that we could see eye to eye.


    ?The reason for why we all agreed to teach you weaving, Bea, is so that you could be better than us. You¡¯re a kindhearted child. We want you to, even if little by little, show the world that it doesn¡¯t need to fear weaving anymore. That it¡¯s not a tool of malice. Fix the mistakes of our predecessors. Do what we couldn¡¯t. Even if our generation wasn¡¯t able to achieve it, perhaps yours or the ones to come will. Perhaps you will. This art must not be only remembered as an ill meant weapon. Not to mention, you have a reason for training so hard, don¡¯t you? ¡°


    ?Even so, you yet have time for all that. There are still many things you will have to go through, many people you will have to meet, and so on. We have another reason for telling you all this though¡­¡°


    I had an ominous feeling in my stomach. Each second felt like an eternity. For some reason, I could slightly feel the numen in the surrounding air shake a little as it travelled around me, making my hairs stand up straight.


    ?¡­you will have to live in a different place than here for a while.¡°


    What?


    ?W-What? What do you mean, mama?¡°


    ?We don¡¯t know for how long yet, but it could be a few years at worst. We¡¯ve already arranged everything for you, along with people who will take care of you during that time.¡°


    ?What do you mean by that?! Are you sending me away?¡°


    ?My dear, you can¡¯t stay here right now. You could be in danger. We all could be.¡°


    I had thought of a bunch of different things that they could want to tell me, but this? I can¡¯t believe it. So they just come to me one day and suddenly tell me I have to leave?


    ?But I don¡¯t wanna go anywhere! This is my home!¡°


    My parents then both looked on with a sort of excruciating pain in their faces, each alternating between answering my cries.


    ?Calm down, Bea. You¡¯ll be able to take your things with you. A¨CAnd, it¡¯s just as lovely there as here.¡°


    Feeling tears forming in the corners of my eyes, I started arguing more adamantly.


    ?My friends are here! My family ¨C you are here!¡°


    ?I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be able to find friends there easily. Not to mention, we¡¯ll come visit regularly.¡°


    ?If you can visit, then why don¡¯t you come with me? I¡¯m not going anywhere without you two!¡°


    ?That¡¯s¡­not so easy. We can¡¯t go with you because of a few reasons, honey. You have to get used to the world without us a little.¡°


    ?But¨C I¨C I don¡¯t want to! I¡¯ve been good, haven¡¯t I? Have I done something wrong? Please, I¡¯ll apologize, so don¡¯t do this to me.¡°


    Crying, just like me, my mother answered resolutely.


    ?You haven¡¯t done anything, dear. It¡¯s just not safe to let you stay here right now. Remember how wordweavers are in danger in the outside world? We fear that even we aren¡¯t safe here at the moment. Don¡¯t make this harder for me, Bea. You¡¯ll return in the end. We¡¯ll go into town to celebrate now and you can start packing tommorow.¡°


    No. I hate this. It doesn¡¯t make sense. Why? Why me? All the hiding places I found. All the people I know here. The nights that I spend listening to mama¡¯s stories. I don¡¯t want to lose any of it. I shouldn¡¯t have to.


    ?No! I don¡¯t wanna go! You can¡¯t make me! I¡¯ll tell Bern! There¡¯s no way I¡¯m leaving Gil here!¡°


    She stood up from her chair, now with a clearly more infuriated expression.


    ?Stop it, Beatrice! There¡¯s no other way!¡°


    ?I don¡¯t believe you!¡°


    ?It¡¯s the truth!¡°


    ?Liar! I¡­I hate you! Both of you!¡°


    ?Bea!¡°


    I could see a mix of emotions in their faces, ranging from exasparation to anguish, from affection to regret. Even so, I didn¡®t expect to see my mother look surprised in that situation. For some reason, she looked up at the ceiling and into the windows before shouting.


    ?Edward, something is wrong!¡°


    ?Of course, our daughter just¨C wait¡­¡°


    ?Protect her!¡°


    ?Terra, circumagite eam!¡°


    ?Praes¨C¡°


    There was a flash. Both of them started chanting before being cut off by the sound of something tearing through the roof and slamming into the floor. The ground started to bend and twist around me as if it was trying to shield me. My vision was suddenly limited to just a slit between the rocks and mud that formed in front of me. From inside my prison of dirt, I could only see an enourmous sphere of flames. Standing right below it were two figures who seemed as insignificant as ants in comparison to it. I took a deep breath and felt a searing pain spread throughout my mouth and then throat. There was no time to curse at the sensation of my body being overwhelmed by an unbearably hot air that pierced every bit of skin imaginable. A violent force slammed me into the newly formed wall behind me right onto my arm. No sky, no wood, no flames, no dirt. I couldn¡¯t see anything anymore. I could only hear intense ringing. The burning air was nowhere to be felt either. Only pain. Darkness filled my eyes as I struggled to cling onto conscioussness. Everything happened in an instant.


    I can barely breathe. There¡¯s something wrong with my body. What¡¯s happening? Why is it happening? I need help. Where is everyone?


    I instinctively started dragging myself along the ground with my dominant arm without a direction in mind like a wounded animal.


    There¡¯s no way I can just lay here and die. I have to get somewhere where mama and papa can see me. My legs¡­are still there, but standing up is too hard right now. I have to continue crawling.


    Only small gusts of air entered my mouth, just barely the amount needed to give me enough oxygen.


    In, out, in, out. Focus on your breathing, Bea. Focus.


    A streak of blue¨Cish white light then flickered in the corner of my eye.


    Is that¡­the night sky? I have to go there. I have to get outside.


    Ever so slightly, I started to able to see again as I pulled myself away a little longer before managing to stand up on my feet. The first things I noticed were the moon and stars, their magnificent figures seemingly being assaulted by pillars of fire stretching high up into the air. As if the burning trees and pieces of buildings scattered around were attempting to claw away at the world for the horrors it had caused them.


    Numb pain stopped spreading throughout my body as it slowly gave space to a sharp burning sensation. The deafening ringing started to subside and was instead replaced by increasingly loud strikes coming from the distance. Steel clashing with steel. I reflexively put both hands over my ears to stop the noise from attacking me even further and slowly realized what I found odd about myself ever since the impact. For better or for worse, my vision cleared up and I finally got a good look at my right arm.


    Twisted and bent in a strangely grotesque way, it was clearly broken in several places. I could feel the dislocated and shattered bones grind against each other every time I moved it.


    Before I could fully comprehend what had happened to me, a horrific scream rang out, seemingly out of nowhere. A scream so desperate and so devoid of hope that I couldn¡¯t help but shudder internally. It completely took over all of my senses. The only thing I could do was focus on it and its dreadful intensity. I dropped to the ground and started rolling around, waiting for it to stop. It continued and continued and that¡¯s when I realized it. It was me who had been screaming all that time.


    I don¡¯t know for how long I remained in such a rabid panic, but when I managed to stop and regain awareness of my surroundings, an armored figure had already been approaching me from what was left of my house.


    He¡­doesn¡¯t look like he¡¯s here to help me. Is he the one that caused all this? I have to call someone for help. Mama, papa, anyone.


    I drew in air to scream someone¡¯s name and watched as the figure kneeled down only to cross the distance between us in a single leap and appear right in front of me.


    ?H¨C¡°


    The words I wanted to yell got stuck in my mouth.


    Something is approaching my head from the side. A blade. I don¡¯t have time to react. My blood is boiling. I can feel everything much more intensely than usual. All of my survival instincts are telling me to move. Dodge! Escape! Don¡¯t let it hit you! But it¡¯s too late. There¡¯s only thing I can think of doing. Only now do I feel as though I finally understand the true meaning of the word I¡¯ve been drilling into myself nearly all day.


    ?¨CShatter!¡°


    My desperate yell was met with the sound of the blade breaking and shattering into dozens of small pieces, one of which impaled itself into the side of my face.


    The hostile figure who now clearly appeared to be a man was visibly taken aback by his weapon being reduced to just a hilt and sweeping through empty air. He took a step back and reached for something on his waist before being blown away by an intense gust of wind.


    ?Run away, child! Make haste out of here at once!¡°


    ?Wha¨C¡°


    ¡°Follow that person!¡°


    It¡®s mister Romanti.


    Pointing behind me, he shouted and gestured furiously, his voice echoing across the grass plains. On his demand, I turned around to look at what he meant. Standing on top of a hill behind me was a slender hooded figure shrouded in a cloak that was supporting itself with some sort of staff.


    Right after that, I turned to my beloved teacher and started running towards him with all the power left in my body.


    He isn¡¯t very far away. There¡¯s no way I can just leave everyone here. Now that he¡¯s here, we can be saved.


    Just as I thought that, another sillhouete appeared behind mister Romanti.


    Great, he¡¯s not alone!


    ?I said run away, fool! Do not come here, lest you wish to die!¡°


    ?P-Please, save me, mister! Teacher! Papa!¡°


    ?How dare you not liste¨C¡°


    He stopped shouting. I could only hear him gasp for breath as the one behind him drove something into his back.


    What¡­?


    Still clinging onto what little air he had left in his lungs, he spoke undauntedly, a single tear streaming down his cheek.


    ?Stubborn to the end. Run, dear Bea.¡°


    Grabbing that mysterious person by the arm, he parted his lips ever so slightly.


    ?Teache¨C¡°


    A massive streak of lightning seemingly manifested itself out of thin air and struck the place where he was standing with such intensity that it sent me flying for yet another time today. When I looked up, they were both gone. Only the black charred ground remained.  As I realized what had happened, something gripped my heart.


    ?No, he¡­I¨C¡°


    It slithered under my skin and sank deep into my body, embedding its fangs into the very foundation of my soul.


    ?I don¨C¡°


    Wrapping itself around my heart and causing its already rapid heartbeat to accelerate even further, it grew more powerful the more I became aware of its presence.


    ?¨Cwant to¨C¡°


    It was despair.


    ?Silence, monster. You don¡¯t have the right to plead for your life.¡°


    The man from before that got knocked away was now getting closer again and soon enough stood atop my defenseless body as I was laying on the ground. Tilting my head upwards, I saw the hooded individual with a staff now behind me. Upon getting a closer look at her, she was evidently female. Unlike the one trying to kill me, I wasn¡¯t even surprised anymore. Instead, I directed the rest of my energy into one last quiet whisper as the words desperately crawled out of my throat.


    ?I don¡¯t want to die.¡°


    Everything became blurred after that. I¡¯m sure I heard a massive crash of two objects again, yet the only thing I can remember from before losing conscioussness is the smirk of that woman after I uttered those words and the brilliant radiance of the stars.


    I could never forget the way the stars shone that night.

 Chapter 4 – Not all men are born equal

    Atem: the path of their lives


    Chapter 4


    Not all men are born equal


    Jino¡®s view


    ?Have you ever been in a city other than Merat, Jinas?¡°


    ?Huh? No, I guess not¡­ I¡¯ve only visited the nearby villages.¡°


    ?Then have you seen the landscapes that lay past this kingdom?¡°


    ?Nah, not really. I only went on a few trips around the borders because dad took me with him during some of his travels.¡°


    ?Hm, that might be enough. You see, there are reasons for why most humans only travel along the main trade routes and for why it is tradition not to set up settlements far from great cities.¡°


    Nodding along, my new teacher gazed outside the window of my room before continuing.


    ?I am confident that you have seen a large mass of stones seemingly conjoined together and tall enough to tower over trees before. There is one in the vicinity that I have been keeping an eye on after all.¡°


    Stones? What¡¯s this about?


    ?I¡¯m not sure, but I do remember dad telling me about something similar and to never approach it¡­ Actually, isn¡¯t that the thing behind the cathedral? I think it was a bit farther from it the last time I saw it, though.¡°


    ?Indeed. That is one of them. A Stellar giant.¡°


    ?Uh-huh.¡°


    ?Created through unkown means, they are beings which gather power from the stars and roam the lands at night.¡°


    ?Those rocks.¡°


    ?Quite so.¡°


    ?Right¡­¡°


    ?Their bodies are fraught with runes of such great complexity and power that they can move and even channel their powers to cause harm along with¡­¡°


    What is he even talking about? I wonder how much time has passed since we began. I want to go have lunch already.


    ?¡­creator, which most believe to be Tenebra. After encountering a few of them myself, I find it safe to conclude that they are beings split off from stars. They have been¡­¡°


    It¡¯s a shame that outsiders aren¡¯t allowed to look at swordsmen train in the Great hall. Maybe I could talk mom into letting me see the city guards spar or something?


    ?¡­that is why they make areas inhabited by them hard to pass through and impossible to inhabit. When they are active, they attack any beings with numen residing in them. Regular adventurers lack the means to defeat them. Generally speaking, their area of effect is limited to a certain location and as such do not pose a grave threat to those mindful enough to evade them. This one, however, is a special case, since¡­¡°


    A butterfly with wings of blue, purple and white suddenly landed on my desk, mesmerizing me for a moment by its gentle movements and vibrant colours.


    I wonder what this little guy eats¡­


    ?¡­yet you still pay more attention to your capricious thoughts than my own words. Such obtrusive feelings will not slip past me, Jinas.¡°


    As if my body was struck by a current of lightning, I straightened up my posture and faced forward in an instant.


    ?I, uh¡­¡°


    Not moving even one bit from the window while looking out, mister Arius spoke with a slightly amused voice.


    ?Could you repeat what I said?


    ?Well, godess Tenebra split apart stars¡­ and they¡¯re limited to certain locations¡­and you met some of them¡­and I guess they¡¯re strong¡­ and I¡¯m sorry.¡°


    A smile spread across his lips as he finally looked at me, not seeming angry at all because of my spacing out.


    ?Adhering to one¡¯s sense of priority is quite alright, however it might not be correct at all times. You should value the time we spend together more than the activites you can enjoy alone later, especially during lessons.¡°


    ?I understand, it¡¯s just that¡­this is so boring. Could you tell me more about how you fought one of those things rather than this?¡°


    ?Tales of peace and lectures of knowledge are far more interesting than those of conflict. You will understand this in due time.¡°


    ?If you say so.¡°


    ?Now listen. It is crucial to remember that they do not just occupy any spot they want. There is always a reason for everything in this world, no matter how insignifcant it may seem.¡°


    At those words, I let go of all my past thoughts and focused.


    ?A great current of numen stemming from underground binds them to the earth. Only few know this, but they serve as guardians to very powerful labyrinths located right underneath them. Mighty and daring figures use them to track those labyrinths down and seize the treasures inside them, but most of them do not return back.¡°


    ?Guardians to powerful labyrinths¡­that¡¯s so cool.¡°


    My mouth now slightly agape, I listened eagerly.


    ?That is why your father was correct. You should stay away from Stellar giants for as long as you can.¡°


    ?Y-Yes, sir.¡°


    Now fully invested in his teachings, I started taking notes.


    Maybe this isn¡¯t so bad after all.


    ?Now then, about the most eastern continent, often called Procul¡­¡°


    ¨C ¨C


    That was four hours ago. Currently, I¡¯m heading out to the main market for some vegetables and pastry mom asked me to get.


    ?Heeeey! Heeey! Wait up, Jino!¡°


    And tagging along with me is, of course, Lear¡­


    ?Come on, we don¡¯t have all day for this! I can¡¯t get through the city while looking after you if you visit every small shop along the way!¡°


    Panting heavily, my little brother caught up to me.


    ?Woah, yeah, yeah. I promise I won¡¯t run off again without telling you, so don¡¯t leave me behind anymore.¡°


    ?Right, then you better stick to that promise.¡°


    With the sun casting a shadow behind us as we advanced towards the city center, we navigated the familiar stone roads while taking in all the sights around us.


    A large stone tower in the middle of the city stretched up above all the other buildings, serving both as a navigation point for travelers and as a headquarters for various guilds.


    Looking around, I couldn¡¯t help but appreciate my surroundings.


    The houses here are usually well built and sturdy with decorative incsribements and wooden furniture. Some of them are small and at times cramped between other similar homes along the road, with the rest being large stand-alone structures most likely belonging to influential and wealthy figures. Our house, for comparison, is somewhere between the two of these extremes¡­but we didn¡¯t come here to sightsee. Mom gave us an important task: to bring her the ingredients she needs for cooking lunch.


    Both of us know that the longer we take, the hungrier we¡¯ll become, so we should hurry up.


    And if that¡¯s the case, I have just the idea¡­


    ?All right, Lear. The first one to get to the main square doesn¡¯t have to wash the dishes, but no taking any shortcuts!¡°


    ?Huh? Sure! You¡¯re on!¡°


    Just like that, we started racing along the all too well known paths to get to our destination.


    This might not be the most reasonable way to get around, but it¡¯s definitely one of the few ones that will get my brother moving.


    Not running too fast as to not make him lose sight of me and turning around at times to check if he hadn¡®t gotten lost, I carefully made sure nothing dangerous would happen to either of us as we surely approached the home stretch.


    I of course left him in the dust at the end. No way I was getting stuck in the kitchen again.


    ?Wheh, that¡¯s it. What did you think about that? Not bad, huh?¡°


    ?That¡¯s not fair! You knew you would win! I¡¯m going alone from now on!¡°


    ?Haha, then you shouldn¡¯t have accepted.¡°


    We stood in the middle of a busy intersection. Thousands of people scurried around in pursuit of their daily tasks and the main square was as noisy as ever. Traders persuading people into buying their wares, guards patrolling, adventurers walking around either as if they owned the place or as if they were lost, and kids not much younger than us running around. Various races mingle together there and it was quite easy to see.


    The majority of that city¡¯s, Merat¡¯s, citizens were humans, but it also openly welcomed all other friendly beings. Tall and muscular figures with scaly skin dominated every crowd they found themselves in, their scales being slightly dark during that time of the season. Setting up shops, elegantly weaving through people and leaving a long lasting impression on all passersby, Beastfolk of many types and breeds roamed the streets. And of course, humans filled up most of the square.


    In stark contrast to all of these were those with characteristically monster and at times demon-like features, the Terals. They were the only race still openly looked down on in certain districts and parts of the city, with that one not being very different.


    Signs banning their entry adorned the various stores there as they held their heads low while passing through.


    ?Beat it! I¡¯m just trying to get to work!¡°


    ?And do you have to take this damn road every time you do? You¡¯re scaring away all my customers, freak!¡°


    ?Why, you¡­¡°


    One such Teral was currently being held up near one of the major shops. His daunting and terrifying figure dwarfed any standing in his vicinity, gathering scorn and looks of disgust from onlookers. A pair of short horns protruded from his forehead and his massive three fingered hands looked as if they could easily crush the tiny shopkeeper shouting at him with their grasp, yet it seemed like the merchant was still on top in this argument.


    ?I¡¯m sure I lost at least 4 buyers because of you! You better buy something or never come back again!¡°


    ?Your business is none of my concern, old man. I¡¯m sorry if you think I¡¯m the one at fault, but I don¡¯t want any trouble.¡°


    As if hesitant to use his natural strength to intimidate or win over his weaker counterpart in fear of dirtying his people¡¯s reputation even further, the Teral placidly backed down and upon reaching some sort of mutual agreement the two of them parted ways in shared annoyance.


    I find that huge guy scary too, but this is a little too strange. He didn¡¯t commit any crime or offend anybody and was even the first one to step away, but everyone is still openly hostile to him. I¡¯m sure the trader wouldn¡¯t be so bold with anyone else at that too.


    ?See that? We should be careful around these people, Lear. Let¡¯s just get it over with¡­¡°


    Turning around, I saw ¨C or rather did not see my brother with me.


    ?¡­Lear? Hey!¡°


    Oh come on, I¡¯ve been careful all this time. Don¡¯t tell me I¡¯m going to lose him here of all the places.


    ?Where did you¨C¡°


    Yet in spite of my momentary panic and uneasiness, I soon found the youngest son of the Laborios household engaged in a heated conversation with a suspiciously moustached man at a stall right behind me.


    I keep my eye off of him for just a moment, and this is what I get¡­


    ?So?¡°


    ?8.¡°


    ?4!¡°


    ?8.¡°


    ?How about 5?¡°


    ?Don¡¯t try this on me kid, I said 8.¡°


    Approaching the two of them, I slowly but surely made my way behind Lear so as to catch him off guard. In doing so, the vendor¡¯s facial features and body language fully came into my view, giving me the impression that he was very experienced in his field as he had yet to budge under my brother¡¯s onslaught of demands.


    ?Come on, mister, I¡¯m sure we can agree on a deal! What if¨C¡°


    ?¡­Hey.¡°


    ??!¡°


    Putting my hand on his shoulder, I abruptly turned him around to face me just for him to jump back in a mix of fear and childlike excitement. After realizing what sort of situation he was in, he cleared his throat and spoke.


    ?H-Hey, Jino¡­¡°


    ?What was that about no running off without telling me? I¡¯m sorry sir, I¡¯ll take this sassy lost child out of here at once.¡°


    I glared at Lear in a playful way so as to make him feel a bit regretful.


    I¡§ll teach this kid to finally listen to me for once.


    ?No, look! I¡¯m right in the middle of important business here. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll end up thanking me in the end! Besides, I did tell you I was gonna go somewhere alone¡­¡°


    Huh. Did he really? True, I might have heard something like that¡­


    ?Make a decision already, you two. I don¡¯t have all day just for this.¡°


    Hm, let¡¯s see how this goes.


    ?Fine then, just don¡¯t take too long.¡°


    Being pressed on by the merchant to buy something, I took a step aside and let Lear continue as I watched carefullly.


    Having been given the space to finish what he started, my overexcited brother became even more unshakeable in his bargaining.


    ?Alright sir, take a look here. There¡¯s no way both of these medallions cost as much as 8 silver Pelagus coins. I mean, this is only ironskin hide. Anyone could get these materials for much cheaper anywhere else. Besides, one of them is a bit worn out and scratched here and there¡­you¡¯re just reselling these, aren¡¯t you, mister?¡°


    ?¡­¡°


    A tinge of irritation could be seen swelling up on the merchant¡®s face


    ?But if you¡¯ll be so insistent, then I guess there¡¯s no other choice. Good luck selling this to any of the other, way more knowledgable than me, adventurers. Have a good¨C¡°


    ?¡­They¡¯ll be yours for 6.¡°


    ?Deal!¡°


    And just like that, a sassy lost child persuaded a long time trader into lowering his prices. Aftewards, we quickly made our way over to a tavern as originally planned, coming to a stop right in front of it.


    Having recieved a silver handcrafted medallion shaped like the head of a Leontari, a mighty feline monster with a pair of snakes coiled around its mantle, I carefully inspected it.


    It certainly seems to be well made. I don¡¯t see any signs of it being worn before, either¡­ Was all that fanfare before made up or am I just this incompetent at recognizing quality goods?


    ?Now, Jino, we have something to connect us together wherever we may be! If we both wear these, we¡¯ll always be thinking of each other!¡°


    Flaunting the exact same medallion in front of me, he jumped up and down in one spot, full of enthusiasm.


    I wonder he gets all this energy from¡­


    ?You¡¯re right. That¡¯s a nice thought. Thank you.¡°


    Smiling, I stashed the recieved pendant away into my bag as I entered the inn. While doing so, I caught a glimpse of some writing inscribed onto the back of it.


    I¡¯ll have to take a look at that again later.


    ¨C ¨C


    The tavern was brimming with people. Songs and tales echoed all throughout its halls as folk of all kinds merrily drank and ate to their hearts¡® contents while laughing and sharing stories of their adventures. An unexpectedly beautiful chandelier decorated the rather spacious interior, lighting it up along with many candles scattered among the wooden tables.


    Regarding the tables, there was a pretty evident seating order at first glance in there. All the way from those who barely had enough to get by to the richest and noblest customers, it seemed like everyone was seated at a table based on their wealth. While regular clients were near the entrance and in the corners of the inn, those with an apparent abundance of money all sat in the middle at the largest rectangle shaped table, not allowing those of lower status to sit with them.


    I guess people really like to segregate themselves from others based on anything they can. And even though many races mix in here, you still wouldn¡¯t be able to see even a single Teral no matter where you looked.


    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    ?Hello, sir. We¡¯d like to buy all the stuff on this list.¡°


    Having to squeeze through dozens of merry and half drunk customers as we slowly made our way over to the innkeeper, I pulled out a checklist of the food we were supposed to get before placing it on the counter.


    The bartender only gave the two of us a brief look before inspecting the piece of paper presented to him.


    He was a human in what seemed like his fourties. Bruises and calluses adorned his muscular arms clearly worn out from years of hard work. His bald head was compensated for by his large, well tended to beard. Yet despite his looks of suscipcion and carefulness, the air around him had a certain quality of dependability to it.


    Glancing at me one more time after returning the shopping list to me, he finally spoke.


    ?Sure. Got the money on ya?¡°


    ?Of course. This should cover it.¡°


    Saying that, I handed him 6 silver coins, all the money that I was given for this by mom.


    I wonder how Lear gathered that same amount for the medallions from earlier¡­


    ?Right, here ya go. Take care.¡°


    ?Thanks. You too.¡°


    We quickly stashed all of the bought food into a leather sack and prepared to leave the inn as we turned around, but something seemed off.


    The overall commotion around us has been increasing for a while now. It looks like a fight of some sort is about to go down.


    ?Ugh, you bitch!¡°


    The noise and shouting only grew stronger as we walked towards the middle of the tavern where the nobles sat, soon drowning out and silencing all of the other talking and sounds coming from the rest of the customers.


    Finally being able to see what the cause was, I furrowed my brow and grabbed Lear by the hand.


    ?Do you have no shame, you genetic failure?¡°


    ?Damn quarter breed, really thought you could steal from us? Right after we fed you?¡°


    Having been caught by the hand which still gripped a pouch of money, the girl whose long gray, brown and white hair covered her face and eyes put on a bitter face full of anger as the group of men insulted her without end. She let out animal like groans and bared her tiny fangs at them.


    ?Don¡¯t even dare to¡­¡°


    ?Bleagh!¡°


    ?¡­look at me like that!¡°


    The man holding her hand kicked her in the stomach all of a sudden, sending her flying backwards and gasping for breath as the pouch she was holding fell on the floor, being distanced from by everyone present.


    A now familiar figure appeared next to me. The innkeeper looked on worriedly and seemed prepared to step in, however¨C


    ?None of you are to interfere with this! I¡¯ll see to it myself that this runt gets what she deserves.¡°


    ?Yeah, that¡¯s right!¡°


    Cheered on by his fellow compatriots, he walked towards the little girl.


    ?There¡¯s only one punishment for thieving abominations like you¡­getting your hands cut off!¡°


    He pounced at her as he said that, but the girl¡¯s unprecedented speed left him flinging his arms through the air as she got on all fours and made her way around him before taking the pouch off the floor.


    ?Shit, catch her!¡°


    Seeing that, I instinctively made way for her to get outside so as to not get in her way, since I was one of the people standing in front of the exit.


    She shot right past me, only sparing me a single glance right as she passed through.


    In that moment, I clearly saw it. Her eyes were each of a different color, one seemingly golden and the other a vivid purple. They seemed to burn a mark into my very soul. A mark of the prejudice directed towards her. Of the hardships she had been put through. Of the indignation she felt against the rest of the world.


    Have I seen her somewhere before?


    Not letting go of Lear¡¯s hand, I also made my way outside after waiting for the nobleman to finish cursing and promising to find her upon his family¡¯s name. Soon enough, we were standing in the middle of the city¡¯s main square again.


    ?Woah, that was super crazy, Jino!¡°


    ?That¡¯s one way of putting it¡­¡°


    Finally having what we needed, we started making our way back home through where we came.


    ?Did you see how she looked? Like some beast-human-something! I wouldn¡¯t want to cross her ever again!¡°


    I nodded along, still chewing on the feelings conveyed to me through her fleeting eyes.


    ?Yeah, I sure wouldn¡¯t want to either¡­¡°


    ?But anyway, a lot of cool stuff happened. I¡¯m really looking forward to telling mom all about it! I¡¯m sure she¡¯ll like the medallions¡­¡°


    Just thinking about that girl makes my stomach turn. I can¡¯t help but wonder what she¡¯s been through up until now for it to turn her into someone so vicious.


    ?¡­and how I haggled the price so skillfuly. Dad would definitely be proud¡­¡°


    I¡¯m sure I felt scared seeing her look so feral, but all I could do as she was being yelled at and kicked was stand frozen in place. It¡¯s just like back then, and many times before as well.


    Although if what they said about her stealing money was true, then I don¡¯t know if I even have the right to help her. I don¡¯t know what¡¯s right or wrong anymore.


    ?¡­but that fight at the inn was the most exciting out of it all. Do you think we should tell mom that there¡¯s a thief like that running around?¡°


    Snapping back to reality, I turned around to look at my brother as I continued walking.


    ?First of all, you should¨C¡°


    Suddenly, I bumped into a solid wall and hit the back of my head against it right after.


    ?Ow, what the hell¡­¡°


    Ridiculous. I was definitely walking through an open road just now. How could I hit a wall? What¡¯s up with that?


    Opening my eyes after the initial shock, I noticed Lear¡¯s listless gaze as he stared behind me, not letting out even a single sound. As I slowly realized how frightened he looked, an odd sensation spread over my entire body and I could feel the hairs on my body stand up. A crystal clear sense of dread gripped my heart as I started to feel the presence of something inhuman standing near me.


    ?W-What¨C¡°


    Curiosity won over my natural instincts as I turned to look around despite every cell in my body screaming at me not to. Doing so, I spotted a demon¨C no, not a demon. A tall, large figure clad in armor so dark that it envoked the image of an endless void. Its massive frame and thickness seemed to ridicule the very idea of wearing, let alone walking in, such an armor. Yet the hulking mass of darkness moved, as if to contradict that exact thought.


    Something peered out right at me from the visor of its helment adorned with short horns, seemingly entertained by my mediocrity. My mind went blank when I realized it and I could feel all of my bodily functions steadily ceasing to work properly, as if slowly dying out just from being exposed to the sheer pressure coming from that¡­thing.


    I tightened both of my hands into fists and closed my eyes, waiting for everything to get better. With time, the ridiculously heavy air and suffocating atmosphere slowly subsided before finally dissapearing without even leaving any traces of themselves behind.


    When I opened my eyes again, all I could see was an empty road and people standing on both of its sides, seemingly wary of something. Seeing that the being from before was now gone, my body started functioning like normal again and a flood of emotions overtook me. Having been holding my breath for all that time, I gulped for air.


    ?That hurts¡­ hey, Jino, I said that hurts!¡°


    Noticing something was off, I soon understood that I had started gripping Lear¡¯s hand with all of my strength at some point. It looked bright red right after I released my grasp on it.


    Then the two of us stared at each other blankly for a moment. That moment turned into a while, then into a minute, and soon into an eternity. As things started going back to usual and we regained our senses of self, both of us were clearly showered with relief¡­ and a tinge of worry.


    Even the always ecstatic Lear was completely quiet.


    ?Let¡¯s go home. Now.¡°


    A small nod was all I recieved as an answer to those words.


    ¨C ¨C


    ?That¡¯s when I got these!¡°


    The sun was steadily starting to set by the time we had made our way back home. Having dropped off the groceries in our rather spacious kitchen, we washed ourselves and changed into clothes more appropriate for dining as we waited for the food. Nobody questioned whether anything had happened along the way and while we hadn¡®t told anybody yet, it seemed like mister Arius was suspicious of something already, as if he could see through us with just a look. Thankfully, he didn¡¯t press us for any details.


    And after all that, we were finally enjoying diner.


    ?That¡¯s how I like it! Did you pull off the good old "pretending not to care anymore" trick? Or did you say you would get them at a better price elsewhere?¡°


    ?I did both, dad! Just like you taught me.¡°


    ?Very good, very good. Looks like you¡¯re my son after all! I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll make a fine businessman one day.¡°


    ?Surely not as fine as you.¡°


    ?Haha, alright then, have another serving!¡°


    Listening to my dad and brother talk about underhanded merchant tactics, I quietly munched on the delicious lobster we were being served.


    Dad has been working as a travelling trader for most of his life, but he opened up a large company in this city when he settled in with mom. He used to tell us stories of how he visited all the other continents, got lost in crypts, ran away from god-like monsters, got famous and tagged along with many different adventurers on their journeys when he was younger, just to find the best customers and goods.


    ?And what about you, Jino? Do you like that pendant as well?¡°


    All of that supposedly ended when he saved his to-be wife from certain death in a crumbling labyrinth and fell in love with her.


    ?Heeey. Hey, what¡¯s up? I asked you something, you know?


    ?Huh? Oh, sorry¡­ I was just thinking about¡­¡°


    ?Oh, oh, what¡¯s this? Don¡¯t tell me ¨C is it that time for you already? You¡¯re just like a maiden in love, son!¡°


    ?Wha¨C¡°


    ?Charles, come on. At least let them eat properly.¡°


    Saying that, mom cleared her throat and shot the famed Laborios merchant a glance so deadly that I could practically feel sparks fly through the air between them, silencing his boisterous laughter in nearly an instant.


    I wonder who saved who back then, really.


    Not losing a beat, she turned to me and continued speaking.


    ?Is anything the matter, honey? You seem a little thrown off.¡°


    ?Well, the thing is¡­¡°


    Should I tell them about what really happened? I guess they¡¯ll know we¡¯re hiding something if I don¡¯t, anyway.


    ?¡­we ran into this really scary person on our way home.¡°


    ?What do you mean? How was he scary?¡°


    ?There was a really heavy air of intimidation and presence around him. It wasn¡¯t like some average adventurer, though. I felt like I would suffocate just by standing next to him... He seemed more like a monster than anything else to me, not to mention that he was wearing an entirely black suit of thick armor, so he really stood out.¡°


    I could see mom and mister Arius visibly tense up upon hearing that last line.


    ?And just where did you see that man last time?!¡°


    Seemingly agitated, my mother lost her composure. I was a little surprised by the sudden change, but replied right away.


    ?Well, I bumped into him somewhere around the central watch tower in the middle of the city¡­¡°


    Hearing that, the only two people in the room that seemed to know something about the described person exchanged looks.


    ¡§Miss Claire, allow me to¨C¡°


    ?Under no circumstance. Listen, kids. Finish dinner and stay at home until I come back. I have to take a look at something.¡°


    Saying that, she got up and started preparing to go out.


    ?Mommy, did we do something wrong?¡°


    Lear was the first one to voice his worries.


    ?Not at all, love. There¡¯s just a chance that that man could be someone we don¡¯t want to meet in this city and I have to go find out whether or not that¡®s true.¡°


    With a startled expression, dad followed Lear¡¯s example.


    ?Slow down, Claire. Can¡¯t you at least tell us where exactly you¡¯re going?¡°


    ?I¡¯ll explain everything when I get back, I promise. Just¡­ take care of the kids for tonight, please.¡°


    ?¡­Alright, don¡¯t do anything rash.¡°


    Visibly disgruntled, he went along with mom¡¯s whim as if he was used to placing immense trust into the words and split second decisions of people he cared about.


    Seeing as the person about to leave piled on travelling clothes atop of herself and strapped a sword to her waist, I reluctantly opened my mouth to try and convince her to stay.


    ?Mom¨C ¡°


    But before a single sentence could leave my lips, a hand descended unto my shoulder and grasped it firmly but gently, stopping me from saying what I wanted to.


    It was the hand of my teacher, who peered into my eyes with his own once I turned to him. Once again, it appeared like he knew exactly what I was thinking as I looked into the boundless black and purple night sky expanding inside his eyeballs. His gaze told me everything, and I suddenly knew what I should say.


    ?¨CStay safe, please.¡°


    Hearing that, a smile played across my mom¡¯s lips.


    ?Of course, leave it to me.¡°


    A reassuring laugh followed by the faint sound of footsteps were the only things that could be heard before the door was slammed shut.


    There was now an empty chair at the dinner table.


    ¨C ¨C


    It didn¡¯t take long for us to finish eating. After what had happened, neither one of us talked about what else we had experienced along the way and an ominous silence filled the room. I¡¯m sure both me and Lear wanted to get back to our rooms, yet the moment I stood up and made that clear¡­


    ?Jinas, come with me for a moment.¡°


    ?Oh, sure¡­¡°


    The man that had one day suddenly appeared out of nowhere and since then had been teaching me about the world without asking for anything in return called out to me, leading us both into the living room.


    Without asking for anything in return, huh? Not like I ever wanted him to butt into my life anyway.


    We slowly sat on the couch and wooden armchair respectively as we left the other two in the dining room. Before long, I could already hear them disscussing something passionately.


    Those two really are like two peas in a pod.


    ?Is something the matter? I¡¯m not really in the mood for much right now¡­¡°


    ?I can see that. Let us use this time for a small lesson. It may at least distract your mind for now.¡°


    Another lesson? Is he doing this so that I don¡¯t have time to worry about mom?


    ?My aim is not to entertain you, child. I too am not bereft of worries, yet this appears like a timely opportunity. So?¡°


    Yeah, like hell he would be so considerate. Whatever, let¡¯s just go with it.


    ?Alright. Then, please go on.¡°


    Pleased as if he already knew that I would not refuse, he leaned his back against the oak support of the chair and began talking.


    ?We are yet to disscuss the basics of rune writing. You have likely borne witness to some applications of it by now or even used a form it yourself. Neverthless, would you be capable of elucidating its functions and origin to me?¡°


    He speaks in such a high class way that I can barely understand what he¡¯s saying half the time, but I guess he wants me to explain what runes are.


    ?It¡¯s¡­ a way for people to materialize numen with an effect. If you know how to draw a rune reffering to a word in the ancient tongue, you can use it to make its meaning come true.¡°


    ?That is not entirely incorrect. The true nature of runes, however, is slightly different.¡°


    ?How so?¡°


    ?The ancient tongue you talked about¡­ that is one of the many names the generations before us gave it. My people call it ¡°the language of the world¡°. It is incomprehensible to the people of today, but indispensable to all who seek to understand the true meaning of numen. You have heard of those who are capable of speaking it, no?¡°


    ?Yeah, the ones that destroyed half the continent in the last great war. They¡¯re dangerous. Very.¡°


    ?¡­Correct. Those same people used to be revered as gods in the past. In an attempt to recreate their powers, two ambitious and unbeliveably talented scribes captured the words they spoke into signs drawn with their life energy. After numerous attempts, they were able to create effects similar to those caused by the words they were trying to capture in their paintings. In that moment, runes were born, and even though they only mimic a fraction of the might of the ¡°words¡°, they can be astoundingly powerful.¡°


    ?Really? Why haven¡¯t I heard anything about that before?¡°


    ?It is not something the human race could hope to remember¡­ knowledge passed down among my family.¡°


    So humans wouldn¡¯t even be able to remember something like that, yet he talks about it so casually. Just who is this man?


    ?¡­Be not afraid. You will understand one day. Nevertheless, that is how they came to be. Have you tried drawing a rune yourself before?¡°


    ?No, I¡¯ve only ever used those that are already prepared, like the one on the hearth.¡°


    Emitting a very faint light blue glow, it stood inscribed in one of the bricks composing the fireplace¡¯s foundation. My teacher spared it a quick glance before smilling.


    ?I see. That is one of the more practical uses of the ¡°words¡°¡­ well then, let us try to create that same rune together, shall we?¡°


    Oh? Am I going to be a rune scribe?


    ?Yes, sir!¡°


    Finally, I¡¯ll be able to awaken the great talent of a rune user hidden inside me!


    Filled with enthusiasm, I promptly got up from the couch I was sitting on and started swaying back and forth as I tried to keep my excitement in check while waiting for instructions. Fortunately, I didn¡¯t have to wait long.


    ?Firstly, we must consider what the rune itself is comprised of. The final effect generated by a rune or a number of them is achieved through the proper combination of different sub-runes. If runes are words, then sub-runes are the syllables forming them. Is that clear?¡°


    ?Well¡­maybe?¡°


    ?In other words, sub-runes are the lesser parts of a rune that each carry only a fraction of power, yet through their correct formation, the true effect of a rune is produced. To combine such parts without the correct knowledge required to do so, however, may result in grave ramifications.¡°


    ?What do you mean?¡°


    In that moment, he started tracing the lines of the inscribed brick with his slender index finger.


    ?The rune we are talking about, for instance, is made up of two lesser runes¡­¡°


    Trailing a path along one half of the inscription that resembled half of a square tilted sideways, he continued.


    ?¡­This one stands for Ig¡­¡°


    Then, with a similar motion, he traced the other half that was clearly not connected to its counterpart through any lines.


    ?¡­And this one for Nis. On their own, they are merely capable of creating a very small flame, yet when conjoined together with numen, they produce the large fire you are used to seeing warm up this room¡­¡°


    ?But?¡°


    ?¡­but were one of them to be mindlessly fused with a sub-rune completely unfit for complementing their true meaning, such as one from the rune for dust, an unstable or highly dangerous effect would be produced, possibly harming you in the process of its creation.¡°


    ?But how can I know which ones should and shouldn¡¯t be used together? They¡¯re just a bunch of lines.¡°


    ?That is precisely why you must be aware of the word hidden behind each rune. Not only to be able to use its power efficiently, but to not harm yourself or others due to your ignorance and negligence.¡°


    ?That makes sense.¡°


    That makes no sense. I understand what he¡¯s getting at fundamentally, but there¡¯s still a lot of questions in my head. For instance, what if I keep chaining a single sub-rune together, or what if the lines I draw aren¡¯t straight or neat enough? I guess I¡¯ll have to save them for later, though. I don¡¯t want to look too stupid right now.


    ?You nod in acknowledgment, yet it appears you still do not understand what I am saying fully. In that case, allow me to demonstrate. Pay careful attention to my movements, Jinas.¡°


    Saying that, my teacher grabbed a scrap of paper from the satchel strapped onto his waist and laid it down on the floor. Afterwards, a faint light began emanating from two of his fingertips as he started drawing shapes similar to the ones atop the fireplace onto it with elegant, practiced motions.


    The moment he lifted his fingers up from the piece of paper, a roaring flame emerged from above it and soon consumed it without mercy, leaving its majestic beauty to slowly fade away before dying out.


    ?That was the rune for Ignis, meaning fire in the human tongue. And now¡­¡°


    Recreating that same scene once again, he started drawing on a new piece of paper which he put a little farther away from me, yet some of the shapes on it were a bit different from the first one. Before I could notice all of the differences between that and the previous showcase, my teacher was already done with his work.


    That time, a small uncontrolled explosion burst to life in place of a steady flame, catching me off guard as I yelped in surprise at the sudden sight.


    ?¡­that was the aforementioned inappropriate combination. Quite the difference, no?¡°


    ?Yeah, hell of a difference.¡°


    ?Now it is time for you to try. Attempt to recreate my scribing of Ignis yourself. You only need to redraw the lines I have just shown you by focusing numen into your fingers.¡°


    Alright, it¡¯s time to show my genius.


    Yet another piece of paper was now menacingly staring me down as I prepared to draw onto it. A single deep breath was all I needed to affirm my determination before I began.


    This should go here¡­and this should be like this.


    Having confirmed that everything was exactly like it should have been, I gently lifted my finger up and waited for the desired effect. Right as I did so, a giant fire unlike any of the ones I had previously seen materialized itself in front of me and started racing up towards my face. I closed my eyes without even realizing it, and then¨C


    [?????]


    ¨CI heard a vague sound. As I slowly opened my eyes again while fearing for the worst, the fire that looked as if it would scar me forever was then suddenly nowhere to be seen. At the same time, my teacher was looking over at me with a worried look.


    Huh? Did that sound come from him?


    ?Hm, It would appear that you are ill suited for rune writing as of right now. Your form was correct enough for a beginner, yet your control of numen seems to be lacking. Your absence of knowledge might also have played a part¡­perhaps I underestimated this.¡°


    Huh? Did I mess up? Where¡¯s my praise for being a natural at this? I thought it would go as easy as always¡­


    ?No matter. We will practice this art again soon, but it would be unwise to continue from here. Instead, let me show you a few other applications of runes.¡°


    ?R¨CRight.¡°


    Still shaken from my earlier failure, I agreed without any resistance.


    ?Despite what some would lead you to believe, runes do not have to be utilized solely for combat. In reality, their true power lies in their limitless potential for utility and easing the difficulty of certain tasks. Say, for instance, that you would require a source of light¨C¡°


    An orb of light rose above the wooden floor and pleasantly illuminated every corner of the room as the man sitting in front of me ran his hands across the floor, now covered with many sheets of paper.


    ?¨C, or perhaps yearned for the lack of it¨C¡°


    Darkness then swallowed up that very same light, leaving only the candles scattered around still burning.


    ?¨C, or it may be the case that the situation necessitates you to wash yourself with no source of water around¨C¡°


    His hands still not stopping their efortless movements, a ball of water suddenly appeared above my head before dropping down on me, leaving the upper half of my body soaking wet.


    ?H-Hey, what was that for? Cut it out!¡°


    ?¨C, or you simply wished to warm yourself up with a warm breeze.¡°


    A hot but not uncomfortable current of air coiled itself around my body as he said that, drying both me and my clothes in a matter of seconds. Both of his hands were now performing completely separate motions. The fingertips glowing a tinge of blue drew arcs and shapes across the floor as a number of unbeliveable things materialized out of thin air only to disappear moments later.


    Rocks that could move. Butterflies made of sand. Sparks that jumped around. Ice in the shape of a rose. I could only watch on in amazement as an elegant symphony of wonders played out before my eyes.


    ?Woah¡­¡°


    Everything then returned to normal as one last rune was drawn, instantly dissolving all the effects of the ones used before it.


    ?Those are but only the simplest uses of what runes have to offer. A mere combination of different natural elements. Yet the words of people do not limit themselves to only such trivial topics, do they? And the imagination of man does not need to constrain itself onto material things, either.¡°


    The hands that had already produced so much that day began drawing shapes and lines with numen once more. That time, however, they touched nothing but the empty space around them. Creating symbols out of nothing like it was something easy, they formed a couple of complicated looking runes suspended in the air.


    ?In due time, you will be able to accomplish something akin to what you are bearing witness to; a sentence made with the words of runes, even without the need for a physical medium. This particular one can be used to find or look for other people, like this.¡°


    A sharp glow coming from the runes then permeated both of our faces. That must had been something unplanned for, as my teacher was clearly taken aback.


    In that moment, his usually calm and docile expression had been broken for the second time in the span of an hour. He abruptly stood up and looked unnaturally worried.


    ?Mister Arius?¡°


    ?Find your father, Jinas. I must head out.¡°


    ?Wait, why? Did you find something out? I thought you promised mom to stay with us today.¡°


    ?I am afraid that this will have to be an exception.¡°


    ?¡­¡°


    Not saying anything, I only silently watched the tall white haired man put on his cloak and head for the main door.


    ?Mister Charles, I apologize. I have to join miss Claire.¡°


    ?What¡¯s this now? I thought you¡­oh. I see.¡°


    My father and him only exchanged a brief glance, but it looked like that was all they needed to get their intentions across to each other.


    ?Go, I understand.¡°


    ?Thank you. And Jinas¡­¡°


    He then spared me one last look as he kneeled down to meet me at eye level.


    ?¡­be not afraid. This will be no different from my regular nightly trips.¡°


    Every night, mister Arius would go out and travel around the city to, as he says, gather information. He had always returned the next morning without any signs of anything to worry about and despite the apparent urgency and severity of the current situation, his words made me believe that he would come back home before I even woke up.


    ?What¡¯s up with the both of you, suddenly running off somewhere¡­¡°


    He had always kept his promises in the past and never told me anything that he couldn¡¯t support with his own abilities.


    That¡¯s why, I chose to believe him.


    ?¡­Alright, stay safe.¡°


    That sentence echoed around the room as yet another person left the house for a reason not known to me, closing the door shut behind him. It took me a while to realize that there were only 3 of us at home at that point.


    The large dinner mom had prepared then started going cold in the dining room as we all went to sleep in one room upstairs, waiting for both of them to come back.


    I had an odd feeling about everything that night and couldn¡¯t sleep, so I was the first one who noticed it when morning came. Even though mom returned the next day, we were still missing one person.


    That was the second time in his life that Arius Argenti broke a promise. It would not be until another two weeks had passed that he returned.


    ¨C ¨C


    End of prologue

 Chapter 5 – Time well spent

    Atem: the path of their lives


    Chapter 5


    Time well spent


    Jino¡®s view


    To call the nights that followed Mister Arius¡® disappearance worrying and restless would be a great understatement.


    When we woke up after that strange evening, the only one that had returned was mom. She wasn¡¯t as upset as when leaving, but she hasn¡¯t looked the same ever since coming back. Asking her about what happened didn¡¯t really bring us any meaningful answers. The only thing we learned was that as a captain of the rune knights, it had been her duty to investigate the existence of a potentially dangerous individual within the city and that her search hadn¡®t produced any important results.


    Despite that, it would seem that the terrifying person clad in black we had run into before coming home was not very welcome in most populated places.


    What worried her more, however, was the absence of my teacher. He had originally gone to look for her but ended up missing himself. Once she heard of his abrupt departure and that he was still nowhere to be found, the first thing she did was scold dad for letting him go. The two then had a stormy argument that ended with both of them calming down and agreeing to take responsibility for whatever would happen next. After that, mom settled down and told us that we didn¡®t have to worry, since she would work hard on looking for him and making sure we¡¯re safe.


    And yet, I can tell that she¡¯s still upset. Maybe she blames herself for something?


    ?Focus, Jino! This isn¡¯t a game!¡°


    From that point onwards, many things started changing. Mom no longer spent as much time at home and instead patrolled the city for far longer than usual every day. When she was home, though, she would make us learn swordsmanship.


    The art of the blade, exactly as she had been taught by the Runic order. Or, at least whatever basics she could pass on to complete beginners.


    Lengthy and gruelling sparring sessions filled our mornings and afternoons. She would always begin by showing us the fundamentals on a makeshift training dummy, having us repeat exactly that until she decided that we were of passing skill, and then making us try to land a strike on her.


    Additionally, each session would begin and end with physical training. Laps around the garden, push ups, squats and sit ups. Those became our bread and butter.


    Oddly enough, we bonded far more with her during those times than we ever did while passing away time at home or just going on trips with her. Something felt right about it, as if a side of her we hadn¡¯t ever seen before emerged when she picked up a sword and started instructing us. Stern, demanding, fierce, assertive and unwavering, yet still ever so loving.


    At least, that was how it went for me. Lear, on the other hand, wasn¡¯t as fond of our sparring. He instead preferred much more to spend time chatting about economics and tinkering with runic tools alongside dad.


    Which is precisely what filled our middays and evenings.


    Dad, who until then had restriced himself to only showing us how he worked from time to time and advising Lear on how to haggle prices correctly, began teaching us what he knew best in earnest.


    How to charm people, convice others to do what you want them to, make sure you always earn more than you spend, keep your belongings safe while travelling. The workings of the market, basic arithmetics, conversation techniques, how to read body language and more.


    A different way of surviving in the world. Not one that relied on pure strength, but wit.


    Although I¡¯m pretty sure I picked up more during Mister Arius¡® lessons than with dad¡­


    ?What are you thinking about? I could corner you at any point!¡°


    Exercise, train, rest, study. Exercise, train, rest, study.


    That was precisely how our days went for a few weeks. Naturally, we got tired of it extremely quickly at the beginning because we weren¡¯t used to anything like it. Our bodies were too weak at first and Lear especially hated the start, saying that he ¡°doesn¡¯t want to make a living with a weapon in hand¡°. After some time, though, he got over it and started enjoying the time we spent together each day. Besides, it wasn¡¯t like we didn¡¯t have any free time. We would always spend two days off of our routine every week enjoying the weather and playing with friends, and if we looked too exhausted between sessions, we would be allowed to relax for the rest of the day.


    Yet, it didn¡¯t take long after we adapted to that lifestyle for a tall hooded man to reappear at our house. Mister Arius.


    All of us were shocked at first and mom even nearly shed a tear from relief as she clearly saw his figure standing in our garden. I could see a great weight fall off of her shoulders when the two finally exchanged words and my teacher began explaining what exactly had happened while he was away.


    Apparently, the night he had gone out, for better or worse, he managed to successfully track down the man we had met that day. After trying to learn more about his purpose in the city, the warrior clad in black noticed him and the two had a brief skirmish before Mister Arius managed to run away.


    Turns out that man, for whatever reason, is in Merat only for my teacher¡¯s head.


    The next day, more guards patrolled the streets than usual and having decided that it wasn¡¯t safe enough to return because he could endanger us, he hid himself and waited for things to calm down before coming back.


    Needless to say, just like mom, he too stopped spending as much time at our house as before. He only rarely gave me lessons and taught me as he had before, mostly just stopping by to check in with how we¡¯re doing and to tell mom what he had learned when out, and while I never would have expected I would start missing his lectures, I had grown used to the man who had appeared in my life as suddenly as he had left. Especially after he had shown me what exactly Numen was capable of.


    Just who exactly was that stranger for him to have such an impact on my parents and Mister Arius? And why would he want to hurt the latter?


    ?I said, focus!¡°


    In a haze, a brown rod-like object passed out of my field of vision and by the time I realized the meaning of the words shouted at me, mom¡¯s wooden sword struck me in the shoulder, making me drop the one I had been gripping.


    ?Ow! What was that for?¡°


    ?How many times must I tell you not to wander off in thought in the middle of sparring? You¡¯re too careless, Jinas, and that¡¯s precisely what is holding you back.¡°


    A mild dull pain spread throughout the left part of my body. Not too great, yet just enough to be efficiently annoying. I lowered myself to the ground in order to sit, gently holding a hand over the part of my arm that had been struck.


    Can¡¯t believe the level of control mom has with that thing. I thought I¡¯d be a goner for a second.


    Next to me, a figure whose face bore a slight resemblance to my own laid on the ground, fiercely trying to catch his breath.


    ?Come on, Jino, that¡¯s already the 3rd time today! We haven¡¯t come close to even touching her yet!¡°


    Lear said in ragged breaths, spreading himself all over the well cut grass growing in our garden, practice sword already long out of his hands.


    ?You know¡­ maybe if you didn¡¯t drop out of the fight so early each time, our chances would be a bit better.¡°


    ?Hey, I did what I could! I keep trying my best, but I can barely keep up with the two of you. Besides, what if you tried matching your pace to mine for once?¡°


    ?And then what? Overwhelm mom with our snail-like speed?¡°


    I chuckled and smiled at him before laying down on the ground, listening as Lear grumbled under his breath only to start laughing alongside me moments later.


    The sky stretched out in front of me like a canvas of blue and white, the clouds forming a beautiful and awe inspiring scenery of many distinct and imaginative figures as birds and trading ships flew through the air. A warm summer breeze gently caressed my hair as I slowly regained energy.


    This is nice. Days like these are the ones I¡¯m the fondest of. I wish I could somehow stay in this moment forever¡­enjoying this feeling of safety and comfort, of leisure and good company. I can¡¯t quite explain it, but it feels¡­ right.


    ?How long are you going to keep laying around, you two? We¡¯re not finished yet.¡°


    A warm and commanding voice akin to a current of flowing water that sweeps up everything in its path broke me out of thought. Feeling emboldened and obliged to continue upon hearing those words, I instinctively rose up to my feet.


    Lear, on the other hand, was quite hesitant to do so.


    ?Mom, haven¡¯t we had enough for today? I can barely stand¡­¡°


    ?You need to push yourself in order to grow, honey. This will be the last bout for today, then you¡¯ll rest.¡°


    ?Right¡­didn¡¯t you say that before this one though¡­¡°


    Despite being persuaded, however, he still seemed unmotivated and whispered something to himself. Seeing that, I walked over to him and extended out a hand to help him stand up.


    ?Hey, cheer up. Tommorow¡¯s a day off, so mom wants to work us extra hard while we can. Let¡¯s just give this one last go.¡°


    He looked at me exhaustingly and sat still for a moment before letting out a loud sigh and taking my hand.


    ?Fine, I¡¯ll make you take back that remark you made earlier. Just don¡¯t expect too much.¡°


    Having said that, we both grabbed our practice swords and stood readily, waiting for someone to make the first move. I gripped my weapon with all the remaining power I had left and felt its rough wooden texture grind against my palms.


    Both of us stood in a firm stance. As mom saw that, she smirked and prepared to swing her sword down in a vertical arc in order to signal the start of the duel. She looked tireless and eager to let out some of her strength again.


    All right, here goes nothing.,


    ?Well then, bring it on¨C¡°


    ?Woah woah woah, calm down. How about the boys take a break before you go at it again, eh?¡°


    Her booming shout was casually interrupted as dad walked into our intense stand-off and hurriedly stopped us.


    ?Dear? We¡¯re in the middle of something her¨C¡°


    ¡°Dad!¡°


    Seeing his saviour arrive, Lear suddenly dropped the weapon he held onto the ground and jumped at him, wrapping arms around his neck.


    ?Get back here at once, Lear. We aren¡¯t done¨C¡°


    ?Haha, that¡¯s my little haggler! I¡®d bet you¡¯re as tired as king Augur¡¯s army on the seventh day of its march!¡°


    ?If only! you don¡¯t even know!¡°


    Eyes darting around and a frown forming on her face, mom stood aside as Lear continued his banter with our dad, visibly annoyed by being cut off three times in a row. Not minding her, dad continued his abrupt interruption by turning towards me.


    ?What about you, Jino? Wouldn¡¯t you care for something a bit less physically taxing? I can see that you¡¯re still raring to go, but it¡¯s about time for us to have a look at those items I brought from the guild. I have to return them soon, you know.¡°


    Now that he mentions it, I could use some rest. Besides, I definitely don¡¯t want to go up against mom alone¡­


    ?Alright, I¡¯ll get a change of clothes and come back. What did you bring this time?¡°


    He smirked excitedly, almost as if he had just struck the deal of his life.


    ?Hah, now that¡¯s more like it. I brought along an old discarded axe with a rune and a wand invoking a warm wind used for drying clothes. Other than that, there¡¯s also an old chainmail and a pan for cooking, both with engravings. I¡¯ll teach you two how to remove engraved effects from equipment today.¡°


    Four runic tools today, huh? Dad¡®s been pretty busy with administrating and overseering the Traders guild¡®s goods lately. I think they appointed him as one of its executives a year or so back. Must have made quite a name for himself¡­


    Still, for him to get his hands on so many high value pieces of merchandise every day, something must be going on.


    Lear must have had the same thought, yet as always, voiced it before I could fully understand the situation.


    ?Hey, dad, how come you brought so much stuff again? Is the guild amassing stock because of rivals? I guess not, since Merat dominates our kingdom¡¯s market. In that case, is it because of the eastern war?¡°


    ?Well, looks like nothing escapes you, my boy. Sure, the Emperor has requested more weapons and goods from us for his soldiers, but more importantly, there are rumors of a new labyrinth being found. If they¡¯re true, adventurers will be looking to buy a lot of equipment, so we need to be ready.¡°


    ?Makes sense, makes sense.¡°


    Nodding appreciatively, my little brother looked on with interest and an amused expression.


    Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    So that¡¯s it. Pretty keen of Lear to catch onto that so quickly.


    An exasparated sigh resounded from behind me. Distancing herself from our conversation, mom walked in the direction of the house. As she approached the door, she turned around and called out to us.


    ?Alright you three, I¡¯ll start getting ready to prepare dinner. In the meantime, you should¨C¡°


    ?Greetings. It has been a while.¡°


    Being interrupted yet again, mom turned around with an irritated expression, ready to give the person unfortunate enough to earn her ire a piece of her mind. When she saw the man behind her, though, she came to a stop.


    That same man got a good look at her face and then lowered his head in atonement.


    ?My apologies, miss Claire. It was quite untactful of me to discontinue your speech. I was merely eager to see you all again.¡°¡§


    Standing at least a head taller than mom, he straightened his robust back while still retaining a respectful posture towards her. The person who appeared as unexpectedly as always was none other than my mentor himself.


    ?Oh, it¡¯s¡­it¡®s you, Arius. Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s fine. I¡¯m just glad to see you¡¯re doing well.¡°


    A bit taken aback by his presence, mom slowly regained her composure as they exchanged words, stepping back in order to allow the others to get a good look at him.


    We all then greeted him in order of seniority and took a few steps closer.


    ?Argenti, hey! Been a while since you last appeared!¡°


    ?Mister, it¡¯s good to see you again.¡°


    ?Good day¡­Sir?¡°


    An unexplainable aura swelled around him, obstructing his features and making it difficult to get a good grasp of the man. It felt as if that mysterious air somehow clouded my mind and judgement, scattering a fog over my senses.


    Seeing our puzzled expressions, Mister Arius must have done something special as he lowered his hood, since whatever was messing with my head disappeared. The atmosphere changed and we could finally get a clear picture of him as everyone visibly relaxed.


    Dad was the first to comment on that.


    ?Woah, that¡¯s something. Pretty impressive cloak you got. I knew there was something off every time you went out. I bet you could get some ridiculous money for it, but you do know wearing stuff like that is illegal in cities, right? You don¡¯t want to get caught wearing it.¡°


    ?Indeed. Yet, it is precisely what lets me not get caught.¡°


    The two then exchanged looks before smiling at each other.


    It¡¯s not often these days that he shows up. Does he want to show me something again?


    ?Mister, what brings you here?¡°


    Meeting me with eyes that seemed to reflect the infinite expanse of the night within them, he spoke concisely.


    ?As you have surmised, It is time for another lesson. I want to take you somewhere not far from here, just along the city walls. Would your parents find that acceptable?¡°


    ?Wouldn¡¯t that be a bit dangerous, considering the current situation?¡°


    Mom asked assertively.


    ?No need to fret. I have already taken the neccesary precautions to guarantee our safety. The path I mapped out is undoubtedly secure.¡°


    Pausing for a moment, she thought hard and turned towards her husband.


    ?Hm¡­well, I trust your judgement. What do you say, dear?¡°


    ?They can go, sure¡­ but what about the tools I prepared¡­¡°


    Dejected and knowing fully well not to waste Arius¡® time, dad took a few steps back and looked at the ground in a dispirited manner.


    ?It¡¯s settled, then. You two can go, just make sure to get back before dinner.¡°


    ?You have my thanks, Miss Claire. I will make sure to do precisely that.¡°


    Woah, so we¡¯re really going! It¡¯s been a long time since we¡¯ve practiced with Numen.


    ?Alright, let¡¯s head out right after I get my stuff, Mister!¡°


    My teacher nodded at those words and we both entered the house to gather our things. Lear followed soon after to see what dad had prepared for us. The only ones who remained in the garden at that point were our parents. Breaking the silence between them, the woman with flowing dark blue hair quipped at her husband.


    ?So, how does it feel to have your lecture cut short?¡°


    ?I get it now, honey. I¡¯m sorry¡­¡°


    ¨C  ¨C


    A wide and lush scenery of green spread all around me as far as I could see. The trees shimmered gently in the distance, as if being caressed by a tender hand. A few faraway mountains pierced the clouds with their hazy peaks, the most prominent among them, God¡¯s hand, forming an imposing structure that seemed to stretch on and on with no end. Birds sung without a care in the world, creating a distinct harmony in the air, yet not ruling the character of the enviroment. A great deal of adventurers, travelers, nobles and businessmen alike scurried all over the main road leading to Merat, while the rest rode on boats and ferries on the river not far away from there.


    Simply put, nothing obstructed my view from atop the city walls. As we walked around them for a while, the man so eager to mentor me came to a stop at a point with even more impressive sights than before. Ever since we had climbed the stairs leading to the walls¡® top floor, he stopped using his cloak. Apparently, it requires a great deal of concentration and precise control of Numen to maintain its effect over long periods of time.


    ?What do you say, Jinas? A spectacle to behold, no?¡°


    ?Yeah, I haven¡¯t seen anything like this before. At least not from this high up.¡°


    ?I am glad, then. One can rarely come here, given that only guards are permitted to do so and the frequency of their patrols.¡°


    ?What? In that case, won¡¯t we get in trouble if they see us?¡°


    ?Not today, I am afraid. Truly, some of the forces stationed here are looking for me, however the bulk of them are engaged in quelling one of the Teral and demi-human uprisings taking place in a remote part of the kingdom. They will have their hands full today.¡°


    ?Oh, I see¡­¡°


    Hands folded behind his back, he looked solemnly into the distance, as if searching for something, or someone. In that moment, despite being surrounded by a bustling city, he looked terribly lonely. The wind blew lightly against his clothing and hair, spreading them behind him. He always seemed like the introverted type, but I hadn¡¯t seen him feel like that ever before.


    ?¡­I¡¯m sorry to hear that, Mister. I hope they¡¯ll be fine.¡°


    ?Yes, Jino. So do I.¡°


    Taking a deep breath, he continued while still facing the horizon.


    ?Man still hasn¡¯t evolved past the necessity for needless violence, and just like I am hunted for my vesper blood, Terals too are culled and feared for their past. Their abnormal appearance is enough to make them a target for most common folk, unfortunately. In response to this, they take up arms and defend themselves along with their families, just like a human would. Naturally, the other races pressure them even further due to that, seeking to extinguish all embers of rebellion. It is a vicious chain of death.¡°


    I know he¡¯s right, but doesn¡¯t that contradict the history he taught me? They¡¯re persecuted for their past slaughters and treachery because people fear they¡¯ll repeat them. Even that demi-human girl from before stole money from a man at the inn. Aren¡¯t their fears justified?


    ?But, Mister, don¡¯t they deserve it for what they did? Because of their betrayal in the second Great runic war, hundreds of thousands died. Isn¡¯t that what you said?¡°


    The air suddenly became rigid. Hearing those words, Mister Arius turned his head in my direction and skewered me with an intense gaze. For a while, I swore I could feel a tiny sliver of anger in the eyes of the ever so stoic and docile man.


    ?Did I also not say that they did so for the sake of their own survival? Had they not broken off from the alliance and sided with my people, they would have been the next ones to face extinction. They are merely a people determined to live, yet are still being driven out of this continent in a senseless war for events long eluding the current generations. The Emperor and the Church are the same, always looking for a scapegoat to rally against. Unlike them, we must not form our opinions of others based solely on their past and our one sided view of them. If we are to live in a world devoid of meaningless conflict, we must learn to forgive as well as to accept our differences. The cycle of hatred must end.¡°


    ?¡­¡°


    A long silence settled over us. Whatever I had seen in his eyes just a few moments ago was already gone by the time he finished talking. My body felt heavy and a mix of emotions swirled inside my stomach, the strongest one of them being remorse. Seconds changed into minutes as I stood motionlessly before getting a hold of myself again.


    I didn¡¯t mean to make you sad or angry, Mister¡­I¡¯m just¡­


    ?I¡¯m sorry. I shouldn¡¯t have said that.¡°


    ?Remember what you heard. You will meet many people during your life. Some of them are bound to be of uncertain character or history. Do not allow yourself to brand them as others do without attempting to learn the truth yourself. Use your own eyes and ears, child. Your own head. Be better than those before you.¡°


    ?Yes, sir. I¡¯ll do my best.¡°


    Turning around completely, Mister Arius faced me with the usual face I had been used to. Stern and calm, but this time with a slight smile.


    ?I should also apologize, Jinas. Being able to control myself at all times should be expected of one such as me. Besides, that was not why I have brought you here today.¡°


    He walked over to the inner side of the wall and kneeled down. A dim blue glow illuminated his face as he brushed aside dust from a spot nearing the structure¡¯s top. There, an unfamiliar symbol carved into the stonework revealed itself. Much larger than any my teacher had ever shown me before, nearly as big as my head, it seemed almost odd and out of place in such a location.


    A rune? Why would there be something like that on the city walls?


    Kneeling still, he turned towards me.


    ?What do you see?¡°


    ?A rune, a huge one at that.¡°


    ?In that case, what inscription does it bear? Can you read it?¡°


    The etching seemed old, far older than I could appreciate. At the same time, or maybe due to it, I was only barely able to make out the syllables represented in it.


    Even so, reading in the language of the words was never my strong point. I liked to think that it was because I had practiced it only a few times with Mister Arius before.


    ?It says¡­C¨­n¡­st¨¡ns. What does that mean? And why is it on a wall out here?¡°


    ?That, Jinas, is yet another application of runes. Up until now, you had only witnessed the usage of nouns within them, but adjectives and adverbs are also words capable of being utilized by them. One such adjective is etched into the wall here to fortify its structure.¡°


    Word classes, huh? Yeah, I think I learned something like that during one of the lessons¡­


    ?Alright, but the inscription ¨C what does c¨­nst¨¡ns mean?¡°


    ?It means firm, or persevering. Great masters of the craft engraved this here hundreds of years ago to improve the wall¡¯s stability and, to a degree, alter its truest nature to that of an even more resilient object.¡°


    ?Alter its nature? Like what? Is it something like the rune we have on our hearth?¡°


    ?No, your hearth simply creates fire through the use of a basic noun such as Ignis. In such a case, the properties of the used object remain the same, since it is only utilized as a medium for external effects. Here, however, only the qualities of the wall itself change, making it more robust.¡°


    ?Huh, is that so¡­¡°


    Stepping back, I looked at the entire scene from a bit farther away and scratched the top of my head.


    I think I get it. Well, at least sort of. Even so, I have a feeling there¡¯s something odd about this that I¡¯m not realising¡­


    Mister Arius must have seen me looking puzzled as a calm voice broke me out of the trance I soon found myself in.


    ?Is anything unclear, Jinas?¡°


    ?What? No, it¡¯s fine. There¡¯s just something I¡¯m trying to figure out, but I can¡¯t quite put my finger on it.¡°


    ?It is of no matter if you cannot yet comprehend its complexity. In due time, you will unearth and grasp all manner of the truths around you through experience.¡°


    ?Right, and if I still don¡¯t get it, I can just have you explain again.¡°


    ?I would not be so sure of that¡­¡°


    ?What do you mean? Do you want to stop teaching me?¡°


    ?Not that, child. There is one last reason I brought you out here.¡°


    ?And that would be?¡°


    He looked at me with his usual serene expression for a while. Then, if only for a moment, he smiled warmly and took a step closer.


    ?Tommorow, I am leaving Merat. The preparations are already all set.¡°


    Leaving? That can¡¯t be¡­


    ?No way! You just returned, Mister!¡°


    ?There is no need for such agitation. The time I have spent here with your family has been far too great and as such the danger I have exposed you to far too large. It would be unwise of me to linger here much longer.¡°


    But, I don¡¯t want him to leave. He doesn¡¯t come around much often anymore, however he¡¯s still my teacher. Someone I¡¯ve grown close to. I don¡¯t want to lose him.


    ?Then¡­just how am I supposed to study alone? Numen, runes, history, languages¨C you know there¡¯s no way I¡¯d dive into any of those on my own. You can¡¯t just leave!¡°


    ?Perhaps not as of now. One day, however, you will find yourself mature enough to do so.¡°


    ?Maybe that¡¯s true, but still! I¨C I don¡¯t want you to go¡­¡°


    What¡¯s with me, I¡¯m so lame. Why am I getting so emotional over this? I feel more childish than Lear, damn it.


    I made a somber expression as a warm breeze washed over the both of us, brushing through my teacher¡¯s hair. Judging from his silence, he seemed a bit taken aback and surprised by my reaction. Even so, it didn¡¯t take him long to respond.


    ?It seems you have grown more fond of me than I would have ever expected. While such a truth is not unpleasant to me, it makes our parting that much more unfortunate¡­¡°


    Another pause was soon followed by his eyes setting their sights on me intensely, as if trying to look into the farthermost reaches of my very soul.


    ?¡­for both of us. Trust me, I know the depth of your sorrow very well. Alas, this will serve as my final lesson to you before we reunite again. Even if you were to forget all of our prior conversations, remember this.¡°


    ?Remember what? That you¡¯re leaving?¡°


    ?Precisely. Life is a cycle of arrival, change and departure. Countless people will enter your life and change it in ways you would have found unthinkable before and just as many of them will disappear without you having the time to realise how much they meant to you. That is the cruel and beautiful truth of reality.¡°


    ?I don¡¯t like that at all, what¡¯s so beautiful about it?¡°


    A fire seemingly lit up in his eyes, engulfing the endless night and expanse of stars depicted within them in a show of emotion. It was the first time I had ever seen my teacher speak with passion capable of consuming even his ever composed side.


    ?The beauty of life lies in its evanescence, Jino. Were it not so fleeting and ephemeral, we would not appreciate it as dearly as we do. Just like everyone we meet, it is momentary and passing, which is precisely what makes it worth it. The places you visit will change you, as will your experiences and the ones you meet. And after some time, they will all be gone. One day, you will come to understand. Life will mold you. Until it does, you must not forget to cherish that which you take for granted. That which crosses your path. And once you can treasure it, you must find within yourself the strength to let it go, for true beauty cannot last forever.¡°


    ?That¡¯s¡­that¡¯s just like you, Mister. To say such cool stuff before leaving¡­¡°


    ?There is much more I would like to tell you, yet there is no time. We must return before nightfall. You may come see me off tommorow.¡°


    ?Alright then, I¡¯ll definitely come¡­¡°


    Will that be the last time I ever see him?


    ?Once again, your worries are misplaced. This will not be the last time we meet.¡°


    ?Really? If you say so, I¡¯ll believe it. Let¡¯s go home, then.¡°


    ?Indeed. Come.¡°


    Finishing our conversation, we moved to descend the stone stairway leading down into the streets. Mister Arius put on his hood again and I sensed a strange and inexplicable feeling when standing next to him, as if I had a hard time imagining his face and thinking about him. Yet, it was far easier to make out his features and realise who he was than before.


    I wonder why that is¡­wait, how did he know precisely what I had been thinking just now? Was it just a hunch? I swear, I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll ever be able to understand him.


    And just like that, we left the sturdy walls behind and navigated back home through the slender streets of one of the largest cities of the Pelagus continent.


    ¨C  ¨C


    The old wooden bed in my room creaked as I sat atop it. A sense of relief and easiness washing over me, I put away all of my belongings and laid down.


    It was late evening when we got home from the city walls and by the time we finished dinner, it was already time to sleep. The exhaustion of a day filled with exercise and walking set in and I was just about to doze off, but a familiar voice kept me up.


    ?¡­and it was totally defective, believe that! You should have seen the look on dad¡¯s face when he realized he would have to return it in that state.¡°


    ?I can only imagine, but don¡¯t you think it¡¯s a bit late for talking? You¡¯re too overexcited about the smallest of things, Lear, and I¡¯d like to sleep early tonight.¡°


    This isn¡¯t only my room, after all. Lear sleeps on the other side of it¡­


    Grumbling, he quietly said something and crawled under the blanket carefully prepared on his bed.


    ?Come on, I just wanted to tell you what I did while you were gone. You, though, haven¡¯t said anything about what you did outside with Mister Arius since you returned.¡°


    ?As I said, I¡¯ll tell you all tommorow once we see him off. I really don¡¯t want to sleep in and miss his departure just because I stayed up late.¡°


    Right, he¡¯s leaving in the morning and there¡¯s nothing we can do. He wants to disappear before the streets get busy, but not while it¡¯s still dark so as to not raise suspicion. This sudden leave of his was the only thing we disscussed during dinner today.


    Honestly, I¡¯m not even surprised by him anymore.


    ?Okay, but that¡¯s a promise. I¡¯ll finish the story tommorow.¡°


    ?Great, we¡¯ll have enough time for it later.¡°


    I turned over and closed my eyes. Minutes passed as I laid motionlessly while trying to fall asleep. My thoughts, however, wouldn¡¯t let me do that.


    Does it really have to be this way?


    An eerie silence permeated the room, as if mentally connecting me with my brother and telling me he too wasn¡¯t asleep. Moments turned into ages and Lear¡¯s meek whisper finally broke the air of anxiety around us.


    ?Do you think he¡¯ll come back one day?¡°


    ?Of course, I¡¯m sure he will. In the end, he¡¯s our teacher.¡°


    ?Right, I¡¯ll miss him, though.¡°


    ?Me too buddy¡­goodnight.


    ?Goodnight Jino.¡°


    I tried closing my eyes again and soon found myself falling asleep. The worries both of us were keeping in must have dispersed after that brief exchange. Only one final thought crept up in my mind.


    I know what was puzzling me earlier, back atop the walls. How come the inscription has remained in the stonework for so long? Every rune I had seen before always disappeared after a while. That¡¯s odd, I¡¯ll have to ask someone later¡­


    ¨C  ¨C


    Something tickled and irritated my eyelids. I slowly opened them to see what, but I could already tell based on the faint heat that seeped into them. Sun rays filled the room and signalled the beginning of another day. I yawned a little and got up to sit.


    ?Good morning, is it time already?¡°


    Just like me a while ago, Lear was still asleep. Looking through the window, I could see the sun coming up, hovering comfortably high above the walls of Merat.


    Huh, it¡¯s pretty bright outside for this time of the day¡­


    I looked around to search for the clothes I took off before sleeping yesterday and found them tossed beside my bed. Slowly putting them on, I became more and more awake as I kept realising the situation I was in.


    But, there¡¯s no way it would be this sunny so early in the morning, is there?


    ?Mom, dad? Good morning, should I go get ready?¡°


    Calling out into the hallway hesitantly, I fell into despair as no answer came back and the severity of what was happening set in.


    You¡¯ve got to be kidding me¡­


    ?Lear! Wake up! We¡¯re going to miss Mister Arius!¡°