Love to Fushica, Tela, WindKitsuneofDarkness, Anonymous, Kenryo, and Ellie0223 for reviewing!
I decided to update more frequently with shorter chapters...no smut in this one yet, sorry to those who were waiting for it :(
Scene VIII – Ocean
Hugel was not called the Garden City without a reason.
The air was chilly but smelled like freshly melted snow. There was a surprising amount of greenery and colour considering the city's geographical location. It was not a bustling place like Prontera, nor did it have many outstanding features. Just a quiet, quaint, humble little mountain town. But there was some inexplicable presence in the atmosphere that would make even the most surly grouch smile.
And that was truly fortunate for the group that had arrived presently in the town square.
Passer-bys stared as the troup consisting of sage, high priest, alchemist, champion, and stalker emerged from a warp portal gate. Hugel wasn't exactly a popular venue for travellers, and these people did not look like they were here to sight-see either.
"Where's the inn?" Yuresia mused to no one in particular.
After asking around, the group found themselves standing in front of a cottage of sorts, slightly larger than the rest but just as…plain and unimpressive. But the flowers at front of the house was very well tended to, showing that whoever owned the place was a very meticulous person.
The door was open, the sage stepped in. Floorboards creaked, the air smelled like lemons. There were tables and chairs set up neatly around the room, but not a soul in sight. Perhaps it was still too early in the morning.
"It's so…quiet…" Irya whispered as if she didn't dare disturb the peace.
Then someone popped up from behind the counter at front. Yuresia jumped clean off the floor.
The person blew a stray strand of chestnut-coloured hair from her eyes and gave a wide, cheerful grin.
"Sorry, didn't see you there!" Her voice was loud and hearty. She was a middle-aged woman, dressed in simple, commoner clothes and a white apron. "Five people! Lovely lovely, here to see the poring farm? Brave the Odin Temple? Get married? Bit too young for that, ain't you? Haha!"
"Erm…eh…" Yuresia was quite overwhelmed by the fast-firing chatter.
"But too bad we're clean out of rooms for five people! So y'all have to snuggle up real tight!"
"Actually…" The high priest interrupted, "We're looking for the innkeeper…"
"You're talking to the girl right now!" She put her hands on her hips and smiled even wider.
"Uh…I have a letter…for you." Yuresia extracted the document from the bag on her waist and held it out to the overtly bubbly middle-aged lady.
"Why, you're an angel, darling!" The innkeeper was please as anything. She opened the envelope and glanced through the contents.
Suddenly, the smile fell from her face. Replaced was an expression best described as disbelief. Her eyes darted from the letter to Yuresia, who stood there, puzzled.
"No…it…it…" For the first time, she did not put together a vivacious sentence. "You're…you're…"
The sage blinked as the brown-haired innkeeper rushed out from the counter and hugged her tightly, then held her at an arm's length as she studied the girl with tears in her slightly wrinkled eyes.
"Oh girl, you've grown so much! The last time I saw you you were still small enough to hold in one arm!" She gushed, "Your hair, those eyes! You're the very spitting image of your parents!"
"M-my parents?"
"Yes, Renna and Fal!"
"How…did you know?" Yuresia was even more baffled. She certainly had never told anyone who her parents were…And if it really had been so long since the woman had seen her, she would definitely not have recognised her.
"This letter!"
The sage and her comrades all crowded around the piece of paper as the innkeeper turned it around for them to see.
To Borea and Ivanil,
This is Safira. It must have been a long time since you heard from me. I will save the greetings for later. The sage that bears this letter is the daughter of professor Findel. I tried to withhold her for her own protection at AYUS but she insisted on leaving to pursue the rank of scholar. Please look after her, for the sake of my late teacher.
Yours Sincerely,
Safira Lazuli Myer
"Safira…" Hiroki whispered. He had no idea…that she was also trying to protect Yuresia. Inside, he felt just a little guilty for going up against her like how he did. It was even more of a surprise to find out that the high wizard was once Falmoore's student…just like how he was that person's…he looked away.
"What's with the gathering, dear?"
A deep, disembodied male voice spoke from somewhere in the room. All the visitors except Penguin, who looked like he was used to this kind of exchange, glanced around nervously.
"Oh psh, darling, stop scaring the guests and come out!"
As sudden as the voice that had come, a towering man appeared from seemingly nowhere, standing even taller than Genbu. He was not a young man anymore, but would still be considered handsome by anyone's standards. A thin braid from his slightly greying reddish brown hair rested on his left shoulder as he studied the visitors with mildly amused crimson eyes.
"Assassin." Penguin mumbled under his breath.
"That's Assassin Cross to you, Mister Stalker."
The rogue looked like he had been slapped hard across the face. But he refrained from starting an argument, he had a feeling the assassin cross before them could be deadly if provoked.
"Hush dear, that's not polite." The woman patted the tall man on the shoulder and chided. "Look! It's Yuresia! Isn't she such a beauty now?"
The sage blushed involuntarily, no one had ever called her…a beauty before. The brown-haired man studied her for a few seconds.
"She's Renna, all over again." He came to the conclusion.
Yuresia turned even redder and found her shoes extremely interesting. Sensing her discomfort, the older woman nudged the assassin.
"This would be my husband, Ivanil."
"Call me Ivy and die." He warned in a tone that was far from joking.
"And I'm Borea, but call me Bory!" The chestnut-haired lady ignored her husband and introduced herself. "Welcome to Hugel, Yure."
It was inexplicable, but from the innkeepers, Yuresia could feel the distant and long lost ambience of…family. She smiled.
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"So you two are retired?"
The seven people sat around a table, a cup of steaming tea at each place. The previously invisible customers of the inn emerged from their rooms and sat around the common area, chatting quietly to themselves.
Borea nodded. "I was once a whitesmith with a killer figure – oh don't look at me like that dear, I haven't moved these abs in ages!"
Everyone mentally sweatdropped at the fact that a woman could talk about being fat with such ease. But Yuresia smiled again, she really had taken a liking to the former-smith and her husband.
Ivanil suddenly turned his red gaze to the sage and held out a hand, the girl blinked in surprise.
"Your dagger, if you please." He clarified his intentions. Yuresia unsheathed her weapon and handed it to the assassin cross former.
" Damascus, powerful, but heavy. Not easy to control. Well balanced, the blade's sharp enough. You've taken good care of it." He analysed while balancing the weapon with one finger. With a swift flick of his wrist, Yuresia found the hilt of her dagger pointed towards her.
"You seem determined enough." The assassin remarked knowingly.
"I want to become a scholar as soon as possible…but I just…don't know how…" Yuresia received the Damascus and confessed, eyes not leaving the blade's shiny surface.
"If you're talking about daggers. My Ive knows all about them." Borea winked, "You could learn a lot from him, you know."
The sage's eyes brightened. "Can I…really?"
The innkeepers nodded.
"I can…train with you, Ivanil?"
The tall man nodded again. "Two months. Two months and I'll send you to the Valkyrie."
Yuresia jumped up from her seat, ecstatic.
"Thank you thank you thank you! I won't let you down!" She beamed as a new path to the future lied ahead.
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It was late afternoon as the sage hugged her alchemist friend goodbye. Since Yuresia had decided to stay in Hugel and train with the retired assassin cross, Irya felt she also needed to head back to Alde Baran to continue her studies in her biochemical fields. Hiroki decided to stay with Yuresia, while Genbu would go with Irya. Penguin had no comment as he crossed his arms and watched the decision-making around him with disinterest.
"Two months!" Irya grinned broadly, "Two months later, let's go meet the Valkyrie together! It's a promise!"
The white feathers quivered as the blue-haired girl nodded vigorously.
"One more thing!"
As Genbu opened a warp portal, Irya shouted and rushed back to her friend. However, her goal was not Yuresia, but Hiroki. She tugged his sleeve, indicating for the tall priest to bend down. When he did so, she whispered something into his ear, grinning mysteriously.
Hiroki looked surprised, but smiled and nodded. Yuresia looked on with a raised eyebrow. After the clandestine conversation, the alchemist bounded back to where the champion was waiting for her.
"Bye bye! See you in two months!" Irya then waved before disappearing into the portal.
Just as Genbu was about to follow after her, a shadow darted in front of him. The stalker smirked as he dived into the swirling white. He made a choice after all.
The fist fighter looked aghast as he slapped his forehead, but there was no turning back. With a final glance at Hiroki and Yuresia, Genbu also stepped into the magical gate to Alde Baran.
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"This will be your room!"
Yuresia and Hiroki stared. It was a spacious room, with a small desk, chairs, wardrobe, a large window with white curtains and a bed.
That was the problem, there was only one bed.
"It's the only place we've left." Explained Borea, "Couples love it."
""But…we're not…" The sage tried to clarify what seemed to be a misunderstanding. Hiroki looked remorseful.
"I'm sure you'll make do, somehow!" The innkeeper's smile was way too wide for Yuresia's comfort. "You two look like you've been through a lot. So shoo, take a shower and let me wash those dirty clothes. I'll bring some clean ones you can borrow for now."
The two people obediently went to clean themselves as Borea threw their dirty job uniforms in with the mountain of laundry, the former-smith certainly wouldn't be the one to wash all of these by herself. But that will have to wait as she rummaged through her own closet and dug out a plain, white dress for Yuresia, then from her husband's garment drawers, a shirt and trousers for the high priest.
She smoothed out the dress, it was not extraordinary. But she imagined it would look great on the sage. Borea giggled like a young girl at the thought.
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Yuresia hadn't worn a dress in ages, it took a lot of twisting and turning before she discovered the sinfully unapparent zipper at the back. It fitted well onto her form, except for the chest areas, which hung a bit loose. It was probably Borea's dress when the smith was younger, and what she meant by 'killer figure' might have included the frontal areas that Yuresia, for better or worse, was not immensely well endowed with.
She walked into the room that was to be shared with…that high priest. He was still taking his time. She sat herself down on the soft mattress. The window was open, and from outside, she could hear the long, forlorn cries of seagulls.
Hiroki…why didn't he want her to know about what happened? Vanhugen had said something that shook her from the very depths of her soul. But she couldn't be sure, she won't jump to conclusions, not until she get some decisive answers from…him.
The door creaked open.
"Ah…" Both high priest and sage took a look at each other and was at a loss for words.
Breathe, Yure, breathe! It's good for you! She told herself fiercely.
Damn it. No one has ever looked that good wearing a plain white shirt and black pants that were just a bit too big even for him. They were probably Ivanil's clothes, considering their size.
Silence ensued.
It was strange now that the rest of their companions had left, both parties found it terribly hard to start a conversation.
"Don't you have…something to tell me?" Yuresia said uneasily at last.
"Eh?"
"There's something I…want to make sure." The sage's expression became even more troubled as she balled her fists on her thighs.
"Hiroki…what Vanhugen said…is it true?"
The first thing to cross his thoughts was that Vanhugen had said a lot of things, and none of them remotely pleasant. But at the back of his mind, he knew, he was certain, that she meant one thing only...
"Hiroki….Did you really kill Dad?"
He panicked.
"Listen to me, Yure, I—"
She shook her head and it shut him up. "I want you to answer me truthfully, did you kill my Dad?"
"I…I can explain!"
"DID YOU OR DID YOU NOT KILL MY DAD?"
Yuresia desperately wanted the one-worded answer he was so unwilling to give. She wished with all her heart that everything would be a lie. But from how the high priest was responding, her spirits sank lower and lower. Why did he still need to make excuses if the truth was the truth? There was silence, and thick, smothering tension.
"…Yes, I did."
That was the answer.
Suddenly, the world seemed so cruel. She felt like someone had dumped a bucket of ice-cold water on her, or hit her over and over with a barbed mace, or taken her and ripped her insides out while she was still alive. Her vision turned white, and the tears, the tears she could no longer hold back…
The sage in the white dress burst out of the inn in the orange dusk, her bare feet making crisp slapping sounds on the pavements of Hugel, in her wake, little dark splotches of liquid seeped through the stone.
Hiroki still stood in the room, not completely aware as to what had happened, but why did it agonise him so?
In the instant he answered her, he despised himself. Unconsciously, he clutched the large silver cross, the symbol of his priestly rank that hung at his chest. It did not provide any much needed comfort.
What good would the future do…if the past still hurts?
"Whatcha doing still standing there?" There came a voice from the door. It was Borea, nonchalantly drying a dish in her hands.
Hiroki looked up but didn't respond. What was he supposed to do? What could he do?
"There are women predators about after dark…" The innkeeper lady informed him with a serious look in her eyes.
Hiroki blanched.
Two seconds later, the high priest was dashing out of the building at full speed. The middle-aged woman looked after his tall, disappearing form, and shook her head.
"Is there really?" A low voice in the shadows asked.
She turned around and shrugged, "No, but I figured he needed a push."
"You're as devious as always, my dear." Ivanil appeared and wrapped his arms around his wife's shoulders.
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Yuresia didn't know where she was going. All she knew was when she stopped, her legs had moved so much they hurt, and her lungs felt like they were going to burst into flames. She panted, from the effort of running and crying.
Freezing cold water lapped at her feet, she yelped a little at the shock. But soon realised she was looking out into an endless stretch of dancing orange lights. The sand cushioned her aching soles, and salty ocean breeze dried her wet face.
It was a mystery how emotions could come in bouts at a time, as the despair bubbled up like lava through her again. Yuresia felt her throat tighten, and water starting to form in her eyes. It was so…unlike her, unlike her independent and strong-minded self, but it pained her heart so much, to just hold it all in… The sage threw back her head and wailed to the sky, her throat felt like sandpaper but she didn't care. Tears flowed in two steady streams down her cheeks and neck.
…why?
Why must the world work this way?
Why?
Why must it be Hiroki who had killed Dad?
WHY?
Why am I…why am I…unable to hate that smile?
When she felt she was done crying her pitiful heart out to the dimming sky, Yuresia crouched down and pulled herself into a fetal position. It was cold. Her long, sky blue hair slid over her shoulders and fell onto the wet sand between her feet. The droplets of sorrow still tumbled from her sore eyes, but disappeared into the foaming waves without a trace. She held her shoulders and shivered, it was fine by her, just being like this, forever and ever. The physical cold and discomfort was nothing compared to her inner turmoil.
"Yure…"
It was after an undetermined period of time, she heard that familiar voice, and felt a hand on her shoulder.
The sage jumped up and backed away from him, from the cause of all her pain.
"D-don't touch me! Leave me alone!" She screamed as she turned and ran down the beach, hearing his fast-approaching footsteps behind her. In an impulse, she veered towards the sea and crashed through the waves. Icy cold seeped to her skin, and she bit her teeth together to stop them from chattering. Her legs and feet turned numb, Yuresia looked back and saw the high priest at the edge of the water, a look of pure horror across his face.
"YURE! GET BACK HERE!" He hollered at her.
"NO!" She shrieked at him, "GO AWAY! LEAVE ME ALONE! PLEASE!"
"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?"
"MAYBE I AM!"
It tore at his heart, to see her that way. Her willowy form shivering from being battered by the waves but was looking at him with torment in those emerald eyes. One thing after another had happened to her and if she comes down with some illness, he could never forgive himself.
Hiroki bit his lower lip, and lowered a foot into the water.
"Yure…I know I've been running away from the past!"
She was shocked that he would go to such lengths to reach her. But Yuresia stood still, her lower body would not listen to her even as she urged for them to move away from him. He continued to wade through the same bitter waves of the sea.
"A past I didn't want to face…I thought I could get away from it all if I just ditch my wizard's cape and rebirth as something else, but this world's never as simple as that!"
He was a few metres away, a large breaker came down on his side, soaking his shirt and slowing him down.
"Why did I choose to be a priest? I had no idea, and I lived my life aimlessly everyday, not knowing what purpose I serve. I'm a God's servant, but I'm also a protector, a protector who has no one to protect…"
She could see his dark hair clinging to his face, and the determination in his eyes as he closed in on her.
"Until I met you, Yure."
Hiroki's arms came around her shoulder and her back, and the next thing she knew, she was pulled up with her head propped against his left shoulder. She tried to struggle in defiance, but his arms were strong as he held her to him. She felt…warm, as if that was a feeling that had long since disappeared from her memory.
"And I realised that I can't run forever, because you never ran away, and I won't anymore. I did kill your father, I won't deny it, and I can't change the past."
His voice was coming from somewhere above her. The events involving her and him, it was all too chaotic, yet fateful. She let herself indulge in the warmth of his embrace. The truth hurt, it would drive her insane to think, and she didn't feel like doing any of that now.
"But…I can protect you…let me stay by your side, Yure. It's the least I can do."
His voice was but a bare whisper but she heard him clear as day. The sage buried her face into the fabric in front of her, it was already wet from seawater, a little more moisture wouldn't hurt… Her own arms found themselves around his middle, he responded by holding her even closer.
"…forgive me."
The curtain of stars was already drawn as the sun sank completely into the sea. Two people stood amongst the rough waters for the longest time, embracing for the sake of embracing, for the sake of being there for each other. The waves still beat relentlessly on the both of their bodies, but the cold could hold nothing to the beating of two warm hearts…
"Umm…I think we should head back…our clothes are all wet…"
"…I agree…"
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A/N: Ok ok I PROMISE I'll update sooner next time. Next chapter is of the antics of Irya, and how she babysits the champion and stalker. Stay tuned! And review please:3