Chapter 7 - You Don't Have To Feel Alone Anymore

Hermina stood at the top of the three crates stacked on top of each other at the side of the street, right in front of the restaurant where Aqueo and her were supposed to meet after an hour. Everyone who passed by gave her a weird look. She would occasionally flail her arms high up in the air in the hope that Aqueo would see her or she would see him from that height.

There were people who expressed their concerns and urged her to come down but she didn't. There were many people all around the Hyndrel Townsquare and she couldn't risk missing him in that sea of people or him arriving while she was gone.

It had been a quarter of an hour when she heard some people talking—or gossiping, loudly, as she preferred to describe it—as they were nearing her.

"—that fight was awesome! I don't know anyone that managed to make them struggle like that," a guy exclaimed.

It earned an equally excited response from the two guys walking beside him. Hermina thought they were just talking about the tournament, but it was still not time, she thought, or maybe they started it earlier this time. She really needed to find Aqueo right now because her master instructed her to make Aqueo watch the tournament.

"Yeah! The whole Downtown was a mess. They destroyed a lot of shops in the middle of the street. That student was amazing. It was four against one."

When Hermina heard that, she immediately jumped from the top of three crates. Her long maid uniform ruffled loudly in the air and she landed in front of the three walking guys with a thud.

"Wait! Can I hear what happened at the Downtown?"

No answers. The three guy's faces were red while looking at her. They saw her jump from the top of the crates and who knew what else they saw while she was in the air.

Hermina stared back at them, her face was eager for an answer. When they didn't speak, she repeated, "What happened at the Downtown?"

"Uh-uhm. Th-the downtown," a guy finally said, still blushing. "Uhh! There was an attempt to catch a student. The whole downtown was a mess."

"Student?" she asked, worrying that Aqueo might've been the one they were talking about. It was an unusual coincidence and she had already thought about the possibility that he might've ended up in trouble.

"Yeah! They're trying to catch one again. It was an amazing fight. They wrecked a lot of shops," a guy said excitedly while blushing.

Now, Hermina was thinking that Aqueo might've been affected by the fight and he might be injured right now.

"Thank you," she said while already walking away, immediately deciding to check if he was there.

But as she strode away, she heard one of the guys said, "—they said it was too much for his lucky beast head—"

Her eyes widened and her walk immediately turned into a run. It must be Aqueo wearing the lucky hat that she bought for him.

. . .

Aqueo weakly opened his eyes and saw a white ceiling. Feeling several times weaker and hungrier, he felt like he had just relived his previous life, and the soft bed did little to comfort his body.

He immediately searched for Aquifer, wanting the spirit’s warmth even closer even though he was already feeling it. The spirit was looking at the things on the wooden shelf on his left side, it floated toward him when he urged it to come closer through their connection.

He wanted to hug the spirit but refrained himself because he knew it would make him weaker. He badly wanted to know how their connection works so he could find a way to prevent that.

And right now, he also wanted to know how he ended up in this room. Who saved him?

He heard footsteps so he looked at the doorway in front of him. A guy his age carrying a tray of food and water emerged from there who stopped walking when he saw Aqueo looking at him. He was wearing the same uniform as him. He must be the one who saved him.

“Huh? You're already awake? Th-that was fast!” he stuttered in astonishment. The student in front of him was hallucinating and muttering things a few minutes ago when he left him to get some food and water. His cries and shouts had diminished greatly for a while into silent mumblings and he wasn't struggling anymore so he decided to prepare some food for him just in case he woke up. He didn't expect it to be so soon. That purple gas was so powerful and he should be unconscious for days, if not dead.

“How are you feeling?” he asked as he walked toward the bedside table and carefully put the tray there.

“Uh-uhmm! I’m—uh—” Aqueo was about to say he was fine and to thank the guy but felt that his throat was so dry, so he said instead, “W-water!”

“Uhm. I’ll make you sit first.” He helped Aqueo sit and noticed that he was too weak to anchor himself properly, so he decided to hold the glass while making him drink.

He drank it. Slowly. And at that moment, and from that distance, Rinoan noticed how the darkened parts of Aqueo's face changed in color, they went lighter as Aqueo drank his water. Aqueo closed his eyes as he felt the feeling he felt when he was hearing the beautiful sound in the lake chamber. His strength was recovering gradually and he drank faster and faster until the glass was empty.

He opened his eyes and they met Rinoan’s. He looked surprised. He noticed that he was holding his hand so he let go of it. “Sorry!” Aqueo realized that he unconsciously used his own hands to raise the bottom of the glass. “Thank you for saving me… and for the water!” His throat wasn't dry anymore, but he was still hungry.

Rinoan, still astonished, just said, “You! How did you—”

“Uhmm,” Aqueo couldn't help himself but to look at the direction of the tray.

“Uhh—right,” Rinoan put down the glass and took the tray to Aqueo and held it for him. “Let's do the talking later.”

Aqueo gave him a look of asking for permission and Rinoan gave him a nod. He took the spoon and started eating. He, again, felt the pleasant feeling when he was hearing the beautiful sound in the lake chamber. The warmth from Aquifer was definitely greater but this pleasant feeling was different and distinct in its own and the way he felt his body getting stronger was satisfying.

Rinoan just looked at him in astonishment. The dark patches on Aqueo's skin are becoming lighter at a faster rate, some even vanishing completely. It was the first time he encountered something like this. The student in front of him was healing all by himself. He felt excited at the possibilities if he could be his team member. If only the slave traders weren't after him.

Aqueo finished it fast. But he was still feeling hungry, so he looked at Rinoan with a wanting-for-more look. Rinoan took the tray of food and thought that the student was too shy to ask for water. “I’ll get you some water.”

He quickly went to the kitchen to get another glass of water and back to the waiting Aqueo who looked so eager for it.

Aqueo muttered a thank you again and drank the entire glass.

He held the glass on his lap and again, said, “Thank you for saving me.” He was still feeling weak and hungry but much stronger than before. He thought of asking for more food but felt shy about it.

“You're welcome!” he responded. Rinoan observed his skin and saw that some had not fully healed and he still looked weak so he immediately said, “I think I have to bring you more food. I have to go outside to buy some ingredients. Wait here for a minute.”

Aqueo was a bit confused how he figured that out, but then he remembered Himi’s questions and decided to just let him. Before Rinoan left, while taking something in his uniform, he said, “If you're going to do that, you can use this.” He took out his pouch of Silversprouts and gave it to Rinoan.

Rinoan took it. “I-Yeah, sure! I’ll be back immediately,” he said reassuringly.

“And—”

Rinoan paused when Aqueo spoke again. “And?”

Aqueo hesitated a bit. “Can you buy around ten times the serving you just gave me? I-uhh need a lot of food to regain my strength,” he said awkwardly while remembering himself eating at the mansion. He just really needed around five but thought of leaving half behind as a thank you.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

“Alright! Got it!” He smiled at him before going out.

Aqueo was left alone with Aquifer who he didn't notice had been busy looking at the things on the shelf. He was quite relieved that his savior didn't give him any weird look. Maybe he knew something about his situation. He saw how he looked at him while he was eating, a similar look of curiosity and wonder that Aquifer was usually making. He was glad he didn't lose the pouch of Silversprouts while he was running. He thought of leaving everything to Wyrfena but had a second thought that he might end up needing it later.

. . .

“Can I go now?” Wyrfena asked the chef in the kitchen.

The chef ate another spoonful of the dish she just prepared. His eyes were closed as he savored the taste.

She had been trying to convince him to let her go earlier today because she was worried about the safety of her new friend—as she had decided to call him already. He left a bunch of those extremely rare flowers for her and promised a hundred, of course she’d call him a friend.

“So?” Wyrfena repeated. Watching him take another mouthful of the dish she made with the flowers.

It was a gamble. She wanted to keep the flowers a secret. She didn't know if Aqueo would like it if she spread the news about the rare flowers. She had no choice but to use it as a bribe to let her go earlier even just this once.

“What's the ingredient you put in here?” the chef eyed her intently.

“I-uhh—have a secret ingredient—”

“And you didn't tell me?”

He sounded a little upset. She only put the tiniest amount of flowers in the food but it managed to enhance the taste of the dish greatly. If she served him the same dish she made for Aqueo, she was certain he would be really upset.

“I-uhh just discovered it—not that long ago—been testing it again and again to—make sure of the quality,” she lied.

The chef just stared at her, quite certain there was something wrong at the way she just responded.

Wyrfena smiled awkwardly, “Please?”

The chef just sighed and motioned his hand.

“Thank you so much!” Wyrfena celebrated and immediately ran outside while clutching Aqueo’s bag together with his lucky beast head, still wearing her waitress uniform.

If the chef hadn't threatened her that she would lose her job, she would have been outside already, looking for Aqueo to check if he was fine. There was a customer earlier that was talking about a student defeating the slave traders. When she heard the mention of slave traders she immediately went suspicious. They were here a while ago, when Aqueo vanished. She thought Aqueo might've lied to keep her from being involved in his situation. The customer said no one knew what happened to the student because the whole street was suddenly filled by the dreaded pink gas and everyone who wasn't caught fled from the scene.

Wyrfena ran until she found the mess on the street which she was sure was the product of the incident. She started asking the people around for clues. Nobody knew the exact location so the rumors had not spread already, but they were all pointing in the same direction based on what they saw.

It was a hot day and she was already sweating but still, she ran.

. . .

It had been a while and Wyrfena was feeling a bit tired now, but she still kept on running, although a bit slower this time. She asked more people and eventually found someone who told her new information.

Suddenly, she heard someone shout “wait” and she felt someone pull her arm that made her stop and almost fell on the ground.

“I-I’m sorry!”

It was a maiden wearing a maid uniform. They were both panting.

“That hat. And that bag. Do you know who owns it?” Hermina asked quickly.

“You know Aqueo?” Wyrfena asked.

“Yes,” Hermina exclaimed. “I'm looking for him. How did you know him?”

“I-uhh—he left his things to me. We met a while ago. I think the slave traders are after him.”

“That's definitely the case. Do you know where to find him?”

“They said down the Port, west Downtown. But I don't know where exactly,” Wyrfena answered.

“Let's hurry,” Hermina said and they both ran through the messy street.

When they reached the port they started asking for directions again because there were a few streets here leading to different locations.

The first three groups of people they asked didn't know which street the fresh rumors were exactly referring to until they ended up approaching a group of four people at the edge of the port where the sea met the edge of the stone ground.

“Ohh? You're also looking for that student, aren't you? Everyone’s talking about it,” a guy said immediately when Wyrfena and Hermina reached them, he saw them asking around and thought it must be about the current news.

“Uhm. Yes, that's right! Do you know which way the pink gas spread? They said west Downtown!” Wyrfena asked politely.

“It wasn't Downtown anymore actually. They went there,” he pointed, “but you can take a shortcut there,” he pointed at the farthest street from them, “four intersections forward, then two intersections to the right.”

“Thank you,” Wyrfena responded and they both started running again.

On the way, they talked about how they met Aqueo.

. . .

Rinoan finally came back with the food ingredients. He found Aqueo sitting on the chair beside his bed drinking a glass of water.

“I’m back!” he said quite cheerfully.

Aqueo turned around. “Uhm. Wel-come back.” He felt awkward responding like that. Nobody had ever done that to him. Was that even the right response? They were just strangers. But even so. Aqueo felt somehow emotional about it.

It was one of the kinds of interactions Aqueo saw in others or learned that he was hoping and wishing to experience someday aside from escaping from his captors. His idea of home. Saying ‘welcome back’ or ‘I’m back’. A family. A real one. Those simple gestures and greetings. He never experienced those. He was just watching others from afar as he lived under the control of human traffickers. So to experience something he had been wishing for—from someone who definitely wasn't affiliated with his abusers—was somehow touching to him. Just a normal interaction, not an act to gaslight him or manipulate him or anything of the sort. He was just a stranger but it still felt like his wish was fulfilled.

He approached Aqueo who was awkwardly holding the glass. “I- took some glasses of water. I hope you don't mind,” Aqueo said meekly, still hadn't regained his strength.

He smiled as he approached him. “Of course you're welcome to do so.” He pulled out some fruits from his shopping bag and placed them on the table. “It’ll take some time for me to finish cooking,” he said as he observed Aqueo's skin again. There were less patches of darkened skin on his face now than when he left him a while ago.

All of the fruits were quite familiar to Aqueo, thanks to Aquifer’s memories. He took one with an orange skin, “Uhm, thanks a lot for doing this for me.”

Rinoan smiled at him. “No problem at all. Come with me to the kitchen and watch me cook.” He took the fruits on the table and started going to the kitchen. Aqueo had no choice but to follow. Aquifer stayed in the bedroom and kept on looking at the thing on the shelf.

The kitchen wasn't that large too. The stove and sink were in the middle of the kitchen connected to a wide wooden counter, separated by a low wall of wooden plank. There were a couple of chairs so it must be functioning as the dining room as well. There were shelves around that contained kitchen utensils and what looked like spices.

Rinoan pulled out the ingredients from his shopping bag and neatly organized them on the counter. There were fruits, vegetables, fish and meat. Aqueo recognized most of them because of Aquifer's memories.

“You don't have to cook everything. I'm leaving half of the ingredients to you as … my way of thanking you. Thanks for saving me,” Aqueo said sincerely while holding the half eaten orange colored fruit. It had a juicy pink flesh inside that was a bit sweet. This fruit was one of the most common in this kingdom, he recognized, but foreign to his tongue. This fruit didn't exist on Earth, as well as most of the ingredients.

Rinoan smiled. He thought that the student in front of him must've felt so grateful to keep on repeating it, so he said cheerfully, “You are so welcome! You don't have to feel so indebted to me. You defeated them all on your own.” He paused preparing the ingredients and said, “But if you really do, then you have to make me your friend,” he paused and thought for a bit, and said, “No, I'm not asking you. It's my demand as your savior. From now on, I am your friend whether you like it or not! I’ll help you with your situation.”

Aqueo’s eyes widened, stunned by what he just heard. He was the very first person to ask him directly to be his friend in his whole life. He had friends before—or rather people who he considered friends. They were his fellow orphans. Nobody ever explicitly told him that they were friends. He was just thinking that it was a mutual understanding that they were already friends. It was something he learned the hard way while growing up. Under the control and manipulations of the human traffickers, he had people who he considered friends even though they never really told him that they were friends. He was just disappointed in the end to learn that they were part of the organization that was manipulating him. His fellow orphans that he lost were the only people who he ever believed to be his real friends even though they barely interacted with each other because of the human traffickers. When their captors took them—because of him, as he had always blamed himself—he depressingly resigned to the thought that he would never have one ever again and he would never be able to escape after trying so many times. His eyes started to feel teary so he gulped and tried hard not to.

He opened his mouth to say something but closed it immediately and looked away. “I—. I’m a slave,” he said weakly.

“I don't care if you're a slave. I'm your friend now whether you like it or not,” Rinoan said firmly.

Aqueo looked at him. “I don't want to put you in danger.” He didn't know why the student in front of him saved him. When he was running, people were shouting ‘cage him’ or ‘catch him’. He knew there were people who gave him a look of wanting to help but no one actually did anything to help him. There must be a reason for it. And the most likely thing he could think of was they would be putting themselves in danger if they did.

Rinoan remembered the things Aqueo said in his hallucinations and tried to reassure him, “I will not be in danger. Nobody saw me carrying you. People were so afraid of the smoke. They all fled when they saw it. And nobody knows you're here so you don't have to worry.”

“I—,” Aqueo just stared at him.

Rinoan knew why he was hesitating, and in his obviously weak state right now, he didn't want to put that pressure on him. “We can be friends in secret. You're already here. I already saved you, so,” he trailed in a knowing tone.

Aqueo's eyes brightened a bit, looked at his fruit, and said, “That, that makes sense,” He nodded awkwardly while saying, “Nnn, we can be friends then.”

Rinoan saw how he smiled while looking at his food and he too smiled.

“Then, Let me introduce myself properly. My name is Rinoan Archem. How about yours?” he said smiling.

Aqueo smiled as well and said, “Aqueo Harp. My name is Aqueo Harp!” He felt so happy.

“Aqueo Harp,” he said, remembering the things he was saying while hallucinating, “You don't have to feel alone from now on! I will always be here for you! Just eat there while watching me cook!”

Aqueo couldn't describe the joy he was feeling right now. He smiled widely and nodded, “Nnm!”

Aquifer, who had been in the bedroom the whole time, entered the kitchen and swayed joyfully around Aqueo and Rinoan. Aqueo wanted to play along with Aquifer but refrained himself because Rinoan couldn't see the spirit. He decided to tell him after getting to know him further.