Blyn shot open his eyes and sat up from the comfy bed, glancing around in a daze. It took a few moments for his memories to flood back into his mind and he stiffened, before he could even move from the bed, the door in front of him slammed open. Sayi marched in with an annoyed expression, and glared at Blyn without saying a word.
“O’ great dragon.”
“Stop calling me that.”
“Okay.”
“I’m not helping you. The troubles you humans go through is none of my concern.”
“Okay. I won’t ask anymore. This is my problem to deal with in the first place.”
Sayi lifted her chin, an arrogant glint in her eyes as she harrumphed. “Good that you know your place, human.”
Blyn knew the great dragon wasn’t happy with his presence at all, and searched through his mind as to what he had done to offend Sayi, other than blatantly pleading for help.
“...”
“...ah, is that it?” Blyn muttered to himself in realisation, his hands immediately digging into his pockets. “So that’s why you were unhappy.”
Sayi frowned at his words, bewildered.
At the same time, Pamela and Chaeyar stepped into the room.
“You arrived here quickly, Sayi.” Chaeyar commented with a benign smile.
“I just didn’t want the human to be meddling with anything in my lair,” Sayi said as she clicked her tongue, her eyes turning into slits. “The treasures here belong to me, and only me.”
“You must have stolen them like you did with me!” Pamela pointed out.
“If I say it’s mine, it isn’t stealing. Hmph.”
“Here you go, o’ great dragon and my saviours.” Blyn procured something from his pockets, placing it on his palm and extending it towards them. “This is all I have on me.”
Pamela, Chaeyar and Sayi leaned in, and observed the silver ingots on his hand. They blinked in confusion, looking at one another before staring back at Blyn in puzzlement.
“What’s this?” Pamela asked.
“Money.”
“What for?” Sayi scoffed.
“You said to be your customer, and to drink what you made. Shouldn’t I be paying you money for that?” Blyn questioned the three of them. “Isn’t that why the great dragon was unhappy? For being unscrupulous?”
“Eh?”
“Hm?”
“Huh?”
Blyn blinked back at them. “What?”
The four of them tilted their heads in unison, bewildered.
One of them was a lavender-haired with blue highlights interdimensional traveller with a screw loose in their head, and another was an elder dragon with fiery red hair who teleported herself across different dimensions to steal treasures to bring back to its lair. Finally, the last person was of unknown origins and clearly did not think of themselves as human. Their powers were also unmatched after Blyn saw him heal his wounds without any consequences.
“Customers need to pay? Things aren’t free?” Sayi muttered out in awe. “So that’s why I was chased down by people in the other world.”
“Right, payments! I accept them via card or scanning through an app.” Pamela blurted out. “You can place them on the tab as well.”
“Card…card? Scanning? App…?” Chaeyar’s face twisted in confusion. “Since when has giving money become so complicated?”
“Card? You mean this flimsy thing?” Sayi whipped out a shimmering golden card from nowhere, holding it in between her fingers.
“My platinum card! How did you–”
Sayi squeezed the card with her fingertips unconsciously, and the “platinum” card immediately shattered into pieces. Sayi widened her eyes in disbelief, blinking rapidly.
“It is indeed flimsy.” Chaeyar raised an eyebrow.
“...” Pamela watched speechlessly as her hands trembled. She watched the pieces of the shimmering golden card flutter down, a frozen smile on her face. “There were only ten of those in my world.”
“It’s ugly anyway.” Sayi shrugged.
Pamela grabbed Sayi by the collar of her white shirt, the frozen smile still remaining on her face. It could send chills down one’s spine.
It took Blyn a moment to process the situation as he plastered a smile across his face, nodding in understanding. “The companions of the great dragon transcends our knowledge in this world.”
Blyn placed the silver ingots on the bedside table, bowing his head respectfully. “Even so, please take this as my token of gratitude. For saving my life and allowing me some good rest. Now that my head is clearer, I can think of a better way to stop my brother.”
There was a hint of fatigue in his words.
“It would be best to discuss the circumstances about your younger sibling right now, child.” Chaeyar suggested, ignoring the two who were tussling behind him. “I’m afraid he cannot wait for long.”
Stolen novel; please report.
“Chaeyar is right, Mister Prince! Forget the money! I’ll put it on the tab!”
“I…am powerless. Try as I may, I cannot think of any other method to free my brother.” Blyn lowered his head, his face growing pale. “How long can my brother hold on for? What can I do…as an older brother?”
“He may appear as a dragon, but that is because it is what he wished for.” Chaeyar explained. “He isn’t essentially as powerful as a dragon.”
“Of course.” Sayi scoffed, shoving Pamela’s arms away from her collar. “Do you think one could simply be a dragon because they wish for it? How ridiculous.”
“What does that mean? I…I clearly saw my brother…”
“The rumours weren’t completely true, but they weren’t entirely wrong,” Chaeyar said, lifting his finger and tracing out an oddly-shaped figure in the air and allowing them to see it for what it was. “This is the outline of the entire Outerlands. What do you think this is?”
Sayi observed the glowing oddly-shaped figure hovering in the air with interest, smirking. “Heh, so that’s what it was.”
Pamela was the only one who couldn’t understand, since she wasn’t a person of this world.
“...wait…” Blyn whispered out. “Isn’t this…?”
Blyn bolted up from the bed, stumbling as he scrutinised the drawing carefully, his eyes growing wide with each second.
“Isn’t this…the outline of a constellation?”
“Your memories serve you well, child.” Chaeyar smiled, looking at the oddly-shaped figure with an inexplicable glint in his eyes. “This is the constellation of Cygnus, the one who seeks balance.”
Blyn’s lips quivered in disbelief.
“The Outerlands isn’t made from a dragon’s blood or corpse. It is made from the ruined body of a constellation,” Chaeyar stated. “The fallen body of a constellation will twist the natural elements of the world to a horrid degree, and that was something your sibling consumed.”
“He…he drank the remnants of a fallen constellation?!” Blyn exclaimed, digging his hands into his hair. “How can a human body hold that power within them?!”
“He is running out of time.” Sayi nodded in understanding. “This explains why. It’s a miracle he didn’t explode on the spot.”
“His wish was fervent enough to become a vessel. After all, constellations only exist because of the prayers from their loyal followers.” Chaeyar smiled, glancing at the panicked Blyn. “But your brother won’t be able to hold onto it for long.”
“My brother…my brother, I-I don’t know where he is now. What if he flies towards the monastery next? Everyone will die along with him!”
Blyn didn’t even think to question Chaeyar about his information, and rushed towards the door. However, before he could even take another step, Pamela reached out and grasped his shoulder.
“I will help you, Mister Prince.”
“Yo-you will?”
“In return, forget the money. I only want one thing as payment.”
“What is it?”
There was a frightening look in Pamela’s eyes as she was still distraught over her disintegrated credit card. “Show me where to get some groceries.”
“...su-sure.” Blyn struggled out that response, his face scrunching up in confusion. “If that is what you see as payment.”
“I’ll be glad to be of help as well.” Chaeyar stepped in beside Pamela. “Humans are always reckless in a charming way. I can’t let a fallen constellation ruin it all.”
“Hey, migraine pill.” Sayi called out. “My headaches will come back at any time, where do you think you are going?”
“Booooo, too bad!” Pamela spit out her tongue, her arms across her chest. “I’m already out of ingredients. You can always come along with me if you are that impatient.”
“I’m not helping humans.”
“Okay.” Pamela shrugged.
“Please, just hold on a little longer, Illian.” Blyn muttered, his eyes unfocused and full of anxiety. “I will never abandon you. Just hang on, I’m begging you.”
Chaeyar snapped his fingers together, throwing a smile at Sayi. Just like that, the three of them disappeared from the cottage, which was also Sayi’s lair.
“Tsk.”
Sayi clicked her tongue, looking at the silver ingots on the bedside table and recalling what Blyn had shared about his life. These silver ingots were all he had, and yet, he still gave it to them instead of keeping it himself for his family.
“I am simply living in this world temporarily since it’s quiet and peaceful,” Sayi spoke to herself. “I’m not getting involved in anything.”
“This is all I have on me.”
She recalled the words said by Blyn, and a second later, another memory overlapped those words.
“Sayi, this is all I have left.”
She tapped her foot impatiently on the wooden floor before ruffling her hair. The tattoo around her neck which resembled a choker began to tingle, and Sayi scratched at it, glancing at the door with a contemplative expression.
***
“For you, a cup of honey chamomile tea.”
Blyn stared at the wooden cup in his hand in amazement. With Chaeyar’s help, he magically teleported to where he last saw his brother. He looked away from Pamela for a moment, frazzled as he stumbled here and there, looking for any signs of his brother near the swamp.
At that moment, Chaeyar grasped his shoulder and advised Blyn to compose himself or he’ll be another victim of the swamp. The anxiety and fear for his brother plagued his mind, making Blyn unable to think properly.
Just then, Pamela brought out a few objects from her interdimensional bag and whipped up another drink out of nowhere.
“I…have never heard of such a drink.”
“Go on and take a sip.”
“But Illian, he…”
“It won’t taste good when it cools.” Pamela advised.
Blyn hesitated and after a moment, he finally took a sip of the tea. A sense of calm washed over him and his mind that was previously plagued by extreme anxiety was starting to clear. He was startled as a transparent window popped up before him, his eyes growing wide.
Chaeyar noted the shocked reaction from Blyn, a knowing smile curled at his lips.
The blessing of Pamela Laifecois is upon you.
Your mind will remain clear and calm.
Remaining Time: 10 minutes
Blyn almost dropped the cup in his hands in disbelief, his trembling eyes looking towards the stunning lavender-haired woman with blue highlights.
“Pamela.”
“Mhmm?” Pamela turned her head as she kept her belongings back into her interdimensional bag.
“You…”
Pamela tilted her head, a questioning look in her eyes.
“You are an Augmenter.”
Pamela blinked rapidly in confusion, pointing to herself. “I’m an argumenter? But I don’t like arguments though?”
“What?”
“Hmm?”
“No, no! I said you are an Augmenter! Not argumenter! That’s not even an actual word!”
Pamela blinked once more. “What’s that? Can you drink it?”
Blyn was baffled.
***
Drinks
Honey chamomile tea
Herbal Tea Herbal tea on wooden table with chamomile plants. Chamomile Tea Stock Photo [https://media.istockphoto.com/id/1126699541/photo/herbal-tea.jpg?s=1024x1024&w=is&k=20&c=_ms7-Urh6r3Mb6m_F1JGjPbCtv7PBpluO3cN25wGaGk=]
Wine and Beer Trivia of the Day
Though brewing and winemaking might seem similar on the surface, the ingredients used and the processes are drastically different. The yeast used in wine and beer are different as well, wine yeast has a higher tolerance to alcohol and its fermentation process might differ from the other.