“Thanks for saving me,” Fisk murmured softly amazed by the bulky guys carefree attitude. “However, it is just like I have heard from the rumors about the man called Alexander Pendale.”
“Ho. So you have heard of me! My, I guess my reputation has preceded me to have you recognize me before I even introduced myself!” Alexander Pendale spoke eagerly with his eyes gleaming from the unexpected recognition. “Then I guess it is my turn to impress you! That your name is Fisk.”
Fisk squinted his eyes suspiciously doubting that the guy truly heard of him. If he did he would called him Fisk, friend of the cursed Whale King. At least he would have known his whole name was Fisk Rapids. “My name is Fisk Rapids. Pleasure to meet someone as great as you. I usually don’t get to see the king’s great guests.”
This time Alexander Pendale stopped smiling idiotically, but had a more serious look when hearing the name.
This reaction Fisk is used to, he looked away from Alexander is disappointment. So he did not know who I am after all.
Alexander Pendale suddenly clapped loudly having a foolish grin on his face, “Sorry, I just heard you say that you were Fisk when talking to the golems! So I did not know you were the Fisk people admire! I have heard of you! You were pretty smart like they said, to even know who I am just base on rumors!”
Fisk closed his eyes thoughtfully thinking that Alexander may not be as foolish as people think, but is just too honest for people to accept. Fisk looked again at Alexander thinking the smile may be an honest one and not necessarily as foolish as he first thought. It’s not like he could help what his face looks like when smiling, he thought this with kind empathy on how his own face looks now due to the curse. He often wondered what others thought when he smiled, feeling with his fingers the corners of his unusually wide fish mouth that were once human. The lips had once looked like beautiful thinly painted white porcelain china. Now because of the curse the mouth doesn’t even look human, much less the rest of the body. He went into self-pity depression too easily, but he knew he didn’t have the time for it.
The reason Fisk has fallen easily to depression is the fact that Fisk had only one really big regret in his whole life, and that was the knowledge of the lost opportunity for breaking the curse really crushes him inside. Fisk found out too late that the only way to break the curse was to give his real name to a magician who can unbind the spell. Fisk knew he had not always been called “Fisk Rapids” but he has been called such ever since his curse. He had a real name before the curse and he has always tried to deny the new name for himself “Fisk”. In the end of being called “Fisk” for so long he gave up. Not even “Fisk” knew his real name anymore, which makes him almost lose his mind in knowing that he lost the only chance to break the curse. Fisk tries to recall it every day which only seems to have been in vain, he consoles himself thinking that it was the magician’s fault for not being able to save him sooner from the curse.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
Fisk pulled on the leather vest he was wearing tighter. The magician gave him the leather vest, it’s also a cursed item. The vest allows him to have a pseudo-form of his body before the curse, however the cost is great as it is still a cursed item. Hence, Fisk’s body was in poor condition. He was feeding his life and health to the vest to have a pseudo-body similar to before the curse. However, the previous curse still exists, he could still feel the ugly face of the fish-lips even if no one is able to see through the pseudo-body.
Fisk fell over onto the floor as he has been standing too long without the cane for support. Alex bent over to pick up the cane and went over to Fisk without asking pulled him up off the floor into a bear hug. “I have heard rumors that you were handsome,” Alex continued talking about the rumors, “But I did not know that you were in such ill health. Have you looked into a healer or at least a poor man’s physician?”
Fisk groaned softly remarking, “Didn’t you have business with the king? Why don’t you hurry up? I am just old, leave it alone. I idle in old age, it’s no good for the young to do it.”
Alex frowned slightly remarking, “You don’t look all that old? However I have heard rumors about you that spans decades. Ah.” Alex became quiet as realizing that it was impolite of him and opened the magnificent doors with hardly more than hand waving. Just brushing his fingers on the door and the heavy wood creaked open.
“My he’s stronger than I have been told! Perhaps he is part elf? His last name does have nature like parts too it. “Dale” means valley in old English afterall,” mused Fisk, “He really does put a lot of his latent magic to enhance his body. Unlike support mages that enhances others temporarily and unlike elemental mages, definitely quirky kind of guy. His body must be larger than normal by putting constant amount of magic in enhancing it.”
Fisk’s eyes had to adjust to the main hall’s bright lighting. No. The hall was brighter than usual. Fisk realized that he was pretty darn close to being too late. “Wait! Stop! Don’t do that!” shouted Fisk. A hand grabbed Fisk’s shoulder holding him back from trying to hurriedly stumble in. Fisk turned to look at the hand, Alex was giving a grim look towards the center of the room. Fisk didn’t care about his safety, he just had to stop the king from making a foolish action. He paused for a moment wondering if it was fine to take off the vest.