“LIBERUS! WHERE ARE THOSE ALES?! I CAN’T FIND THEM!”
“HOLD ON A DAMN SECOND! I’M TRYNA FIND WHERE THEY KEEP THE GLASSES!”
Ales are in the first drawer in the third row below the counter, and tell Liberus that the glasses are in the glass rack in the service bar, not in the kitchen…
Why would he be looking in the damn kitchen?! The rack is literally right here…
“OVER HERE LIBERUS!”
He flew over to me, giving me a spiteful look this time… Seriously, he’s gonna try to find a reason to blame me instead…
“Could’ve told me sooner… Jeez…” I mean at this point what did I expect?
“Whatever, just hurry up and get these out to the customers on table two. We’re seriously lagging behind right now.”
Man, I seriously gotta give props to these two. They can run this entire business with just the two of them. JUST TWO! Meanwhile me and Liberus are scrambling to even find where shit goes. I’m just starting to think that we might be actually losing money for the two of them…
At the start of all of this, Grace just straight up told us to figure things out as they go, which I don’t necessarily appreciate, but it was like around five minutes until the place opened up to the public, which surprisingly none of the two noticed. Well, either way, I’ve been getting the slight hang of things. Taking orders and communicating with others wasn’t a total issue at all, yet Liberus was having some difficulties. I was starting to feel bad about him, as he has yet to adjust to his newfound body of a book, but oh well, it’s his problem.
Seems like you’ve gotten used to the place! Do you remember where everything goes?
“Oh, yes! Sorry about messing a few things up… I don’t mind working extra if I’ve lost you two some profits…”
Oh stop! There’s no need for any of that! Truth be told, this was a suggestion by my brother! Despite me being the one to bring up the suggestion.
“Really now?” As I ask, drying some of the dishes.
Well, it’ll be pointless as to what purpose you're working for us truly is, but I’ll let that linger in your thoughts for now while I take care of Liberus.
“Um, sure… I suppose I’ll keep that in my mind then…”
Me and Liberus continued to do our thing, handing out meals and drinks for the patrons. Vale still kept his position as bartender, while Grace took care of the food. It was just a matter of whether or not I could keep up with this fast paced environment… Liberus’ lucky that he’s a damn book. That would definitely freak everyone out if they had an inanimate object serving them their drinks…
Oh, there’s another group. Should probably get that… They seem to be dressed more… familiarly… Wait… WAIT…
“One table for two Grac- Hm? You’re not Grace..?”
“Oh n-no..! I-I’m just a f-family fri-friend! Family friend!”
“Say, Solas! Don’t this girl look a lot like the lass that was causing ya all that trouble?”
“Can it Lex. You say that for every girl you see. She’s. Dead. Sorry, miss. My friend here can be a bit insensitive sometimes.”
“Y-Yeah..! N-no I don’t m-mind..! At all!”
OF COURSE THEY’RE HERE TOO! DOES FATE HAVE SOMETHING AGAINST ME?! Fuck, well, guess I have to deal with them now… To be fair, I suppose he didn’t recognize me due to Grace polishing me up and my not so lengthy hair being tied up before I went out to serve, but damn does he have a shit sense of recognition… But that Lux friend of his might cause some issues as long as I don’t act out of line.
Alright, calm down Ranku. Just keep your cool and they won’t even bat an eye…
“May I… take your order, officers?”
“Hm, I’ll take whatever you recommend, cutie!” Yep. I think I want to fucking kill myself…
Solas elbowed that creep and cleared his throat. “Fucking hell dude… Me and Lux will have the special for today.”
“Alright, any drinks for tonight? Or will that be all?”
“That’ll be all, thank you. Miss..?”
“U-um…” I scour the room for anything to use as a name… Uh… Oh!
“Libera. Just Libera is fine.”
“Alright, Libera. Sorry for having you put up with this idiot. He’s been in the dumps after his girl dumped him.”
“Well… I can see why… haha! I’ll be ready with your food in a moment.”
Wow, ok so, that just happened. I managed to not get recognized throughout that entire interaction. Way to go, me! Now all that’s left is to serve them their meals and they can be on their merry way-
“Libera, hm?”
“Don’t get the wrong idea Vale. I just went with anything in my head that would be somewhat believable.”
“And you went with a female variant of his name?”
“…”
“Shut up. His name was somehow the first that popped up in my head.”
“Well, I’ll save you the trouble by asking Grace to serve you. You two deserve a break for now.”
I thank Vale as I head to the break room to catch a short breather, and coincidentally, Liberus is resting comfortably on my right. We absorbed the atmosphere of the room before sinking into the sofas. The chatter from the outside, muffled, as well as the light of the moons shining into the dimly lit chamber. The silence was KILLING me though, so I thought of breaking the silence by introducing some conversation. I’ve been meaning to try to get along with him, but I don’t know… It just doesn’t seem like we’re really that compatible to work together…
“Hey-”
“Hey.”
“Oh, you first, Ranku.”
“Well, uh…”
To be completely honest, I didn’t know what to say… Yet, at the same time, I had so much. It reminded me of when me and Vel used to fight a lot as kids… I remember one particular incident vividly... Vel and I had been at each other’s throats over something trivial, as usual. It was particularly hot outside, and mom and dad were on their usual trip to the market. Hopefully our constant bickering didn’t totally upset mom and dad, which I think it did because they left us at Donovan’s store for a while before taking us back.
Vel and I couldn’t stop sniping at each other. He was always so stubborn, just like me, and neither of us would back down. I remember Vel snatching a toy out of my hand, accusing me of taking it first. I yelled back, saying he was being unfair, and before I knew it, we were full-blown shouting. Donovan watched us with a mixture of amusement and exasperation. He finally stepped in, his voice gentle but firm, and his words made me realize something.
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“Hey, quiet now… You two can be quite the handful y’know?”
“So what!? He started it!!”
“Well, listen here, lil Ran Ran… I had a brother too! And you see, he’s gone now, and I’d give anything to have those same arguments back.”
“B-but why!? W-why would you want to fight like this all the time!? I wish I never had a sister!”
“Well, I NEVER WISHED I HAD A BROTHER EITHER!!”
He gave out a slight chuckle at the time, most likely reminiscing about him and his brother, and as we both calmed down once more, Donovan said a sentence that we both still hold dear to ourselves today.
“Don’t let regret be your teacher, you two. After all, you two are going to lose each other someday and when that day comes, you’ll wish you had cherished every moment, even the arguments.”
His words hit us hard, making us see our squabbles in a new light. Vel looked at me, his anger melting away, and I felt my own frustration fading. For the first time, we both understood what Donovan was trying to tell us.
“I guess… I guess we shouldn’t fight so much,” Vel muttered, looking down at the floor.
“Yeah,” I agreed softly. “I’m sorry, Vel.”
“I’m sorry too, Ranku,” he replied.
Donovan smiled, ruffling our hair. “That’s more like it. Remember, you two, family is precious. Don’t waste it on fights that don’t matter.”
As I sat there on the sofa, the memory faded and I looked over at Liberus. I saw what I didn’t expect to see. I saw my brother in his image. I couldn’t help myself but to speak.
“You know,” I continued, searching for the right words, “back when I was a kid, I used to fight with my brother a lot. Over stupid things. Many stupid things…”
He leaned to the side, assuming that he wants me to continue.
“And now that they’re gone, I really have no one else to go too… I’ve been stressing out this entire time about losing them, about losing what I cared about the most…”
Liberus, despite him with his snarky attitude, seemed to remain silent with only the slight rustling of his pages filling the silence. But afterwards, he spoke his mind.
“Well, damn… You were trying your hardest to look for them this entire time?”
“Did I really not tell you?”
“Well of course you damn well didn’t! Your ass didn’t trust me… one…”
I pasted my eyes to the right, looking down on the floor. To my surprise, he didn’t continue.
“...”
“Ranku… Do you maybe want to… Nevermind…”
We sat in silence for the rest of the break until Grace entered the room to call us back in. As usual, we got back to our stations and continued on with the rest of the night. I’ll have Liberus finish what he wanted to say after our shift. As I prepared to serve the next table, Grace tapped my shoulder and handed me another one of her notes.
Ranku, there’s someone wanting your attention over to the left!
““There is..?” I looked to where she was pointing and there she was again—Kina! It’s been some time since I last saw her. Grace took care of the platter while I went to pull out a seat.
“My! Seems like someone took a liking to this place rather fast!”
“Aha! Well, it’s not like I’ll be staying here for long. Give me a few days to prepare and I’ll be more than ready for your request.”
“Hm… I’d say you’re completely ready though! Tomorrow morning should be your time to leave. After all, I need this done.”
“Tomorrow?! Could you maybe give me one more day—”
“If you want to lose that opportunity of yours, leave by dawn. I’m worried about what will happen if those guys are still on the loose…” What the hell?! I don’t remember this end of the deal. I figured I would try my best to negotiate with her, because as it stands now, I have zero clue how to use my accumulation properly!
“H-Hey… Could you please consider that I am in no way shape or form ready! I’ve just begun training today!”
“Uh huh? Training… as a waitress?” she joked with a smirk.
“I’m sure Grace and Vale have some bigger picture ready for me. Point is, I won’t be able to fulfill your request if your due date is tomorrow. Please!”
“But you see… Tomorrow they’ll be leaving on a trip to export numerous crates of Fibiko! Surely you don’t want those drugs to reach clean hands!”
“Wait, they’re leaving?! Are you sure of this?!”
“Yeah! I’ve been planning their downfall for a while now, so I took note of their schedule!”
“Well, either way… I really don’t know about this offer… Maybe I should—”
“Did you know? 90% of all overdoses come from Fibiko? And worst of all, as it’s an anxiety reliever, most victims are parents! Those poor children… It must be hard to live without a family…”
“I—Uh… Well…”
“Oh, I’m sorry if it feels like I’m pressuring you to decide… I won’t judge what you choose. But do note that this is my last offer. If you refuse, I’ll find someone else to stop the Zox in their tracks—”
“I’LL DO IT!” I shouted out of pure instinct. Everyone gave me looks before I uncomfortably took my seat in embarrassment. “I’ll set out at dawn, Kina.”
“Oh, thank you so much, Ranku! I knew I saw something special in you! Now, let me show you what I’ve got in preparation!”
It was unlike for Kina to be this… assertive… But there’s no helping it really. She probably has her reasons to be in such a rush. And to be fair, we’ve only seen each other once, so perhaps this is how she normally engages in conversation. Who knows really.
“So, Ranku, here’s where you enter. You should see three guards instead of the usual two that stand by the entrances. This is where the Fibiko is normally stored at.”
“Oh, so you want me to destroy the carriage wheels? Or perhaps do you want me to destroy all of the crates?”
“Well, you see, there’s an issue to that. For one, wheels are damn well easy to replace, and second, they have spare storage units that carry ten times more than what’s about to be distributed tomorrow.”
“Well, what the hell do I do then?
“Strike them where it hurts most! Rid of as many of the Zox as possible! Without their numbers, they’ll never be able to sell!”
I was taken aback by this statement… Now I’m no stranger when it comes to crime, but I’ve already tackled the possibility of murder in the future. Liberus from what it seems is highly against it, and I want to consider what he feels if we’re gonna take this on…
“Is there any other way instead of bloodshed? My friend gets a bit uneasy-”
“And I KNEW you were going to say that! So that’s why I brought this along!”
She reached into her pockets and presented a small glass vial. It was no bigger than a salt shaker, yet what was contained in said vial left me with a bit of unease for whatever reason…
“I want you to drink this before you begin your raid. And before you ask, no it’s not poison.”
“Drink it yourself then. I don’t think I want to take my chances with thi-”
Immediately, she flicked the cap off and in one fell swoop, she chugged the damn thing like a shot glass…
“Whoo! Refreshing! See? Not poison! I got plenty of these, so don’t worry about losing them or running out! It should last the entire raid.”
“So, I have yet to ask, but what the hell are in those vials..?”
Kina took another vial out of her pocket and obnoxiously showed off another straight to my face.
“My latest discovery! It’s an elixir that aids in hand to hand combat! Makes you super duper strong! With this, you can knock them out without breaking a sweat!”
“PERFECT! This should definitely do the trick! I’ll make sure to use it wisely.”
“And don’t forget to tell me what you think about it once you come back! I sadly can’t test it myself for health reasons, but be sure to give me your feedback!”
After this exchange, Kina shared with me the rest of her plans for the raid. Turns out, there’s an infamous member residing in this facility for the time being, as AEGIS members used to raid during distribution days. Kina warned me about her encounters with him as she told a handful of stories including the two. I never thought for Kina to be a fighter despite that frillish appearance and demeanor that she always presents herself in. Oh well, can't judge others immediately with their appearances.
“Got it. I’ll talk with the others about these plans for tomorrow. And again, thank you for providing me with this opportunity! I won’t let you down Kina!”
“Haha! I’m glad to see you’re taking great enthusiasm! I’ll leave the rest of the night for you to sort things out! We shall meet back at the Drunkard!”
The rest of the night went along quite smoothly, with little to no hiccups. Grace and Vale seemed to be quite happy with the end results. Hopefully anyway…
“Looks like it’s almost closing time! I’d say we did a pretty good job!”
“Really wished I had a human body for times like this… It was awful carrying shit with a ribbon that can barely hold up a plate…”
“Must be tough… Say, you said you used to be human, no?”
“That’s what I’ve been getting the feeling of, but it’s only in short flickers where I can somewhat recall my memories… I don’t know how to put this into words, but it makes me feel… lost to a degree…”
At that time is where I got a glimpse of what was going through his mind. It felt off seeing him to have that somber appearance instead of that sarcastic, curious and that rather pestering character of his. I didn’t really know what to say. After all, he’s in a completely new environment. From the surroundings to his newfound body, everything is probably overwhelming to him…
“Well, I hope you don’t feel too lost forever,” I began, unsure but sincere. “You know, I kind of feel lost too. I’ve been drifting, trying to find my family, and I don’t even know if they’re still out there. Every day feels like I’m just stumbling through, hoping I’m heading in the right direction.”
“I guess we’re both searching for something then. You for your family, and me for… well, myself.”
We both stood silently once again. Y’know… This is probably the first time we’ve ever talked this way, instead of all that constant fighting and arguing. I’ve never really got to figure out what Liberus really wanted… Man am I selfish… Here this entire time we’re doing this just… for me…
“I don’t mind… If we continue searching for your family for a while longer… After all, I doubt that you know how to give myself an actual body…”
“Ha! Well, obviously NOT! You’re giving Inwell too much credit!”
“What? Is this normally what this world is like?”
Far from it, actually!
“Oh jeez!” Startled by Grace’s sudden appearance. “Didn’t really notice you there! What’s up?”
Vale told me that he heard that you were planning on leaving tomorrow? Is that right?
“TOMORROW?! I THOUGHT WE WERE STAYING HERE FOR A FEW MORE DAYS?!”
“Yeah… Sorry about not telling you sooner… Kina told me that the Zox would be on the move the day after… So we have to act at dawn…”
“So, she expects someone as inexperienced as YOU to take them all down?”
“Kina doesn’t have to know that. Besides, we can make it work. I believe in us.”
“Well I SURE DON’T! You better explain how it will be tomorrow. I’m exhausted…”
“Will do, goodnight Liberus. Just trust me this once. Please.”
“We’ll see by morning. Goodnight, Ranku.”