It had been a close to a quarter of an hour since Mister Orden and I delved into the clustered trees, heading for the town. Of course, with the creeping murkiness followed by rustles which was better left alone unheeded, I made sure to stick closely to mister Orden as much as possible after mister Virel sent us off.

"You mean where you come from was at war?" he asked almost with wonder in his tone.

I nodded. "Yes, sir. It was actually what killed me." Answering him to the best of my abilities, I fumbled the much bigger ragbag that mister Virel had given me, now cradled with special care deep in my arms that replaced where the banana originally resided. All the while as I traced my fingers on another ragbag securely situated deep inside. 8? 9? I wasn't sure, but a third check is on its way. Even though I haven't opened it yet, that number was already enough for me to anticipate things I could buy from that. Most especially, foods.

"Now that's some action I'd love to see. Well, just the action, of course, the action. Even with the Revivalists around, the casualty would be a horrible number to count. But answering your question—no, wars had not been a thing in this continent for lots of decades now. So I guess you wouldn't have much of an issue in that regard. Guess that would answer your question?"

I gave out a response before inwardly sighing in relief at that. The most important thing now answered for me. Though death is now questionable, I don't want to know what would really happen. This time, I wouldn't want to get trampled to death the second time around without as much doing a thing. Forget about me being led to something like another orphanage by mister Orden. That would be a much, much better choice than having something inevitable and unpredictable like war looming around. At least, I'd be able to learn magic here and perhaps be finally allowed to do what I wanted. But me being put into orphanage was also debatable now. Still, I asked the second most important thing, trying to be vague as possible.

"Umm. What would happen to me now, sir? Ah, I mean, where would I be now working sir?" I asked, finding it hard to put my thoughts into words.

"Work? You mean employment? That depends on you, lassie. I don't think we have high-paying free jobs around for lanky kids like you. Still, that depends."

"...so I don't need to work, sir?"

"What do you mean you don't need to work?" With weirdly-furrowed brows, mister Orden eyed me. "If you have plans to return where you come from, of course you'd need to work. Or maybe you got no plans? Aside from that, you still have your daily necessities to think about, I think it'd take years to decades if you've got plans goin back. Or perhaps you can't even return. Frankly, if you don't, well, y'know you'd still need work," he paused, "unless you seek help. Which I recommend you do."

"I mean, work for... uhh... the healings?" I inwardly winced as I blurted the only immediate reason I could come up. But his words were starting to feel comforting for me even scarce.

Mister Orden glanced my way with a questioning look. "Huh? As I've told. That's merely nothing. Thought you talked it again with him? It's not like we'd really exploit something very negligible just to force someone who malpractice magic do some work," he grinned at that. "For favor perhaps. But you ain't a beauty to warrant that. Well, I don't mean to intrude, but if you're talking about work that made you look as thin as twig and carved like barks. No. Slavery's been outlawed in the continent.

"So don't you go worryin 'bout that." He glanced at my again. This time, with raised brows." Ah, don't tell me you're thinking I'm taking you as one, huh?"

I jolted in surprise at his words that hit the question I tried to mask. My heart almost beating with worry that my doubts might have insulted him, or something far worse. But staring at his grinning face, I felt relieved that my thoughts had not irked him. Just like mister Virel.

With a thin smile, I slightly nodded before finally voicing out, "...a bit...sir. And um, no. I was lucky enough not to be a slave and managed to live in an orphanage, sir," I briefly explained. I've seen someone who'd been enslaved, and they fare far, far worse than I ever did. Those heavy chains and marks on their foreheads and bodies were something that pulled us all back from wanting to run away from the orphanage early on. But also, something that drove us with eagerness to learn magic. I shook my head. Not now. Glancing towards mister Orden, I slowed down to my track a beat late, mirroring his sudden halt.

"What? An orphanage made you like that? With those scars? Heck! A friend of mine graduated at one looking stuffed and breathless with every step. Just his arm alone was the sum of your meat. His jaded skin even had women envious!"

With wide-opened eyes, his gaze honed on me. Assessing. I nodded hesitantly again, moving away my eyes from his to look at my arm that I was scratching, the itch merely an imagination. "... there's a lot of us there, sir. And the umm... war? The headsm—dean told us it was because of that too why we lacked... things."

"Like food? Magic would suffice for that!" As if aggrieved, mister Orden retorted. "You could forcibly grow trees, bushes, plants, or whatever that crops up something to nibble and that won't be a problem!"

He arrived before me and pointed at my arms. "And that. I don't think any orphanage wouldn't even employ a healer. Or if they can't, no temples would allow misgivings left unresolved. Those scars looked like they didn't come from any accident at all." Mister Orden's piercing gaze rooted me to the ground. And his voice. Deep and still. But laced with something else.

It was different than mister Endar's. Back there, I couldn't feel something as raw as this. Mister Endar's was towering. Looming. The pressure existed but was distant. As if that place masked it. Mister Orden's was a familiar one that words could hardly explain. Like the huge spider, it invoked something from me. It was bellowing. Even if it wasn't. Almost deafening, yet deafness wouldn't even relieve me of it. It just continues, making me deaf to my own thoughts.

Even so, I didn't allow myself to be overpowered with the familiarity of it. Not now. Because this was different. So I stood to my ground and leveled my gaze to his broad shoulders to the best of my ability.

"Umm... no sir," I began, then huffed the heaviness on my chest. "We had no such magical... magic for food, sir. I mean, we barely had enough who can have magic sir. And umm...the healers in our place can't do something like mister Virel had done." I tried explaining, trying to word a concise reason to make him believe that I wasn't lying, then slowly puffed out my worries in a way he wouldn't notice.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

Brief silence then ensued after that. And I only had to clutch the ragbag as I stood still. Not wanting to let out even a jerk. Parts of me already generating various thoughts that would happen.

"Ahh. Yes. Yes, how'd that slipped off my mind. Untouched," he replied a moment later, scratching his chin as if to reflect that realization dawned not only in his voice but as well on his face. Taking a glimpse on mister Orden's expression, I was relieved that his eyes looked as he sounded. It shone not a shade darker.

"Sorry, sorry. History never taught us anything 'bout war casualty and the likes. That orphanage probably got the hots for slavery. I'm betting on it. But I assure you now. Don't worry much," he stressed, his smile an apologetic one.

"It's safe almost to any settlement there is in here, so I bet you'd get fatter and healthier in no time," Mister Orden added, his grin plastered back on. I couldn't help but smile weakly at his words, almost finding myself agreeing. But I let it linger only as far as that when I remembered those chains. I looked at my arms that were well within having had at least a meal. I fared better. Still, I nodded at him and voiced my gratitude.

Once again, silence took ahold of us as we resumed our walk, the familiar endless plains almost visible beyond. But that wasn't my subject of attention now. I stared at mister Orden's back. Then that stare overflowed to a bow sent to his way.

"Anyway, what's your next question?" mister Orden asked, taking my attention back while also jolting me to stand straight.

Seeing as he continued forward, I gave out a relieved sigh. With careful steps over the unkempt rocks protruding dangerously, I delved in my mind for a moment and thought of the last question I had wanted answered.

"In the crypt, sir, I was told that I'd die if I get attacked by a... courier. But I remember myself getting dragged by one before I got here." I turned to him, now finally receiving an answer about that shivering situation.

"Hmm. That's the natural way it should go, as far as books and testimonies are concerned. Said the One would inform you of it. Like stimulating them? Calling them? Somewhere along those lines. But aside from that, I'm pretty sure some words had informed you by the time you were out. You can try to bring it up if you still can. Now that you mentioned it, is it true that they really, really look scary as hel—ah wait."

We jumped over a couple of tree roots that protruded and grew thickly when Mister Orden paused. And I took the time to register and be relieved that there was nothing wrong about that occurrence. I nodded when I heard him say that the magical words would confirm it. I remember I saw something like that when I got out. Heeding his words, I tried to remember what he was talking about regarding those couriers. Then I felt my heartbeat thumping hard when I thought of remembering something different.

Spirit Courier

And I did. I stumbled to my knees before I stood up as quickly as I fell on the soft earth, never noticed by mister Orden. Or he kindly didn't mention it. Luckily, we got past those rocks and I was only with some dirt. And not that. I had to shake my head and narrow my memories before that, trying to fight the urge of those images to resurface.

Ding!

Spirit Couriers invoked!

Ah. This was it. Now freed of my worries, I cheered myself with a nod as I dusted off the ragbag that fell with me earlier. I only have to check it once again with a book. And then that. I wondered if I should ask whether I can use magic there, another oddity that I found. I kept that in mind as I watched mister Orden raise his hand. Watching this is a must first.

By the time we got over another couple of vines and holes that mister Orden manipulated and filled with earth, the trees got less and less, bringing us closer to the place where I originally appeared. I think. I was absorbed ooo-ing silently at how mister Orden commanded nature with magic. Doing nothing but strengthen my excitement to learn it at some point in time. If they could do it, others could too. I looked at may ragbag again. And if there's gold, yes. I grinned for a moment before masking it away with a thin smile, a feeble mask to my burning excitement. Luckily, I didn't give it back.

"Okay, that should do it," he uttered as he dusted his hands. "So yeah, do they really look scary as hell? I've never been killed and those I've talked laughed it off and never mentioned a thing. At least records and them lot said it was the manifestation of some fear. But, eh. Everybody's ain't be the same." He shrugged.

I shook my feet one at a time with the dirt that managed to dig inside the sandal and thought about his question, staring for a moment as I considered his word. Scary? I doubted that. That... tiocmus was something that was scary. That big spider? No, it didn't have that. Oddly enough. It—"It wasn't, sir. It was... different. As if there was something that it... took from me and just made me run away from it as long as I look at it. It was... thumping. Wrong. Odd. It was also familiar. But it wasn't scary, sir. It was—" I felt my heart beat faster as I remembered the multitude of eyes that stared at me. Their color. I heaved and calmed myself. "... it was... different, sir." I said, not wanting to say that it looked way too familiar.

Mister Orden had his hands on both pockets of his pants, humming in thought. He didn't say anything after that, never noticing my slight pause—luckily. But what does that mean? I gulped in that askance as we began moving again, with mister Orden still lost in his thoughts. Initially, I planned on asking only a few questions, but considered asking for more if permitted. But now, seeing as he remained absorbed in his thoughts, I wondered if I could still ask some questions.

The magic. I considered not asking it as well, opting to just read it in a book. I didn't have to think twice that being able to use magic there when miss Ignis said it wasn't possible is something very odd. Thinking about it now, maybe that's something only I could do?

I grinned in my mind. That was too much thinking I got something special. Boring my gaze on mister Orden's back for some time, I considered and still asked.

"Umm... sir?" I mumbled, taking his attention back.

"Ah yes, yes. You have questions?"

Seeing that mister Orden's gaze remained the same, I mentally felt relieved. "Are magics effective at them? I saw torches able to fend them off."

"Oh, magic? Hmm. Let me think for a bit." as if pulled back into reality, mister Orden briefly answered. "Nothing that I'm aware of. Depends on what Crypt you're at or whose God the crypt is affiliated with if I'm thinking right. But if you're talking if magic can be used. Sure, that's not entirely impossible, it just isn't effective... if I remember. Anyway, you can try checking it out with a book or someone else," he paused to shrug before continuing, "I'm not the studious type for such."

I nudged nods at him before voicing my thanks later as I realized his back was in front of me. God affiliation. Even without his suggestion, I already added another in my list of things I should find out about later. Thinking whether I should hurl another question at him, I debated if I should ask what god is or who God is now. But then quickly decided that I would find it in a book later on. Probably. Still, magic can also happen there, huh. I mused as my mind wondered back to my time in the tomb. Another thing to smile at, only to scratch my head later upon confirming using magic there wasn't a special case at all.

Thinking that since I could still ask some questions, I wondered what else should I ask. Should I ask for the gold? The powder? The town? They all sounded the need of elaborate description for me to truly understand too. Maybe that's for the book as well. Touching my forehead again, what if—

"Oh, here we are." Without realizing it, mister Orden's comment brought me out of my musing, and I saw the same sight I had initially seen.