Cedric didn’t know what the medicine had done, but he felt like a new person. His worries from mere moments ago were practically gone. The horrifying feeling of suffocating from the drink didn’t even register. It didn’t make any sense; it was almost like he couldn’t feel anything from the thoughts. Even focusing on them didn’t bring up the depressing emotions.

“It’s simple. It suppresses negative emotions and heightens positive ones. It should last a few months.”

The doctor’s words sounded like something impossible, but he could feel the effects. He felt better more confident and started thanking the doctor.

“Thank you, I needed something like this.”

The doctor smiled at him, and he realized that this was the first time she did that. At least, the first time she did that without seeing him purely like an experiment waiting to happen. It vanished a second later, and she handed him the second canister. It was metal, and he could recognize it, guess what was inside.

“It’s more of the elixir in case of an emergency. I hear you have a mission soon.”

The doctor spoke casually, though Cedric didn’t know of any mission. Someone, probably Sir L would have come by his place to inform. Deciding that Cedric could just go find the man instead, he said his goodbyes to the doctor. She was eager to get rid of him and get back to whatever work she was doing. Cedric followed her to the exit. It was obvious that she didn’t trust him to find his way out without causing a commotion or messing something up.

The building was actually pretty close to the main military compound in the city. Sir L would probably be there, and he wanted to act while he still felt fine. The doctor had said that the effect should last for months, but it sounded too good to be true. It was only slightly later in the day, and the majority of the people in town were probably busy with work. He hadn’t been out in the past few days and didn’t realize that so many children wandered the streets before lunch. Large groups of young kids were playing games while elderly men and women watched over them. he guessed that they were the only ones available to take care of the kids since everyone else was busy with the war.

Some kids pointed at him, but the majority just ignored him. He looked mostly normal now, though he was a head taller than almost anyone else around. The elixir had made him taller. At first, it had been unnoticeable as everyone around him had been experiencing similar growth. However, his growth became obvious when he walked around town. He was tall and covered in lean muscle, to the point where he looked almost inhuman. The people around town noticed, and he often drew many eyes. Although most of the time, he walked around with his sword and that probably added to his fame.

The walk to the military fort was short as it was just at the opposite end of the block. Several kids who were playing on the center of the street ran from him as he walked across. Feeling surprisingly confident, he looked toward the children and smiled at them, waving in their general direction. It was the first time he had ever done it, and he was happy to see some kids wave back. After a few started to wave, many more joined them. He stopped in front of the fort’s thick wooden doors and took a deep breath. Knowing that he would receive a mission made him hesitate. Despite feeling a lot better, he didn’t want to ruin it by going into another fight. He could feel his thoughts going to a dark place, but they stopped. It felt like they had hit a wall somehow.

He placed his hands against the door, pushing lightly. Others would struggle to open this door, but he barely even noticed it. he walked into a wide-open entrance area. It was mostly empty though several people stood along the walls. They were probably assistants for the generals, and he saw their gazes snap to attention as he entered. The reverent looks they had caused him to shiver. Still, he needed to speak with Sir L, so he approached the nearest man.

The man looked older than Cedric and was leaning casually against the wall. The door beside him was probably some general’s office. The white brick of the building was illuminated by a large chandelier that hung at the center of the room. It was filled with expensive light crystals. Cedric had spent some time staring at it when Sir L had first brought him here. The man looked up, brushing aside black hair to make eye contact with Cedric.

“It is an honor to meet the Great Survivor. What can I do for you?”

The man stiffened, his laziness vanishing as he recognized Cedric. However, Cedric couldn’t come up with a response. He hadn’t heard anyone call him something like that and wondered what information had been spread about him. The name was not something he wanted. It felt like a reminder that he would end up by himself. That he would survive everything alone. Swallowing any retort, he just moved on.

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“I’m here to see Sir L about a mission.”

Cedric tried to sound as normal as he could, but the man seemed to grow even stiffer. Sweat appeared on his forehead as he rushed through his response.

“Of course, just follow me.”

Without hesitation he left the door he was meant to guard and started jogging through the hall. Cedric was able to keep up by just widening his steps. Others would see a man desperately trying to get away from Cedric, while he just casually walked behind the man. Since the assistant was so frantic it only took a few seconds for them to get to Sir L’s office.

The door had flecks of gold mixed into the wood, and Cedric stopped and gazed at it for a second. He had been here once before, but he wasn’t in the right mind at the time. He couldn’t focus and appreciate something like a door the last time. Closing his hand into a fist he knocked on the door. Or at least that was his intention. Instead, he put a little too much strength into the knock. The wood cracked and dented from the light knock. He winced but heard a casual call from inside.

“Come in.”

Sir L didn’t sound mad, and Cedric stepped inside. The assistant who had led him had opened the door. He looked nervous. He probably thought that Cedric was angry about something and would break the door.

“Thank you.”

Cedric tried apologizing to the man, hoping that the assistant would calm down. It did work, as the man took the words as a dismissal and ran away. He literally ran away, practically sprinting from the door. Cedric didn’t linger, stepping inside and closing the door behind him. He made sure to do it gently this time.

“Don’t worry about the door, I broke it after getting the elixir too.”

Sir L’s casual tone helped Cedric relax. The office was small and surprisingly barren. Sir L felt like the kind of person who would fill his personal space with meaningless items, but he was actually far neater than he acted. The floors and desk were clean, the only thing on the desk was what he was currently working on. Cedric didn’t try to read it as it wasn’t his business.

“The doctor said I had a mission soon?”

Sir L grinned, looking very happy to see Cedric. Before he responded, he rose from his seat and walked over, till he stood directly in front of him. His eyes seemed to be looking for something.

“You look better. I guess the doctor’s miracle medicine worked. That’s good. I do have a mission for you, but I was only going to tell you if I thought you were in the right condition for it. Judging by the fact that you are here, you are as ready as you will be.”

Cedric nodded and tried to give Sir L as confident an expression as he could manage. Even if his worst thoughts were held at bay, he found it hard to generate any good ones. He was not a fan of the war and didn’t want to go on any more missions. The real issue was his sense of obligation, which he felt reverberating within his thoughts. Maybe the medicine considered it a positive emotion, though he didn’t know how the medicine actually worked. Asking about it probably wouldn’t help. He never understood any of those things

“Yes, I feel a lot better.”

The discussion changed with those words and Sir L took up the position of a military general. His next words came out formally as he explained the exact nature of the mission. Cedric was surprised to hear so many details of the mission. He had never been privy to so much information before, and he wondered what brought about the change. The question nagged at his thoughts, but he tried to focus on Sir L’s description.

The mission was also more complicated than he expected. After his previous mission, they found a better way to utilize someone like him. He would go alone to a city and attempt to take it on his own. A day later the rest of the army would arrive and occupy it. Whether he succeeded or failed wouldn’t matter as the city would need to expend an incredible amount of resources just to contain someone like him. The mission actually sounded like something agreeable. It meant that he would be able to take cities peacefully if he could manage it. It also meant that he was receiving a lot more trust than he expected. What had changed for him to receive such a position?

“Why?”

Finally, he couldn’t hold back his question. It was just a single word, but he had to know the answer. Sir L froze on his explanation and smiled gently at Cedric before speaking.

“Cedric, you have done a lot for the kingdom. More than anyone could ever know. You will never receive the recognition you deserve. Even now, I can’t even begin to describe how valuable your personal results with the elixir were for it. You had been the only one to return from a battle, and from recent reports, we have learned that you have killed Pali. He was the enemy leader. You alone have brought the war closer to its end.”

The words shocked Cedric. He remembered the three he had seen at Thaktall. He would never forget them. Although, it sounded like he could put one of those faces to rest. What he didn’t expect was to hear that it was the Warlord, Pali. The man was a menace, one who had killed an uncountable number of Larkin’s troops in the border wars. Now, Cedric understood. He could see why he had earned such a position. The looks he had seen on people weren’t ones of fear, but of respect of awe. He wanted to laugh. Whenever he caught the glances from people, he thought it had been fear or blame.

“How long have you known?”

“The news had arrived a few days ago. You should’ve received it. Everyone in the city had been informed, and you had received the credit you deserved. You are a hero.”

Sir L responded quickly, sounding like he didn’t understand Cedric’s question. There was no way Cedric would know. He never left his home and hadn’t bothered with any letters or papers that got delivered to him. If something was important then Sir L would have told him. At least that was what he thought. The final thing Sir L said got Cedric’s attention. He was a hero.