Upon seeing that Cedric was awake, the boy and the girl halted.
The boy’s eyes widened and he muttered in a low voice, almost to himself. "You are awake, sir."
"He’s awake," the girl said simultaneously, her expression just as stunned as her brother’s.
Then, before Cedric could even react, both kids, who looked similar enough to be twins or siblings, quickly dropped into a deep bow that startled him.
Cedric blinked.
The girl looked at her brother and whispered, "I’ll go let father know he’s awake."
By the ti her brother turned to her, she had already rushed back out, leaving him and Cedric alone in the room.
A long second of them just staring at each other passed, and then the boy blinked. "Oh." He looked at the candles in his hand and raised them up. "We ca to change the candles."
Cedric turned to look at the dying candles on the wall-mounted iron sconces. While inspecting them, he heard the boy add in a timid voice, "T-thank you for helping us, sir!"
Turning back to the boy whose head was lowered, Cedric pressed his lips into a thin smile and nodded.
Then, he pushed himself off the bed, and as he stood up, he reached into his inventory and took out his long coat. He put it on, pocketed his hands, and began walking towards the door. When he got to the boy, he halted. After a few seconds, he reached out and ruffled the boy’s brown hair, then muttered, "Glad I could help."
The blue-eyed boy smiled, and dimples appeared on his freckled cheeks.
...Cedric shoved his hand back into his pocket. He had no desire to stay in this realm any longer. He had achieved part of what he ca for, which was gaining subjects of influence, and now that he succeeded, he couldn’t wait to get off this land and back to his world.
Before leaving, however, he needed to et Argentos one last ti to let him know he was departing, so he asked, "Where is Argentos?"
The boy perked up. "Oh..." Then, like soone who had forgotten he had a task, he blurted out, "Our Lord is currently on the battlent of the castle. He had been waiting by your side all this while for you to wake. Right now, he’s watching the fire dance below and instructed us to let him know the mont you awoke."
Cedric bobbed his head back, then said after a second, "I’ll go et him then."
The boy nodded. Cedric turned and left the room. The boy followed behind him but didn’t say anything. Along the hallways leading to the battlents, Cedric suddenly saw a familiar-looking human in his late twenties running down the corridor.
He looked breathless, like he had been running quite the distance to get here. He had a slim build, brown hair, and blue eyes. In his hand, he held a large tal flagon.
Sothing clicked as he watched the man approach. Apart from the fact that he looked familiar, he also bore a striking resemblance to the little boy behind Cedric.
"Cedric!" the man called out as he slowed to a halt. He bent over to catch his breath, and when he straightened, he gasped, "Thank goodness I caught you before you left." He panted, wiping sweat from his forehead. "You rember , right? Marcus."
’Marcus?’ Cedric arched a brow. ’Marcus, Marcus...’ Then he bobbed his head back. ’Oh! The guy Aika had trouble rembering.’
"Yes," Cedric replied calmly. "I do rember you, Marcus."
Marcus smiled, then dropped into a bow. "Thank you!"
He raised his head. "I wanted to thank you personally for saving and my kids."
’Kids? So the siblings are his children...’
Cedric pressed his lips into a thin smile and nodded. The man then extended the flagon. "Here."
When he saw Cedric’s curious expression, he smiled and added, "Since I do not have much to offer, I decided to get this for you."
Cedric reached out and took it, and imdiately, he could catch the sharp, pungent aroma of very strong alcohol wafting from the container.
"It’s the Wine of Madness," Marcus bead. "It’s called that because it’s harvested from the spinal tap fluid of the Heralds of Madness."
’What the ’Byss?’
Cedric’s pale face suddenly turned a shade greener.
Marcus chuckled and waved his hand dismissively. "Trust , it tastes much better than it sounds."
Cedric was not buying it. But Marcus kept going, "And just a single capful of it could make a grown man start singing while seeing four of everything."
Marcus chuckled after saying that.
"Sohow, I get the feeling you are not exaggerating," Cedric mumbled, with his wide eyes still fixed on the tal flagon in his hands.
This was literally the spinal fluid of those ugly, three-headed monstrosities of the Stone Crag Wastes. As much as Cedric was now curious about the taste and effects of the alcohol, he genuinely doubted he would ever find the courage to drink it.
Still, for the sake of being polite, he smiled and thanked Marcus, then tossed the drink into his inventory. He didn’t linger long with the man and left for the battlents.
When he reached the top, he could see Argentos watching the celebration below.
Cedric’s footsteps along the stone path drew Argentos’s attention to him. The tallic figure smiled warmly as Cedric walked up to stand beside him, and both of them then slowly turned to look down at the crowd.
Below, dozens of humans, both adults and children, were dancing around a massive fire. They held their hands on each other’s shoulders and sang as they stomped around the roaring flas, while others played lively tunes on lutes and drums. Most were drunk, while the children chased each other through the shadows just beyond the firelight.
The scene was unexpectedly peaceful, and it made Cedric’s heart ache with a quiet sort of warmth.
"I suppose you’ll be leaving soon," Argentos murmured softly, his eyes still fixed on the dancing flas below.
"Yes," Cedric replied, staring down at the crowd.
He could see a group of people suddenly break into loud laughter after a particularly drunk man lost his balance in the dancing line, stumbling backward and dragging a whole chain of people down to the ground with him.
"It makes sense now," Argentos murmured, drawing Cedric’s attention back to him. "The God of Divine Restoration and Benevolence must have asked to tell you the history of the Hortus Conclusus so that you would co and restore life to my people."
Upon hearing that, Cedric turned to face him.
Argentos continued, "I had heard of the powers of this God, and when I think of it, you possess so of those very sa divine abilities. You must probably be soone he had blessed, or a descendant of his."
’You have it wrong. I’m the being himself in the flesh.’
Cedric smiled, but of course, he did not say that. Instead, he gave a vague shrug. "Maybe..."
Though now he couldn’t help but wonder: how Argentos had received a revelation from the God of Divine Restoration and Benevolence when he was the God himself?
Argentos exhaled softly. Then, he turned to Cedric and lowered his head in a deep bow. "Thank you, friend, for all your benevolence. We no longer have to worry about our realm being invaded by the Cradle, and you have brought back life to us Hollow Ones. My people and I will forever be in your debt."
’Of course,’ Cedric thought with a small smile as he felt large amounts of essence trickle into his core.
At that mont, his form began to break apart into feathers that either fell to the ground or were carried away by the gentle night breeze.
He smiled and gave a parting nod. "Till we et again... Argentos."
Argentos looked up, and not long after, Cedric was gone.
***
Bhujanga-Dwipa...
——
Cedric appeared on top of the massive walls that surrounded the Obsidian Palace. Then, he sat down, letting his legs dangle over the edge.
Before he left the realm, he felt the urge to visit this place one last ti.
Reaching into his inventory, he took out a pendant that was split down the middle, its surface divided into the distinct colors of dark gold and a murky, greenish-black.
For the next hour or so, he did nothing but just stare at the intricate trinket in his hand.
Eventually, he lifted his head to the moon and sighed deeply.
"I have been having lots of anxiety lately."
Slowly, he turned to his right and the corners of his lips curled up into a bitter smile.
Even though there was no one there to hear him, he muttered as if he was speaking to soone, "And... I feel so exhausted."
For a few seconds, the space around him remained quiet. He exhaled and slowly stood up, while also establishing his connection to a raven in the Cradle. Once the link was secured, he sniffed and wiped his eyes.
Then, he leapt down from the high wall, and his body broke apart into a cloud of dark feathers before he could hit the ground...
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