"Young Master..."
"Mmm."
"Young Master, it's morning."
"Unnnnn. Leave me alone..." As he turned, Levi slapped the bed, resulting in a soft sound. He secured the pillow to the side of his head with his back to Aria.
"..." She had an unreadable expression on her face as she looked down at him.
"Young Master!"
"What!! AHH! WHAT IS IT?" Levi's upper body sprang from the bed as he glared with bloodshot eyes.
"Sorry to wake you this early, but..."
"But what?!"
"It's morning."
"..." Levi's eyes narrowed into a squint. 'The one day I sleep instead of cultivating, and this is the result?'
"Is something the matter?" Aria's eyelashes fluttered as she blinked.
'You're the problem!!'
"Why are you looking at me like that?" She tilted her head.
Levi closed his eyes with difficulty. "Like what? My eyes are just sore from LACK OF SLEEP."
"You didn't sleep long enough? Unacceptable! You need quality sleep for good health! We must rid you of this unhealthy lifestyle at once!" Aria's brows furrowed as she clenched her fist.
"... You're screwing with me, aren't you?" Levi cast her a glance.
"So you noticed." Aria lowered her arm and loosened her brows, reverting to a much simpler pose.
"Why are you so impatient with her matters, anyway? You gave her the cold shoulder for two years. What's a few more days?" Levi scratched his head. He strode to the window lazily.
"That was a misunderstanding. I'm impatient because I want to clear it up. I also want to see her safe and sound with my own eyes! Do you remember what that guy said? Besides being worn out, she was bleeding when she landed!" Aria's voice gradually rose.
Creak!
The window's hinges squeaked as Levi looked back at Aria.
"And then, even in that state, she had to run from some unknown group of people!"
"... All right, all right. I get it. You can go. I'll come down now." Levi waved lightly.
"Ok. But please don't take too long." Aria cast him one last uneasy glance before leaving the room.
"... Haaah. What's the point of sleeping in if she's just going to wake me up? Early morning cultivation for life then, I guess." He slumped over the windowsill and watched the lightly occupied street with sleep in his eyes.
On the street, a burly man with the upper half of his robe peeled down to his waist, and an elderly man with a severe slouch, carrying a deep basket on his back conversed.
"Ay, Mr. En, where are you going so early in the morning again? Down to the shore to collect shells?"
"Hyo Hyo, good morning, little Dom. I am."
'Little? HIM?' A passer-by thought.
"What do you do with those, anyway? You're a farmer! Don't tell me you take them back to make jewelry for your plants?! Bwahahaha!"
"Well... You wouldn't understand even if I explained. Muscle-heads like you can't handle complicated thinking."
"Watch it, old man, oi!"
"Hyo Hyo Hyo!" The old man took his time to walk down the street.
"Haah. The old guy sure knows how to have fun." The man shook his head. "... It's concerning how he comes back so late, though. Going from the heart of the city to the shore on foot and back..."
"Sigh, whatever. He won't listen to my warnings, anyway. Let's just hope nothing happens..."
By the second-floor window.
"... Sigh." Levi picked himself up.
...
A few minutes later, on the now bustling street.
"Sigh..."
"Huh? You okay? What's wrong?"
A man squatted down, clutching his shoulder as cold sweat beaded his forehead. This caused his friend to walk before him, probing him with concern.
"Sigh. You know how it gets after a while of quarrying and moving stone... It wears the joints, and you damage your muscles faster than they can heal… Sigh… My suffering is probably only beginning."
"What?! I thought you got another job! And what happened to your son? Didn't he get a..."
As Aria and Levi walked further away, the conversation became softer.
"..." Aria walked behind Levi silently. The two stuck close since people swarmed the street. 'He's wearing that mask again... Sigh.'
After a few minutes, they made it onto the main street. Although it was still heavily populated, because of its width, people had more space to move around. Levi turned to his left to look at the palace in the distance.
"Let's go." He glanced at Aria.
"That's where your precious Nerezza is."
"... No offense, Young Master, but how would you know? Over the past few days, all you did was..."
"!!?" Aria's eyes widened.
"..."
"Y-You... You purposely went around… with that mask on... to gather information?" Her finger shook as she pointed.
"Do I seem like a person who enjoys talking to other people?" Levi tilted his head. Aria didn't answer his question.
"You're making yourself anxious by thinking about her possible injuries, so you aren't seeing things clearly. You want to make sure she's safe. Does that mean that I don't?"
Aria flinched before lowering her head. "N-No, I-"
"Four years ago after I transformed, and all that happened, happened, it wasn't only you that was there. She was also with me. Before even you. So I don't understand why you believe that I, ME, would not take getting her back seriously."
Although he didn't use a harsh tone, even though the Dragon mask hid his expression, Aria could feel Levi's disapproval. She gripped her sleeves tightly. With her head buried in her chest, she bit her bottom lip. 'That's right… Why did I act like the only person who cared about her wellbeing? How selfish can I get…?'
"I'm sorry..."
"Besides, she's royalty here. The chances of them harming her are low. She most likely got injured while escaping." Levi snorted softly.
"..."
�����… Whatever, forget it. This should be a heartwarming reunion for you two, I'm not going to ruin it." Watching her expression sink, Levi clicked his tongue before turning.
"Young-"
"Get out of the way! Out of the way!!"
"Hey! Watch where you're-"
"Shut up and get out of the road! The young duke is coming!"
"The Silver Duke's son? Dan Sielvar?"
"Don't call him by name! Do you want to die?"
"... What's going on?" Levi grabbed the screaming man's shoulder.
"Let me- Wah! Dragon mask! Shit! Lemme go! He's coming." The man broke out sweating. He slapped Levi's arm from his shoulder before retreating until his back touched a wall.
Looking around, Levi saw that it wasn't just one person doing this. They continued to pack themselves closely together on both sides of the road until a narrow path, wide enough for a carriage to pass through, formed. Levi brought Aria and followed suit. Not long after, deranged laughter echoed in the distance, along with the crack of a whip.
"What do you think is going on, Young Master?" Aria leaned toward Levi.
"... Who knows?" Levi's eyes narrowed behind the mask. 'But it better not have anything to do with Nerezza.'
Standing with his arms across his chest, Levi waited with everyone else. Noticing the change in his mood, Aria stopped talking.
Splat!
The hearts of the people pounded with dread. Slowly, something resembling the steps of a person sounded in the distance. These steps weren't clear or crisp. Instead, they sounded wet. Like the hoofs of a horse trampling on wet mud after a rainy night. Or the steps of someone who just left the sea. Along with these steps, the shrill sound of stone scraping on stone entered the people's ears.
Soon, a figure came into view.
Behind her followed a horseless carriage. Behind it dragged multiple stone blocks. These blocks varied in size and were all individually chained to the back of the carriage. The shiny brown carriage carried two persons. One passenger and one whip-clutching coachman.
"Huff! Huff!" The woman's once dark-green clothes stuck to her body. Veins bulged on her neck. As she lifted her foot, the crack of a whip sounded.
"Agh!"
Levi's eyes widened as he glared.
Sticking his head out of the window, the passenger spoke.
"Heh heh heh. Your skin can't stand up to this whip, can it? Course not! They say all of you wilderness savages are fleshly cultivators from birth. I don't know if that is true or not. What I know for a fact, though, is that the bodies of fleshly cultivators are stronger than normal cultivators. It's difficult to injure them, but… hehe… not impossible!"
"As long as the cultivator is stronger by a bit, even your iron skin is just like the rest of ours! No, more like paper! Gyahahaha!"
The coachman's eyes were empty. He sat with the black whip in his hand, waiting to strike.
"..." The woman gritted her teeth. Her muscles tensed as she prepared to take another step. The sound entered the ears of the bystanders once again. Now they knew what caused this sound: It was the blood and sweat of this woman, flowing so profusely that it made it down her legs, to the soles of her feet. Fresh footprints stained the bricks of the street with her every step. With every movement, the thick chains shackling her to the carriage jingled. With every step, she dragged a carriage many times her size, forward. Without regard for her wounds, or the blood pouring from her back, or the purposely added weight, she slogged on with determination.
"What do you think, hmm? My bed seems quite attractive now, doesn't it?!" The youth's expression went from gloating to gloomy. "Your face is average, but you have an exceptional figure. I offered you, a slave, a golden opportunity, but you dared to spit in my face? HM? Well, I want you to know, you aren't going to die a peaceful death. And did anyone ever say that one had to be alive to, hmm, partake in the pleasures of the flesh? Hehehe... Hahahahahahaha!"
The woman bit into her bottom lip. With the pain distracting her from her turbulent emotions, she took another step.
Aria covered her mouth.
"That..."
'They chained the stone blocks to the back of the carriage instead, hmm. That would make dragging that thing many times more difficult, so I guess they achieved their goal?' Levi hummed.
"These people sure know how to have fun," He said.
"Let's go."
"Young Master..."
"..." Levi paused before looking back slowly. "You want to help her?"
Aria kept silent.
"That would be easy, just get rid of the chains." He turned around.
Aria's face brightened.
"But before that, can you deal with the consequences?" Under the mask, a gold glow pulsed through his eyes.
"!!"
"Why do you think they are watching this so quietly? They know that if something displeases the person on that carriage, it wouldn't end there. He will call for more people to come and destroy their lives, no matter how small the offense. Knowing this, they won't put themselves in danger foolishly. That's the kind of situation this is.
"Oh, but there are always those who enjoy watching other people get trampled." Levi sneered. His words resulted in muffled grumbles and moans from those that heard him.
"Boy, um... I don't know how to address you, but your thinking is not right. We don't have any ability to help that woman. Don't you see that coachman? He's a martial artist, a cultivator! How are we supposed to help her? It's best to just save yourself by keeping quiet. She's not even one of us, any-Op-" The man realized what he was saying a little too late. With his hand over his mouth, he glanced over at the two.
"... Do you see now? Disguising unwillingness as inability. Why would I waste hours of my time talking to things like him for no reason? Just the thought of it is turning my stomach." Levi turned to Aria.
"You..."
"And I know what you're thinking. I have the ability, but still, I don't want to help. Aren't I worse than them then?" Levi asked.
"I wasn't-" Levi cut off Aria.
"But let me pose a question to you. Between that woman and Nerezza, who do you consider most important?"
"What? I don't know her, I just…"
"Don't you mean, 'I don't know her, so how could I compare them'? Obviously, Nerezza is more important. Now let me ask another question." Levi paused briefly.
"You can save that woman, but as I just explained, if you do that, it will greatly displease the person in that carriage, which will complicate things, making Nerezza's retrieval more difficult. What will you do?"
"You make the final decisions Young Master. You don't need to ask me…" Aria looked at the ground.
"… I won't force you to answer. But don't misunderstand either. I'm not saying that wanting to save her is bad, but if you can't handle the inevitable consequences, then don't bother. Helping her would without a doubt make things more complicated. And complication leads to uncertainties. If helping that woman makes retrieving Nerezza more difficult, who knows, maybe she might die while we're trying to leave. In all honesty, with or without helping that woman, something like that could still happen, but the former would make the chance of it happening more likely."
"..." Aria opened her mouth, but couldn't say anything.
"It's human nature to put certain things before others, lives included. And I know I am a hypocrite when it comes to my dislike and disdain for others and their actions. But can you refute anything I just said? Knowing all of this, would you still go out of your way to help that woman?" Levi asked.
"I-I-" Aria bit her lip.
"… And there's nothing wrong with that. Really. You and Nerezza are family. Why should you risk her safety for someone you don't know? Nerezza is one of us, so when something happens to her, we will naturally help. As for this woman… Helping her might very well do us, and her, more harm than good." Levi said.
The face of the man at the side changed as Levi went on.
"Remember, Aria. You can save whoever you want to, but before you do, think about the consequences. About how it will affect you. And the people associated with you. About he guys back home. And your very precious Nerezza."
"... Boy, your thinking is very wrong. Weighing saving lives based on whether it might bring you trouble? I don't even want to know what happened to you for you to develop like that..." The man shook his head. Hearing Levi's reasoning made all the hairs on his arms and legs stand on end.
"My thinking is wrong? When I reached out my hand for help but had it crushed under the foot of someone instead, was I in the wrong too?" Levi tilted his head. The dragon mask hid his expression.
"I just want the people I care about to take care of and look after each other. To shelter them from the things people can do. To save them from any potential suffering. And, if I need to turn their eyes away from dying strangers to do that, then I will. I will personally cover their eyes and lead them away.
"Human beings are 'dirty'. If you want to kill, ravage, or twist each other, then do it. I don't care. But when you people overreach and walk into 'my world' and negatively affect the people inside, that is when you force me to lift my hand. Don't overreach, and maybe you all will live a bit longer."
"You..." The man shook his head. "How selfish. You want only those who would look at you with admiration to live, while everyone else dies? Aren't you too selfish? Do you want people to praise you that much?"
"Hehehe. There is that stomach-turning righteousness you people exude in times like these. What happened to, 'It's best to just save yourself by keeping quiet'? You're thinking about saving yourself, aren't you selfish then?"
"..." Levi's words startled the man. He didn't think about it like that.
"So you can be selfish, but I can't? Y'know, I might be a hypocrite, but I don't hide it. Maybe I'm depraved, or even twisted, but I have my reasons. As for you people... Hehehehe." Levi laughed for a time before stopping abruptly.
"We're leaving."
Aria paused briefly. She turned to look at the slowly advancing carriage before following behind him.
After they left, a man stopped in the space that had just opened up.
"… Why would you open your mouth, trying to speak righteousness when you had just said yourself that it was better to keep quiet? Y'know, adults like you are the reason people like that lad develop the way they do." The man spoke, and without waiting for a response, walked off.
Being admonished in public, the man felt rage and shame pumping through his veins.
"Those… That… I didn't mean it like that… He's weighing lives because he can do something and chooses not to. But I can't. If I do, they can destroy my life easily…" He mumbled.
Someone who heard him paused. "Are you saying that you CAN'T do something? Nothing is stopping you from doing anything. You might die if you do something, so you stop yourself. But in the end, YOU are stopping YOURSELF. And that's what makes you and that guy different. He's open about the fact that he weighs the lives of people, and he firmly believes what he is doing is for the best of his family. But you… While fearing for your life is also a factor, we both know it's not the only one…"
The man sighed, shook his head, and walked away.
"… Why are all of you acting like you aren't the same as me?! Don't pretend to be different!"
'I just couldn't explain myself properly and all of you try to humiliate me?! Just to make yourselves feel better!? Just to pretend that you didn't all turn a blind eye to what just happened?!? As humans, we all judge things based on how it will affect our wellbeing! Don't act like I am the piece of trash here!!' The man clenched his fists, glaring with teary red eyes.
Those who were still in the range of his voice paused and looked at each other. They could only leave in silence.