After chatting with Arthur for a while, Ayfia left the infirmary to attend to other matters while Cisse began to walk towards a large medicinal cabinet.
It was also then that small particles of light began to condense as a small cuboid shape. Not surprised by the appearance of Cal, Arthur couldn't help but inwardly snort. 'Traitor.'
'What could I do? Get flung into the void from that flick's recoil?'
'Yes.'
'…'
'Anyways…from the earlier story, it will seem that we will have to be careful moving forward. First, that weird dream and now a story possibly predicting my arrival. I can't help but feel that there is more at work here than meets the eye.'
'Indeed, if I had to take a guess, the war the Old Man mentioned must be an incredibly massive event. And it very possible that we might be pawns in it.'
'Very plausible, but for now, we can't do anything but wait.' Thought Arthur as he glanced at his left hand.
'Indeed.' Confirmed Cal as it disappeared into Arthur once again.
[>Soul Link: 33/100<]
…
Returning with two steaming cups in hand, Cisse plopped beside Arthur as he handed him a drink.
Nodding in gratitude, Arthur received the drink and took a sip. "Woah!"
"I know, right," laughed Cisse. "One of the best things in the whole Realm, can't change my mind."
"Mhmm!" Agreed Arthur.
"No idea what it's called, but I know it's made from the seeds of a plant called cocoa. Sadly though, we only have the grounded version of it, so we can't plant more. But luckily, we have a very large reserve….well, at least until I was born. However, I can confidently say it's got a few years….maybe months."
Hearing this, Arthur chuckled as he took another sip. The flavor was a bit hard to describe, but it was wonderful. It wasn't too sweet, and the aftertaste is well balanced, having a bit of a nutty, spicy, floral, and earthy taste.
"…weeks," smiled Arthur.
Talking for a bit, a question Arthur had been wondering for a while popped into his head.
"When I was making my way over to the beast tide, I was scanning through the members of the tribe and noticed that they all have varying shades of dark brown eyes. Any idea why your's are so starkly different?"
"Oh that," began Cisse. "According to father, it's a rare trait that awakens within our royal clan members every once in a while. Supposedly when it is fully awakened, it will grant some sort of visual ability. As for when it will awaken? Your guess is as good as mine. So, for now, they are pretty much useless."
"I wouldn't call them useless; they must at least be popular with the ladies, right?" Nudged Arthur.
"Haha, I wish." Laughed Cisse.
"Ohhh, so there is someone?"
"Yeaa, but she rejected my advances."
Eyebrows raised, Arthur couldn't help but look at Cisse in confusion. "Looks? Check. Battle prowess? Check. Status? Check. Am I missing something, the books I read said that that's all was needed to woe a maiden? Well, that and a decent personality, which you have. "
"Age." Coughed Cisse.
"Oh my gosh," gasped Arthur. "You like a chil-"
SMACK!
"Ouch, what was that for?"
"Dumbass! The other direction!"
"Ohhh," laughed Arthur as he rubbed the back of his head. "But how is age a problem though, I thought it didn't matter for the most part?"
"It's quite subjective, to be honest. Most people use appearance as an appropriate gauge. Like gray hairs with gray hairs and youthful faces with youthful faces. But for the most part, it doesn't matter as long as both parties are at least fifteen – an adult."
"But you are almost an adult already; if they are a few years older, that shouldn't be a problem unless they like twice your age…."Trailed Arthur, followed by an immediate pause seeing the lack of response from Cisse. "Oh my gosh, they are twice your age."
"Yeaaa, but not exactly twice; they are just ten years older."
"Just?"
"Well, yea? When I'm thirty, they will be forty. Doesn't seem like such a big deal."
"I guess….. but how did it all happen?"
"Oh, that?" Laughed Cisse. "Entertaining story, actually. When I was around ten, I joined father in an excursion into the forest. My purpose was to take down every F-ranked beast we came across, and the rest of the group would take turns in teams and take care of the rest. It was a great system that gave everyone more than enough ample time to rest between battles….enough to even have time to bath."
"Oh my gosh, you little pervert." Chuckled Arthur.
"As if, who do I look like? You?"
"Hey! Mine was a complete accident."
"Suree….anyways, while I was with the group, we encountered an F-Ranked Croquo. Think a very slimy frog, with the most annoying trait of bursting into a ball of sticky slime upon death. As usual, Killing it with finesse, I was now completely covered in sticky slime and now needed a bath. And low and behold, there she was."
"Hahaha, it was at then that little Cisse knew he no longer wanted to play with wooden swords, well not that kind of wooden sword." Arthur nudged and winked.
Rolling his eyes, Cisse released an exasperated sigh as Arthur began a giggling fit.
Finally catching his breath, Arthur asked, "wait, are you sure it's love and not lust?"
"I thought that too, but it wasn't her body that had me mesmerized. There was just this serenity, this sense of peace I felt as my eyes rested on her face." Cisse breathed. "I was caught by her, of course, and had a dagger thrown at me. But it was all good since she aimed for a tree behind me."
Breathing out lightly, Cisse paused as he reminisced the memory before continuing. "Afterwards, as we traveled, I couldn't take my eyes off of her, especially when she led her team in taking down beasts. Her strength, style, poise….. I was simply captivated by her elegance."
"Wow," Smiled Arthur. "Looks like you've found something special."
"Thank you," smiled Cisse. "What about you? Got anything interesting? You did just randomly fall out of the sky."
"Oh yeah," laughed Arthur. "Where do I begin?"
Thinking for a bit, Arthur began recounting his experience with the Old Man. Including some of the interesting training the Old Man put him through. Especially the year-long one when he turned seven. Saying something along the lines of, "there is no such thing as a limit," the Old Man threw him into an insect nest, with the firm objective: Survive. The first days weren't bad, but the lack of reprieve began to eat at the young Arthur after a while. After a few months, it got to the point where Arthur would lose consciousness while his body continued to slay the insects. Whether willing or not, Arthur's body's survival instincts had reached a point where his consciousness was no longer need in the preservation of his life.
Listening to this, extreme pity couldn't help but fill Cisse's eyes.
Confused by the look on Cisse's face, Arthur couldn't help but ask," what?"
Seeing the confusion on Arthur's face, the pity in Cisse's eyes deepened.
"You're a victim."