5/9
.....
In the middle of the night, a group of horsemen entered the city through the west gate through the already deserted city streets; the same group that came out a few days ago.
The difference was, those who returned were only about half of the total compared to those who left several days ago, with some of the steeds only following the group without the men on top.
People who didn't know would think they had experienced something unfortunate along the way, with many mounts being lost, and people tragically dying, probably. Ah, they could only make assumptions from what their eyes offered.
That same night several hours earlier, Goto decided to quickly pack up from their camp, preparing to return early without waiting for morning to come.
Even if the bear or another beast came to attack, he and the others were confident they would still be able to handle it.
However, with the burden of five people being incapacitated due to the bear's sneak attack, it made everything much riskier. Especially if there was an attack from a horde of beasts.
They also did not wait for the other group that entered the inner circle of the forest, because their original plans for their return never crossed paths.
Even though Aria thought it was the best decision, he never felt relieved. On the contrary, his heart got heavier along the way as they moved closer and closer to their destination. And he was not alone with such burdened thoughts.
…..
The next day, Aria woke up from his sleep a bit later than usual. He noticed the familiar ceiling, still feeling a bit lazy to let go of his bed. The lingering excitement from the previous days took a toll on his body more than he thought. Ah, this body still needed more practice, he thought.
Last night, when he and his entourage arrived, it really caused an uproar. Well, it's only his mother who made a scene with her reaction when she saw her son, even with decent new cloth, couldn't hide his bruises and scars. They wouldn't just disappear within a few hours.
Moreover, Alisa became extremely horrified when she saw Aria's damaged cloth, torn to shreds, full of blood…and so smelly.
It was a bad idea to bring it back because it was concrete evidence of his bitter fight. But Aria didn't dare throw it away after remembering his father's warning before they parted away. It's just that he failed miserably to stay away from disast... from trouble.
Aria managed to escape the bombardment of his mother's interrogation, who would go into details of each his matter, as she was continuing to activate her healing ability, by saying he needed a proper sleep.
Alisa could only reluctantly let him go, before making sure that she was not finished yet with him. Fortunately, Rosalind had fallen asleep much earlier. Otherwise, hell would become messier.
Finished arranging his thoughts straight, Aria couldn't help but smile wryly, remembering what he was about to face out of his room.
"Ah, it's going to be a tough morning."
He immediately got up from lying down, cleaning himself with a damp cloth. He couldn't bother changing his sleeping attire because he didn't mess it up like he usually did every morning.
He went out into the kitchen, a habit he would never going to give up.
"Mom? You're not supposed to be this early."
Aria was a little surprised to find his mother in the kitchen, busy preparing various kinds of foods with the help of the aunty chef.
"It's not me, it's you who wake up a bit later," Alisa replied with a smile, "It's good that you could sleep more. If you wake up like usual, your mother will lock you in your room all day."
Aria just smiled awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.
"That's for you."
Alisa pointed at the small table on the side. There were already several plates of buns and a glass of milk.
"Eat it first. I'm going to finish this cook, then we can have a proper talk while having breakfast."
Alisa indicated with a glance at her son. Aria gulped, feeling a bit intimidated by how serious the talk with his mother going to be.
He nodded, acting like a good boy, finishing his food in silence.
Alisa let out a smile seeing him so obedient and refocused on her cooking.
…..
"So, that's all I can tell. I really have nothing to hide, you can ask every guard who was there."
Aria told his experience, all the truth from his perception in front of Alisa who looked into his eyes, dead serious, and Rosalind, with an expression of disbelief at her brother's adventure.
Because of that, the three of them didn't touch the food on the table. Aria became a little sorry because the food was getting cold.
But he did not dare to make the move before the tension in the air lessened. Moreover, his mother still did not ease her expression. There were lines that he didn't dare to cross, one of them when he was in such a situation.
Aria could only stay silent in his seat, looking at the food that was out of his reach with longing eyes, lamenting that they were missing the best time to savor it, as he was waiting for his verdict from his mother.
What surprised him was how Rosalind was acting, who shouldn't be this silent. He glanced at his big sis, who was staring down. He wondered what happened to her when he was not around.
"It's my fault for allowing you to go. I didn't make a proper judgment, almost making me a big sinner."
Alisa sighed, rubbing her forehead, muttering the last part in an inaudible voice. She couldn't believe that her son's experience would be this dangerous. She almost lost him forever.
"Mom, it's okay. I'm fine. It's not as dangerous as you think. Uncle Goto was always on standby by my side. It's just a little accident at the end…"
"A bit of an accident you say? But you almost lost your life!"
"But I was able to handle it. I'm safe and sound now. My ability really is a little better than those guards, if I could say that. You don't have to take it that hard, seriously."
"They're just ordinary guards, not elite troops or anything. Being on par or a little better than them doesn't make you great or anything."
"Mom, my performance wasn't that bad, you don't have to look down on me like that."
"Listen, son! You, who think can handle beasts on your own; you, who think can survive a sneak attack from tier-1 beasts very well; but for me, that's not good enough!"
"But, Mom..."
"No buts! You're just a child, a six-year-old child, my child. All those you said, for mother was not enough. As long as the word 'almost' still exist, it's not okay at all. Please, understand that, son!"
Aria was silent for a moment, watching his quite emotional mother reveal all her heart's content. His heart softened, he no longer tried to defend himself or anything.
"I'm sorry, Mom..."
Aria lowered his head, relented, not wanting to agitate his mother with his words any more than this.
"It's good if you understand," Alisa rubbed the little tears that were poking out from the corner of her eyes.
"Believe me, son. I just don't want you to get hurt. You still have a long time ahead of you. Not many children your age can do that, I believe. It's just that your safety comes first for mother."
"I just want you to be more like normal children, don't grow up too fast. I don't want to miss my baby boy growth, yet."
Alisa smiled at her son.
"Now, for the next few days, you need a lot of rest. Stop your training for a while, after all, your father isn't around to train you."
After saying that, Alisa thought of her husband who was supposed to be there when her son's in danger. She gritted her teeth hard.
'Just watch out when you get home! See how I will teach you a lesson!'
Alisa said inwardly, her eyes fiery. Garreth, who was deep in the forest, suddenly felt the hairs on his neck stood up in goosebumps. He became very alert, thinking the danger was imminent. He didn't know that the danger he thought was going to welcome him at his home.
"From now on you must follow your old mother. Make sure your body gets the rest it deserves."
That's his verdict! Aria could only cry inwardly.
'I won't be able to take a rest by always being near you, mother!'
…..
Three days later, Aria and her family, minus Garreth, who still hadn't returned from his duty, arrived at a magnificent residence, still in the western district of Steinriver City. This residence was far more magnificent than theirs but not as large as the Archduke Clan's.
Alisa, Rosalind, and Aria came there to attend a gathering which was routinely held by certain upper-classmen. Even though the get-togethers like this were not Alisa's cup of tea, due to her family background and husband's status, Alisa was forced to go with the flow as a polite gesture, albeit quite reluctantly.
But that didn't mean it was something useless. As a means of socialization, certain information was only spread among groups like this. In addition, she also has good relations with several people in it, some of whom were her good friends from her younger self.
This time, Alisa dragged his son along, not only Rosalind who was used to accompanying her, unlike Aria who always refused every invitation. This time he couldn't, one of the agreements he made with Alisa earlier covered this.
That was also why the current Aria came with a gloomy mood. He really didn't like activities like this, especially where he had to maintain his image by restraining himself.
Even though his mother never warned him what to do, it was clear he didn't want to bring a bad name, tarnishing his parents' reputations with his behavior that would be the subject of negative talk.
Meanwhile, Rosalind, who was used to attending the same event several times before, was relaxed with a little smile plastered on her beautiful and delicate fair face, like a proper lady she did, much different from her brother.
"Do you feel uncomfortable traveling with your old mother?"
Alisa smiled at her son who had a frowning face all this time.
"You know it's not that mother. I'm just not comfortable with this kind of gathering."
Aria answered while smiling wryly.
"Then, you have a lot to learn facing this kind of situation. You can't stay in your own world, with practice and your food," Alisa grinned widely as she patted her son's shoulder.
"Really, you have now grown bigger than your sister. People will think that you are the older one."
Alisa saw her two children in front of her. Usually, a girl had a faster growth at the start than a boy. Perhaps not as fast as her son, Aria.
With his habit of eating so much, her initial worries began to dissipate as time went on. Her boy grew so well. With intense training, her plump doll gradually developed into a remarkable boy. Although she missed his baby fat, she was happy to see her son's hard work paid off.
"You have to go with your sister, make sure she doesn't get bothered by some flies that often hover around her. For your information, your sister has a lot of admirers."
"MOM!"
Alisa chuckled at her daughter's embarrassed face from her teasing.
"Of course, leave it to me."
"Just make sure you don't gobble up all the food inside. You will embarrass me."
Rosalind snorted with Aria's reply.
"Don't forget, make sure to make friends."
…..
"So this is your little brother, that Aria? Isn't he too big!"
Ten youngsters gathered, separating themselves from the rest of the crowd. Now they were watching the most unfamiliar of them with various expressions. They observed him from head to toe, very rude.
"Don't look at him like that. He's not some rare specimen."
"Here, let me introduce one by one. This girl with wavy hair is Nelita from Arrington Family, the host of this gathering; The boy beside her…"
"It's useless, your brother doesn't pay attention to you."
"Huh?!"
Rosalind turned to her brother, who turned out to be looking in another direction. Rosalind's face turned red, irritated mixed with anger. So she immediately tugged the ear of her outrageous brother.
"YOU!!!"
"Aw.. aw… It hurts!!!"
"What are you doing?! I'm introducing you to my friends!"
Aria rubbed his ear as if it was going to be pulled off by his sister. Then, he pointed to the distance, where his mother was talking intimately with a man he did not know.
Indeed, there were many people he did not know in that place, even members of his own clan were present, he could only recall a few faces, not their names.
"Oh? That was…"