One week later ...
Gen got out of bed, stretched, and said, "Yawn! Wow, what a good night of sleep. I feel so refreshed."
He then looked around him and thought, 'Where am I? Oh yeah! This is that room at the back of the restaurant. It looks like Lina brought me here after I passed out.'
He then changed into some clothes that were beside the bed and then left the room. As he left the room, Gen saw Balkan's back and said, "Good morning, Balkan."
Balkan then looked back and said, "Gen, you're finally awake! Good, I was starting to get worried."
"What do you mean Balkan? Did I sleep for a long time?"
"Yes."
"How long did I sleep for?"
"A week."
"A week?!"
"Yeah, pushing yourself as hard as you did must have overworked your body."
Gen then asked Dehji, 'Hey Dehji, is it true that I was asleep for a week?'
And Dehji said, 'Yes, Gen, you were out for a week.'
'It can't be.'
'What do you mean by, it can't be, Gen? Do you remember everything you've done? You passed my ordeal, helped with the Diton expedition, partied until dawn with Raja, and then without even sleeping, you went and helped with the Dekin expedition, and to top it off, you had that whole, uh, 'fight' with Lina.'
'Yeah, I remember.'
'So there you go. It would be strange if you didn't sleep for at least a few days after all that you did. Oh, and just to be clear, I'm sorry to have to tell you this, Gen, but I agree with Raja. If there's one thing that the argument you had with Lina didn't look like, it was an argument.'
'You too with that Dehji? I understand, Raja, but you heard everything we talked about, so you should know what it really was.'
'I know it was an argument, Gen, and at no time did I say it wasn't. What I said was that it didn't seem to be an argument, and I don't think I'm wrong. Who sees two people kissing and believes that they are arguing.'
'... I can't deny that, you have a point.'
'Right? And another thing, congratulations.'
'Congratulations? On what? My birthday that passed?'
'No, congratulations because you actually did what Light said.', 'Huh? What did Light say? What are you talking about?'
'About going a week without almost dying.'
'Really? It's been a week already?'
'Yes, after all, during this week that you've been laid up, you haven't been in any danger of dying.'
'Hey, what-', Gen was about to continue when he was interrupted by a voice calling him.
"Hey Gen! Gen!", Balkan said, and Gen said, "Hi ... What's up?"
"Is everything okay with you? You went quiet out of the blue after I told you that you slept for a week. You weren't answering me, so I thought something had happened."
"It's okay Balkan, there's no need to worry, I've recovered."
"Are you sure, Gen? You should still be weak by-", but was interrupted by a rumbling belly noise, and then he said, "Hahaha! It really looks like you're doing better. Come with me. I'll make you a special dish. On the house, of course."
"Since you offered, I won't stand on ceremony. After going for a week without eating, I'm starving."
The two then left the back of the restaurant and headed for the kitchen. When they got there, Balkan opened the door and said, "Anna, look who's awake."
And Anna said, "Gen! I'm glad you're awake, we were so worried about you."
Gen then said, "Yes, I'm as well as ever."
"Good."
Balkan then said, "I came to make Gen something to eat, he's starving after being asleep for a week."
And Anna said, "That's a great idea. I'll help you."
Balkan then walked over to the stove and asked, "What do you want to eat, Gen?"
And Gen said, "Whatever you can make fast because I'm starving."
"Okay, go to the restaurant, and when it's ready, I'll bring it to you."
"Okay."
Gen then sat down in the chair facing the counter and began to wait for his food to arrive.
In the meantime, Raja appeared, and said, "Look, who's up. I thought you were going to stay sleeping for more time."
And Gen said, "Longer than a week?"
"Well, if I were you, I'd get as much rest as possible. After all, we'll be heading for Tólis soon, and you'd better be at your one hundred percent."
"That's true, but you don't have to worry. I am completely rested."
"Good, that's the most important thing. Now, speaking of Tólis, I have been gathering information, and by the looks of it, tomorrow, a caravan of merchants will be going there. They will need guards, and we, as awakened ones, will not be refused. Besides, we only want a ride, so we can charge them less so that they will choose us."
"Great. That's exactly what we needed. That makes things a lot easier, Raja."
"Hahaha, no need to worry. As long as I'm around, I'll always do my best to make your life easier, Gen. After all, we are friends, aren't we?"
Gen thought Raja was a little too passionate, but he put it aside and said, "Thank you very much, Raja, and I think you're right. Even though we've only known each other a short time, I think we can already consider ourselves friends."
"Hahaha, that's great Gen, you don't know how happy I am to hear that."
"... That's nice, haha ..."
Right after that, Balkan and Anna came with two plates and a drink from inside the kitchen and then put them in front of Gen.
Balkan then said, "There you go, Gen, your favorite food, on the house, and a dessert for you to enjoy later."
And Anna said, "I also picked up a great wine for you to drink while you eat, Gen. It is fifty years old and was made by a gentleman, who after making wine for thirty years, awakened the essence of the grapes."
Gen then said, "Wow, guys, thank you very much, but I think you are overdoing it. I know I've been asleep for a week, but it's not like I'm in a serious condition or anything."
And Balkan said, "We're not exaggerating, Gen. After all, we thought you were dead, Gen. So this is kind of to celebrate your resurrection."
"Hmm, with you talking like that I can see your point, but still there's no need for all this."
Anna then said, "Gen, don't worry about it. Drinks were made for drinking, and Balkan already made the food for you, so enjoy it."
"... All right, you're right."
Gen then sat up in his chair to start eating, and then Raja said, "Let me give you a massage, Gen."
Raja then went behind Gen and began to massage his back, and Gen said, "Hey Raja, you don't have to... wow! you're good at this. Where did you learn to massage like that?"
"Well, I'll just say I've had several opportunities to practice, hahaha."
"I should have known, hahaha."
Gen then thought, 'I should faint more often. I can't even remember the last time I was treated so well.'
Gen then began to eat, and quickly, he finished the main course.
He then took some of the wine and was about to start dessert when suddenly he heard a voice say, "Dad, these are the orders for tables five and seven."
Gen then turned around and said, "Hey Lina, good morning.", but Lina ignored him.
Balkan then took the orders, and said, "I'll be right back, I'll go prepare them."
Gen then said, "Hey, Lina, is everything okay?"
"..."
Gen then got up and walked towards her, and when he got within a certain distance, he spoke again, "Hey Lina, why-", but was interrupted by her who said, "GET AWAY FROM ME!", and then she left him, and went to get other orders.
Gen was in shock and thought, 'What just happened? Why is she so angry?', and then he started hearing some people in the bar talking, "Couple fight?", "Looks like it.", "Gen has a lot of nerve. I could never date Lina."
He then thought, 'Couple? Dating? Since when am I dating Lina? Where did they get that from?', but then, as if something clicked in his mind, he turned to Raja and Anna, who were at the counter, and as he looked at them, Gen realized that they were also looking at him.
When he turned in their direction, they turned their faces away and started acting weird.
Seeing this, he thought, 'So this is your doing!'