When he woke up from his unconscious state, Vicente looked at his surroundings and felt a little agitated. Soon, he realized he was back in the room where he and his family had been staying for the past few months.
He saw Nina lying beside him, sleeping while the marks of her crying could still be seen on her face.
Recounting what had happened, Vicente felt himself again in a passive position. Once again, he had lost yet another important person in his life, but he was unable to do anything about it.
'Damn it! What should I do? Big sister has been taken away!' Vicente shouted to himself, his frustration apparent.
At the moment, the contours of his face looked more distinct, while the look in his eyes seemed to no longer have any trace of childish naivety, given that his situation was enough to move any sentimental person.
Despite not even being 11 years old yet, Vicente had already experienced tragedies that few adults might have ever faced.
This world was chaotic, and dangers were lurking in every corner. But still, most people living here would never had to witness their mother's brutal death, nor simply wait while their sister was being taken away by strangers.
Death eventually would catch up with everyone. However, at least many people would lose their loved ones in less extreme ways.
The burden on Vicente was not small!
He got up from his bed and almost exploded with anger. Still, in the presence of his little sister, he restrained from showing his violent side by destroying things in his surroundings.
"Big brother?" Nina asked.
While she was deaf, Nina could already speak by the time she had lost her hearing. Since losing her hearing, the little girl had avoided speaking, as she felt pretty uncomfortable being able to speak but unable to hear her own voice. Nonetheless, she was completely capable of doing so.
Upon hearing Nina's sweet voice, Vice stopped trembling with anger but didn't turn around. He was worried the look on his face would scare his younger sister.
"Big brother, what should we do? Big sister has been taken away..." the little girl sobbed, her eyes welling up with tears.
Vicente closed his eyes and tried not to show his pain to Nina and smiled as he turned to her while taking her in his arms and lightly embracing her.
While he was trying to learn sign language, Nina was still a long way from being able to communicate with it, so, for now, all Vicente could do was write to her.
'It will be alright. Big sister is talented, and one day she will find her way back to us,' Vicente wrote to her, feigning confidence.
Nina was easy to fool, so she soon accepted her brother's lie and was easily comforted. She believed they would just have to wait for Lauren, and one day, their big sister would return.
Thinking how much better this was compared to the situation of her mother, who would never return, she felt quite relieved.
Leaving his little sister in the room, Vicente put on a shirt before searching for his father.
As he emerged out of his room, he ran into one of the two guards who were hired by Andrew.
This man had a troublesome expression on his face while the other guard was facing the door to Andrew's room, where there were some people with whom Vicente was unfamiliar.
"Soren, what's wrong? Who are these people?" Vicente inquired, puzzled by the strangers in his old man's room.
Soren clenched his fists and avoided meeting the child's gaze, grappling with how he should deliver the news. 'How do I tell him that?"
"Sigh... Vicente, I'm sorry. Your father fell ill after we returned from the Awakening Temple. We called a doctor, but..."
A lump formed in Soren's throat, and he struggled to continue.
Gulp!
Meanwhile, Vicente's eyes widened and he immediately rushed to the door of his father's room amid Soren's speech. He quickly noticed the doctor who seemed to have attended to Andrew was now gathering his belongings.
As for Andrew's body, it lay stiff on his bed, his skin already showing a change in its color, which indicated he was no longer alive.
Andrew had died!
"... But he couldn't take it. I'm sorry, but your father has already passed away." Soren finished, feeling sorry for the siblings.
Vicente's eyes fluttered as he understood what had happened, and he fell to his knees on the floor but couldn't comprehend how this was possible.
The doctor, seeing the son of the man who had just died, offered his condolences, "Boy, I am sorry for your loss. Your father was in a very weakened state and could not withstand the heart attack he had.
Unfortunately, it seems that his will to live was no longer there, and he didn't try to fight for his life."
With those words, this doctor stopped in front of Vicente and massaged the young man's head before wishing him good luck.
After everyone left, no one other than Andrew's guards, Vicente and Nina, remained inside that apartment.
"What do we do now?" Wesley asked in a low voice, addressing Soren.
Soren stood up and walked over to Vicente, who was still kneeling in silence.
"Vicente, your father paid us to take you back to Martell Village... So you need to decide what you will do from now on." Soren said before continuing, "We will abide by what was agreed to with Andrew if you want, but we will be open to something else, too. It's up to you as to what you want.
However, once our contract work days are up, we will leave. So consider your decision carefully about what you are going to do."
Vicente, feeling overwhelmingly confused at the moment and uncertain, requested, "Can you give me an hour to think about it? I'm not feeling well right now."
"Of course. We'll be waiting outside," Soren responded before calling Wesley and leaving Vicente alone in the room.
...
"Hey, what are you up to? Andrew hadn't settled the payment for this job yet," Wesley asked his comrade, not understanding what Soren had in mind for saying all that to Vicente.
Soren sighed and explained, "How long have we known Andrew for, ten years? Perhaps even longer?"
"Around that long."
"Well, we have earned quite a bit working for him over the years. He also covered all our expenses from the beginning of the trip. Now, these two children are left alone... Let's give them a chance and help them reach the village," Soren suggested, looking in the direction of Vicente.
Wesley heard this and nodded in agreement.
He liked his coins, but after considering everything that had happened and his history of service to Andrew, he couldn't help but think that simply abandoning these two children would be wrong.
"But why did you say Andrew prepaid for this job? We could have just told the boy that we were heading back to the village anyway and would bring them with us."
Soren clarified, "I don't want the boy to think he owes us anything. Let's just provide them with some assistance without informing them, and afterward, we'll leave. What happens from then on will have no concern for us.
If he gets over this difficult period, who knows what might happen? We will avoid too much closeness with him by pretending to do one last service while keeping doors open for future business with him.
If everything goes wrong, he won't see us as a friend who can take the trouble he brings to us. But if things go well, he might hire us in the future, knowing that we are reliable since we keep our agreements."
"Oh? That makes sense!" Wesley agreed.
Eventually, Vicente made up his mind and called the two.
"Alright, I've given it enough thought. I want to go back to Martell Village. I hope you two can safely escort me and my sister there," Vicente said seriously, thinking about taking over his old man's position and beginning a new life alongside Nina in a place he was already familiar with.