The air hummed with a low murmur of conversation, punctuated by the occasional clink of glasses and laughter. The bar was alive with the energy of people seeking respite from the demands of the day.
A polished wooden counter stretched along one side of the room, adorned with gleaming bottles that stood like sentinels.
The soft glow of hanging pendant lights cast a warm ambience over the diverse gathering of patrons, each engaged in their own conversations or lost within their own thoughts.
Tall wooden worn but wholesomely cared for barstools lined the counter with tables of a similar quality scattered throughout the room.
The wooden planks making up the walls of the room stood sturdy with dents and splinters indented throughout them, easily forgotten by the beautiful decorations of what seemed to be a family.
Eve and Somniya later took a seat beside one another at the counter.
Slowly eating a bowl of bland white flakes resembling porridge, alongside a hexagonal piece of depressingly boring toast, Somniya's eyes are drawn to the therapeutic sizzling sound of frying from behind the counter.
"What's that?" Somniya asked instantly intrigued, although anything was enough to temporarily shadow his mind from his bland meal. However, out of everything else in the room, this offered a unique captivating scent
Eve eating a similar meal to Somniya although with pancakes rather than toast followed Somniya's gaze to the fryer. "Oh, they're just making some fried chicken over there."
"Smells amazing, let me get some."
"I don't know… we're pretty tight on money now ha-ha." Eve giggled painfully thinking back to her terrible bargaining skills.
"Pleaseeee I won't ask for anything else I swear I'm going to die if I don't get any the aroma is gonna kill me!!!!" Somniya desperately pleaded as if he wanted nothing else in the world.
"You're not going to die because something smells good!" Eve exclaimed.
"Pleaseeeeee!"
Finally surrendering to her kindness Eve pulls out a few qwell from her pocket and places them on the counter, "Okay fine... you better enjoy the hell out of this though or you'll be the next thing on that fryer."
"Here you are sir, thank you and enjoy." The waiter thanked dropping a plate of six fried chicken drumsticks on the table.
The fried chicken still steaming let out a warm unexplainably extraordinary aroma that strokes his nostrils carefully releasing his body of any tension or stress.
Unable to hold himself back Somniya scuffed down the chicken, and within one bite he almost finished the entire drumstick his mouth already drooling within between bites he scoffed down the chicken and within a matter of seconds the plate was empty.
"Can you pass me some- What the hell I thought you don't know magic! where the hell'd it all go I looked away for a literal second?!" Eve shrieked both angry yet amazed simultaneously.
Somniya took a satisfied burp leaning back on his chair before jumping back up. "More! I need more of whatever that was!" Demanding in a muffled command, his mouth still stuffed with his previous voice.
"Coming right up!"
"Hey what are you talking about this ain't even your money!!!!"
Yet in his mesmerised trance, Somniya had failed to realise his hood floated down from his head, completely exposing himself to everyone else in the lunchroom.
All the customers took a pause watching in shock, the eerie silence making it seem as if everyone, but Somniya and Eve were reduced to statues with a split of a second.
Somniya looked left and right the realisation suddenly dawning on him as he patted his head with both hands frantically.
Suddenly Somniya's eyes were dragged to the heavy drop of a walking stick, "You… Ruthless… You're Ruthless aren't you!" Wheeped an elderly woman, her wrinkles dragging down her face almost forming entire bags with an oak-coloured head scarf and a yellow gown wrapped around the rest of her body.
She waddled towards him jerking from left to right seeming as if her own legs were being controlled remotely had control over her own legs.
The shock still settling in Somniya's mind was void of any words, only able to glance at Eve and back at the woman as he took a step back now leaning against the table, they were sitting at.
'It's over isn't it, there's no place to run I bet Eve can't be any more pissed at me. How'd I mess up this badly but somehow, I feel like I could say it was worth it?' He thought.
The woman drops to her knees as if they had finally given out on her, "Why, why'd you have to take my son away from me, please just tell me that. I don't care what you do to me after I just need to know he's all I have left."
"Huh?!" Somniya responded in utter confusion still caught in a trance absorbing what he had just done.
"You sentenced my son a year in the blood colosseum starting next month. He has no fighting ability, there's no chance he'll survive that long. We're nothing more than the owners of this inn.
"What?" Somniya repeated his confusion only agreeing more and more with the situation.
"Just for missing the tax for a few months you sentenced one of us to the colosseum obviously he was the only one that could take it up out of the two of us.
And this place is still going to end up bankrupt, business has been plummeting since the amount of people travelling through here has drastically reduced.
Even though it's such a petty crime, even though were in such a bad, even though some more prominent less humble business's pay little to no tax, you just pick and choose when it's most fun don't you?!" The old lady wailed gripping Somniya's trousers as if she wanted to pull them apart a flood of tears raining down to the floor.
'Did I really do all that- no it was-?'
"I don't want to lose the last thing I have, watching him grow up, helping out in the inn, instead of leaving to better his life despite everything I told him he insisted even dropping out of Aracnium for me." The old lady continues putting an abrupt halt to Somniya's still spiralling thoughts.
No matter what I could always rely on him…" All of a sudden both her hands dropped to the floor beside her.
"-ha-ha-ha… what am I even saying it's obvious your not the same person otherwise I'd be dead or exiled by now, guess old age and stress taking a toll on me haha.
Never mind it's fine. "
Regardless of her words her solemn eyes spoke, no screamed her depressing thoughts far more than any of her words ever could.
"Hey, Eve," Somniya uttered into the air calmly looking up to the ceiling.
Eve's eyes towards Somniya's hidden gaze, "...?"
"I figured out how to repay you. You've never once given up on me, you've never one stopped chasing me and I can see you never will not only for myself but for the world which was taken by Ruthless."
"…."
You've never felt your heart at peace for a lot longer than I haven't. I'll bring your heart peace no matter what."
"I'll make a world of peace, I'll make a world where you'll never have to worry about me again, I'll make a world where I can wear the name Somniya not only peacefully but with pride."
A world you've been chasing for a long time for such a lonely time!" Somniya proclaimed passionately gripping his chest, with a determined flame in his eye, without a hint of hesitation or doubt in his voice, instantaneously turning to Eve his powerfully warm gaze absorbing her in a new sensation she hadn't felt in a long time.
'I'm not alone anymore?' Eve thought not realising a tear crawl down her left cheek.
Slightly bending down he gently took hold of both of the old woman's hands, before slowly lifting her to her feet.
"If the only way to live peacefully is to make up for everything he had done in the past even if I don't remember a thing. Then I'll atone for every last one of the demon king's sins!"
"I swear I'll bring your son back; you'll continue to see him grow, he'll make an amazing life for himself and for you I'm sure he has so much time ahead of him you're no longer alone without him, you now have me as well, be ready to rely on me granny."
"Thank you so much. I'll believe in you; I'll rely on you to bring my son back."
*Conk*
"But don't call me granny, I'm the only one allowed to call myself old I still got a good few years left, next time I won't be so kind." She scolded walking back to her table where a lukewarm cup of coffee lay, however not before turning round and referring to Somniya as "Son."
With a gleeful smile illuminating the room and casting out the sadness that once enveloped the area.
"That makes no sense…" Somniya muttered to himself still rubbing his head to soothe the beating Somniya turned towards Eve, however before he could even lock eyes with her, she snatched him by the shirt and swiftly drug him outside within a mere few seconds.
"Oh, a lovers' quarrel huh? Brings me back Hehe." The old woman giggled. "Although after seeing that glint in his eyes, I know there's no longer one thing in the world that may stop him, which takes me back even further."