DAKU
Greygor's apprentice story left a huge imprint on me. And this would remind me that I should not become like him: asking the Goddess for forbidden magic just to fulfill a selfish dream. Or was it a selfish one? It was a one-sided story. We might not know Hirako's true intentions to ask for such evil magic. But one thing was for sure, it brought this land chaos and suffering a hundred years ago.
Greygor and I continued to tell tales of old just to get off of the overpowering tension we had earlier. As a man of age, he sure had many stories hidden within the folds of his brain. Most of these were from his experience when he was once at a party as an adventurer. They had conquered dungeons, slain monsters, and even hunted corrupted souls as their training target, but he joked about it as their hobby. Just imagining them fighting a corrupted being just because they wanted to was kind of suicide to me.
"Our leader is now a family man; our tank now owned a bakery; and the marksman was now a mentor in the academe. Oh, how I wish to go back in time and travel together again," Greygor pleaded while looking at the ceiling, reminiscing his old days.
"That's the saddest part of friendship—the parting," I stated as I brought the food into my mouth. I was right about the food. It was far from delicious. The taste was exceptional.
"I beg to disagree," Greygor countered. "It's not the act of leaving that brings sadness but the memories you once shared and the truth that those memories will not be relived again."
Chatting with Greygor reminded me of Grosi. Grosi was not verbal like Greygor but whenever my mentor opened his mouth, it would be something worth to listen. Grosi may look rough and stern on the outside but he was a caring man on the inside. People tended to misunderstand him and thought he was grumpy and hard to deal with. Maybe that was just how he was.
The conversation went out until Greygor excused himself to visit the villagers. Speaking of villagers, I have yet to visit Miss Hanaka and Kana at their house. I told them I would stop by later. What time was it already?
"It's already five in the afternoon. We sure had a long talk," I mumbled.
A creaking noise caught my ears, pivoting me to face the source of it. Looked like Greygor was right: Kenshi woke up before I knew it. It was not my first time to see Kenshi without his armor so it was not shocking to see how muscular and how sexy his body was. And the addition of bandages wrapped around the upper half of his torso made him even more sexier.
Probably still tired from lying on the bed for a long time, Kenshi dropped his head while supporting himself with his two veiny arms grasping the edge of the bed. His deep rhythmic breathing and bed-hair did something inside of me, tickling my insides.
It took me a while to realize that I should be assisting him, so, I dashed toward him.
"You should stay in bed, Kenshi. I don't think you have fully recovered yet," I convinced him with my hands flailing around, unsure and uncertain of where should I put them. Touching him without his consent was a breach of his privacy.
"I'm already fine. I just need to get my gears working up again. My head was still spinning," Kenshi said as he put his left hand on the side of his head.
"Does it hurt?"
"Just a little bit of stinging. Probably because I got up too quickly," he guessed which was similar to my hunch as well.
"Let me try," I offered and placed myself in front of him. I hovered both of my hands on both sides of his head then closed my eyes. I felt the flow of magic from my body traveling to the end of my hands and my palms. A faint green light went through my eyelids, a sign of magic at work. I kept the magic going for a minute before deactivating it. I opened my eyes and asked, "How do you feel now?"
"Much better. Thank you."
"Don't thank me," I uttered. I turned my back against him and watched the other end of the room. "It was the Sage who saved you. I mean, I could have but my body failed me. I'm sorry—"
"Don't be," Kenshi interjected. And all of a sudden, a hard object landed on my lower back but I knew for myself that it was not just an object but Kenshi's head leaning on me. "Did I make you worry?"
That question was uncalled for. I didn't know how to respond. Should I say yes because, for the record, he did worry me? I mean, who would not?
"I...uh..."
"Nevermind," Kenshi interfered and removed his head from my back. "Where are we, anyway?"
I told Kenshi of our whereabouts, about Greygor and him being the person we were looking for. When Kenshi found out that it was the Sage that his lead was referring to, his body relaxed and I felt his relief. He must have been glad to know that our search was finally over. But those were the good news and now I told him about the bad news.
"So in the end, Greygor couldn't teach you even though he was quite of a great healer himself?" Kenshi concluded and I nodded in agreement. "So, what are your plans now?"
"Greygor proposed an idea," I began. I told Kenshi about Thelah, the Goddess of Health, and the possibility of the Goddess to take me as her apprentice.
"Working with the divine is a risky thing to do, Daku," Kenshi pointed out. "One day they'll be glad to help you and then the next day they'll throw you out like garbage. Gods can do whatever they want because they're...gods."
"I know what you are trying to tell me, Kenshi, but the Goddess of Health is the kindest god of them all—"
"At least that's what Greygor has said," Kenshi stated. I was annoyed.
"What do you want me to do? Stick on this level?" I growled. "We are already here, Kenshi. Someone...or something can help me become a better Healer. That's what you want, right? So that I could easily heal you while you recklessly throw yourself toward danger."
"We both know something must be done."
"And look where it brought you? It almost got you killed!"
"You worry too much, Daku!"
"I AM A FREAKIN' HEALER! WE ARE SUPPOSE TO WORRY!" I yelled, my breathing was deep and my nose was fuming out of anger. I needed to cool down my temper. I moved toward the door but before leaving the house, I left a note, "Food is on the table." Those words came out sharp but I bet Kenshi would not mind.
I held my head high up as if letting gravity pull down my temper. The cold soft breeze and fresh air also helped. I never expected myself to burst out like that. It was unlikely of me. I would usually keep my mouth shut and leave rather than let that happen. That sudden surge of pure anger only happened when I worried too much and no one heeded my warning.
And what was wrong about worrying too much? Humans worry all the time! Worrying kept us alive, prepared, and...human.
"Maybe I should visit the two," I whispered and was about to take a step when I heard a commotion at my left where the dark bosky forest rested. I shifted my vision to the source of the noise and found a familiar animal. "Thelah?" I uttered as I stared at the doe, staring blankly at me.
The doe suddenly dove into the bush and into the forest. I yelled at it to stop but it didn't come back. Stuck in a dilemma of whether I should follow it or not. Following it at this hour would mean trapping myself inside the forest at night. Otherwise, I would lose the opportunity to become a better Healer.
Kenshi made his point that dealing with the gods was a risky thing to do. But achieving something requires risking yourself. That was the only way of tasting the true sweetness of success.
I glanced back at Greygor's hut where Kenshi was resting inside before I dashed toward the forest with only myself. No weapon. No plan in mind. And no one could help me in case I found myself in grave danger. So be it.
The sky was gradually losing its brilliance making the forest even more darker. There were no signs of light and only shadows cast by trees, bushes, and figures I couldn't tell.
"Where did it go?"
It seemed like my prayer was answered when I faint green glow illuminated the trees ahead of me. The color was enough for me to think that it was the Goddess of Health. I hastened my pace until I reached this clearing. A thin blanket of grass covered the ground evenly. Tiny flowers of different colors sprouted all over the horizon.
But among all these was a boulder of an average size resting in the middle of the clearing. And standing atop of it was the doe that glowed in faint green light. The intensity it had earlier diminished perhaps to make it easy for me to look at her.
We shared stares for a couple of minutes before I spoke, "Are you Thelah, the Goddess of Health?"
Instead of answering me, the doe glowed so bright that it forced my eyes to shut. I reinforced it with my hand upon realizing that the eyelids alone were not enough to block the light. It lasted for a couple of seconds before I finally removed my hand and opened my eyes.
Sitting before me, on the boulder, was a woman of immeasurable beauty. Her skin was so fair and smooth that the glow it gave perplexed me whether it was natural or just a reflection of light. Her hair was of gold, embellished with vines, leaves, and flowers. Green gleaming eyeballs stared back at me and his soft smile that curved her lips sent a relieving feeling within me. My fight-or-flight judgment—mostly fight—vanished like bubbles. I felt relaxed, protected, and comforted.
But I was sane enough to think that this might be a trick. A spellbinding magic that altered the mind of the victim making them think that this entity was harmless, well in fact it was the total opposite. So I went back to my fighting stance.
"You're quite vigilant. Not bad," she spoke and her voice was more comforting and consoling than her presence. "Ease now, mortal. I meant no harm."
"That's what the villain always says before he stabbed the hero when he was at his lowest," I reasoned, earning a giggle from the Goddess.
"Fairytales," she declared. "But isn't it you who wanted to meet me, and yet, you fail to trust me."
"Ambition is a tool. It can help one soul to thrive or be the reason for one's demise. You could be the Goddess herself, or someone pretending to be the Goddess."
"You're smart, mortal," praised the Goddess. "But it is indeed me, Thelah, the Goddess of Health."
"Thanks for the compliment but I'm still not quite convinced. Tell me one thing that only the two of us know," I challenged her which was kind of a wrong move if I were to tell. Challenging a god was the last thing someone should do.
"A challenge from a mere mortal? Has the table turned?" she inquired. I knew those words were harmless but they still sent me a warning "Very well. You saved me. You healed my wound. And to return the favor, I saved you as well—"
"From those bandits," I continued.
The Goddess slightly bowed, indicating that I was correct. "Are you convinced now? Because trust is very much needed between a mentor and her apprentice."
"Teach me well, Goddess of Health—"
"You can call me Thelah."