One evening, while Sol and her quartermates are having dinner, Dana comes to sit beside her. She also belongs to their quarters. It kind of turned the atmosphere awkward.
"Hey," Sol said as she looked at the person beside her.
"Hey," she replied.
"By the way, earlier, she asked about what you're doing at the field with Captain Karsh. We said that it is your special training," Serga narrated.
"Oh."
"Ah, we'll be special training buddies since Captain Karsh will also give me special training," Dana said as she looked at Sol.
"Huh? But you seem fine. I think you don't need any special training," Reicha commented.
"Well, I'm from the Southern Camp. The training is different. I want to cope with you all. That's why I asked the Captain to give me special training," Dana answered.
"Oh."
Sol became silent as she continued eating her food. Though it is feasible and expected that the Captain will give special training to those who need it; still, she doesn't feel right.
Damn, this jealousy.
XXX
The days passed by slowly. Sol continued her special training while sharing the Captain's attention with Dana.
Dana is a skilled Part Wishbone Aspirant who can be at par with Aries, the second strongest Wishbone in their batch, if she will work harder.
A Part Wishbone is someone who is an offspring of a Wishbone and a Pure-Blooded.
At times, when she glanced at Dana and the Captain sparring; she can sense that the Captain is pleased. Though the Captain didn't smile, she can see through his eyes that sparring with Dana excites him.
How can you not be excited when you're sparring with a skilled aspirant?
To think about it, though the Captain smiled at me, I don't think I saw him get excited when he's sparring with me.
"Aspirant Moraii?..Aspirant Moraii?" Tobias continually calls out to Sol who's continually swinging her sword while doing the drills for the martial arts. However, Sol seemed so lost in her training that she remained unbothered even when she's drenched in sweat.
She also seemed different from usual.
It seems like she's mad. Look at her eyebrows almost bumping with each other. Her eyes also looked a bit... terrifying.
Tobias waited for a while, but it seems that Sol didn't notice him even if he's in front of her. He has no choice but to unsheathe his own sword and block Sol's.
"H-Huh! C-Captain?" Sol exclaimed when her sword was blocked and saw that gorgeous figure. Behind him is Dana who's silently watching them.
"You're going to get hurt if you do it like that. Do not overdo yourself. That's it for today, you may go and rest."
Sol doesn't know why but when she caught a glimpse of Dana again, she didn't answer the Captain and went on her way.
Is she alright? It's the first time that she didn't answer and left. Did I do something wrong?
Puzzled, Tobias could only watch Sol tread to her quarters, leaving Dana who's in the same quarters as her.
"You may also go and rest," Tobias said to Dana.
"Yes, Captain," she said and went on her way, showing a slight curving on the edge of her lips.
XXX
At the quarters, Sol plopped herself on her bed quite roughly so that Reicha, the person resting on the upper deck, felt her weight dropping on the bed.
"What's wrong?" Reicha asked.
"Nothing. I'm just tired."
"Is it because of Dana?" Serga asked.
"Huh? How can you come up with that kind of conclusion?" Sol exclaimed, faking a laugh.
"Well, she's been tailing the Captain. And it seems the Captain likes her. She's been getting all the Captain's attention from you. Well, aren't you jealous?"
"Huh? What do you mean jealous? Why would I be jealous?"
"Well, you've been the closest to the Captain; but when Dana came, it seems that the Captain started to favor her."
"It's because she needs special training to cope up with the Captain's methods. That's why the Captain started giving her special training. Of course, the Captain's attention should also be given to her."
"Um, that's right. Well, she's quite skilled so don't worry, her special training will end sooner than you expected."
"Mm."
May you be right, Serga.
Ah, thinking about what I did earlier, how can I leave without saying goodbye to the Captain? How can I be so rude?
XXX
One late evening, after the training, Tobias decided to go to the Capital to catch up with Ka-el. As he was leaving the camp on his steed, he threw one last glance at the Aspirant's quarters.
He reminisced how Sol became quite cold to him. When he asked if something was wrong, she would say that it's nothing and would fall silent. She hasn't nagged him like always. He couldn't also see her sunshine-like smiles as she's always wearing a menacing face.
Did her...did her admiration for me already die out? Well, it would be nice as I don't know how to deal with it... but, thinking about it, my heart felt heavy. I don't want it to die out.
XXX
In the middle of the field, Sol laid down on her back and stared at the pitch black sky accompanied with shining bright stars.
Sol, you are so hateful. How can you not communicate with Captain Karsh normally? But I can't talk to him properly if I haven't fixed myself yet. I need to remove this negative feeling from me. Agh, I need to stabilize my emotions as soon as possible. I bet that my points are dropping now. Captain will dump me in no time if I don't fix myself. Well, tomorrow is Saturday. I might as well take him to a date to apologize.
And that date... she only received a closed door. No matter how many times she knocked on the door, no one came to open it.
"Are you here for the Captain?" one of the female administrative staff asked her when she saw her standing gloomily in front of the Captain's quarters.
"Ah. Yes. Is tthe Captain in? I've already knocked several times but..."
"Oh. He's out. The Captain went to the Capital last night."
"Ah. Did he tell you—Ah, never mind. Thank you."
The Captain wouldn't tell the details of his trip to a staff.
"Okay then," she said and went on her way.
"Mm."
Now, what should I do? How can I redeem myself?
XXX
Early dawn, Dorn journeyed South with his bow and arrow along with a sealed piece of paper inside his pocket. He's been doing this for years. Ever since he met Adviser Moraii, he was trained to deliver a sealed piece of paper towards the people outside the borders of Largus. He doesn't bother to read the contents since the Adviser told him that those letters are tickets to see his father.
He was orphaned when he was 10 years old. That was the day that his mother left this world. From then on, he lived under the Adviser's wings. He didn't know who his father was. He doesn't want to know because he thinks that he is not capable yet to accept who he is. There are numerous questions that crossed his mind.
Will he acknowledge me as his son? Does he long for me? Why did he let us be separated from him?
At times, he is afraid that he will be disappointed when the answers to his questions will be revealed. However, despite all that. He still wanted to meet his father. That's why he is doing the task that the Adviser gave him...even though he knew that he was being a traitor to this land. On the other side, he really doesn't have anyone to protect so there's really no reason for him to be a patriot.
Not until he met his friends.
Ka-el, even though he is silly most of the time, he still warmed his cold world with his laughter.
Atalanta- she has been their savior from those bullying racists.
And behind his ruthless and uncaring mask, Tobias who treats him like a family.
And not until he found out the letter that his mother left him.
It was already evening when he arrived at the heart of the forest near the Corpse Shield, he reached out for the sealed paper in his pocket. With his trembling hands, he opened it.
The paper is blank like always. He raised it against the tiny torch that he had and the words started to form. Like always, it is written in a foreign Language. He didn't feel the need to learn that foreign language until now. Should he learn it now?
"Luminous?"
It's Luminous again. That's the only word that he can understand.
He stared at the paper with a lot of thoughts forming in his head.
Should I make a copy of this and find someone who can translate for me?
Ah no. I know that the contents of this is of high treason.
I should just memorize it.
After making up his mind, he folded the paper and sealed it again. He then further climbed the forest. When he reached his destination, he wrapped the piece of paper on his arrow.
After placing the arrow on his bow, and after aiming it. He released the arrow...far into the land beyond the borders.
Yes, he is amazing when it comes to bows and arrows. Maybe it's because of his genes as he came from a race of people who are gifted with ingenuine ability to handle the bows and arrows. He can shoot for miles and miles as long as he has equipment of high quality.
He let out a sigh as he gazed at the land beyond the borders.
After which, he went to a hidden simple tree house where he could rest and wait for the response from the other side of the border. Feeling a bit bored or a bit emotional, he reached out for the tiny lyre harp from his pocket. He then started to play some notes. He's quite confident that even if he plays the harp loudly, no one will hear it, except from the trees and other forest dwellers around him.
He doesn't know that a few steps away from his tree house, there's a familiar figure hiding behind a large tree trunk. His trembling hand is gripping his unsheathed sword. It is his silly friend Ka-el.
Not long ago, Tobias had a strange request from him. That is to find out the whereabouts of Haelas and Dorn. He just accepted it out of curiosity. As for Haelas, he can no longer track him as he is inside the Manse. Thus, he could only focus on Dorn.
He never thought that he would find something big like this. He couldn't believe that he is friends with someone who is in contact with the neighboring enemy. He couldn't believe that his friend was a traitor.
As soon as he shot that arrow, he wanted to plunge at him and slit his throat but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He couldn't make his friend bleed.
As he trembles behind the tree, he suddenly hears a tune from a lyre harp. It's coming from the tree house.
As he listened to the tune, he became more conflicted.
The tune felt so lonely as if longing for someone or something so dear. Further into the tune, with the alternating slow and fast tempo, Ka-el could sense that the person who is playing it is conflicted.
Maybe there's a reason.
He reasoned out as he decided to leave with a heavy and conflicted heart like Dorn.
XXX
Disappointed that he couldn't redeem himself and have a date with the Captain, Sol decided to spend her free time at the waterfalls in the nearby mountain. She brought a wooden flute with her. She bought it on impulse when she found out that the Captain can play the flute.
Sitting on the rock facing the waterfalls, Sol opened the manual regarding the playing of the flute.
She then started blowing air into it as she covered the holes of the flute with her fingers. Though at first, the sound was terrible, it became better and better as she practiced more. She didn't even notice that it's already late in the afternoon.
She then tried to play a composition that is included in the manual.
"That is pretty good!" a cheery female voice erupted the serene atmosphere.
Sol almost choked on the flute she's holding in her mouth. She turned around to see who interrupted her playing. She saw a petite lady beaming with a smile.
"Karisha!" she exclaimed as she immediately stood and rushed to give her a hug.
"How are you?"
"Of course, I'm not okay. Oh, I brought some fruits and sweets," she said as she handed a wooden basket to Sol.
"Thank you," she said and reached for it. She then offered her hand for Karisha to hold on to as they moved to her previous spot.
"It's kind of dangerous to walk among these rocks," Karisha commented.
"But, you will be greeted with a nice view when we get there."
"Well, you're right," Karisha agreed as they reached their destination.
"By the way, how come you're not okay?"
"Well, I've been lonely ever since Haelas left the camp to continue his training on healing."
Actually, she's also a bit sad as Dorn didn't show up at the Everlasting Tea Shop. She waited for him for almost one whole day and yet...he didn't show up.
"Whaaatt? I thought that he would really pursue being a defender."
"I know right. He wanted to be tough like Sir Braegen."
"Well, we cannot really do anything about it if that is what he wants."
"Mm."
"Ah, don't you have any other friends beside Haelas in that camp?"
"Well, I can't say that I have because I'm not that close with them. Ugh, I really miss Haelas."
"Only him?"
"Of course, I miss you as well. So, how are you coping up at the Bloody Cloaks Training Camp?"
"Well, it's difficult but I'm gonna be okay."
"Well, hang in there. Your hard work will be paid, if not now, it will be paid in the future."
"Right," she said and she started eating the fruits that Karisha brought to him.
"What is it?" Karisha asked when she noticed that Sol kept glancing at her and it seemed like she wanted to say something.
"Uh. Nothing. This apple is so delicious."
"I know. Hey, don't change the topic. What is it?"
"Um. I have someone I like."
"Oh!" Karisha exclaimed as her eyes beamed with excitement, "Who?"
"The Captain."
"Captain? Which one?"
"You only know one Captain. That's the one."
Karisha gasped as she couldn't believe what she's hearing.
"Is he the one I'm thinking of right now?"
"Mm."
"What happened? How did you fall for him? Did you confess? What did he say?" Karisha continually asked as she kept shaking Sol arms because of too much excitement, "Spill it out. I wanna know all the details."
Sol had no choice but to narrate how she fell for the Captain.
"I wanna scream," Karisha exclaimed.
"Then, scream. No one will hear-"
"AHHHHHHHHHHH! MY FRIEND IS IN LOVE!!!!" she shouted at the top of her lungs.
"Hey, you're revealing my secret!"
"Is that supposed to be a secret?"
"What do you think?"
"Right."
"But now, I have a problem."
"What is it?"
"When I met his female friend, I couldn't help but get jealous. And when a transferee is getting all his attention, my heart is in pain."
"Awwee."
"I really wanted to be rational but my emotions betrayed me. I kept ignoring the Captain these days. I wouldn't even talk to him if it was not necessary. I am afraid that I will burst out and say it right into his face that I am jealous, even when I don't have the right."
"You are too kind."
"And this morning, I've decided to redeem myself so I mustered my courage to ask for forgiveness and ask him on a date...but he went to the Capital. So, now, I don't know what to do."
"Sometimes, overthinking doesn't help; and sometimes, it's okay to be selfish and say what you really feel. If you can't deal with it yourself, why don't you talk to him and explain why you're behaving like that. If you're jealous, say it to him. But let's take one step at a time. You really need to apologize to him and explain the reason for your behavior. I bet that he is also confused about it."
"Mm. I should do that."
"Sol, I didn't know that you're so adorable."
"Stop teasing me. If you don't stop, I promise to tease you more when it's your time."
"All right. Calm down. Mm. I love it here," she exclaimed as she laid down on the rock. The gentle breeze and the sweet gushing of the water falls cleansed her tiredness and negative emotions.
XXX
At a jewelry store, Tobias noticed a display of hair accessories.
He wasn't supposed to be at the public market; but since his two friends are out, he decided to visit the market before he went back to the camp.
As he stared at the hair accessories, he suddenly remembered Sol.
Mmm. What kind of hair accessory will fit that Young Miss?
He then approached the jewelry store and started browsing the pieces.
"Who is it for sir? Is it for you?" the lady store keeper asked.
"Ah no. It's for another person. A lady."
"Oh, maybe she would like this."
She said as she showed him an accessory with emerald stones.
"Mm. I think that's perfect. I'll take it."
"Okay then. I'll wrap it nicely for you Sir."
Tobias let out a warm smile as he reached for the hair accessory that was placed in a wooden box with intricate designs.
I hope that Sol will like this.
As he secured the hair accessory in his pocket, he decided to roam around the market to gather any information, whether it's news or rumors.
XXX
After receiving the response from the other side, Dorn journeyed back to the capital to report to Adviser Moraii. Upon arrival at the house of the adviser, Dorn used the back door of the house in order to hide his entry. He then made way to the Adviser's study.
"You're back," Adviser Moraii stated when he sensed Dorn's presence.
"Yes, Adviser," he said as he walked towards the older man and placed the sealed response from beyond the borders, "Any further orders, Adviser?"
"I'll contact you as soon as possible. For now, go ahead and rest."
"Then, good evening Adviser."
Dorn turned his back to walk away from the adviser but he's conflicted on whether he will ask about the Luminous or not.
"What is it? Why are you hesitating?"
Dorn turned towards the Adviser once again.
"Adviser...I."
"Go on."
"I opened the letter that I sent today."
"So, finally it came to this. I thought that you didn't care about the contents of the letters that you sent beyond the borders."
"I still don't care, Adviser. I am just curious."
"Do you know that curiosity can bring you danger? Do you know the saying that 'ignorance is bliss'? If I were you, I would erase my curiosity. But, if you are still curious, I can explain it to you."
"Mm."
Dorn hesitated for a while before he made up his mind.
"Please satisfy my curiosity, Adviser."
"Very well then. What do you want to ask?"
"About the word 'Luminous', Adviser."
"Oh. Luminous is a taboo word. It is a top secret concoction that could increase your strength, agility, life and overall improve your physical condition. This concoction is the reason why we have Wishbones. The greatness of those people didn't come from their own hard work; it is caused by Luminous. The one that you got from Mt. Arcanus is an important ingredient in that concoction. I think they finished the concoction and they are now in the trial phase as they don't have the original recipe. But don't worry, this concoction that can cause them greatness will also bring their own destruction. So, just focus on your tasks."
"Understood Adviser," Dorn stated as he gripped his sword tightly, "Then, I'll be on my way now Adviser."
"Go on."
Dorn's steps as he walked away from the Adviser were rushed. Only outside the Adviser's house would he be able to walk at his normal pace. He can now breathe.
It's not a good thing to delve into Luminous more. I need to warn Tobias not to dig into it anymore. If he will, I might not be able to save him.
I should really stop him. I wouldn't forgive myself if I will lose him.