"So, have you found something interesting yet?"
Vikto's hands peeling an apple came to a halt. He shot the old man laying on the bed with a confused look.
"What do you mean by that, Master?"
Vikto's "Master" sighed at his response. "So nothing, eh? You haven't changed at all."
The old master looked at Vikto with disappointment. Vikto sighed exasperatedly, putting down the small knife and apple on his hands at the desk on the bedside.
"Just what is it you're trying to say here?" Vikto asked.
"How many years has it been, Vikto?" His master answered with another question.
"Thirteen, I guess."
"Thirteen years, eh? Wouldn't that make you 28 now?"
"24, you old bastard. You're way off."
"And yet you still haven't gotten yourself a woman—nor even made love to one." His master cackled. "You're not going to become some sort of great mage even if you remain a virgin at 30 years old, you know?"
"I know that." Vikto gritted his teeth, fighting back the urge to drop a kick on the bedridden man.
His master continued to laugh until he began coughing for taking it too far. He was literally at death's doorstep, yet there was no stopping his mischievous personality. Vikto couldn't help but sigh when he recalled how many times his life was put in danger because of his master's mouth.
Some still haunt him til this day.
"Here, water." Vikto handed the old man a glass.
"This is not poisoned, is it?" His master asked as he received the glass.
"Oh how I wish it was." Vikto said sarcastically as he continued peeling the apple from before.
The room was again filled with silence.
Vikto was focused on his hands, his expression sharpened. It was as if he was trying to peel the apple with such perfection. His master observed him for a moment, thinking how he looked like a madman, before he turned his gaze out of his window—where the sun was beginning to set.
"Vikto," he called.
"Yeah?" Vikto replied, still focused on his peeling.
"Have you found something interesting yet?" His master asked once again.
It was the same question.
And yet, for some reason, it sounded completely different from the previous one.
"No," Vikto replied honestly. "I haven't."
"Is that so?" Came a weak voice.
Disappointed, or perhaps saddened. Vikto didn't dare to look at his master's face. He was sure he didn't want to be seen right now.
"Vikto," he called again.
"Yeah," Vikto's hands stopped.
"Have you... ever regretted something your whole life? A regret so heavy and painful... That you would stop at nothing—even going as far as making the entire world your enemy—just so you could find a way to undo it? To make that regret disappear?"
"I'm..." Vikto hesitated for a moment. "I don't think any of mine would compare to that kind of regret..."
"That's... good." The voice continued to weaken. "But... As you are now... You will eventually make the same mistakes as I did... And find yourself regretting the same things as I did..."
"Is... that so?" All he could offer was a vague response. Vikto couldn't find the right words to say..
"Find your purpose, Vikto." His master said solemnly. "Even if it's small, no matter how insignificant it seems, find one... Make one... Don't be like me..."
"... I'll keep that in mind."
"Good..."
As the red sky outside began to darken, so was the room Vikto and his master was staying in.
"Do you think the stars would be beautiful tonight, Vikto?" His master asked.
"I hope so," he replied. "The sky is clear tonight so I don't think there should be any problem."
"I see," the old master muttered with a satisfied smile on his face. "She... always loved the stars. Maybe... I can find her... there..."
Once again, the room was filled with silence.
The moon had started to rise in the sky, illuminating the world and the dark room with its beautiful rays of light.
Vikto stood up from his seat, putting down the perfectly peeled apple on top of the bedside desk. He placed his hand on his chest and bowed to the forever slumbering old man.
"Goodnight, Master Sebascus Crowley. It was an honor working with you, Master... Father."
Offering one last prayer to his master's departed soul, Vikto turned his gaze to the moonlit sky through the window.
"The stars are beautiful tonight, Master..." He muttered under his breath.
Vikto turned his gaze to the old man resting peacefully in his bed. He carried so many regrets, debts left unpaid. Yet, the old man had a satisfied expression on his face.
There was no worry, sadness, nor anger. Just the face of a man who had fully accepted the flaws and joys of his life.
After all, this old man found his purpose in life. He lived with pride and died satisfied, even though he had so many things he wished he'd done, undone, and redo. Even with such regrets, the man slept peacefully—for all eternity.
It was something Vikto Fredrix could not comprehend.
"What am I supposed to do now, Master...?"