"What?!"
Nessa stared at Aric in disbelief.
Aric, meanwhile, remained completely unfazed as he rummaged through the cupboard, carefully stacking the books Elvis had lent him.
He had to return them of course.
"You can't seriously blame me," he said with a sigh, sparing her a brief glance. "I'd rather not tell my sister—who had cried for more than an hour, just yesterday—that the love of her life is leaving. That would just make you cry more."
Nessa's face flushed instantly.
"Like hell I would cry!" she snapped, reaching forward and pinching him hard from behind.
"Ouch—" Aric didn't even flinch much, his face, however, was a deadpan. "Nessa, please… not the pinching. I can't possibly survive that…"
Nessa pouted, clearly unsatisfied, before turning away with a huff.
"You're dead meat when I get back!"
With that, she pushed the curtain aside and stormed out.
The hut fell quiet.
Aric didn't move for a moment. The faint clatter of small objects echoed as he continued sorting through the drawer, his movements slower now.
"…Troublesome," he muttered under his breath.
Then—
He paused.
Something caught his eye.
A thin, silvery chain lay buried beneath a few old trinkets.
Aric frowned slightly and pulled it out.
His eyes widened.
A small metal tag hung from the chain.
'Aric.'
His name.
Aric frowned as he turned the tag slightly in his fingers. The letters were unfamiliar, something he had never learned before… and yet, he could read it without effort.
Like it was natural.
Aric was fairly certain it wasn't because he was special or anything like that. Lilia had named him after this very tag. If she could read it, then anyone probably could. It wasn't some hidden language meant only for him.
Which only made it stranger.
'Strange.'
He narrowed his eyes slightly, examining the tag more closely.
Below his name, another line was engraved.
"15/3/2985"
It was his date of birth.
Aric sighed.
The heroes had a lot of influence on the culture and economy of the world. It went as far the [people people adopting the same names of the days and months as it would be on earth. Currently, it is the year 2,993. From what Aric learnt, these years reset every 10 hero cycles, signifying an end of an era.
Which meant… There were seven years left for this era...
His gaze drifted toward the curtain, swaying gently with the breeze. Beyond it lay a narrow dirt path, winding its way toward the center of Durvarn.
"...This place is too small…" Aric muttered Elvis' words.
Aric stared at the path for a moment longer before shaking his head, as if dismissing the thought entirely. Without another glance, he placed the tag back into the drawer, pushing it deep beneath the clutter.
Then he picked up the wooden crate of books.
And stepped outside.
***
"About ten o'clock…"
Aric muttered to himself, squinting slightly at the sun as he gauged its position. He shifted his weight, glancing down the path.
"Anytime now."
A few moments later, the familiar creak of wheels reached his ears.
The spruce carriage came into view, rolling steadily along the dirt road. Aric's expression soured almost immediately as his eyes landed on the creature pulling it.
"…Still as ugly as ever."
He raised a hand, signaling for it to stop.
The carriage slowed, and the man guiding it—a bald-headed figure well into his fifties—broke into a wide smile.
"Ahh! Aric!" he called out cheerfully. "Heading to the Maiw estate, I assume?"
Aric gave a small nod as he climbed aboard.
Ines flicked the reins, and the bird lurched forward, pulling the carriage back into motion.
The old man glanced at him, his smile lingering.
"You know," he said, chuckling to himself, "I still remember the first time you rode with me. Tiny thing you were."
He shook his head, amused.
"Never thought that same baby would grow up to punch the chief's grandson in the middle of the market."
Aric frowned, shooting him a flat look.
Ines cleared his throat.
"…Not funny, huh?"
A quiet sigh left Aric as he looked ahead.
"It's more troublesome that everyone knows about it now."
Ines chuckled under his breath. "That's how it is in a place like this. News travels faster than people."
The carriage rolled on, the clatter of wheels filling the silence. Finally, Aric spoke
"…Old man."
Ines raised a brow.
"What does the outside world look like?"
There was a brief pause.
"Oh?"
Aric hesitated for a moment, then spoke more quietly.
"I've read about it. In books… but I've never left Durvarn."
Ines didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he studied Aric for a second. Then, he spoke, "Do you want to leave the Thorp?"
Aric stiffened slightly.
He looked at Ines, caught off guard.
For a moment, he didn't respond.
Then, slowly, he nodded.
Ines hummed softly, turning his gaze back to the road ahead.
"It's a big world, Aric," he said, a faint smile forming on his face. "And you'll grow into a big person."
His grin widened slightly.
"Wouldn't be much fun if I spoiled it all for you, now would it?"
Aric stared at him for a second.
Then—
A small smile crept onto his face.
"…Yeah."
Soon, the carriage rolled to a stop in front of the Maiw estate.
Aric stepped down, adjusting the crate in his arms before turning back to Ines.
He reached into his pocket, pulling out a few rallods and placing them into the old man's hand.
Ines blinked.
"Aric… this is six," he said quickly. "I only charge three."
He tried to hand half of it back, but Aric didn't take it.
"I insist."
Ines hesitated.
Aric smiled faintly.
"When I first rode, you had not taken money from Nessa for the same ride. Think of it as… delayed payment."
For a moment, Ines just stared at him.
Then he chuckled, closing his fingers around the coins.
"…I see."
Aric gave a small nod and turned, lifting the crate as he made his way toward the estate.
Behind him, Ines looked down at the coins in his palm, his expression softening.
"You're a good person, Aric."
He just shook his head slightly.
"Hardly," he replied. "You just caught me in a good mood."
He raised a hand in a lazy wave and walked on.
After greeting the guards at the gate, Aric stepped into the garden—
And froze.
"…Mom?"
Lilia turned toward him, a gentle smile already on her face.
"Finally decided to return those books?"
Aric glanced down at the crate in his hands, a faint blush creeping onto his face before he looked back at her.
"What are you doing here?"
Lilia placed her hands on her hips.
"I heard the Maiws were leaving," she said. "I came to thank them properly—"
"Elara! Could you drag Elvis and Tristan out of the library already?!"
Lara's voice rang out from inside as the front doors swung open.
A butler stood to the side as she stepped out, sighing dramatically.
"My god… what am I supposed to do with those two?"
Behind her, Nessa and Elian followed, deep in conversation, the two of them unusually lively.
Lara's gaze shifted, landing on Aric and Lilia.
Her expression brightened instantly.
"Well, well… What perfect timing."
She turned briefly toward Nessa, then back to Aric with a smile.
"Care to join us for a photo?"
Aric blinked.
"…Photo?"