[Sorry for the big delay]
I skipped lunch, even though I told Hboy I would be there. I wasn't hungry. I needed to think, but I couldn't. I had to find a way to use magic effectively.
I wandered around the halls, starting to get bored by seeing the same sights over and over again. I even entered and explored some rooms that weren't locked. I didn't find anything special except another big, empty room and a kind of meeting place.
Eventually, I decided to go back to my room and take a nap. The chain of events that had happened in the past two weeks had made me extremely tired, and it wasn't often that I got a chance to relax a little. As I got to my room, I noticed that no one was there. I thought they were probably out for a walk, which made me happy. I didn't want anyone to be beside me. I just wanted to be alone.
I never intended to work in a team with other people, but it looked like I would have to deal with it if I wanted to achieve anything.
I sighed. I started to look around; maybe there was some food somewhere because I was finally starting to get hungry. But I had skipped lunch, and I would have to wait until dinner. I lay in my bed and fell asleep pretty quickly.
***
It was dark outside. I went to eat early since I was very hungry, and I still didn't feel like being with my roommates. It was just that Hboy was too talkative, and it annoyed me. I had to answer all his questions so as not to be rude, but it was tiring.
I got myself some steak again. However, this time I got a kind of sauce, which made the steak even tastier than last time. Despite that, I ate quickly, and as more people started to gather, I got up and left.
I went outside into the giant garden. It was extremely beautiful during nighttime. No one was there, which made it a perfect place for me to stay for a bit.
I began walking down the white path again, but it felt like a completely different experience. It somehow made me feel at ease. I sat on a bench, listening to the subtle wind. "This is so addicting," I mumbled. "It really is."
I jumped to my feet. I turned around and saw Rover. He had the same weird smile on his face as when we sparred. 'I'd rather stay with Juta. Can't even have peace here,' I thought as I tried as hard as I could not to show my frustration.
He sat on the bench. I would have just turned around and left, but I decided to be polite. "You know, I just happened to come across you, so I thought I'd tell you. Try not to misunderstand Hana, will you?" His tone was polite and friendly.
"Why are you so friendly? Did you ever think it might annoy people?" I asked, my frustration disappearing. He looked confused. "Well, you are the only one who has told me that until now."
I wasn't surprised. I had already learned that too many weird things would be happening. We sat in silence for a while. For some reason, it became awkward. I decided to say something.
"So, what about her?"
"As you know, we are all a family. I care for my family, and so does she." He turned his face away from me. "Most of us here have lost or never had parents. Hana is the same. I am pretty sure she has been through more than what she has told us."
I was itching to ask about it, but I figured it might be better not to know. 'It must be somehow similar to my situation.' "She is like that because she cares about everyone. She wants them, and you, to be prepared to face any danger." Rover continued as if he was telling a kid some sort of fairy tale.
I looked at the sky, fully relaxing. "Do people like that really exist?" I asked, having a weird mix of feelings I couldn't even understand.
I thought about all the people I had encountered up to that point. They were all a bunch of scum. Everywhere I went outside of my house, I was always seen as an inferior being, not worthy of living. The only ones who could truly understand me and be by my side were my parents.
I was holding back my tears, biting my lip. My past was going to be a big obstacle for me, so I needed to set it aside somehow. Lost in my thoughts, I didn't even realize that Rover hadn't answered my question.
"Do you also have some sort of tragic backstory, or did you simply not know your parents?" He didn't reply. "It's just that I would need some advice from someone who can understand me," I added quickly.
"Are you saying people who simply didn't know their parents had a better life?" he asked, with a mix of sadness and frustration. "Don't they?" I replied quietly.
"Most of the time, no." A long silence. Then he continued.
"Most people who have experienced the reality of having a low status and no parents have lived the same. Starving, freezing every night, and sleeping under bridges, since no one wants to help people like us. We had to learn how to survive by ourselves."
I was amazed at how he wasn't talking with a single hint of hatred in his voice, just sadness, a deep sadness. Then he finally turned toward me. "What is your question?"
"Doesn't getting rid of your past help you live on?"
He frowned. "Get rid of it?"
"I mean just forcing yourself not to think about it, forget it."
"I can't say. I have tried, but it's just there no matter what I do." He stood up. "I have faith that someday, people would stop being like this." His sadness disappeared, being replaced by determination. "That is the reason I am here. I will bring happiness to everyone."
'What a stupid and foolish dream.'
I didn't say anything as he told me he had to go and left. I stood on the bench for a while longer. I finally wasn't bothered by anyone, but I still wasn't happy.
So kind people actually existed. I was so lucky to have been accepted into that big family. Now, I just had to forget my old family. But I couldn't. I felt like I was abandoning my sister.
'I am going to save her and bring her here.' I smiled, closing my eyes.
I stood there for a while, just enjoying the evening. When I finally decided to get back to my room, I noticed that I couldn't hear any voices. 'Did everyone go to sleep?' Turned out I was right.
There wasn't a single light that was on, and the halls were dark and empty, giving me the creeps. Luckily for me, the door to our room was unlocked. I quietly entered and locked the door. The key was next to the mirror, as if waiting for me. I went straight to bed afterward.
The next day, I woke up to someone knocking on the door of my small room. I opened it and was greeted by Hboy, who seemed worried.
"Hey, what was that? It felt like you completely disappeared. As if you were never there," he told me in a childish voice.
"Good morning," I said.
I saw Juta behind Hboy getting dressed.
"Today Boss returned. And he said he has an announcement for us before breakfast," he continued. "Whatever," I mumbled, still half asleep.
I followed my roommates to the hall where I was greeted a few days before. It was crowded, and in front of us were standing a few few people, including Hana and Rover.
Eventually, Boss came as well. He coughed, signaling he was about to give the announcement.
"So, as you all know, the Guilds' Rise Festival will take place in a week. So I will select a few people from teams five, six, and seven. I will assign them a mission that they will have to complete before the festival, and based on their results, I will decide if they will represent our guild this year. Also, the mission will be harder than the average mission, so get ready."
Boss proceeded to name around fifty people and told them to go and wait near his room, which I didn't know the location of. Then he assigned a few missions to other teams.
As everyone was getting ready to leave, he said something I wasn't expecting.
"So, since I have assigned so many missions to you today, I thought I would give Akira, Juta, and Hboy one as well. You know, so they can get used to working together. Come to my room after I am done with the others." He had a silly smile on his face.
'Wow, three days in and already a mission.'
For some reason, I had a bad feeling.