You see, Henri, there is literally nothing wrong with your face. You've even got a decent personality.

The problem is your face.

"Screw you, Charle."

We were in the inn. It was still early in the evening. Despite fact that the inn was completely empty of customers since Charle and Henri had rented the inn for the day, its ambiance was animated aplenty with just the two of them.

"But it’s true though, right, An?" Charle asked me.

I refrained myself in all of this, choosing to remain neutral in all of this while sipping silently on the beverage in front of me.

There was a particular reason why Charle and Henri rented the restaurant enterely, it was to celebrate something.

"Come on, you can at least take the effort to side with someone in moment like this, after all we helped win that thing, right?" He said, pointing teasingly at a purse on top of the table.

Lifting slightly the said purse, a clinking noise reverberated.

The said purse was filled with coins, won from the rooster-fighting I refused their invitation to attend to, yet they, on my behalf, still made a bet and made quite a bountiful profit.

"I’m really surprised you were able to do something with the money I lent you." I commented.

"I told you that that person's prevision is always on the spot. Do you think this could be magic? "

"I don’t think that’s how magic works."

"Anyway, you don’t know what you’ve missed during that roosterfighting. You could’ve made much more, like the three of us. "

"I’ve made enough already. Thank you three for placing the bet for me. Now that I think of it, do you two have any news of Franq? It’s been three days since we hadn’t seen him. "

The truth is that there has been some time since the three of them were last seen.

The last time was the day Shawn’s baby was born, almost four days ago.

"Nothing. The last time we saw him was during the roosterfighting event. He did back then boast about having to perform for the Somaroha in the noble district, and that he was about to make tons of money, but since we haven’t met him since, that's pretty much all I know." Charle said, pouring my glass with a smug smile on his face.

"I see. I didn’t know he was also performing for nobles. "

"Well, this is a premiere for him, so no wonder you never heard that. I kind of feel sorry for him. He didn’t even have time to savor the sweet taste of victory after our lucky investment."

Raising his glass to us, Henri said, "Let’s raise our glasses to the cockfighting future but also to our friend, who’s struggling, while we have fun, drinking to our heart desires."

Following him, we both raised our glasses to his toast, but not even half a second later, we took notice of a certain commotion coming from the counter, which happened to be behind me.

As I had said earlier, the inn was closed, both because Charle and Henri rented it for the entirety of the day, but beside that reason, because for the event of Somaroho, the inn was not planned to be open except for the day before the last day of the event, which would be in two days exactly. Until then, the inn was to remain closed.

So the moment I heard this commotion, well before it was a commotion, I didn’t mind it much since it sounded just like the one causing it was just a customer thinking that the inn was open. That’s what it sounded to me, which is why I ignored it. But as the voice rose, I realized that it wasn’t just that.

"Sorry, Mister, we are close." Madam said.

"Mister!" This time the one raising her voice was Nia.

Before I could turn around to face the commotion, after a hastened series of footsteps coming in my direction, a tall figure appeared, right next to my seat.

As my eyes rose up from his feet, I noticed a man, a tall man wearing a thick and classy dark grey coat.

Gradually, I noticed him shaking, and saw him staring down at men starring with long since last seen blue eyes.

On top of that that silver beard.

In 8 years, no in 17 years, it has changed the slighthest.

"Boy, ... is that you?"

I stood up, though slightly shorter than he was, there I was, Face to face with him.

"Grandfather Emilien." I mumbled, unable to repress the trembling of my voice.

A short silence took place, and the next instant he came at me with a hug.

I felt his embrace tightening as he tried to ascertain whether I was real or not.

"It’s you!..." This is real!... I thought you were... How? " Finally freeing me from his embrace, he looked at me.

"Grandfather, I..."

Tears were streaming down his cheeks. It was only while trying to speak to him that I noticed that it was also the case for me.

I tried to wipe them from my face, but it was like a floodgate had been opened and there was no closing it.

The more I wiped, the more they streamed.

"Great, now I’ll be the duo teasing focus for a while with this display." I thought to myself.

Yet, looking at them, the duo was just frozen by the spectacle unfolding in front of their very eyes.

I sat down back in my chair and noticed that, unlike me, Grandfather Emilien had gathered himself up in front of the others and handed me a white handkerchief.

"How?" I asked after a while, after managing to calm myself down.

***

It was early in the afternoon, at least by Emilien’s standard. He was seated behind his desk, skimming through a pile of documents that were left untouched given his absence these past few weeks.

Though he was by no means feeling old despite already being in his early seventies, he, at the age he was at, should’ve already delegated those duties to his son, who after being abroad for so long was finally back to the duchy, just like his friend and step-brother, the previous Duke of Beaumont, did with his son, but to him, someone who had dedicated his entire life to his duty of being the head of the Edouard family, he felt that there should be no rest for himself until the next generation was fully ready to take over his place, which believed wasn't ready yet.

A knock reverberated at his bedroom door.

Hearing this, Emilien couldn’t help but sigh on thinking who could be. At this hour, with his son and his daughter out of the city, it could only be two people, and right now he didn’t want to deal with either of the two.

"Enter." He shouted at the door.

Yet, upon being opened, Emilien was pleasantly surprised by the one that entered the room. It was neither his Anry nor Matthew that came in like he had assumed, but rather a young boy.

"Good Evening, Grandfather." The boy greeted.

The boy was Elliel Aubrecht, his grandson.

Putting an end to what he was doing, "Good Evening, boy," Emilien greeted back, approaching him, leading him to take a seat on the nearby sofa. "I wasn’t expecting you. What brings you here this late here? "

"I just came to say welcome back," he explained, referring to the two weeks Emilien had been away from Beaufort.

Oh, there was no need for that. I was about to go to your castle tomorrow morning anyway, but still thanks for coming.

"I hope I wasn’t interrupting anything." the boy said, glancing at the pile on Emilien's desk.

"No, not at all," he said, taking a seat on the chair across the sofa.

"How has been the trip?"

"As always, enjoyable, I guess, but those trips are starting to not be fitting for an old man like myself.

Well, that’s enough speaking about myself. So how has it been for you lately? How is your family, Boy? "

"They are fine."

"And you? What has been new for you since I was away? "

"Not much, Grandfather, not much has changed in your absence, but I did miss you."

These words warmed Emilien’s heart; despite being a son of the Aubrecht family, he still considered them as one of his own.

"Glad to hear that, Boy."

Remembering a certain rumour he had heard about before going on his trip, Emilien asked, "And how are they?"

"They?"

"You still visit them in the common district, don’t you?"

The ones Emilien was referring to were the first people Elliel was given the opportunity to use his healing magic upon.

A family of two, a mother and a son,

"They are fine. I visited them today. I was there today. Shawn and Zaraha’s baby was born. It’s a little girl."

Just as he thought Elliel was still frequently visiting them,

"Oh, a little girl. Her name is?"

"She wasn’t named yet, but it is to be done in a few days."

Though it was originally Emilien’s suggestion to check on these people he first used his magic on, to check if his magic has some sort of after-effect since those kind of thing does happen, he didn’t expect him to grow this fond of these people, especially that one boy named Shawn, who, it was fair to say, turned out to be quite a troublemaker.

"That’s great news, but..." Emilien couldn't help but think about the report from one of his servants having sighted Elliel with a girl in the common district a few weeks ago, just before his departure. He couldn’t help but warn his grandson, "Remember that common sense dictates that nobles like us shouldn’t be meddling with the likes of them."

Puckering his lips, Elliel kept silent.

"We are nobles, they are commoners. Boundaries are to be kept."

"Yes, Grandfather."

"I can understand your fondness for them. But I’m saying this not out of condescendance or prejudice, but just for your own good. "

He knew well enough how badly this could end up. He refused to see that history repeat again.

He had no intention of mentioning anything about that girl, unless Elliel himself mentioned her. He certainly had the full intention of investigating things about her.

"I know, Grandfather."

Assuming he himself had set, Emilien, assuming his usual cheerful tone, asked, "So what truly brought you here?" There is something you want to say to me, right? "

Realizing the tense room, he himself had set, Emilien assuming his usual cheerful self and asked the boy, "So what truly bring you here? There is something you want to to me right?"

Having seen the boy growing up in his own castle, the boy was pretty much an open book to him.

"Was it that obvious?"

"If to others, maybe not, but to me, yes. So what is it? "

"There is someone..."No, that’s not that..." he mumbled, trying to find the right words, before saying,

"7 years ago..."

Just hearing these words, Emilien’s back suddenly straightened.

"8 years ago, I now remember, before Uncle Matthew moved to this castle, there was a boy... I remember him, he was with Mael and Rami-"

The boy suddenly stopped, noticing the change in Emilien's expression.

Pale and stumbling on his words, he asked, "Boy, why do you ask me that?"

I was just curious as to who he was. I think I remember him. He was a guest of the Edouard castle back then, wasn’t he? "

***

"So does he now know?" I asked.

"No,... He might remember you, but he doesn’t seem too aware of your true identity. He only knows that you were a guest of our castle. "

"So you haven’t told him?"

"No, I haven’t."

"I see," I sighed in relief, for I believe this was something I best do myself.

"I hadn’t told him anything. I only came here after having heard of a rumour a certain girl that has been sighted in the common district along with Elliel yet again, im talking about the young girl from earlier. I was told that it would be here that I would find her, which led to personally come investagate. You can’t imagine my surprise seeing you. "

I simply nodded.

I didn't have to imagine it, I saw it.

Looking around, Grandfather asked, "So is this where you’ve been living?"

After the display in the restaurant, Madam suggested the duo give some room to the two of Grandfather Emilien and I, but I refused and instead proposed to pursue all of this in my room.

"For the four past weeks, yes. It was Elliel that suggested we stay at this place, after we stumbled upon him. I’m sorry for not having reached you directly. "

"No, I can understand that. Besides, it was a good thing you didn’t. With that person in my castle now, reaching personally for me would’ve been the worst thing you could’ve done."

I was wondering who that person could be, but before I could’ve even asked who exactly, to be sure, he was referring to, he asked, "Now that I’ve told you how I ended up here, I think it’s time you tell me, how... how come you are here, boy?" I thought you and Syrius that night... were. "

"Killed?"

He nodded.

"I wasn’t, but Syrius was. He died protecting me."

He approached, and sat next to me on the bed, a hand on my shoulder, "I am sorry, I thought that..."

"It’s nothing. I understand. "

With these, I started, as he asked, to narrate how I ended up here, how I lived up until now. Of course, I didn't give him the full version because, all things considered, I decided that the right thing to do was

to give him a short version of the story, one in which I didn't mention that I triggered the calamities that killed and harmed millions of people. There would be a day when I would lay down everything I was guilty of, but now was not the time.

"That was exactly when he suggested Rena and I to lay low at this place under Madam care." I said, having finished narrating the whole thing. Though I was not expecting to, out of all people, he would be there in the middle of that nowhere."

"I was lucky it was the case. Who would’ve thought that upon returning to the human continent, he would be the first person we would stumble upon? He looked so different, yet the moment my eyes stumbled upon him, I knew that it was the same little boy from back then clinging to his mother. "

Grandfather who was listening to my story didn’t say a word, didn’t interrupt me even a single time.

He just listened in silence from the beginning to the end.

It was amidst this silence that he suddenly stood up.

"Grandfather?"

"I’m sorry," he said, turning back to face me, a miserable expression on his face.

"What?"

He fell on my knee and shouted, "That night, it was my fault they came after you. It was my fault that you had to go through all of this. It was all my fault. It was me who let them come after you... I’m sorry. I know it's nowhere near enough, but..."

"Grandfather..."

"I promised that if I were to meet you again somehow, I would've... asked forgiveness, but now I realize, I-"

It was so weird and unsettling to see Lord Emilien, who, despite the passing years, seemed to be as strong as he was eight years ago, in a state like this.

Helping him to stand up, I said, "It’s alright now, Grandfather. I am still here, am I not? "

I sat him back on the bed, when he reached me on both shoulders, and shouted, tears in his eyes, different from the ones he earlier shed. Those were of guilt, Forgive me, boy, forgive me! That day, if I hadn’t..."

"It’s okay now. You know you did your best; there is nothing to ask forgiveness for. " Patting his back a few times, I asked, "Come on, Grandfather, pull yourself together. You’re going to make me more gloomy than I am already feeling." I said, being myself again on the verge of crying.

It was only then that he finally calmed himself down.

"Look at yourself. Back in the day, you were the one we were expecting to see crying, and now here you are seeing me in this... state." He laughed self-deprecatingly.

"Guess the fact that I was a nature freak has never changed even after all those years."

For a while, we laughed at each other's lame jokes.

I, on the other hand, was happy that my first "true" reunion with a member of my family went maybe, well, not smoothly, but at least it went the way it went.

We spent some time just talking, in order to catch up with one another. Since there was a lot of that for us to catch up on, it was a while after that when he asked me.

"So what are you going to do now?"

"Well about that.”