Chapter 271: Light Under the Water

The wood beneath him creaked softly as he sat at the edge, legs hanging over the water.

They almost touched the cold water. Yet just enough so they didn’t meet.

He hadn’t felt what it was to have his feet surrounded by water, but his father told him it was really cold, so he wasn’t so mad about it.

The lake stretched out in front of him, still and quiet, its surface barely disturbed; it was always like this, since the first time he saw it. It reflected the sky above, though something about it felt… off. The colors were there, but duller, like they didn’t fully belong.

Many might not even notice this change; after all, they were barely noticeable, yet for someone like him, who has seen it every day, he could feel it.

This lake… it was one of the only things he still had from his father, who had died when he was young. He had to take on his job since taking care of his mother and brothers, getting food and stuff.

He has seen these waters more than he has seen himself.

And it was ironic, since looking in the water, you see yourself.

He leaned forward slightly, looking down.

The water was clear enough to see beneath the surface, though the deeper it went, the more it faded into a dark, endless blue. For a moment, nothing moved.

Usually there were things inside… maybe it was because it was quite cold today… It wasn’t good news; he needed to find something so that he could feed his family.

Then something shifted.

A small koi fish passed by, its body gliding smoothly through the water. It didn’t rush, didn’t dart away. It simply moved, slow and steady, as if it knew it was being watched.

He followed it with his eyes.

Fishes usually swam fast, even more when they sensed his presence, but not this one; it was as if it wanted him to follow it.

It swam in a loose circle before drifting farther out, its shape becoming slightly blurred the deeper it went. Something about it felt important, though he couldn’t say why.

….

Without thinking, he leaned further.

The fish dipped lower.

And he followed.

The surface of the lake didn’t break. It didn’t ripple. It simply… gave way.

It was the first time he had ever gone inside the lake, the first time he had felt its body around him…

The cold came first.

Then silence.

The world above disappeared as he sank, his body moving without resistance.

As the light around his dissapeared, he felt awkwardly alone… and at the same time, watched, as if someone was outside, watching him… was this how the fish felt, was this why they swam so fast?

The deeper he went, the darker it became, yet he could still see the fish ahead, faint, almost glowing against the dark.

It was unnatural. How could he possibly see it when it was this dark?

Maybe it really did want him to follow it, maybe it was guiding him, but to what?

It kept going.

So did he.

The light from above faded completely, leaving only the faint outline of the fish guiding him forward. Shapes began to form in the distance, barely visible at first. Something large. Buried.

The ground.

His eyes widened, he hadn’t expected to reach the ground… it hadn’t even felt like he had been in the water for five seconds, had the lake been a lot smaller than he had expected… or had he just lost track of time?

…

Also, why did he not feel like he needed to breathe?

He slowed as his feet touched it, though it didn’t feel like stone or sand. It was too smooth. Too still.

The fish stopped.

Hovering just above something.

However, he was hesitant; after all, nothing that had happened now made sense… plus, he had a bad feeling about it, and he didn’t want to die… not when he still had to protect them, and find a way to make money for his family.

…

And yet…

He moved closer.

His hands hit the ground… and yet he felt a weird urge to dig down… almost as if a voice was whispering inside his mind to do so. But for what reason?

And yet, he dug.

His hands moved fast, taking out whatever the ground was made out of… until he found something…

A warm orange light…

And as it suddenly appeared, it got bigger until it corrupted his whole world.

…

…

As Kade suddenly awakened, he found himself standing in a bed… one that was quite soft.

His breathing was fast, as he didn’t recognize just where he was; it was a room he hadn’t seen before.

Made out of a dark wood, the walls looked well-maintained, without any cracks, plus the room itself was maintained excellently; there were hardly any webs or dust around.

Outside of this bed, there was a desk in the room, where many bottles were standing, all with different letters written on them… were the medicines? He couldn’t see that far to read them.

He tried to stand up, but he felt his leg being heavy, screaming for him to stop. And when he looked at it, there was something different.

It was wrapped thickly from knee to ankle, layers of cloth wound tight enough to keep it from moving. Underneath, rigid supports had been tied along the sides, thin wooden slats pressed against the limb to hold it straight.

The fabric had stiffened in places, dried into a rough shell from whatever paste or resin had been used to harden it.

So basically, it was put in a cast.

’Huh?’

As much as he wanted to have one as a kid… what had happened?

…

Only after did he finally remember that they had been attacked in the forest by bandits…

He had tried to fight him, but with a wooden blade, it had been hard to deal with his big hammer… and yet, he pushes himself to save his family.

He couldn’t just run away, not after he had sworn to get stronger… he never wanted to be in the same position he was before, with his life in the hands of someone else, so weakly, begging for his life.

Plus, Aether… had put a lot of effort into escorting the family…

’Speaking of it, where-’

Before he could even finish that thought, the door burst open, with a figure entering

One he could never mistake.

A young boy, one with two different eyes, it was a weird trait he had, but a very intriguing one.

One of his eyes was blue, like a gem hidden deep… in a lake.

And the other pure black, like a black hole, consuming every little piece of light coming into it, not letting it escape.

The boy’s hair was messy, cut by himself, his long bangs just slightly reaching his eyes, as in the back, where it was longer, it was styled in two buns on the left and right. One of them was kept still by a beautiful moonflower pin.

It was none other than the devil himself.

Aether’s eyes widened as he saw him, but then he quickly smiled smugly.

“You awake, huh? You know, it’s not nice to sleep on the job.”

Kade rolled his eyes. Most would probably have at least felt annoyed by his statement if they were in his situation, after all, he had almost died. But… he had gotten used to him, to this attitude of his.

…

Plus, he knew that he didn’t mean it; his hand shaking told him the truth.

“Don’t lie to me, you were worried about me.”

Aether staggered. “What of course not!”

Kade chuckled.

…

Their relationship was… complicated.

This guy was the person who had killed his brother after all… and yet, he couldn’t help but feel nothing but respect for him… after all, while he wasn’t the best teacher, and his methods weren’t the most human out of the bunch. He had… learned a lot.

And it wasn’t just because of the training they recently started.

He had learned a lot just by studying him. By watching him, and not just when he fought, but outside of it. To understand his nature and try to recreate it… and it has made him stronger… he had actually defeated a bandit, and with a wooden balde none the less…

I guess he was just that good.

…

When he had first decided to come with him… he would have never expected to… enjoy it. Even if it was dangerous… it was also… fun?

He didn’t know why, but a part of him really enjoyed their adventures… just walking around finding stuff, exploring.

…

Aether… was someone he respected a lot.

His master cleared his trought, his cheeks still a little pink out of emberessment.

“You should rest longer, don’t worry about pay, the family decided to pay for your treatment and…” He gritted his teeth. “Daily fee in this wicked place.”

…

“You did good… so just rest, you deserve it.”

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