6 6. Old man Nobu

I was walking down the street when I noticed someone stalking me, I looked at his direction and saw an elder watching me, I looked and said a few words using my mouth for him and let him be. Meh must be someone from the Saegusa family. Well, you can snoop around all you can, its not like I care what you find about me. I then walked around and see things and places that interests me. I saw many food stalls and was kinda hungry, I decided to try them one by one.

After having his fill, he then walked around the town and what piqued his interest was a shabby store. A shabby store that no one would look inside to check his goods, the place is also away from the places where people will converge into.

"Hello? Is there anyone in here?" When I came inside, what surprised me was the amount of books it have. The store looks shabby from the outside but was well cleaned in the inside, the design for the book cabinets are placed in a way that it looks spacious even though there are literally a huge number of books.

I then decided to walk in deeper, there's no person other than me, I didn't see the shop keeper yet. When I reached the counter, there is no one inside, I then roamed around the area and I picked up some books to read. I was kind of disappointed as the quality of books was good but the quantity wasn't, though there are still classics that are even known back in my old world, Pride and Prejudice, Don Quixote, Gulliver's travel, The Count of Monte Cristo and many more. I continued roaming the area while picking up a book and reading it for a time. I then saw a William Blake book with his poems. I then silently read it not noticing an old man was coming towards me. I just kept reading about the poem.

'Love seeketh not itself to please,

Nor for itself hath any care,

But for another gives its ease,

And builds a Heaven in Hell's despair.'

So sung a little Clod of Clay

Trodden with the cattle's feet,

But a Pebble of the brook

Warbled out these metres meet:

'Love seeketh only self to please,

To bind another to its delight,

Joys in another's loss of ease,

And builds a Hell in Heaven's despite.'

I then finished reading as I seemed to understand it a little. I was in a trance when the old man spoke.

"Ah~ The clod and the pebble. It seems you only understood a bit, how about you let this old man analyze it for you? You know,  'The Clod and the Pebble' begins with a clod or lump of clay declaring that love is about selflessness: love is about giving yourself to someone else, and love is a positive force which can take the 'hell' of despair and turn it into a joyous heaven. Once the clod of clay has offered this view, however, a pebble in the stream declares the opposing view: that love is entirely selfish and makes a lover bend the other person to their desires, rather than seeking to serve the other's wishes."

"I see, whatever you choose between the two, there'll still be a selfish one between them, giving/taking, heaven/hell, selfless/selfish. But Blake presents two contrasting views of love, whereby one serves as the inverse or mirror-image of the other. What about you old man? Do you side with the clod's naive love or the pebble's cold hard love?" I asked the old man

"I don't know child, but in my opinion, its a mix of both, sometimes you will have to be selfish and sometimes you need to be selfless. Sometimes You give rather than to receive, sometimes you also need to receive than giving. Sometimes your relationship when smooth sailing is heaven and when your relationship was into the rough stages is hell. You always need to balance the two as too much of it will slowly whittle you down, till there's nothing left of you."

"I'm Vergil old man, what about yours?"

"Just call me Nobu. Its been a long time since a person has entered this book store."

"This is a book store? I thought it was a library? Are you the shop keeper of this place?" I launched a barrage of questions at old man Nobu

"Yes, it was my wife's dream, to build a bookstore, too bad she passed away a day before seeing it. Yes, I'm the shop keeper of this place young man. Why are you reading such difficult topics young man? Kids your age should be reading story books and kids books, not something of this level." Nobu said and I showed him my book.

Nobu looked at it with trembling hands as he remembers his old friend.

"I got this from an old man who's a shopkeeper as well, a pity, I haven't seen him ever since, after mother took me to this town." I said.

'I see old fool, so this is the kid you said in your diary huh?' Nobu thought as he remembers the old man's dying wish

'I wish I could see the kid before passing on.'

'It was a simple wish but it was not granted, but now the child, just right in front of me, was reading a book in a trance. Looks like he really loves books more than you ever do, old friend.' Nobu thought

"I see." Nobu said

"May I come back here and read when I have free time?"

"Sure, there's no one visiting in here anyway."

I was on my way home humming in joy as I found a hidden gem hiding in this town. I arrived back home and Azazel ordered pizzas as dinner.

"Oh~ Vergil, welcome back. How's your first day at school."

"Nothing much, just the heiress of Saegusa family and I think I saw Uncle Barakiel's daughter in there. I sensed a hybrid bloodline in her, the same as mine."

"What?! The Saegusa family?! The one they called the Elven Princess because of her aptitude for magic is the same as a natural born elf. Wait a minute!! Barakiel had a daughter?! Why did that old goat not tell me? Am I not his friend?" Azazel was in a myriad of emotion as anime tears were falling in his eyes.

"Nah, don't fuss about it. Uncle Barakiel knows you're gonna pester him all day if he told you about it." We ate our dinner and rest.

meanwhile:

The elder after snooping around for info reported the findings to the old friend that have me the order to investigate the young man.

I remembered his words by reading his lip and mouth movement.

'Found you, You're too slow'

That shocked the hell out of me, I'm using my CAD to interfere with the surroundings and conceal me in it and I have the speed to follow him without losing him in sight.

"How is it? Have you investigated that kid's background? Is he planning something bad for Mayumi?"

"Calm down old man, that kid's not simple. He sensed me who is cloaked using my CAD and manage to say I'm too slow. As for his background, his father was erased from the annals of history and nobody knows who he is, but her mother was an existence comparable or maybe even greater compared to Griselda Quarta of the church in terms of talent but unfortunately a disaster struck causing her flee, the church has removed all the information about it, he was also adopted by Azazel the former Governor-General of the fallen angels." I explained what I found from my snooping around that kid's background

"Its all good as long as he doesn't have any bad intent against Mayumi."

"I think you took it the wrong way? It was Mayumi who approached him, who was just sleeping waiting for the class to start." I said as I heard from Mayumi's guard about what happened

"That Mayumi jeez. *sigh* what should we do about it?" He complained

"Nothing just let them be. Like I told you they're gonna be fine. You worry too much." He smiled and answered with a proud voice.

"Of course its my cute granddaughter, I would do everything for her." I chuckled at his antics. Who would've thought that the once feared mage of the mage association would become like this after having a granddaughter.