His Grief

"I've been waiting…and waiting…" he whispered while closed his eyes. He attempted to lift up his right hand, when he was hit by a sharp pain. There is no blood anywhere but his forearm is purple and lumpy where it should be smooth. His linen shirt was ripped during the blast. He completely forgot about his injury.

"My Lord?" called a timid, low voice.

Aure took a glimpse through his fingers to avoid the sunlight and saw Bill, the royal retainers. He is quite surprised by Aure's presence. So is Aure.

"Bill? What are you doing here?" asked Aure as he struggled to get up.

Bill was fast on his knees and assisted Aure. "My house is far ahead of me. My Lord, I have just finished my duty and on my way home I saw you here,"

"Is that so?" Aure thanked him. He takes a look at his surroundings, and the sky definitely looks a bit orange. It seems like he lost track of the time, again.

Bill nodded, his eyes fixed on Aure's injury.

"Ah, this is when I felt down earlier, nothing serious," said Aure, covering his injury with his left hand.

"I'll find a healer or fetch some medicines, My Lord, please wait here,"

Aure stopped him. "It's all right, there's no need for that. It's just a bruise."

"But my Lord-"

Aure shakes his head firmly. Bill dropped his eyes to his feet, frowned and say nothing afterward.

"Well, if you really want to help me, then could you show me a good tavern?"

Bill's doe-like eyes become bigger. Aure raises his left hand, "I know, don't worry. I just want a place to sleep that's all… or you would be nice keeping me for a night?"

Bill was dumbfounded. It's not that he didn't want bring Aure back to his house. It's just he's too poor. He is living in an old hut with his sick mother. His entire money was spent on his mother's medication. The more effective the medicine, the more expensive the medication is. He and his mother barely have anything to eat. Sometime, he brought the castle leftover to eat with his mother. To bring someone, especially a noble into his house is really unthinkable. In any case, Bill didn't dare to ask Aure why he wanted to spend the night in a tavern instead of the castle – where the young noble had access to a night in the castle under the King's name.

"I know this one place, My Lord," said Bill after a long thought.

"Good. Bring me there. It's already late," replied Aure with a grin.

Both of them walk to the tavern. As they walked, Aure noticed something about his clothes when he saw his reflection in the water puddle. Aure stopped in the middle of the road. Bill looks at him, confused.

"Before that can you buy me another change of clothes? The one that's not too fancy" asked Aure though his eyes still staring his clothes. Realizing what his Lord meant, he quickly responded, "Of course, My Lord."

Aure gave him fifty silver Lucre (Bill was very shocked to see the money, apparently equal to the amount of his salary) and Bill went in straight, out of the sight to buy his shirt. After a moment, he's back with a deep green olive garment that looks like a hideous jumpsuit to Aure. He handed back to Aure another forty-three Lucre. But Aure waves his hand. "Keep it. You're helping me anyway,"

Bill almost burst into tears as he never thanking Aure as they continued their journey. That much amount of Lucre may nothing to Aure, but it is does to him. With the money, he might survive for a month in buying food. And they've finally arrived in front of the tavern. The small tavern must have been nothing more than a glorified shed even in its hay day. But now it looked for all the world as if a giant had sat on the roof, for it sagged terribly. The windows were gaping holes for the wind to rush in and out through and the door hung on its hinges at a jaunty angle, although now it was just a frame. It was a rotting heap, bowing down, beholden to the elements.

"You are free to go. I could manage this" Aure instructed Bill. Before he left, Bill gives him a grateful deep bows. Aure winds his way through the warm bodies to book a room. The barkeeper looks up and down toward Aure. It's full tonight, he said. Aure slipped a pouch full of a hundred silver Lucre through his sleeves. The barkeeper looks greedily at the money. His hand was itching to take the money from Aure but Aure prevented him.

"You just said all the rooms were packed,"

The barkeeper had been wondering around for a while before whispered to Aure. "There's one room left in the attic," said him. The barkeeper looks so dumb with his jagged, distorted cheekbone and a smile full of crooked yellow teeth sat in a red-rimmed mouth. Deal. Aure tossed the pouch while thinking that barkeeper does looked like a bulldog who awaiting for his meal. The barkeeper quickly grabs the pouch as someone who is starving, counting the coin inside.

Aure climbs up the stairs into the attic. Aure wrinkled his nose at the stench that wafted up at her from the attic, mix of stale coffee and mouse droppings. He gauged in disgust. Groping around the wall, his fingers found the light switch. The light flickered on, revealing the attic. It's just a typical attic - one small bedroom at the corner loaded with dusty old boxes, a jungle of dirty clothes and uneaten food on the floor. The window is single pane. It's old but not attractively so. It's just the kind they threw in twenty years ago expecting it to last fifteen at the most.

Aure went through the messy stuff and opened the window allowing the outside air circulating within the attic. "That baldie was better off cleaning up this mess before I took my money back!" Aure crowed as he instantly approached the barkeeper and confronted him. After a few hours, Aure finally get his justice and threw his body on the mattress.

Aure spent the rest of his day in the tavern. It's a vulgar spot not for a noble person like him but he doesn't mind - actually he do mind a little bit! In fact, he'd rather sleep in a dirty place than a night in the castle because he had enough of rotten people who would belittled him if he stays there. Especially the one that involves his failure during the day. Now that he's thinking back, his chest hurts.

His heartbreak is grief that comes in waves, gruelling, stealing appetite and sleep alike. It is a shard in his guts that never leaves, though perhaps in time the edges will dull. It feels like death just the same as bereavement and in quiet moments it chokes the breath from his body and short circuits his mind. Aure pulled his copper ring out of his pockets. He turns the ring around few times to inspect the ring, in case he's missing something. He sits back up from the bed and stares at the ring as if he wants to eat it. Then, he sticks the ring close to his bruise and chanted, Emaculo!

Aure is no healer. Nothing was happened. And the bruise was there.

Healing magic was uncommon. Even in Lapis Kingdom, only selected few can master the advanced healing power. In order to become a healer, one should undergo specialized training, which is something Aure never did.

Aure had gone to his original position. "I don't want to go home," he muttered to himself while staring blankly to the roof. He could imagine the gloomy face of his parent once he returned. He lets out a long, big sigh. Even the idea of applying to alchemy-type Magic Knight is utterly impossible with his useless ring. He could just apply for soldier-type Magic Knight but he doesn't want that. As he set down on his feelings, he later fell asleep.

But something happened that night.

Rustle. Rustle.

It is a very faint sound but Aurelius could hear it. Maybe he just has a keen ears or maybe that night just happens to be one of those quiet night. Not to mention, the coldness that reaches his bones, as if his heart were a door left wide open to the icy wind is what keeps him awake.

Aurelius was curling on the bed in the dark and he glances over. He saw an odd shadow reflected by the moon at the corner of his room through the window. He is about to turn a light to see what it is when he hear a voice in his head that says, Don't move. They're watching you.