Chapter 12

"Samuel, wake up."

I reluctantly opened my eyes when I felt someone shaking my body. "Let me sleep." Not wanting to get out of bed yet I tried to push the person's hands off me and crawl further under my sheets.

"Sir Daniel is calling everyone to the square, you should hurry we only have ten minutes left."

Opening my eyes in shock, I could see Eiji staring at me. Moving my fingers over my eyes, I remember where I was; I wasn't home; I was in a place I knew nothing about except its name, Pilantrop.

Eiji who saw me now wide awake moved back to his side of the room and continued to dress himself. The clothes he put on weren't the same as the ones he wore yesterday, they were more of this world than our modern times. 

He noticed my eyes peering at him, causing him to point toward the closet at the end of my bed. "If you look in there, they had clothes prepared for us beforehand."

My eyes wandered to the side and settled on the table placed between our beds. During my time in that massive hall, I noticed I was still wearing the suit and somehow all the cuts and stains on it had disappeared. Before I had gone to sleep I had thrown it off me, but now it was neatly folded on the desk, causing me to look at Eiji.

"Hey, what's wrong." Clapping his hands, he takes me out of my daze. "Nothing."

"If you were thinking about taking a shower, you can do that later."

Opening my closet, he looks at me. "What do you feel like wearing?"

With him waking me up and all. I couldn't help but think back to the past.

"Samuel!! Wake up we have school in thirty minutes!" Sarah shook me wildly as I lay in bed.

"But I don't want to."

"You! I've had enough of you making me late. Learn to wake up by yourself from now on." Taking my sheets, she throws them off me, then storms to my closet, opening it and throwing my school uniform on me.

As she slowly opened the door to the living room. I raised my hand and gave her a thumbs-up. "Thanks, sis."

Hearing my words, a slight smile appears on her face. "If I don't see you at the front door in five minutes, we'll have a problem. You heard me!"

"Yes, sergeant."

While getting out of bed, I could hear someone call for me. "Samuel? Samuel?"

Shaking my head, I see Eiji standing in front of me again. "Nothing special, just a pair of pants and a shirt will do."

"Okay." With that, he throws the clothes on my bed. "I'll wait downstairs for you. Make sure to hurry up."

"I will." After a minute or two, I walked down the stairs, at the door, Eiji gave me a new pair of shoes to me.

After putting them on, we walk out of the house and towards the square of the small town. When we arrived, Daniel was looking at the watch on his wrist. after some time, he stopped staring at it.

"Now then, I hope you've all been lazing around well yesterday! Because that will end from now on! From here on, I will have to make you into functioning members of society! Inside you will find the four lovely ladies from yesterday!" He pointed behind him, at the large building where we did our identification process.

"They will have job offers for you! When you decide what you want to do, they will ask you questions based on what you apply for! If you have no previous experience doing that type of work! Don't worry there is an interviewing process later today for the jobs that still have space left! These jobs range from simple work here in the town such as helping in the kitchen, cleaning the houses, and helping in the orphanage!" Stopping for a second, he cleans his throat and then continues to shout.

"There is also work for you to do in the capital city! This work pays more, but you will have to wake up a lot early to take a carriage there! We also have a special job that pays the most, however, this job is extremely dangerous and difficult! Underneath our feet is a giant cavern system! What this job entails is you along with my guards will explore these tunnels alongside dealing with the rapidly growing population of monsters that roam these labyrinths! I will have to say that this work is a sure-fire way to get a job anywhere you want due to its nature!"

When he claps his hands, his gaze fixed intently on everyone. "That was all. I want everything to go, the same as yesterday! Understood!"

"Yes!"

"Good!" As he disappeared from our view, his imposing presence no longer loomed over us, making everyone feel like they could breathe again. Not long after, they let groups of people enter the town hall.

As Eiji opened the door to their house, the sound of John and Liam's laughter filled the living room.

"Look who we have here if it isn't our hero." John snickered at what Liam said.

"What did you two sign up for?"

Nonchalantly, John responded to him. "We decided to join the expedition team, but if we don't get in will do manual labor in the city. What did you choose?"

"I'm going to help around town. I put myself up for the orphanage and other minor tasks."

"You truly are the kindest person I know." Liam turned to John with a smile on his face, when he heard him say this

"Not all, the other jobs just weren't my thing." Eiji scratched the back of his head as he spoke. While he did this, Liam and John grinned at each other. "Oh right, have you guys seen Samuel? We went there together, but I lost him."

"Haven't seen him, and I don't care where he is." John's response was swift, but his demeanor towards their fourth roommate was devoid of any emotion.

"He probably sighed up for the kitchen, so he could stare at the food." With his brazen words, Liam hopped into the conversation. john laughed at what he had said, but Eiji couldn't. Noticing this, Liam glared at Eiji for a second.

"No, he wants to work at the orphanage so he can look at the children." Eiji had an icky feeling when John spoke, prompting him to swiftly end the conversation. "I'm going to my room."

As he walked up the stairs. The two ignored him and continued to talk. The door creaked open, and Eiji's gaze immediately fell upon Samuel's disheveled bed. "Why do people talk like this behind your back, Samuel."

Walking through town, I could feel the warmth of the sun on my skin and the gentle breeze brushing against my face, bringing me a sense of calm. Although the place was small, its cozy ambiance made walking a perfect way to unwind and forget.

"What are you doing here?" There was a girl who suddenly ran onto the road and stopped right in front of me, blocking my way.

"Oh, it's you."

"You? I have a name you know."

Unable to remember I pondered about it for a bit, but I couldn't come up with anything. When I thought about it, I didn't know much about her. Through the start of this conversation, it became clear to me that she most likely said more than I recall. My mind went back to the days I sat at the table and all I could see was her blurred-out face. 

The girl pouted as I stood there silently, unable to speak. "It's Ella!"

"Ella?"

"Yeah, and you better never forget it again." Ella averted her gaze from me, seeming angry at my inability to remember her name. 

My eyes stared straight at her back, I understood her anger was justified. After all, I hadn't treated her like another human being. To me her just being around was enough that I considered her subconsciously like an object to keep me company than as the person she is.

"I'm sorry, I'll remember it forever, Ella." 

Because of the sincerity she could feel in my words, she turned back around towards me. "Did you eat yesterday?" 

Upon hearing what she said, I was rendered speechless. As soon as she saw me frozen in place, her smile vanished. "Have you had breakfast yet?"

"I have not." Again, she saw me hesitate to finish my sentence.

"Then you should go eat now. I'll come with you to make sure you do." She grabbed my hand and tried to pull me along, but I stopped her. "We can't, it's closed at the moment."

Ella knew I was right, so she stopped and thought for a few seconds before dragging me with her through town. Together, we arrived at one of the largest buildings in town. In its front yard, I could see children play and in the back, I could hear more.

I was pulled towards the building and inside she shouted at the top of her lungs. "Headmistress!" 

The headmistress ran down the stairs and halted when she saw me.

Ella looked at the woman on the stairs. "Do we have any fruit left?" 

"We should. Why do you need it?" Not listening any further, Ella runs off. 

The woman lets out a sigh as she walks to the floor I was on. "Who are you?"

"I'm Samuel."

"Well, Samuel, how do you know Ella, and why are you here?"

"I met her before we arrived in this town when I told her I forgot to eat breakfast. She dragged me here, telling me I can't go through the day without eating something."

The woman laughed at what I said. "That sounds like her. I could tell on the first day she was a troublemaker, but I know she cares for the people around her."

"I know that all too well. I'm one of her victims, after all."

She smiles, seeing my lifeless eyes brighten up a bit. "I'm Rose, Nice to meet you."

"Likewise." I gave her a light bow as she greeted me but our conversation was interrupted when the door to the garden opened.

"Rosy!" From the side, a boy came crying towards her.

"What's wrong, Jimmy?" Picking up the boy, she holds him as he points outside. Walking towards the garden, Rose left for a few minutes before coming back.

"Must be hard, taking care of so many kids."

"There's not that many, and even if there were, hearing how these kids lost their family. Was enough of a reason for me to come and work here."

Rose witnessed the brightness that had adorned my face disappear, making her speechless. Rose's face brightened as she saw the door open. "Look who's here."

Ella came through the door, holding a plate with some fruits on it. The fruits she brought were around the size of an apple, with a roundish shape, and were purple on the outside. She glanced at me as she placed it on the dinner table. "Come here, this is all for you."Even though she said that she took one for herself and started eating. 

As I sat down, I grabbed one of the numerous fruits. When I took a bite, it had a delightful sweetness with a subtle tangy finish. The flesh of the fruit was pale white, and there was a solid nut in the center.

"This is good. Do you want one?" I turned to Rose, who was staring at the both of us, with a smile on her face.

"No can-do Samuel. Big men eat all their fruits, after all." Her words left me bewildered. Her manner of speaking made me feel like a child, but I understood her reasons for behaving that way. It was obvious to me that they were conspiring together when I saw them giggle and chuckle while I enjoyed the fruit.

Looking at the table, I sighed, while a brighter atmosphere surrounded me. This was the first time in a long while that I was able to speak so casually with people. The sound of their laughter made me almost forget that my world was turned upside down. 

Rose, who saw this change in my expression smiled even brighter.

When I finished the fruit, I stood up. "I'll be taking my leave."

"Already! You've only had one." Ella looked at me in distraught.

"Don't worry, I won't forget to have lunch later."

"You promise."

"I promise." With a firm grip on the door handle, I pull it open. 

"Samuel." I turn around and gaze at Rose. "You can come back anytime."

"Thank you." I gave her a slight bow before I walked out the door and left.

"You've met a nice person, Ella."

"I know he's always been kind to me, but people always told me to stay away from him. They said all these weird things that he could be a bad person."

Looking out the window, Rose's eyes fixated on Samuel's figure as he distanced himself. "If I hadn't spoken to him, I might have had the same thoughts as them, but I can see that he harbors no ill will towards anyone."