Chapter 35: Hadrian's Lessons

Most of the people at the house got up late in the morning that day.

There was one person lying on the bed who hasn't slept the whole night, while his mother and father were sound asleep on their bed in the same room.

Erland got up from his bed and looked at his parents. He rubbed his eyes and stroked his messy hair, then grabbed it tight.

"(Mom got her hair in the mouth...Come to think of it...She doesn't seem bothered by me, being with the government. Does she know little about it? Or...is there something else? Or...are they really not that bad?)"

Gunhild woke up and looked at Erland. She got out of the blanket and walked towards him.

She stretched her arms and let out a silent yawn. A soft melodious morning voice came into Erland's ears, which was of no other's than his own mother. "What is it, my boy? You look stressed..."

"It's just that...I'm wondering...Are the government people good?" said Erland as he let go of the tight hold of his hair.

"If they weren't here, we wouldn't be able to live. They might seem overly reserved but they has to be like that. You will know as you grow up."

Erland let out a sigh. "(I already know...) Why did they pick me? Aren't you worried?"

Gunhild gave a playful frown with a smile. "They picked you? No, they chose you. That's a better word for it. You are precious, that's why they chose you."

"What have I done so far to be special or precious?"

"Well, you have magic, you are bold and strong. You are brave as a lion and clever as a fox. You treasure what you have with all you have and you try your best to help. What else do you need to be precious?"

"(I'm not worthy to be called those things...I was too weak not to abandon my family at some point...I don't even know how they are doing right now...It's been years after all...)"

"What are you thinking?"

"Nothing." Erland mouth carved into a natural forced smile. "Thanks mom. Oh and can I ask you something?"

"Ask away." Gunhild sat beside Erland. 

"Why did I see that ghost that day? I have passed graveyards many times but nothing happened until then."

Gunhild's smile disappeared as she too, became unsure. "That's...I didn't think about it. Tell me, did you recently awaken your power again? Or does it feel like you are losing control over it?"

Erland bit his own lips. "I do feel like it. Last night it came out like burning black flames. I got scared but you all were enjoying dinner so I didn't call out."

Gunhild held Erland close . "Aw...Poor boy. Don't hide anything from me or anyone in this family dear. If we can't help you then who can?"

"I didn't mean to hide anything. It's just that- *sigh* I didn't have the time. So...The Lords can't help me with these sort of stuffs?"

"Hm...That's a tricky question indeed. Maybe you should ask this one to someone else to know that."

"Tch- Oh come on! Don't dodge questions like dad. Whenever I ask him something, he always says, 'ask your mom, she is smart'."

Gunhild giggled. "Go and wash your face now. You won't go to work today." Gunhild walked towards Erik to wake him up. She pulled the blanket off him in kept it aside.

Erik rolled himself in a fetal position and murmured. "Five more minutes..." 

Gunhild, seeing her own husband being just as much of a child as her own son or maybe even more of a child while sleeping, let out a deep sigh and a soft laugh.

Erland widened his eyes. "(Wait a minute...) Mommy!"

Gunhild looked at Erland. "Yes, Erland?"

Erland rubbed his nape. "Um...Logi suddenly attacked on me that day. He chased me down and I fell in a fountain."

Gunhild knitted her eyebrows together as her jaw dropped, confused whether to laugh at it or feel worried if her son is alright or not. "What? When did this happen? Did you get hurt? You are getting more and more into trouble these days, boy. I'm gonna have to limit your freedom a little if this goes on."

"Listen! I didn't do anything. Logi suddenly came towards me for no reason, I don't know why."

Gunhild fluttered her eyes with a frowning face as if she was pondering. She went to her son again and asked,

"Did you feel anything that day?"

"No. I was fine." Erland shook his head.

"That's worrying...really...Where and when did this happen?"

"Days ago. In Hierius Arne's house. I went there to train Logi."

"Hierius Arne, hm? I don't think that he did something to mess with you. Angry dogs are big deal to handle." 

"Are you...worried about it, mom?" said Erland. 

Gunhild stroked Erland's hair. "Don't worry too much about it. We'll go to the central Naos or seek help from the government if needed. Go wash your face."

"Okay..." Erland got off from the bed.

Even though many people didn't go to their work that day, Erik did and so did a bird to watch Erland closely. It stared at Erland from the window of the dining room. As Erland took a bite of his food, he saw the bird from the corner of his eyes. Even though it was raining, it looked unhitched. It looked at him as if he was staring at his soul with it's brown-red eyes.

"What's up with it?..." Erland walked towards the window to scare it off. He slammed on the window. But it stood there still. Instead, it got it's head closer. Seeing that, Erland called his mother out. "M-Mom...Could you..."

"What is it?" said Hilda and came to the room instead of Gunhild.

"There's a weird looking bird, look!" Erland pointed towards the bird.

Hilda was indifferent. "Yeah, it's a bird. It looks drenched...We can't let it in though. No one knows if it's carrying any disease."

"Disease?" Erland looked at Hilda.

"Yes, disease. It's a kind of a hawk that's found near undeveloped areas of Gaion where people don't live or leave because of any disease..." Hilda looked at it, as it started into her soul. "No one knows what their purpose is. Just staring at it freaks me out. Let's leave it alone. Do you want some tea?" 

Erland walked away and left the hawk alone. "Yeah sure. Can I get some cakes too?" 

"We didn't make any in the past few weeks. You will get one tomorrow, I promise." Hilda tapped on Erland's nose with her index with a beaming smile and then walked towards the kitchen.

"Okay!"

Erland went to his room and opened the door of the balcony. He stood there as soon as the rain stopped. He looked left and then he tilted his head up a little, just to see the same bird from before.

It screeched at Erland and got in the house from the window.

"What the-"

It somehow got to the kitchen. It got on Hilda's hair and scratched her. Then it jumped on the boiling tea as is screeched louder. "Someone, catch it!" Hilda screamed.

Erland held it tight and kept it on the ground. Hearing such disturbance in the house, everyone at the family came, except for the one who was working outside.

"What the heck! What IS THIS?!?" said Randi with a furious voice. She grabbed the bird by it's neck and held it up. The bird was silenced with fear the moment she grabbed it, like a chicken who's legs and wings have been paralyzed out of fear.

"Don't be that harsh. I'll try giving him some food." said Erland.

"Seriously? We gotta clean the whole house because of this little crap now. How did it get in? Ugh...It isn't even it's fault in the first place. He is innocent." said Randi, almost clenching her teeth.

"(It's the same bird who spied on me that day.) Maybe it's hungry. If it doesn't leave after I feed it, do what you wanna do."

Erland gave it the nearest food he could find to eat- a small piece of bread. It ate it with pleasure and died at the exact moment.

Gunhild backed away with Erland. The bird looked even more horrific than before now that it is dead.

"Well then girls. Let's go clean the house and ourselves...Erland, go take a shower right now. And you too, Hilda...make sure to wash your hair." said Gunhild.

Someone knocked on the door and came in, without any permission. The man was no other than a government leader. Since he was covering his face, Erland couldn't recognize him.

The person showed his face to Erland and greeted him with a smile on his face. It was surprising how he managed to 'look' at Erland even though he has no eye. He had the same prideful way of walking and the same smile.

"Greetings. Sorry to let myself in. You should lock your door from now on, Erland. You took too long to come so I came here myself to see if anything was wrong. By the way, Miss Randi. Why are you holding that bird like it? Do you wish to dine with it?" said Hadrian.

"It's a pleasure to see you here Sir. I would dine with it only if it wasn't diseased." said Randi.

"Greetings Hadrian..." Erland nodded. "I apologize for being so late. It rained so I thought that I wouldn't have to go."

"Do you ever see your father resting, Erland? Your job is now like this. We have made arrangement of carriage and numerous things for you, yet you say that you didn't have to go?" Hadrain walked towards Erland.

"I'm sorry." Erland gave an apologetic smile for a moment until he came into a realization. "Oh wait, you would have to come here anyway since not many people know of your house." 

Hadrian covered his lips with his bent index and grinned. "So you realized that I was messing with you."

Erland laughed away.

"Please don't take a seat, the bird might carry some diseases." Erland looked at the bird. "Oh and, I wanted to ask you something..."

Hadrian raised his eyebrows and moved his glance towards the bird as well. "Too bad that I cannot rest my legs. Yes, ask me anything."

"I saw this bird looking at me in a weird way before, why?"

Hadrian rubbed his chin. "Hmm...I can't just answer you with something childish since you are aware about these. This birds are mainly seen in such spots of Gaion because we must not go there to prevent the diseases."

As Hadrian was speaking, a bird just like this one was spectating them from the outside, sitting on a tree branch.

Hadrian continued."-The birds send signals to each other about what they saw and finally it goes to the one who takes care of them. You will know about him in the future. Since your family is also a part of us now, we don't tend to hide anything. But be careful not to spread any words about us. After all, we have to keep it low-key...Did I use the word right, youngster?"

Erland glanced at the window, feeling a gaze. He then shifted his gaze towards Hadrian and gave a polite smile. "I see... I will go and take a shower then."

"Do I have to come as well, Sir?" said Randi. 

"No need. You already have a lot in your bags after all. Take it easy. You must have dark circles around your eyes by now...hiding behind the uneven makeup you have put all your might on." Hadrian laughed with a sarcastic face.

Randi looked away, feeling embarrassed.

"We will be going then, Gunhild Hephaestus. You have built quiet a man for us." Hadrian walked outside, holding his hands behind his back.

Erland stared at him until the proud figure of Hadrian was walking away. With sheer curiosity and observing eyes, feeling discomfort in his veins, Erland furrowed his eyebrows. "(This man...he doesn't have eyes yet he 'looks' at things as if he can clearly see them. He's proud and speaks like an open book yet it feels like the book's written in a language I don't know of...Who is this man?...What are his intentions?...)"

"Erland! Go get a shower!" Gunhild yelled with a frown. If it was some other mother than Gunhild, Erland probably would have gotten a slap on his face by now. Or perhaps, Gunhild is so sweet towards him because Randi fills the role of beating. Even an anxious soul like Erland made time to think about these useless thoughts.

After Erland got ready, he said goodbye to his family and got in the carriage, Hadrian was waiting in.

"It's a beautiful scenery isn't it?" said Hadrian as he was gazing out of the window as how most does. His hands were crossed and so was Erland's out of a child's instincts of imitating others.

Erland looked at the scenery of fields covered in green as well. "Sure is...By the way, I have a question. Why is the Naos sort of like the government?" 

"They were formed long before us. They rely on an unknown Lord. We, the governments think of it as if it's unnecessary to rely on something that isn't possibly true. After all, we were abandoned by the Lords anyway." Hadrian uncrossed one of his arms, showing the palm of his gloved hand.

"Why did they abandon us?" 

Hadrian crossed his legs and propped his head as if he's ready to give a long description. "Certain reasons. Actually, not all the mortals live like us. There are those who are at the highest peak of a mortal even without the help of a God."

"Woah...How do you know if it's the highest?" Erland leaned forward.

"It's the highest for now, lowest for the next days...I don't know if you ever knew it but..." Hadrian's voice sounded deeper yet quieter than before as he uttered the last words. "We people in Gaion are exiles."

Inside, Erland's expression was grim but outside, he looked enthusiastic and surprised. "(I knew it!) W-Why?"

"Various reasons. Take your mother and father for example. Your father was a humble boy wandering without a job. When he got a job as a blacksmith along with his father at your mother's house, they slowly fell in love. When your grandparents knew it, they warned them both. Because of the fear of losing each other and to break the odds, they fled away. They were restricted to enter your mother's land ever again. I didn't state the places because you couldn't handle this much."

"So...my grandparents hate me?..." Erland looked gloomy. He hid his eyes behind his bangs as he lowered his head and recalled the grandparents he had in his past life who were the sweetest of all, even sweeter than the sweets he got from them.

"No need to sob. You mustn't sob for the ones who aren't yours or if they don't care about you. Even if they are related to you by blood, it is unnecessary."

Erland looked at Hadrian and shook his head. "I'm not gonna sob. It's just that I feel bad. Many people has grandparents who make them sweets. I have none..." Even though it was partially just an act of a child, his partial genuinity and his brilliant acting made it seem genuine.

Hadrian gave a slightly mocking laugh. "You have yourself and some precious people. Your elder sister Randi can make better sweets than any grandmother in my opinion. I knew her when she used to work with us in the young age."

"Woah!(Completely expected...)" Erland looked surprised but then moved back to having his casual face again. "Um...We moved from the topic of the Naos but...can we go back to it?"

"Sure sure...Whatever you'd like." Hadrian leaned back on his seat. 

"How does the Naos work and how does the government work?" Erland leaned back as well. 

As usual, Erland's imagination runs far and wide, being vivid as Hadrian explained their tasks.

"The government and the Naos are two sides of one coin. Gaion is nothing without both. The Naos serves Gaion by providing spiritual assistance or any guidance with anything trivial. We the government, handle the major tasks like taking taxes from the stable ones, providing foods and medicine as well as providing safety. The ones who keep the place safe are the police. They don't usually stroll around much during the day. If you ever wake up in the middle of the night, stare outside the window. You will notice some people holding lamps looking here and there, wearing dark blue tunic."

"I have another question-"

"Save those for later. My throat is dry because of your curiosity." Hadrian immediately interrupted. 

Erland pouted. "But I will forget those..."

Hadrian let out a sigh. "You can write them down."

They reached the house of Hadrian. Erland didn't notice when the carriage got in the woods. The house was a simple mansion made out of almost nothing too costly but bare woods. It wasn't as extravagant as Arne's. It didn't have any second floor nor did it have such large garden. Yet, it was peaceful. There was a silent large dog resting outside and some swans that could be seen playing on the pond. There were small flowers everywhere except the path to the mansion.

Erland and Hadrian took a seat inside of the house. There were green verdant curtains and a vase in the middle of the table the sat aside. In the vase, there was a white rose. Overall, the atmosphere was way different than Erland's house. There was almost no sound except the sound of birds chirping and leaves moving as the wind blew through them.

"I didn't expect your house to look like this. It's amazing...(I should bring it up now.) Better than Arne's in some ways." said Erland with knitted eyebrows and a smile.

Hadrian arched his eyebrows. "Arne? Arne Gothi? The Hierius?"

"Yes, him. I've known him for a long time."

A maid served them both some tea.

Hadrian spoke rather gently. "That's great. We don't have any issues with the Naos. I would say that most Hierius are brilliant and gentle. He is one of a kind among them. You have made a good friend."

"He is a good person..." As Erland remembered something, his smile got dimmer. "Oh- you said you would teach me."

Hadrian was taking a sip of tea when Erland spoke. After he took a sip, he kept the cup on the table and replied. "You are already learning many things aren't you? This is another way of teaching...Making your students curious about a subject and then answering depending on their curiosity works way more than any other mediocre teaching method." He held his cup and took another sip of tea.

Hadrian kept the cup again and propped his head. "I hope you use this method to teach in your school. Ah, I have heard something from Arne. You made a game called truth or dare didn't you? Shall we...play it?"