Ch 13: The Hunter's association - part 1

Camelia had a thousand thoughts, but none kept her from sleeping. 

Her body seemed to have been sucked off-dry, and Camelia felt tiredness and weakness even as she woke up.

She had gotten around to regaining most of her powers but decided to keep them under wraps for now.

After all, the world had changed a lot since she had last been here, and Camelia did not want to disturb the peace of this place.

She walked down after washing up, only to see Zayne awake and cooking breakfast.

The spread he had prepared was nothing special, but it all seemed to cater to Camelia's taste. 

Only when she finished eating half of it did she find it odd? But asking about the food and how Zayne knew of her preferences made Camelia feel agitated.

"Today will be hectic, so tell me if you start feeling tired. I will try to see if we can get you an identification mark, and I will get you into my guild as a special member for now. Ah, but you don't have to do anything you don't want to. I am not doing this to pressure you into helping me out."

Zayne assured Camelia as he smiled back at her.

It was then that she noticed the dark circles under his eyes.

'The Zayne from my past would have never been caught dead with dark circles under his eyes. He had too huge of an image to maintain.'

Even Camelia had never seen the other man let down his guard and show how tired he had been. 

"Before we head out, I must ask you some questions, Camelia. When could you use magic, and how many kinds can you use? What class has the system put you under?"

Zayne asked, and Camelia felt confused.

"System? What's that? Some new kind of technology?"

Her confusion was genuine, and Zayne froze.

His eyes had a ray of hope, but it was dismissed before it could become something else.

"If you don't know the system, read this guide while we go. Also, brace yourself. The president of the Hunting Association will likely be in today so that we might run into him.

Just ignore him if he approaches you. That man is a menace, and it's a pity I need to keep him alive."

Camelia felt mixed emotions when she heard Zayne's words.

The person he was talking about was Lucas, the precious child Camelia had looked after. She had handed him all of her responsibility when she died.

He had been a bubbly child who always did what Camelia asked, and Lucas rarely disobeyed her.

But a lot of time, she had passed since Camelia died as well. Zayne might have changed from when she knew him; he had become someone else by now.

"You don't have to worry about a thing while you are with me, Camelia. I promise I will protect you as long as I am alive."

Zayne's words sounded as if they carried weight. 

Hearing him speak made Camelia feel odd, and her heart skipped a few beats.

She knew relying on someone like this was dangerous, but she wanted to allow this man to make things right.

After all, this time and the world were unknown to Camelia. 

...

The hunting association's office felt like an alien place to Camelia.

She had thought she had seen advanced technology before, but this place took the cake. She tried her hardest not to reach out and decipher the magic formula before her.

But the eyes looking at her in curiosity and jealousy made Camelia feel frozen. It made her think she should not reach out and touch anything.

"Welcome to the hunting association's office. Please enter your name and ID number."

The machine asked, and Zayne quickly entered his ID. Camelia also tried to enter her ID, but Zayne snatched her card out of her hand.

"Let me do this for you. I don't want your hands touching any of this dirty technology."

Zayne sounded just as cheerful as ever, but his hand's warmth made Camelia feel odd. He was holding her hand a little too tightly, and his eyes also had a weird look…

Then the familiar, yet not familiar, voice snapped Camelia out of her thoughts and made her look at the man behind her.

The neatly combed black hair and pitch-black eyes before her looked like a far cry from the messy child Camelia knew. But she could instinctively tell this kid was the one she knew from before.

Camelia could recognize Lucas anywhere, and this kid was certainly him.

"You should not be blocking other people's way like this. If you don't want to get in, then get out. We can do well without you as well."

Lucas sounded pissed and a lot more agitated than Camelia expected him to be. 

There had always been bad blood between Lucas and Zayne, but Camelia never got the reason behind it.

She asked the pair every time, but they avoided discussing this subject. They even gave her a look that asked her to drop this subject.

"Young master, don't be like this…Ah, you are no longer a young master, right? You are far older than most human associations. Maybe I should call you 'old man' now."

Zayne asked, but Lucas did not even react. He seemed to have adapted to Zayne's teasing quite well over the years.

Once upon a time, this kid would have exploded if someone hoked around him like this. But it was nice to see that he had finally grown up well.

"Don't give me that bullshit. Tell me what you came here for and what this nonsense about you having a fiancé is. I thought you were loyal to 'that' person. Just who is-"

Lucas finally noticed Camelia's presence, and he went deadly quiet. His eyes seemed to shake when he looked at her, and Camelia gave him a small but formal bow.

"It's nice to meet you, president of the Hunting Association. My name is Camelia."