Ark asked, "What do you know?"
I sighed, set up another soundproof barrier, and checked for any possible listening spells.
Finding none, I leaned onto the table.
"...You know I have access to knowledge that I shouldn't, right?" I asked.
Ark nodded.
"Well, one of the things I know is the existence of other races that haven't come to light yet, those who are still small or whose primogenitor hasn't reached the point yet where they can reproduce."
I paused to let Ark process that.
"I know of several races and their abilities, including what I believe to be yours," I said and glanced at Ark.
He froze and hesitantly asked, "W-wh-what do you mean m-mine?"
I sighed. "I didn't realize it at first, and no one other than me knows this stuff. I connected everything when I saw you react to certain things."
Seeing him eye me, I let out a sigh and listed them off.
"You flinched when I asked everyone what aconite was, and I later learned aconite is another name for wolfsbane.
You reacted when you learned you had an affinity with moon magic, and the book on your desk, The Moonlit Path, isn't just some story—it is the story of your primogenitor's creation.
Luna, the moon spirit, was the one who created your people.
Your ability to hide your ears and tail is something only they can do.
Your fear of your own powers shows you can't control them.
And finally, your reaction to Rook... He is hunting you... isn't he?"
Ark was silent, with tears running down his face and his arms trembling.
I wanted to comfort him, but I decided against it as he wasn't very stable right now.
"I promise you I have no intention of revealing it to anyone, nor will I ask you anything about it... Just know I am always here to talk about it if you need help."
"Wh..." *dry swallow* "What does that all mean?" he asked.
I looked down at my hands and said, "A weakness to wolfsbane, a connection to the moon, the ability to take on a full human or wolf form—those are all signs of one race..."
Leaning back, I stared right into his eyes and asked, "Ark, are you a werewolf?"
Ark froze hearing me, and tears fell down his face.
I slowly reached a hand over to his and gripped it tightly.
He flinched but didn't pull away.
"Ark, I'm not going to tell anyone. Despite what most people think of primogenitors and new races, I don't hate them. They are simply normal people with strange powers who are hated because of the actions of the few," I said as I let a tear fall, seeing the state Ark was in.
"I don't want you to worry about what you are. I am your friend, and I will keep this secret... I am here for you," I said.
Ark stayed silent the entire time, not moving or responding, just silently crying as I tried to comfort him.
"I don't know how things went for you as a child or how things work for you exactly... but I am here, and I want to help... if you'll let me," I said as I moved away slightly.
I sat there and watched over Ark.
Thanks to the barrier, no outside noise could be heard other than Ark silently crying.
Suddenly, Ark, not able to hold back his emotions, bent over and started to bawl his eyes out on the table.
I reached over and hugged him tightly and comforted him.
I held him tight as I could feel all the stress from keeping this a secret fall and come crashing down and out all at once.
I held onto him, and he held onto me, and we remained there for a few minutes.
As Ark started to calm down, I noticed he had become relaxed and heavy.
Moving him slightly, I saw he had cried himself to sleep and was passed out in my arms.
I repositioned Ark back in his chair and dispelled the barrier.
Zek noticed the barrier was down and let the others know as they all walked over.
Seeing Ark asleep and showing obvious signs of crying, Orin asked, "Is everything okay?"
Slowly, I nodded and said, "Yeah... What just happened was a bit much for him."
Orin nodded.
Zek asked, "What do we do now? We can't just leave him here."
I smiled. "The guild has some rooms for adventurers to rent. I will rent one for him and stay with him to make sure he is okay. Do you guys think you can manage today without me?"
The others gave concerned looks at Ark but nodded.
"Okay, can one of you stay with him for a moment while I book a room?" I asked.
Araki nodded and sat with him.
I nodded and went to grab a room for Ark.
~~~~~~~
Araki's POV
It has been around an hour since we left Jack and Ark at the guild, and I can't help but feel a little worried and guilty.
Jack defended Ark from Rook, and we stood on the sidelines doing nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
And when Jack went to comfort Ark, Jack kept us away and did it all by himself.
Don't get me wrong—I know Jack is stronger and better at comforting people than me, but I still feel like I did nothing.
My tail twitched in annoyance as I spiralled into a sea of my own thoughts.
"-ki. ... aki?... ARAKI?!" Orin shouted.
"AHH! What happened?!" I said, shocked as I looked around.
"We are almost there," Orin said.
Looking up at me, Zek asked, "Are you okay? You seem a little... distracted."
I flinched and sighed. "Yeah, I'm fine... I just... I feel like I didn't do much at the guild."
...
Zek, reaching up with his staff, hit me on the head.
*Bonk*
"Ah? Hey!" I said as I looked down at him. "What was that for?"
"Do you honestly think we could have done anything that would have made a difference?" he asked.
I hesitated and looked away, not wanting to answer.
He sighed. "That's what I thought. Though I understand what you mean—Jack knows so much more than I do on certain things, it makes me feel inferior. But you should also remember he is a lot stronger than he lets on."
I paused and asked, "I mean, yeah, sure, he is strong, but he doesn't hide it... does he?"
Orin looked at me, then at Zek, and asked, "Is this like earlier when you asked me about his Aura?"
Zek nodded and said, "Yeah. Remember how Jack was barely deflecting those arrows... [1] I don't think that was him being lucky or struggling. I think he deflected them like that on purpose."
We all looked at Zek in surprise when Aaron added, "I did notice that. All the bolts missed him only slightly, yet I heard several clanging and scraping noises."
I was wide-eyed as I thought about it.
"That... doesn't make sense... Jack is D rank. How can a D rank deflect attacks from an S rank?" I said, trying to rationalize it but only making us wonder more.
"What if he is only officially D rank, but his power is higher?" Orin suggested.
We all paused and thought about it.
"It's definitely possible... I was beginning to think the same... His aura from last night was too strong for a D rank," Zek said.
"But his aura was weaker than the Hellhounds'?" Orin said.
We all turned to him in confusion.
"What do you mean it was weaker? It was like two of the Hellhounds put together," I said.
"No, it was only slightly weaker than the alpha," Aaron added.
Zek sighed. "That's what makes this so confusing. To me, his aura was stronger than the alpha. It has to do with his Spirit Magic making it so that only people with high magic affinities can sense its full power."
"Since Orin has no magic, he can't sense it very much, while I, a mage, can sense it fully," Zek explained.
We all thought about his theory.
"What about Ark, though? Jack clearly has a focus on him, so how does he factor into things?" Aaron asked.
We all turned to him, confused.
"What do you mean with Jack's focus on Ark?" Orin asked.
"Jack has been spending a lot of time with Ark and even spent last night in his room. It's weird."
I was wide-eyed. "Wait! He stayed the night... in Ark's room?"
"Yeah?" Aaron said, confused.
I gave an amused look to Orin and Zek, who both thought the same thing as me, but when I turned to Aaron, he still had a confused expression.
"What?" he asked.
'Oh, he doesn't know,' the three of us thought at the same time.
I smiled and said, "It's not something we should worry about. It's good for both of them and something they will tell us when they are ready."
Aaron was still confused and asked, "What is that supposed to mean?"
I smiled and continued down the path with Orin and Zek as Aaron tried to understand what we knew, and he didn't.
[1] This refers to how Jack only used his spear to deflect the crossbow bolts' paths slightly rather than fully deflecting to stop them.
To everyone else, it looked like Rook missed or Jack barely deflected them when instead he purposefully did it.