We thought we'd get in the car, but Yaraso raised the red jewel upwards, and the sun's light reflected off it. I felt my body stretch, alarmed, but an overwhelming feeling of contradictory distress and comfort made me lose focus for moments. And in the next second, I was there.
A hallway resembling school corridors due to its beige and white colours. And the floor and ceiling were off-white.
I looked to my left and found that Arthur, Ank, Lumila, and Ella had been pulled with me.
Ella and Lumila stayed close to me, while Arthur surveyed the place with his eyes before Ank stopped him, speaking.
"No need to worry."
And then I heard a voice from behind me. A tone I hadn't known for a long time but that stuck in my mind.
"It's been a month since I last saw you guys!"
A wide smile and a welcoming hand. A red sword and simple clothes.
It was Killer.
I smiled when I saw him; I didn't want him to think I wasn't okay.
His physique seemed stronger than before, though I already considered it superior to mine by far. And when I shook his hand, I felt the strength of his grip on my hand, which wasn't weak in turn. Yet it was much weaker than Killer's hand.
Killer noticed how tightly he was holding my hand and loosened his grip slightly, apologising. Arthur patted his shoulder with his pistol before telling him, smiling.
"You've become like a giant."
Killer waved to Ank, and she did the same without any additions. It seemed she hadn't changed a bit over the past month.
And even though Killer had grown stronger, Ella transformed into a small bat and bit his ear without him noticing her presence. It seemed he wasn't the only one whose level had improved this month. And most likely, Ank and Arthur had increased their levels as well.
And that leaves me further behind. And for this, I must make the most of what I will learn from Yaraso.
I felt Lumila tugging at the hem of my shirt, and then I remembered that Lumi had never met Killer.
I looked at her, expecting to see her afraid, but the sparkle in her eyes like stars almost blinded me.
Killer turned towards the wall to his right and extended his hand until it entered the wall. And on the wall around his hand, broken crimson circles appeared before a square part of the wall disappeared, revealing a park-like garden filled with serenity and comfort.
"Come with me," Killer said.
We crossed into the garden, and the wall closed behind us.
Green grass with yellow and blue flowers formed a sweet trio whose beauty was enhanced by autumn trees, contrasting with the season of the outside world. And in the middle of the garden was a fountain of clear stone colour that completed the serenity of the place and its resonant tranquillity with water flowing like piano melodies in a room empty even of air.
And by the fountain, there were several black iron benches. And on one of them sat two people, and in front of them stood a third.
And when they noticed us, the girl sitting on the bench used the lightning element, and before I realised, I found her holding my arms, looking into my eyes with joy and excitement as if she had known me for many years.
Her eyes were sky blue, adorned with slightly curved upper eyelashes. And her unnatural pink hair was long to the middle of her back. She was wearing an outfit exactly like Yaraso's.
A grey shirt with a black tie and trouser, and over them a long dark purple coat. And instead of the star on the shoulder, there was a silver lightning bolt symbol.
I was surprised by her speed. And with the same speed, she turned around everyone as if getting to know our shapes.
The boy who was sitting beside her stepped forward, and then she finished and stopped beside him when he was close enough to us.
A boy with an ordinary appearance. From black hair and wheatish skin to dark brown eyes that I thought were black. And the mole below the left corner of his mouth and the round glasses with a silver chain extending around his neck were the most prominent features. And he was wearing the same outfit.
The boy spoke in a sweet voice and a gentle smile.
"You must be the ones Killer mentioned. I'm Elijah."
"And I'm Menyo!" said the girl beside him.
"And that's Heimdall," Killer said, pointing towards the boy next to the fountain.
The same outfit. His reddish-brown hair fell to the beginning of his back with a twisted end. And his skin was white as snow, perhaps even whiter than Ank's. And without turning his face to look at us, he headed towards one of the doors and entered it, closing the door quietly behind him.
"He's tough. You'll get used to it quickly," Elijah said. And then he continued.
"The jewel you entered is a special spatial dimension supported by Yaraso's Despaye, so no one will enter or exit it without him knowing. And it is your new home as Yaraso's apprentices with us."
Yaraso knows exactly what he's doing to go and gain the trust of those around him. And speaking of Yaraso, I forgot to ask him about the change in his eye colour from golden to rainbow colours. Which is his real eye colour?
"I'm Ethan. I hope we get along well," I said to them, showing a warm and appreciative smile.
The rest introduced themselves. And Lumila introduced Ella to them. I didn't tell them because Killer took me away from the others to talk to me alone.
"This month has been long." From his first sentence, not accompanied by a smile, and his glance at the others out of the corner of his eye, I knew something extremely important was coming.
"Indeed, it was long. Even though I was unconscious." I said, looking at the fountain water behind him.
Killer took a few seconds of silence and exchanged glances between the group who were talking to each other and the flowers on the ground. And finally, he spoke.
"I apologise for not being with you when you visited your mother's grave."
I felt a pang in my chest, but a small smile formed on my lips with unraised eyebrows.
"It's okay; I know you were training with Elijah and the others."
He then averted his gaze from the flowers and looked at me, with his hands behind his back in a respectful military stance.
"Ethan. I have been training and honing my skills all this month without any goal, and as a distraction while waiting for your return. I used to live to fight the village-eating snake, and then I lived to help you. But now... I have no reason to live. So please... please, accept me as a guardian for your little sister, Lumila."
I was somewhat surprised and taken aback by Killer's sudden confession. Usually, people start topics like this slowly, but it seems Killer lacks such subtleties.
I hesitated about his request. It was logical to agree, but my emotions tensed for a moment. I trusted Killer, not the other way around, but I wondered: Would Lumila be safe under Killer's protection when I'm away?
The more I thought, the more I saw the logic in agreeing; I wouldn't take Lumi with me everywhere and on every journey. And in the end, I made up my mind.
"Since I've known you, even if it hasn't been long, you are the most deserving of this favour. I will be grateful to you for my life if you ensure Lumila's safety."
His eyebrows knitted together almost imperceptibly, and a smile of joy, gratitude, and inexplicable sadness appeared on his face.
"Thank you, Ethan. I will protect her with my life and my last remains, my sword."
After a little while, I took Lumi, and Killer took us to our room. Its walls were off-white, and the ceiling was the same colour, with a dark wooden ceiling fan in the middle.
On the left side of the door wall was a mirror with a wooden frame the same colour as the fan. And on the adjacent wall, a wardrobe of white wood with prominent spiral patterns. Its size was enough for two people, and next to it, a few centimetres away, was a brown door, between light and dark.
On the opposite wall, that is, the wall on the right side, there was a study desk with a stack of white papers, pencils, black and blue ink pens, along with a ruler, eraser, and sharpener. Next to the desk, ten centimetres away, was another door.
And the wall opposite us had two beds similar to those in the royal palace in terms of shape and the colour of the cover and mattress. And between them was a small table with small drawers and a lamp on top that lit up by pulling a thin string from its spherical end.
And on the wall above the lamp, there was a painting of a boy with a wooden stick heading towards a mountain edge, and behind him, a small puppy.
And this is exactly the shape of the card in my pocket.
The Fool.
Yaraso must have placed it here as a sign of my status. But no one here knows its meaning other than him, so what's the point?
I thanked Killer for bringing me to the room, and while Lumi and I were unpacking, she asked me.
"Is that man a superhero?"
A superhero?
She must mean Killer.
"You could consider him that."
"He was shining," she said, raising her hands upwards.
I then realised that... Lumila adapts quickly.
Even though our mother passed away a month ago, Lumila still acts like any child when she's away from her mother's grave.
Since I know nothing about raising children, this will make things easier for both of us.
Plus, I wouldn't be able to bear seeing her sad and broken all the time. Lumila is all I have.
"He really is shiny," I said, laughing.
At that time, when I told Kafka to let me go. I thought everything was over and that there was nothing left in the world for me to live for. But I was foolish enough to forget that Lumila was still there. As long as her heart beats, my heart will beat.
On my right side of the wardrobe, I found a place to put the sword and the mask. Every time I think the place is complete, details appear that increase my praise.
After I put them in the wardrobe and closed it, Ella entered the room, transformed into her familiar form of orange and white fur and the size of a cat.
Without saying anything, she jumped onto the desk table and curled up, falling asleep.
Clearly, she did a lot before returning to me.
I sat on the bed, and Lumi lay on her bed. When she warmed herself with the blanket, she spoke.
"Can you tell me a story from your journey?"
"Okay, little one."
When she heard my agreement, a wide smile formed on her face, like the one on the face of the lightning girl, Menyo.
"Once, when we were in the City of cak-"
She fell asleep.
She asked me to tell her a story and fell asleep before it even began.
Oh my... it's okay as long as she doesn't stay up all night playing.
I lay on the bed and plunged into my thoughts faster than I realised, staring at the ceiling.
I wondered: Now... what's next?
I am Ethan, the adventurer, the Fool, the bearer of the Mask of Eternity, the guardian of Esteliora, and the Clown.
I will train as Yaraso's apprentice, but for what purpose?
I aimed to get a good amount of money from the magical crystals that come from monsters, but what started with money led me here. A person who doesn't know his fate. And he is desired by everyone he doesn't know.
What are the Embodiments? Who are the Archons? What did Kafka mean by the left eye of the Embodiment of Joy?
He didn't kill me because the "Embodiment of Joy" wants me, but why didn't he take me by force?
Is there something preventing him?
If there is something preventing him, he will resort to other methods to take me by force. Including harming those I love. Or it could be someone else, for if Kafka's title is the left eye, there must be a right one. And this hints at a complete system where everyone represents a part of the "Embodiment of Joy," and perhaps I am mistaken.
And then you have Gresta's words and her vague warnings.
And this reminds me of Elios, is it possible that he possesses one of the cards Gresta warned me about?
Could it be The Tower, since he lives in the tallest tower in the City of Tears?
But she said I shouldn't mention the Tower, while I mentioned him several times during our journey to it. Should I not mention it as "The Tower" specifically?
Are there people who own other Tarot cards that Gresta didn't warn me about?
There are many questions here and no answers, as usual.
And for hell's sake... why did a new sentence form in the air in front of me?
[Accept the Clown.]