Chapter 127: Chapter 127
While Eru was observing the people that come and go, he felt someone sit next to him. “If you’re going to make fun of me again, I’ll knock that stupid head of yours”, Eru grumbled in annoyance. But when he saw who it was that sat next to him, Eru’s expression sank, and sweat poured from his forehead. “H-hello, sir”, Eru greeted the middle-aged man beside him, stuttering in his words.
The middle-aged man just nodded and sat there with Eru until the sun almost set. Eru felt awkward, ‘Come on, at least talk a little’, Eru sweated bullets when he saw the steadfast middle-aged man who was Mei’s father. Just as the sun was setting, the middle-aged man finally opened his mouth, “What do you think about Mei?” he asked. “W-what do I think about Mei?” Eru repeated the question nervously, “Uh, I think she’s great. Mei is a strong young woman with ambition and drives not found in most people. From talking to her these past few days, I found that when she decided on her path, nobody could sway her from it.”
The middle-aged man slightly nodded, looking a little bit proud of her daughter. Then, he slightly coughed, clearing his throat, “And what about you? What do you want with my daughter?” The middle-aged man turned his head towards Eru, glaring at him with fierce eyes. “Uh, me?” Eru pointed at himself, “I-I don’t want anything, I mean—” Before Eru managed to finish his words, the middle-aged man’s gaze became even more fierce, “What? So you get close to my daughter, and you don’t want anything? Who do you think my daughter is?” Eru choked in his words, “No, it’s not like that. Of course, I want something, but—”
“But, what? So, you did want something from my daughter, you opportunistic man. Don’t you have anything better to do?” the middle-aged man interjected with his loud voice. “I-I”, Eru stuttered in his words before somebody saved him. “Dad! Don’t bother the customer; go inside!” Mei yelled with a flustered expression. The middle-aged man held his hands up, “Alright, alright, I leave”, he said. But before he left, the middle-aged man glared at Eru fiercely, making Eru flinched. Mei swiftly sat near Eru, repeatedly bowing her head, “I’m sorry for that”, she said with a slightly red face.
“Nah, don’t worry about it”, Eru said as he looked up to the sky. “Hmm? What’s wrong?” Mei asked, noticing something was off about Eru. Eru shook his head, “No, it’s nothing. Come, let’s do something different today. Let’s go on a walk” Eru stood up before extending his hand at Mei while flashing a charming smile. Mei took Eru’s hand, and together they took a walk inside the nearby forest. Eru and Mei enjoyed their time walking together quietly, without talking to each other.
But that silence was soon broken. “You know, I really enjoyed talking and spending my time with you this week”, Eru said with a smile. Mei smiled back, “Me too. I really enjoyed our time together.” Eru let out a small sigh, “I really don’t want to do this, but—” Just before Eru finished his sentence, Mei nodded while holding Eru’s hands, “But you have to go”, she said, smiling. “Eh?” Eru’s eyes widened, “How did you know?” Mei smiled wryly, “Don’t underestimate a woman’s intuition, and you had that look for a few days now.”
“What look?”
“Hesitation. You were debating whether to stay or to leave, right? That look in your eyes was a dead getaway”, Mei giggled. Eru rubbed the back of his head, “Am I that obvious?” Mei nodded with a slight smile on her face, “Uhum. You don’t need to worry about me, you know? You told me you wanted to explore the world before. Don’t let me stop you from fulfilling your dream.” Eru sighed, “You know that’s just me talking shit, right?” Mei chuckled, “Better than having no goals. If you want to see the world and you depart from your hometown, travelling all the way here, that means you really wanted to do it.”
“That’s a fair point, actually.”
“And besides, you told me that you wanted to get stronger, right? To protect what you have and what’s important to you. Travelling the world should help you do that”, Mei said. Then, she blushed, “And once you do, you’ll protect me, right?” Mei asked, flustered. Eru’s face turned slightly red; he rubbed the tip of his nose, “Of course, I promise you”, he said with a nod. “You better keep your promise”, Mei said, smiling as the sun shone right over her.
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Tomorrow came, Eru and Long had their backpack strapped on their back. “Right, I’m going”, Eru said towards Mei. “Okay, be careful on the way”, Mei nodded, “Oh, and before I forget, here, take this”, she handed a beautiful red crystal pendant. “A pendant?” Eru asked. “Yup. Look at it when you miss me later”, Mei teased. Eru slightly blushed, “Okay, thank you very much.” Eru and Mei looked at each other for a while before Mei slightly approached Eru. She leaned closer as she placed her lips on Eru’s lips. “A sign for good luck”, Mei smiled as her rosy cheek reddened.
Eru was speechless after that. Beside him, Long had a cheeky smile on her face while the innkeeper, Mei’s father, glared at Eru with murderous eyes. Eru closed his eyes before opening it again immediately, “I’ll be back”, he nodded. Mei’s lips curled up into a huge smile, “And I’ll be waiting.” With that, Eru and Long left the inn together in the dawn of morning hue. After a while, Mei’s father put his hand on Mei’s right shoulder, “Are you sure about it?” Mei nodded, “Yes, I’m sure. I don’t know why, but I felt like me and him are connected.” Mei’s father rubbed his chin, “Just don’t regret it later”, he said before leaving towards the kitchen.
Mei watched her father head to the kitchen, clenching her hand on her chest, “I won’t.”
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Eru and Long walked beside each other on the way towards Sylphid Coast. Eru sighed; he looked upwards to the sky before sighing again. “Miss her already?” Long teased with a huge grin on his face. “Oh, shut up. Yes, of course, I miss her. Just you wait, when you fall in love, I’ll tease you just as much as you teased me”, Eru grumbled. Long giggled, “Sorry, sorry. So, where are we going next?”
“Towards Sylphid Coast, duh.”
“So, we just walk this way?” Long inquired. “Yeah. Ling told us that the fastest and the safest way to Sylphid Coast is to follow the road towards Great Aeolus City. And once the road forked, we need to take the south route, she said”, Eru replied nonchalantly. “Is there any town or village on the way that we can stay in?” Long asked. Eru shook his head, “I don’t know. If there aren’t any towns or villages, we could just camp outside.” Eru sighed, “This would be a lot easier if we had a Magi-Car.”
“Magi-Car?” Long tilted his head. “Yeah, Magi-Car. A carriage powered by magic, Magi-Car”, Eru explained, “It’s basically a mechanical carriage that moved using Magi-Tech. I heard they are easy to use, unlike a traditional carriage.” Long’s eyes sparkled with curiosity, “I had to see that Magi-Car thing.” Eru smiled, “I never saw one myself, but I saw a variant of it called a Magi-Truck. There’s also a Magi-Train and a Magi-Ship.” Long’s eyes sparkled even more, “Tell me, tell me.”
Eru and Long conversed on the way, and eventually, they reached the crossroad that Ling was talking about. “Is this it?” Long observed the road signs carefully. “Looks like it” Eru saw the signs, one of them pointed west, and the other one was pointed south. “Yeah, this is it”, Eru confirmed it once again as he read the letter of the sign that pointed south, “Sylphid City, south from here” Eru read it out loud. “Shall we continue on?” Long asked while he watched that the sun was setting.
Eru shook his head, “No, let us set a camp here” Eru pointed at an empty plot of land right beside the southern road. “Sure”, Long replied while walking towards the empty plot of land. He put down his backpack before taking out camping equipment from there. Eru, too, followed Long in setting up the camp. Eru gathered the firewood while Long was responsible for looking for food. Long brought back two dead monsters in his hands. Eru looked at the monsters in Long’s hand, “Looks like we’ll be eating horned rabbits this night.”
As the night went on, Eru and Long suddenly heard a loud sound approaching them. Eru closed his eyes, sending a pulse of his aura; he scanned the area around. “Prepare yourself”, Eru warned Long, “We have companies.” Long nodded, “Right”, he said while gripping his staff. As the sound got closer to Eru and Long, they both each held their respective weapon tightly in their hands. However, they both soon found that a merchant carriage was approaching them. A slightly chubby man came out from the carriage, “Good evening to you both.”
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