24 Hearts

37====================

The twenty-fourth fragment, Carpe Diem

I awoke from sleep, slowly opening my eyes.

Thanks to sleeping next to Tia all night long, my body felt warm. It felt just right, but I had been a bit upset when I couldn’t move freely. Still, I hadn’t touched her chest, like last time. I slowly rose from the sofa, careful not to wake her.

Tia continued to sleep as if she was going to catch up on all the sleep she had missed out on these past few nights. I had raised my body carefully, and Tia continued to breathe consistently, as if not having noticed my absence.

As I stood from the sofa, my mind still felt hazy and half-asleep. I walked slowly to the bathroom and roughly washed my hair and body.

I had promised myself that as soon as I awoke, I would go shopping. We had just enough food to somehow scrabble together a breakfast, but I had to go buy ingredients for lunch and dinner.

After I had washed, Tia woke up. She seemed a bit tired, sitting on the sofa and dozing.

“Tia, if you feel sleepy, you can sleep some more.”

“Yes,” she answered me immediately from her half-conscious state. She then fell back on the sofa to see if she needed more sleep: She fell asleep at once.

Judging by her energy levels, I guessed she would sleep until lunchtime. She didn’t have a blanket, but the weather wasn’t that cold, and her body was warm, so I figured that she wouldn’t catch a cold and get sick.

I watched her sleep for a moment and then headed into the kitchen.

After I had eaten breakfast, I prepared another meal with the remaining ingredients for Tia.

“When you wake up, I’ve made some rice, so eat it.”

“Yeah~”

“I’m going out to the markets.”

“Wow~”

Tia’s answers sounded hazy. She must’ve been talking in her sleep.

I took out some of the money I had received from selling pelts and gemstones the day before, put it in my pocket, and headed out, heading south along the street.

Serenia was divided by boulevards that head east, west, north, and south.

There were many guilds and inns in the northern section, and that area was encircled by a low castle wall. Many adventurers and mercenaries came and went in the western quarter, while almost anything could be found along the the Tower, and general stores, blacksmiths’ forges, clothing stores, and restaurants.

shops competed for business, selling all kinds of things, groceries included. Thanks to this, it was the quarter most visited by the citizens of Serenia.

Serenia was densely populated for a city of its size, so the consumption of goods was significant. Therefore, there were many merchants who formed caravans and head here.

They came along the road every week to supply all the goods consumed within the city walls, and that was how the people living in the Serenian province were able to buy fresh vegetables and high-grade meat from all corners of the continent.

As soon as I came upon the southern saw the great crowds of people. The road itself was a wide, a four-lane one, so it was easy to get around peacefully even when it was crowded. If the road had been narrow, things would have been complicated and messy.

There were a lot of things I had to buy, so I had to get busy if I wanted to be back by lunch.

After I had skillfully bargained with merchants and shopped for goods at bargain prices, both my arms soon began to bear the weight of my purchases.

I had roughly bought everything that I needed. I began heading home with all the things I had purchased, a weight that should by rights not be carried by a child. If no one had watched, I could have put everything into my [Bag], but there were eyes everywhere, so it could not be helped.

The last thing I had to buy was at the far end of South Avenue, so I had to go back all the way I came. I carried two large paper bags and one carton box, which was a lot of baggage for a small child. I was going to carry all of these home, walking on the road that headed away from the markets, when I heard murmurs around me. These were the people who had some idle time on their hands, heading to the southern quarter to buy ingredients for their midday meals.

“Isn’t that Judah?”

“Oh, really? I didn’t know a bookworm would turn out to be a hunter. Yes, just like his grandfather.”

“That’s right—A true noble child. I want to make him my grandson-in-law, but I don’t have a granddaughter! Einghaha-haha.”

I heard the two talk. They were having a strangely pleasant conversation. I figured it was because I was usually friendly and well-mannered and that those two always sat there and talked about people, but I soon realized I had to change my thoughts on their exchange. Not one or two, but rather many people who passed me by stopped, looked at me and started talking about something that had happened.

Is something weird going on?

At first, I thought, “It’s not about me,” but the same name kept cropping up, the name that was by now so familiar to my ears.

Judah.

It was an unusual name, and it was okay for me to guess that not many folks on this continent would have it. Hans and Charles: These were common names that many people shared, but thus far, I had never encountered anyone else named Judah.

I turned my head to those who spoke, wanting to know what was going on. Those who met my gaze became flustered, but they soon nodded, greeting me with happy smiles.

“?”

What, why is everyone so kind?

I held the packets and box in both my hands, so I couldn’t greet them properly. I just nodded my greetings. It might seem spoiled, arrogant, but it was better than not saying hello at all. After greeting them, I hurriedly walked on and left them behind.

Something strange is going on with the citizens of Serenia today.

Some people would pass me by as if not knowing me, but the moment that there was some distance between us, they would swing around, clap their hands, and whistle while looking straight at me.

Is this a new type of bullying or some trick?

As I didn’t know the reason, I figured that I should just be grateful for the praise and applause that they gave me. When I arrived at my house, I put the groceries down and opened the door.

“I’m back, Tia.”

I heard no answer.

When I entered quietly, thinking she was asleep, I noticed something strange.

“Uh?”

There was a pair of shoes by the front door which had not been there when I had left. They were fairly large shoes, maybe a 280, also called a size 9.

Was Kaseun visiting? Since no one else came here, it was fairly easy for me to figure out the owner of the shoes.

I first placed the packets and box inside, next to the front door. As I closed the door and began to take off my shoes, I heard footsteps behind me.

“Ah, are you here?” Tia yawned and scratched her head. Her silky hair was tangled after she had slept.

“Yes. Did you sleep well?”

“No. I couldn’t sleep. I really couldn’t sleep.”

“Why?” I asked as I removed my shoes and placed them neatly on their spot. Tia approached me with a greedy expression and opened the grocery box, rummaging through it. Meat, fruit, and vegetables: There were no snacks.

“Because the commander came. He rushed here first thing in the morning and knocked on the door. It’s annoying. Why come here so early when I’m sleeping so fucking damn good?”

This wasn’t like Tia. She was a mercenary, so it was natural for her to swear, but when she was with me, she was always as patient as possible. Now that she had unconsciously sworn so, I felt a bit bad. As she continued to rummage through the groceries, she smacked her tongue when she at last found nothing to eat. I took a bag of dried fruit from the [Bag]. It had been intended to be eaten in the forest, but we didn’t get the chance.

When I handed it to Tia, she cried, “Oh!”

Her ears wriggled above her head, and her tail flicked and then wrapped around her hips. Tia seemed sincerely happy, and she smiled as she looked at me.

“Oh, you must have had a hard time shopping. Take it to the kitchen and then come to the living room. I’ll pack it all away later.”

“Yeah.”

Tia went to the living room with her bag of dried fruit. While I carried the groceries, I glanced at the living room and saw Kaseun sleeping on the sofa, sitting upright with his neck hanging.

He was snoring loudly.

I put everything on the kitchen table and went into the living room. Tia was sitting on a single-seater couch and groaned in delight as she ate the fruit, kicking one of the sofas with her tiptoes.

“Commander, wake up. Judah is here.”

“Kuuhhupmgh!” Kaseun awoke, inhaling a rush of air. A memory of my real father flashed through my mind. Kaseun glanced at me, blinked a few times, and then seemed fully awake.

“Well… Yes. Judah. It’s been a while. Heo-huh,” he said, then cleared his throat.

“It’s been a while? It’s been less than a week. Are you senile, commander? You are getting older, you know.”

“Don’t talk so harshly with me, Gentia. I’m sorry for having woken you.”

Tia continued to chew the dried fruit. I could tell that she really wanted to talk kindly with Kaseun, but she still felt angry because of him bothering her in the morning.

“But what’s going on?” Tia asked.

“It’s important. Do you think I’ll bother you if I didn’t have a good reason? Huh, huh!”

“That’s true,” Tia said as she saw Kaseun’s eyes, closing her mouth as she avoided his gaze.

“Why the hell are you so crooked?”

“Yeah- Yeah- Because of someone bothering me and pretending not to know, I’m so crooked!”

Kaseun groaned and then ignored Tia.

“Anyway. Judah, if you went shopping, you should have headed along South Avenue, yes?”

“Yes, there were a lot of people there this morning.”

“Certainly, a whole lot. But didn’t you notice anything strange when you headed home?”

I had, but I was ashamed to answer Kaseun. He already seemed to know what was going on.

His face didn’t look so different from all the people who had so warmly greeted me as I returned home.

“You seem to know something. People looked at me strangely… But I don’t know why.”

“Huh huh huh. It’s your right! It’s only natural for people to look at you. Lord Peerchen has directly praised you, Judah. Everyone who looked at you has probably read the bulletin board.”

“The notice board?”

When I came to think of it, I did see a lot of people around the board in the central square. Some of them had even clapped their hands. But why would the lord praise me?

I was so curious that I wanted to head to the square, but then rethought the impulse. I didn’t know if I could face such an embarrassing amount of public attention.

I was far from being used to this and so nervous. It was the first time in my life that so many people had paid direct attention to me.

“Okay, Judah, here’s a letter. I don’t know what it’s about, but it’s a letter written by the lord and sent to you. Since I am your guardian, someone delivered it at the mansion.”

Kaseun handed me the envelope which had been on the table, the one I had glanced at. The envelope was sealed with wax and was of normal size, and it had no writing on its cover.

As I unsealed it and took out the folded letter, Tia stood up from across me, coming to lean in behind my back, curious to read it as well.

Her chin rested on my shoulder. I glanced at her fruity mouth.

“What? Go ahead and open it. Read what it’s about.”

I unfolded the letter. The lengthy letter was written in a neat and easy to read script.

────

To Judah Arche,

Chapelin Peerchen, Lord of Serenia, sends you this letter.

I received a report last night of hunters returning from slaughtering black wolves in the eastern forest. It was said that a child had gone there with a white-silver disk mercenary.

Truly, the news that this brave boy, still only thirteen years of age, had faced and hunted ferocious black wolves was unbelievable.

Forgive me for my doubts, but I had to be sure. Therefore I asked a person in my employ to trace the pelts that had been sold to the clothiers and the Tower.

I learned that the mercenary from the Baekje Empire, who had been with you in the forest, has praised you for killing many wolves by yourself.

It was then that I knew that it must be true: A boy of thirteen had killed so many black wolves while traveling through the woods with a white-silver mercenary.

And so, I applaud and praise the young boy for his bravery and exceptional skill at hunting.

The citizens of Serenia have grown concerned by the recent migration of black wolves into the eastern forest. Your diligence surely helps the citizens of this fine city to gain peace of mind.

As Lord of Serenia, I will display this letter on the bulletin board of the central plaza to give you credit for your deeds.

As a sign of my gratitude for your actions, it is with joy that I invite you to dine and converse with me tonight.

If you have the time, please visit in comfortable clothes.

────

It was an invitation.

Usually, if a boy went out with a mercenary, wouldn’t it be right to think of him as a porter?

Obviously, when people had seen Tia with the wolf skins, she had told them that I had killed them, but… I had figured people would think she was joking.

I could see that Tia, who had read the letter with me, thought along the same lines. She looked at the letter with a disgruntled frown and then went to fall back into her couch.

“Well, I also killed wolves, but why do I only get mentioned in three sentences? Does everyone think I didn’t hunt at all? Of course, I didn’t kill so many, but I still did!”

Kaseun smiled.

“I have yours, too. Here you go.”

Kaseun put his hand behind his back and pulled out the slightly crumpled envelope that he had kept hidden. Unlike my letter, this one was in a pink envelope.

Tia gave a yelp as she saw Kaseun pull it out and immediately stole it from his hand.

“You’re mad! You’re all dressed up and sweaty, and you hide it there!? Oh, I really don’t like today at all!”

“Hey, don’t be annoyed so much, at least show some respect to an old man.”

“Honor is for dogs—Everyone else knows that. And my commander can never grow old.”

Tia looked up when she heard Kaseun chuckling. She raised her middle finger before opening up her own letter.

[I’m falling asleep amd making extra mistakes… I’m going to try to wake myself up brb.]