『 The Tortured Forest, Suuran — 28 Everi, 12:27 PM 』
The kids had been awake for a few hours. They weren't far from the forest exit, either. Their bellies were growling with hunger.
"Vaaars! Can we stop? I'm hungry," Itoî said.
Vars shook his index finger back and forth.
"We're almost done, Itoî. We must be about a thirty-minute walk from the house."
"Pff..."
The Quashtis looked tired too. After all, they were animals that lived in the cold, while the temperature in the Tortured Forest was the exact opposite.
Vars summoned four large leaves. He gave one to each Quashti, then showed them how to hold the last one. The beasts copied him, grabbing the leaves by the stem. They used them as parasols to shield themselves from the sun.
"Want one too, Itoî?"
Itoî shook his head. He seemed to be sulking over his brother, since Vars refused to stop. Vars sighed, then gathered some fruit from the surrounding bushes and trees.
"Here. Now come on, let's keep moving," Vars said, a bit annoyed.
"Woohoo!"
Itoî bounced around, his hands full of various fruits.
The baby Quashtis did the same. They seemed happy to see the boy so cheerful. Itoî gave them two fruits each and kept only one for himself.
"I thought you were hungry. You're only keeping one?" Vars asked.
"Others come first! I'll manage with just one fruit. It's fine, thanks, bro!" Itoî replied with a smile.
Vars smiled and got back on the road, thinking:
You have a good heart, Itoî. That demon inside you will never defeat you.
After about twenty minutes of walking, the boys finally stood before their grandfather's house. Uyan happened to be feeding the chickens.
"Heyyyy hooo!" Itoî yelled, waving his arm back and forth.
"We're baaack!" he continued.
Uyan turned his head, and his eyes lit up.
"Guuuys! You're back!"
He dropped the little bucket full of seeds and sprinted toward them at full speed, as usual, sniffling along the way. Vars scooped him up and stroked his head.
"I missed you, little redhead! Hahaha!" Vars said, emotional.
Itoî rubbed his nose. He looked just as emotional, but didn't want to show it. Uyan let go of Vars and hugged Itoî. Surprised, Itoî hugged him back.
Well, for once the little guy isn't yelling at me...
"So? How did it go?" Uyan asked, a bit worried.
"Pretty well," Vars replied with a smile, pointing at the Quashtis.
"Oooh! They're super cute!" Uyan exclaimed, stepping closer to them.
Itoî held a hand out in front of Uyan and said:
"Easy, you'll spook them."
Uyan narrowed his eyes and shot him an irritated glare.
"Meh, it bugs me to admit it, but you're right."
Itoî laughed and pulled his arm back. Uyan started petting the beasts and asked:
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
"What are you gonna do for Titi? Are you going back to the snowy forest? I'm coming with you this time."
Vars shook his head.
"No need. Look."
He ran down the gentle slope and kept going until he reached the edge of the snowy forest. A rather chilly breeze blew in that spot, even though the sun was beating down hard; the magical world could be strange sometimes.
Vars pulled out a wooden flute and started to play. The baby Quashtis eagerly ran over to him.
"Whoa!"
Uyan fell backward as one of the Quashtis accidentally bumped into him while running.
"What's he doing?" Itoî asked.
Uyan stood up, dusting off his clothes.
"I don't really know. I guess Vars is calling them with the flute. Actually, I think—"
The ground began to shake slightly. Kaelle rushed out of the house.
"What's going on?! Uyan, where are you?" she asked before spotting him to her left with Itoî.
"Oh, you're back! Where's Vars?"
Itoî pointed ahead. Kaelle looked in that direction and saw Vars playing the flute with the beasts behind him. After a few moments, the shaking grew more violent.
"Get to safety, boys!" Kaelle said, panicked.
Itoî and Uyan smiled and high-fived simultaneously.
"I get it!"
Uyan turned to Itoî, slightly annoyed.
"Wait, you figured it out?"
Itoî laughed.
"Yeah, I caught on!"
"Oh yeah? Then what's causing the quakes?" Uyan asked.
"Well, it's—"
A massive shadow burst from the snowy forest.
GAAARWRR!!!
It was Titi! The melody, played in a certain way, must have intrigued the mother Quashti, who followed it. Titi looked angry; her eyes were bloodshot. But when she saw Vars, she calmed down. Then she spotted her babies behind him and suddenly started dancing, before scooping Vars up in her arms, hoisting him onto her shoulder, and continuing her dance.
WU GUH gAh!
Vars burst out laughing. Itoî and Uyan walked over to Titi.
Erwin then stepped out of the house.
"Sheesh, what's all this racket, Kaelle?" he asked, annoyed.
He seemed to have been jolted awake from his nap.
Kaelle laughed and slapped a hand over her mouth, then pointed at the boys. Grandpa looked in their direction.
"Oh, they're back! Hahaha! I was almost starting to worry about them. And just like always, Vars pulled through!" he said before bursting into laughter.
After this heartwarming scene that lasted a few minutes, Titi and the baby Quashtis headed off. The kids went inside, and Itoî and Vars took a shower.
"Vars? Vars?" their grandfather called.
"Vars and Itoî are in the bathroom," Kaelle answered.
At that moment, the boys walked out of the bathroom completely naked.
"Boys, put some clothes on!" Kaelle shrieked.
"Oops! Hahaha!" Vars said, laughing.
More embarrassed, Itoî ran back into the bathroom to grab clean underwear from the basket.
Kaelle threw a bathrobe in Vars's face.
"Here, put this on, you pervert!" she said, annoyed.
Vars kept laughing and slipped on the bathrobe before shaking his head, his hair still wet.
"Hey! Cut it out, Vars!" Kaelle yelled, irritated.
Just then, Erwin walked out of the kitchen with a coffee.
"Vars, there you are! Could you—"
He was splashed by the droplets flying from Vars's wet hair. Grandpa lost his temper and thumped him on the head.
"ARE YOU GONNA CUT IT OUT?!"
Vars teared up a little and replied:
"Yes, Grandpa..."
Erwin regained his composure and asked his grandson to get dressed and then meet him outside.
Vars quickly got dressed, throwing on a pair of blue shorts and a purple t-shirt. Uyan walked out of his grandfather's bedroom with a book, as usual.
"You going somewhere?" he asked.
"Grandpa wants to talk to me."
"Yesterday, a guy came by. He belonged to an organization called the WOJ. I've heard of them before, but nothing more. Grandpa didn't tell us anything and said to wait for you guys to get back."
Vars's eyes widened slightly, and he took on a very serious expression.
"I see. Alright, I'm going to go see Grandpa."
Uyan noticed that Vars's attitude had shifted after what he'd just told him.
This time, I want to know what's going on! I'm going to spy on them.
Vars stepped out of the house. Grandpa stood before him, and the two walked a few meters away from the house. Uyan cracked the door open to listen.
"Alright, first things first..." Erwin said before casting a spell.
"Invisibility!"
Then another:
"The Silent Zone."
"Damn it! Grandpa! You're pissing me off!" Uyan yelled, punching the wall hard.
Kaelle walked over.
"What are you doing here, Uyan? Your hand is bleeding! What did you do this time? Wait, let me heal you."
Uyan yanked his hand away.
"Fuck, Kaelle! I'm sick of Grandpa hiding things from us!"
Kaelle gave a slight nod.
"It bugs me too... But if he isn't telling us, it's either because it doesn't concern us, or because it's not the right time," she said, saddened by the situation.
"But when is the right time? When?!"
Meanwhile, Itoî was in the bathroom, pressing his ear against the door to listen.
Grandpa is hiding things from us?
Then the bathroom door, which hadn't been properly shut, swung open, and Itoî spilled out onto the floor.
Kaelle and Uyan turned around.
"Were you eavesdropping? Huh?" Kaelle asked, a bit angry.
"Ehehehe... Sorry!" Itoî replied, still lying on the floor and scratching his head, embarrassed.
"What's with all the concealment spells?" Vars asked, intrigued.
"I knew Uyan would probably try to listen in. That little sprite never can stay still. And I don't want him putting himself in danger, or taking the risk that the others do the same," their grandfather replied.
He looked very serious, and his eyes betrayed his sorrow over the situation.
Vars understood that there was indeed something important to discuss.
"So, what are we going to talk about, Grandpa?"
"The fate of the Evekius, Vars."