Dance with the Nightingale-Chapter 103 - 98: A Snippet of Normalcy

With the departure of the injured brothers, the incident seemed to settle down a little.

Claire, who had recovered enough, also stealthily went back. And the city guards finally had the situation under control.

They escorted the twin brothers to medics and healers, cleaned up the place, looked for dead bodies and trapped citizens under the rubble, and so on.

Normally, they would have investigated a bit more about the incident, but Jack’s military rank which was higher than theirs kept their mouth shut.

After sparing the twins a sympathetic yet envious glance, I turned around dragging my feet.

Unfortunately, I still had one more unsavory thing to do, unlike the twins.

I headed towards the building that had the largest cluster of city guards around it.

It was the three story tall building, littered with corpses… probably the place where demon cultists’ kept Elista imprisoned.

It was quite weird actually, the demon cultists who should’ve left the city by now were still here, causing incidents.

Why?

The most plausible explanation would be that the vessel figured out about the reason behind Atlas’ Blessing.

’If the vessel actually knew about the Tree of Light and went to retrieve it, heh, as if he ever could, then it would all make sense…’

My thoughts, were all based on a very significant ’if’.

’So, let me confirm that if.’

With that in mind, I went into the building unfazed by the guards’ bewildered stares.

These guys were actually quite grateful to me, thanks to me diffusing the bombs the other day, not to mention I was with Jack, their superior, just now. So, they didn’t stop me from entering.

With heavy footsteps, I stepped into the scene of carnage, looking for any lucky, or not so lucky survivors in this case.

The scene was graphic… too graphic for any newbie, including me, with blood painting the floor along with mashed organs and twisted intestines all on full display. The bodies, if I could even call them that, were slashed into several parts, with me finding several bits of them strewn all over the place.

I didn’t retch or anything, held it in, but I really wanted to get out of there as fast as possible.

Using a simple artefact, I looked for signs of life and pleasantly, the artefact informed me that three people were still alive.

’Thankfully, Mark was too much in a hurry to finish each and all of them.’

A few minutes later, I gathered the three aforementioned people, or rather two people and one body, cause one of them died right before I found them, the duo itself rapidly pacing towards death.

One had one side of his pelvis bone slashed diagonally, along with both of his legs. The other had his shoulder and ribs slashed out, slightly missing his main arteries which allowed him to persist, along with the inherent properties of magic user of course.

With telekinesis, I gathered the duo and their organs, roughly stuffed them in place, stopped their bleeding and feed them with some potions to handle the rest. Not the highest grade ones, of course, just the ones that would keep them alive for longer.

The thing was, now that I had Amy with me, new possibilities opened up.

By simply asking my maid to break their will, I could have Cana to make them spill everything they knew, which was much more efficient than questioning them.

Was it cruel? Yes, but they did much worse.

***

After taking the Skyline, I traced my steps back to Sunfish’s Pond.

There was a lot to hear, and a lot to coerce out, but first…

-Click

…I had an apology to give to my sulky party member.

Yep, Cana was upset.

I could tell from her face as she opened the door a left without even greeting me.

You reap what you sow, huh.

Thinking that, I entered our apartment, and was welcomed with the sight of Elista, who had freshened up, and was sitting beside Cana and Allen on the couch.

Apparently, the ladies and the young man were snacking.

*Ahem*

Clearing my throat, I sat on the empty couch, and pointed out, "Is that your dinner?"

The first to respond was Allen, being the energetic kid he was, he answered cheerfully, "No! I still have room for more!"

Elista was still out of it and simply said, "…Yes?", which was more of an question than an answer, the young woman hadn’t even noticed me entering the room.

As for Cana, she snorted at me before picking two big cookies and stuffing them both in her mouth.

’Ah, nice to be young.’

I let her quirky behavior slide, and continued the conversation.

"You learned how to order the food, didn’t you?", I asked as I patted Allen’s head, receiving an, "Um!"

"Today…", smiling a little wider, "…you can order your favorites!", I exclaimed.

"Really!?", Allen asked with stars in his eyes.

"Yes!"

"Hurray!"

The little guy took off after my confirmation as he went to order food.

Now that Allen wasn’t here-

Elista who had finally noticed my presence and was waiting for Allen to leave barraged me with questions.

’At least the lady still has enough semblance to read the room.’

Part of my worries eased as I listened to her.

"How’s Mark? Is he okay? He isn’t injured, is he? And what happened to that beastman? Was he captured? Or killed? Don’t tell me he escaped!?"

"Okay! Okay! Easy! Easy, there young lady. Calm down! This’ll answer all your questions.", I had to raise my voice a little to stop her questions as I tapped my fingers on her forehead.

With this little tap, I transferred all the non-grotesque memories about the incident, to her.

It took her a few seconds to digest the information, her face neither happy nor sad after she did. Instead, she asked me with clenched fists, "Where are they now?"

"Why do you want to know that?", I asked as if it wasn’t obvious.

"To meet them, of course!", Elista replied, irritated.

"No, you can’t meet them like this.", I shook my head.

"And who are you to tell me THAT!", Elista snapped.

I knew she had gone through a lot today, but I didn’t like that.

So, with eyes shining with mana, I looked straight into her eyes and stated, "Someone who saved both of your lives."

My word contained enough truth to wash off the anger from Elista’s persona, filling it with a hint of shame and loads of fear instead.

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-Sigh

The girl was clearly not in a normal state, and it would be strange if she were. Though, I didn’t know the exact circumstances, she was kidnapped and almost killed if not for my protective artefact.

It must have been rough on her. It must have traumatized her, with how she was shivering.

And it was exactly why she shouldn’t go see Mark.

Mark and Elista. Their relationship was budding at best. Both had feelings and admiration for each other, but they didn’t actually know the other person.

All they knew were the faces they showed each other, which made their feelings shallow at best.

What Elista sought now, was the kind Mark that she knew, who would comfort her.

It couldn’t be helped, that was human nature. Even if some other person was stabbed, we would still think that our kitchen knife cut is more painful.

But the problem was that right now, Mark didn’t have the capacity to act like one.

By now, he should have noticed how Jack’s leg wasn’t healing even after feeding him potions.

The power of corruption directly acted on the soul, so any corrupted body part was lost – forever. That, with how smart Mark is would have surely noticed.

And it wouldn’t do wonders on his mood either.

If he met a needy Elista right now, and did something rash… it may as well add another trauma on her, which would, very well end their relationship.

So, in the end, both needed to calm down and reign in their emotions.

And if you are wondering, why would I care so much about their relationship… then, honestly, I don’t. But if a single action of mine can save it, then why not do it?

With another sigh, I calmed down both myself and her, before sharing with her my reasoning and sending her to rest.

Which only left me and Cana in the room.

"Are you going to scold me too? Is that why you sent everyone away? To punish me as you please?"

And Cana was the one to attack me first.

"Well, no… I just wanted my apology to be less public.", I replied, with a tranquil note in my voice.

"And why is that? Too ashamed to do that in front of others!?"

"Yes, more than a little ashamed.", I admitted, calmly adding, "They are ’others’ after all. Outsiders whom I don’t care about, unlike you."

Cana was lost for words for a while, so I did what I was ought to.

"… I am sorry for being like that."

I apologized.

"It is my fault, and that was no way to address you.", I added.

"I shouldn’t have done that, please forgive me."

But I didn’t stop there.

"But I had to. My circumstances were dire. I needed a concise report of the situation and had no time to explain other things. Lives were on the line."

"I also can’t guarantee that another instance like this wouldn’t occur again."

"…", Cana opened her mouth but didn’t say anything.

"So, let’s find a solution to this."

I tried to improve.

"… What solution?", Cana who listened to apology, spoke after a pause.

And the reason she listened was very simple. Anyone can apologize, be it an empty or sincere apology. But those instances where someone earnestly tries to grow over their mistakes are few and far between.

"How about this? Whenever I am in an emergency situation, I’ll say, ’The moon is red.’ And you can acknowledge it by saying, ’The red moon can bleed out.’", I asked Cana more than a little enthusiastically.

And in response, "Pfffttttttt."

She laughed.

"Hahaha! What is that? The moon is red? Hahahaha! It’s so cringe! Oh, empress! I am dying! Hahaha!"

She laughed while holding her stomach as she rolled around on the couch.

’And there goes my dream to use fancy codes.’, I mock lamented.

It took a while for Cana to stop laughing. And when she did, she initiated herself, only after wiping a tear though, "We do need codes, so let’s decide on them. Oh, right! You also have to treat me my favorites tonight! Don’t think I forgot about it."

"As you wish, my lady~", I accepted that like a mock butler, after which she nodded and continued.

"We don’t need codes like, the moon is red- pffttt.", Cana continued as she suppressed her laughter. "Anyways, we need short concise codes, so let’s decide them now."

"If I may Young Master, why don’t you use the codes commonly used in the faction?"

Cana jumped out of her seat in surprise, as if she heard a ghost. And honestly, Amy was far more secretive and terrifying than any ghost could ever be.

Thankfully, she didn’t scream or anything, cause she also recognized Amy’s distinct voice, though she did jerk her neck to the side in a way that seemed hurtful.

In contrast, my maid, who just flickered into existence, faced Cana’s widened eyes with a simple calculated smile, before she turned to me and asked, "Was it a bad time to interrupt, Young Master?"

"Stop it, Amy. Don’t bully my subordinates.", I just dismissed her question.

Though, my lackluster response, urged Cana to ask, "You knew she was here?"

"I was surprised a few minutes ago myself.", I clarified, which somehow made Cana have much less of a problem.

Meanwhile, Amy pouted as she complained, "But, I am your subordinate too!"

"Oh! Are you really?", turning my head, I raised my brows and asked, and before the conversation strayed even farther, I added, "Nevermind, what was that about faction codes?"

And my maid, played along as always, "Young Master, there are some general codes used in the faction based on color. They aren’t anything official just the commonly used ones by our members. First is code red, it means you are in a sticky situation and need reinforcements. Next is code yellow, meaning you are in a sticky situation and need information. And the last one is code white; it means you are in a sticky situation but can handle it yourself. And lastly, code black basically is an order for your comrades to abandon the mission and run."

"As you can see Young Master, these are codes to be used when you are in a fight, because there is no need to speak less and have the risk of miscommunication between comrades in relaxed situations. Other than these, there is a number based code system which is the official code system of the faction, but these won’t be of much use to Young Master since you are traveling with a small party."

"I see.", was all I replied as I kept this piece of information in my head.

Meanwhile, Amy without a word walked towards the door, and opened it, before Allen’s small hands could knock on the door.

Allen, who just entered the room, peeked behind the door, looking for the one who opened, only to find no one.

As if she never existed, my maid had disappeared, once again.

"Then, let’s agree with those codes.", I said to Cana, while ignoring everything else.

"Um, okay… I mean, is it okay to ignore that?", Cana, who saw Amy disappearing for the first time, asked as she pointed towards the confused Allen, who was scratching his head now.

"Sure is.", I said as the wind whispered in my ear, ’Let’s continue after your dinner Young Master.’

"Let’s have dinner first! Go and fetch Syrus, while I add your favorites to the order.", I added.

And what followed was a peaceful dinner, a snippet of normalcy in today’s hectic day.