Pitter-patter.
Ambrose sat on the veranda of the dojo, watching the falling rain. Luckily for him, there was shelter on top of the veranda, protecting him from the rain. He had been sitting there for some time, lost in his own disorganized thoughts.
Splash—he suddenly heard a loud splash. Turning his head to the left, he saw a little girl walking in the rain, dressed only in a crimson dress without carrying any protection against the rain.
Her black hair was so long that it almost touched the puddles on the ground. Her face was cute, like a porcelain doll with round eyes and a small mouth. She was standing on a puddle, looking towards the sky, with rain droplets falling from her hair onto her face.
‘A little girl? I haven’t seen a player that young before.’ Ambrose stood up and looked at the falling rain. ‘Why is she outside? I don’t think you can get sick here, but still.’
Clap, clap!
A loud sound of clapping came inside the dojo.
“We are about to start the meeting. Everyone, go to the second floor!” Cerberus’ voice reverberated inside the dojo. All the Silver Heart members dropped whatever they were doing and started following him upstairs.
Ambrose turned back to the little girl, left the protection of the roofed veranda, and walked to her. She didn’t look away from the clouded sky, even though it was easy to hear the splashing footsteps that landed on top of puddles.
“Little girl, shouldn’t you go inside?” Ambrose crouched beside her and asked. He didn’t care that he was getting drenched by the rain.
At last, she turned her head towards the black-haired young man. Her face was innocent and pure, as if she hadn’t yet learned about the dark side of the world.
“Who are you?” She asked. “Are you a friend or foe?”
“Uh…” Ambrose didn’t expect such a question from her. He scratched the back of his head and said, “Are you a relative of someone from Zahhak?”
“Yes…” She replied and looked at his dull blue eyes. Her light green eyes showed a look of curiosity. “What about my question?”
“I am joining them in a quest. So, yes, I think I am their friend.” He replied in the typical way an adult would speak to a child.
“I see.” She looked away from him and back to the sky. “It looks like the sky is crying, doesn’t it?”
“Huh?” Ambrose also looked at the sky and shook his head. “Well, the rain comes from the clouds. So, its clouds crying, no?”
“No.” She shook her head. “The clouds are the eyes of the sky. With them, they will be able to see everything that happens on the land.”
“I haven’t… thought about it like that.” Ambrose wryly smiled. ‘A strange kid.’
“Mm.” She suddenly smiled and looked back at him. “Are you a swordsman?”
Ambrose looked down at his hips, where his sheathed swords were dangling. “Uh, yes.”
“You have two swords. Do you use both?”
“Ah, yes.”
“Mm.” She turned back to the sky and said. “My brother would like you.”
“Your brother?” Ambrose asked, but received no response from her. He then touched his drenched hair and moved the bangs out of the way of his eyes.
After not receiving a response, he asked something else. “Does the crying sky make you sad?”
“No.” She replied. “It makes me happy.”
“Why?”
She turned her head back to Ambrose. Her smile looked very genuine and innocent.
“It would mean that there is someone strong enough to make the sky cry.” She closed her eyes and enjoyed the rain on her face. “That makes me very happy.”
Ambrose looked at her silently. He thought it was just a child’s imagination, but something about the little girl made him careful—even though he was already an adult.
“What is your name, stupid uncle?” She asked cheerfully.
‘Stupid uncle?’ Ambrose’s eyebrow twitched at the lack of respect. “Ambrose. Also, do not call strangers stupid. That is rude.”
“Ambrose…” She ignored the last part and smiled. “Mine is Andromeda. I hope to see you again soon. Bye.”
“Huh?” Ambrose watched as she suddenly disappeared. She only left behind a faint memory in the air in the form of floating pixels. ‘She logged out. Truly a strange kid.’
“Jesse, what are you doing in the rain?” A shout came from the veranda.
Ambrose turned around, raindrops cascading down his face. He saw the silhouette of a beautiful silver-haired girl looking in his direction.
“Hmm…” He wiped the rain off his face and returned to the veranda. He was entirely drenched as a result of going to talk to the little girl.
“Why were you in the rain?” Suddenly, a napkin appeared in front of him and gently touched his face. He silently looked at the beautiful face, which was within a few inches of his own.
“What about the meeting. Has it ended yet?” He asked.
“No. I didn’t see you, so I came to look for you.” She explained.
“I see.” Ambrose then moved his hand to his left ear and pulled the earring off. He cleaned it off and then handed it over to Serenity. She accepted it with a surprised look. “I have no need for it anymore.” 𝑶𝓋𝐥xt.𝗇t
“You don’t?” Serenity looked at him with her sparkling blue eyes. “You are drenched.”
“I will be logging out.” He said so in response and gently moved her napkin-holding hand away. “I have something to do before tomorrow. I suspect we won’t be starting today, right?”
“Yes, we will plan today and go tomorrow morning.” She said while placing her napkin in her pocket. “What about the meeting?”
“Tell me the important bits tomorrow.”
“Alright.” She nodded, but still wondered what he could be up to in reality. She felt very curious but didn’t want to be too nosy. “Have you already put your temporary spawn?”
“Yep.” Ambrose said and opened the interface. With one press of a button, he disappeared from the rainy Yatagarasu.
…
Stepping out of his apartment, Jesse was greeted by a cold wind and gray sky. He was wearing his last pair of clean clothes. He planned to go buy new clothes today.
Luckily, there was a clothing store only five minutes walking distance away. He didn’t go for a morning jog this morning to be able to walk to the store.
He hated using the wheelchair because it made him look weak and useless. Even if others didn’t think that, he did.
After locking the door, he pocketed his keys and began walking away from the apartment complex. However, before he could even cross the road, a car pulled up beside it, right in front of him.
The person in the backseat rolled down his window and looked at the black-haired man with a gentle smile. Her face was all too familiar.
“Jesse, are you going somewhere?”
“Madam.” Jesse nodded at Matilda, the landlady of the apartment complex where he was living. He glanced at the car, which had its own driver. ‘She is filthy rich. I didn’t think the landlady could be this rich. Does she have other businesses?’
“If you are going somewhere, want a ride?” Matilda asked and opened the door, then moved further away to have a free seat.
Jesse scratched the back of his head. He kind of wanted to refuse, as he didn’t want to bother them, but she looked like she had something to talk with him about. Therefore, he accepted it with gratitude and sat in the car.
The driver stepped on the pedal and began driving away from the apartment complex.
“Where were you heading?” Matilda asked.
“Uh, there is a clothes store a few minutes away.” Jesse said while looking out of the window. They were going the wrong way.
“Ah, that store has a bad reputation for selling shabby clothes. Michael, take us to La Merch.” Matilda said and leaned on the backrest, enjoying the comfortable silence of a slow car drive.
‘La Merch? I can’t afford anything there!’ Jesse thought with a pained expression.