With the heavy food baskets in hand and a stinging sensation on my cheek, Alexia and I make our way towards the house. "Did the tavern owner say anything?"
Alexia, who was still sulking from earlier answered in a low voice. "He is was surprised."
"What? Why?"
She rolled her fingers between her bangs and recalled the incident. "At first, he thought I arrived here with the intention of begging. Infront of everyone, he tried to shoo me away. But when I showed him the pouch full of coins, his attitude took a unexpected turn. Hehe. His wife secretly asked me if I was appearing in the brothels of the town."
As Alexia was telling her experience, my eyes wander off at her clothes. 'Just an oversized old dirty grey sweater on top with a pair of khaki shorts… Anyone would be mistake her for a beggar. If I just had bit more money.'
"Stop just staring at me!" Alexia yelled at me as I was not following her conversation. "Did you even pay attention?"
Caught, I tried to change the subject. "Tell me. Did the church took good care of you?"
Alexia really cherished her days at the church, her words could be used as a proof. "Of course! Sister really took good care of us. We used to eat good food every single day and get presents on Emperor's true Ascension! You know, I received a pair of really pretty earnings by Mother."
"Is that so?"
"I still have them in the chest back home!"
"That's good. Show me some day."
My words made Alexia's face turn red which caused her to lash out. "W-Why should I? Hmph!"
Confused, I voice my concern. "What happened? Did I say something wrong?"
She glances at me for a second. "I don't know!"
"What do you mean by that?" I asked her the same question countless times on our way back as I wanted to apologize but we literally reached the house and Alexia walked inside, leaving me clueless.
Meanwhile, my entire quarrel with Alexia was witnessed by Dora, who was now grinning on my shoulder. She caught my attention and I couldn't help but ask. 'What do you think I did this time to upset her?'
The mouse cutely squeaks. 'I don't know.'
I roll my eyes and open the door. Inside, everyone was neatly sitting in line with wooden plates and spoons set for everyone. "Wow. Looks like everyone is hungry, huh?"
"MEAT! MEAT! MEAT!" Everyone quickly began chanting while trying hard not to drool everywhere.
"Be quiet!" Alexia shouts at the kids. "You all have to offer a prayer to the emperor before eating."
I quietly stand in the sidelines as the kids chant prayer lines.
"OH! HOLY EMPEROR! PLEASE LOOK AFTER US! FROM ABOVE, WE ARE MERELY YOUR SUBJECTS! GRANT US YOUR BLESSINGS AND LOOK AFTER OURSELVES!"
As the prayer ends, the kids place their hands on the ground.
"MAY THE LEGIONS WIN EVERY BATTLE, MAY THE LEGION COMMANDERS LED US TO VICTORY!"
My face visibly stiffens as the word 'Legion commander' comes up. I take an empty seat besides Rushian. Now that I can distinguish colours, I take note of Rushian's bright red hair. 'He is blessed with mana.'
"Altaris, you don't pray?" Rushian asks me with a curious smile.
"Uh. No, not really."
"If you don't pray to the Emperor, bad omen will follow." The kid besides me warns.
"Really? Then what will happen if I don't pray to the Emperor but to the Legion commanders? You clearly have different prayers for them."
I mask my intended question under a very innocent one. "Um. We don't pray to the commanders for us. We do it for brother Melsier!"
"Yes, for big brother!" Few of the others also chimed in.
"Emperor loves his subjects regardless, but we need Legion many commander's direction to win our battles." Rushian explains.
'Love his subjects, how funny. Wait… I need to confirm something.'
"Then what about the emperor? He doesn't lead you to victory?"
This time Alexia answers my question, she is unpacking the food with few other kids. "The Emperor is a god living among human. He is our saviour, our angel and our only hope. The task of handling the battlefield is looked after by all of the 7 commanders."
'So, whoever rewrote the religion kept the original Emperor's laziness. Interesting.'
"Where did you learn these prayers? Which doctrine? Was it a branch one or main one?"
Confused by my questions, the kids looked at eachother unable to answer, Alexia finally came in front of me and began serving my plate. "We learned these prayers from the sisters. They made us pray every day."
"Okay… Which religion did you follow? Or the name of your church?"
Rushian tilted his head in a cute way. "Re-li-gion?"
Annoyed, Alexia lightly taps my head. "Stop asking dumb questions, church is church. There is only one religion in the world." She moves on and serve Rushian.
'Ugh, this is no good. I need to talk with someone older… and knowledgeable.'
The kids who got served already began digging their teeth. "Mhmm! I nearly forgot how meat tasted." Fran exclaimed in awe.
Seeing them smile while eating made my heart bit less heavier. Like them I picked up a large chunk of meat and shoved in my mouth. 'Mhmm. The meat is overcooked and chewy. The sauces are all salty. But eating with everyone makes every bite worth it.'
I finished my entire plate under a minute. Alexia who was watching me from the start gestures at me, if I want another serving. I quietly reject her offer. I glance at everyone and they are yet struggling to eat few chunks of meat. 'They are adorable… They?'
I stand up and clap my hands together, everyone quickly stopped chewing and looked at me. "We are going to play a game right now. Is everyone okay with it?"
The kids naturally loved to play games, no one objected. "The winner will get secret sweets from me!"
Just as I said sweets, everyone began excited. "One by one, starting from this side. You all have to stand up. Tell me your name, your favourite thing and what do you want be in f-future?" I fumbled my last words as I remembered doing the same thing with my fresh batch of recruits.
"Now you!" I point at a rather healthy boy. "Start!"
The nervous boy stands up and drops a piece of meat from this mouth. Everyone laughed. "Don't be afraid." I encouraged the kid.
"M-My name is Gerblt. My favourite thing is sleeping and eating and I want to be a w-warrior like brother Melsier."
I clapped at Gerblt's bravery.
From then, everyone stood up and introduced themselves and said the exact same things as Gerblt. 'Well, they are kids. I didn't expect much. But I atleast got everyone's name.'
"Irene!" "Kel." "Magni" "Lumi!" "Roth!" "Yren!" "Trent!"
'That means there are total 7 kids. 4 boys and 3 girls. Excluding Kela, Rushian and Alexia.'
The kids are washing the utensils, I sent Dora to keep an eye on them. Meanwhile me, Kela and Alexia are packing the leftovers. "With this much, we could have some light dinner." Alexia suggests.
"If you say so. I am full so I am out from dinner."
With a shy smile, Alexia nods. "That is fine… Are you going back to the dungeon city?"
"I have to bring food for tomorrow."
Her expression changes from shy to sad. "Yes, you are right. But you! You have to take care of yourself. Many Alterums lurk there."
I smile at her warnings. "Yes, mam."
"Also… Thank you for playing games during lunch. The kids liked it very much. Even I did… it felt like I was back at the church." Alexia face burns hot red, with my new vision I quickly take notice of that and she looks… beautiful.