Scarce sunlight gleams in from the darkening skies above the canopy of a tree, a few leaves falling with the gentle wind. Beside the tree, an old man and a cloaked young man with a cane walk down a stone path, looking to their surroundings, the scenes of the village sprawling out, filled with different houses and people coming and going on the dirt paths.
They leisurely walk, approaching a house at the end, one of moderate size, thatched roof and walls made from a combination of stone with delicate wooden framing, dusty and a bit damaged here and there, bundled wood leaned against its walls, next to them lay clay pots. However, it is reminiscent of Xiangyang architecture.
They reach the house as Ren slides open the front door, coughing a bit, then gesturing towards Locht to go in. Locht takes off his hat to look ahead, seeing a quaint house. The entrance of the house is floored with stone, upon which a few sandals are neatly arranged, as a step of small stairs leads up from it to the main house.
A hallway floored with straw-yellow mats, which Locht can't recognise, stretches out a bit ahead. On either of its sides are two sliding doors, closed, and a lantern hanging above the hallway. The mats look scratched and aged, along with the wooden walls and doors and the wooden roof carrying a sheen of dust, marking the house's age.
At the end of the hallway, Locht sees a dark wooden door closed shut, with a few crates and a broom next to it. Locht glances over to Ren's gesture, and without observing further, he steps onto the stone flooring, taking off his shoes on it, then takes a step up to the mats, stepping into the hallway.
Ren follows, his back hunched, taking off his sandals and stepping into the house. He leads Locht down the hallway to a room to the right. He slides the door aside, opening it. Inside is a small room, floors made of similar straw-yellow mats, though stained in some places. To the right, a dark wooden shelf with drawers lies; on it, a few flower-patterned hairpins and a yellow-handled sheathed dagger, the sheath having a drawing of clouds etched upon it.
At the very top of the shelf, there are two wooden stumps with dimples in the middle, as if they were used to hold something once. Though now, there is nothing that rests upon them. Locht looks to the right, seeing a board with a large map, riddled with pins charting the place. The map of the sort of diamond-shaped Continent of Staldia, its kingdoms, and all the islands and landmasses surrounding it, the most eye-catching part of the map being the Odrien Empire, occupying most of the Staldian continent, and its inner mainland, with an ornamental crown atop its name in the map.
Locht keenly gazes upon the map. He hears a few footsteps but doesn't pay them any heed, focusing on the map due to not having seen one before, he studies it with his eyes, the continent and landmasses colored in grey while the seas are colored in a yellowish-white. Seeing that the Rosen kingdom occupies the easternmost shoreline and extends its territory deeper into the mainland, like spikes from the shoreline. As he tracks the shoreline with his eyes, he sees that not too far from its northern island colonies, there is a tiny island like a dot, and from there, his eyes track to an island pinned with a red needle and circled with a red marker, below it reads, "Our Island, Roukuni"
Locht places a finger on his chin, and for a few seconds, he thinks, It took me 3 days to get here from that island...the closest island within that range must be that one...judging from the measurement of the map. He straightens up, his eyes darting around the map, eventually landing on a little detail in the bottom right corner, reading "1 centimetre = 25 kilometres" Locht lets out a sigh, mentally keeping note that the nearby, unnamed small island must be where he came from.
Suddenly, he hears footsteps coming from behind. Instinctively, he turns around to look, gripping his cane, as he sees Ren walking up with a wooden plate in his hands, atop which are two clay cups filled with green-colored tea, steam rising out from them.
Locht relaxes, lowering his cane, yet looking puzzled, he says in a slow voice, "Weren't you just here...?" Ren chuckles, walking into the room and putting the plate with the cups of tea on a low wooden round table in the middle of the room, before saying, "Young lad, you looked so intrigued by the map that I didn't want to disturb you, so I went to get some tea for the both of us, come sit" He pats the ground next to him as he sits down cross-legged next to the table.
Locht averts his gaze, feeling a tinge of embarrassment before going up to the table and sitting down in the same posture, taking a cup of tea from the plate, and placing his cane on the ground.
Ren uses both of his hands to take a sip of the tea, then looks to Locht with a smile, asking, "So, young lad, did you like the map?" Locht gently nods, then tries to mimic Ren's movements to take a sip of the tea, but he squints his eyes at the tea tasting slightly bitter with a hint of an herbal taste. He shakes his head, looking to Ren, replying, "It's detailed, lots of things I didn't even know, how do they even make maps and chart the seas and land like that?"
Ren chortles a bit, saying with a smile, "Young lad, I made that. I was a cartographer once. Ah, but my hands got too shaky in this old age, so I had to retire" He takes another sip of his tea.
Locht's eyes widen in surprise, saying in a low voice, "I wonder how much knowledge is needed to make something like that. It's...really impressive." He finishes, taking another sip of the tea as well, slowly adjusting to its bitter undertone.
Ren looks to the far end of the room, where an open window is, providing a view to a small garden next to the house outside, though filled with weeds and grass, colourful flowers still bloom around a few patches. Scarce sunlight pours in from the window, illuminating the peaceful room. Ren nods, saying, "It isn't easy, that's for sure. I spent years wandering like a vagrant around the continent and islands to master my craft!" He finishes with a laugh, yet his eyes look into the distance, almost reminiscing about something.
Locht takes another sip as he glances over towards the shelf to the right of the room, looking at the hair ornaments and the dagger. He sees that some of the shelf drawers are slightly ajar, revealing a hint of yellow parchment.
Ren clears his throat, causing Locht to turn back around to him. Ren says, "Those were my daughter's and that dagger was my son-in-law's" He gestures towards the shelf, his hands slightly trembling. Locht looks over, scrutinising the ornaments and the dagger, before asking, "Where are they now?"
At that question, Ren's pupils shrink as he frowns a bit, looking down at the cup of tea he's holding. Seeing his reflection in the water, his wizened eyes and tired frown. Locht notices that, and even if puzzled, he leans in.
Ren lets out a deep sigh before saying, "They're dead, young lad." Hearing that, Locht puts down his cup of tea, slightly frowning as he looks down, saying in a low voice, "I'm sorry..."
His hands tremble for a moment, gripping the cup as he looks down at his reflection in the tea, seeing a vision of himself as a child reaching out to his parents who were being taken away by men in armour, stumbling and falling desperately before he was kicked and knocked unconscious....thinking to himself, I suppose I've long accepted the fact that all men must die... he touches his neck, as he seemingly feels a scar.
Ren looks at him for a moment with a frown, then shakes his head, looking up before saying, "It's fine, really young lad, it's been...twenty years since then..." He bitterly smiles, continuing, "And they died doing what they loved, at least they left behind something for me." He lets out a small chuckle.
Locht straightens back up, slowly picking up his tea again before saying, "If you don't mind telling me...What did they do? How did they...die?"
Ren nods, giving a smile to Locht, then taking a sip of his tea, saying, "They were adventurers! Like you, young lad. Could never keep them in one place, even if you tried. They sailed around the seas, fighting pirates and monsters, doing whatever they wanted..."
Locht's eyes widen as he looks down, with a solemn expression, before Ren continues, "But you know, young lad, adventuring isn't an easy job, it's filled with danger and things that can squish a human with its thumb, and even madness for the folks that dare to explore the void..."
Locht's eyes jolt up as he impulsively asks, leaning in, "Did they venture below the clouds, into the void?" To which Ren shakes his head, saying, "Yes, young lad. They had sent me a letter that, on their journey...they had found the whereabouts of some powerful relic that could finally--finally give us the ability to defend our island from everything and anything..." Ren finishes with a sigh, his expression turning solemn as he looks out the window, with the tea's steam thinning, the scarce sunlight slowly fades, and the skies turn darker.
Locht leans in, looking down, asking, "Something with that power, couldn't be easy to obtain, especially...somewhere down in that darkness. Why did they take...such a gamble?" Ren looks back, his eyes narrowed, as he solemnly nods, saying, "It's a dark place down there, filled with madness! Monsters that you can't even imagine, young lad. I guess, they must've loved this village as much as I do...so much so that they went down into that place, and never came back..."
Locht glances at Ren, his face still solemn, and he shakes his head, smiling a bit, saying, "An adventurer's life is dangerous, filled with terrors...maybe even madness, I-I suppose...but that's the price we must pay to live free lives." He takes another sip of his tea as Ren looks back at him with a nod. He then adds, "Even if they died...what did they leave behind, Grandpa Ren?"
Ren gently smiles at that question, closing his eyes, answering, "A year before they died...they came back to the island, and left a small baby boy with beautiful brown hair in my arms. Their son, whom they surely couldn't take on to dangerous journeys...and my beloved Grandson. He is my pride and joy."
Locht's eyes widen, taking another sip of the tea, he says, "Then...around now, he must be my age? I haven't...quite seen him around..." Ren puts down his tea, chuckling a bit, before bringing himself to a stop, saying, "Ah...That boy has quite a passion for the village, you see, unlike a reserved young lad such as you, he's a riot. He makes me food and leaves at dawn, and comes back at night. Going to the village dojo to learn the sword"
Locht finishes his cup of tea, letting out a warm exhale, then puts the cup on the wooden plate, before saying, "He wants to be a swordsman to protect the village, I assume...I read a few stories about powerful swordsmen residing in quaint little villages like this in my youth...he seems to be that type. Locht's lips curl up into a smile as he reminisces about the times he'd read fairytales about great swordsmen.
Ren smiles, putting his finger on his chin, seemingly thinking for a few seconds, before saying, "Oh, I read him one too many stories about swordsmen when he was little, too...hah, maybe that's why he turned out like this..." He then points his fingers to the top of the shelf where the stumps are, Locht looking over as he does, he then continues, "See that, young lad? I used to keep our family's heirloom sword up there, which came from one of the pirates during the invasion, from what I know...been kept in the family ever since!"
Locht thinks for a bit, narrowing his eyes, saying, "You gave it to him?" To which Ren nods his head and replies with a light chuckle, "No, the boy took it one day when he was 19, when he heard an owlbear was approaching the village, along with some other stuff like ropes and powders, and the next day....The owlbear was dead, with him hauling over its corpse to show all the folks of the village"
Locht's eyes widen, remembering something as he leans in and says, "Huh? That's...he sounds strong. I heard a hunting party of at least four lower-class rangers get deployed to deal with an owlbear. How did he kill it all by himself?"
Ren faintly smiles, saying, "That boy always had a bit of a talent when it came to wielding a sword, but what he did was dangerous...So I don't tell him if the village has any threats around anymore...I'm afraid he'll get himself injured or...killed, that's why I requested you to deal with the new danger, young lad...I'm sorry"
Locht nods, lightly smiling while saying, "It's fine, Grandpa Ren. I understand you don't want your grandson to get in harm's way...well, I've never had a grandfather, so I can't tell what it must be like...But someone's going to have to do something to protect the village, me, him, or anyone else... You can tell me about the request and threat, and I'll see what I can do about it. And whatever you want to reward me with can be discussed later"
Ren lets out a deep sigh, his gaze lingers down, almost looking ashamed, saying, "Thank you...really. And please don't mention this around him, young lad."
Locht smiles, inwardly thinking, If I can make myself, as...adventurer ' Sunseeker ' reputable and trusted among the locals, as long as my pursuers don't know my face or me in detail, I should be able to throw them off my trail, or...even gain allies as I travel somewhere they can't reach me. Afterwards, he places a hand on the table, replying, "Don't worry, I won't, just call me by my name in exchange, alright?"
Ren's eyes widen, looking rather shocked, as he slowly regains his composure and warmly smiles, a gentle breeze flowing out of the window, rustling the weeds and grass outside, causing a few flower petals to be launched adrift, as he says, "Alright, I'll call you Young Sunseeker then, a better name than most I've heard in my years..." He finishes, though his smile lingers, the wind brushing against his withered grey hair.
Ren finishes drinking his cup of tea, setting the cup down on the plate, then clearing his throat, which draws Locht's attention as Ren says, "What I am about to task you with is...I'm not sure if you'll be inclined to take it after hearing it, Young Sunseeker, but that's just fine, lad." He gets up and slowly walks over to the shelf, pulling out a rolled yellow parchment from one of its drawers, Locht watching him with curious eyes. He goes back to the table and sits back down, unrolling the parchment on the table, next to the plate.
Locht glances down at the parchment, leaning in. Upon the parchment lies a map of the island, a long mountain surrounded by rocky shores. At its peak is the village, built around the incline of the mountain, layered like massive stairs, a few buildings drawn and marked with different coloured markers, such as the "Magistrates tower" at the very top, and places like the bazaar lining the northeast of the village, and a general office to the east.
The map lines all the stairs that climb up the densely forested mountain on each side, the northern side stairs seemingly wider than the rest, leading to a dock located at the more vast northern shores. Locht thinks for a few seconds, his eyes scrutinising the map, then deduces from the placement of a few miscellaneous buildings that he must've made landfall from the eastern shores, where he met Ren.
Ren lets out a sigh, pulling out a bronze mechanical pen from his pocket, and then drawing a path down the mountain's southeast corner, depicting a curved path through the forest, though far off from the village. He finishes drawing the path near the island's southeastern shores, where it depicts a summit—outlining the area with a circle.
Ren looks back up at Locht, tapping the area, as Locht studies the outlined area, not being able to fully grasp what it represents. He looks up, wearing a serious expression, looking at Ren.
Ren nods, saying, "That place, and the path, see—towards the southeast of the village, there's a steep cliff into the dense forest. I heard there were a few huts and things there long ago, but when our ancestors moved in, they scrapped the huts for some stuff.
Locht slowly nods, then glances over to the map again, asking, "An older settlement before this village was a thing? Must've been very old." Ren nods in reply, saying, "Yes, I think some stuff from that was statues or old stuff of some kind. I think a few families around the village pass those down as heirlooms" He then looks back over to the map, tapping the drawn path through the forest with a pen, drawing Locht's attention to it, then saying, "Not too far from there, this path leads to the place" He taps on the outlined area, continuing, "The path is very old too. I think most of it is...covered with moss and stuff, maybe that's why it wasn't drawn on maps"
Lochts leans further in, placing a finger on the circled area, asking, "Is there some structure in this area then?" Ren immediately nods, writing 'Ralkien's Shrine' above the outlined area, before he could say anything, Locht's eyes widen as he immediately says in a surprised manner, "Ralkien? The one that's an...Ancient God of Prosperity?"
Ren looks at Locht in surprise, nodding and saying, "You seem to be quite informed for a young lad... Yes, this place...is from ancient times, and well, people around here worship the Sage of Tranquillity, a deity from Xiangyang, you see. We call him...Ryohei-no-mikoto, the shrine is somewhere to the north of the village. So we've left that place untouched for centuries..."
Locht leans back, looking down, and seemingly thinking about something, then looking back up at Ren, asking, "What's the issue? Or should I say...has there always been an issue, or is the issue recent?"
Ren faintly smiles, chuckling lightly, saying, "Ah, sounds like you've got it all figured out, young lad. Well...there's always been a bit of a problem around that place; it attracts lots of monsters, but thanks to it attracting monsters, any beast rarely ever gets near the village, you could say it's a blessing even...though"
Locht's eyes narrow as he tilts his head. Ren glances at Locht's puzzled expression, continuing, "Though in recent times—in recent times there's been an awful lot of small monsters and critters crawling out of that place...some folks are even scared to go out anywhere near there."
Locht taps the table a few times, wearing a serious expression, as if pondering, before replying with, "How recent is it...? And if it's something like that, uh, shouldn't the officials or a battalion from the kingdom deal with it? At least from what I know..."
Ren nods, looking up, seeing the room get dark. He slowly stands up, walking over to the shelf and pulling out a flat, smooth crystalline stone from behind it. Locht scrutinises the stone curiously. Ren brings up the stone near the hanging glass lamp on the ceiling, as with a flash of red light, the stone bolts up and attaches itself to the base of the lamp, slotting perfectly into a gap at the base meant for the stone, and in a few moments, a small ball of flames emerges in the lamp, like a very tiny sun, illuminating the room.
Locht's eyes widen in awe as he says in a low voice, "A magical fire lamp..." Ren looks down at him for a moment, chuckling before sitting back down and saying, "The Magistrate installed these magical little things in our homes a few years ago. I didn't think I'd live long enough to see something like this be common in our village, hah"
Locht looks at the lamp, basking in the light illuminating it as he says, "I always wondered, how these things worked...where I'm from, only some rooms had these things...rooms I wasn't allowed to go to."
Ren looks puzzled, leaning in, asking, "Oh? Where did you come from, young Sunseeker?" Locht's eyes immediately jolt back, as he lets out an awkward chuckle, saying, "Eh, just, just an old orphanage at Lisen City..."
Ren nods, saying, "Ah, you're from Lisen! It's a port city from what I remember...they have good seafood, didn't think you'd be from there..." Locht slowly nods with a slight smile, saying, "Yes...So, uh, as I was saying, shouldn't the officials deal with something like this?"
Ren's expression immediately grows more serious. With a nod, he says, "Ah, right- Yes, they should, but...a couple of us folks went to the Magistrate's office regarding this matter, you see" Ren looks out the window, looking at the darkening skies. Continuing with a sigh, "He told us that the officials need enough proof or something to send men here. In their books, this place has been peaceful without any of their men or influence, and they know some folks here don't like them, so he said that he'll need some solid proof to send an official report..."
Locht nods, saying, "I see..." Ren looks back at him, rolling up the map again and sliding it to Locht, and saying, "Young Sunseeker, all I want to entrust you with is to bring some proof, or evidence we can give to the Magistrate to convince the folks at the kingdom to send some men here and deal with the issue...could you?" Ren lets out a sigh, gazing at Locht with resigned eyes.
Locht nods, taking a slight bow, saying, "I'll see what I can do, but...please note that if it gets too dangerous, I will have to retreat" Hearing that, Ren smiles, saying, "Hah, that's reasonable, young Sunseeker, I won't blame you for it...Thank you. As for your reward, well, I've got an old treasure map from long ago. I think it's better in the hands of a young adventurer like you" He lightly smiles, placing his hands on his knees and slowly standing up.
Locht's eyes widen as he says in a low voice, "T-thank you..." To which Ren smiles and pats his back, saying, "Don't stress it. You can get whatever other things you need after you come back. " He then looks over to the outside through the window, looking at the starry night sky, gently saying, "You should stay the night, young lad, and embark tomorrow, or whenever you're prepared. Hah, I'll show you your room and make us some, I think you'll have to stay with my grandson"
Locht immediately jolts up with an awkward expression, picking up his hat, he says, "Uh- there's no need...I don't want to bother him-" Ren chuckles, hearing those words, patting his back, he replies, "Don't worry about it, if anything, I'm worried about him bothering you, he's quite the riot, but he isn't the type to mind these things"
Just as Locht is about to turn down Ren's offer, he recalls that he has absolutely no money to stay at some inn in the village, he thinks, I completely forgot that I'm completely penniless!, as sweat beads on his forehead, he awkwardly smiles, reluctantly saying, "I-I'll be in your care then...thank you for your hospitality..."
Ren chuckles, gesturing to the door, as he begins walking. Locht picks up his cane and slowly follows him.
Ren opens the door, as they walk back into the hallway, and almost at the same time, they hear the front door open, causing Locht to immediately look down the hallway towards the door.
A large, lean figure walks in, tapping the ground with his feet to take off his wooden sandals. He dons long brown hair tied in a bun at the back, with two long parted bangs on each side of his shapely face, and a diagonal jagged scar on his nose. Wearing a long grey ukata, a sheathed katana on his waist, a black sheath with golden string-like patterns, complementing his sun-kissed tan skin.
Locht sees and looks at him, as he stares back with his brown eyes, wearing a neutral look, though for a split second, Locht sees him lightly smirk, before shifting back to his neutral expression, making Locht immediately take a step back. Then, the man says, "I'm back, old man. Who's that?" he points at Locht.
Ren chuckles, looking over to the man, saying, "Oh, Shou! You're back. Ah, this young lad is a Sunseeker; he's an adventurer, he helped me with some stuff, so I thought to let him stay over; he'll be staying with you. You're both young lads, so get along, alright? I'll cook dinner."
Shou scratches the back of his head, stepping up to the hallway, looking at Locht, while Locht looks back, analysing him with his eyes, figuring that Shou is as tall as him. Shou says while saying, "You should've just asked me, old man, not some stranger" He leans in to look Locht up and down, clicking his tongue before leaning back as Locht takes another step back, looking puzzled. Shou continues, tilting his head, "Well doesn't seem like a bad guy"
Ren nods, smiling, then says with light laughter, "Yes, yes. You're too young to be teaching me how to judge strangers, boy." He turns around and goes towards the door at the end of the hallway, saying, "You're both young lads, so get along, and show him the room, Shou." waving as he goes. Locht's eyes narrow as he tiredly says, "Yes..." and sees him open the door and go into a kitchen-like area in the distance.
Shou wraps an arm around Locht, causing Locht to jolt back, to which Shou laughs, saying with a jovial smile, "You're with me now, buddy" Locht slowly nods, looking awkward. Shou pats his back, saying, "Now then, let me show you the room!" As he leads Locht a bit down the hallway, in front of a similar sliding door, next to the room he and Ren just came out of.
Shou slides open the door and steps in, the room shrouded in darkness due to the lack of light. He slowly walks into the room, manoeuvring his way around it, a loud thud resounding after a bit of his walking, causing Locht to narrow his eyes even more in puzzlement. A few seconds after that, with a flash, the fire lantern at the ceiling lights up, revealing the room.
An identically sized room to the other, but with a desk next to the window in the far end, to the right is a wooden wardrobe, a few vases and sorts of scrolls lying next to it, to the right are a set of sliding doors, seemingly a closet. Shou stands next to the desk, which has a bunch of pens and papers strewn all over it, with an open drawer as he holds his knee, indicating that he had bumped into the desk.
Locht closes his eyes and lets out a sigh before walking into the room, inspecting it with his eyes, his cane tapping the ground. Almost immediately, he hears loud footsteps, as Shou bolts up to him, before he can turn around or dash back, Shou grabs him and pins him right against the wall with light force, still causing a loud thud, startling and causing Locht to let out a gasp. He almost instinctively blasts off a spell, as fire sparks at the handle of his cane, but he brings himself to a stop, gripping his cane as he glares at Shou, looking at his brazen eyes, thinking, His fast... then saying, "What do you want?"
Shou looks at him with a big grin, laughing, as he withdraws his hand from the wall, saying, "Well, I heard your entire conversation with that old man earlier. I was behind that window" Hearing that, Locht's eyes widen, but he relaxes, letting Shou continue, "So! Here's the plan! Tomorrow, whatever that old rusty shrine's got to offer," He points at himself, "Me", and then at Locht, who looks rather confused, and says, "And you are going to deal with it, we're gonna kill whatever's there and get whatever we need to, understood?"
Locht lets out a resigned sigh, saying, "So this is your way of going behind your grandfather's back...I'm going to get blamed if you tag along, you know? How did you even hear us?" To which Shou laughs, saying, "Don't worry about all that, I've got dojo practice anyway, so I can use that as an excuse, and that old man won't suspect a thing! And I've got good hearing by the way."
Locht looks down, resigned, saying in a low voice, "I see...Fine, J-just don't get me in trouble." Shou laughs, patting him on the back, saying, "That's the spirit! I know I'm going against that old man's wishes, but...I have to do what I have to do, not like some kind of saviour's going to descend on this village to protect it, hah." His expression softens, and he then takes off the sword on his waist, walking to the side of the wardrobe and placing it against it, then looking over to Locht with a grin.
Locht stands straight, dusting his cloak and adjusting his hat. He says to Shou while gazing out the window, seeing small lights dance around above the grass of the little garden, his eyes filled with awe and curiosity, as he leans in closer, yet he shakes his head, looking at Shou, saying, "I don't think I would prefer someone as straightforward or reckless as you for this...mission but, you're strong...just don't do anything stupid."
Shou stands up, laughing, rubbing the back of his head, then replying, "I might be reckless, but I'm not stupid. You certainly seem smart, and I'm strong." He taps his head and then his biceps, "So, I guess we aren't going to make a bad team!" He then turns back and walks out the door. Before going, he says to Locht, "It's a plan?"
Locht lets out an exhausted sigh, nodding and saying in a low voice, "Alright...it's a plan, you can call me Sunseeker." As Locht takes off his hat. Shou grins widely as he waves, saying, "We'll talk about it tomorrow, or when we are going to sleep, whichever one you prefer! I'll go help that old man in the kitchen, hah. I'll look forward to it, Mister Sunseeker." He says the last part, trying to poorly imitate a Staldian accent, before walking off into the hallway.
Locht, looking exhausted, takes off his cloak and hat and sets them aside as he walks over to the window, looking at the lights dancing around, soon realising that they are fireflies, he looks down, seeing the revolver on his waist. He looks at the revolver for a few moments, reminiscing about the day he escaped. He lets out a sigh as he hides the revolver in his waist pouch. It disappears with his other items with a silver glint.
He gazes on, watching as they illuminate the grass and the little yard, like little stars dancing around. He tilts his head, watching them move, caught in a trance, his eyes filled with awe. He sits down next to the desk.
The fire lantern flickers as he watches the fireflies flying up into the starry skies and then down into the green grass and colourful flowers dart around, his vision blurring, his eyes struggling to remain open...as he lies his head down on the desk, recalling the day, and his experiences since the day he escaped.
Though his not sure how long his freedom would last, or what it would result in, he smiles, coming to enjoy the feeling of being free...as he closes his eyes, drifting off to sleep.