When his eyelids opened, what greeted him wasn't the darkness of the cave, but the light shining through a nearby window. Alvaro had a headache from the moment he gained consciousness. He stared at the window for a while for no particular reason..
I survived...
Then...why?
Why do I feel so empty?
Alvaro laid back down, now staring at the ceiling. He sighed, waiting for someone to enter the room as he continued to look at the ceiling. He didn't even bother to check his surroundings.
Alvaro couldn't tell how long he laid on the bed, perhaps he should do something else. After a few minutes, someone entered the room. At this, Alvaro sat upright. However, he clutched his abdomen as a sting of pain was felt.
"You shouldn't move so soon, you were lucky blue was near the area."
"Blue...? Is that a title or their actual name?" Alvaro spoke between breaths.
"?" The person in front of him gave him a confused gaze.
"Uh, I'm not from here," Alvaro scratched his head awkwardly.
"Hmm. Is that why?" The man muttered.
"Did you say something?" Alvaro couldn't hear him quite clearly.
"Nothing, I wanted for you to come with us, but it looks like you're still not fully healed."
"It's fine, this is the least I can do for you saving me," Alvaro smiled, before gritting his pain when he stood up.
He stumbled a bit. Although he was getting used to it, he still held his arm over his abdominal area and hunched.
"Where are we going?" A confused Alvaro wondered out loud.
"Nowhere in particular. We just want to ask you some questions regarding the Witch Cult."
"Is that so?" Alvaro inquired, slightly confused.
Both of them made their way towards a room that had an interrogation-like feel to it. The man pointed at a chair, Alvaro complied as he sat down.
"Wait there a bit," said the man as he left.
Is he really going to let me be here alone? Never mind, I doubt he would do that. Anyways, this place is a bit similar to when I got caught by the police.
Well, they couldn't exactly do anything to me as the drug cartel I was part of had ties with the government.
...
Aside from that, where is Petelgeuse and the others? They suddenly vanished, leaving me alone to fend off against the people who killed me.
That's right...
I died, but somehow came back to life. I don't really want to think about it right now. I still can't believe that all this fantasy thing did happen, maybe it's just a bad dream and I'll wake up anytime soon? Like that's ever going to happen.
Now that I think about it, my life has been going downhill ever since I came into this world. No, maybe it was already going downhill and I never noticed.
Though I will say, he sure is taking his sweet time.
Alvaro waited patiently in what seemed like hours when in reality it was only a couple of minutes. Soon the man came back with a red-haired young man with sky blue eyes.
"May I ask you your name?" That was the first thing that the man said as he sat across from Alvaro.
"It's Alvaro Juarez-Montero. If you haven't heard a name like mine it's probably because I'm from a place in the west that you most likely never heard of."
"I will say that your first name sounds awfully similar to a certain person from the Juukulius House."
"Wait really?" Alvaro gasped in surprise.
"Yes, but I think it's only a coincidence as your appearance is quite unusual."
"Yeah, I tend to get that a lot," he scratched his head.
"I'll give you a rundown of the events that occured. After the group of knights found you, they immediately brought you here. Your condition was pretty horrible. While they could only keep you from dying, the current best healer granted the title "blue" was luckily in the area. As such, he was able to heal you from the dire state of yours."
"Is there any way I can meet him? I want to thank him in some way."
"There's no need. If you really want to, then answer the questions I ask you."
I was saved because I held some sort of value. Makes sense.
"That's fine by me."
"What is your involvement with the Witch Cult?"
"I'm one of them." Will definitely lead to my death. It seems like I have involved myself with some dangerous people. Although I already knew that I have severely underestimated how notorious they are.
"To be completely honest, I don't know...why I'm here in the first place. I suddenly found myself here without knowing why or how. The next thing I knew I was on the ground in agony as I desperately clung onto my life."
The red-haired knew something was wrong with the black-hair young man in front of him. He would've outright assumed he was a witch cultist. However there were some factors that made him think otherwise.
First of all ever single witch cultist had commit suicide before they could capture them. While his situation may be similar the young man shouldn't have known that they were onto them. Another detail to mention is that he doesn't hold a gospel or anything related to the witch cult. They even went out of their way to question the people from the slums about him even though it's very difficult for them to cooperate. Nevertheless he will say the things said about him were pretty noteworthy.
Aside from his peculiar way of dressing, they mentioned how he seemed lost, desperately searching for something as if his life depended on it. Unfortunately he was only seen a few days before he ultimately disappeared.
Although he took most of the testimonies with a grain of salt when looking at him he could immediately tell, they were correct. His eyes looked like everyone else's, but there was a sense of hollowness to them. He looked like a lost child not knowing what to do. He needed a bit of more information to determine his next actions.
"Hmmm, is there anything else that you might know?" He asked, his fingers tapping on the table.
"I don't know if this is any help to you, but I briefly saw this madman ranting about the witches' love. If I remember correctly he called himself sloth."
"Like the Archbishop of Sloth!?" He exclaimed in surprise, eyes wide open.
The what?! This piece of information is extremely valuable. Not only is there clear evidence to suggest that the Archbishop of sloth is nearby, but the fact that there may be an explanation where most of the cultists come from. How come they were so willing to kill themselves? Was their faith in the witch that much? Perhaps, but if you think about it maybe it was because they had nothing to lose.
They lost everything or had nothing, leaving nothing but a broken person. Now, if suddenly a ray of hope came into their lives, what would happen? Ahh, now it's making more sense. So, this man in front of him was probably getting recruited by the witch cult at his worst moment, one of depression and desperation.
By the looks of it he must've rejected them for them to attack him. Normally it wouldn't make sense, but the witch cultists are known to lack common sense. This is backed by the fact when the group left they encountered a group of cultists waiting to ambush them. Luckily they dealt with them pretty quick. Now is not the time to worry about that, he needs to know if there's any else.
"Yeah, but that's it. I don't know anything further about them," Alvaro sadly sighed, shaking his head.
For some reason I can't bring myself to tell them about everything I know. It might be because I will get killed, but is that really it? Am I going to protect them? Why? Is it due to the witch cult providing me with things?
I have gone down the wrong path.
"Don't worry, we actually got very important information."
"Really? I'm glad I could be of help."
"Can you wait here a bit longer? I need to inform the rest about this," he said, standing up swiftly.
"By all means go ahead."
"Are you sure? I can have someone guide you through here."
"No, I'm fine."
With that he quickly left in a hurry. Alvaro was now almost alone with the exception of the person who was guarding the entrance. Neither of them tried to start up a conversation. Instead Alvaro just stared at the table, in his line of vision stood his bandaged hand. The throbbing pain hasn't gone away ever since he woke up.
His spirits haven't said or done anything either. Perhaps it was because he was constantly being around people. Alvaro sighed, placing his head onto the table. Sleepiness overtook him as he dozed off, gently breathing as he had nothing to worry about in his sleep. Like being freed from all his problems, a form of escapism.
He didn't want to think about what will happen to him after this? When his only goal of surviving was met, there was nothing more he could ask for. Was surviving really the right choice? But did he have a choice at? It was like someone or something had to put him through all this for their entertainment. As twisted as that sounded, was there anything that proved otherwise? Does giving a suicidal person the ability to never die the correct thing to do!?
Yet, why did he think this as a blessing to him? What could he possibly gain from it? For what reason did he think at that moment that it was the worst and best thing that could happen to him. Alvaro had no intention of questioning himself, that's exactly why he attempted to stop it by sleeping and being busy.
If he has a bit of time alone, then...
He will stray further.
Alvaro's shoulder was gently nudged, waking him up immediately. Almost in alert, he looked around in panic. When locking eyes with a pair of blue eyes, he calmed down.
"Ah, you're done?" Alvaro asked, feeling slightly groggy.
"That's right," he smiled, patting his back.
"Well, I think it's time to decide what to do with you."
Usually he would've let Alvaro go, but he could be of some use. He could be trained, and become a knight while he begins having a purpose. Plus his knowledge about the witch cult already made him a valuable asset. However, the young man couldn't bring himself to think of such things.
No, he wasn't capable of it. All he wanted to do is help Alvaro. The young man in front of him was alone with no one at his side.
Acceptance.
Those were the eyes of a person who had accepted his fate. One who had given up on life. It pained him to see someone like this. He had no connection to him yet he couldn't help but want to help him. It wasn't out of duty, but purely out of the kindness of his heart.
"How about you stay here for a while?" He kindly asked.
"Huh? You don't have to—" Alvaro gazed in genuine confusion.
"You no longer have a place to stay, right? Think of it like a reward for the information regarding the witch cult."
Of course someone would reject a suspicious suggestion like that, but when you offer them a logical answer they'll be most likely to agree. At least that was the case for Alvaro.
"Okay..." Still confused, Alvaro nodded.
Yeah, that makes sense. Yeah, that sure makes sense. Yeah, that definitely makes sense.
"Thank you. Uhh umm?" Alvaro awkwardly said.
"Oh, I haven't introduced myself? Sorry about that. I'm Heinkel Astrea, the Deputy Commander of the Royal Guards."
"Once again thank you, Heinkel. I'm sure to repay you someday in the future," Alvaro said with determination.
"I look forward to that," Heinkel smiled, glad he made the right choice by helping Alvaro.
A/N
And now it is officially revealed when in the story it takes place! That's right, it's taking place way before the actual story begins! They're many things I want to do with this, but that'll have to wait until I get to them.
I'm willing to answer any questions regarding the when the story takes place so feel free to ask.