THE FOURTH ONE

“Peck, peck, peck,” odd sounds buzzed inside Lynne’s ears, forcibly waking him up; as he opened his eyes, the world turned to a deep blur for a moment before he regained his focus. Within his sight came a small sculpture of ice, its head moving up and down, as it was pecking at his chest.

“Damn bird, what the hell are you doing?!” Lynne cursed out loud, trying to swat the bird away; however, to his dismay, he was unable to move even a finger, let alone an entire arm. As he thought back to those eyes in the abyss, his entire body shivered. It’s gotta be a dream… I’ll pretend it was a dream… yeah, just a dream.

“You’re finally awake you despicable brat!” the bird screeched back. “You and the damn monkey just disappeared for an entire week! Where the hell have you been and why didn’t you die?”

“… I’m just a fart away from ending your existence.”

“Forgive me o Supreme One, this rotten-brained bird spoke hastily.”

“Ugh, just get off,” Lynne bit a tip of his tongue, jolting his body awake forcibly, as he supported himself up to sit. His expression suddenly froze when he inspected himself; there, deep inside his mind, where six symbols stood, there were now nine more. However, he couldn’t inspect even an inch of those nine, as if they are sealed behind something. Shit! It totally wasn’t a dream! “What shitty luck! Damn, I need to dig a hole deeper than my shamelessness to hide in!”

“Yeah, the world’s not big enough for that,” the monkey suddenly spoke up, yawning. “Just relax.”

“Relax? RELAX?!” Lynne barked at him. “What the hell was that thing? A-and it spoke! It freaking spoke! And then it told me that it’s not Origin Paths but Origin Laws! What the flying shit does that even mean?!! And then---ugh,” Lynne shivered again. “The entire week… of pounding and pounding and pounding… you know, I’m used to the role of a pounder, but each time someone mentions these freaking Origin whatevers, I’m the one getting pounded!”

“Who fried your brain?” the bird asked.

“Your damn mother! Screw off!”

“Shouldn’t you be damn happy that you expanded your horizons?” the monkey sneered as he asked; he was actually extremely happy, because most of his bloodline had awakened during the past week. Meeting that creature was perhaps his luckiest chance so far in his life.

“I didn’t want to know! Who the hell wants to know that there’s a big, black ball of death hiding somewhere on our continent! I’d rather live in blissful ignorance, screw knowledge and expanding of horizons!”

“Yeah, yeah, you can woe over your woes later, let’s go back to those two brats before they abandon us completely.”

“Oh right, crap! I hope they’re still sitting like good children and waiting for us...”

“….”

Lynne quickly got onto his feet, stretching out as the sounds of his bones cracking pushed out. Most of the pain had subsided, and he actually felt that his physical body was somewhat stronger than it was before. However, he made absolutely no progress in terms of Magic; a week worth of hellish pain and nothing… goddammit…

He turned around and quickly retraced his steps back to where he left Anna and Elynal. Luckily, the two were still sitting there, surrounding the campfire, indulged in a merry chatter; Lynne was slightly taken aback – not because they were talking as he already knew they had the ability – but because there was another person besides the two of them there.

It was a girl, seemingly in her early twenties, with slightly tanned skin, pitch-black, long hair, sharp, emerald green eyes and oval-shaped face. She was half-a-head shorter than Lynne, and was wearing a simple – but still exquisite – battlesuit specifically designed for Mages, crafted from tough and flexible leather. The battlesuit was mostly black, with few tinges of silver here and there, and she truly appeared like a widow mourning the loss of her beloved rather than an adventuring Magus. She was the first one to notice him, her eyes widening slightly, lips curling up in a welcoming smile.

By all means, even Lynne had to admit, she was beautiful; however, the air around her was of a distant, aloof princess, looking down on the world. And, more importantly, she was in her early twenties. She lacked the mature charm, and even the mature body. Her peaks had barely perched, and her hips were far from being to Lynne’s standard. However godly she appeared, Lynne concluded, she was still just a kid.

“Oh, you finally decided to come back?” Anna was the first one to speak, her voice carrying a tinge of anger. “What, your schemes were seen through and you had to run like a beaten dog?”

“Ha ha,” Lynne laughed merrily. “You jest big sis. What schemes? I am an honorable, dignified man; I tread the path of justice, courage and righteousness! While my fist may not be the law, my lips sure are! How can I be chased after due to my lips? Ha ha, it’s as if you do not even know me!”

“…” Anna merely sighed, unwilling to enter into a banter with him. There was simply no ending when it begun.

“It appears these two weren’t wrong,” the newcomer girl spoke up as the silence fell over the group. “You truly are… different.”

“Eh?” Lynne arched his brow slightly; her voice, while melodic, sounded like the grinding of bones to Lynne, as it was clear she didn’t even bother to hide her disgust of him. “Who are you? Who sent you here? Go back to your mom and drink some milk before you come out into the world. Does your home have a mirror? Huh? Look at it.”

“Ha ha,” the girl laughed lowly, covering her mouth while her lips curled up in a mocking smile. “What, your feelings got hurt? Is this the only way you can vent out frustration because all women reject you? Is it because you can’t satisfy them? Ha ha, are you even a man?” Lynne’s lips twitched slightly, but his heartbeat quickened at the same time; it’s been a long while since he found someone willing to engage in the war of words with him.

“Ai ai, as if I could care about some girls rejecting me,” Lynne shook his head, sighing. “What spite you carry in your damaged heart for you to curse at my being so lowly? I am but a humble, steadfast man; my shoulders as wide as mountains, voice as deep as gallows, heart as just as judge himself! True; my heart has bled through rejections – of perhaps hundreds of women – but alas, I still survive. But it’s truly shameful to listen to a little girl talk about matters between a man and a woman; dare I ask, o grand maiden, do you touch yourself?” at this point, Anna was glaring daggers at Elynal who was awkwardly looking sideways, while the newcomer’s leisurely face turned somewhat grim as Lynne talked.

“Why would I bother, when there are thousands willing to do it for me?” the girl replied with a self-satisfied smile.

“Ah, what sadness and madness overcame the world that girls turn to sluts before they even grow up,” Lynne lamented the fate, looking at the sky with saddened eyes. “Does your heart not bleed?”

“Ah, I plead you worry not of me,” the girl mirrored Lynne’s behavior as she spoke. “Worry for your soul, for I hear you will forever remain alone; you desire riches to fill the void inside your heart, but, no matter how much shine you swallow, it cannot illuminate the darkness in you…”

“… I thought we were having a chill banter,” Lynne spoke plainly. “Why do you sound as if you just wrote a prologue to the book you titled ‘Universe is Endless, but so are We’? Elynal, is this the one you mentioned? The one I’ll supposedly like? Where the hell did you find her? On the sixth floor of library?”

“Ha… ha…” Elynal laughed lowly. “Lynne, meet Thalia. Thalia, meet Lynne.”

“Lynne, was it? What? Are you giving up because I hit the sore spot?” Thalia laughed mockingly again as she sat back down.

“Eh, if you hit my sore spot, you’d surely see the reaction,” Lynne smiled dementedly as he spoke, but quickly after his face softened into one of deplorable sadness. “Ah, but how can a child invoke a reaction from me? I am not a monster, after all. Bosoms are man’s cradle, and any woman lacking the cradle cannot hold the weight of man’s dreams; how can you, someone who never withstood the gravity of man’s soul, understand us?”

“Who’s writing ‘Universe is Endless, but so are We’ now, huh?” the girl replied, smiling lightly.

“We can always co-author it,” Lynne winked as he sat down next to the campfire, stretching lazily. “But, for that to happen, come back in another twenty years.”

“What took you so long anyway?” Elynal suddenly interrupted, as he himself realized he made a terrible, terrible decision.

“Ah, don’t ask,” Lynne shook his head as he spoke. “These past seven days… I’ve been in the pits of hell, and perhaps even deeper.”

“I didn’t know there was a brothel of that name here.” Thalia interjected, smiling gently, as if she was a fairy.

“Ai, I wish there was… at least I’d have a place to go after I’m done babysitting children…”

“… did you at least get the Natural Treasure?” Anna asked, completely ignoring Lynne’s nonsense.

“Who do you think I am? Some lowly, broken, idiotic thief?” Lynne sneered as he took out a gem. “Although I haven’t a butt of an idea as to what this thing is, it’s shiny and shimmering and I love it.” drool dropped down the corners of Lynne’s mouth as he stared at the red gem in front of him; as it was deep night, the gem shone more brightly than even the campfire before him.

“Oh, it’s Red-Scale Stone,” Thalia exclaimed with slight surprise. “How about gifting it to me, huh? Consider it a birthday present?”

“Hm?” Lynne narrowed his eyes slightly as he looked at her. “You want something this beautiful? You are not worthy! I told you already; come back in twenty years, and we can talk as equals.”

“Do you even know what that stone does?” Thalia asked.

“Who cares? It looks expensive enough, which is all I ever ask from my treasures!”

“… ah, you truly are a waste of fresh air…”

“Eh, we’re all a waste. Just remember what you do when your stomach growls and hurts.”

“….”

“….”

“…. go die.”

“I’m still too young for that. I’ve yet to experience ten thousand bosoms, yet to swim the river of gold and drink godly wine.”

“Ah, let’s just rest for tonight,” Elynal quickly spoke, smiling awkwardly. “We’ll depart early in the morning. We’ve still got 35-36 days until the opening, so we can just take our time getting there.”

“Hm.”

The conversation ended quickly, as everyone retreated in their own corner. Lynne lazily leaned against a thick trunk of a tree, both his arms behind his head, one of his legs lumped over the knee of the other, humming a low, uneven melody.

Diagonally of him was Thalia, sitting cross-legged and observing him. She had arrived four days ago, and whenever she asked Anna and Elynal about Lynne, they’d simply reply with a single sentence: “He’s… different.”

This piqued her curiosity, and now that she had met him, that curiosity had only grown and not lessened in the least. On the surface a true fool, with meticulous mind, sharp insight and quick wit. He’s definitely a child of nobility; he has the air of deep indifference about him. He’s quick to adapt, and hides himself well. Even now, while it appears he’s resting and is completely unaware, he’s probably on high alert. Just who is he? Lynne Nyord… that’s definitely not his true name. But even Principal told me not to investigate him, lest I invite a disaster onto myself… ah, just who are you, Lynne Nyord?