Path to Transcendence

Chapter 281: Prepared For the Worst

“You could have let us know that the person you wanted to visit was a Tier 6,” Stella exclaimed loudly once they had left Dante’s cabin

They hadn’t stayed for very long. Julius was well aware that Dante didn’t have the patience to entertain guests for more than an hour or so. This was why once he gave a simplified explanation to Dante about where he had been, he decided it was time to actually head into Heston before it got too late.

Although he promised Dante he would explain what happened in more detail at a later date, when not everyone else was around.

“Yeah and that he was a crotchety old man,” Reinera muttered.

“That too.”

Julius smiled apologetically at them. “Sorry about that. He’s harmless, he’s more bark than bite.”

“His bark could probably level that entire town,” Reinera pointed out, glowering at him.

“Hey! He’s just a bit grumpy is all. He’s actually quite sweet on the inside once you get to know him,” he defended Dante.

“Sure,” Reinera said while rolling her eyes.

“It’s true! He didn’t even kill or hurt anyone of you, right?”

“I wouldn’t consider not killing someone a sign of someone sweet. That is just a sign of someone who is not a psychopath,” Stella mumbled before looking over her shoulder anxiously as if Dante would appear right behind her.

“Sorry, what was that?”

“Nothing,” she quickly said.

***

Suddenly he was feeling a lot more nervous.

“What are you waiting for?” Stella asked.

“Just trying to build up some courage,” he admitted.

“Courage? For what? To say hello?”

He didn’t respond and simply stared at the guardhouse while biting his lip worriedly.

Finally, he mustered up as much courage as he could and approached the front door where two guards like normal were standing outside. Thankfully, it would seem that this time the others were fine with staying behind.

“Can we help you?” One of the guards spoke as Julius got within several feet.

“Um yeah, is Declan around?” He inquired hesitantly.

“Why are you looking for the vice-captain this late?” The other guard asked him.

“I just wanted to see him if he was still here.”

“The vice-captain left for the day, he will be back tomorrow,” the first guard said with a frown on his face.

“We can let him know you stopped by though. What is your name?” The second guard asked.

“I kind of expected something like that. Do you know if Orus or Rae are still here though? My name is Julius by the way.”

The both of them seemed taken aback that he knew who Rae and Orus were but recovered quickly. The second guard was looking at Julius kind of intensely but suddenly his face lit up as if understanding something.

He stepped forward and examined Julius’s face a little closer.

“Wait, aren’t you that kid from several months ago? The one that Declan brought in?”

The first guard smacked his hand on his thigh. “That’s right! I remember now! You are the kid who used to train late out back and who always got to eat Rae’s food! You grew taller though.”

“We all eat her food, Jeremy.” The second guard commented with a confused frown.

“Yes, but she would make him her famous cookies and snacks. All of us would always get jealous whenever she did,” Jeremy said with a laugh.

“Oh yeah! I remember now! I used to complain to my wife about you all the time,” the second guard said bluntly to Julius.

Julius awkwardly scratched his head. He didn’t know he had left such an impression on them.

“You said you’re looking for Orus?” Jeremy asked with a smile.

He nodded. “Is he still around?”

This bookʼs true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

“I think he was just called out for a disturbance just down by the market along with some of the others. You can stay here and wait for him if you want. Rae is still here and you can go say hi as you wait,” the man offered.

“That sounds…” he stammered.

Jeremy leaned over and slapped him on the back. “Come on, she is going to be happy to see you,” he said as he dragged Julius by the arm into the guardhouse.

Realizing his fate, he stiffened his resolve and followed the man into the guardhouse.

“You remember where to go right?”

He nodded softly.

“Perfect, I will let Orus know when he returns,” Jeremy said with a thumbs up.

“Thanks, Jeremy, I really appreciate it,” he said with a grateful smile.

“No worries.”

As he walked down the hallway, he was instantly reminded of the familiar scent of wood that greeted him when he first arrived here all that time ago.

Although he had only stayed here for a short while, those times were quite enjoyable.

When he arrived at the kitchen, he saw Rae immediately. She and several other workers were all talking animatedly while eating. It was like his feet were stuck in place and he stood in the doorway for a while just staring at her.

What was he supposed to say to her?

Hey, remember me? The boy you took care of and then who you never heard from again?

One of the workers seemed to see him standing aimlessly in the doorway though. “Hey, can I help you find something?” They asked Julius.

Before he could say anything, Rae turned to see who her colleague was talking to and froze.

He gave a small hesitant smile and was about to say ‘hello’ but he didn’t have a chance. He was too busy getting wrapped up in a smothering hug.

***

In the end, he had nothing to worry about. Nobody thought that he had abandoned or forgotten them. They were very worried about whether or not he was okay or not.

Orus’s running theory was that he had hurt himself during one of his training sessions. A theory that shouldn’t had as much merit as it did, but he couldn’t argue against its high probability.

Declan thought that he had pissed off some sort of powerful person and got killed for it. Which was a bit more sobering to hear, but that also had its merits.

“What about you? What did you think happened to me?” He asked Rae from his old stool by the counter.

Rae was in the middle of taking out some cookies she quickly made for him out of the oven.

“I thought that your relatives had finally come for you and taken you away,” she said as she placed the piping hot cookies in front of him.

“My family?” He asked, a little confused at her answer.

“Yeah, I always told Declan that you were some noble or of some noble heritage,” she said as if it wasn’t a big deal. “I always got the suspicion that you were hiding from someone when you first arrived. Being chased by your family would be the most obvious answer, but you could also have been running from some bad people too.”

He didn’t know how to respond to how scarily accurate her theory was, instead he told her the truth.

“I actually got pulled into a trap meant by someone else. I got teleported across the Empire and just got back earlier today.”

“A trap for someone else?” She asked with a tilt of her head as she handed him a glass of cold milk.

He frowned as he took time to think of how he wanted to explain things to her. Eventually, he decided just how much he wanted to tell her and once it began, it all came out.

***

“How many more stops do you need to make?” Stella asked as she dangled her feet from the wall she sitting on.

“That’s it, we can go now. Thank you so much for allowing me to do this,” he said gratefully.

The three of them had been waiting patiently for him for the past hour or so. They had gotten some food in the meantime but had come back after they were done.

Sadly, Orus hadn’t shown up and he decided that he would just have to come back another day. Rae had promised him that she would let Declan and Orus know, which would spare him from any awkward attempts at communicating with them later, but he was still sad that he couldn’t see them.

On the bright side, he had gotten a new stock of treats from Rae and was in the middle of sharing them with the others as a thank-you for waiting for him.

“I thought you said you had to go explain your disappearance?”

“I did.”

“So how come you came back with food?” Reinera asked with a frown.

“She gave me some for the road,” he said with a proud grin. “I take it that you don’t want any?”

The girl quickly swiped the offered goods from his hands before he could take them away.

“I never said that,” she said with a scoff.

“Okay, let’s go. I have contacted Lady Lily about my arrival,” Marcus said with a hidden grin.

“Are we going to meet her at the school?” He asked, a little excited to see her surprise as well.

“That is the plan.”

“Wait, you didn’t let Lily or the others know we are coming back?” Reinera asked in disbelief.

He looked over at Marcus. “It’s supposed to be a surprise. I believe that Stella also hasn’t told anyone yet, right Stella?”

The woman in question teleported off the wall and appeared next to them. “Nope, as Marcus requested, I have refrained from reporting anything to Derek or his father yet.”

“That seems… dubious,” Reinera said after a brief moment of silence.

“I somewhat agree, but it was Marcus’s idea,” he said with a glance toward the man in question.

Julius still had doubts whether or not this was a good idea. On the one hand, he kind of enjoyed the idea of surprising his friends, but on the other, he felt like he would be getting the brunt of the blame for this.

“Are you still sure that this is a good idea?” He asked Marcus with an anxious look.

“Of course, Lady Lily will probably be extremely overjoyed,” the man said confidently.

Julius pinched his lips together and looked hesitant. A look that didn’t go unnoticed by Marcus. “Don’t worry. She can be scary but why would she be angry?”

He could think of a hundred reasons why she would be angry. He had learned that Lily wasn’t always the most reasonable person. Furthermore, in this case, she would have plenty of reasons to rightfully be angry.

However, it was a little too late to pull out now.

Thus, he signed dramatically and prepared himself for the worst.