Chapter 187 - The Child's Decision to Make

Rynold was in a room with the Undine and had been conversing with the creature for some time. He wanted to talk with the Spirit. Or, well, he didn't have the option to leave either way.

The entire time that the two were talking, Rynold had learned a few things. Some of which weren't all that interesting, while some explained what had happened on the surface.

Much to his surprise, though, the events that had happened on the surface weren't all it had seemed. To which, the conversation between the two revealed a few things.

One such example was one that had troubled Rynold. The pool of suspicious brown liquid that Rynold had struggled against was a polluted body of water that had manifested into life. Which, Rynold thought, was a bit odd considering the circumstances.

He had never heard of any body of water coming to life before. But, if there were a Water Spirit, like the one in front of him, Rynold considered the possibility. He was skeptical, but he accepted it nonetheless.

As the conversation continued, Rynold was now standing toe-to-toe with the Undine. Of course, this was metaphorically in the sense that the Undine was speaking to Rynold as any other person would. They might not be equals, but it was still better than nothing.

With that said, the conversation continued.

Discussions occurred as Rynold explained what happened when he first saw the Undine's child. With excruciating detail, at that. Rynold wanted to be clear about what had happened to the kid. And, he had even added his observations regarding this matter.

His explanations carried a sense of objectivity with them. Rynold made sure that he portrayed the facts as they were and added his thoughts after. Eventually, he would soon tie his thoughts to what he had said earlier. It was a bit over-explained, Rynold admitted, but it helped drive the point to where it needed to be.

And, having laid out all of these things, Rynold would soon hear the Undine's decision. Regardless of whether the creature would agree with him or not, Rynold would have to accept it. He was an outsider, after all. He didn't really have the right to interfere any more than he already had.

"This... trigger you speak of," the Undine asked a question well into thought, "How did it occur?"

Rynold had been slightly avoiding this. He'd much rather talk about anything else than what happened to the kid. The pained expression on his face wasn't something Rynold wanted to recall.

"Like I told you before, I asked him if he remembered anything. Anything that would have helped me figure out where he came from or who he was. But, I didn't get an answer because of what happened next."

Shaking his head, Rynold recalled what had happened so vividly. The pained expression was something that Rynold didn't want to see again. It was as if the child had been in agony.

"I see. Duly noted," the Undine answered in such a casual tone that had even surprised Rynold. As Rynold turned to look at the Undine's face, Rynold couldn't tell what emotion the creature was feeling. All Rynold knew was that he didn't like it.

"What do you plan on doing now that you know this?" Rynold asked as he eyed the Undine.

"What else is there for me to do?" the Undine uncaringly answered as she turned away from Rynold. And, as soon as she did, the barrier of water keeping Rynold in dispersed.

"You're letting me go?" Rynold asked as he raised a brow in suspicion. Even though there wasn't any hostile intent that Rynold could pick up, he wasn't so sure that the Undine would be so cavalier about all the things he said.

"Yes. There is no longer a reason to keep you here," the Undine answered as it looked at the door that the child had gone to, then turned back to Rynold, "Thank you. For everything. My child would have never found his way home. Thanks to your help, however, he did."

A proper thanks. Rynold acknowledged it and soon headed towards the door. He had spent quite some time doing the random things, after all. Neana was sure to be worried by now.

Just when Rynold took his first steps, though, a door suddenly opened. The sound of the door hinges creaking echoed throughout the cave as the child stepped out of his room. Rynold, although in a hurry, suddenly stopped dead in his tracks.

"Child, why have you come out of your room?" The Undine asked before Rynold could. He was also curious as to why the kid would come out. Although, no answer would change his mind about leaving.

"Are you leaving?" the kid turned to Rynold and asked. He seemed nervous, Rynold thought, as his shoulders were slanted in, and his hand held the other in a worried expression.

"Yeah," Rynold nodded as he raised his hand and waved. "Can't stay for long, kid. Listen to your mother, alright? And be good. Bye."

Having said a proper yet slightly impersonal goodbye, Rynold took the next few steps forward. But, just as something happened, Rynold stopped once more.

"Umm..!"

Halting his steps once more, Rynold turned to the child again. Rynold didn't know what the kid was trying to do. And, as much as he'd like to spend time in figuring out, Rynold had to leave. The sooner, the better.

"Is there something wrong?" Rynold asked with a sincere expression. He didn't want to seem antsy in front of the kid. But, he would sure appreciate it if the kid would say something.

"Child, is something the bother?"

The Undine, who had been uncaring at first, turned concerning once the child showed up. Rynold caught sight of this and acknowledged that the Undine was quite motherly, after all.

However, that still doesn't change the fact that the kid had been silent. Rynold was getting impatient after what felt like a full minute had passed. Naturally, he wouldn't go out and express his disdain. But he was getting pretty close.

"If you don't have anything to say, then I'll take my leave."

Rynold spoke in as light as a tone he could muster. Despite that, though, Rynold still came across as uncaring and cold. It wasn't intentional, sure, but Rynold needed to leave. There really was no way to say something like that politely. With that, Rynold turned towards the door after giving a polite nod.

"Let me come with you!"

Slowly turning around once more, Rynold's expression carried signs of stress and annoyance. He's been stopping and going multiple times now. Suffice it to say: this was the last straw.

"What did you say?"

With a cold and darkened look, Rynold stood still. He was frozen in place and steady as a rock. He didn't want to do anything that he might regret. But, as of right now, his patience had run thin.

However, much to Rynold's surprise, his expression didn't seem to shake the child. Nor did it question his resolve. The kid seemed steady and determined. As Rynold met the child's gaze, the expression the kid carried showed his seriousness.

Before Rynold could ask again, though, the Undine jumped into the conversation.

"Don't mind him," the Undine attempted to convince Rynold. "Children and their jokes. They don't understand their compulsiveness and the consequences that come along with decisions. I assure you that he means nothing by it."

Having heard that, Rynold knew he had to stay out of it. He had already done enough of intruding on their personal matters. Rynold wouldn't want to say or do anything more. As of this moment, Rynold just wanted to leave.

"No, mother," the child snarked back at his mother. "I want to go with this human, Rynold. I —"

Before the child could continue, the Undine suddenly showed hostility as it interrupted.

"No! Go back to your room and stay there. I will not listen to another word of this ever again. Go!"

The Undine's expression seemed unkempt. Rynold took this as a sign that maybe this had happened before. The kid's curiosity seemed unquenched, and his mother's solution to this was to stifle it. Poorly, at that.

With that, Rynold had no idea what else to say. He had only stayed in silence as the child spoke up once more, this time with much more determination.

"I heard through the door, mother. I know you were talking about me. I've had these gaps in my memory. Unexplained and mysterious gaps that I've spoken to you about before. But you always told me that you didn't know."

The more the conversation continued, the more Rynold didn't want to be here. He had no stake in this whatsoever, but Rynold felt somewhat responsible about all this. Against his better judgment, Rynold stayed.

"It was for your own good, child! You do not get to question your mother. Now, go back to your room!"

'Why does this conversation feel familiar?' Rynold thought as he watched the two of them talk. Well, as far as talking goes between family, this was as good as it gets.

"No!" the child denied once more. "I don't want to live like this anymore! Let me out of this place, mother! This human will be able to take care of me! He can show me more to this world than this stupid place! I'm going to leave. Whether you like it or not!"

"Enough!"

Water blasted the wall of the cave as the Undine yelled out in a rage. The blatant disregard of the child triggered the Undine's anger. To which, Rynold flinched from the sudden blast.

'Shit.'

Having realized what this meant, Rynold turned to the child. He was looking for the one thing that could come out of this. The one thing that he had warned the Undine about before.

However, much to his surprise, the child seemed unaffected. Nothing about him changed. There were no signs of his form dissipating. Or any indication that would lead to his transformation. He just stood there, unflinching. His eyes steady on his enraged mother with a hint of determination.

"Hey," Rynold chose this very moment to interject. He was worried about bearing the Undine's rage. But, the result would be worth this small risk.

"HEY! CALM THE FUCK DOWN!" Rynold yelled once more to get the Undine's attention. "You're about to attack your own child! Are you insane?!"

Saying that made the Undine turn its rage onto Rynold. The glare of the cold blue pearls for eyes sent chills down Rynold's spine. But, having glanced at the child's steeled determination granted him the strength to push forward.

"I'm only going to say this once, so you better listen," Rynold's tone was calm yet serious all the same. "You need to listen to what your son has to say. Look at him, for fuck's sake!"

The Undine's glare turned slightly soft as it shifted its gaze to the child. The very moment that the two had locked eyes on each other, the Undine seemed to realize that the child was serious. Serious about following this through. It was perhaps the first time that the Undine had seen its child carry this expression.

"Considering what I told you about his trigger, don't you think he would be suffering right now?" Rynold didn't choose his words delicately as he talked. "He's serious about this. Serious enough not to get shaken up about what the hell you just did."

As Rynold continued, he thought about why this was so familiar. He was speaking from the heart at this point, and his 'polite' filter was gone. Rynold wasn't trying to sugarcoat his words anymore. It was as though Rynold had wanted to say all of these things before now.

"He already knows about his condition," Rynold added, "And, in the years that he spent here, you haven't gotten anywhere to cure it. So, just this once, listen to what your son has to say."