Altruism

13: ALTRUISM

'Lucian, I will be heading off somewhere to complete an important operation. I expect you to behave. Always stay where Garrison can see you, and never do anything out of impulse. Also, please do your best to help others in need but don't overdo it, alright? Ganbatte! (Do your best!)' my brother spoke in a rush, leaving with half of the Scums to fulfill an important operation.

Yes, he specifically told me to behave, to stay where I could be seen at all times, and to inhibit myself from doing something temerarious.

Yes, he told me to never overdo my performance but to do my best when it came to extending a helping hand.

I believe he gave out contradicting words of directions and obeying so would prove very difficult. I will try my best to do both of what he told me.

Today, we were in the village of Aramoor. It was occupied by a race called fairies which appeared to be small and dainty creatures flying around like insects.

The village was merely composed of trees with silver leaves. It could be primarily accessed by trudging through a mountain pass. It was enclosed by mountains therefore it could not be easily infiltrated unless one could fly. In our case, I rode Fenris while Garrison rode a pegacorn on land.

Once we arrived, a fairy soared gently and slowly towards our direction. Garrison spoke on our behalf.

"Hallo Chief Lazuli. We have heard of the recent increase in the population in your village and came to extend assistance."

Light poured out from the fairy. What I perceived as delicate and tiny creatures turned out to be beings far bigger than my own brother.

Chief Lazuli had a deep blue hair color. His long hair elegantly cascaded his well-defined chest. Wearing clothes didn't seem to be popular here. The chief only had a mere leaf covering his broomstick.

"It is a pleasure to have you back and I see you are accompanied by new faces," he warmly replied.

"Indeed, this is Lucian and the wolf is named Fenris. As you may have heard, the Scums are engaged in a rescue mission concerning fairies. Ikesha sent us here to ensure that an adequate food reservoir is established."

Chief Lazuli's face became grim. He turned away, leading us further into the village.

"We have been accepting refugees for the past few days and because of the sudden increase in our population, food stocks have been running low. Most of the crops in our fields have been gleaned and we are running on the last bits of food that were gathered yesterday."

We arrived in front of the spacious field and truth be told– most of the crops were already plucked down to their roots, leaving the umber soil tilted.

Garrison placed a comforting hand on the chief's shoulder.

"Worry no more for we are sent here to quench the earth of its unproductive lands," he assured, ambling towards me. He took my hands into his.

"Your Highness, will you do us all a favor and grace us with just a scintilla of your power?" he queried politely.

"Just a drop?"

"That's all we need."

I unbuckled the belt around my waist. Fenris took it away with a gentle bite. I had my doubts about what a mere drop of my mana can do, however, Garrison wasn't someone who played jokes on serious occasions.

I knelt in front of the field, placing my palm on the soil. I released a small amount of mana because he said that a drop was all they required. Light spread out from beneath my palm, flowing into the tilted lands that were reaped to settle the plague of starvation.

Once the field was overfilled with ready-to-harvest crops, I stood up. Strangely, the chief held me as if he was concerned that I may stagger and fall.

"Oh Grazie (Thank you), are you alright? We will prepare a resting place as soon as possible!"

"His Highness is alright, no need to fret," Garrison assured.

"Is there a reason why I shouldn't be?" I asked.

The Chief released a breath of relief before swaying his head.

"It's just that some of the ancients who came here and nourished our fields would usually feel exhausted from the amount of mana spent," he explained.

"I didn't even feel a sting..." someone near my head or rather... inside my head spoke. Numerous shushes were released by numerous people.

I twisted my head from side-to-side and turned around to locate the voice, but no one else was there besides the four of us and some other floating fairies.

"Who said that?" I whispered.

"What's the matter, Your Highness?" Garrison asked.

Fenris released a whine of worry. I placed my hand on his head.

"Nothing...I must be hearing things," I deadpanned.

Perhaps reviving this whole field did take a toll on me.

"Sorry!" the voice squeaked.

I must munch on a carrot. This must be from the lack of it.

The Chief called forth the villagers to harvest the ripened crops. Garrison gave us the liberty to wander about.

"But not too far from me, understood?"

They should not tax themselves from worrying too much. I won't disappear on them.

"Fenris and I shall only go around the village and extend a helping hand to those who need it," I responded. My wolf companion supported me with an eager "woof".

"The villagers are very friendly. Do not hesitate to ask them for something," the chief advised us.

I shall do my best but not too much.

How could I possibly do that? I supposed anything can be done with a little sniff of herbs and spices. Onii must have just had his daily sniffs before talking to me.

The villagers were undeniably cordial but what I found odd about them was that they refused my extended hand of helping. It was proving very bleak to carry out onii's orders. Was I doing something wrong?

"You've done quite enough! Please let us do the harvesting, it's the least we can do!" one of the brawny fairies assured while flexing his bicep for evidence.

A huge cabbage sprouted out of nowhere and started to attack the gatherers.

"My leg!!!"

"Um... Perhaps—"

"No-No worries we can handle this!" the fairy I was conversing with assured me, charging up ahead.

Fenris gently bit on my hand, leading me away from the fairy-eating cabbage.

On to the next one, it would seem.

"No need, handsome! These children are very hard to handle and we wouldn't want to put further strain on you after what you did for us," the female fairy cooed.

A detka latched onto her head, tackling her to the ground.

"See? They're very physical!" she muffled out as the detka yanked her hair.

The detka pulled out a hefty amount of strands that can fill a portion of a bald man's head.

"It seems that you require—"

More detkas piled up on her yet the woman remained unfazed.

"Thank you for the offer, Your Highness, but you did enough!" she enthusiastically responded.

Fenris took the liberty to drag me again to look for another person to help. Our last attempt was where the wolf had to put his paw down.

Out of all our attempts, this one proved to be in dire need of an extended hand of helping.

Groans and moans were heard behind a bush. I found a female fairy having a hard time removing herself from a male fairy beneath her. Both of them seemed to be in agony as their hips ground together in an attempt to elicit friction to remove themselves from each other.

Were they victimized by tree saps? Those were odd places to get tree saps on.

I reached out through the bush and extended a hand of helping in between them, causing both of them to scream in surprise.

"I am here to help. Please grab my hand, it will help you."

"Pervert!" she shrieked.

"Bastardo!" he screamed.

I got hauled out of the bush by Fenris.

"They are still stuck together. Should we not give them an extended hand of help?"

Fenris released me, howling a "no" in response. That signified the end of it. I was not worthy. Three attempts failed. Fenris did not allow me to offer any more help beyond this number.

The villagers gave us treats while we rested under the shade of a tree. A half-bitten fruit pie was in my grasp as I thought of numerous reasons for my failure today.

"Fenris...today proved to be unproductive," I told him, stopping him from chewing on his pie.

The mangled pastry fell to the ground. Fenris sat up. He questioned me with a whimper, nudging my shoulder. He pointed his paw at the fairies who were carrying baskets of newly harvested crops.

The fairies had mirthful and exuberant expressions. When they saw us, they waved and bowed. Fenris attempted to articulate his thoughts but his words came out as distorted barks.

"You're right..." I agreed despite having no idea what he had just said. "Maybe because we are just...overqualified for their problems," I spoke.

The wolf snorted and licked my cheek.

A sudden escalation of argument occurred near us. Fenris and I peeked at the source.

A gargantuan creature of furry blue nature argued with a short boy wearing a red cape. The furry being had orange hair that stood in a spiky appearance on top of his asymmetrically-shaped head. He had elongated features. His teeth were rather huge and sharp per piece which appeared lumpy when he closed his lips.

His tanned face wasn't as furry as the rest of his body. His blue tail swished from side-to-side behind him and I can't help the need to touch his exposed arms and see if his fur was as fluffy as Fenris'

"Going back there is suicide! Are you deaf child?" the furry and sinewy brute of unidentified race queried angrily. He grabbed the top of the boy's head and lifted him up.

The young male had playful hair colors. The top of his head started out as a powerful cherry color and then transitioned to yellow, green, purple, and ended at silver sequencially.

"I don't care! My papa and the others are still there. I can't just stay here and do nothing!"

"And what else can you do? You'll just get captured like the rest of your party if you charge up. They have djinns on their side!"

"That's none of your concern so let me go!"

"It is my concern! Your father told me to take care of you! You are a complete stranger to me yet your father begged me to take you with me as I escaped. You're making me regret the mercy that I gave," the furry man seethed.

I didn't know what they were arguing about. The situation was grave as it concerned life and death. Yet despite the fact of having no intellect whatsoever and disregarding the fact that Fenris already put his paw down to stop my attempts, I wanted to have a say on this matter...

I stood beside the space between them and smacked my hand on the furry creature's face. I caused him to drop the boy and slap my hand away.

"Bloody Nora, what are you doing?!"

"I am extending a hand of helping," I deadpanned.

"Are you asking for a fight, boy?!"

What part of an extended hand of helping gave him the idea that I was asking for a scuffle?

Onii, I did not think I was cut out for this. I was overqualified.

As soon as he showed signs of belligerence, Fenris jumped between us and seized a protective and hostile stance against him. A low and guttural sound emerged from my wolf. Fairies gathered around us.

The furry man's expression slowly changed from anger to realization and then to confusion.

"What's Ancient Royal doing out here?" he asked. He released a huff and presumed a calm appearance. "My apologies for my rude behavior. You caught me off-guard with your bold greeting. My name is Crowley and this boy here is Ziru," he spoke politely.

I asked Fenris to stand down before bowing at the duo.

"Domo (hello), my name is Lucian and my fluffy companion is Fenris."

"Excuse me for my rudeness but I can't help but question your pairing. I never thought I'd see an Ancient standing so peacefully with another beast outside the Xoba Republic. What makes this more interesting is that you are of Royal Blood," he commented.

His polite tone and his relaxed stance showed that he didn't mean any harm to his words.

"And how unusual it is for a Hanuman to tame himself right after being triggered," Garrison spoke from behind us.

He was followed by the chief as he broke through the crowd.

Crowley gasped at the view of Garrison. His hostility rose back.

"You... I know you! You turned my comrades into ashes during the war!"

Garrison stopped beside me, possessing indifference despite the smile on his face.

"Yes, that I am. And if you had charged against my Lord, you could have ended at the same fate as your deceased peers. "

The Hanuman tensed and clenched his hands. "The day has finally arrived to avenge them."

Fenris pulled me away from standing in between them. The wolf did not release me this time.

"Oh?" Garrison teased.

He raised his hands that turned ashen gray as if they lost all blood circulation on purpose.

I never thought I'd see Garrison involve himself in a fight. He had always been graceful and delicate with his way of speaking and moving.

Before it could escalate any further, Ziru shielded Crowley with his smaller form.

"Wait, I know that Crowley looks like a barbarian with all the potential characteristics of a bandit. He is a real pain in the ass, ask me, I know!"

"Warugaki! (Brat!)" Crowley hissed.

"But please don't kill him...Maybe later when I'm okay on my own."

Garrison looked amused.

"So I can kill him once he is no longer useful to you?"

"Yes, " the boy boldly answered.

"Chikushou... (Son-of-a-bitch) don't just decide for me!" Crowley strangled Ziru in his arm.

Garrison turned around, paying no more attention to the duo.

"Come Your Highness, our job here is done. We should go back to the headquarters and wait for Lucius and the others to arrive from the fairy villages."

Fenris nudged my hand, urging me to get on his back.

"Wait, you have people in the villages?!" Ziru questioned out loud.

He broke away from Crowley's grasp and ran in front of Garrison.

"Yes, what of it?"

"Please, can you send people to the village of Ecrin? My papa and the other Sky Hoods are there. We need your help!"

"Ecrin is already a ghost village," a villager from the crowd spoke up.

Another one decided to feed the child a dish called: Bitter Reality. "Everyone in there is either dead or seeking refuge here. If you didn't find your papa here then his soul has already been collected by the Reaper."

"Oi!" Crowley snarled at the villager's insensitive way of speaking.

The fairy had a bitter expression on him, indicating that he wasn't being frank just for the joy of seeing a child upset and hurt.

Garrison sighed and knelt in front of the boy.

"I am deeply sorry. Ecrin is very close to the capital of the Vosredal Empire. I am in no way aiming to scar your already scarred heart, however, realistically speaking, there is nothing left to go back for."

Ziru's jaw was clenched shut. His eyes swelled up with tears.

I dislike seeing a child like this. Seeing him deflate and have his childish ideals get attacked by the mature placed weight on my chest.

When you live in a world like this one, being a child cannot be used as an excuse for being spared by the wicked.

"How can you just give up without trying?!" he yelled at him.

He took the highest leap that I had never seen in my life, becoming a mere dot in the skies.

My lips curled into a small smile.

But being an ignorant child, you had things that most adults had long lost and had long forgotten. I wished I had that when I was his age— the hope that could inspire.

Garrison rose up, placing his hand on his chest.

"Because trying will only hurt you even more..." he murmured sadly.

But giving up would only fill you with regrets.

The mere dot in the skies descended at an increased rate.

"What is that idiot doing?!" Crowley snarled.

Instead of landing straight to the ground, Ziru had something else planned that none of us expected.

"Your Highness!" Garrison gasped.

Ah...

Everyone was getting smaller and I was getting peculiarly higher from the ground.

Someone finally accepted my hand.