[Chapter 27 - Memento Vivere : Remember To Live Pt.1]

The town was bustling. Streets were a constant flow of people and carriages making their way past various storefronts, taverns, and restaurants. When I was here last I never had the opportunity to look beyond the area we first arrived at but now that I could Balor didn't really seem any different than Lindor. The only exception was the large numbers of people in and carrying all kinds of gear.

I could not be sure on the exact amount of time but it began to feel as if I was aimlessly following Reigner for ages. I did not want to be rude but I had spent enough time watching the hospital's cctv channel to know what someone looks like when they are lost.

"Reigner" I spoke up from behind him "Do you know where we are going?"

He stopped facing away from me and a small sigh of defeat left him "No… I don't"

The air was still and a tenseness appeared. We had arrived at a more empty area on the outskirts of the actual city and closer to a clearly residential district. Alongside this was a clear decline in people.

Reigner turned to face me "I'll level with you but first I want to ask you something. What is your perception of me?"

"My perception?" I replied somewhat taken back. In return he simply nodded.

I wasn't sure how to respond. The question was definitely out of the blue to say the least. In the end I decided to just be honest

"Well I mean I don't really have strong feelings since we just met. I guess I see you as a Prince?"

He stared at me blankly. It clearly was not the response he was after so I nervously continued "I assume you're pretty capable though? I mean Leon definitely seemed to respect you. Oh and from what I saw your dad, the king, seemed pretty strong and centered so maybe that?"

His face had drooped and his eyes drifted down as he spoke "How many times have you met him? The king?"

"Just the once and I wouldn't say I really met him, more like I was there while he and everyone else decided what was going to happen with me and my mom"

Reigner let out a scoff like chuckle "Me too"

"On which part?"

He lifted his head and made direct eye contact with me. It was becoming clear that his face was hiding pain and with a broken partial smile he spoke "All of it…"

"What do you mean?? How have you only met him once? You're his son, don't you at least just see him around?"

He shook his head " Have you heard about the other Elven Kingdoms?"

"I mean, I know that a long time ago some of the Elven tribes left in search of new land but I guess I don't really know anything beyond that."

"Mm, well let me fill you in. They were successful, some of them more than others but nevertheless over time they grew into their own becoming entities entirely separate from the FSE and each other. Some of them interact amongst themselves but the common consensus is that none of them want to have relations with FSE."

I stared at him, listening closely as he spoke. Everything he said was interesting but I failed to see how this had to do with us getting lost. For now I'll just continue to listen

"I'm not from Lindor Elwen" his voice became defeated and blunt "I'm not even from this continent. I grew up in a Kingdom called Ren where my mother is queen. The only reason she ever accepted a proposal from my father was out of desperation. Over the last century or so our borders have become increasingly strained by encroaching mana zones and we simply did not have the military power to keep up."

"So your mother was forced into a union by marriage in order to receive the FSE's aid and save your kingdom."

"In theory, yes. When the marriage first happened we thought it was a saving grace. The king deployed his berserkers and they completely wiped the stockpile of monsters that had grown allowing us to make use of the mana zones. But in a short time my father left and his berserkers with him. In their stead came a wave of militia that revealed the FSE's true intention of making us into nothing more than a resource outpost to be used as they saw fit. We had simply replaced one monster with another." he looked me in the eye with a dead serious expression "Look I'm not asking you to just give me a 100% of your trust from the start but at least give me a chance"

I stood frozen, I wasn't sure what to make of everything he just said. "Why me?" I blurted

His expression slightly livened as if he saw something uplifting "If I'm being honest I plan to talk to the third member of our group as well but in short it's because you are the most likely to listen to what I have to say."

I looked at him obviously confused

"You grew up in the middle of nowhere as an exile right? Meaning you're one of the few people on this continent that hasn't spent their whole lives being brought up to worship the FSE. That fact means that you can look at things for what they are. It might be some time before that comes into play but until then all I ask is for you to put a little faith in me and continue to keep your mind open."

"And when the aforementioned time does come?"

His face became more solemn again "I imagine you will be faced with a great decision that will determine how you lead your life. A decision you alone will make."

My chest became a bit heavy. You'd almost think that by this point I'd be used to existential premises' and life altering events. If nothing else the difference with this one was that there was nothing immediate beyond Reigner's request of faith and companionship, both of which I was lacking.

I extended my hand to him "I'm not sure I entirely grasp the situation but if what your asking for is a friend, that much I can do"

A smile formed on his face as he grasped my hand firm with his "I would ask nothing more"

With that handshake I would unknowingly gain both my first, and strongest ally.