Exchanging Pleasantries

The innkeeper has cleaned up all the tables including ours, all the people who came her for some dinner have already left.

While everyone else went up to their rooms, the eleven youths were still in the dining area, conversing about something that made the atmosphere rather tense and heated.

"Must be the ol' young adventurer quarrels, I mustn't intervene..."

The old innkeeper muttered to himself as he cleaned up the dishes and packed some stuff away.

...

There were now only six people around the table where they were interrogating a certain someone.

Zhao Lina, Wang Zihan, the young farmer who introduced himself as Roan, Yoru, and the two twins.

Roan and Zhao Lina only listened and rarely intervened or asked their own questions, the only one talking currently, are Yoru and Wang Zihan.

"Have you awakened yet?"

"No."

"Do you know who that red ogre was?"

"I do not."

Wang Zihan clicked his tongue quietly as he examined the person Infront of him, he didn't show signs of hesitation or feeling pressured. He was calm, not hesitating or taking too long to answer.

This was one of the few times he couldn't read people's intentions, and it infuriated him.

He let out a sigh and then continued asking more questions.

"What is your name?"

"Yoru."

"Hm? Your name is just Yoru? Are you hiding your family name?"

"I am not."

Thud!

One of the twins grew impatient and slammed his hands down on the table.

"Just tell us, or are you hiding something that you don't want us to know!?"

The young farmer and Zhao Lina looked at the twin, along with his older brother and Wang Zihan.

He huffed impatiently and sat back down.

"I do have a family name."

"Then spit it out." Said Wang Zihan as he leaned in a bit, waiting for Yoru's answers.

Yoru looked calm as usual, not showing a shred of emotion...

"I used to be called Yoru Veylar, or Yoru Vaylith. But that was when I was a toddler."

Wang Zihan and the twins didn't know or even recognize the name Veylar and Vaylith, could he be making them up?

The three of the were about to accuse him without evidence until Zhao Lina spoke:

"Ah. Caelus Veylar and Althea Vaylith, right?"

Wang Zihan and the twins turned turned to look at her, who somehow recognize the names.

Yoru gave her glance, tearing his gaze away from the three people he deemed annoying in the near future.

"Correct, those are my mother and father."

"Oh!!"

Roan let out a gasp and turned to Yoru, a surprised expression on his face as he smiled widely.

"Who knew your parents would be popular! We've heard stories of them y'know? My father was actually saved by your mother, and my mother was saved and almost fell for your father!"

He let out a heart laugh as he said those, I nodded and then said, "My father does have a reputation for making girls fall for him, your mother was lucky to almost fall for him."

Wang Zihan and his closest friends were confused and furrowed their brows.

They have not at all heard of this Caelus Veylar and Althea Vaylith before, how come Zhao Lina and this farmer boy knew of these people?

They were about to ask more questions, feeling infuriated but Zhao Lina cut them off:

"Wang Zihan."

"Huh? What?"

"Don't tell me you don't know who Caelus Veylar and Althea Vaylith, they are rather well known."

She said evenly and stared at him with her crimson eyes, she sighed seeing Wang Zihan's still confused look and then added:

"Althea Vaylith, a wonderful combat healer and a spectacular mage who's an B-Rank. Caelus Veylar, known as Silent Flash, swordmage who's feared and also looked up to by both warriors and swordmage's, B-Rank."

Hearing this, Wang Zihan was still confused not at all hearing of these two people. The twins were the same as they both looked at Zhao Lina confused.

She sighed once more and folded her arms, she then spoke again, this time in a much colder tone as if to educate these three people.

" You three only know of those who are rising at the same status, or even those well known clans... This ignorance is why people only admire you for looks, wealth, influence, and power."

She tore her gaze back to the youth named Yoru, still looking as calm as ever, she addressed him in a less hostile tone:

" I have one question, atleast just as important than theirs, may I proceed?"

She asked.

Yoru looked taken aback slightly, his eyes grew a bit wide but disappeared as quickly as it appeared.

He opened his mouth but closed it again, suddenly feeling awkward.

" You... You don't need to be so formal, Lady Zhao. It does not fit well with me, a commoner..."

She lightly scoffed as if offended and then said, " You are being formal as well are you not? And you still haven't answered my question."

Wang Zihan's friends rolled their eyes and stood up to leave.

Wang Zihan was infuriated.

He tried to get along well with with the Zhao family's heir and successor, hopefully getting married and joining their families together.

And here was some random commoner who suddenly got out of the formalities zone.

He could still remember the past exchange that he and Zhao Lina had...

– Hey, Lina! Wanna—

– Acting like we're buddy buddy, know your place.

– Wha... But...

– Just because our families mutually get along doesn't mean you have the right to speak informally with me, scram.

Tsk...

All that happened a mere one year ago, and he was never able to get closer or get on her good side.

.

Yoru nodded, allowing Zhao Lina to proceed with her questions.

"Can I trust you?"

Yoru lingered unnecessarily, making him look hella suspicious and answered:

"Yes."

She nodded and then asked another question.

"What made you go into the forest and find the clearing?"

"I was told that there was something by its center."

Wang Zihan couldn't bare to watch the two exchange pleasantries thinking it's bad for his heart to feel that way it was feeling.

Finally.

Zhao Lina was about to ask her final question...

"Will..."

"Hey Mr. Wang, Ms. Zhao, there's a message sent—"

The commoners along with the twins who left returned to the dining room at the wrong time.

Zhao Lina did not pause her words:

"... You be my partner?"

"..."

"..."

"..."

The silence was deafening, every was speechless.

The young farmer and the two girls... The twins and the other three...

Wang Zihan was also at a loss for words.

Yoru didn't show much of a reaction but he was also confusing and questioning his entire life right now.

"What the fu—" is what he thought before he snapped himself out of his spaced out state.

"Uhh... I thought we were just exchanging pleasantries?"

He asked with a calm tone of voice making everyone think he wasn't flabbergasted as hell.

Zhao Lina, who still had her straight and soul piercing gaze, raised an eyebrow and stepped closer.

Lending out a hand, she then spoke:

"We still are of course. This is the norm for the Zhao family," she lingered and paused for a moment.

Yoru took her hand and shook it.

She let out a hmph of satisfaction and suddenly gripped his hand tightly.

"You better not go back on it, oh partner."

I'm about to piss my pants, what the actual...

Showing not a single sign of being hurt, Yoru nodded.

"W... Wouldn't dare think of it..."

Zhao Lina let go of his hand and flicked her white hair to the side as she walked passed him and turned to the other people she deemed her mutual comrades.

"So? What is it?"

She asked, her tone became it's usual cold and indifferent tone as she addressed those who called to her.

One of the commoners of Wang Zihan's group hesitated before stepping up.

He then spoke in a nervous tone.

"We were invited to the village elders residence tomorrow morning..."

Wang Zihan who was silent the entire time finally chimed in.

"Why? What for?"

The young youth coughed awkwardly, suddenly getting the attention of the two very captivating people...

"Something about how we awakened something horrifying..."

He paused, then read the last bit.

"It also says here that there was someone looking for a young boy with black hair and bright silver eyes..."