Chapter 101 - 99 — Women
"Weak... like your sister?"
A flicker of shock passed through Guren’s gaze, but he quickly masked it with a laugh.
"Haha... you’re a funny one. I didn’t know Calderalth warriors were the humorous type." He said, shaking his head before turning toward the tavern.
"...but my sister... you’re right, she could be considered weak. But she’s family. You can’t help but worry about them. Sometimes the weak don’t know when to stop, or when they’ve gone too far. So sometimes..." he let out a faint breath, a cold smile forming.
"...you have to decide it for them. Better they break by your hand than die by someone else’s."
"..."
"Guren, come join us!"
"Yeah, you’re getting drunk to death today!"
As Guren pushed himself off the wall, Zephyrion caught that same familiar scent again. This time, the heavy stench of alcohol mixed with it, making it harder to identify.
"It was a pleasure speaking with you." Guren said with a smile. "I hope you take my advice. You’ll start enjoying things like this more afterwards."
With that, he turned and left. Zephyrion’s gaze lingered on him in silence.
The remorse he had shown his father earlier at the field had been an act. Zephyrion had sensed no deceit in Guren’s words just now. Though nothing had been stated outright, the intent was unmistakable.
’So it was intentional.’
The Drogoth hadn’t overwhelmed Guren’s construct, he had let it pass. He had wanted it to reach his sister.
Whatever his reasons were, Zephyrion had yet to uncover them.
...
The banquet dulled to a natural end. Snores from many drunk hunters echoed through the night.
Zephyrion moved through the now-quiet village. The moon hung full above, its pale light washing everything in an ethereal silver.
Aside from the snores, he could still hear the distant murmur of villagers praying fervently to the Iron Father.
He used the quiet of the night to think. The talented village head’s son. A familiar scent. The oddity of the mutated beasts. There was a connection there, he could feel it. Yet he was still missing a few pieces to make it all come together.
Zephyrion’s gaze narrowed slightly as he sensed a presence trailing him.
’She came.’
He gave a subtle inward nod. He had separated from Fiona and the others for precisely this reason.
Without breaking stride, he shifted direction, turning into a corner.
...
’Hm?’
Hidden within the shadow of a building, Jenna frowned. She had been trailing Zephyrion, and he had suddenly changed direction.
This wasn’t the path back to his quarters.
’Where’s he going?’
Deciding to observe first and question later, Jenna followed, using the metal element to suppress any sound from her movements. As he turned into a corner, she paused briefly before moving after him.
In the next moment, he eyes widened. Zephyrion had vanished.
Her gaze darted around, searching...
"Why are you following me?"
Jenna froze instantly. The voice cut through her like a blade, and she only then realized her heart had begun to pound.
’How did he notice!?’
She had concealed her presence perfectly. Not even her brother would have been able to detect her.
Forcing herself to steady, Jenna gathered her composure and slowly turned.
Under the pale silver light, a pair of still, purple eyes regarded her calmly.
Under that gaze, she suddenly felt completely exposed.
’What is this?’
Zephyrion simply stared at her, yet the calm in his gaze made her feel inexplicably uneasy. The image of him effortlessly killing the Drogoth flashed in her mind, unbidden.
Jenna forced a smile to her face.
"...nice night, isn’t it...?"
"...you’ve been following me since I left the tavern. Why?"
Jenna’s eyes widened slightly. So it wasn’t that he had just caught her, he had known all along.
"...I just wanted to say thank you for saving us today. And... I wanted to repay you..."
"There’s no need. I didn’t do it for that."
"Even though—!" Jenna quickly stopped herself, lowering her voice. "...I’m a Tome. I was raised to repay my debts. In Pulsegrove, a woman who owes a man usually gives herself to repay it, but... I don’t want that. So... aside from that, you can ask for anything."
Jenna looked at Zephyrion expectantly, but his face remained expressionless, like a block of ice.
"...I don’t want anything."
The words struck Jenna harder than she expected, and she couldn’t stop the disappointment that rose within her.
Weren’t men supposed to be brazen? Even if she hadn’t offered herself, she had still expected him to ask for something. Yet he refused everything without hesitation.
"...if that is all, then..."
As Zephyrion turned to leave, Jenna’s eyes widened and she blurted,
"Wait—"
Zephyrion halted, a faint light flickering through his eyes.
’I was right, it wasn’t me.’
Back at the tavern, Zephyrion had only felt Jenna’s gaze on him when Guren approached him.
Which meant she hadn’t been watching him from the start, but her brother. Which meant she had been following him because of that conversation.
As he turned toward her, Jenna clenched her fists, as though gathering her courage.
"My brother... I saw you two talking."
"So?"
"...what were you talking about?"
Zephyrion stared at her in silence for several moments, the weight of his gaze making her shift slightly where she stood. Finally, he spoke;
"He was worried about you."
"...worried?"
A flicker of warmth passed through her eyes, only to be smothered by a sneer the next instant.
’She cares. But doesn’t believe he does.’
"...yes." Zephyrion gave a calm nod. "...yeah. You keep putting yourself in danger. Sneaking into the forest after being warned not to... then coming back with absurd stories about what you saw."
Grit!
Jenna’s jaw tightened, her gaze turning fierce. "...so that’s it? All of this... just because I’m a woman."
Zephyrion could feel the anger rolling off her. In villages cut off from major society, it wasn’t unusual to see customs like this.
Since arriving, he had already noticed the complete absence of female hunters. It was clear enough, the women here weren’t truly regarded as warriors.