About an hour later, after the last man at the table finally succumbed to the drinks and slumped over, Walter walked out of the hall as if nothing had happened.
Bera and Arsh followed him.
After walking in silence for a while, they turned onto another street. Finally, Walter stopped and waited for the others to catch up. Despite the overwhelming scent of alcohol coming from him, his eyes looked completely sober.
"Jim Sterling, Terry Vance, Frank Halloway... Those are their names. They're responsible for the security of The Minister of Colonies' estate. They called their team leader's name as Captain Thorne. Today was their day off. They came here to spend the bonus they got from their last job. But when I asked what that job was, they wouldn't talk. No matter how much I beat around the bush, I couldn't get anything more out of them..."
"A memory siuni?" Bera asked.
"Most likely. It was as if something was jammed between the gears in their heads—whenever they reached the same point, they just got stuck. All three of them."
"What is a memory siuni?" Arsh asked.
"Someone with a memory siuni can distort another person's memories… like what happened with Mary Lowe. Memories about Apeirilomos was erased from her mind. She forgot the part where she stayed in a library with an ancient creature. They filled the gaps in her memory with fabricated things. Now, she believes she was kidnapped."
"So, are you saying these men don't remember what happened in Kurshan?"
"I don't think so. It felt more like they remember, but they are physically unable to speak of it. I've heard it can be used to prevent someone from being able to express their thoughts properly," Walter said.
"At least we have names now. We can start the investigation easily. I'll leave a message for Herman first. You two return to the manor," Bera said, before turning onto a different street.
Although Walter clearly had little desire to go back, he went with Arsh. They found a carriage and traveled in silence for a while. Arsh felt like there was something different about Walter. He looked as if he were thinking about something. Unlike his usual cheerful self, he stared blankly out the window, his head resting against it. Arsh saw no reason to break the silence.
After a moment, Walter finally spoke.
"I heard your story… Were those men the ones who killed your family and villagers?"
Everyone had heard what happened to Arsh. However, this didn't bother him at all, because in the manor, everyone had a similar story to tell.
"Yes," Arsh replied.
"If it were me... If it were me, I would have ripped their heads off right then and there," Walter said. His voice was deep and raspy.
"You're lucky. At least you know where to go for revenge and exactly who your target is. I envy you."
"What?" Arsh muttered. Even though he hadn't known Walter for long, this wasn't the kind of talk he expected from him—especially after the show he had just put on. It felt as if they were about to have a serious conversation.
Then, Walter smiled and turned away from the window to look at Arsh. He looked a bit more like his usual self again.
"Sorry, I shouldn't have said you're lucky. There is nothing lucky about your situation... but you know what I mean. None of us are truly as 'lucky' as you, because none of us have a place to go back to—not even you, of course. What makes you luckier than the rest of us is simply that you know exactly who you're after. Everyone here has a story. Bera, Mes—you've met Juan, he has one too. Even Professor Reiner and Herman. They may seem more fortunate than the others, but they still have their own stories."
Arsh hadn't really thought about anyone else since the day he left the desert. From that moment on, he hadn't wondered about anyone's story, nor had he asked. But, of course, that didn't mean he hadn't noticed. Mes and Bera were orphans. Juan wasn't even from Symran. Life here probably wasn't easy for him. His teammate, Eliz, didn't exactly look like a lucky woman either, with all the scars on her body. He didn't have much of an idea about the others. Although Mes had mentioned a thing or two about Professor Reiner before, he had carefully avoided going into detail.
It was true. Arsh already knew that everyone had a story. But for now, his own story was what mattered most—his father's, his grandfather's, and the people he had grown up with. That was what had brought them all together on this path. Still, that didn't mean he didn't care, or that he would refuse to help the others if their goals ever aligned.
"So, what's your story?" Arsh asked.
"Hm… mine?… Mes must have told you about how I ended up with a siuni." Walter let out a short laugh.
"My father and Professor Reiner were friends... After my father was assassinated, the Professor started looking after me. Actually, they tried to kill me along with my father. I was right there with him when he was killed. But Professor Reiner rescued me just as I was on the brink of death... I did have a mother, but because Professor Reiner made it look like I had died, I never had the chance to see her again. And I had a younger sister. She was a newborn back then... I heard that my mother passed away last year, and my uncle is the one raising my sister now. She lives in the countryside. She has red hair, just like me. We both look like our father, I guess."
He was smiling as if he were recalling a beautiful memory.
"Maybe one day you'll go back," Arsh said.
"I don't think so. I can't put them in danger."
"Maybe one day, when everything is over… when there's no threat left."
"Do you really think a day like that will ever come?"
"Isn't that what you're working for? FFSD... It took me a while to learn what it stood for—Fight for Sunny Days."
Walter burst into laughter, with nothing left of his earlier somber mood. Even though Arsh still couldn't figure out what kind of danger Walter was talking about, or who killed his father and why, he hoped there would be a day in the future when everything would be resolved. He hoped it for all of them.
"I hate that name. Really. Do you know who came up with it?"
"No. Who?"
"I won't tell you. I hope you can meet them yourself. Though I am not sure you will get along well" he said, continuing to giggle to himself.
They continued talking in a lighter mood for the rest of the ride home. By the time they arrived, it was close to midnight. Both of them headed to their own rooms.
That night, Arsh slept easily, feeling that he was finally closing in on his goal—and that his revenge was no longer so far away.
However, it didn't take long for his pleasant dreams to turn into nightmares again.
...
Arsh continued to spend his days in a steady routine. He worked in the library with Mes, and occasionally, they would go out to tour the city. His training sessions with Bera had grown even more intense, and now, Walter and Herman would sometimes join them as well.
Resisting Herman's mind control was incredibly difficult. Arsh usually trained with him at the end of the day—not because of Herman's schedule, but simply because after each session, he lacked the strength to even lift a finger.
Training with Walter, on the other hand, was relatively easy. The training Arsh had received in the desert was mostly about sharpening his senses, so it wasn't that difficult for him to predict Walter's attacks. However, even though Arsh could handle most of his strikes, Walter was far from weak—contrary to his appearance.
The most difficult training sessions were the ones he had with Bera. Bera was gradually making the training harder and increasing the power of his attacks. Although Arsh could feel that his body and fighting techniques were improving, he was well aware that it still wasn't enough.
Herman's attacks caused physical fatigue that could be resolved with some rest and sleep. However, after almost every training session with Bera, Mes had to drag him to Professor Reiner for treatment. Although Arsh found this embarrassing, Reiner always treated him without refusing. The cracks, bruises, and injuries on his body would disappear completely within minutes.
A few days after finding Millway's guards with Bera, everyone was gathered at the breakfast table again. Professor Reiner sat at the head of the table, with Bera and Walter to his right and left. Mes sat next to Bera. This arrangement seemed settled now. Arsh took his place beside Walter. They had their breakfast with brief conversations.
Toward the end of breakfast, Professor Reiner turned to Arsh.
"Herman gathered information about those men you found. He will stop by here in the afternoon. Until then, don't go anywhere today."
"We will be in the library today," Arsh said as he sipped his tea. He had been waiting for this news impatiently over the past few days.
Then, Professor Reiner asked a question that Arsh hadn't expected so soon
"Arsh, what do you say about joining our team? Becoming an official part of us."