Ersia: Raven Dawn

"Aight, let's talk about the two of them then. They are inseparable anyway," Theo replied.

The sun is now smoothened and the air gets even colder. The town bell rings sixteen times, marking the nearing twilight. Despite the wind, Viena feels nothing but warmth with her new friends gathering around her. Her soul longed for this, but she never had the time to realize that she was. Sweet cookies, a slightly dusty pillow, and the fresh fragrant smell of Sea Envoy roses make everything exceedingly pleasant, even in such a seemingly rundown place.

"Asmar and Randia. Gold and silver. Sun and moon. Dawn and Dusk. The two of a kind, the entangled divergence. While Asmar is cherished and admired for his bright smile and exceedingly genial attitude, Randia is feared and respected for his coldness and unwavering conviction."

"It is said that the author himself, Lord Zabir Ibn Abou Hattin, had asked a question to two of them on a separate occasion.

This is his question:

'You are wandering the land and find out that there's a princess of a nearby country taken hostage by a powerful dragon that somehow fell in love with her. The damsel is unhappy and she is crying out loud to the starry night from the window of her room on the top of a tower, wishing for salvation. Her cries and malady are so heartwrenching that it makes her father, the king of the country, always sends hundreds of knights every year to free her. What would you do?'" Theo turns his eyes on Viena.

"It's a classic trope. Damsel in distress and her dragon knight that ended up marrying and living happily ever after," Lisabelle remarked, knowing that Viena is new to linguistics and its various styles.

"Asmar answered: 'Dialogue is preferable. Though it's going to be hard since it's a dragon, still, we must try. Only resort to a contest when we know that words couldn't do what swords could. Three healthy men and my brother, and there's nothing we can't do.'

His words are reassuring and full of confidence. Fitting of himself as the vanquisher of the dark. The Lightbringer that he is."

"Aagh! You sound so monotonous, it lost all the vibes and meanings! Gimme that!"

Lisabelle who couldn't stand the way Theo reads, ran out of patience. She took the book for herself and pushed the boy's face away. They quack at each other for a while before Gina butt in with a glass of milk for Theo, and the story finally resumes.

"However, Randia answered differently, he said: 'There is nothing to lose but one.' The answer fills my well of questions to the brim, and now I know the depths of the hearts of the two that the Western goddess had chosen"

"I don't understand," Viena raises an eyebrow, puzzled by the difficult rhetoric.

"Lord Zabir believes that Randia's answer means that he will kill the captive princess," Theo pointed to a line on the said page.

"Huh?! Why would he?!"

"Because the princess herself is the source of tragedies. Without the princess, the dragon wouldn't be there, the knights wouldn't have been sent to their deaths, and no more lives would be lost. That's how Randia thinks. He delves into the roots and smite it without hesitation. A true unwavering upholder of the greater good."

"But that's too cruel."

"Perhaps you are right, but his point still stands. Moreover, in many parts of the book, it's clearly implied that he is the type of man who will break before he bends. I mean yeah, except for his brother. That's why the two should not be separated."

A paper slips out when Lisabelle opens the next page. It's a distinct type of paper compared to the rest that was used to make the book. The paper is full of writing, almost unreadable due to the lack of the writer's skill.

"Oh, it's mine! I took notes of how the story goes," Gina took the paper.

"She said that if it weren't for Randia, the party wouldn't be as successful," Gino raised his shoulders.

"There are times that his intuition and judgment saved his companions from the possibility of annihilation and failure. The Monster of  San Mia Mountain, The Great Labyrinth of Kur'ka, and The Temple of Tutiwa, are some of the many chapters where Randia made crucial calls that became a saving grace to all."

As Theo read out for them two out of twenty chapters that are recorded in the book, Viena's chest is aching. Listening to the great adventure of the heroes while knowing the fact that she won't get to know more once they are finished reading it makes her feel frustrated. At that moment, she vows to herself that she will do whatever it takes to be able to read fluently. She can't imagine the world that will be opened to her once she can read the echoes of the past.

"Anyway, since it's getting dark and we still have much to discuss, we'll cut to the chase. Every champion has an artifact and a blessing as a gift from the divine. They are a manifestation of the will of the wielder and a mark of a crusade. However, there's this strange phenomenon regarding the artifacts. Since they are a mark of an era, they are supposed to vanish once the hero's duty has been fulfilled, and it has always been that way since a long time ago."

"You mean, there are other older heroes before the heroes?" Viena intrigued.

"Yes. We're in the fourth age, which means there are three crusades before the last one. Queen Fionalda belongs to the third age, and it was around 270-something years ago, I think? Though not much is known about the first two ages," Gino answered.

"It's so mysterious no matter how many times I heard it! I always get goosebumps every time!" Gina grins and shakes her face.

"Right?! That's why the trophy for the tournament is such a surprise! The Sword of Asmar, Solus."

"Only Asmar? What about Randia?" Viena asked.

"The thing is . . . even though both of the twins are blessed by Ruala, only Asmar possessed an artifact, and there's no explanation for it. It's also for that reason that people considered Asmar to be the true chosen champion of Ruala on top of the difference in attitude between the brothers. The same goes for their respect for them."

"Alright, that's it!"

Theo suddenly put his hand on the middle of the page and ended their storytelling session. Viena looked a little bit disappointed, but she couldn't do anything about it. Gino and Gina cheered her up, saying that she was welcome to drop by anytime she wanted to read the book.

"Now that you get the big picture, pipsqueak, it's time to focus," Theo brings a big blackboard and his stash of chalk.

"The guy tells us that there will be a total of 12 participating nations, competing in 9 sports that are divided into 41 Events for 40 days long … and the good-ass hero sword as the grand prize. Then, there's also this issue about a big betting event, y'all have heard of that?"

"Yeah, I have," Lisabelle nodded.

"No, we don't," Gino shook his head.

"No, we don't," Gina shook her head.

Theo smirks and takes a big piece of paper from his bag that lies under the blackboard. He asked for Gino's help to put it up so that everyone could see. When the content is laid bare, it's every bit of a surprise to Lisabelle who quickly assesses what Theo has cooked up on his own during her absence. She even held out her breath for a moment, taken aback by what the bot had presented before her.

"Ha! Damn you, Theo. This much in such a short amount of time? You're getting better, I'll give you that," Lisabelle smirked also.

Now that the two looked like top-notch master criminals scheming their rotten agendas, the other three just looked at each other and waited for someone to clear up the sky for them.