Masked Faces [DISCOUNTINUE]

[The Past]

Give me meaning
--Cale Henituse

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Remembering the past wasn't always something Cale wanted. Not something he would think about easily, for he always lived for the present and never more, whether it was looking to the past or looking far into the future.

He prefers to think about the taste of the food that goes into his mouth, the sneers he hears every time he gets into trouble, or simply how comfortable his bed is that he doesn't want to leave at all.

However, for once he was very tempted to stand up and leave that damned bed to burn.

First, too much sleep was terrible, the heat was burning from his own body and burning his back, besides the nightmares that were starting to bother him made a real problem.

"Young Master did you have a bad dream?"

Why did Ron have to be there when he woke up shocked and covered in cold sweat?! He was very dissatisfied with how the world arranged all of this to happen.

"No." Out with gritted teeth. He closed his eyes so as not to see Ron's reaction or reveal his own emotions. Too much for him to bear.

However, a moment later Cale could feel the bare hands that had taken off their furry gloves were doing a very gentle massage on Cale's temples, he felt somewhat surprised by the sudden touch.

But, as the throbbing pain continued, the massage helped calm his tense nerves.

"Are you feeling better?" And the touch disappeared after a few minutes of massaging his forehead.

Cale opened his eyes, he wasn't aware because he had slept all day, however, it was apparently dark outside his window. It was darker because the lights had also been turned off, which meant it was quite late.

Cale frowned when he realized something strange. "Aren't you sleeping, Ron?"

In the dark, Cale could still feel Ron's shock. But the voice that answered him was calm, as if deciding that this was nothing unusual.

"Later," said Ron, curtly and simply without the proper etiquette.

If this was the usual Cale, he would probably be sending sharp glares, unfortunately he had no desire to put his attention on something insignificant. So Cale simply ignored him and made another request.

"Sleep next to me."

He closed his eyes again.

"Sorry?"

"My head hurts, do it again."

Cale really enjoyed how his old callused fingers were pressing on his nerves and easing the throbbing pain. Of course he wasn't so indifferent to confessing.

Finding no movement next to him, Cale opened his eyes. "Go on." There was no refusal, that was the expression he wore.

Ron's disbelief was evident from the look on his face, though perhaps only Cale could notice the subtle change in expression.

***

Seeing a familiar face, with black hair and Asian features he could vaguely remember, didn't necessarily make Choi Han come to his senses.

The black aura rose again as his anger that had almost subsided rekindled.

Choi Han kicked the ground, accelerating at a speed that his tired body could reach. However, it was undeniable that he was still fast.

The bloodstained sword was raised in the air ready to slash the young man's throat if he didn't back away and jump back outside the wall.

Choi Han chased after him and jumped over the wall, that's when he heard the young man or teenager cursing while running.

"Damn it!"

As if an off button was being pressed on his head, Choi Han paused.

Honestly, that wasn't a good word to start with, but the accent that sounded in his ears was very familiar, and Choi Han had waited decades, and had lost hope, to hear something from his hometown.

Choi Han's pupils trembled, his voice choked at the base of his throat, "Korean." His voice came out with a quiver, a strange mix of his West Continent speaking style and Korean.

As he was preoccupied with his thoughts, the young man quickly fled, Choi Han's eyelids widening even more.

"Wait!"

***

"By the way, what date is today?"

Cale asked on the sidelines as Ron massaged his head again.

"It will be the 29th day of the 3rd month of the year 781 of Felix's calendar in 15 minutes." Ron answered calmly, although it was strange for Cale to ask about the day.

"Ron are you sleepy?"

Another weird question.

"Not really, Young Master."

"Then let's go."

Ron blinked.

"Sorry?"

Cale sat down, ignoring how the world was starting to turn again.

"Help me up." Cale didn't feel in the state to do much, especially with the malnutrition from not eating too much.

Ron held his hands and shoulders, after a few steps it wasn't as hard as he thought, easy to adjust.

"Do you want to go to the bathroom?"

Cale didn't answer, instead he walked straight for the door while Ron was still holding him.

Ron watched him leave the room, guiding him every step of the way until they finally arrived at the stables.

"What are we doing here, Young Master?"

Was Cale perhaps going insane? The probability wasn't zero, and Cale's behavior had really gone out of his way.

"Ron, get the carriage ready, we're going out."

"Now?"

"Yes. Oh and prepare knight to come along."

His command tone wasn't anything out of the ordinary, but some of his newfound sharpness was disturbing.

"Young Master it's the middle of the night, why do you want to go out? I suggest you to go back inside and wait until morning if you really want to go out."

"Just do it, Ron."

The sharpness of the look in Cale's eyes was more shocking in comparison.

Ron sighed, it seemed he had no choice.

His left hand that was originally on Cale's shoulder moved to the nape of his neck and intended to make him faint. It was a move that was fast enough that a person without martial training like Cale would miss.

Unfortunately Ron did not anticipate the teenager would bend over, twisting his body while still holding Ron's right arm and behind him.

To be honest, Ron could have avoided it all, but part of him was too shocked and part of him wanted to see where this would end.

"I can't believe you were that easy on me, Ron."

There was something about those words that made Ron wince warily, before his docile smile returned to fullness.

“This old servant is probably rusty, Young Master.”

As Ron turned to see the arrogance he heard in Cale's voice he wasn't prepared for the pale face that was losing its energy.

"I can't believe you said that." The bite in his voice was nothing compared to how he started leaning on him again. "Most importantly, just do as I say, we are leaving now because I don't want father to know."

"Sorry, but you're still not allowed to leave."

At that time Cale's answer was not what Ron liked.

"For God's sake! I just want to go to Harris village!"

...To Be Continued...