Chapter 33:

Different Kind of Ride... Maybe (?)

WRZ

Seiza and Zeed's Adventure in the Real World - Seiza POV
This was my first time ordering food at a food stall, but HIS FIRST time too. I didn't expect much, but the nervousness overwhelmed me.

"Zeed, seriously. Are we really doing this?" I asked him because I wasn't sure. I continued, "I mean, we don't know these people. Are we seriously trusting them to make our food?"

There were a few minutes of silence. Then he answered, "We have to trust them."

I thought, "What? That's your encouragement speech?"

But then he continued, "They also struggle like us. We might not trust their food, but we can't just see struggling businesses and ignore it in this day and age. They are surviving the World Dawn like us, after all. Their finances might be depleting too."

"Such a Zeed mindset." I thought while looking away from him.

We were currently on our way to one of the stalls. I read the sign "AYAM BAKAR". I spelt it out loud: "Grilled Chicken."

Zeed commented on my spontaneous spelling, "Somehow... I missed you uncorrectly spelt things."

"Huh?" I wasn't expecting him to say that. "What do you mean by that?"

He took a deep breath and said, "Did you forget what you call this word?"
"... Huh?"
"Pettok Gelap"

I got chilled. I was embarrassed. I looked away, covered my red face, and squatted. I said quietly, "I hate my past self."

"DON'T SAY THAT!" I wasn't aware that Zeed was already on my shoulder. "Don't say you hate yourself. It is a part of you, and you are beautiful the way you are! Don't ever humble your old self!"

I peeked at my shoulder, and he looked so concerned. He continued his speech, "Sei, listen to me. I reminisce about this moment not to embarrass you. I want you to understand that you are loved even at your lowest. You are a strong woman, so keep being strong! Don't be embarrassed!"

This might be the first time I ever heard someone encourage my past self. It felt really weird, especially coming from Zeed.

I struggled to answer, "I... Wha... Wait, what?" I was coming back to my senses.

He grabbed my right hand and said, "Trust me. I want to be a good leader here. You're not alone facing this embarrassment. I am too."

I smiled and stood up. I answered, "Right... Be proud of myself."
"Great." He still grabbed my right hand with his left hand. At that moment, he pointed with his right hand to the food stall and said, "Now, let's get some food to eat, okay?"

I kept on smiling and said, "Sure. Let's go."

I had no idea what happened, but somehow, my heart beat like crazy. What is this feeling? There is no way, right?

We arrived at the stall, and Zeed immediately let go of my hand. He looked at me, pointed out a seat, and said, "Where should we have a seat?"

I scanned the place and pointed at the very back of the stall. "There!"
"Alright, go ahead and sit down. Let me take care of the ordering."
I lowered my hand. "Wait, do you even know what I'm ordering?"
"... Sei, there is just one menu here. You literally said it out loud just before."
"Oh... right."

I walked to our seat and waited for Zeed to get our order. I waited for a short while before eating dinner with Zeed. It was a great experience...

Until...

"EEEK!" Zeed got jolted.
"Zeed! You okay?"
"Sorry... Jordan just called."
"Oh..."

Let's take a detour with Jordan and Narmi - Jordan POV
It had been a day since I left town with Harold's daughter, Narmi, for a place I had never heard of before. A bunker in the middle of nowhere. The place where that witch was born.

"Uncle... I'm scared." Without my Aura Intensity, I could tell she was anxious.
"Don't worry, sweetheart. Uncle is here."
"No. I wasn't scared of that. I was scared of the thing you said before we hit the pedal!"

What did she...?

"Your phone, Uncle! Didn't you say you forgot to charge your phone? How could we be sure where to go? I don't have a phone! We could get lost, you know?"

Well, she wasn't technically wrong. I should've planned this out more carefully. It wasn't like you, Jordan. You were literally ALWAYS keeping an eye on planning. What happened to you now?

"Uncle?"
"What is it, sweetheart?"
"You haven't answered."

I still wondered why I became a babysitter.

"We'll see as time goes on, okay. I don't know yet."
"It's not encouraging, Uncle." She looked at me, disappointed.

I refocused on the road ahead. Clouds were starting to darken, and I was still at the toll. I still had no clue where we were heading. All I knew was that the witch gave me coordinates, and God Damn it! It was such a fucking long trip.

"Uncle, I'm starting to feel dozy."
"Then go to the back. Cross over the middle."
"Alright."

She leaned over the middle and moved toward the back of the car. After looking at the rearview mirror, she immediately settled down to sleep. I had to make sure she was asleep first while still driving. Ahh... The cost of being a babysitter. What a nightmare this is.

"Be sure to still put a seatbelt on, Narmi."
"I know, Uncle. You don't need to tell me."

Well, without her talking, it would be a little lonely. I might as well find a rest area to rest and fill up the gas.

... But I had no idea about this fucking road! I haven't even seen a big sign that said rest area. This would be a disaster; I kept going. Should I just stop at the outer road of the toll? Would that be a problem?

... Ah, fuck it! Let's just ball it!

I found a nice place to stop and thought about my next move. But that was when I thought about something.

"Yo! ZEED! How was it going?"

"EEEK!"

"Sounded like you got jolted again, huh?

"Sorry... Jordan just called."

"Oh, you with someone? Is that Tasyah?"

"What do you want, chatterbox?"

"Ouch! I wasn't that talkative, am I? Especially this week. You hurt my feelings, Zeed."

"If you don't have anything to say, I will cut off our communication."

I paused and digested his words. I shouted, "YOU WHAT?"

"HEY! STOP THAT! My brain can't take many wavelengths you're sending."