27. The Price of Hospitality (4)

Such a horrendous night! I would go so far as to say, this might be the worst night of all nights in the history of nights!

That dumb Sebastian, I hate him! I despise him with all my heart!

These hostile thoughts just would not let me sleep. I got up and walked around the room, drawing circle after circle, but I just could not catch sleep with my eyes.

There was a mirror in my room, and when I passed in front of it, my eyes caught a glimpse of me.

That was me, Nyeander, in the mirror.

My beautiful red eyes! My heroic cavalier hat! My legendary cloak, boots, and trusty blade! And my black bikini...

Despite my proud stance, I could not help but feel embarrassed by the last one. Right, clothes are stupid! They are for human folks, not proud Neko like I!

Yet, with everyone wearing so much armour and clothes, I could not help but feel embarrassed. Standing out of the crowd was ordinary for a mighty bandit like the great Nyeander, but even then, I felt like a weirdo wearing so little around my friends.

Friends? Ah, stupid brain! Don’t you forget, these people are neither mates nor companions! I’m following them simply to assure my return to safety!

Nonetheless what they were, I opened the guest room’s old wardrobe in search of new attire. A thick cloud of dust struck my face as the century-old air escaped from within. Cough, cough. In front of me were old-smelling clothes, littered with dead moths and forgotten spiderwebs.

The clothes came out and went right back in one after another. Clearly, these dumb humans have not thought of someone my size. All the clothes were gigantic!

Such a shame. Some were so pretty, I almost felt jealous for a moment.

Eventually, I found one that fit me, but I wish it had not. An ugly, green sweater with elk-like creatures and a large, fat, red man, carrying a huge bag on his back.

On the back was something along the lines of... Merry Christmas?

What is a Christmas? Is he that fat man on the sweater? They must really like him, I guess.

This sweater was a damn shame, I pondered with a sad face.

However, a revelation was quick to brew in my mind!

“Come on, Nyeander,” spoke my image in the mirror, “This is the perfect opportunity!”

“Shut up, dumb mirror person,” I replied, “You are just in my imagination.”

“Maybe! But even then, I’m here to help! You hate Sebastian, right?”

“Of course! Did you see him? That dumb idiot is the reason why people hate the Neko! They are always like this! Dumb, child-like fools who are no better than ordinary housecats! Why do you think I got so angry? These people give our kind a bad reputation!”

My mirror image smiled devilishly. I could feel it in her eyes. Oh man, this will be good!

“Why don’t you teach him a lesson about good behaviour?” My mirror image winked.

“No! They would have me kicked out. You know how lame is Axel! Any annoyance and he’d have the guards on my tail!”

“Indeed! So how about you turn Sebastian into the annoyance? Go to him with this ugly shirt and let him have a laugh! When he tries to mock you, get upset and beat his ass! Then, you can teach him manners without being on the wrong side.”

“Ah, what a great idea,” I replied with joy, “If he hurts my pride, breaking his nose will be self-defense! Of course, I am not the bad one! He is, for laughing!”

“He has yet to laugh...” My mirror image pointed at the door. “Now go! Beat his ass!”

With a newfound goal, I bolted out the door. Quickly, I slowed my tempo as I realized, the others were already fast asleep. The entire house was dark, with only a candle in my room giving any source of light. I took it with me.

The guest rooms were upstairs, but they had no room left to house Sebastian (thankfully), so he only got to sleep on the couch. Yet, when I sneaked my way into the living room, there was no Sebastian.

The couch still bore the outline of Sebastian’s ass, and the sheets were in a way so I could see he kicked them off. Of course, he could not gently take it off of himself. No, he had to kick it off the couch!

“Where could he be,” I muttered to myself while looking around.

Suddenly, I heard footsteps from the other room. Immediately, I hid my candle under my hand and got behind another sofa.

Gren and her father walked into the kitchen. They each had something big in their arms, but it was too dark for me to see.

“Are you sure you can handle this, sweetheart?” Asked Gren’s father, gathering utensils from the cupboard.

“Of course,” Gren replied with much enthusiasm, “We rarely have a chance at so many exquisite, exotic materials!”

“That’s my girl,” said Gren’s father and gave her a head pat.

There was something captivating about that head pat. A gentle, tiny little show of affection, yet something so warm. A lifetime’s worth of tales masked behind that loving rub, each turning it into something sweeter and more special.

I lost myself in their love and forgot to hide the light of my candle. Gren must have noticed, for she turned towards me with a questioning sound.

“Hm?”

Swiftly, I disappeared with my candle hushed. Gren watched my direction like a guarding dog, but thankfully her sniff was not that good. She must have thought it was nothing and returned to help his father.

Eventually, he gave her daughter’s forehead a loving kiss, then announced he will go to the barn. He took a large bucket with himself, filled with something in the form of thick branches.

“At this hour? Why would he go out to the barn?” I found myself questioning before something more interesting happened.

Gren turned around and walked deeper into the kitchen. However, where should have been walls, she could go further, with steps descending downwards.

Following her footsteps sneakily, my eyes widened when I got into the kitchen. The beautiful clock on the wall was stuck at midnight. The cuckoo that should come out every so often was stuck outside without a sound. And the wall next to the clock possessed a door-sized hole.

Stairs, down underground. Like an attic, only it went deeper.

There was torchlight down under, flickering. I heard footsteps walking up and down, someone working on a blade, and quiet sobbing.

My heart was pounding in my chest. Should I go down and see what’s there? Or should I just go back to my bed? I was unsure. And more than that, I was terrified.

By what? By whom? I knew not.

But when I turned around, I almost screamed.

Behind me, in a rocking chair, was Gren’s old grandpa. The old fart has been sitting there, observing me quietly.

I thought for a moment he would speak. But my worries subsided as soon as I hear him snore. The old fart was asleep. Thank god.

Looking back down those stairs, I felt my anxiety return. With even the old fart asleep, this was my chance.

But would it be worth it?

I could feel something in the room besides me and the old man. There was something else, an invisible force. Strings. They grew out the top of my fingertips and connected to everything around. It was not just with me, it was with everyone else. The old fart. The clock on the wall. The cupboards in the kitchen. Everyone had invisible red strings attached, each string connecting to the world around us.

I knew that the moment I step foot on those stairs, my current strings would sever and new ones would form. Would they be thicker than those I have? Would their colours be different? The uncertainty was almost palpable, like a stray bite of an apple stuck inside my throat.

Yet, I decided to peek through the other side. Bracing all my power, mustering all my strength to tear off these strings of fate, I took a step forward and put a foot on the stairs.

And the red strings severed. They fell to the ground, and in an instant, became invisible. Only a single string remained, connecting me to whatever hid downstairs. And finally, at that moment it became clear that this action, a single foot upon these stairs has changed my fate irreversibly.