Death, Devotion, Dissonance

The day after, Evin found himself walking around Jiha town's area dedicated for 3rd grades, carefully following his mother's directions towards her house, which were eerily detailed.

'Wow, there really is a half-cut rock under that fence-pole,' Evin thought as he walked, feeling impressed at his mother for noticing such a small detail and deciding to find a use for it as well.

He was also impressed by how clean every place looked, despite the unpaved dirt roads and the occasional stench that came from pit latrines in house yards.

There was an odd feeling of friendliness to it all, with the occasional animals and the generous amount of space that was allocated to each family. It was definitely better than the 3rd grade area of Ankelite, which bordered on being called the city slums, with shit and piss overflowing from the few public pit latrines. Evin decided that not having enough space between people and families led to disasters like Ankelite.

Anyhow, Evin found a house which he guessed was his mother's house. 'A worn-out, gray fence; a house built with fresh, lacquered wood; two windows on the front and with one on each side… and finally, a gray wolf-like dog on a leash, who doesn't bark, but growls menacingly at strangers.'

Evin looked at the large dog, who was glaring at him with evident distrust, looking like it was going to launch at him at any moment and decided he was at the right place.

'This isn't really as bad as I first imagined it,' Evin found himself thinking as he approached the gate and rung the bell attached to it.

The house yard was well-maintained, the house looked sturdy and comfortable, and the dog looked healthy enough. Seeing the scene, Evin decided that his mother's household was most likely one of the best in the area.

A few seconds later, the door to the house opened and revealed his mother, who walked up to unlock the outer door. She gave Evin a big hug and a kiss on the head. Evin responded to all this with warmth, returning her hug and offering her a big, genuine smile.

Thankfully, Edmund's abuse did not make him averse to physical contact, as Endra sometimes feared.

"Did you have trouble finding our house?" Lora asked as she led Evin to the house.

"No, none at all," Evin replied. "I was actually surprised at how there was a small rock that looked cut in half under a fence pole just as you described it."

"I thought you'd find that interesting," Lora said smilingly. "I noticed that one when I was walking to my husband's job one day, and found it on the same spot for… what, two years already?"

It was a small thing, but Evin figured that these things were most memorable to people and he was also glad it made him feel closer to his mother… however odd that sounded when he thought about it.

He shook his head and focused his attention on the house's interior. He could kind of tell by looking at it from a distance, but now that he had a closer look, he was definitely confident that someone terribly neat built this house.

Each plank of wood used on the house frame seemed to be built with the exact same thickness and width, even if their lengths were slightly different. The circular pillars used to hold the house up were also cleaned and dusted to perfection, and something told Evin that the wooden planks used on the walls (which were now covered by a limestone finish), also followed the same standards. Obviously, it wasn't the Viscount's grand manor, but it still evoked a strong sense of homeliness and comfort.

"You have a very nice house," Evin commented, feeling like his simple words weren't doing it justice.

"He-he, my father and my husband worked their hardest on it," Lora said proudly.

She brought him to the family's dining table and Evin saw two distinctly different men sitting on it. The first was a man with an average build and face, plus a healthily tanned skin. He had an impressionable, curly hair atop his head, which somehow made him look friendlier to the eye. Theor, Lora's husband.

The other man, though, was much more interesting. It was a white-haired old man with a lean build, who carried himself around with almost awe-inducing confidence. The man looked reliable, like someone you wanted on your side no matter what. He felt like the man that made women think they were into older men, but no, they were just into him (Evin didn't know where he was getting these comments from). He felt like he could fight a mana-beast for you and then say it was nothing serious.

In fact, Evin was sure that such a fight would be nothing serious for this man, considering the two horns protruding from the top of his head and curving down to his chin, like a ram's. They both looked white, but Evin knew that their true colors were different. Proper Hornbearers had horns of two different colors, which corresponded to the Worlds they could use, so they usually painted them in a different color to hide their abilities or just for fashion.

Evin realized he was staring at Lora's father, and he hurriedly introduced himself. "Uh, good day to you both. You must be Theor and you must be Ssatsko. My name's Eviendra… Evin for short."

"Ha-ha, don't be so formal," Theor was the first to reply.

"Yes, today's a day of old reunions and familial joys. No need to taint it with pointless formalities," Ssatsko replied, not bothering to hide his northern accent.

While Theor was genuinely friendly with Evin, Ssatsko seemed to regard Evin with a healthy dose of wariness. Evin wasn't sure why, but he guessed that it was just how the man was.

From another room, Lora came out, holding a child in her arms. "Come on, Sasha, say hello to the big brother over there."

The dark-blond haired girl eyed Evin suspiciously, surely wondering who this boy was and what he was doing in her house. She looked old enough to understand what was happening. but not old enough to understand why. So of course, she refused to get close to Evin, clinging onto her mother with a "No".

Ssatsko and Theor both prodded her to give Evin a small greeting, saying that he was Arza's friend, but the girl was still reluctant. Lora gave Evin a concerned apology, he shook his head at this, telling her it was fine.

He then took a seat on the table, and wondered what the problem with this house was, to stress out his mother so much she looked ten years older than she really was.