Ersia: Raven Dawn

Randia and Viena have been travelling together since they escaped the heated pursuit back in her hometown three months ago. They live as wanderers offering their help with remedies and potions for coins. With only luck and the nature of the southern land as their sustainers, they often have to hunt for games on their own for breakfast as there are no coins left to spend. Only provided that they meet a rich patient, they can live heartily sometimes.

One day, during dinner in an inn after a rare busy day, Viena suddenly stopped eating. She put down her spoon and her face looked troubled. Randia noticed this and slowed down with his meal also. He observed her eyes, which kept stealing glances at the inn's price board.

"What's wrong?"

"Ran, how many coins do we have left?" Viena turns at Randia.

"Why are you asking such a question?"

"I think I might've eaten more than my share."

"You are ten years too early to worry about something like that. Just eat like you always do."

"But the food doesn't taste good this way!"

"Then order something else."

"Ran!"

Seeing Viena being angry with him, Randia somehow feels pleased instead of getting annoyed. At such a young age, her understanding of responsibility and sense of decency is praiseworthy. However, the childish side of her remains persists, as Randia fully knows that she will keep nagging him until he gives the answer she wants to hear.

"Enough for two days."

"Two days?! That isn't good enough, is it? We should get some more!"

"Yes, you are right. But now is not the time. You should finish your meal first."

Viena ignores Randia and gets down from her chair. She's running to the counter with a wide grin full of positivity.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm going to ask the innkeeper whether he knows where to find a job. I will help us get some money!"

"Now, do you remember what I said about being too excited? Come back here and sit down. I already have a place in mind."

"Oh yeah? Well then, I'll just ask anyway. A backup plan never hurts! Or even better – more money never hurts!"

Randia certainly cannot hold Viena back from doing whatever she wants. He let out a big sigh, amazed, but also worried by the way the little girl thinks. It seems that even the worst luck of having to grow up alone in the street still has its own perks, although Randia isn't the least bit relieved by realizing that fact.

After a moment, Viena returned with an even bigger smile on her face.

"Ran! That uncle said he heard that the Bakers Guild is in a shorthand as they are preparing for an upcoming festival!"

"Do you know how to bake bread?"

"Um … I-I can learn, I think? Is it hard?"

"Well, essentially, there is no easy job. That's why you get paid by doing so."

"Right?! Then, let's sleep early tonight! We have to be there at five in the morning!"

On the next day, they rise from their beds very early. Half to six in the next morning, Randia and Viena spend their time milling the flour. After they sorted out the good wheat from the bad ones, they worked separately. As the mill master noticed that Viena has quite a keen sense of perception, he puts her in a station where she has to monitor the grade of the flour along with a few other adults. While Randia, on the other hand, transports dozens of sacks of flour from the mill to the warehouse.

An hour later, the mill master moved the two to the bakehouse to avoid sloppy work since he saw the sign of boredom in Viena. However, the bakehouse is nothing like the little girl had in mind. It's hot, it's suffocating, and it demands her to work quickly, especially after the change of a batch.

"This is NOT a kitchen! This is a battlefield!" Viena grumbled to Randia.

"It's a good place to learn how to focus. No one ever said it's going to be easy."

"B-But! I thought we were going to make beautiful cakes?"

"There is no such a thing in this part of the world?"

"Huh? Why though?"

While trying to keep up with the stirring and kneading, Randia glances at the overseer, making sure that they are not going to get caught chatting too much when working.

"Generally, there are only two places where you can find luxurious food. A capital city and a port city. Especially for sweet treats, since sugar only grows in tropical places."

"What is a tropical place?"

"A place where you only have two seasons every year. Dry season with minimum rain, and wet season with a lot of rain."

"No snow?"

"No snow."

Viena slowed down on her work as she imagined what a tropical place would look like. however, this is not left unnoticed by the overseer. He yelled to Viena, making the little girl startled and returning her focus.

"Ugh, that baldhead is annoying."

"Don't complain, you wanted this. Besides, he is paying us. Hence, we must fulfill our parts of the deal."

"I know! I was just saying!"

"Keep it to yourself. Your words might cut our payment. Let out your frustration outside the workplace - or even better, kill it with joy."

"Kill it with joy? What do you mean?"

"Eat, sing, take a bath, or whatever it is. Do something that makes you feel happy and relieved."

The little girl went silent for a few minutes, before suddenly humming a tune in the air. She is singing with tight lips, reminiscing the song that her mother used to sing for her a lot of times.

"Hey, Ran. Why don't you si-"

"No."

Viena sticks her tongue out and mimics Randia to mock him, and then proceeds to sing again through her work until they are finished.

When they are done, it's finally time to receive their payment. For a reason, Randia insisted on letting him handle it, saying that she might be tricked by words and terms that she doesn't understand. Only when they are far away from the Bakers Guild, does he let her see the fruits of their labor.

However, it's just as Randia expected, Viena cannot take the reality of work well enough.

"60 Rios?! Is this for real?! Didn't you say you're not going to get tricked?! This is not it! Let me talk to that fat geezer!"

"Quit it, Viena. This is a fair pay."

"What are you talking about?! We can barely last a day with that amount of money!"

"To be frank with you, we were being irresponsible with our expenditure. This amount of money can do us fine for three days if we spend wisely."

"No way! The work is very tiresome! We deserve more than this!"

Randia took a deep breath. He knew this would happen.

"Listen here, kid. If you always push your luck every time you have the chance to, you will surely hit the wall sooner than later."

"Hah! Why don't you just admit that you are too easy to take advantage of? What did the head baker say to you? 'Sorry, we're a small business, this is all we can afford to give", is that it? Did he promise that everyone in the house would pray for our good fortunes so we'd be rewarded by the world in a way that they couldn't? Bah!'

Randia kept silent and walked away. He's trying to pretend he doesn't hear any of that. Yet, Viena is getting even angrier. She walks up to him and continues to complain, again and again and again. She is determined to keep it up until Randia decides to turn back to collect more money from the head baker.

"I've been seeing you working for three months now! Do you think gratitude alone is enough to keep us fed?! I know you are the kind of person who turns into a good dog at the mere notion of pride, kindness, and honor! You are so pitiful for your own good!"

Unfortunately, this time, Viena's words hit too close to home for Randia. That is because he was indeed a fool who fell headfirst at the illusion of grandeur. He was a true incarnation of a beast who didn't hesitate to spill countless blood in the name of things that cannot even take care of their own plates.

"Enough! If you want to make easy money and don't care about anything else, then why don't you sell your honor and prostitute yourself?! Let's see how happy your mother would be in her grave that you don't give a damn about pride and honesty!"

Randia, losing his temper, throws the bag of coins in front of Viena. His eyes looking down, his fists clenching, and his breathing is ragged. Soon after, the skin of his hand was cut out of nowhere. Blood began to flow until it dripped to the ground. However, Randia didn't flinch even one bit.

Then, after a few seconds, the man realized that something else was also dripping. It was Viena's tears. When Randia looked up and saw Viena's face, his chest felt a gruesome pain more than anything that he had ever felt. The girl, unable to hold back her feelings, cries in silence.

There was nothing else but the sound of Viena crying. After retaining his composure, Randia picks up the bag of coins and takes Viena's hand. He started to walk again, and Viena followed him slowly while still working up on her tears nonstop.

"… I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that," Randia spoke silently as he decided to pick Viena up.

Only a few moments later, Randia was finally able to muster up the courage to speak to Viena again. As the girl cries on his shoulder, he can feel how hard she is sobbing.

"I understand that the work is so tiring, and it's hard for you to believe what you've just heard. But it's real. This is fair pay from him, and I'm not giving any discount. I never did to the undeserving."

Viena cries still. The mention of her mother invokes all kinds of memories. Some were fond, and some were not. Her thoughts are filled with what ifs, and what should have been. Now, she even doubts herself if she was living the way that was acceptable after all that happened.

"This world is a prison for men of faith and righteousness. It's hard to even live a simple and decent life while keeping honest to your work."

"You were right. I was a dog to things like glory and honor. I've been living all my life that way because I don't think I have ever had anything else. I doubt myself from time to time, thinking maybe that I should just live as I see fit since kindness is hardly rewarding."

"But here I am, once again."

Randia didn't notice it himself, but meeting Viena was a second breath of life to him. He lived blindly for most of his life and even completely stranded out of grace for the last ten years. Despite all of that, here he is, trying all he can to be the best version of himself for a girl whom he had only known for such a short amount of time compared to all the years he left behind.

An hour and a half later, after they had their bath and breakfast in an awkward atmosphere. Randia took Viena to the town church to show her something that he believed would cheer her up. After all, he too cannot stand the uncomfortable silence between them.

"… I'm sorry too, Ran."

Suddenly, Viena finally speaks to Randia as she holds his cloak tightly.

"You don't need to feel that way," Randia caressed her head.

"But why did you spend a lot of coins on our breakfast? We barely have anything left."

"… It was necessary. Besides, we will get more anyway. There is no need to worry. Don't ever worry about anything as long as you are with me."

Soon, they arrived at their destination, and it was a place that Viena didn't expect. The red bricks of the building slightly gleamed as the morning rays shone down upon them. It's the town's small church dedicated to the deities of Seltis Pantheon. The church symbol resembles an hourglass where there is a hexagonal plate in the middle of its narrow neck that has an eye-like shape perpendicular to the center of it in each of its angles.

"What is this place?"

"This is the town's prayer house, or a church if you want to call it."