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“So, yeah. I might go to Sumeru City tomorrow.”
“... You’ve rarely gone inside the city, correct?”
“Yeah. I don’t really have anything going for me in the Temple of Silence anymore, so I have a lot of free time now.” Sethos twirls his finger around a strand of his curly hair. “I’m gonna stop by Sumeru City just to have fun for a bit.”
“... I see. There’s a lot to do in Sumeru City. I hope you have fun.” Cyno nods, a small smile appearing across his face. “I’m afraid I have to work first thing in the morning, so I might not be able to accompany you there.”
Sethos laughs, “Hahaha! No worries, man. I wasn’t looking for a tour guide anyway. I’ve got a few things I wanna do.”
Sethos rarely ever goes inside Sumeru City. He’s kept tabs on Cyno and Cyrus using some of the fellow Temple of Silence followers, but now that their situation has been resolved… He doesn’t really have any reason to be against Cyno anymore, and so they’ve been declared as friends. His grandfather’s wishes have been fulfilled, therefore he no longer has a shadow looming over him. He can do whatever he wants.
Now that he’s free, he can finally pay a visit to Sumeru City normally. He doesn’t really have a place there, so it’d be nice to finally explore what the city has in store for him. As Cyno leaves the desert for today, Sethos takes care of a few things before settling down back at home. The Temple of Silence is now open for Akademiya scholars and scribe Alhaitham has taken a particular liking to all of the books they had stored in there. Sethos has been busy managing the Akademiya scholars and their inquiries regarding the Temple of Silence.
Now, it’s night time. Some of the scholars go home while the members of the Temple of Silence disperse for now. Sethos gets to go home at long last. But what was awaiting at his door was… a suspiciously placed letter hung in front of the door’s window hole. His head turns left and right, then he straight up snatches the letter and heads inside.
[Sethos,
It’s me, Cyno.]
“Yes, I know, Cyno.”
[I was laid off from work tomorrow. Therefore, I will give you a tour around Sumeru City. Don’t worry about a single thing. I’ll even take you to a donut shop. You do nut have a choice.
I insist. You won’t be lost as long as I’m there. I’ll even introduce you to some of my friends. Or not, if you’re uncomfortable with that. Let me know when you get there tomorrow.
See you later.]
“... That pun wasn’t even that funny.” Sethos smiles. Ah, he let out a smile anyway. “... Oh well. It can’t be helped. I’ll have to pack beforehand!”
Excitement wells inside him. Since nothing is bound by his neck anymore, Sethos can relax around the city. He packs a few of his arrows, weapons, clothes and other necessities. Tomorrow, he’ll eat breakfast before heading off through Caravan Ribat to Sumeru City. He should use this time to celebrate the birth of new experiences.
… Tomorrow, huh?
I wonder what’s in store for me tomorrow…
.
.
.
“... Oh? Sethos?” Candace turns around to see Sethos exiting through the tunnel of Aaru Village. “You’re leaving the desert?”
“I know, right? I didn’t believe it either.” The young man laughs. “But yeah. I’m leaving for Sumeru City to meet up with Cyno.”
“Yes, I’ve heard.” She says. Wait, she’s heard? Heard of what? “Please have fun. You know how to get there, yes? To Caravan Ribat?”
“Huh? Well, yeah. Of course I do, I’ve been there countless times. Why?” He asks the guardian.
She replies simply, “An escort will be there waiting for you. Sumeru City is far from Caravan Ribat, so…”
“I’ve got it, Candace. Thank you for telling me.”
Cyno must be waiting for me there… Alright, sounds like a plan!
Candace waves goodbye as Sethos heads off to yet another sand-filled road. Even amidst the countless eremites staring daggers in his way, he doesn’t bother giving them attention and makes it to Caravan Ribat safely. Ah yes, the hustle and bustle of Caravan Ribat never fails to overwhelm him. People left and right are going up and down the stairs, rushing across and sideways to get to their respective places. There’s tons of people visiting today for some kind of business related stuff.
As he exits the pathway, he looks around. No Cyno in sight. He can’t feel the heart of Hermanubis anywhere, nor can he spot any recognizable silhouettes. He can usually spot interesting people from miles away due to his good eye sight, but…
“Hey!”
Jolting, Sethos turns around fast. He had a weapon in hand, but for some reason, he lifted up his fists as if he was prepared to box with someone. He looks stupid, he thought. His natural body instinct is to be on the defensive, but… His shoulders lower down. It’s not Cyno, but…
“... Oh, you’re…”
“Haha, easy there.” The flame-man flips her hair as she chuckles. “Sethos, right? Lucky thing that you’re on the defensive side. The desert’s got dangerous people loaded everywhere.”
I… I didn’t even sense her. How did she come up behind me without me noticing?
Dehya nudges him as she takes two profound steps forward. “What’re you waiting for? Come on! Let’s get a move on. You’ve got a schedule to follow, right?”
“Wait, wait. Hold on-- Are you the escort?” He points it out at her.
“Hm? Didn’t Candace tell you?” She smiles. “ Cyno asked me to escort you.”
Sethos blinks, following behind Dehya as they slowly exit the sands of Caravan Ribat. He tilts his head as she stretches her arms while walking. He sweats, “Does Cyno not believe that I can get there by myself? Does he think that I’m weak or something?”
“Pffft--” Dehya spits out, surprising the young man. “ No, why would he think that way? He knows you’re strong. I heard he struggled in a battle against you or something?” And then she twirls around, walking backwards. “He’s aware of your capabilities, man. I’m just here because the walk to Sumeru is long. I’m here to keep you company.”
Struggled in a battle, she says, but Sethos doesn’t believe that Cyno even broke a sweat. “... So you’re just keeping me company?” He snares.
“Yeah. And … I’m also heading the same way you are. I want to hang out with Nilou for today, so I’ll be staying in Sumeru City for a while too.”
“... I see. Haha, so I’m guessing you’re familiar with Cyno?”
“Everyone knows the General Mahamatra, right? That includes me. Also, yeah, I’m his friend too. How about we start this conversation by discussing what we think about his jokes?”
“Nah…”
The walk there was unexpectedly… fun for Sethos. The two got along fairly well and even stopped for a bit just to sit and talk. Break time included drinking tons of water and laughing about Cyno’s jokes, even though they were partly making fun of them. They had to chase away a few spinocrocodiles surprise attacking them in the wild, but they were alright in the end. Dehya complimented Sethos on his bow skills, and Sethos praised the same way. Dehya has some sort of hidden strength Sethos can’t comprehend.
They passed through Pardis Dhyai and greeted a few of the scholars studying there. Sethos heard from Dehya that Tighnari and a few of his friends often gather there to hang out, which piqued his interest. Then, they hiked all the way until they reached Avidya Forest. The bridge was long, but the view was wide indeed… Sumeru Akademiya can be seen from miles away, even if you were hiking on a mountain from Liyue. It’s still as magnificent as ever. Sethos can’t help but be amazed every single time he passes by.
“Wow, lookie here! We’ve finally arrived.” Dehya announces as she finally puts her blade down. “I should’ve packed lightly… My fists honestly could’ve worked for a better weapon. Oh well.”
“Haha…” Sethos nervously laughs. His gaze is still locked at the city as they proceed through the walkway. Even the docks of Sumeru City are clean. The folks in the city must do a lot of cleaning work. “Oh, hey! There’s Cyno!”
Finally, awaiting him from the side of the Adventurer’s Guild is none other than his newfound friend, General Mahamatra Cyno. He is leaning besides the Adventurer’s Guild’s stand, his Staff of the Scarlet Sands held by his hand. What a showoff, Sethos snickers in his mind. As soon as he stepped in, Dehya let him go and waved goodbye. Looks like she’s going into the Bazaar to meet up with Nilou or whoever she said she was going to hang out with.
“Oh!” A bystander comes his way. Actually, not one… But two… Three, four, five-- a lot of bystanders made way for him. “You must be Sethos, right? The General Mahamatra’s waiting for you!”
“... Yes, I am aware.” Sethos nods with an awkward smile.
An old man chimes in with his cane. “He’s waiting for you, up there! Did ya see, sonny?”
Sonny? “Um, yeah. He’s looking at me… I know.”
“Well, go on!” Another young voice pats him on the back and pushes Sethos forward, catching him off guard. “Have a nice stay in Sumeru! You’ll always be welcomed here!”
“... Thank… you?”
Awkwardly, Sethos walks up to Cyno with his gaze still fixated on the people. Those citizens just now… He didn’t recognize a single person amongst the crowd and they still made way for him. It got Sethos thinking; are those people spies sent out to assassinate Sethos in some way? Why were they so happy? That’s not normal. Is someone watching him right now? Sethos figured that they might’ve anticipated his arrival, but it’s not like he’s famous in Sumeru City compared to the desert. Someone has to be on his back. Was Dehya planning on something? Why did they--
“Welcome, Sethos.” Cyno smiles. It nearly blinded the bystanders behind Sethos, and even Katheryne. “You don’t have a plan, do you? We can follow your schedule. If not, then allow me to lead you.”
“I’ve actually got a few things in mind.” A smirk as Sethos follows along with Cyno through Treasure Street. “I’ve got a few things to exchange with the pawnbroker here. I also might want to take a few padisarahs home… The rest, I’m not actually sure. You’re gonna have to show me a bunch of places, for example…”
“Anything on your mind?” Cyno asks once more.
Sethos responds with a sharp snap, “Show me where you used to study. I heard there’s five darshans, right? Yours is Spantamad… So, show me around the Akademiya.”
Cyno perks up, as Sethos expected. He can tell from the letter that Cyno would be more than ecstatic to show Sethos around the place he grew up in. The Akademiya is no exception. Sethos heard that a few things went down a few years ago, regarding the old sages and Lord Kusanali. He definitely wants to hear the story in full, but for now, he wants to hear about Cyno’s past life. How Cyrus ran with him and took him in to live a better life rather than to live as an experiment forever…
“We can head up. The Akademiya entrance is right above us.”
“Oh, okay. Just wait, I have to exchange a few th-- woah --”
It seems that Cyno’s head was still up in the clouds and desperately wanted to show Sethos. Oh, well it can’t be helped. It amuses Sethos how different Cyno is when he’s not in work mode. He’s way different from the Cyno he fought against. This might just be the real Cyno he’s witnessing. And Sethos doesn’t mind at all.
“I said I was gonna exchange stuff at the pawn shop…” Sethos says as he examines some of the books labeled on the endless list of shelves. “But the amount of books in this place is amazing! I still haven’t moved on from this book!”
“The House of Daena is where I studied with Lisa. You’ll find a lot of labels here.” Cyno smirks, nodding his own head. “It’s different compared to the books in the Temple of Silence, right?”
“Some of these terms I’ve never even heard before…” Sethos is left in awe as he flips another page.
Cyno nods, “You’re free to borrow some.”
“What? Don’t you have to be a student to borrow these?”
“I’ll permit it. I’m the General Mahamatra after all.”
“Can the General Mahamatra do that?!”
The House of Daena is secluded from the main Akademiya building. It’s almost everyone’s favorite study place. The lighting’s comfortable here, plus the books are contained with endless knowledge. If Sethos ever wants to visit the House of Daena, he can do so with Cyno’s permission.
If Sethos had lived a normal life, like Cyno, and studied in the Akademiya… Perhaps he’d have more friends? Proper education? What darshan would he have studied under if he was brought along with Cyno? Spantamad too?
A somber smile smears on Sethos’ face as he examines the hardcover book. All of these wishes… But it’s already too late. And Sethos is content with the life he was granted, as his grandfather was the only one in his family. Cyno notices his expression and ponders to himself. Sethos must be feeling sad or sentimental. Cyno’s always had a great intuition, so he feels sorry for the boy. His expression says it all.
“... Say, are you alright?” Cyno asks. Jolting, Sethos wipes the expression off his face out of embarrassment.
He laughs awkwardly, “Sorry, haha… I’ve just been thinking--”
“Are you paying attention? You seem to be all checked out .”
“...” Sethos doesn’t seem to understand.
“...” Cyno rechecks, then tries again. “Libraries are good for circulation.”
“...” It’s still processing for Sethos. He doesn’t seem to get it. “... What are you saying?”
One more try! Cyno, with all his might, attempts to come up with more jokes. Calculations circulate in his head, typing and spinning. Finally, with a knock of his spear, his head turns down, his hair and bangs covering his eyes and overall face.
“... I…”
“...??”
Cyno cannot come up with better jokes. “I have no shelf control…”
Blinding wind blows inside the House of Daena. Sethos feels himself turn into paper. You can practically hear the crickets already chirping.
“... Oh, were you making jokes the entire time?” Sweat drops from Sethos.
And Cyno continues to look down, feeling a tad bit ashamed that he couldn’t come up with a better joke. “... I’m just staying true to my shelf.”
“... Pfft-- ”
Cyno looks up brightly, the light shining in his eyes. Ah, he’s all better now.
“Those weren’t funny! Hahaha-- not at all! Hahaha!” His guttural laugh echoes throughout the large room.
Cyno hmphs and smiles proudly, stroking under his nose. “But you’re laughing, aren’t you?”
And Sethos laughs along. “Yeah, but--! Hahaha-- It literally took me a minute!”
“Talk wordy to me.”
“ Stop! It’s so bad-- hahaha! Cough-- ”
It always works. Even though they’re bad, the fact that his jokes are bad always makes people laugh. The tension is gone, just as Cyno planned. The past is gone and they now live in the present. Whatever is binding Sethos, Cyno can only hope that he and a bunch of others will be there to help him all the way.
“I could’ve sworn I heard bad jokes coming from here… Hey!”
Both turn around, goofy smiles still on their faces. Cyno helps Sethos up from cackling on the floor and stands awkwardly. It seems that Sethos’ laugh attracted the attention of many, considering that he was laughing so hard. But from the looks of it… He might’ve gained the attraction of a teacher.
“Bad jokes…?” Cyno’s voice gasped under his breath.
“Oh, don’t mind it, youngster.” Faruzan sways her hand at him. “Lookie, here! Mister Sethos, correct?”
“... Yes?” He smiles awkwardly, his hand behind his head. A lot of people seem to know him compared to before.
Faruzan is quick to zoom towards him. She clasps her hands and excitedly shimmies around like an enlivened puppy. “ Wonderful! I’ve always wanted to meet you in person. I’ve been wondering about our new found friends lately now that the Temple of Silence has opened their doors to us and…”
“M-Madame Faruzan… Try backing up a little..?”
“Oh!” The woman snaps out of it, shaking her head. She takes a few steps backwards. “My apologies, youngster! Hm? Kaveh, stand right beside me! This is Cyno’s… friend? Brother?”
“Um, friend would be the term…” But as soon as Sethos said that, the mysterious voice appeared before him, standing next to the woman. Oh, so this must be the aforementioned Kaveh Cyno often talked about. Renowned architect, but also a heavy drinker…?
“Oh, hello… I’ve heard a lot about you.” The blond bows. Wow , he’s pretty. “My name’s Kaveh. I hope we can be friends, Sethos.”
“Oh! Uh, sure!” Sethos doesn’t know why he said that and he feels embarrassed, but he grabs Kaveh’s hand and shakes on it anyway.
Faruzan smiles and snaps her fingers. “Hey, Sethos! Speaking of which, you’re interested in the books here at the House of Daena, right? Too bad you can’t really borrow them unless you studied in the Akademiya… You know, unless…”
“Faruzan…”
“It’s Madame Faruzan to you!” The woman immediately snaps back, causing Kaveh to jolt. “So how about it?! Wanna study under me?! Haravatat is a good darshan to get into!”
“Huh? Uh…” Sethos isn’t really certain how to respond.
“ Madame. ” Cyno pulls Sethos a few steps back from her. “Sethos can do whatever he wants.”
“Oh, Sethos! Listen, it won’t be a problem if you want to study under Spantamad too! Cyno graduated from Spantamad so he can tell you all about the program!”
Oh boy, here comes Faruzan again with her overbearing excitement. She kind of acts like she’s the official tour guide of the Akademiya. Cyno’s certain that Collei said something like that a while ago too. Sethos doesn’t mind, of course. As a matter of fact, he could honestly sign up to study in the Akademiya if he wanted.
But… for now, he’ll need a break. It wasn’t very long since the passing of his one and only grandfather. He was going to tell Faruzan all about it, but the woman quickly pointed behind him, “Like Layla over there!”
“Ah?!” Layla jolts, tightening the grip of her book. “Wait… How did I get here…?”
Faruzan ignores the comment. It kind of looked like she was sleeping just now, but just woke up due to Faruzan’s tone of voice. “She’s quite the studious one. If not Spantamad or Haravatat, Rtawahist is a good darshan too!”
Sethos waves to Layla, to which she bashfully waves back. She was trying to purposely conceal her presence, so Sethos politely ignored her. It’s kind of ridiculous, but Sethos hasn’t met so many people since he stepped into the Akademiya. It isn’t necessarily a bad idea to study at the Akademiya, but Faruzan is really pushing it. Cyno’s going to need to ask someone to distract her somehow, just like how Collei did. They need a signal.
… Kaveh, please…!
Cyno gives a few looks at Kaveh. He seems to understand, but it’s kind of hard to divert Faruzan’s attention, especially since he’s not Collei. Again, he is one of Cyno’s best friends. He’s going to need to find a way somehow. He owes Cyno so much after the Interdarshan Championship.
“M-Madame Faruzan!” He tugs her lightly. Don’t worry, Cyno! I’ve got you! “Uhhh-- Look! Alhaitham’s there?”
“Huh? Oh.” Faruzan turns her head around, the mood completely changing. “Why I oughta… Alhaitham, come over here! I’d like to have a word with you, specifically on how you’ve been treating our lovely Kaveh here!”
“L-like I said, Faruzan… It’s not that--”
“ Madame Faruzan!”
It looks like Kaveh dug his own grave in exchange to save his friends. Well, in any case, Sethos is seemingly interested. Although Cyno asked Kaveh to distract, Sethos’ attention was diverted to the scribe. Alhaitham, they say… Alhaitham has visited the Temple of Silence regularly and is pretty enthusiastic about reading most of King Deshret’s treasures. (He never actually shows any enthusiasm in his face, but Sethos can tell that he likes their stuff.)
“Wanna get out of here? You said you wanted to exchange a few things, right?” Cyno asks the young man.
Oh, so you remembered? “Oh, sure. I’m done looking anyway.” He then turns to the sleepy girl still nervously gripping onto her book. “Goodbye, miss Layla! I might consider going into Rtawahist if I ever study here, so I’ll see you next time!”
“Huh?! Oh, well… Alright…!” Layla doesn’t really know what to say to that, nor does she have any memory of what they were talking about before she arrived.
“... Do you really plan on going into Rtawahist?” Cyno asks as they walk down and escape from the mess.
Sethos nods, like a puppy, “Mhm. Sounds like I’d have a lot of fun there! I heard they study astrology and stuff. Doesn’t sound too bad, hm?”
“... Why not Spantamad?”
“Hm? Do you want me to go into Spantamad?”
“No, not really-- It’s just… Why doesn’t anyone want to go into Spantamad… ”
“Haha, I’ll consider Spantamad too, of course. I’ve got a long way until I even go to school anyway.”
.
.
.
Sethos isn’t sure how this happened, but… Right after he left the pawn shop, he somehow ended up watching a show from the Zubayr Theater and reunited with Dehya. Not only that, but… He encountered a special person there too. The one and only Traveler and Paimon were there too. They’ve decided to stop by Sumeru to relax. In addition to that, Zubayr Theater’s star, Nilou also appeared on stage to dance as well.
“... I’ve never seen anything like this.” Sethos murmurs as the red head continues to gracefully move. He’s in awe of her dance and the atmosphere really settles in too. “Does she perform every day?”
“Not every day!” Paimon proudly informs as she munches on a snack. “Nilou’s pretty famous, but she gets breaks every now and then!”
Dehya adds, “It’s only Fridays she performs. Aren’t you lucky?”
“I suppose I am.” A smile from ear to ear forms as he watches Nilou finish up her dance.
She takes a bow and waves to her friends by the front row. As soon as she backs away from the stage, she dashes and makes her way to the group. Cyno seems to have a lot of friends, it shocks Sethos. There is no way Cyno is friends with this lady. He can believe that she’s friends with the Traveler and Dehya, but Cyno? No way.
“Cyno!” Nilou calls out to him. “You don’t have work today, I heard! Thank you for coming to my show!”
What?! So she really is friends with Cyno?!
“And you must be Sethos!” She surprisingly shakes his hand. “I’m Nilou, a dancer at Zubayr Theater! It’s so nice to finally meet you!”
“N… Nice to meet you too.”
… Hold on.
Is it just me, or does everyone in Sumeru City know who I am?
There’s no way this girl knows who I am. The elderly and other folk shouldn’t either. I could’ve sworn I’ve been keeping it to myself this entire time in the desert, so how?!
“Oh, Cyno!” Nilou turns back to face the young man. “About the party, I--”
“ Shhhhhh! Shhh, shhh --” For some odd reason, both Dehya and the Traveler slap their hands to her mouth. The slap was so loud, it echoed throughout the Bazaar. Cyno stares in shock, looking a bit cold.
??? Huh? Why did they do that to her?!
“...!” Nilou’s voice is muffled behind their palms. “I-I’m sorry!”
“... You meant smartie, right? Here, I have one.” He gives her a piece of circular candy. It kind of seems like a cover-up to Sethos.
But Nilou gracefully takes it and laughs all the way. Surrounding her mouth is a flushed red from the hard slap. “Ahaha! Uh, yes! Thank you, Cyno! I love this kind of candy, haha… This candy comes from Natlan, right? Cool!”
She’s overdoing it, but they all try to cover her up anyway. It’s kind of weird to hear Nilou attempt to speak in slang and despite being an actress, she’s terrible in acting. Sethos can’t comprehend what or why they’re doing this. His intuition says that they’re hiding this party from him. If they’re having a party, Sethos doesn’t mind. He can just go home early. There’s no need to treat him like he’s an important guest after all.
He’s… never really been around in life anyway.
“Uh, anyways, Sethos!” Dehya smiles awkwardly, patting Nilou on the back. “Show’s over and it’s getting late. Uh, how about we treat you to Lambad’s? You haven’t had dinner yet, right?”
“Nor did I have lunch. I’m getting hungry!” He smiles back. He can see a snarky grin coming from both the Traveler and Paimon, for whatever reason.
“No lunch? Do you want a snack? It’s not good to skip lunch…” Nilou adds, her face sombers.
“It’s alright…!” They’re spoiling me to the brim…
“Let’s get going.” Cyno agrees. Everyone in the Bazaar is leaving anyway, so there really isn’t much to do left.
Dehya and Paimon lead the way, both seemingly very jittery. Something’s going on, perhaps the aforementioned party is about to start. Nilou and the Traveler are talking about it as well. Both haven’t been able to catch up in a long time. Cyno and Sethos are walking at the back. Sethos has a lot in mind and has been thinking ever since the performance ended. Even when they almost arrived at the tavern, he still kept on thinking. But Sethos isn’t the only one with a good intuition.
“Something on your mind again?” Cyno asks him.
Of course it’s Cyno. They can read each other like open books now. “... You know, Cyno,” a long exhale. It concerns the latter. “If you’ve got a party to get to, you don’t have to treat me to dinner or anything. Really!”
“... Huh? What do you mean?” A questioning tone leaves Cyno’s mouth.
“You don’t gotta be my tour guide or anything. If you’re busy, you’re busy!” A weak smile forms on Sethos’ face. “We’re both pretty different, I’ve realized. You’ve got a lot of friends, so don’t keep them waiting! I don’t wanna tie you down.”
“... Hold on, Sethos--” Cyno stops both of them in their tracks, his tone shifting. “You’re not tying me down or anything. Not at all.”
“Huh? But don’t you have a party to go to? I don’t wanna make it awkward when I’m there--”
“No-- Sethos, the party’s--”
He freezes as he turns around. Dehya keeps looking back and forth from Cyno to the front of the tavern door. Tighnari and Collei are about to open the door coincidentally, but they have party hats and party poppers in their hands. Noticing, both master and student quickly hide their items and take off their silly hats. Sethos looks at his way too, but Cyno is moving to block his view.
“Hey, isn’t that--”
“ Sh-- ” Cyno’s eyes move towards the door.
“Uh…” But it’s too late. Tighnari can’t seem to open the door now that Sethos has seen him and Collei. “S-Sethos! Long time no see…”
“... Uh--”
“Um!” Collei speaks up. Sethos hasn’t seen this girl before, but he definitely knows that it’s Collei. Cyno talked a lot about her. “W-would you like to… come inside?”
“ Collei --” Nearly a hiss comes from her master. “... Sigh, nevermind. All of you are here for a meal, right? Come right in, Sethos. You’ve never been inside Lambad’s, have you?”
“... I haven’t.” He shakes his head. “In any case, I can treat myself to--”
“No. Go inside.” Dehya pushes him.
“B-but I--”
“ No. ” Everyone says. “ Go. Inside. ”
The pressure is heavy. Sethos is beyond confused now. He doesn’t know why, but they’re all glaring daggers at him. Did he disrupt something? Dehya keeps pushing him until he reaches the front of the door. It seems like they’re inviting him to open the door for them. Weird smiles plaster on their faces. This… almost feels like an assassination attempt if anything. Why are they so insistent on getting him to open the door?
Even Qishan, the tavern hostess, can’t stop them. She can only stand idly and smile at upcoming customers. Gulping, Sethos places his hand on the knob. The door creaks, snapping open. Inside was blurry with yellow, bright lights… and white noise…
Pop!
“ Happy birthday, Sethos! ”
…
“... What? Huh?” The young man looks dumbfounded.
Inside are countless people, too much to count. Some from the Temple of Silence, some from the Akademiya. The inside of the tavern has been decorated from top to bottom, colorful balloons hanging in the air. There’s a lovely scent in the air, smothering the room with the fragrance of tangy oranges. Confetti falls from their party poppers and scatters all over the wooden floor. Sethos looks around. He sees Khensa, who usually never leaves the Temple of Silence. He sees Charmian and Intef, old Betresa and more of the Temple of Silence followers, here in Sumeru City.
Not only them, but he can see scribe Alhaitham at the back. The light of Ksharewar, Kaveh, teacher Faruzan, Layla from Rtawahist… The tavern is packed today. Sethos can’t believe his eyes. He’s still dumbfounded, rubbing his eyes once more.
“... Happy birthday, Sethos.” Cyno smiles.
“Huh? Oh, uh… yeah. Thanks.”
… Not much of a reaction is coming from Sethos. His eyes are rather blank and his comrades from the Temple of Silence try waving their hands in front of him. Uh.
Tighnari, Collei, Dehya, Nilou, the Traveler and Paimon look concerned. Cyno doesn’t know what to say. He thought this was meant to be a heartwarming moment, but Sethos isn’t reacting much. He didn’t think he’d just stand in silence. Everyone inside the tavern is getting nervous. The group comes together behind Sethos to discuss.
“... Psst, Cyno! ” Dehya hisses at the young man. “ I thought you said it was his birthday today! ”
“ There’s no way I’m wrong. I’m sure it’s today. ” Cyno hisses back, his tone fierce.
“ Maybe he doesn’t know it’s his birthday today. ” The Traveler adds in, hushing their voice.
Cyno shakes his head, panicking. “ No, he told me his birthday was on May 31st. He literally knows this. ”
“ M-maybe he’s waiting for his present? I have one in hand! ” Nilou picks up the small present wrapped neatly in her hand.
“ Cyno, we made sure to prepare everything today. What if it’s not his birthday and we missed it?! ” Tighnari nudges his friend.
Cyno exasperates, “ I made sure… That’s why I made him go everywhere with me today. ”
Gathering all of their thoughts, they disband their crowded group and come back behind him again. Ahem. Once more, Cyno taps on Sethos’ shoulder, a serious expression on his face.
He asks, “Is it your birthday, Sethos…?”
“ Cyno! ” Dehya and Tighnari fizzle.
“Huh? Oh, sorry… It is.” Sethos nods. You would not believe the sigh of relief the entire group made. Sethos steps inside and everyone closes the door as they make their way in. “Sorry! It’s just… I don’t know what to say. So everything today… was done for my birthday. Was that the reason why most people in town knew who I was?”
“We weren’t really being subtle, were we?” Nilou giggles, as well as the rest of the group.
“Come on, lad! You should be more happy on your birthday! We even have a cake!” Faruzan, perky as ever, slides a nicely decorated cake by Lambad’s side.
“... I’m going to be honest, I didn’t even expect to celebrate my birthday.” A sudden shift of tone from Sethos. This is why Cyno got off from work. The moment he heard about Sethos’ birthday, he made quick changes to his plans. But Sethos wasn’t even planning on celebrating his birthday, hence why he pretended like today was just a regular day. He inhales, then lets out a hefty sigh. “A birthday can’t be celebrated without my grandfather. He was the only family I had… This year, I wanted to ignore it all.”
A pause. Sethos has never been one to be the center of attention. He knew this fact the moment he laid eyes on his other half, Cyno. The one meant for the Hermanubis was always going to be Cyno, not him. He isn’t sure how to put things into words now that everyone is looking at him. Today, May 31st, is his special day. The spotlight is finally gleaming on him.
He finds himself nervous, fiddling with his fingers. “Me and my grandfather would celebrate my birthday with no one else, so… In a positive way, I really did not expect any of this. So… Thank you. Cyno and everyone else…”
“... Lord Sethos,” Betresa puts her old and wrinkly hand to her heart. “Lord Bamoun is smiling upon you. He would’ve wanted you to celebrate the day of your birth regardless if he was there.”
Cyno nods, “Sethos… Your existence means a lot to people. It meant a lot to your grandfather, so you should pay more attention to this day.”
“...” Sethos turns a corner. He covers his face, his eyes swirling. “... Stooooop! You’re gonna make me cry, Cyno! Jerk!”
“Yeah, Cyno. Apologize.” Dehya nudges him.
The latter sweats tiny bullets. “I’m sorry…”
A huge smile plastered from ear to ear on Sethos’ face. His chuckle resonates throughout the whole room. A toast is made for Sethos and the day he was born. Everyone gathers around as Sethos blows the candles off his cake. The Traveler offers to take a picture with their Kamera and everyone gathers around. A wonderful group photo was taken, although the Traveler barely made it in time. The tavern is filling up tables from the first floor to the second. Sethos and his newfound friends invite themselves to the table on the very right corner. It’s the table they usually sit at anyway.
“Hic… Anyways, Cyno over here got way too excited and told us right after you told him about your departure from the desert. We had too little time to prepare, you know!” Kaveh yells from his end of the table, pointing at the latter.
Ah… Here comes heavy drinker, Kaveh! “Cyno, is that true? I’m flattered!” Sethos chuckles under his breath.
The latter sighs. “I figured at first you might’ve wanted to celebrate your birthday in the desert… That’s why when I heard you were going to visit, I had to prepare immediately. At least we’re alive and cake-ing.” No one laughs.
“Ahaha… Well, did you at least have fun, sir Sethos?” Collei sweetly smiles. “Even if it wasn’t perfect… We still wanted to invite you over.”
“What a good kid… You’ve raised her well, Cyno.” A tear is wiped from the corner of Sethos’ eye. “I did have fun, Collei. Also, no need to call me ‘sir!’”
“Did you have to invite everyone, Cyno? It was already hard renovating everything in the tavern so that the guests from the desert could fit!” Again, the architect raises his glass at Cyno, pouting.
“Stop raising your glass, Kaveh. What if you stained my cards…” Cyno also pouts, covering his limited edition TCG cards. They have holographic covers.
“No, I think he’s right, Cyno.” Alhaitham shakes his head. “We could’ve prepared this beforehand. You should’ve asked Sethos and the preparation would’ve been more efficient.”
“Alhaitham’s agreeing with Kaveh? The world must’ve gone crazy.” Tighnari chimes in, chuckling. Collei laughs along with him too.
“Aw, geez! How much did you drink, Kaveh?!” Paimon shrieks, viewing the amount of alcohol left in the bottle. There’s not even half left and only 5/10 people poured a drink in their glass. There’s still a lot in their glasses, but Kaveh’s glass is almost empty again.
“Only a few glasses… After all, alcohol is my favorite food…” A hiccup from Kaveh. Bless.
“Alhaitham, can you take this drunkard home?” Cyno points his thumb to the staircase. “If he vomits on your bed, it’s his fault--”
Kaveh suddenly freezes and quickly shushes Cyno with his finger on his lips. His eyes are bloodshot and dead, looking at Cyno straight in the eyes. Ah. Cyno forgot that Sethos and the others probably don’t know about Alhaitham and Kaveh’s situation. Kaveh doesn’t want anyone to know that the two live together, but honestly… Everyone in this tavern probably knows already, it’s Kaveh that’s in denial. But for whatever reason, this got Kaveh to sober up immediately. He looks clear-headed already.
This got Sethos thinking. Come to think of it, I feel like I saw Alhaitham and Kaveh somewhere at a cafe before. What exactly are they?
Sethos takes a good look at the two as Kaveh continues to blabber about with the rest of the group. His head tilts down and he stares at their hands. Huh. Both Alhaitham and Kaveh have golden rings on.
Gasp! S-so they’re…
I… I see.
“I see…” Sethos caught himself staring. Alhaitham stares back and asks what he’s looking at.
“Ah?! There you are!” Faruzan comes up to the group again after racing up a step of stairs. “Sooooo… Have you decided yet, Sethos? Are you going to study in the Akademiya or not? I’ve got a curriculum all set and ready! If you pass all the tests, I’ll be more than welcome to send you to the Akademiya immediately!”
Faruzan gets a few sighs. Layla, out of breath and puffing, squats as she tries to catch her breath. “M-Madame… Faruzan… P-please, it’s alright…”
“Layla over here was curious about the way you work! She wanted to know that if you really were aiming to study under Rtawahist, she’d be more than happy to help you prep--”
“ Ahhhhh-- No, that’s, uh… I-I didn’t…!” She covers her bright red face. “I’m sorry…”
“Ahaha…” Sethos leans on his chair, his arm swaying over the top. “I appreciate it, Layla. It’ll be a long time until I can get into the Akademiya. But I’d still like your help, regardless if I get into Rtawahist or not!”
Faruzan snaps her fingers. “Hey, you know, Sethos. Even if Rtawahist, Haravatat or Spantamad isn’t your thing, there’s still Ksharewar and Vahumana! There’s a boy there who’s probably around your age… Hat Guy, wasn’t it?”
“ Hat Guy?! What kind of name is that?” Sethos sounds more amazed than shocked. Maybe this guy has an interesting hat…
“Hey, whatever you do… If you go into Ksharewar, don’t become an architect, Sethos…” Kaveh adds in, lying his head on the table.
“... Hm. I honestly should’ve dragged Candace here. It’s too bad she’s busy fending off the remaining treasure hoarders around the village. I think it would’ve been insightful to hear what she had to say.” Dehya chuckles as she talks to Nilou and the Traveler. “I would never become a student at the Akademiya, but maybe Candace is curious.”
The rest of the night goes on without a hitch. Nilou dances for all to see and the folks sing along to Sumeru’s local melodies. A lot of the desert folk have never heard of the city’s songs, so they introduced the locals their favorite songs too. Sethos challenged Cyno to a few rounds of TCG, but… he can never keep up with Cyno. This is probably why he doesn’t play a lot of TCG. Cyno is at a whole different level. Tighnari and the Traveler are probably the only ones who can beat him. But there’s also a new challenger…
“... Tch. A freeze comp. One of the worst decks.” Cyno shakes his head in disapproval.
“Heh. Don’t like to play, don’t play the game.” Alhaitham smirks. Of course, it had to happen. There’s a rivaling shock of lightning between the two.
Sethos snickers, “You should teach me your tactics, Alhaitham.”
“When will you ever appreciate my teachings, Sethos…” Cyno shakes his head even more.
More hours go by. More drinking, more gifts were left… The guests were decreasing as every minute went by. Eventually, the Traveler and Paimon had to leave. So did Nilou, Faruzan and Layla. Dehya left and of course, Alhaitham carried Kaveh out of the tavern. Now, it was just Cyno, Sethos, Tighnari and Collei at the table. The party’s over and Lambad’s just finished cleaning up the mess. It’s time for them to go home. What a day.
They sang, they drank, they told stories. It’s almost nothing like Sethos has ever experienced before. If anything, it’s what Sethos had always wanted…
“Oh, Sethos… It’s almost midnight. We’ve stayed for so long!” Tighnari views the white moon, gleaming as ever. “You can stay at Gandharva Ville if you want. Cyno always stays with us whenever he comes by. You can treat it as… a sleepover!”
“Oh, I can’t possibly…” But he double-takes. Staring into Cyno’s eyes gave him the answer. “... Alright, sure. I packed extra clothes in my bag just in case, actually.”
“Wow… you’re prepared!” Collei laughs. “Have you been to the rainforest, Sethos?”
“I have, but my experience there was kind of… terrible. It rained on the first day I was there and my tent was washed away!”
“Oh no! That must’ve been tough…”
The moon is beautiful tonight. It’s huge for all of Sumeru’s people to see. No clouds are blocking its way and it’s crystal clear in the starry sky. As they trotted down the bridges and through the grass, Sethos struggled to carry all of his gifts by himself. His newfound friends offered to carry some, but he refused. He thought he might as well do this much since they troubled themselves to throw a party for him.
… What a day, huh?
“Hey, Cyno.”
Cyno’s head perks up. He turns to face his good friend. “Yeah?”
“I just wanna say…”
I want to get the chance to say ‘thank you’ again.
So… Thank you.
“... I’ll see you in the morning!” Sethos runs off, heading towards the Forest Ranger’s base ahead of the rest.