Zhenz Kaienley...
I haven't heard of the name before.
I'll see if this Kaienley is indeed the person I'm looking for.
Maeyurai scratched the left side of his neck before opening his mouth to speak.
"This Kaienley... Do you know where he lives?" he asked.
"I do," Sanrovina quickly answered. "He's quite a popular figure here. The locals are familiar with him, and there's almost no one that isn't."
"Ah, I see," said Maeyurai, nodding his head. "Sounds like he's a great person."
"People consider him as is, but I don't," Sanrovina replied.
Maeyurai raised an eyebrow at Sanrovina's remark. "You don't? Why?"
"I just feel like I don't want to," said Sanrovina as she shrugged, her lips pressed together tightly, a sign that she didn't want to tell Maeyurai.
Seeing her reserved reaction to his question, Maeyurai decided not to pry any further.
He merely lowered his head. "Okay, then, can you tell me where this Kaienley lives?"
As Sanrovina opened her mouth to reply, a confident voice spoke out in her stead.
"He lives on the highest hill in the outskirts of Yugihanata," said the person who joined their conversation, speaking behind Sanrovina.
The two fell silent, turning their heads towards the unexpected appearance of another person.
Looking closely, the man had hair so shiny it reflected the sun's light like a mirror.
"Golden," Maeyurai murmured under his breath, his eyes widening as he realized who it was.
Wait... It's him! The one I saw in my vision!
I didn't even start looking around for him, yet he's already shown up!
Lucky!
The person who butted in was Kaienley himself. Looking at him, it seemed he wasn't carrying a sword.
"I knew you were talking about me, Sanna," said Kaienley as he passed by Sanrovina. His eyes met hers for a brief moment as he approached Maeyurai.
"Wow, what great timing you always have," replied Sanrovina with a sarcastic tone. It seemed she didn't find Kaienley's presence pleasant to be around.
Kaienley ignored Sanrovina and headed towards Maeyurai with a confident stride.
The two of them had several similarities. From their beautiful faces, healthy skin, slim bodies, soft hair, and even almost their facial features, it was like seeing two idols standing together.
The only difference was that Kaienley was an inch taller than Maeyurai, being 5'9.
"Yhodth Maeyurai, was it?" asked Kaienley, stopping in front of Maeyurai as his amber eyes took in his appearance, studying him up and down. A single stubborn cowlick stuck up distinctively on top of his head, making him look like he had a plant's stem.
"Yes, that's me. Allow me to confirm, you're Zhenz Kaienley, am I correct?"
"Mhm," Kaienley hummed. "I heard earlier that you were looking for me."
Maeyurai didn't reply immediately.
Huh?
Since he knows I'm looking for him, does that mean he's been listening since earlier?
He opened his mouth and replied, "I am."
"Why?" asked Kaienley, jumping straight to the point. He wanted to know why an archer, out of all people, would be looking for him.
Maeyurai fell silent. It was unexpected that Kaienley would be so straightforward. He thought that they would chat a little bit more before talking about the formalities.
"Thinking about it, I don't know either," he replied.
Such an unexpected answer took Kaienley to the back like a sneak attack.
Though, rather than being confused, he merely let out a chuckle.
"Hehe, so even you don't know, huh?" he said lightheartedly, a smile forming on his lips.
Instead of Kaienley, Maeyurai himself was the one left confused.
"Huh? What do you mean, 'even you don't know?'" he asked with a puzzled look.
Kaienley didn't reply. Instead, he asked a question.
"Do you recall the words, 'Maeyurai... I'm sorry...?'"
Not letting Maeyurai reply, he continued without pause. "What about an important figure saying, 'Nice one, Maeyurai'? Does that sound familiar?"
Maeyurai was left hanging with his mouth slightly ajar. Such words were laid deep within his heart, unforgotten. And now, he was reminded once more.
Why does this guy know those?!
He instinctively took a step back, cautiously watching Kaienley for any suspicious movement.
With tense shoulders, he asked, "How do you know?"
"I heard it, Maeyurai," said Kaienley in a mysterious tone. "The final words of those who left something in your life."
The tall lady behind Kaienley raised her hand. With one swift motion, she hit the back of Kaienley's head.
Wack!
"Ouch," Kaienley weakly uttered, turning his head back to look at Sanrovina.
"You're enjoying this a little too much, Kaienley," said Sanrovina with a stern voice.
"What? I wasn't doing anything wrong. Don't butt in, Sanna," Kaienley protested.
"Plus," Kaienley continued. "I'm just playing around."
Hearing that Kaienley was only joking around didn't change how Maeyurai felt. It was creepy how Kaienley knew those words, much more that Kaienley knew that those people were important to him.
Playing around?
You can't be kidding me. That was incredibly creepy.
Just who is this person?
Letting out a shuddering breath, Maeyurai spoke up.
"Kaienley," he called. "Answer me. How do you know?"
His voice lingered in the air as the environment shrank down into silence.
Kaienley, upon hearing his name, gave one last glance at Sanrovina before turning his head to reply.
"This isn't the place to talk," he said with a solemn voice, as if the topic were incredibly important.
Well, it probably really was.
"Okay," said Maeyurai. "Where do you suggest we talk privately?"
Thinking of a place, Kaienley went silent, looking at the floor in thought.
Then, he shifted his gaze, looking directly at Maeyurai. "We can go to my house. It should be private enough."
"Fine by me," replied Maeyurai.
Kaienley turned his back to Maeyurai, walking off in the direction of where his house was.
Maeyurai followed suit. As he was walking after Kaienley, he glanced at Sanrovina and asked, "Are you coming?"
"No," Sanrovina immediately replied, as if there was something repulsive that she found in going with Maeyurai.
Or more specifically, she found it repulsive to stand near Kaienley. Maeyurai didn't understand whatever it is she disliked about the golden-haired boy.
The two guys, Maeyurai and Kaienley, were walking through the lively streets of Yugihanata, heading for Kaienley's home.
Kaienley led the way without looking back to see if Maeyurai was going after him. It was like he already knew Maeyurai was following.
Maeyurai, staring at Kaienley intently, tilted his head to the left to take a closer look at him.
Upon closer observation, he noticed something strange with Kaienley.
At the left side of his neck, there was a mark. The mark resembles the symbol of the eighth note in music.
Out of curiosity, Maeyurai decided to question about it, opening his mouth to query Kaienley.
"Hey, Kaienley," he called out. "Did you get a tattoo on your neck?"
As soon as he asked that question, the mark on Kaienley's neck disappeared. He stopped moving, his head slowly turning towards Maeyurai.
"You..." said Kaienley in a hushed tone. "You can see it?"
Kaienley's reaction was something that Maeyurai didn't expect. "What are you talking about? Of course I can."
"That's not the issue here," Kaienley replied. "Everyone else can't see it."
The two of them fell into silence as the winds blew past softly like a cradle.
"Are you like me?" Kaienley asked, breaking the quiet tension between them.
"Like what exactly?" Maeyurai clarified, unsure of what Kaienley meant by, 'like me'.
Kaienley doesn't reply immediately. He gathered his thoughts, trying to find the right words to say.
"Okay, let's scrap going into my house," Kaienley said. "There's no one around us anyway."
Just as Maeyurai was about to talk, Kaienley went on and spoke first.
"Heightened senses," he said. "Do you have it?"
"Heightened? As in, improved?" Maeyurai asked.
"Boosted or improved, as long as it's about making one of the five main senses better."
Maeyurai restrained his voice, as there were several things he wanted to ask Kaienley first.
"Yes, I do have a heightened sense. My sense of sight in particular."
Kaienley nodded his head, going silent for a moment.
"For me, it's my sense of hearing."
Maeyurai crossed his arms as he looked at the floor, his head cocked to the side in thought.
He didn't expect that there were others like him.
I understand it now.
The vision I saw was telling me that Kaienley is a person with a heightened sense, like me.
If so, shouldn't there be three more people like us?
In his mind, he had dozens of questions waiting to be answered. But he knew he had to take it slow and have them answered one by one.
Maeyurai shifted his gaze to Kaienley.
"Kaienley," he called. "How did you hear the words of Ugina and Huizen?"
"Ugina and Huizen?" asked Kaienley. "Ah, the final words of those people."
"Yes, their final words," replied Maeyurai.
A beat passed by. Then, Kaienley started talking.
"I heard it a few weeks ago. It was a signal, I believe. I heard your name, your voice, and then the final words of those around you," Kaienley explained. "It wasn't that I heard from hundreds of kilometers away; it was like my hearing was transported to your area, and I could hear the voices of those around."
After speaking, Kaienley would continue. "It went on for the next two weeks. Then, it was gone when you bid farewell to the other archers."
"You know that much, huh?" said Maeyurai.
"I didn't hear everything. Only some minor details," Kaienley replied. "Did you happen to receive a signal?"
"Signal... I think I have. I did see a vision of you rowing a boat near Wyumatsui Island."
"I see. That could be how your signal works. While I hear the voices of those around you, you see a vision of me."
"If you have the improved sense of hearing, and mine is the sense of sight, shouldn't that mean there are three more?"
"That's logical. I believe the same."
Kaienley shifted his weight as he finished talking. Without a clear purpose, he drifted to the right.
"Maeyurai," Kaienley called out, his back facing him. "If I tell you to stick around with me, would you?"
His voice echoed across the street, passing by like a whisk of the air.
As Maeyurai didn't reply, a deafening silence was present. A silence so loud it overshadowed the ambiance of the environment, darkening their hearing as it faded into nothing.
If Kaienley asked me to stay by his side for a long time...
Would I do it?
Why would he ask me that?
Why should I?
There's something that lies deeper behind that question. And honestly, I can't seem to comprehend it.
I feel a strange sense of comfort being around him. It's like I've found something I was meant to be with.
This foreign feeling bends my desire and my will, pushing me to think of something I never would.
And right now, I want to accept his words.
I would stay by his side.
After a long while, Maeyurai opened his mouth and replied.
"Normally, I won't. But I somewhat feel that I would."
Kaienley looked over his shoulder, a soft expression present in his eyes. After hearing Maeyurai's answer, he turned around and smiled.
"I understand," he said. "I feel it too, the odd feeling that isn't mine."
And there it was. Kaienley managed to express it accurately, like finding a nail in a haystack. Maeyurai couldn't find the words to explain how it felt, but now, he knew.
"Right!" he said enthusiastically, the sense of comfort in his heart growing slowly. "It's like the feeling was forced upon me! It doesn't feel wrong; it isn't right either."
"Yeah, it's unnatural," said Kaienley. "It comes from out of nowhere. It's just... jarring."
Maeyurai nodded in affirmation, letting the silence walk in.
After a moment, Maeyurai spoke up. "We get along quite well. I didn't expect this."
"Me too," Kaienley replied. Then, a thought came into his mind. "Have you eaten breakfast already?"
"Breakfast? Oh, right, I didn't eat at the ship," replied Maeyurai, his eyes slightly opened from realization.
Since Maeyurai hadn't eaten breakfast yet, Kaienley caught up on an idea that could allow the two of them to know one another deeper.
"Want to eat at my home?" he invited. "My grandma makes the best noodles."
"Sure, I'd take you up on that offer," Maeyurai answered, prepared to follow Kaienley to his home.
Once Maeyurai accepted his offer, Kaienley directed him to his house right away, looking over his shoulder to see if Maeyurai was following.
Maeyurai traced Kaienley's steps, his head turned to his side as he glanced at Kaienley's neck.
There was no mark.
"You're trying to see if the mark is there?" asked Kaienley, watching Maeyurai out of the corner of his eye.
"I am, and I currently can't see it," Maeyurai answered.
"Of course you're not. It only appears when I'm focusing," Kaienley replied, shifting his gaze forward.
"Ah, okay."
The two of them continued walking until they reached the outskirts of Yugihanata. It took quite a while.
Kaienley's house was on the highest hill, as he once stated before.
It was near to the unclaimed territory between Yugihanata and Tahaktatsu.
Staring at the far surroundings, the hills were in sight. Observing closely, they could see the humble home of Kaienley on top of the tallest hill.
They had left Yugihanata, walking at the very border of the city.
"We're near," Kaienley said as he led Maeyurai through the plains.
"Is that it?" asked Maeyurai as he placed a hand over his eyebrow, peering in the distance.
"Yes," Kaienley quickly replied.
After a moment of walking, they had finally reached the doorstep to Kaienley's humble abode.
On the small garden on their left was Kaienley's grandmother, Gokerun Metilda. She was tending to their plants, watering them with care.
Her eyes traveled to the two boys who had just arrived.
"Oh!" she happily exclaimed. "Kaienley, you're back! And with a new friend, it seems."
Kaienley approached her with a smile, slightly leaning forward as a gesture of respect.
"Yes, he is a new friend of mine," he said. "His name is Yhodth Maeyurai. He came from Gangumen."
"Ahh, Gangumen, eh?" said Metilda as her head bounced up and down in understanding, her eyes shifting to Maeyurai. "You traveled quite a while. It must've been troublesome to stay at the Port of Jinsang Bay."
"It really was quite a complicated journey here to Wyumatsui Island," Maeyurai replied. "I encountered a few inconveniences, which almost led to me changing my destination."
"It is good you arrived safely," said Metilda.
Metilda glanced at Kaienley, their eyes making contact. There was a silent communication that occurred.
And with a nod, Metilda opened her mouth and said, "You two may head inside. I'll finish up before I tend to the both of you."
"Let's go, Maeyurai," said Kaienley, turning to his right as he headed for the door.
Maeyurai followed after. "Okay."
Once they were inside, Kaienley stepped out of his boots.
"I'm home," he said.
Looking inside the house, it felt peaceful and quiet. It was like standing under a willow tree as the sunlight peeked through the small gaps, creating an immaculate view from the inside.
Not only that, but the very vibes of the house, from the interior itself, were completely different from how it felt in Gangumen for Maeyurai.
It wasn't just this house; he's felt the same energy ever since stepping foot on the dock of Yugihanata.
It was because of the different culture and structure of each house. One great difference was that the doors were made of translucent papers where light could pass through.
It wasn't as bland and free like Gangumen, it felt more lively and bright.
Seeing as Kaienley took off his boots, Maeyurai did the same.
"Excuse me," said Maeyurai, stepping barefooted on the wooden floor.
As Maeyurai shifted his gaze forward, Kaienley took a sharp left. He pushed open the sliding door and walked in.
Peering inside, it was the dining area. But the furniture wasn't the same as Maeyurai was familiar with.
The table was set on the floor, alongside the cushion beside it serving as the chair.
"Come take a seat," said Kaienley as he lowered himself onto one of the cushions on the floor.
"Okay," replied Maeyurai, doing the same thing.
As the bright light radiated from the paper wall to their side, Kaienley's mind touched a certain question, making him curious of a certain detail he'd just noticed.
He turned his head to Maeyurai, who had just sat down quietly.
"By the way," he said as if calling Maeyurai. "Where's your mark?"
"Hm?" Maeyurai hummed in question, his eyes moving to look at Kaienley. "My mark?"
"Yes, your mark. Where is it?"
Maeyurai fell into silence, but it wasn't because he didn't want to answer. It was something else.
His mouth slowly opened.
"I don't have a mark."