Adtraic Verity: Journey For The Truth
Chapter 7

Five seats were all placed neatly in the carriage.

Of those seats, Asahi and Aletha occupied the ones nearest to the windows.

The trees and skies were so dazzling that Aletha was mesmerized just from the sight alone, staring at all the beautiful colors.

On the other hand, Asahi was speaking to Brich near a wall of dangling paintings, containers, and ceiling lights. He had talked about just recently his name and how he arrived. Brich gasped.

“My, so you awakened underwater? That’s dangerous. You’re lucky that both of you are alive. Strange creatures lurk within those waters. Ha ha. Say,” He grabbed a glass of water and maintained eye contact with Asahi, speaking with more of a bright accent.

“… are you and that girl foreigners, or are you two natives of this world? I have never seen a person with such a bright shade of hair other than you.”

Asahi tilted his head down and chuckled nervously, thinking about the blurry view of his parents. He cleared his throat and responded politely, pushing his white hair back as he felt the carriage rattle from the rocks below.

“We came from this world.”

Brich raised his thick eyebrow in confusion, mumbling.

“Hmm, is that so?”

Asahi sighed deeply and looked back at his memories, feeling them parting from his grasp. After Aletha turned to him, Asahi looked back to Brich and replied with his soft yet uneasy voice.

“Y…Yeah. Ten years ago, my sister and I lost everything in this world by unknown means. I don’t know what it was, but Aletha and I got forced to leave. W…We even lost our parents.”

Brich tipped the wine glass toward his l*p and sipped the remaining droplets before placing it back on the table and responding.

“Ten years ago…? I don’t remember such an event. The only thing that happened was the collapse of Obrus’ wall. Other than that, I know nothing of this calamity you’re saying.”

Asahi’s eyes widened.

“H…Huh? I could have sworn that–

Aletha immediately asked as she grew curious about the discussion.

“Asahi, what are you talking about?”

Asahi rubbed his cheek in anxiousness and sighed.

“N…Nothing. Nothing important.” Aletha’s gray eyes sneered at his face with suspicion, detecting lies shroud over his soul. She crossed her arms and turned away from him, hearing Brich answer from the back.

“Your brother and I were talking about this ‘calamity.'”

She gasped with an reminiscent expression, snapped her fingers, and took deep breaths, remembering the calamity. Aletha said as she fidgeted with her hair anxiously.

“Huh? Oh, y…yeah.” Aletha’s tone shifted dramatically to one of guilt. “I have… experienced it before. It was really, really bad. We lost everyone to this strange thing. I don’t want to remember.”

Asahi patted and rubbed his sister’s back, trying to soothe her as Brich’s curiosity sparked. To satisfy the man’s curiosity, Asahi confidently took a deep breath and answered.

“Perhaps it could have been an illusion, but I’m sure we have been in this world before. I don’t understand why it’s so hostile, though. We are the original gods–

Brich’s pupils dilated, his mind bounced with ideas, and he lifted his chin, unfamiliar with what Asahi was mentioning. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

“Original… Gods? I have never heard that term in a while. I thought it was some sort of myth.”

Both the wanderers erupted with confusion.

“Huh?!”

Sadiki added on, pressing his tail and preparing two glasses on the kitchen at the side.

“Yeah. It was a while since I heard the myth of the Original Gods. They say this world was created from the void and granted heavenly blessings, pushing the underworld because of the Original Gods. But suddenly, they vanished like a weed… effectively gifting their world for humanity.”

Asahi and Aletha guffawed at Sadiki’s words. They couldn’t believe that what was the reality before was nothing but a myth and legendary tale now.

Sadiki shook his head with doubt, pouring a jar of water into one of the sparkling glasses as he continued speaking.

“I don’t believe it, though. I think the original gods are still lurking below or something. I have faith in them.” He shook his head and walked over to the wanderers, handling two drinks in his hands. Sadiki offered as his charming face gleamed with the sun’s rays.

“Anyways, do you two care for a drink?”

Aletha beamed up and reached her hand.

“Of course!”

Abruptly, a loud sound came from her stomach.

(GROWL)

Brich and Sadiki gasped.

“What was that?”

Both Aletha and Asahi’s faces flushed red.

They forgot that they hadn’t eaten anything for the last few days. Even though they were energetic, the siblings’ appetites urged and craved anything to eat. And so, Aletha replied while Asahi tried to cover up his embarrassment.

“D-Do you have anything for us to eat?”

A bright transient smile filled Sadiki’s face.

“Of course!”

A wave of relief flooded their minds.

Finally, after all the times they have been screwed after encountering the white void, Asahi and Aletha could finally eat and relax among this world. But just as they thought they could eat automatically, Sadiki expressed as he dashed toward the kitchen, dropping the two glasses on the floor. “It’ll be a minute, though.”

The excited look on both the wanderers’ faces instantly transformed into a desperate and queasy one.

“Aww… r-really?”

Aletha almost cried from waiting. It was childish of her to do that, but that’s just how she acts. Instead of the atmosphere of the carriage transforming, it instead transformed to a vivid and joyful aura.

Brich lightly chuckled and bounced up. He pushed his suit and snapped his fingers, acknowledging with a transient smile plastered on his warm face.

“Cheer up! At least you get something to eat!”

* * * * * * * *

Not long after.

“The food is ready!” Sadiki hollered as steam rolled out from the kitchen, carrying the delightful scent of seasonings like a rope.

At last, the food had arrived! Asahi and Aletha slumped on the floor, feeling their stomachs crawl and twist up from their hunger.

They immediately beamed up as soon as their nostrils caught the tingling, irresistible aroma.

Without asking, Sadiki pulled out a wooden table and placed it near the wanderers’ chairs, grabbing two plates and positioning them neatly in front of them. Brich scratched his head, watching the siblings drool in front of the food.

“My… I never knew they were hungry. We should have fed them sooner.”

Sadiki winked while tossing the silverware near the plates.

“Better late than never!”

Brich nodded and chuckled lightly.

“I guess you’re right.”

As Sadiki and Brich discuss their thoughts in the background, Asahi and Aletha couldn’t wait anymore. Their gray eyes quickly anchored to the food on their plates.

It was a massive piece of ham, drizzled with drops of sweet honey, battered with freshness, and sprinkled with pepper and seasonings. The fresh, tender, cooked meat sizzled near the wanderers’ nostrils, making them crave and drool from the good.

Asahi remarked as Sadiki stood proud.

“You cooked that in such a short timespan.”

Sadiki perked his h**s and bowed, answering with a smug tone.

“I have my secrets. Heh heh. Say, do you two know how to cook?”

Asahi swiftly tilted his head away and kept quiet. It seemed he didn’t want to answer and reveal something. On the other hand, Aletha proudly smiled, knowing she could cook amazingly.

(Ha, I can cook a five-star meal without effort!)

While Aletha poked a small piece of ham from her utensil, she confidently answered Sadiki.

“Yeah… o-of course! I can cook a five-star meal without effort.”

“How about you?” Sadiki asked Asahi as his eyes wrenched up to his face.

In contrast to his sister’s confidence, Asahi was relatively quiet about this, knowing well that his sister just lied right in front of his face. She couldn’t cook for the life of her.

On the other hand, Asahi was a relatively experienced cook. A masterful one if that.

There have been many, if not several moments where Asahi had cooked for the entire family and even a group of gods… that was when they were still alive.

His father or some hunter would have provided him the ingredients, his mother would have encouraged him even though she could cook well but not to a certain extent, and then Asahi would be intelligent enough to cook them. Despite being gods, they still see the joy in both cooking and consuming food.

Asahi had been doing that for years, and even after the calamity, among the decade of world-traveling he and Aletha been through; Asahi still provided absolutely delicious meals for him and his sister.

Yet even with all of that weight put upon his mind, Asahi’s lips were pressed and shut tightly like sealed doors with irritation.

He felt like he was disrespected hearing such a lie come from his sister’s mouth. He thought to himself quietly as the carriage passed by a intersection of trees.

(The people that are truly good at something, are the ones that don’t brag about it.)

But because of how silent Asahi was, Aletha stomped her feet and interrupted.

“H…Hey… how about we just focus on the meal?”

Sadiki sneered his eyes at Asahi with suspicion and responded calmly.

“Okay. Hope you two are satisfied!”

. . .

Moments later, Asahi and Aletha’s mouths stuffed with food.

They smiled in delight, chewing each bite down with passion. The taste wasn’t what they had expected. If not, it was better than they would have ever imagined. Their bellies warmed up from the tasty meal, filling their bodies with various nutrients.

Aletha cheered as she ate the last piece of the honey-glazed ham.

“It’s soooo good!”

Asahi couldn’t deny it: Sadiki’s cooking was better than anything he had ever made, yet he was still confident that Aletha’s cooking could outmatch this.

After gulping the last chunk down, Asahi slid the palate away and commented on Sadiki’s cooking.

“That was amazing! The taste, the food, everything! Thank you for this wonderful meal.”

Brich turned his head to Asahi and chuckled.

“Heh heh. You don’t have to be so formal. But I appreciate your gratitude!”

* * * * * * * *

As the carriage passed and advanced toward a valley, Brich searched for an alternative route. Luckily enough, he noticed a trail stretching from the brown gravel road toward a dense forest with evergreen pine trees, rising upward to a long wooden bridge extending over a massive steep ravine.

Quickly, Brich steered the carriage toward the trail on the right; the wooden wheels shifted, the horses turned, and the ceiling lights jangled. Asahi and Aletha gabbed onto their chairs to prevent falling from the abrupt movement of the carriage before swaying aggressively back to its original position. Aletha whined in an aggravated tone.

“What was that?!”

Brich replied as he set the horses in an “Auto-pilot” state and exited the driver’s seat.

“I greatly apologize. We are taking an alternative route. I want to ensure we get to the city sooner so traffic doesn’t build up.”

Aletha nodded her head and understood.

“Okay, I understand.”

After steering and traveling toward another path, Sadiki turned over to the wanderers and asked them calmly.

“Hey, do you two have a moment?”

Both the siblings nodded their heads.

” Of course.”

“Pfft, obviously.” Aletha answered with a sassy attitude. It was clear that even though she ate, she would never forgive that horrible summoning of being underwater. She almost felt like her lungs have been full with water, spitting out some from time to time. Luckily, it was nothing fatal. sarcastically.

Sadiki brightly smiled, cleared his throat, and took a deep breath. After the carriage had rolled over another bump, he acknowledged the wanderers.

“Just in case you two are going to become adventurers, I want to inform you that the nation you two are in, Pladtioa, is separate from the rest of the world. To put it this way, Pladtioa is one massive island filled with grass plains, hills, and lush forests; you might as well call the ‘island’ its own continent….”

The wanderers leaned their bodies toward them, eager to learn more. Sadiki continued to inform them.

“In the world of Gincad, there are Eight Nations. Each of them has its own categories and rulers. Pladtioa seems to be the cleanest nation among the eight nations.”

Asahi noted.

“So you’re saying this massive grass biome is its own continent?”

Sadiki nodded and tilted over to the ceiling, striking a funny pose.

“Yes, I guess it is. If you two want to travel to the other seven nations, you might need to get a boat, or in this case, a ship, because Vehemat is on the other side of the ocean.”

Both Asahi and Aletha muttered in confusion.

“Vehemat?”

Sadiki nodded and lightly chuckled.

“Yes, that’s the name of the continent. That’s where Linuxinia, Astait, Zomrack, Destia, and Obrus are.”

Although Asahi was struck with fascination at just the thought of the transformation of his own world, these names never matched the three he have always recollected. It’s like, if you were to leave your house one day and somehow, after two years, it had suddenly transformed. That was exactly how Asahi felt. It was no surprise he would want the old world back.

He thought well, but these names don’t even indicate or match to what he had envisioned. This journey could be longer than expected. With that thought lingering deep in his mind, Asahi asked about the other three the silver-haired cat-boy haven’t mentioned.

“So… where are the other two nations you didn’t mention?”

Sadiki coughed, sitting back on his chair and sighing.

“Oh, yeah, I forgot. Wraileza, and Cleira are not part of Vehemat. But separate. Like a continent.”

The last name intrigued Asahi and Aletha. It was a name that identified “home” for them. One they wanted so much.

“CLEIRA?!”

Though both Asahi and Aletha saw that nation collapse and crumble in the past, somehow, thousands of years later, it seemed that nation was said to be still standing. Well, that’s what the absurdity of Aletha’s mind had thought. It could be wrong.

Sadiki slowly backed away, curious as to why both of them screamed.

“You know that place?”

Before anything else could have been said, the carriage quickly increased its pace, speeding through the other carriages without remorse. Aletha walked up to the window and pointed, her eyes sparkling with awe.

“Brother, look outside!”

As Asahi raced over to the window to see what it was that made her so amused, Brich called out.

“We’re almost there!”