Chapter 10: The Soothing of A Friend

The nobleman seemed to finally take notice of Ren's flickering mood and kept silent instead of further prodding the ticking time bomb of his emotions. The sound of metal gates being opened became ear-ringingly audible as the carriage came to a halt before moving forward once again.

"Ah, seems we're home at last. Welcome to your new home, Ren--this is the Althaus manor," Althaus waved his hand outside of the carriage window with a smile.

He hesitated to look, but after the awkward silence that filled the carriage--he felt obligated to look just to end the awkwardness that fueled his anxiety. His eyes lit up at the sight of the manor--the house was enormous, stretching across the land as if it was an entire academy. Not only was the house itself extravagantly large, the front courtyard felt like a small town itself. Rows of professionally groomed bushes line the stone road that led to the manor, which was made of some form of lavishly designed wood. The design of it was something that didn't exist on Earth, the way it was built could only be the result of magic.

"Ha-ha, I can see by the look on your face that you're quite impressed," Althaus laughed heartily before turning towards the guard next to him as the carriage came to a slow stop, "Johannes, could you show our friend around the manor? I have some urgent business to attend to regarding--you know."

Ren watched as the guard nodded his head before gesturing for the boy to step out of the carriage. Stepping out from the carriage, he felt as if he had truly entered this new world for the first time. The sun ran across his skin, the warmth of it caressing his tired body. Something only natural to a world like this, without the curse of the industrial age--the fresh air that filled his nostrils was something he had never quite experienced before.

"Come on now, we haven't got all day," Johannes urged the boy as he began walking towards the front of the enormous house.

Ren snapped back into focus and fervently nodded his head before catching up with the man in armor, walking beside him.

"So where is that guy going?" Ren asked, looking back at the carriage to see it pulling away once again.

"Refer to him as Althaus--you wouldn't want anyone to hear you calling him otherwise," Johannes nearly snapped, quickly turning his gaze to Ren.

The sudden change in the quiet man's tone nearly made him jump as he could sense the fear in the man's eyes. Johannes sighed quietly and shook his head, taking his helmet off to reveal a head of golden-brown hair. His features were mostly plain--except those withered blue eyes of his that sent a chill down his spine as if he had seen countless atrocities.

"Listen, it is in your best interest to make friends with those who work in this manor," Johannes approached the large burgundy doors before grabbing the silver handles, pulling the doors open.

It was hard to call the front of the expansive house just that--it was large enough to be called a lobby. The furnished wooden floorboards made of some extravagant wood without a speck of dust or wear almost made him not want to even take a single step. The high-reaching walls were lined with paintings of all sorts--portraits, scenery painting, and even pictures that seemed to be taken with a camera. He chalked this up to the usage of magic.

"Why's that?" Ren looked at the man with a hint of concern in his eyes, finally responding to the man after being taken aback by the sight of the almost royal manor.

"Life in the manor may be peaceful, but the world outside is full of hardship--I don't know what your world is like but this one is quite monstrous," Johanne spoke in a whisper as he entered the manor alongside Ren.

It was a bit much to take in--he already knew of Althaus' peculiar antics from his time in the carriage, but what Johannes was warning him about seemed far more sinister. After all, the man telling him this was who seemed to be Althaus' right-hand man, and even he seemed to speak his name in fear.

"Come now, boy," Johannes ushered Ren with his hand as he stepped down the far-reaching halls.

He nodded, looking around curiously--as if only to distract himself from the fear flooding his heart. The guard opened the second door attached to the hall. Before Ren could reach the doorway, the sound of a knife hitting a chopping board became clear now. Reaching the doorway, he found himself in a kitchen, filled with a plethora of utensils and ingredients--as well as a boy he seemed to be about his age, chopping away at green onions with a large knife.

"This is Meinhard, he is the chef of this household--" Johannes began to introduce the boy before being cut off.

The boy quickly turned, pointing the knife directly at Johannes--the tip of which was nearly pressed against the man's neck. The boy's intense gaze then softened as his blank expression shifted into a joyful smile.

"Oh--you gave me a scare!" Meinhard giggled, pulling the knife away and stabbing it into the wooden cutting board.

"And you almost gave me an early visit to the grave!" Johannes barked, rubbing his gloved hand against his neck as if embracing the fact that it was still intact.

Now that the boy was facing towards him, he could get a clear look at him. He had medium-length fluffy blonde hair with irises that resembled emeralds. The clothes he wore seemed professional yet casual, wearing a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a black vest as well as black shorts to match. He wore his socks over his shins, nearly reaching his knees.

The boy's eyes widened, a confused expression covering his face as he looked past Johannes, directly at Ren.

"Urr, nice to meet you, I'm Ren," Ren nervously introduced himself.

"I think you heard my name already, but it's Meinhard! I'm the chief but also quite a few other things, but I guess my cooking takes all of the fame," Meinhard smiled softly, extending his hand.

Ren stared at it for a moment before meeting his reach and shaking his hand with a smile of his own. It was a relief to meet someone his age in this unfamiliar mansion and somehow who didn't seem abnormal. At least, not in a negative way.

"Can you show him around? I'm beat," Johannes scratched his head with a tired sigh.

"Didn't Althaus ask you to show me around?" Ren asked, looking at the tired man.

"Hey--I'm tired as hell and this kid has boundless energy, so I'm sure he doesn't mind. Right, Meinhard?" Johannes held his helmet tucked between his arm and his torso.

The boy looked at Ren for a moment with his hand on his chin as if deciding before nodding his head with a bright smile.

"Sure, but on one condition: he has to help me finish cooking. I can't just slack off on an important supper like this," Meinhard clapped his hands together.

"Is that right? I mean, tonight's dinner is to welcome Ren and you're going to have him help make it? You know what--I don't really care, I'm going to take a nap," Johannes waved his hand as he walked away.

Ren watched the guard walk away, hearing the metal of his armor clank down the hall before becoming distant. Turning back, he jumped back as a knife was pointed directly in front of his face.

"Whoops, I guess I need to be a bit more considerate with these things," Meinhard stuck his tongue out playfully and flipped the knife over with the handle extended towards Ren.

He grabbed the knife slowly and looked at Meinhard, taking a few deep breaths to calm his rapidly beating heart.

"Yeah--you probably shouldn't point knives like that, man," Ren sighed with a weary smile, standing next to Meinhard over the kitchen counter.

A basket of ingredients sat on the counter, filled with an assortment of vegetables ranging from onions, cabbage, carrots, and garlic. A slab of meat was rested on a wooden board, slathered with a variety of spices.

"So...what exactly am I supposed to do here? I'm warning you, I've lived off of microwavable instant ramen about half of my life," Ren rolled his sleeves up.

"Micro-what now? Well, just start by dicing up the carrots and putting them into the pot afterward," Meinhard said with a smile.

Ren nodded his head hesitantly and reached into the basket of vegetables, retrieving a handful of carrots and setting one on the cutting board. He slowly got the knife in position, bringing it down to create the first slice. Glancing to the side, he could feel Meinhard watching him as he slowly cut the first carrot.

"I don't work well while being watched, you know," Ren said half-jokingly.

"Hey, if you get all cut up, the lord is going to let me have it," Meinhard smiled, but Ren could tell that wasn't a lie of any sort.