Chapter 158: Those left behind
Kazumi guessed correctly, while Vincent and Ester made the same connection about the same time. The indisputable proof regarding the twins being Koss's children was notable.
However, only Lupa didn't seem to care about the twins. She simply looked around to look for a specific object of rest that all houses have while twitching her nose, trying to get a whiff of food.
Ben, Vincent, Ester, and Lupa followed inside. Vincent noticed the house's interior was very similar to Earth's fashion, but in olden times, when technology didn't exist. At the time when everything was carved and made by hand.
However, Vincent quickly stopped thinking about the house and its decor to focus on the task ahead. He needed to retell what happened to the family and try doing it in the most considerate manner possible.
Vincent entered the large kitchen after Ben. It was the largest room in the house, and on the side was a sliding glass door. The small yard every nearby house possessed came into view.
It was easy to say that Tula's family considered eating with the family the most precious thing to do. Mostly because Vincent didn't notice a living room in the house, he only saw a training room and one or two storage rooms with the doors still open from the sudden visit.
"Uncle Ben, where is a father? Why is elder sister joking?" Said one of the twins with a frown.
"Who are you?" Tula embraced her mother and asked again.
The twins couldn't believe their eyes. They thought their elder sister was playing a terrible game in this concerning situation.
They were seeing Ben donning a serious expression. Next was Tula; She didn't stop acting odd, as if she wanted to play some kind of unfunny joke. Lastly, for some reason they don't know why, Ben invited three people they never met before inside their home.
"I have one good news and three bad news. So Lenn... Renn... please take a seat beside your mother and sister." Ben had to do the job he hated the most. Furthermore, to announce the death of two of his childhood friends to their family made his heart squeeze from sorrow.
The twins Lenn and Renn suddenly trembled upon hearing these words. As the twins gazed at Vincent, Ester, and Lupa, shortly, they noticed a sad, apologetic, and sympathetic expression on their faces. The twins' hearts became filled with discomfort and anxiety about the possible bad news being severe ones.
"The good news is that Tula returned without a scratch on her body..." Ben then pulled a chair and sat on it for both moral and physical support. Ben's will to hold his tears was wavering to deliver the following news.
"Your father, uncle, and uncle's fiancee passed away while doing their duty to protect the kingdom and their family. Furthermore..."
"Tula got injured and has lost her memories. Tula only remembers until she was ten years old. This means the two of you weren't born yet since it was fourteen years ago." Ben revealed Tula's age of being around twenty-four and the twins Lenn and Renn to be about fourteen years old. Almost a few months before Tula first heard, she was about to become a big sister.
Such news devastated Yula, Lenn, and Renn. Their saddened eyes moved up and down, but no sign of this being a joke could be perceived.
"There, there, mommy. I will be strong for mommy like my big brother told me to do. Mommy can depend on Tula because I'm a big girl now." Tula said while gently caressing her mother's head. Tula didn't look devastated by the news, but maybe because she cried all her tears away in the past few weeks and heard this story multiple times.
When Yula heard these words from her daughter's mouth, she immediately believed Ben because Tula only acted like this when she was young. At the time before Tula wanted to become a soldier like her father, even if female combat soldiers were rare. A decision she took after the twins were born.
Lenn and Renn were born relatively small. Because of this, Tula wanted to become strong enough and take care of her brothers because the blood doesn't lie. The possibility of her brothers yearning to become soldiers was very high. Such tiny babies would be weak, she thought.
However, Tula wasn't blessed with her father's strong genes. It was his determination she inherited instead. Not only did Tula not awaken a class similar to her classless mother or many ordinary people, but she managed to gain the trait of Blood Tempered Body after many years of training and hard work.
The old Tula would be jealous to death, knowing Vincent gained the trait she worked so hard to achieve in weeks instead of years.
Vincent, Ester, and Lupa stood on the opposite side of the room, where Vincent felt his hand being squeezed. He soon noticed it was Ester holding his hand tightly. She had a few tears welling in her eyes from the emotional moment in front of them.
[I guess Ester is remising her parents. How are you feeling, Vincent?]
-I feel sorry for the family. I have seen many people I know die, but I don't feel devastated like how I use to...
-That's why I wanted to be like my comic book hero, the green-eyed Hero. To not experience a loss. To not become saddened by a person I know passing away.-
[Then don't forget what your Hero liked to say. People die only when they are forgotten. They live in our hearts, and their souls will bless us with their presence in our hardest times.]
'I guess I should talk to them. But why don't I feel very sad? I usually cry when I see a lot of people crying. Have I changed this much?' Vincent pondered. He worried about becoming an uncaring person one day.
Vincent gently let go of Ester's grip. He walked in front of the large table and said, "I'm sorry for your loss. I know the feeling of family members passing away quite well. It took me many years to live a normal life with the help of my savior."
"It might be inconsiderate of me, but I wish to tell what happened and how Koss and Kass saved our lives. I know now might not be the time, but you need to know how they tried their best to let Tula survive and us to deliver her home." Vincent thought more of himself than Tula's family mourning their lost loved ones. He thought it would be better for the family to know than not to know.
Vincent wanted to know what happened to his family when he woke up in the hospital and was surrounded by people he didn't know doing tests on him.
However, before Vincent was about to speak, he saw Ben wasn't feeling very well. Ben was slightly trembling, and his eyes were fighting a war to hold the tears from leaking. Ben looked like he wanted to lessen the sadness in the room by one less crying person.
"Thank you for everything, Ben. You can go and mourn your friends in your own way. Please leave it to me. I can explain everything." Vincent respectfully said.
Similar to Koss, Ben was the second kindest person holding high authority that Vincent made acquaintance with up till now. Vincent wanted to respect the man and give him an excuse to stop doing the part of the job he said to hate the most for the day.
Ben took a few glances and understood what Vincent meant. Ben lowered his head and thanked Vincent for bringing Tula back. Then he quickly paced towards the entrance and left to drown his sorrows in his home. The place where his wife might faint at the news and where his most precious wine collection Ben saved for occasions was.
"Why... why did Uncle Ben... let you with us?" Lenn suspiciously said after wiping his eyes a couple of times.
"Elder sister is home now... Leave us to mourn our father and uncle alone." Renn continued.
"No! I want big brother and big sisters to say with us! Don't make me hate you!" Tula frowned at her twin brothers. She didn't know them because of her memory loss. This is why for now, Tula didn't consider the twins as her brothers but as people that didn't like Vincent instead.
Yula became surprised by how much Tula had changed and how much she favored the three strangers instead of her brothers. She tried her best to hold her waterfall of tears to stop and then wiped her face with a handkerchief.
"Can... can you please tell us what... what happened." Yula mustered her resolution to say.
"Koss and Kass saved our lives, and for that, we are indebted to your family." Vincent bowed to express his utmost respect to their lost father and uncle.
"They helped us survive. We are thankful for what they have done." Ester respectfully bowed next.
"Umm... they helped us fight, and we won. So umm, thanks for having strong people... I mean, relatives? " Lupa then nodded for saying the correct word and later tried to copy Ester. However, she lowered her head more than Ester to have a more profound bow and win, or so she thought.
Yula, Tula, Lenn, and Renn looked at the three showing their sincere condolences. Second, after second, time passed, and the three kept their bow with no hint of stopping anytime soon.
Even the impatient Lupa didn't falter and remained as she was. She didn't want to let Ester do a more extended bow than her.
"Please lift your heads. You brought my daughter back to us. We are the ones indebted to you. " Yula could understand how difficult the journey was since her strong husband and brother-in-law died trying to return Tula home. Vincent's bandaged body and Esters bandaged hands made her realized how dangerous their return was.
"My name is Vincent. She is Ester, and she is Lupa." Vincent introduced himself and the two behind him in turns.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Yula, Tula's mother, and these are her twin brothers, Lenn and Renn. Mr.Vincent, could you tell us about my husband's and brother-in-law's final moments?" Yula asked after managing to hold her tear for a moment. A second later, her tears slid on her cheeks, and her eyes were ready to erupt in tears.
"No." Vincent declined. It was at this moment that all eyes stared at him. Even Kazumi froze for a second from surprise.
"I will tell you the truth and not the final moments. The complete story that I didn't say in the interrogation room to hide the fact that I'm a one-of-a-kind unique class holder. It's because I trust my savior's family to keep my secret." Vincent continued.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone