Kapitel 162: Over the hills of Anticipation (Aletha: Part 22)

"What is it, Aletha?" Alai asked as she, Dina, and Ubel hurriedly sprinted to the bell's location. "Did you find a way to pay off your debt?"

"Yeah!" Aletha replied enthusiastically, pointing over to the direction of the poster. "Over here, follow me!"

Without asking, the group quickly followed Aletha through the city over to the poster's location to see what she had found.

. . .

Alai and Ubel's eyes widened in shock at the number of people gathering around the poster.

"One-million Gincoins!?" Alai exclaimed with a shocked tone, squinting to see if this was true. "That's plenty to pay for your debt!"

"Yeah, and look at this!" Aletha added as she pointed her finger over to the necklace illustration. "The 1st place winner gets another prize!"

As the crowd of people continued to expand, Ubel gave a look of suspicion at the poster.

"Do you truly think it is realistic for you to win such a race? Especially when using only your feet?" Ubel commented as he scratched his chin, reading everything in the poster. "There are a thousand participants and only one of you. Not only would people from this nation participate in this race, but people from around the world, meaning there will be serious competition."

"Yes, but this is a once-in-a-lifetime moment!" Dina added as she heard sentences from others bandied from mouth to mouth. "If Aletha could win this race, perhaps she can… I don't know… do something more with her life; For me and the others. She wouldn't have to go to prison! And even get an extra two-hundred thousand Gincoins to spend on herself."

"WE DID IT!" Aletha cheered as she raised her arm high over Alai's head.

"HECK YEAH, we did!" Alai added as she excitedly gave a high-five, gathering people's attention.

As Alai and Aletha bounced up in cheery attitudes, celebrating the possibility of success, Ubel took another deep glare at the poster and informed them with his cold voice.

"It says here that the race will begin Saturday." He said as Aletha and Alai turned around, trying to keep their anticipation at bay.

After moments of thought, Ubel pushed his hooped earrings to the side and fixed his messy silver hair. He took a deep breath and led Aletha, Alai, and Dina out from the crowd so that others could see the poster, allowing the three to hear his voice without being overwhelmed by the crowd's chatter.

"So, by taking that date into consideration, given six days… we can possibly try and train Aletha for the race with help," Ubel suggested to Alai and Aletha as Dina paid no attention to him.

"Yeah. I mean, we have done endurance training already." Alai said as she turned her head to Aletha. "Remember, Aletha? When you were chasing that animal across the fields of Gushy Geysers?"

Holding a brief recollection of that tiring moment, Aletha's giddy attitude began to die back to normal, and she could hear them again.

"Yeah!" Aletha replied while raising her eyebrows with a smile. "That was actually pretty tough, if I'm being honest. But if the training is to save my life and Drimi, then I'm all for it!"

A smile beamed on Alai's face.

"That's the spirit!" She said as they gave another high-five.

As the group thought and planned what they would do for the race, Aletha noticed familiar faces gathering around the large poster.

"Phthonus?" Mumbled Aletha as she saw the young man bend over to the poster. "What is he doing here?"

As a result of Aletha's curiosity, she got up and acknowledged Ubel and the others before approaching him.

"Hey, guys! I'm going over to the poster." She said as she turned her head back.

"Alright, we'll be here planning," Dina nodded.

"Go ahead. There is still much to do." Ubel added as he grabbed a map from a slot near a board. "I'm still planning the route at which we should start training. Until then, do what you need to do."

"Have fun!" Alai said as she waved to Aletha.

* * * * * * *

The sun drew closer to the horizon. An amber hue slowly filled the skies as the crowd gathering around the poster expanded greatly. Voices bounced in and around about the race. Though Aletha couldn't identify where they were coming from, she could hear everyone's discussions clearly.

"A million Gincoins?" A boy with gray hair and glasses said. "Seems like a bountiful reward for a poor nation such as Linuxinia. However, Destia's economy surpasses that tenfold. Hmm… What do you say, Jesica? Do you think it is worth participating in?"

Standing at the side with her arms perched over her sides, the petite girl with long lavender hair and multi-colored eyes snarled and shook her head.

"No, not at all, my little rabbit." She replied as she hurriedly grabbed the boy's wrist. "That mere fraction of what I have is not even worth fighting over for. Leave it to all the other rabbits to fight over for."

"Whatever you say, Jesica." The gray-haired boy replied as they swiftly departed from the poster.

As Aletha hurriedly sprinted over, catching the two people leaving with their fancy horse carriage, she scratched her head and mumbled aloud.

"Oh, not HER again. She was so annoying. I'm glad she isn't participating in this race."

Clearly, Aletha still had a detestation for that petite snobby girl. Not a surprise considering how wealthy she was. If only she were a little nicer, Aletha would have already received a loan from Jesica. However, like all things in life, nothing comes for free.

Her eyes traveled over the city when Aletha stood at the edge of the road. An uneasy feeling boomed in her as she saw the prosperity flow deep in the town like an event had occurred here before.

Suddenly, a dark recollection dawned on her.

Visions of a giant vortex flying rapidly, tearing through Linuxinia City, filled her mind. People watched in horror as their leaders ran away. A tsunami of beasts sabotaged the place, wreaking havoc upon the city. Thunder, lighting, all of it emerged in one giant smorgasbord of disaster.

And yet, realizing that she presently stood at the center of where the events took place, she fell into utter disbelief, knowing now not a scratch was left on the city. It was as if the sabotage of The Ceremony was a nightmare, a dark and surreal event.

With the memories losing touch in her mind, Aletha raced over to random strangers and asked.

"Hey. Can you be so kind as to answer my question for me?"

Aletha approached an old lady with a wrinkled forehead, nearly bald everywhere. She wore a floral pattern on her clothes and had squinted eyes.

"Why, of course, dear." The lady replied. "Anything for the youth of today."

As she kept an unsure grin, Aletha asked the old woman immediately.

"Do you remember seeing a giant tornado and monsters invading the place?"

The old lady gave a suspicious squint to her in reaction.

"What?! Can you say that louder, please?"

Aletha took a deep impatient sigh and raised her voice.

"DO YOU remember seeing a vortex?"

"No…" The lady answered with a confused glare in her tiny eyes. "I don't remember seeing anything of the sort before. You young adults have such vivid imaginations. Sigh, if only I were to have them at my age."

Aletha jerked her head back in shock.

"What?" (Never mind. I shouldn't have even tried to ask.)

For several minutes, Aletha jumped from person to person, repeatedly asking the same question she had asked the old lady. But some still need to respond or focus on Aletha's question. They were too focused on her hair and how she stood out from the crowd.

So, she tried to bounce over to another mass of people.

After questioning many people of all ages, Aletha came to a conclusion.

"So, from what I can gather from everyone here, the events DID happen. It's just… strangely…." She closed her eyes, sighed deeply, and scratched her head. "The city seemed to heal itself as if the place itself was alive. Is this some sort of magic thing?"

Standing with her feet rooted into the ground in speculation, suddenly, word came from afar that something horrible had brewed in Clearstar City. A blonde-haired man drenched in sweat, wearing a dark coat and scars lifted his arm into the air and alerted the people with a fast tone.

"The Queen of Linuxinia." He paused and took short breaths, his fists trembling in fear. "In Clearstar, The Queen of Linuxina claimed that potency doesn't belong to triers! All magic in Linuxinia is gone except her's! The Sealed Beatific is doomed! Weakness is consuming all in this nation!"

"WHAT?!" Everyone said aloud.

After hearing that warning, people around the mob started to panic and shuffle, throwing their arms in the air.

"What?" A tan man holding a wizard cap screamed confusedly as he swayed his arms into the air. "My magic. I-It isn't working."

Then, another person shouted with an even more desperate scream.

"Why can't I conjure up my powers?!"

Curious blabbering transformed into panicked yells of horror as people continuously ran around, trying to summon their magic.

"No! Not my fire element!"

"Nothing's working!"

"No. No, this can't be true. It took me years to perfect my magic!"

With each cry from the people came a strand of dark mist that seeped through the ground and lifted upward like steam. Aletha flinched at the noises, and her heart sank upon the news.

(Wait… The Queen of Linuxinia stole all magic?) She thought as she hurriedly raced to Alai and the others with pacing breaths. (W… What could she possibly mean by potency not belonging to the triers?)

While thoughts flooded her mind, Aletha heard Alai's words trail off with a tone of disappointment.

"I guess… I have to inform my friends about canceling the five stages of training Aletha was supposed to do…" She mumbled gloomily as she clenched her fists, hearing fast footsteps approach her. "I knew something would go differently. It always has. I was so focused on the first lesson that now… I found myself on a different path. I can't even use my magic again."

"ALAI!" Aletha shouted with heavy breaths, her eyes appearing damp and overly bright. Alai flinched at her shout before turning over and locking her attention on Aletha.

"Yes?" She said while masking her disappointed face with a false smile.

Immediately, Aletha looked around and behind before informing Alai and the others about what was shared not too long ago.

"I… I heard something bad happened in Clearstar, and now everyone's magic doesn't work!" She informed Alai while holding onto her knees. "They said the Sealed Beatific is in danger, and Weakness is spreading into the nation!"

"Oh…?" Alai said with a half-wide glare in her shallow crimson eyes. "...so it wasn't just me who lost my magic."

Aletha hastily nodded in agreement.

"Yeah. It seems everyone in the nation is affected."

"And what do you want us to do about it?" Ubel harshly commented as he crossed his arms, squinting at Aletha. "If we don't have magic, what makes you think WE can fix the problem?"

With his reply came a long silence from Aletha. Ubel stepped in and continued.

"I say we should focus only on our current situation," He said as Dina and Alai nodded in understanding. "...Paying your debt. Maybe after we have trained, and if you won the race… that is, IF you win. Then I suppose we can try and find a way and figure out what happened to The Sealed Beatific and The Queen of Linuxinia."

A pause from Aletha slipped again after his sentence.

Now that she thought about it, it seemed selfish of her to think about another problem instead of focusing on the current situation her friends were trying to help her with. Dina, Ubel, and Alai had done so much for Aletha, saving her and escorting her to Linuxinia Hospital.

They didn't HAVE to do this for her.

It was out of their own choice that they did this.

So when she immediately switched her worries to another problem, she thought it was a slap in the face for her friends to do it.

After seconds of thought, Aletha's panic died, and her emotions returned to normal. She took a deep breath for four seconds and exhaled for another four, calming her mind and relieving her of her stress like pulling out a splinter from her skin.

With the others staring at her, waiting for an answer, Aletha squeezed her eyes shut and said humbly.

"I agree." She said calmly. "It's… kind of selfish of me to think of another problem instead of focusing on the one now. Please, forgive me."

While all their eyes anchored at Aletha's desperate bow, Alai shook her head and lightly chuckled. She answered Aletha with a roll of her eyes.

"Oh, come on now. Of course, we forgive you, Aletha!" She said as her ponytail flew over the wind. "If it wasn't for your strength, we would have never survived that encounter with The Wrailezan Soldiers!"

"Indeed." Said Ubel with a relieving gesture. "We only want you to succeed the same as you want us to succeed. As long as we are with you, then there's no doubt that your conflicts will be resolved."

Tapping Aletha's loose fist against her heart, she gave a grateful grin and shook Ubel's hand. She strengthened her grip tightly and nodded, replying to Ubel as her eyes looked at Alai and the others.

"Okay. As long as we all are together, then nothing is impossible."

"There you go!" Dina said as she rubbed her hand against Aletha's head. "Believe in us! Well…. Actually…. believe in the girl and young man more. I might have to go to Obrus after this."

Upon that sudden revelation from Dina, Ubel, Alai, and Aletha were shunned with shock.

"Huh? You're leaving? Already?!" Aletha stammered confusingly.

"Yes. Got to go back home and accompany the settlers in my village and find my big bird." Dina said as she fidgeted with her long gray hair. "But don't worry! We'll meet again someday! If you visit my village in Obrus, I'll be sure to give you and your other friends a welcome!"

"Strange. We have just met… but…" Ubel said as he closed his eyes, turning his head away from Dina. "If it is 'home' you want, go right ahead. No one is stopping you."

"It was nice to meet you!" Alai said as she shook Dina's hand, smiling despite all the rude things the crazy gray-haired girl did to her.

"It was nice to meet you as well, princess." She replied as she parted away from her grasp.

As Aletha, Alai, and Ubel watched as Dina slowly parted from the border of Linuxinia City, she quickly waved and yelled to Aletha as the commotion around the poster ceased.

"We had a good run, Aletha! If you want to visit, I live in Spreljnkin Jungle in The Nation of Obrus. You will know it when you see the village! Alright!?"

Laying her hand against her heart, Aletha nodded slowly and gave a thumbs-up to Dina.

"Okay! See you soon!"

Just before her silhouette vanished into the distant green mountains, she was seen running back to the group with tears flying down her face. Aletha was caught in Dina's tight embrace, nearly falling over from the impact.

As Aletha closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around Dina's, remembering every mischievous act she did in Gushy Geysers, Aletha heard the girl whisper to her.

"Thank you. Thank you so much for all of this." She said as she squeezed Aletha's body. "Before I met you, my big bird was the only friend I had. I couldn't make friends because… I was too afraid. I never learned to speak to people until I was slightly older."

Sniffling, Dina lessened her grip on Aletha and continued as she wiped a tear off her face.

"I'm sorry again for crushing you with my big bird when you were standing in that pond. I should have known better."

"It's okay," Aletha said calmly and gently. "As long as you're sorry, I'm okay. Thank you so much for making my life a lot more entertaining."

After hearing Aletha, Dina took one last second for her embrace before she parted away from them for good. But just before she left, she waved at them one last time, screaming at the top of her lungs from the distant hill.

"BYE!"

Waving back, Ubel, Aletha, and Alai yelled back at Dina in unison.

"Bye!"

And so, who were left for Aletha were Alai and Ubel.

When Dina said her last goodbyes, the three parted from Linuxinia City, hiking into the paths leading to the wilderness as they finally began their short journey to pay for Aletha's excessive debt.

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