บท 6: Audition (2)
Aerine became confused by the silence and wondered if she had said something wrong, but when she was about to ask again, Mils seemed to have recovered and responded.
"Uh... This Mr. Devil you're talking about is... Master?" Mils almost awkwardly stumbled at the word, her eyelids twitching slightly.
Aerine nodded innocently. She didn't know Mr. Devil's name, and she was aware that it would be inappropriate to ask. And seeing that his subordinates also called him Master, Aerine thought it would be quite rude if she started calling Mr. Devil by his name.
After all, from what her mother told her, devils were extremely proud and unpredictable beings. Aerine knew to herself that she didn't deserve to call him by his name. What should she do if Mr. Devil suddenly gets mad?
"Is... Is it weird to call him that? Or... Am I being rude?" Aerine's face paled; she suddenly got scared to offend them, especially Mr. Devil.
Seeing her panic, Mils held Aerine's hand and calmed her down, giving her a firm squeeze for comfort.
"No, it's not. It's just that... It's really new." Mils laughed, easing the atmosphere. In her mind, she really started to respect Aerine, who had come out alive after calling their master by that nickname and even becoming her contractor.
In her life, Mils was only scared by two people, and that included her master.
"Don't worry about it. If Master seems okay with it, then keep calling him that; that's no big deal," Mils added in her mind, although it was only not a big deal in your case.
And then they returned on track as Mils answered Aerine's question, for which she became distracted by how she called her master earlier. She leaned a bit closer on Aerine, as though afraid she would be heard.
Her cautiousness made Aerine a bit nervous.
"Master's affairs are forbidden to talk about. So, if he's still here or not, No one knows; perhaps, only Elise does."
Their master would come and go, and no matter where he was at this moment, Mils was not privy to such details. She still loved her life, after all.
Aerine caught the underlying meaning, but she only guessed that they respected Mr. Devil as the master but not fully the extent of their fear of his existence.
Then it was the end of it. Aerine had decided not to discuss Mr. Devil and went to talk about other things. It wasn't for long, and Aerine returned to her room to rest.
As Mils said, Aerine was set to fly to the city the next day. She couldn't help but get excited, as this would be her first time flying on an airplane in her entire life. Of course, she was also nervous since she was a daughter of the sea, and the sky was a new territory for her.
Her luggage, which was not much and was all new as Aerine had not managed to bring any of her things when she escaped except for the clothes in her body, was all neatly packed.
Aerine had not forgotten to say goodbye to the staff, even though she only got to know them for about a day, since they all took great care of her. She swore to repay them by doing her best at the audition and being deserving of their master's grace.
"Aerine, you're ready?" Mils, wearing casual clothes this time and sunglasses over her head, smiled at her. Aerine would be flying with her to the city with three others.
She greeted Mils happily and nodded her head; her eyes roamed the place, eventually landing on a small private plane. Her gaze carried her anticipation and anxiety.
The island had a complete facility of sea and airports. In the airport, there wasn't only a small private plane parked there but another bigger plane and three helicopters, all of which earned her amazed gaze.
Of course, she also started to train herself to not be too expressive when seeing things that amazed her for the first time. For sure, there would be a lot that would give her such feelings once she was already in a big city.
Aerine needed to control herself the most and act as normal as possible.
Soon, they were already seated inside the plane. The interior was spacious, with a few seats that were arranged with spaces between each other, and Mils also briefed her on the things inside. Not far from her was Mils, and she could also talk to her if she wanted to or had questions.
All in all, Mils did everything to make Aerine comfortable—something that truly made her grateful for her. Mils wasn't only her manager, as she began to treat her as a friend.
It was a big deal for her, as Aerine had never experienced having a friend before.
Aerine calmed herself after being informed that they were about to set off. She straightened her seat and grasped the armrests while taking a deep breath.
There were some movements, and eventually, Aerine only saw them already flying in the air. Her eyes then couldn't help but be drawn outside the window; she had already forgotten the anxiety and loosened her hand from his grip.
As they flew higher and the scenery below became smaller, Aerine's heart quickened, and she fell silent. Something deep within her was a bit reluctant, especially as she saw the sea getting farther away.
For all her life, Aerine had never left the sea and its vicinity. The reality was sinking into her all at once; her life was indeed entering its new beginning.
Far away from her former life. Far away from her... home.
Her gaze lingered as though she wanted to pierce the distance and look for the last time on their small island, the island where she grew up and was raised by her mother.
Aerine had also recalled her mother's face and that... memory. She let herself be immersed in it; she let the fading horizon envelope her emotions as she finally couldn't see the ocean anymore.
She shut her eyes and leaned on her seat.
Goodbye for now... but I'll be back, Mom. I promise.
Perhaps due to the exhaustion and the upheaval of her chaotic emotions and even the anxiety for the unpredictable future, Aerine had slept through the trip.
Mils woke her up hours later, and they arrived at the City of Wonders, the city where the new chapter of her life, began.
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