Chương 18: Long-winded talk

Francis blinked several times then suddenly he couldn't remember what had just happened.

"Now get out. You too." Simon signaled Francis and the brown cloaked to get out of the room with his pale hands that were covered in prominent unknown ideograms. Amber slowly got up and headed out of the room along with Francis. It was against her will yet her legs carried her away. She wanted to look back but couldn't move an inch of her head.

"What is happening? Am I being controlled?!" Amber freaked out internally but her face remained stoic.

Simon's vision became slightly blurry. He staggered to the Delf and saw his previously wounded arm was completely fine. "You healed yourself?" Simon tilted his head to the side as his hands twitched frequently.

"As you can see. Anyways, you better stop before you die."

"And why will I die?"

"Those markings are eating the life out of you. You will eventually go mad and die. Your body is too weak compared to your power so you can't control it and all I did was help a little." The Delf lips spread into a wide grin. "Oh, and something has to trigger your power right? It's not something you can use at any given time is that correct?" He closed the distance between him and the human child. Simon backed off but his feet hit the wall behind him and the markings glowed red for a second.

Afterward, everything became blurry in Simon's mind. Unidentified noises, distorted pictures, and immense pain were all that he could feel, see and hear. The Delf held Simon's shoulders and took a look at his twitching face. "Relax. All that rage for what? What could have a young human child as you go through to have this much malice?" Simon just smirked as a pool of blood filled inside his mouth.

"I really wish I could keep you here but I can tell that you will make it out of here in a day." He patted the human child once on the shoulder. The Delf began casting a spell on Simon. Multiple shapes formed in bright colors. Simon only watched in a daze.

The moment Simon blinked an energy wave hit his body at an amazing speed. He opened and shut them several to adjust his disturbed vision to the bright light in the darkroom. He identified the man in the green cloak but something was off about his surroundings. Simon's irises were the only thing that seemed to move as if everything else was frozen in time.

"I can't move my body. What's going on..?" Simon wanted to say it out loud but he couldn't gap his lips so it turned into an internal thought. The Delf walked to him in slow motion and from under his hood, Simon could see saw-edged teeth filled in the Delf's mouth.

"I have no idea what's happening but does he really have to walk so slowly." That was the last thing Simon thought and saw before his mind shut down.

...

Francis glanced at Amber and then looked back at the wooden table. "So..." Amber darted her eyes here and there then settled her gaze on the table. "So..?"

"..." Awkward silence filled the cozy little dining room. Francis didn't have much to say but the silence was at choking level.

"I didn't know wood can be red."

"Well, now you know."

"..." "hmm..."

"So what's happening inside again..?"

"Nothing much...your friend as just sleeping."

"And the other man inside..."

"Well, he's aah..keeping an eye on him..?"

"An eye on him?"

"Heeling him maybe...?"

"Healing..you say?" Francis started getting suspicious of her and kept her on the edge. Amber only bit her lip while a cold sweat rolled from her forehead till her chin. Then suddenly Amber nodded aggressively as she smiled; Francis raised a brow in confusion.

"Yes! Healing! Your friend got hit by a monkey with a rock on his head remember?! Ohh that must have been pain..fuuulll...? Right!?!" She slammed the table as she came up with an excuse.

Francis peered at her skeptically as he cracked his stiff neck and watched her odd actions. "I know about that...But keeping an eye on someone and healing is different..."

"Uhh...I meant both!" Amber clenched her teeth and her fist tightened.

"Man I wanna punch him in the face and send him across the room so bad! Isn't it obvious that I don't want to talk about it!!! Did he really forget what happened?! Oh man, I don't know...Damn it he is gonna say something else!!" Amber's mind was in a storm of thoughts as she tapped quickly on the "red" wooden table.

The mood suddenly took a drastic swing when an idea popped inside Francis's head.

"By the way...Why do you look so nervous... Amber was it?" Francis sneered at her, Amber looked around then nodded while smiling. She understood what he was trying to do and returned back to her original self

"Because you ask too much." She jeered as she lowered her hood further down leaving out her mouth that was shaped into a wide grin full of serrated teeth and her chin as well. Francis scoffed as he took a glance at the ceiling while snapping his jaw. He looked back at her and prepared to throw at her some other words.

"Then shall we go inside and be sure of what's happening?" He pointed at the closed door with his thumb.

"I am not interested." Amber crossed her hand as well as her legs.

"Then I shall go myself~" Francis pushed his chair back and was about to walk away until he was stopped.

"No, you should wait until the treatment is done." Amber grabbed his wrist and spat some nonsense at his face in a nonchalant voice.

"Why do I have to?" He turned to her and looked down at her since she was only reaching his chest height.

"I don't know medical stuff...I guess." Amber shrugged her shoulders that were broader than Francis's and rolled her eyes, hoping that the redhead would give up.

The conversation went like that for some time until both of them got their throats dried up. They sat down and helped themselves to a glass of water. Just then the door behind Francis screeched loudly as it opened. Upon hearing the sudden noise, they immediately threw their heads in the direction of the door. Amber's dad stepped out and closed the door behind him. Amber called out to him as she stood up anxiously. Her dad sighed and pulled a chair next to Francis who made a weird face for no specific reason.

"Amber I am fine, calm down will you." Amber sat down and gazed at the half-filled glass in front of her with a leery expression. It tripled as she tapped it gently while frequently stealing glances at her dad and the darkroom. Then out of the blue, she pushed her chair back, whispered something in her dad's pointed ear, and walked to her room in a hurried manner, leaving the other two in awkward silence.

The Delf shook his leg repeatedly as he stared in fascination at the human boy playing with his fingers. Francis stacked his tall fingers on top of each other with the help of his other hand while thinking why is the old man staring into his soul with such an interested face.

"Is there a problem with my face? Or do I just look that good?" Francis turned his head in Amber's dad's direction and met his cold, steel-blue eyes when he started a conversation with the creepy starer.

He shook his head without taking off his eyes of the boy for even a second. "Nothing like that. Hmm... Not the best I have seen but surely one of the..." Francis nodded, unimpressed with what was just said even if he didn't finish his sentence yet.

"Your friend is an intriguing one though..." He added. "And..?" Francis scrunched his brows as he backed his chair and swung it with his legs in a little motion.

"And.." The Delf continued looking at the human through narrow eyes relentless.

"Uhh...That aside how is he doing?" Francis noticed this talk wasn't going anywhere so he just changed the subject.

"Better." He threw at him one word, nothing more. "Okay...so why did you help us again?"

"Because you're humans. Even if it's just for a day I would like to keep it with me."

"Ahha. It..you mean humans right..? Why though?"

"To observe them. Their appearance, behavior, and way of thinking." Francis looked at him unfazed actually bored yet didn't cut him mid-way.

He kept on going and he kept on listening. Hours went on but the Delf just had so much to say about Francis's kind. At some point, the Delf walked away and came back with a thick blue book in his hands. He pulled down his hood wore a band to keep his hair out of his face then opened the grim-covered book and showed Francis.

After a while Francis rubbed his eyes and looked at the lantern, he yawned and stared at the yellow pages that he couldn't read at all and gave his ear to words and theories he didn't understand. "Man I feel like such a bonebrainned. Darn the things I don't know." Francis pressed his lips together and frowned when Amber's dad asked him a question he didn't hear due to his preoccupied brain.

Amber peeked out of her room then walked to her dad to inform him of something.

"Dad he's up." She said nonchalantly and her dad nodded in return.