Things were getting awkward between the staring mother and the wounded Arthur, and he had no idea what to say. She was a woman of elegance despite her dusty face and calloused hands. As the woman sat straight, Arthur could glean some hint of manners embedded to her bones.

"Have you ever worked for nobility?" Arthur asked, and the woman nodded with a smile.

"Yes, My Lord. My mother was one of the maids who served the Lord of Aquamia, and I was raised in the servants' quarters. I had just become a maid myself when the previous king was slain, and King Solomon impeached the Lord of the city."

"And how did that affect you?"

"It was many years ago, and I was just a child," the woman sighed and shook her head. "I knew not things were changing, but they did. The Marchioness of Aquamia was one of those who allied with King Solomon, and she was a merchant of the city. So when she took control, she replaced the servants with her people."

"And what happened to you and your mother?" Arthur didn't know that the rebellion might not have helped everyone but harmed them instead.

"An angry mob killed her after she left the mansion. I, however, was saved by one of the knights of his Majesty."

The words send chills down Arthur's spine. This woman was telling the cruel fate of her mother with such a matter-of-fact face that it uneased him. Was she genuinely accepting the world, or did she think it was disrespectful to show that side of her?

"And then you met Regal?"

"Indeed," the woman finally smiled. "He was a young man then, and he was pulling his cart from Aquamia to here. When he found him, he offered to give me a ride."

"Wouldn't the city be a better option?"

"For a penniless teenager, the city is a terrifying place. Society demands fees from you for existing, but its hands wouldn't reach a poor village. And," the woman added with a sweet smile as her husband came back, "I'm happy with the man I married."

"Hm?" Regal was confused as he closed the door. "What did you say, Dacey?"

"Nothing, just telling our guest some old stories," Dacey smiled as she looked at her husband's cheerful expression. "Are they eating?"

"All thanks to our Lord," Regal sat down as he bowed his head again. "Some of us cried of joy for eating such food after so long, and most are waiting outside for them to thank you."

"There's no need to thank me," Arthur shook his head. The kids seemed sleepy after such a meal, and their mother helped them take a nap in one of the rooms. "How did he lose his leg?"

Regal had two kids, one older brother with a lost leg and a younger sister who couldn't walk properly. After hearing his question, Regal sighed with a bitter expression.

"We told them that they shouldn't go near the stream, but it seems kids only want to do the forbidden. Then, one day, he didn't come back. We looked for him until dawn before we found him beside the stream, and a monster bit his leg off."

"He was bleeding for all that time?" Arthur was surprised, as an average person would die from losing a limb.

"Ah, yes, the heavens showed mercy," Regal looked away as if he was hiding something and didn't want to look Arthur in the eye. Arthur didn't pursue the topic, as they might still be wary of him.

"Do you know what attacked your son?"

"We don't know, but judging by the wound, it was a monster," Dacey cupped her hands worriedly. Regal touched her hand in consoling.

Arthur knew they must be traumatized, and so was their kid, but he needed to know about the abnormalities that were going on in the sea. After all, he knew that something controlled the monsters to attack approaching humans, but that being didn't take any more measures to hurt nearby villages.

'The monsters are acting as if they are protecting the river,' Arthur knew that the Lo River was big enough to be inhabited by other creatures, and there were many lakes that the Lo River connects or feeds.

"I'll pay for my stay, so can you find me a bed?" Arthur was still wounded from the fight, and he was tired. But, as the night was descending, he thought that it might be better if he slept for a bit.

"Ah, yes, of course. I'll tell the rest of the village that you need some rest," Regal hurriedly nodded as he rushed out to tell the villages. Dacey prepared a bed for him, and Arthur slept the moment he laid down.

***

"Mama, is he asleep?"

"Aether!" Dacey shouted in a stern and low voice. "Get away from there lest you wake him up!"

'But I'm already awake,' Arthur's consciousness returned, and he opened his eyes to find Regal's son staring at him. Since he woke up so suddenly and rose, Aether jumped back in shock.

"Ah, I'm so sorry, mister!"

"My Lord, please forgive him!" Dacey hurried over and slapped her kid's head before bowing together with him. It seems she was busy cooking lunch and didn't have time to keep an eye on her son.

"There's no need to scold him," Arthur laughed as he suddenly remembered his mother. "I've slept for too long, anyway," he looked at the window and saw that it was day again. As he tried to use his mana, he realized that the 18-hours cooldown was over.

"Mister," Aether raised his head and stared at Arthur's arm with a hint of curiosity. "How did you lose your arm?"

This time, Dacey didn't scold him but her face crumbled into sadness. Aether was relating to Arthur because both of them had missing limbs, and it seems she couldn't bear to scold him.

"A bad person hurt me," Arthur smiled as he touched the base of his shoulder, where his arm used to be.

"Did you also refuse to listen to your parents?" Aether suddenly pouted as he looked at his leg. Arthur was amused by the question, as that might be the reason for all of his hardships.

After all, he obtained the legacy by going into a dungeon, which his mother strongly forbade him from doing. If he just listened, he would have been nothing more than an indebted and unemployed young man.

"That's right," Arthur nodded. "I didn't listen, and I lost a lot of things because of it. Aether suddenly sniffed as he nodded, and it seemed he was thinking of his hardships. He sat next to Arthur as his mother returned to her work, only stealing glances at them.

"The other kids call me Pirate for having a wooden leg," Aether said as he swung the shabby prostatic limb. "But if I take it off, I won't be able to play anymore. Mister, isn't it hard to stay like that?"

"I know a pirate," Arthur said as he took out some dyes and fruits from his subspace. These dyes were the ones they used in their Hidden Gems Auction. "I know the coolest pirate out there."

His spiritual energy infused into the dyes and extracted the colors from the fruits to paint a picture. Then, Arthur told Aether the story of the pirate he just met, Eleven. But, of course, he changed the story a bit to make the pirate lose his leg.

"After losing his leg, the pirate decided that if he couldn't swim or walk, then he needed to fly. So they began training to create their wings, and they eventually succeeded. Then, he flew around the world with his wings, and he became the greatest pirate out there."

"Mama says it's bad to be a pirate!" Aether was looking at the moving picture in front of him with such excitement that it was contagious.

"There are good pirates too, but most of them are bad. However, you need to remember. If the pirate didn't lose his leg, he would have never learned how to fly. Sometimes, we lose things to get better ones."

"Can I have wings too?" Aether jumped in front of him and asked. Arthur simply smiled and used his spiritual energy on the kid, and he began to float. "Woah! Mama, look at me! I'm flying!"

"I can help you fly today, but you will need to learn how to fly," Arthur said with a smile. "But of course, you need to keep listening to your parents."

"I understand, Mister!" Aether bobbed his head as he landed on the ground. Arthur smiled and rubbed his head before the kid got embarrassed and ran outside.

"Thank you," Dacey placed the food on the table as she thanked him. "I couldn't change how he feels because he would always see that I have two legs instead of one. But you understand his pain, and he understands yours. So, thank you."

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