Sybil | Chapter. 40: Prelude of Calm (Patreon)

Chapter. 40: Prelude of Calm

I awkwardly sat down on the cushioned bench, Lyonel sitting across from me, the atmosphere was relaxed, and to some extent it reminded me of the food court back in the camp; except the walls weren’t rusted, and things looked vastly different, around me there were other people. People who happily chatted and laughed about mundane things that I had no way to relate to.

“Did you hear? Saron is working now!”

“Just you wait until I get promoted.”

“You are going to a factory tomorrow?”

The conversations were as clear as day within my ears, and yet Lyonel didn’t seem to mind the rather noisy establishment as he curiously peered at me. He seemed happy to look at me, did he have some sort of… interest in me? I paused, having a small frown as I looked down at the table. Something like that would certainly be very troublesome.

I sighed, I was so out of depth that I didn’t know how to behave.

“Is something wrong?”

“No there isn’t.” I shook my head. “You are just looking weirdly at me, that's all.”

Lyonel blinked, his combed hair falling onto his face as he rearranged it for a moment, taking a small breath as he recovered his poise. He met my gaze once more, this time not shying away from it as he began to speak.

“I admire you Sybil.”

My entire being paused as I registered his words. “What does that even mean?”

“You are a Supervisor are you not?” he asked with a smile.

“I suppose so…” Wendell had given me the identity. “You could call me one.”

“Yes, and from the looks of it.” He pointed towards me, but more specifically between my chest and my head⁠— my neck? “You have a lot of experience.”

My hand wandered over to where he pointed, feeling my rugged skin, it was akin to a burn almost. I remembered that bite back in the subterranean vault and I tensed for a moment, before shaking my head. I was free now, and that was enough. Finally, I turned to look at Lyonel now.

“So? I do have experience.”

“Have you killed beasts from the Dark Hollow?” he asked, curiosity evident.

I closed my eyes remembering the glee I felt beating up that stupid Prowling Feller inside the canal room back in Laiken, I recalled other satisfying kills such as the one inside of the Armory against yet another Prowling Feller, [Explosive Point] blowing its brains out. Finally, taking a small breath, I nodded.

“I have.”

“Have you killed a lot of them…?” he asked, this time with more reservation.

“I have,” I said with a small sigh. “Just get to the point.”

Lyonel nodded, before letting out a small cough onto his fist.

“As you may know, one needs to go through a lot of things to be a Supervisor.” I nodded, not particularly understanding. “It’s a hell of a lot of training, and if you realize people respect us.” He gestured. “However, what they really respect is Supervisors like you, Sybil. The heroes of humanity that actually purge the accursed monsters of the Dark Hollow.”

“I mean… I kind of had no choice…” I scratched my head awkwardly.

“Exactly.” He smiled. “And that makes you heroic.”

“Does it?”

With a nod he agreed. “Yes, because you are not in it for the money, but for something else. And so, I admire the fact that you are so young, and have already so much experience. You are an elite among the elite.”

“Is that so…?” I trailed off looking at the table. “I never thought about it like that.”

He was about to continue to speak, but at that moment a young woman came to our table where we sat. It was a bit far away from the other tables, relegated to the side and one Lyonel had chosen. The woman held two booklets that she handed to us.

“I’ll be back in a minute to take the orders, okay?”

I gave her a nod, as she examined me with a mild surprise, but she said nothing as she walked off. I watched the woman move off to the distance, observing her clothing. Unlike mine, hers was tight fitting that showed off her legs, and well curves. Something that I simply accepted without batting an eye.

Lyonel grabbed the booklet and opened it. “You can get anything, everything on the menu is just great.”

“Menu?” I asked opening the booklet.

Lyonel didn’t reply, absorbed in the words he was reading, and so I did the same and my eyes grew wide in surprise. The surprise being that I had absolutely no clue what anything meant. Not a second after I slammed it shut.

“That was fast.” Lyonel blinked.

I shook my head. “I’ll get whatever you are getting.”

He thought with his gloved hand on his chin. “Hm, is that so? Okay, I won’t overthink and get what I always order.”

About two minutes later the woman returned, grabbing the menus from our tables. “So what will you two be getting?”

And, I stopped paying attention as Lyonel ordered, instead focusing on the atmosphere itself. I looked at other people that were absorbed in their conversations, all wearing different types of attires yet all of them sharing the same dull blackened colors, some golden accents here and there. Then, my gaze wandered off to the entrance, more specifically the windows that saw to the street.

There were a lot of humans⁠— well people. To some extent I disassociated from things, but everything felt so close and real now, and finally, I turned back to the table, closing my eyes.

I remembered all the talks about being a danger to humanity, about humanity. From the sounds of it, things were fucked, but what I saw here was prosperity. And so, I sighed and decided to relax. I was in the process of getting hunted down by Soulblade, and had absolutely no leads to act on anyway⁠— Wendell was still⁠— well I had to wait for things to move. And so I sighed.

“Sybil.” Lyonel called, making me look at him. “You seem… well I was requested to help you reintegrate into society so, I guess I am wondering if you are alright.”

“I am.” I nodded. “How many towns and cities are there anyway?”

He thought for a few moments before answering. “There are about six cities, and over a dozen towns including Kilead.”

“So, how many humans are alive?”

He looked at the ceiling. “I don’t know, over three hundred thousand at least. Kilead has a population of thirty thousand, so it’s quite big.”

“So much for extinction…” I muttered, getting a weird look.

I shook my head, I didn’t really know what to do, to some extent a lot of things didn’t actually matter to me. I wanted to ask about The Mayor, but all things considered I felt like it was also better if I waited. And so, my mind just wandered off for a few moments before I recalled a few things.

“Lyonel.”

“Yes?” He blinked.

“Do you know how to use a sword?”

He pondered for a moment. “Sort of? We are taught the basics, but nothing to the same extent as the Knights.”

“The Knights huh…” I stared at the ceiling, bored out of my mind. “What do they even do?”

“Maintain security outside of the Grand Mine. They are to humans what we are to the…” he trailed off realizing his statement made no sense. “They deal with humans instead of creatures of the Dark Hollow like we do.”

“I see, but…” I was unsure if to ask as I turned to look at him, my voice as casual as possible. “Aren’t they also stronger than most Supervisors?”

Lyonel’s fists curled into a ball for a moment before he sighed. “They are… and I hate it… There isn’t a day I am not looked down on by a Knight. We are believed to be the lesser Knights, and I dislike it.”

“I see.” I didn’t actually care too much about the specifics, more so just about learning new things. “Well, let’s forget that for a second, how about you show me around the city?”

He looked at the table for a moment before his expression finally lightened. “Sure, let’s do that.”

* * * * *

Lyonel didn’t get it. He had heard from Revy that Supervisors were eccentric, the ones that stayed for long periods of time in the Grand Mine anyway, but he didn’t expect this. He looked at Sybil, baffled. She was weird. Not only did she have mood swings at times, just like when he had met her, but also she was aloof. She looked at everything with a bored gaze except when he talked to her, at that point she seemed more human.

But as soon as she disengaged she would go back to indifference. To some extent, Lyonel felt like some of the things he was saying weren’t particularly acknowledged, nor did she care about them, and that was hurtful yes, but it was also… it made sense to him. Why would someone of her stature care about such mundane things?

He looked at her, as her curious gaze traced her surroundings.

Sometimes, Sybil seemed captivated by the normal city life, other times she seemed distant, and those were just his impressions after knowing her for an hour at most. Lyonel let out a small sigh, and she immediately snapped his gaze on him as she asked sympathetically.

“Are you alright?”

“Yeah…” Lyonel shook his head. “Just… thinking I suppose.”

“Ah, I see.” And she…

Wandered off, looking elsewhere. Sybil was eccentric, and Lyonel didn’t exactly know how to deal with it. As he had noted before, she was just aloof and indifferent, and at this point he doubted there was anything that would get a legitimate reaction from her other than unexpected situations. She hadn’t expected to be taken to a fancy restaurant, and so she reacted, she hadn’t expected a pat down and so she reacted. But now, that was all over.

As soon as she reacted, it disappeared, snuffed like a flame. The spark of her emotion gone just like that.

And as Lyonel sighed in his seat, he somewhat regretted his decision. They were far away from all the other tables, for privacy, and to get to know her better too, but it seemed to be in vain. And just as he was about to further descend into the hole of despair, the server passed by his side and stood in front of the two of them at the side of the table with a large platter. She set it down on the table, as Lyonel saw the dishes, Sybil watching curiously as well.

Lyonel had ordered fish soup, more specifically tanglim soup, a delicacy, and so⁠— Sybil also got it. The server set both plates in front of them along with the utensils. And then, she also set the two main courses, roasted tanglim ⁠— it wasn’t the most abundant nor the least abundant fish on the lagoon, but it was considered a luxury food by a lot of people’s standards.

Then, the server removed the tray.

“Thank you.” Lyonel looked at her and she smiled before leaving.

He took in the food, looking at the soup with its rich broth, he could see its rich oil and flavor in the form of small circles upon its reflective surface, he saw the small pink chunks of tanglim, a tender fish along with vegetables. He salivated for a moment, but his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of water pouring. He looked towards Sybil, who played with the spoon, repeatedly taking some of the soup before pouring it back in.

“What is…” she trailed off. “It smells very nice, is this… food?” Her voice was almost innocent.

Lyonel stared for a moment in surprise as her sapphire eyes looked on with utmost curiosity and anticipation, her expression almost innocent. For a moment he froze, before answering.

“It is. It’s soup, tanglim soup to be precise.”

“I see…” she kept playing with the soup for a few moments before she decided to actually eat it.

Lyonel watched with utmost attention as she scooped the rich broth along with a piece of tanglim, and then she stuffed it into her mouth and her eyes went wide. Sybil froze for a moment, and Lyonel could swear she was on the verge of crying. She trembled in her seat for a few moments before swallowing it, and then⁠— she dug in.

Feasting on the soup as if she had never eaten anything in her life. Lyonel was unable to say anything as he simply stared.

She was… reacting⁠— she was… happy?

* * * * *

I devoured the tanglim soup as if my life depended on it. Each spoonful was a delicacy, one of rich flavor that filled my quite empty and dry stomach. I wanted to cry, but Lyonel was in front of me so I simply sent it to the back of my heart as I focused on eating the flavorful soup. The meat on it⁠— fish, practically melted in my mouth, it was so warm.

For a moment, I focused on enjoying it until I finished it, drinking from the bowl itself as I took the last of its contents, and then finally, I relaxed. My whole body was shaking, feeling warmth all over, my skin was prickling with small shudders, my heart was rushing⁠— I felt happy as I felt the rich after-taste in my mouth, and finally I set everything out as I smiled looking down at the empty bowl.

I wanted to cry, but I reminded myself that Lyonel was right there, and sure enough, as I looked at him the spoon fell from his hand as he simply stared. I felt uncomfortable⁠— I did practically act like a rabid animal… but it was the first time I had eaten something so delicious, it was the first time I had eaten fresh food in general, and yet⁠— he wouldn’t stop staring. He gaped for a few more moments as I finally had enough.

“Is something the matter?”

He blinked. “Ah… no, it’s just… You seem very happy.”

“I was happy,” I corrected but found nothing else to get annoyed about. “Just eat your food.”

“Right…”

He began to eat the soup with no reaction, he did seem to enjoy it but the atmosphere had turned awkward, he did seem to enjoy it at least. With a small sigh, I turned to the other plate, this one had the rough shape of the fish itself, a small slab of meat with pink flesh and brown skin, it had some type of white thing drizzled atop of it, but it smelled amazing.

For a moment, I salivated, forgetting everything. I grabbed the fork, and took a small chunk of its tender flesh, some of the creamy white thing on it. I got it closer to my nose and smelled it, only to immediately freeze.

Without hesitation, I ate it and my eyes went wide as the rich and almost sweet flavor filled my mouth. The white thing seemed to offset the powerful taste of the fish, but it was fantastic. My hand was shaking as I grabbed another bite of its tender meat, as I began to immediately dig in. This time, I was slightly more reserved in my way of eating, but I couldn’t stop myself from smiling and enjoying every bite.

Freedom felt great.

* * * * *

Lyonel had a hard time eating his food as he occasionally looked at Sybil, the not so eccentric woman that seemed to enjoy food more than any other human he had met. Yet he managed to get it done, and she seemed to be quite satisfied too, with a broad smile on her face and just laying on the table, evidently tired.

Lyonel got to see her hair much closer, as she saw the white inside of her hair, it was a very peculiar look and it seemed almost uniform. Aside from the scar on her neck her skin was free of blemishes and a pale white, she let out small content breaths and for a moment Lyonel had a hard time matching the Sybil he had spoken to twenty minutes ago, and this Sybil.

Yet he paid for the food as he waited for her to recover from her relaxation a bit. A few minutes passed as she stretched, yawning in tiredness, as she rubbed her eyes.

“Lyonel… I’m sorry but do you think we could leave that city tour thing for… tomorrow?”

Lyonel blinked. “Sure, as for sleep… we can find you a place to stay.”

“Ah about that.” She scratched her head lazily. “I have no money, or well, I have money it’s just…” Her hand went under the table, as she produced a bright gold coin. “Not the right one.”

Lyonel stared at the intricate glistening coin for a moment, smitten by its perfect craftsmanship before it was stowed away. His mind whirled for a moment. Where had she even gotten that? There was a brief few second pause before he nodded.

“Sure, I can cover your expenses.”

Lyonel truly could, he wasn’t tight on money considering he lived alone, his family was in Prowelwater, and his salary was his and his alone, he never cared for chasing women or splurging in other irrelevant things either, and so he had no problem agreeing, though…

“Where did you get that coin?”

“In a subterranean vault,” she answered softly before standing up. “Let’s go, I’m very tired.”

Lyonel froze up. Subterranean vault?! She was a Supervisor inside of the Grand Mine, and not only that but one of those that went on reconnaissance missions?! He had a hard time not gasping as he stood up, following after her as they left the restaurant. He watched as she walked ahead, her head bobbing as he got to see some of her white hair.

He hadn’t been wrong, she was an elite among elites.

And so, Lyonel resolved himself to be as accommodating as possible.

* * * * *

Lothair smiled, watching as her target left the restaurant. The perfect opportunity was at the horizon, and now, all of them just had to cease it. And so, he watched as she walked along with a Supervisor to the lodging section of Kilead. A figure approached Lothair from behind, his companion.

“Is it time?”

He grinned. “Indeed, we are on the verge of payday.”

* * * * *

Lyonel had paid for a room in a place called a hotel, it seemed luxurious even, polished white pillars, red carpet with golden linings, and even the door handles were golden. There were no  exposed pipes, and even the ones I had seen inside the hotel sparkled in a shiny blue alloyed metal. All around the place was luxurious, and yet as I stood by the door to my supposed room I couldn’t help but ask again.

“Are you really sure it’s okay to spend… this much? I don’t know how much it was, but it seemed like a lot.”

Lyonel nodded. “Certainly, don’t worry about it. I’m just following my orders. Perhaps I might ask a favor later.”

“A favor?”

“I’ll think about it, something that won’t be too imposing.” He hurriedly shook his hands. “Anyway, this is just part of my mission, don’t think too much about it Sybil, you should focus on resting.”

“Right… okay…” I blinked, my head felt light. “Then this is goodbye?”

“I’ll come back tomorrow, but for today, this is goodbye indeed.”

He nodded, and waved at me for a moment before he closed the door. It clicked, automatically closing as I found myself alone in the room Lyonel had paid for specifically for me. I saw the red carpet beneath my feet, the metal furniture that seemed almost artistic, and I couldn’t help but admire the design of the room. It was simply put: pleasing to the eye.

Completely different to elven architecture and yet wonderful nonetheless.

For a few seconds I was lost, before I let out a long yawn. My stomach was full and it was a pleasant sensation I had never felt before. It was nice. Slowly, I clambered onto the bed, not even bothering to undress as I laid upon its fluffy mattress. It was much more comfortable than the one in the Laiken’s library too.

I looked at the nightstand, and the lamp. I fidgeted with it for a few seconds before I managed to turn it off, and finally, I found myself lying on the bed, looking at the ceiling that was illuminated by a very dim light that came from the blinds on the window.

My breaths were quiet, as my whole body completely relaxed, all my tension gone⁠— melting away.

“This is…” I rubbed the bed sheets beneath me. “Freedom…?”

My own breaths answered me in complete and utter calm, and finally after a few more moments of silence I smiled. I didn’t want to cry, but I was just glad. I had eaten my first proper meal, I had seen the city, I had learned things about Armag Hollow and its state.

I felt fulfilled.

I flipped on the bed as I stared at the distant window, and slowly my eyes began to close, the dim light of the window slowly changed color to a red one and then⁠, the window began to glow in an orange circle before it grew towards white, and at that moment I saw it bubble before it popped⁠— burst. The window exploded as the whole room burst into incandescent flames.

Shadows shot across my vision as they impaled onto the wall with black metal ropes, I rolled from the bed as all the tiredness from my body immediately faded, an insurmountable amount of annoyance immediately filling me. And then, multiple balls were thrown into the room, before they exploded.

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