Regaleon: The Forgotten Knight

Valmyr’s greedy impulses might have been persuasive, but under the insistence and persistent prodding of the other members of the cohort, the failed Vanguard had no choice but to let his avarice die down.

Eventually, he followed miserably behind the rest, his shoulders slumped and his face crestfallen, like a child whose parents had just denied him the last piece of candy.

The walk back to the surface was considerably less gloomy than when they had first entered the cavern.

Perhaps it was because they had just accomplished something they had spent their entire lives dreaming about... Or perhaps it was simply the newfound confidence that came with becoming Etheryeans.

Whatever the reason, the group walked through the tunnel with an almost buoyant energy, treating the journey like a group of travelers returning from a successful expedition, their spirits lifted by the spoils of victory.

Veyrath, especially, couldn’t stop boasting about his newfound strength.

He had probably done so for the umpteenth time already. And somehow, it seemed as though the failed Alchemist couldn’t go even a few seconds without dragging himself into the spotlight.

"My strength has increased tremendously, you know." He bragged while flexing his arm to a frowning Vaelorin. "I could probably take on three Rank One Animas at once now."

"Three?" Vaelorin scoffed. "That’s generous."

"Generous?" Veyrath’s brows shot upward. "You wound me, Vaelorin. You know, as a friend, I really though that you would encourage or perhaps support me but why does it seem as though you are jealous of me?"

Vaelorin didn’t even bother replying as he simply allowed the failed Alchemist to delude himself with those fantasies.

However, despite Veyrath’s endless boasts and exaggerated expectations, the group tolerated him. After all, he was also the reason their journey back wasn’t filled with boredom.

Meanwhile, Aureleah had become considerably more withdrawn than the members of the group were accustomed to.

They knew her to be cold, detached, and indifferent. But despite those characteristics, there was still an undeniable warmth that she occasionally displayed whenever they engaged with one another in conversation.

However, ever since their walk through the tunnel, the silver-haired Assassin had remained unusually silent while simultaneously giving off a vibe that practically screamed that she didn’t want to be approached.

Normally, such a strange attitude from her wouldn’t attract their attention as that was simply her nature. But Regaleon had been keeping an eye on her and he could tell that something was bothering her.

Aelric led the way at the front once more.

This time, however, Regaleon didn’t walk closely beside him. Instead, he deliberately slowed his pace until he came alongside Aureleah.

He had noticed her odd attitude ever since they had left the cavern, and he couldn’t help but ask about it. After all, that was what friends are for, right?

As he matched her pace, Regaleon tilted his head slightly to look at her.

It wasn’t as though Aureleah couldn’t sense his presence. Yet whatever was occupying her thoughts seemed to have made her so absentminded that she didn’t even realize the silver-haired Knight had drawn level with her.

"Uhm... Aureleah."

Regaleon’s gentle voice carried a mixture of concern and solicitude, successfully drawing her attention.

She blinked the moment he called her name; then she turned toward him. Regaleon noticed her somewhat flustered expression and asked softly.

"Are you alright? You look like something is bothering you."

He didn’t notice it but the moment Aureleah returned to her senses, she subtly placed some distance between them.

It wasn’t done consciously; rather, it was an instinctive reaction on her part as though something deep within her recoiled at the very notion of being too close to him.

Since even Aureleah herself wasn’t aware of what she had done, how could Regaleon possibly notice?

The silver-haired Knight simply continued talking as casually as though nothing had happened.

"I noticed you’ve been somewhat moody." He gave her a small smile. "If you want to talk about it, I’m all ears."

Aureleah raised her head. Her silver eyes met his sincere golden ones and for a moment, she said nothing. Then she turned her head away before replying.

"I’m sorry if it seems that way to you, but I’m fine." Her tone was placid as she spoke.

"I really am. It’s just that... I think this might be an aftereffect of my breakthrough. You know. A post-cultivation fatigue."

As if to emphasize her point, Aureleah turned toward him once more and flashed a small, warm smile. Or at least... What appeared to be the ghost of one because her smile looked frozen somewhere between a grimace and a sneer.

"There’s no need to worry." She added.

Hearing her gentle but somewhat strained reassurance, Regaleon knew she wasn’t being completely honest.

Still, there was no way he could force her to speak if she didn’t want to. Besides, he had only wanted to check on her as a friend and there was no need to push any further.

Therefore, he simply nodded.

"If you say so. However, I want you to know that if you ever need someone to talk to, I’ll be there for you."

Regaleon intended those words as a simple statement of friendship. Somehow, however, they came across more like something a man would say to pacify someone he loved.

Not that either person in this particular situation seemed to care. Or perhaps they did but they were simply too oblivious and ignorant to realize it.

After saying that, Regaleon left her side and returned to his position near the forefront of the group.

Aureleah watched his back.

Her silver eyes flashed with that same darkness from before and for the briefest instant, her pupils narrowed into slits.

Then just as quickly as it appeared, it vanished and Aureleah resumed her brooding as though nothing had happened...

Meanwhile, there happened to be a certain busybody who had witnessed the entire interaction and that was Veyrath.

The failed Alchemist had watched in confusion as Regaleon approached Aureleah. Although he couldn’t overhear their conversation, he could still infer what they might have been discussing from their body language.

Unfortunately, his inference couldn’t have been more wrong.

The moment Regaleon began walking back toward the front, a freaky grin suddenly spread across Veyrath’s face.

Then, with the expression of someone who had just discovered the juiciest gossip imaginable, he turned toward Sylveris, who happened to be walking beside him.

The young girl immediately became startled by the terrifying expression before her.

"What are you doing?" She looked at Veyrath strangely.

For a moment, she genuinely wondered whether cultivation had somehow damaged his brain. Perhaps he had suffered some kind of brain-damaging mishap during his breakthrough.

Veyrath, however, ignored her reaction.

His amber eyes gleamed with mischief as he leaned closer to her and said.

"Sylveris. It looks like Regaleon is in love with your sister."

Sylveris blinked at his word. At first, she thought Veyrath had simply worded himself poorly but judging by the way the failed Alchemist was looking at her with such absolute conviction, Sylveris realized that she had heard him correctly.

The young girl narrowed her eyes. She then turned toward Regaleon, who was now speaking with Aelric, before she looked back at Veyrath.

Scrunching her nose, she asked. "Are you sure you’re in your right mind?"

Veyrath looked offended. He then placed his hand on his chest and assured. "I know it sounds unbelievable; stupid even. But I really am serious."

Sylveris stared at him skeptically but Veyrath continued anyway.

"Haven’t you noticed some sort of chemistry between the two of them?"

"Chemistry?"

"Yes!" He nodded vigorously before continuing. "If you observed properly, you’d have noticed the strange ways they sometimes look at one another."

Sylveris’s expression slowly became less dismissive. "And?"

"And the way Regaleon always seems to notice when something is wrong with her. And the way Aureleah doesn’t immediately shut him down whenever he talks to her. And now he literally went out of his way to walk beside her and ask if she was alright!"

Veyrath listed, his expression becoming increasingly animated before he finally asked.

"Tell me that doesn’t mean something."

Sylveris opened her mouth but she couldn’t think of any words to refute him.

Veyrath continued to list one reason after another in the meantime. And surprisingly, the more Veyrath spoke, the more Sylveris began thinking about it.

Because, honestly, over the course of the last few days, she had noticed some strange changes in her sister too.

Sylveris knew Aureleah like the back of her hand and that familiarity made it easy for her to read her sister at times.

Aureleah had always been someone who found it difficult to relate to other people. In fact, spending an entire lifetime inside a cave would probably have been preferable to Aureleah if the alternative was mingling with strangers.

Yet Sylveris had noticed something different whenever Regaleon was around. Her sister didn’t always behave the same way.

She was still cold and distance. But beneath all that ice was something subtle; something that Sylveris couldn’t quite put her finger on.

And the more she thought about it, the more she began to wonder if Veyrath’s ridiculous theory might actually have some truth to it...

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