■— Hello, good day, are you Eutico? —
A weary glance travelled over the five men from head to toe. As he examined each of their faces, his gaze lingered for a moment between Neo and Hunt. It remained fixed on Levi for just a second longer than on the others.
■— Levi, do you know each other? —
— Levi — No. — he replied quickly.
●— What happened to him? —
Eutico's companions shook their heads. Varo, however, told only part of the truth, briefly explaining how he had spent the whole night with him in a tavern, talking and drinking. Once he had finished recounting what had happened, he noticed the displeased expression on Hunt's face. Trying to avoid interacting with Hunt, he walked over to Luca to take hold of Eutico, but Neo stepped in first. Together, the two of them helped Eutico into one of the offices prepared for the guests, while Hunt said goodbye to the man's companions. When he realised he had been left alone with Varo, Hunt began giving him a well-meaning scolding for not getting proper sleep before work. Varo tried several times to justify himself, but Hunt would not allow it. After the lecture...
■— Off you go now, before I get even more annoyed. —
— Varo — Well... and thank you very much for... — he said as he headed towards the door.
■— Varo, could you do me a tiny favour? —
— Varo — Tell me. —
■— Do you know where we're selling the shoes? —
— Varo — The stall on the main street or the shop? —
■— I think Pudiente is at the shop, but if you don't find him there, go to the stall and let them know we might be late. We're going to look after your friend first, then we'll head over. —
— Varo — I'll go to the stall first, his wife should be there. —
■— As you like. I'm going with your friend to see what he has to tell us. —
— Varo — Right then. — he said as he made his way to the main entrance.
When Hunt arrived at the office, the silence was overwhelming. Eutico was sitting awkwardly on one of the sofas, staring blankly into space. Neo was on the other side of the coffee table, peeling an apple. Without saying a word, Hunt walked over to a cupboard and took out a porcelain plate decorated with flowers.
Neo cut the apple into eight slices and carefully arranged them on the plate. Hunt took the opportunity to fetch a jar filled with dried fruit. Then, using a little fire magic, he heated water in a kettle to prepare some fruit tea.
The aroma stirred just enough curiosity in Eutico to draw his gaze away from the table leg and towards the cup of tea that Hunt placed before him.
— Eutico — What's all this? —
●— Go on, eat. — he said, sitting down opposite him. — Your mana is very low. If you carry on like this, you could die. —
— Eutico — Those who leave... — he began in a raised voice before being interrupted.
●— Hey, try eating first... — Eutico tried to interrupt. — I said you eat first, then you tell us what happened to you. — he said firmly.
Eutico picked up a slice of apple and brought it to his mouth. As soon as he bit into it, the full flavour of the apple filled his mouth, making him flinch slightly at its intensity.
— Eutico — But this apple... —
At that very moment, he remembered the first apple he had ever tasted, on his thirty-second birthday, at a nobleman's house. When he came back to his senses, he looked around the room once again. Beside the table stood a crate filled with perfect red apples, waiting to be served like true delicacies.
Realising just how expensive those apples must be, Eutico picked up the plate and tried to offer one of the slices to the others.
●— Go on, have it yourself. These three are already used to eating apples. —
— Eutico — But what kind of... — he said as he ate. — ...people are you to have such delicacies? —
■— Don't talk with your mouth full, we can't understand you. Eat slowly, we're in no hurry. —
— Eutico — The children will die. —
●— Alright, calm down. We'll take care of it. —
■— Where is your family, your children...? —
— Eutico — I can't have children, because I'm... — he said before taking a sip of the tea.
●— Easy there... eat slowly, we're not going to take it away from you. —
— Eutico — The children in the square... they're going to be sacrificed. — he said with his mouth full of apple.
●— It's a tragedy, but if we don't change society first, we can't stop the sacrifices. — he said sorrowfully.
— Eutico — Then what sort of bloody Christians are you? —
Silence fell over the room like a press. The words struck all four of them at once, leaving everyone stunned. Neo and Hunt exchanged a quick glance. Levi pushed himself away from the wall, but Anton stopped him immediately. His look alone was enough for Levi to return to his previous stance.
■— What do you mean, Christians? How do you know that word? —
— Eutico — I'm a presbyter. —
●— Mate, Hunt, this can't be real. How the hell do they even know what a Christian is...? Don't tell me someone brought the religion to this bloody world. —
■— One of Tolmas's bloody Envoys. —
●— If they're the degenerates who murder babies, what else would they be? You, Eutico... what year is it? —
— Eutico — The year 750, I think, since the arrival of the Envoys. —
●— Since Christ was born. —
— Eutico — Since the birth of the Lord, nearly four millennia have passed. —
Stunned by the answer, Neo and Hunt stood up and began pacing around the room, theorising about Christ's arrival in that world and the coming of the Envoys. After throwing around several ideas, Neo finally decided to question Eutico.
●— What sacraments does your Church have? —
— Eutico — That doesn't matter, the children... —
●— The sacraments, Eutico! — he shouted hysterically.
— Eutico — Well, if we start with... —
●— Forget that. The Eucharist, yes or no? The Mother of God, yes or no? Better yet... do you know the Lord's Prayer? —
— Eutico — Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen. — Eutico recited from beginning to end.
■— Brotherrr. — he said, deeply troubled. — It can't be... he knows the whole thing. —
●— It's exactly the same, brother. Not a single word has changed. — he said in astonishment. — And the Hail Mary? —
— Eutico — The what bird? —
●— Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art Thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of Thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, MOTHER OF GOD, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. —
— Eutico — But... — he said, bewildered. — Th... — he murmured as he recalled the prayer. — Do you... realise the importance of the words you just said? — he asked, rising from the sofa.
●— Of course. Reciting the Hail Mary is like offering a rose to the Mother of God. —
— Eutico — What are you saying? — His voice began to tremble. — Who taught you that? —
●— My mother told me to recite it before going to bed. —
■— I used to help my grandmother pray the Rosary. —
— Eutico — My children... — Tears began to fall before he could stop them. — How deeply you must have been loved for someone to teach you something so beautiful... — He lowered his head. — Thank you... You have no idea how much comfort you have just given to this poor old wretch. —
For several moments, no one dared to speak. Eutico remained on his knees, unable to hold back his tears as they fell steadily onto the wooden floor. Neo and Hunt knelt beside him, worried that the overwhelming emotion and exhaustion might finally overcome him. Without saying a word, they waited for him to catch his breath, but through his sobs Eutico lifted his arms and embraced them tightly, clinging to them with all his strength.
Neither of them knew how to react. They simply returned the embrace and waited in silence for him to calm down. On the other side of the room, Levi had turned his face towards the wall, hiding his eyes behind his forearm so that no one would see the tears running down his own cheeks. Even Anton, unable to fully understand what had just happened, remained perfectly still, respecting that strange moment of peace which seemed to have brought time itself to a halt.
Little by little, Eutico's sobs faded away until the only sound left in the room was his still-unsteady breathing. Then Hunt looked up, drawn by a distant murmur that was rapidly growing louder beyond the walls. He slowly got to his feet, walked over to the window, and threw it wide open. Instantly, the roar of the city burst into the room like a wave. Thousands of voices, coming from every corner of Anita, repeated the same chant with a mixture of fear, amazement, and hope. The clamour grew louder by the second as crowds rushed towards the main square, shouting over and over again:
— The Two Last Envoys! The Two Last Envoys have arrived! —
Neo gently released Eutico and sprang to his feet in a single motion. His eyes met Hunt's. There was no need to say anything more.
●— We have to do something. —
■— Let's go. — he said, tilting his head towards the city.
Neo strode firmly towards the open window. Levi frowned as he watched him approach the windowsill. A terrible feeling crept through his body. Before he could react, Neo sat down on the wooden frame, letting his legs hang inside the office while the rest of his body was suspended over the empty space beyond.
— Levi — Neo! What are you doing?! — he shouted, taking a step forward.
Anton tensed as well, unable to take his eyes off him. Even Eutico sprang to his feet in alarm. All three of them felt a wave of vertigo rise from the soles of their feet to their knees.
Neo turned his head slightly. He looked Eutico straight in the eyes and, with a calm smile, touched two fingers to his forehead before extending them towards him in a silent gesture of farewell. Then he let himself fall backwards.
— Eutico — NO!! —
Levi sprinted towards the window, his heart pounding wildly. Anton rushed after him, and Eutico, completely forgetting his exhaustion, did the same.
While the three of them ran, convinced that Neo had just taken his own life, Hunt remained motionless for only a brief moment longer. He watched Levi racing desperately towards the windowsill. Their eyes met for a fraction of a second. Hunt gave a slight nod, placed one hand on the window frame, and with a smooth push launched himself into the void as well.
When Levi, Anton, and Eutico reached the window, they desperately searched the street below for the two bodies. But before either of them could hit the ground, two violent gusts of wind swept past the window, whipping their hair about and making the wooden shutters rattle. Instinctively, all three looked up.
— Levi — There they are. — he said, pointing towards the rooftops.
Neo and Hunt were climbing rapidly above the rooftops of Anita, leaving a trail of disturbed air behind them as they sped towards the main square. Eutico's eyes widened.
— Eutico — They're... flying. — he said, scarcely believing his own words.
Levi remained frozen, unable to tear his eyes away from the sky.
— Levi — Th-that's... that's impossible... In the entire kingdom, there are only ten mages capable of flying. —
— Anton — And they're not members of the Winged Order. — he added, his voice trembling.
Eutico took a step towards the door without taking his eyes off the two figures disappearing into the distance.
— Levi — We have to stop them! —
— Anton — Those two are actually going to confront the Two Last Envoys. —
— Eutico — The whole city will be after them. —