Departure and Dusty Roads
The sunlight poured gently through the window of the inn, spilling over the wooden floor and catching on the edge of Ruko's cloak. He blinked awake, his body still heavy from the exhaustion of the ruins. There was a faint pulse behind his eyes—an echo of something he couldn't quite recall.
A fragment of a memory… but the moment he reached for it, it slipped away like dust between fingers.
He sat up, rubbing the back of his neck. "What… was I doing yesterday?" he muttered under his breath. His voice sounded distant even to himself. There was a feeling inside him, a faint connection to something old—something that pulsed with warmth whenever he brushed his hand against the hilt of his weapon. But the reason why… gone. Completely blank.
A knock came at the door.
"Yo, still alive?" Varo's familiar tone carried from the hallway.
Ruko stretched his arms, sighed, and opened the door to find the trader leaning lazily against the frame, a small grin beneath his hood. His eyes had that calm sharpness—like someone who already knew too much but said too little.
"Morning," Ruko greeted casually.
"Morning? Try noon," Varo chuckled, stepping inside. "You were out cold. Didn't even twitch when I checked earlier. You sure you didn't drink poison from that ruin?"
"Maybe," Ruko replied dryly, adjusting his coat. "Not like it'd matter."
Varo hummed in amusement. "You've got that look again. The same one you had when you came out of that cave. Like you're carrying ghosts but pretending not to."
Ruko tilted his head slightly, then smiled faintly. "Maybe I am. Or maybe I just don't remember what I lost."
For a brief moment, silence filled the room. The kind of silence that wasn't empty—just heavy. Varo's grin softened as he turned to the window, the golden light outlining his figure. "I'm heading out," he finally said. "Caravan job. But we'll cross paths again, I'm sure. Don't die too fast, alright?"
Ruko smirked, tugging his glove tighter. "No promises."
Varo's eyes flickered with a knowing glint. "You've got a strange air about you, Ruko. The kind of man who either changes the world… or burns it to the ground."
He gave a half-salute, then left without another word.
Ruko watched him go, then turned his gaze toward the sky. The faint ache in his chest returned—familiar yet unplaceable. He clenched his fist. "Burn it to the ground, huh? Guess we'll see."
---
Downstairs, the inn bustled with noise. Kazuma was arguing with Aqua about a new quest on the board, while Megumin was chanting explosion spells in the corner for "warm-up practice." Darkness, of course, was enjoying every bit of the chaos.
"Oh, great, you're finally awake," Kazuma said, spotting Ruko as he descended the stairs. "We've got a new job—escort duty for some merchants. Easy money, maybe even free food."
Ruko raised a brow. "You sure it's not one of those 'easy jobs' that ends with us running for our lives?"
Kazuma grinned awkwardly. "...Define running."
Ruko sighed. "Thought so."
Still, he joined them. Something about these idiots—loud, selfish, careless—kept him grounded. Maybe because it distracted him from that strange emptiness. Maybe because it reminded him what normal felt like, even if he didn't belong to it.
They hit the road by noon. The weather was clear, birds circling above the trees. Aqua complained about the dust, Darkness volunteered to take hits for the wagon in case of bandits, and Megumin wouldn't stop shouting about how she'd "definitely only use one explosion this time."
Ruko walked slightly behind the group, quiet as always. His eyes scanned the horizon, every movement deliberate. The weapon at his side hummed faintly—a pulse that matched his heartbeat. He couldn't remember why, but somehow… it felt alive.
---
Halfway through the trip, they came across a collapsed bridge. Kazuma groaned, Aqua blamed "evil architecture," and Megumin suggested blowing up the entire river for a new path. Ruko sighed, walking past them to inspect the damage.
It was there that something flickered—a brief spark behind his eyes. A flash of old symbols, an echo of stone walls, and a faint whisper in the back of his mind.
A voice.
Familiar, warm.
"You'll forget… but not forever."
Ruko stumbled slightly. Aqua blinked at him. "Hey, you okay?"
He shook his head. "Yeah. Just… dizzy."
Kazuma rolled his eyes. "You're worse than Megumin with her magic withdrawals."
"Shut it," Ruko muttered, stepping aside to regain composure. His weapon pulsed again, stronger this time—as if trying to remind him of something. But before he could piece it together, the sound of approaching hooves echoed across the forest road.
Bandits.
Kazuma cursed, drawing his sword. Darkness's eyes lit up with joy. "Finally, some action!"
Ruko cracked his knuckles and smiled faintly. "Guess this is gonna be fun."
What followed was chaos—the kind of messy, loud battle that only Kazuma's team could turn into a half-comedy. Still, Ruko's movements were fluid and coldly efficient. His strikes were precise, his reactions sharp.
At one point, a bandit tried sneaking up on him.
Ruko turned, his gaze darkening. "Wrong move."
A swift kick to the jaw—instant knockout.
By the time it ended, the road was silent again. Kazuma was panting, Aqua was pretending she'd done something important, and Megumin was passed out from using her explosion too early.
Ruko looked down at his hands, faintly trembling. That flicker of emotion again—something between exhaustion and… anger. He couldn't tell who it was for. Maybe himself. Maybe the emptiness he couldn't remember.
"Hey, you're zoning out again," Kazuma called. "You good?"
Ruko forced a smile. "Yeah. Just… thinking."
"About what?" Aqua asked, tilting her head.
"About how quiet it gets," he murmured. "Right after the noise ends."
They didn't really get what he meant. They never did. But that was fine. Ruko didn't need them to understand.
---
As the sun dipped beyond the hills, the group set up camp for the night. Ruko sat apart from them, staring into the fire. His mind felt like a maze—flashes of light, warmth, voices he couldn't remember.
Somewhere out there, beyond this world's simple chaos, he knew something—or someone—was waiting. Watching.
And far beyond the stars, someone important was watching, Featherine smiled faintly. "So, you've started to forget," she whispered to herself. "Good. That will make the game much more interesting, since i started to suspect somethingwas up hmhmhm."
The flame flickered. The road ahead waited.
And Ruko—unaware of the chains forming around his fate—simply watched the embers dance in silence.