Arsh stood up and approached the bed.
"How are you feeling?"
"Not good... Was it you who saved me? I don't remember anything," Ezra said with a hoarse voice. It sounded as if speaking even a couple of words was a truly exhausting task for him.
"Would you like some water?" Arsh asked, rather than answering his questions.
When Ezra nodded, Bera helped him raise his head, while Arsh filled a glass from the pitcher on the nightstand and gently helped him drink.
Meanwhile, Mes had already left to inform Professor Reiner. As luck would have it, the professor had a lecture at the university today, but he would likely return to the manor soon.
After drinking the water, Ezra's voice seemed to clear up a little.
"The notebook?"
"It was among your clothes. I took it. Thank you," Arsh replied.
Ezra silently nodded again and began looking around the room.
He had probably seen everyone before while watching them.
His gaze lingered on Haru for a moment, but without asking any questions, he turned back to Arsh.
"You know, I was almost going to die," he said with a faint smile. "Tell me. What happened?"
Arsh told him where they had found him and what condition he had been in at the time.
When he went on to describe the journey they had taken to save him, Ezra couldn't hide the surprise in his eyes.
"Why did you go through so much trouble for me?"
"You're a good person. Maybe if you had died for some other reason, it wouldn't have mattered. But I didn't like the idea of a good person dying because of me," Arsh said.
At that, Ezra only responded with a faint smile again.
They waited until Professor Reiner arrived.
"Why is everyone in here? There's a patient. All of you, out," Professor Reiner said the moment he entered the room. "Arsh, you can stay."
The examination did not take long.
"Your condition is generally good. According to what Arsh said, you were poisoned by a fragment belonging to an ancient creature called the 'Darkness.' I don't know… it's probably an artifact thousands of years old, so its effect had weakened. That's the only reason you're still alive."
"It damages the connection between the soul and the body. You should probably avoid using your siuni for a while. As you know, damaging that link can kill you. You held on well."
"Thank you… In that case, it's probably best if I leave now," Ezra said.
"Are you joking? You can't even lift your head," Arsh snapped.
"I don't think you'll be able to get out of bed for at least a few more days. First, you need to focus on eating well and recovering your strength. I will also give you some supplements. Besides, your staying here isn't an issue for anyone. If you don't have anywhere else you need to be, stay for a while. We can discuss the rest later," Professor Reiner said.
He then left the room, leaving Arsh and Ezra alone.
"I assume the agreement between us has come to an end. If I'm indebted to you again because you saved me, we can somehow make a new arrangement."
"Do you have anywhere to go?" Arsh asked.
"Of course I do. I can go wherever I want, freely."
"You know that's not what I meant. Right now, is there anyone you can stay with who can actually take care of you?"
"..."
"So just shut up and stay here for a while until you get better. I really don't think they'll try to arrest you because of all the thieves. They'll probably just ignore it, if that's what you're worried about."
"Hah… why should I be worried about that? No one can put me in a cell, don't you know that?"
"I guess," Arsh said with a small smile. "Now rest. I'll bring you something light to eat."
...
Ezra was recovering quickly. In the days following his awakening, he ate with a hearty appetite, and the gaunt, sunken look on his face began to fade.
Still, he remained uneasy around others. Since he wasn't able to use his Siuni yet, he would only leave his room during the hours when no one else was around, taking quiet walks in the garden.
The only people he spoke to were Arsh, the Professor, and Madam Hilda, who brought him his meals. Yet, he never held long conversations with any of them.
"That friend of yours has zero social skills," Juan said one day.
"What?"
"That prick you brought here. He doesn't even say hello. When he sees someone, he runs away like a scared kitten."
Arsh couldn't imagine Ezra as a scared kitten. Until then, he had simply thought Ezra just didn't like talking to people.
"Let's have our dinners in the main manor. Bring him there to eat with us. He is well enough to do that," Professor Reiner said.
"Yeah, let's meet him. He has a gorgeous face, I want to get to know him," Helen said with a smile.
"Gorgeous face… Hah. He looks like a sly weasel to me," Walter muttered.
"You're just envious. He is handsome and better at using his siuni than you. Even though your siuni is supposed to be more powerful and useful than his, right?" Mes said with a serious expression.
"I wanna beat you. But if I beat you, Bera beats me. So just shut up, you bookworm," Walter said, his face flushing slightly.
Listening to the conversation at the table, Arsh thought to himself.
"Yeah, I think it would be nice to bring him to the table with us." He wasn't sure if that guy had ever talked to people like this before. Maybe experiencing normal things like this would be better for him.
But for now, they hadn't accepted him into the house inside the woods.
Arsh could see why. Even though they said the house could protect itself, Professor Reiner didn't want to let someone inside who wouldn't be staying with them permanently.
He had accepted Arsh because he was sure there would be a connection between them. He had accepted the child because, despite not being human, he was still just a child and could not be separated from Arsh.
But there was no reason for him to bring Ezra here. Especially since, once accepted, Ezra would be able to go in and out of the house whenever and wherever he pleased.
...
The plan to include Ezra in their meals could be considered a success. It could be called a success because he did attend meals with them, as if trying to show a form of respect.
But beyond that, his cold, distant attitude and short answers were driving Juan and Walter crazy. Especially the occasional expression on his face that seemed to say, "What nonsense are these people talking about?" only made them more irritated.
Helen, on the other hand, would sometimes try to tease him, only to be met with complete indifference—while also receiving disapproving looks from her brother and mocking ones from Juan.
One day, after dinner, Bera approached Arsh.
"Your friend is very uneasy. He seems scared. He doesn't seem used to facing people. I thought you might want to know. If you want to do something about it," he said, then left.
'So Juan was right. He's a scared cat,' Arsh thought.