"This village is quite bustling with people. Are they all locals?" Asked Rian, who was walking around the village with Evan after breakfast.
"Yes, most of them." Evan replied.
"The goods for sale are of good quality. The atmosphere is peaceful, too. The streets here are quite clean... By the way, where are you going?"
"Just come along, you'll find out."
Rian looked at Evan with a blank expression.
"I have a question."
"What?"
"This village is large enough to be called a simple village. With a little more development, it might become a tourist destination."
"Yes, you're right."
"But, this relatively prosperous area, why do I rarely hear news about it? I've even rarely heard the name of this village." Rian said with a confused expression.
Just as Evan was about to say something, Rian spoke again.
"No, wait... Is that it? I've been here before, but somehow I forgot about it. But after coming here, my memories have become quite clear."
"No... This village can't be called just a small area. With an economy like this, it would certainly pique the curiosity of the higher-ups. Rumors, even the name of this village, must have spread throughout the government, perhaps even the president. It's quite strange that none of them have invaded this village." Rian muttered, looking at Evan.
"And also, you never told me anything about this village."
Evan smiled bitterly as he saw Rian's sharp gaze.
"No, I've mentioned this place to you." Evan said.
"Yes..." Rian pondered.
"Yes, you once mentioned the burial mound, Silent Hill. And also the small village nearby. But..." Rian scratched his head, he looked at Evan.
"Why does it feel like something's blocking my memory from that time?"
"Yes... that..." Before Evan could answer, someone approached them.
A man who looked about Evan's age. The man was the village chief of Aria.
"Good morning. My apologies, I didn't know the minister was here. I'm the village chief of Aria, my name is Gio." The village chief bowed and spoke politely to the two of them.
"Ah, it's okay, sir. I didn't announce my arrival either. I'm Evan Dante, and this is my son, Rian." Evan acted friendly and asked the village chief to relax.
"Thank you for your understanding. May I ask what business you're here for?"
Although the village chief was quite friendly, he also acted a little wary of Evan and Rian.
"Ah, I actually came here to see Zain. I'm curious about this village, so I'm just wandering around."
"Do you know Mr. Zain?" The village chief looked a little surprised.
"Yes." Evan smiled.
"Then please feel free to explore. Or if there's anywhere you'd like to visit, I can guide you." The village chief, Gio, no longer displayed his wariness.
"Then, there's one place."
"Okay. Please follow me."
Gio walked ahead of Evan and Rian, heading towards a certain location.
"It seems Mr. Zain is quite well-known." Rian said, curious.
"Of course. Everyone who lives here knows him. And even though I'm the village head, the owner of this village is Mr. Zain." Gio said with a smile.
"The owner of the village?"
"Yes. When we no longer had a place to live, Mr. Zain reached out and provided this land for us."
"If it weren't for his kindness, all of us here might have..." Although Gio didn't finish his sentence, Rian knew what he was going to say.
"He's a good person." Evan responded.
"Yes."
After a while, they arrived at a building. It was a large, simple two-story building. The yard was also quite spacious. In the yard, several children were playing and some were hanging out clothes to dry.
"This place..." Rian muttered.
"This is the orphanage in our village."
Rian couldn't help but stare blankly at it.
A boy who looked to be around fifteen years old approached them.
"Hello, Mr. Gio, how can I help you?" The boy spoke politely.
"Hello Kai, is Mrs. Charlotte here?"
"Madam is in the kitchen. I'll call her." The boy went into the house.
After a while, someone opened the door. It was Charlotte.
"Mr. Gio, I heard you were looking for me..."
A middle-aged woman who didn't look too old for her age appeared. As soon as she opened the door, her friendly smile turned slightly sour.
Her gaze landed on one person, the cause of the change in expression.
"Morning, Charlotte, we have guests from the city. This is Mr. Evan Dante and his son, Mr. Rian Dante."
"Good morning, nice to meet you." Evan and Rian bowed to Charlotte.
"Yes. Nice to meet you." Charlotte returned their greetings.
"Charlotte, you know, Mr. Dante is a minister, right?"
"Yes. Of course I do. How could I not recognize him? His face was even prominently displayed on the front page of the newspaper."
Although Charlotte was smiling and her voice sounded cheerful, for some reason, it didn't feel that way.
Rian watched where Charlotte's gaze fell. The slightly sharp gaze was directed at Evan.
Evan also sensed the unpleasant gaze and smiled bitterly.
"I even saw the news about you. Minister of Law, Evan Dante."
"What's wrong with them?" Rian could only mutter to himself, feeling the chill between them on this warm morning.
...
"Brother Zain, how long do elves live?"
"About five hundred years."
"That's very long."
"Even so, no one knows what will happen."
"Yes, you're right... Wait, if elves reach five hundred years old, what will they look like?"
"Like an eighty-year-old human? When elves pass thirty, their appearance won't change for hundreds of years. But even then, they will still age, albeit slowly."
"Brother Zain, are you an elf?"
"No."
"..."
"Brother Zain, how did you know that story?"
"From here and there."
"You seem very knowledgeable about elves."
"Not very."
"How old did that girl live?"
"Four hundred and eighty."
"How do you know?"
"I just know."
"..."
"Brother."
"What?"
"Why are you telling me this story?"
"Why do you think so?"
"From my perspective, you're telling me this because there's a lesson I can learn from it. But from your perspective, perhaps you just want to."
Zidane explained with a slightly blank expression. Zain nodded in response.
"I knew it." Zidane sighed.
"Brother, there's something I want to ask."
"What?"
"This power... will there be a price to pay for this power someday?"
"What do you mean?"
"Yesterday, when I was in Endawn City, there was someone with even greater powers, they're called a wizard. He could emit fire from his hands and blast monsters out of the gates."
"But brother, the monsters he faced weren't ordinary monsters either. They were smarter and stronger. It was as if they were countering our power."
"What if the stronger power continues to awaken and even more terrifying monsters attack?"
Zidane's previously calm face turned pale. He furrowed his brows and clasped his hands together, unsure of what to do.
Zain watched him silently. After a few moments of silence he spoke.
"I already told you. No one knows the secrets behind the world."
"And as for the price, everything has a price. Even you have paid a price."
"I have paid a price?"
"Yes. Not just you, everyone else too."
"I have a different view than you."
"Everything has its time. The world has its time. If this world's time is about to end, then there's nothing that can be done."
"But if that's your view... what would you say?"
Although Zain's voice sounded cold and his face expressionless, Zidane knew Zain wasn't a bad person.
"I..."
That's why Zidane felt at ease talking to him.
He didn't have to pretend to be intelligent and strong in front of him.
He didn't have to hide his flaws and weaknesses.
When those jade-green eyes stared at him, he could be himself.
"I don't know."