'Well, that conversation took longer than I thought.' Getting out of bed, Valyr looked out of the window for a bit as he gave his mind time to become fully alert. While doing so, he thought a bit about what he had done before falling asleep.
'Hopefully, Julian has some good news to share.' Letting out a faint sigh as it was the start of another day, Valyr soon made his way to the main living area to start his usual morning routine.
Though, just as he was about to take a shower, the young man was greeted by the sight of Edward tidying up the place.
"Ah... good morning..." Hearing footsteps come from another part of the room, the kid looked in the sound's direction to see who it was. After seeing that it was Valyr, a hint of fear briefly appeared on his face as he soon forced a slight smile.
"Good morning." Nodding back in response, the young man decided not to think much about it for the meantime, leaving the kid be as he went through every step of his routine.
...
"Ahh... I feel refreshed." Putting on a fresh set of clothes after patting himself dry, Valyr let out a faint sigh of relief. Though he had been doing this almost every day, the number of times he could savor the peace that came along with it was something he could still count on his two hands.
"I wonder what Edward's doing?" Placing his bath towel in his room to dry, the young man slowly made his way back to the main living area to get some rest. While doing so, he thought about the kid he had saved yesterday, who had made himself busy while he was going through his routine.
Expecting the kid to still be busying himself by doing a few mundane tasks, it went without saying that Valyr was left at a loss for words when he saw Edward kneel on the floor with his head down.
"..." Scratching the back of his head, the young man let out a low sigh once he gained an idea as to what was going on. "Get up."
"My apologies... I didn't..." With how he had lived so far still being ingrained deep within him, Edward took the young man's words as a shock, standing up as he explained himself. "I unknowingly fell asleep... and..."
"You don't have to explain yourself." Though, once he heard these words come out of the young man's mouth, the kid thought that everything was over for him, falling silent as he listened.
"In fact, I was expecting you to rest up for a bit more." However, rather than be kicked out of the room just like he had thought, the young man before him said something that was entirely foreign to him. Well, to be more specific, something he hadn't heard from a noble before.
"I... felt like I had to make myself useful..." Shifting his perspective of the young man for a bit, it took a while for the kid to answer back. "After all... you've already helped me out a lot..."
"Don't be too hard on yourself," replied Valyr, ruffling the kid's hair with a soft smile. "Have you taken a shower yet?"
"I..." At first, Edward was going to say that he wasn't allowed to take a shower. Though, after reminding himself that he wasn't with his master anymore, he changed his response. "I... haven't..."
"Go take a shower, then." Valyr nodded. "I'll get us some food for breakfast."
"But..." Hearing the young man's words, a shocked expression flashed on Edward's face. After all, as far as he knew, all nobles had their servants prepare their food for them.
"Okay..." Thankfully, as if everything had finally clicked in his mind, Edward understood that he wasn't dealing any normal noble. In fact, to make it easier for himself to understand, he thought of Valyr as a kind yet weird noble.
With that in mind, it was only then did Edward finally head to the bathroom, to which Valyr let out a low sigh as he watched the former's silhouette disappear. "He's probably going to take a long time to get used to this."
"Well, he did live most of his life so far as a noble clan's slave, after all. Cut the kid some slack." Surprisingly, a voice responded to his words, prompting him to find out that Wells had woken up.
"Wells..." Staring at his friend for a bit, Valyr eventually let out a soft sigh. "I guess I have been forcing him to change too quickly."
"Just let nature take its course," said Wells in response. "In due time, it'll be as if the young man had never been a slave to begin with."
"I sure hope so." At those words, the young man could only nod.
"You planning to head out somewhere?" asked his friend not long after, staring at Valyr's get-up.
"I'm gonna head to the Blacksmith Guild to forge some stuff." Valyr nodded, heading to his room as he almost forgot to wear his Nascent Wyvern Armor. "Though, I was planning to get some breakfast first for all three of us."
"I could take care of that for you," said Wells, prompting Valyr to look at him with a slightly surprised expression. "What?"
"You know... you don't strike me as the guy who could do things on his own," replied Valyr, to which his friend responded by giving him a jab on the shoulder.
"Fuck off. I could very well do things on my own, thank you very much." Saying these words, Wells looked at his good friend with a frown, only to let out a bit of laughter not long after. "In any case, I'll grab breakfast for me and Edward. You could head to the guild now if you want... unless you want to join us for breakfast?"
"I'll probably be in the guild for a very long time this time around, so I might just grab some food along the way." Apologetically smiling in response, Valyr looked at his friend. "Don't forget to head to the Spearman Guild later, okay?"
"I won't." Wells nodded back. "How about Edward, though? Will he just stay here?"
"Hmm..." Rubbing his chin for a bit, the young man eventually got an idea. "If you could accompany him to the Experience Pit, that would be nice."
"That works." Though he did not know why his friend wanted the kid to go there, Wells would make sure it would happen.
"I'll be heading off, then." After talking with Wells for a bit more, only then did the young man finally leave the inn, making his way to the Blacksmith Guild just as the sun was in the midst of rising. While making his way there, a thought popped up in his mind.
'Hmm...'
'That's actually not a bad idea.'
