Chapter 59: Brother Rast, do you think I can become a Guardian? (Two-in-One)
“The hourglass in the fire?”
Through her spiritual connection with Rast, Hiltina gazed at the world outlined by spiritual brushstrokes before her.
“Mm.”
Rast nodded slightly: “I’m not sure what specific form it exists in; it could be a wandering soul, a phantom, or perhaps some kind of doll or puppet…”
“But I am quite certain that if she were still the real Fran, her spiritual manifestation would never look like it does now.”
“Without a doubt, the true soul of Fran has already perished… what you see is merely a hollow shell.”
Hiltina stood still, watching as the hourglass symbolizing Fran gradually faded into the firelight, until it completely disappeared from her spiritual vision.
She gently closed her eyes.
After a long time, when Hiltina opened her eyes once more, all the confusion, reluctance, and complexity in her light brown eyes faded away, returning to calm, like the clear stars resting at the bottom of a lake.
“I understand.”
Through the spiritual connection, Rast heard Hiltina’s voice, clear and without a hint of gloom.
“Where shall we go next?”
“To the mayor’s residence in the town center… according to the guidance of the ‘Eye of Secrets,’ the clues regarding Frozen Water Town may be there.”
……
When Rast and Hiltina found the mayor’s small building, they were warmly welcomed.
“Is it really the Guardian, Your Excellency!”
The old mayor, with graying beard, enthusiastically opened the door: “You two must be the Guardians from the lighthouse outside Frozen Water Town; it’s an honor to host you both.”
“I never thought in my lifetime I would see the Guardian once more.”
See the Guardian once more?
Rast caught the implied meaning in the old mayor’s words.
He thought of the past Guardian, Mr. Foden, who left a diary at the lighthouse.
At the end of the diary, Foden mentioned he would go to Frozen Water Town to investigate potential pollution incidents.
“As far as I know, our organization doesn’t usually like to show themselves… have you ever seen anyone wearing this kind of badge before?”
Rast pointed to the wing badge on his chest.
“Mm… it’s definitely this kind of badge.”
The old mayor adjusted his reading glasses and stared intently at the wing badge for a long time, his expression becoming somewhat excited.
Yet his words were entirely different from what Rast expected: “When I was young, I served as a sailor on the ocean routes between human survivor states.”
“One time, I fell overboard in a huge storm, and it was several people wearing this kind of badge who rescued me. I later learned they were called Guardians, entrusted with the mission of guarding the ‘Broken Coast’ and maintaining the last trade routes.”
“I knew there would be Guardians stationed when the lighthouse was built outside the town, but I worried about hindering your tasks, so I never visited… I never expected you two would come to visit on your own; my humble abode truly shines with your presence.”
Saying this, he enthusiastically led Hiltina and Rast into the residence.
Rast and Hiltina exchanged glances.
Undoubtedly, this old mayor had never met Mr. Foden, the owner of that diary, or any other Guardians disguised as travelers.
If the records in Foden’s diary were true, then the old mayor seemed to have lost part of his memory amidst some temporal distortion.
As the old mayor led them into the living room, Rast felt a gaze probing him.
He followed the look and saw a little grey-haired girl peeking timidly from the back yard, secretly observing Rast and Hiltina as they entered the residence.
Or more accurately, she was observing the Guardian wing badges they wore on their chests.
“Little Grey, don’t just stand there; hurry and call your friends for dinner.”
The old mayor called out, and the grey-haired girl politely bowed, retreating back to the yard.
Her footsteps gradually faded away, and faint sounds of childish cheers came from the back yard.
After all this, the old mayor then spoke with a hint of apology to Rast and Hiltina: “I’m sorry for the commotion.”
“Mr. Mayor, do you have many children living with you at home?” Hiltina glanced toward the direction of the cheerful sounds from the yard.
“Yes.” The old mayor nodded: “You both understand, in these times, yesterday’s safe towns might today be occupied by the Iron Cross and turned into disaster zones; many children have lost their parents by a few years old.”
“Most of the children I’ve adopted are orphans from the town, including wanderers like Little Grey who came from outside the town.”
“Having received a life-saving grace from the Guardians when I was young, I thought I should do what I could. After disembarking, I returned to Frozen Water Town to help the town grow. I was elected as the mayor and adopted orphans, all with that intention.”
“Of course, the small things I’ve done seem trivial compared to the weighty mission you Guardians bear.”
The old mayor gazed at the children playing in the yard: “I often tell the children stories of the Guardians from back in the day; though most kids just listen to them as bedtime stories, Little Grey took them to heart and often pesters me for information about the Guardians.”
“I’ve only had a passing acquaintance with your organization in my youth, so I don’t know much about the Guardians… thus, I can only rely on vague memories combined with some random rumors I’ve heard, to half-guess and tell her. Little Grey always listens very carefully.”
“If she says anything disrespectful later, I hope you both won’t hold it against her.”
……
Dinner came early, and the old mayor thought of setting a separate table for Hiltina and Rast but was politely declined by Hiltina, who took Rast to the children’s table.
Although the dinner was not lavish, the atmosphere was lively, and everyone enjoyed their meal.
“Hiltina sister, Brother Rast.”
“You can take me home and let me become one of the Guardians, right?”
“I can endure hardships and am very obedient; I won’t trouble you at all.”
Just as dinner was nearing its end, the grey-haired girl suddenly stood up, cutely asking Hiltina and Rast.
Hiltina was momentarily stunned, unsure how to delicately decline without hurting the little girl’s pride, when Rast had already spoken first.
“Sorry, we are just ordinary junior members of the organization and do not have the authority to recommend new members.”
“And from what I know, the selection criteria for Guardians are quite strict; there might not even be one selected out of ten thousand.”
“Is that so?” A trace of regret appeared on the grey-haired girl’s face.
But she still quietly stood and bowed to Rast and Hiltina, apologizing: “I’m sorry for bothering Brother Rast and Sister Hiltina.”
After dinner, Hiltina took out a silver coin, broke it into small pieces, and distributed the fragments to the children present.
The other children, upon receiving the fragments, ran off joyfully.
Only the grey-haired girl, upon receiving Hiltina’s fragments, politely thanked her: “Thank you, Sister Hiltina, I will use this money to study hard, learn knowledge, and strive to become a person like you, Sister Hiltina.”
“No need to say these things.”
Hiltina patted the little girl’s head; “You should take this silver to buy candy, new clothes, or buy toys for your other friends, to enjoy good food at restaurants; just do what you think is worthwhile.”
“In this world—”
“Whether poor or rich, weak or strong, everyone has the right to enjoy life.”
In the dim candlelight, her eyes shimmered with light.
Beside Hiltina, Rast observed everything that unfolded, the icy blue light in his pupils flickering and vanishing.
Rast raised his glass, the crimson liquid swirling, and he downed a glass of the mayor’s homemade grape wine in one gulp.
……
Night in the countryside always falls early.
Canaan is like this; Frozen Water Town is the same.
Just past nine o’clock, most lights in the town had already been extinguished.
Hiltina and Rast chose not to return to the lighthouse for the night, even though, according to the diary’s description, it should be a safe zone not affected by “temporal distortion.”
However, staying in the safe zone would mean they would never have the opportunity to uncover the truth about Frozen Water Town and the mist.
Fortunately, it seemed that in preparation for taking in orphans, the mayor’s house had more than one extra room. After cleaning up, Rast and Hiltina went to sleep in adjacent rooms.
Time passed quickly in the dark of night.
Around eleven o’clock, a very faint sound of footsteps paused at Rast’s room door.
Then, a few seconds later, the door to the room was quietly opened.
A small figure tiptoed into the room, glancing at the sleeping Rast on the bed.
Then, the footsteps paused at the wooden table, where Rast had carelessly placed his windbreaker before sleeping.
She stared at that windbreaker for a long time.
Or more accurately, she stared at the Guardian wing badge made of pure silver on the windbreaker for a long time.
After a long silence.
Just as she finally gathered the determination to reach out and grasp the Guardian’s wing badge in her palm—
“Can you tell me why you are so interested in becoming a Guardian?”
In the still darkness, Rast’s calm voice rang out.
Almost simultaneously with the words, she quickly pressed the badge back to its original spot, using her other hand to pretend to pick up the whole coat.
The grey-haired girl seemed startled, her slender shoulders trembling slightly: “Brother Rast, the mayor asked me to collect your and Sister Hiltina’s clothes to take for washing.”
“I was supposed to come pick them up before you fell asleep, but I accidentally played too hard and forgot. I was afraid the mayor would scold me and concerned about disturbing your sleep, so I thought I’d sneak in to take them away.”
She hung her head, her slender form trembling lightly, and with that timid voice, she resembled a girl who had accidentally done something wrong and feared reprimand from an elder.
“No need to perform in front of me; that’s just a waste of time.”
“I know you are very good at acting and adept at disguising yourself with a false mask.”
“You know in your heart that most adults prefer children who are sometimes innocent and lovely yet also sensible and polite at other times. So you put on a mask, presenting yourself in a way that doesn’t really exist in reality but is most endearing.”
“Your acting is quite good; not only have you deceived your playmates and the old mayor, but even Hiltina couldn’t see through it.”
Rast’s voice was calm and steady: “But unfortunately, you’ve met me.”
“No one understands performance and wearing masks better than I do.”
A brief silence fell in the room.
After a few seconds, as if finally confirming that Rast’s words were not a trick, the grey-haired girl slowly raised her head.
She still looked small, but the childlike fear had vanished from her gray eyes, replaced by a kind of numbness like a young beast.
“So, can you tell me now?”
Rast stared at the little girl before him: “Why do you want to steal the Guardian’s badge?”
“Because I want to become one of the Guardians.”
Rast frowned: “Do you think just because you have the badge, you can become one of the Guardians?”
“As long as I have the badge, I can say it’s the last relic left by my parents… Even if I’m not selected, out of basic emotion, the Guardians’ headquarters will definitely keep me.”
Goodness, are you reserving me and Hiltina as your soul rings directly?
Rast’s voice slightly paused: “Why do you want to join the Guardians so badly? Don’t tell me your earlier reasons for disguising yourself.”
“Because I want to survive.” A trace of inexplicable brilliance suddenly flashed in her numb gaze.
“Survive? Don’t you like life in Frozen Water Town?”
“I wasn’t born in Frozen Water Town; before coming to Frozen Water Town, I wandered through five cities, various towns… But without exception, those places were all destroyed, some submerged by tsunamis, some turned into those who eat people, others devoured by beasts.”
“I’ve lived in Frozen Water Town for a year and a half; the mayor and others have treated me well, but I know this place is not safe. Only the strongest places are truly safe.”
The girl lifted her head: “I’ve heard the old mayor say that the Guardian organization is very strong, very great… and that there are the most powerful people among humans in the Guardians’ headquarters, not a single person from a small town can match them.”
“So I must become a Guardian because only by joining the Guardians can I be safe, and I can continue to live.”
She looked at Rast with a hint of hope: “Brother Rast.”
“Do you think I can become a Guardian?”
(End of this chapter)
