Chapter 61: CH. 61 | Sunset at Archan Beach

"Which city did you come from?" Miya asked.

"Aluric."

"Aluric’s really far from here. You must be exhausted, right?" Miya said, standing up and guiding Theo out of the examination room, "Come with me, I’ll cook something for you."

Theo tried to politely decline. He told Miya he couldn’t stay too long here, since his friends were waiting for him.

Miya didn’t mind inviting all of them to eat together with her. Still, Theo turned her down. He explained that he’d be heading back out to meet up with them.

Realizing Theo didn’t want to linger left Miya without much choice. She couldn’t hold him back either, not if he really wanted to go.

"If you’d like, I could recommend you to an academy, to help you train your abilities."

Theo went quiet for a moment, his eyes drifting toward the window looking out from Myra’s apothecary. Out there were Thalia and the others, his party members.

If Theo accepted Miya’s offer, he might end up parting ways with them, leaving them with no idea what to do next.

"My party depends on me. I can’t just leave them," Theo answered, "If I did that, it would feel selfish."

"But it’s for your own good. You realize growing as an adventurer and as an academy student are two completely different paths, right?"

"I know that," Theo said.

"But what’s the point of knowledge if what I’m doing ends up leaving them stranded?" Theo asked.

"I’ll keep being who I am, growing and getting stronger on my own terms."

Miya smiled, looking genuinely touched. She reached out with both hands and gently cupped Theo’s cheeks, taking in his youthful face and build, so close in age to Myra.

"Your face looks just like Aslan’s, but your attitude, your heart, reminds me of Hana."

"If you want to find out more about Hana, you should go to her hometown, in Aluric City."

"Aluric City... is my mother’s hometown?!" Theo said, stunned.

"Of course it is," Miya answered, arms crossed over her chest, "Why else would there be a statue of the Saint Mage right in the middle of the city?"

Oh... so that’s why Michelle brought me to Aluric, because that’s where my mother was born.

Theo smiled at that. He turned and told Miya he’d keep searching for information about his mother while still living his own life. He felt confident he’d find out more about Hana there.

Myra came over and stood beside Miya, both of them waving as Theo left, "Take care, Theo. I hope things go well for you."

He said his goodbyes and left Myra Apothecary. He tucked the chest his mother had left him into his inventory bag, planning to read through it later once he was back home.

For now, his plan wasn’t to rush back to Aluric City right away. Night would be falling soon, and he worried something might go wrong if they pushed to travel now.

Theo walked down the village road toward the beach, its shoreline stretching out long and wide. The closer he got, the stronger the smell of the sea and the fish market near the shore became.

"Let go of me!"

"I’m not going anywhere with you. What’s wrong with you people?!"

A sharp voice rang out from the direction of the beach. Theo heard it and felt an odd familiarity with that scream. He picked up his pace until he reached the spot.

Three bare-chested men wearing nothing but shorts had shown up, one of them standing uncomfortably close to Thalia, clearly trying to hit on her.

Those damn bastards!

Theo bolted toward the beach and grabbed the arm of the man hitting on Thalia. The man turned, startled, while Thalia and the others glanced over, breaking into wide smiles.

"Theo?" Thalia called out.

She and the others immediately huddled behind his back for protection. Theo tightened his grip on the blond man’s arm and shoved him back hard.

One push was more than enough to send the man tumbling into the sand. His fists clenched, his face flushed red with anger.

"Damn it!"

"Who the hell are you?!" the man shouted, getting back to his feet, furious.

"I’m their friend," Theo answered, "I’m responsible for looking out for them."

"You’ve got the nerve to fight me? Aren’t you scared of getting hurt? I don’t care if you’re an adventurer or an academy student, you’re all the same to me!"

The man lunged forward and swung a punch at Theo. Theo went still for a second, then gave a small smile.

Without even relying on his Foresight skill, he drove a hard kick straight into the man’s stomach.

The blond man was sent flying backward, crashing to the ground, groaning in pain as he clutched his gut.

"Come on then," Theo taunted.

"You damn bastard!" the other man shouted.

Theo dodged his attack, caught the man’s fist mid-punch, then drove his own fist into the man’s face and stomach until he was groaning in agony.

That left the third man, who looked nervous and hesitant, unwilling to fight given how much smaller he was than the other two. But his friend’s desperate shout pushed him into action anyway.

"Hyaaa!"

SLAP!

One hard slap from Theo left the man frozen in shock, his attack failing completely. He charged forward again, and Theo slapped him again across the other side of his face.

Theo kicked him down onto the sand, leaving him groaning in pain just like his friends. From behind him, Theo heard clapping, and felt Thalia’s hand slip into his.

"Take that, you pathetic losers!" Lily shouted.

"Whoa, Lily. Watch your language. You’re a priest," Theo said quietly, and Lily blushed, embarrassed.

"Sorry, I just got really mad, Theo."

Theo turned back to face the men, warning them one more time that if they ever dared to bother his friends again, they’d be dealing directly with the edge of his sword.

They didn’t seem to be listening, acting indifferent about the whole thing. Still, they walked off, clutching their aching bodies as they left.

With the problem resolved, Theo invited everyone to move on. He glanced to the side at Thalia, and she immediately let go of his hand, seemingly in reflex.

"We got to enjoy the sunset before you showed up. You missed out, Theo," Lily said.

"The sun’s not going anywhere. I can catch it some other time," Theo replied, laughing lightly.

"But watching the sunset under a clear sky, with friends around, that’s something special," Lily explained, "Now, let me take you to my grandmother’s house."

"I hope she hasn’t gone off to the fish market."

Theo went quiet for a moment, glancing over at Thalia, Lily, Aya, and Riley. He found himself thinking about them, about the life that lay ahead for all of them.

In that instant, he started to understand what Miya had meant. He might carry a responsibility tied to this Authority power, but he couldn’t let it consume him.

Miya’s right. This life matters more than whatever purpose my power is meant to serve.

Maybe... with them by my side, I’ll finally figure out what my power is really for.

Thalia noticed Theo had been staring at her the whole time, "What is it? Do I look pretty to you or something?"

Theo laughed lightly, trying to keep things easygoing, "All of you look great, except those three guys back there."

"They must’ve been so embarrassed," Lily said.

"You’ve got that right."