The morning sun felt dazzling as Lucian slowly opened his eyes. Not only because of the light, but also because of the stabbing headache. He curled up for a moment, trying to gather his consciousness. The memories of last night were still faint, like a blurred shadow at the edge of his mind. There is a sense of anxiety, mixed with deep fatigue. He tries to remember what happened, looking for clues from the surrounding environment.
"Oh no, I'll be late for work!" The thought appeared suddenly, causing a brief wave of panic. However, another memory followed, stopping his panic.
"Oh, yeah, just remembered I possessed a character in the game." Relief replaces panic, but fatigue and headaches are still felt.
"Ugh, why does my head still hurt?" He rubbed his temples, trying to relieve the pain that was interfering with his concentration.Lucian slowly got up from his bed, letting the morning sunlight shine on his face.
He then took a deep breath, his mind still filled with the remnants of last night's strange dreams. A dream that is too real... too personal. It was as if someone was trying to talk to him from behind the boundaries of consciousness.
However, now is not the time to think about it. He checked his pants pocket again, re-reading the writing he had found in the previous library.
"... Is it a child from the wild..." Lucian muttered softly, rereading the faint sentence written on the corner of the worn paper. He traced the letters with his fingertips, as if hoping to understand the hidden meaning behind them.
"Judging from the shape of the paper... It seems like this writing has been written for quite some time," he added in a soft voice, "He leaned his body for a moment on the back of the bed, his eyes staring blankly at the window that was now starting to be illuminated by the sunlight.
"I have to find this person, I think there's something hidden in this writing," Lucian muttered, his eyes looking back at the writing with more focus.
However, as his mind began to digest further, a faint memory appeared, a moment in the game that he could not forget. He recalls the plot where the Protagonist meets an NPC who used to be considered crazy by him in The Luminous Hero of Avandor.
The NPC was an old man who was always talking about a treasure map hidden beyond the reach of the kingdom, a map that supposedly led to a wild region that was rarely explored. That person was always raving about treasures buried deep underground, hidden in places where no one could find them, except those who really knew how to read them.
Lucian closed his eyes for a moment, trying to remember the man's physical details. The man was thin, with messy gray hair and a face filled with wrinkles. His tattered clothes hinted that he had long lived in poverty, far from a more orderly civilization.
"Don't tell me, the treasure he said had something to do with this writing paper?" Mumbling, he then stared at the door in his room, he frowned before uttering his words.
"Pavel, you're outside right?" He said in a fairly loud voice. He knew the butler must be around this room, and waited for further orders from him.
Shortly afterwards from behind the door, the figure of Pavel appeared, a middle-aged man with a firm and loyal face. He wore a neat butler uniform.
"Young Master?" Pavel bowed respectfully, his gaze sharp and attentive. "You're looking for me?" His voice was calm and low, showing high professionalism.
"Yes, I have something I want to ask you," Lucian took a deep breath, trying to control his slightly pounding heartbeat. He glanced right and left, making sure there was no one else nearby.
Once convinced, he waved his hand gently at Pavel to get closer. "It's a bit of a secret, so keep the information safe."
Pavel nodded quickly and leaned over, putting on an attentive attitude.
"Have you ever heard of an old man who wanders around a lot, who he says likes to talk about hidden treasure maps? Maybe around the western district of the capital?" Lucian asked in a low voice.
Pavel frowned, he looked confused by Lucian's words. "Treasure map, Young Master? I'm not sure... I've never heard of such a person. But the western district is often a gathering place for beggars or itinerant traders. There's a lot of people like that there."
Lucian furrowed his brows then nodded for a moment. What Pavel said was true, the area was indeed famous as a place for beggars.
"Thank you for telling me Pavel," He then got up from his seat and approached the cupboard in the room.
He then stepped closer to the cabinet in the corner of the room, his hand opened the door of the cabinet with one gentle pull. Among the neat white shirts hanging from the nobility, his eyes immediately fell on the black robe neatly folded in the closet.
He pulled the robe and put it on, the size fit his body. When he finished wearing it, he turned his body around.
"I guess I have to go now, please get the horse ready for me." He said, as he pulled his veil up, covering part of his face.
"The capital," Lucian replied briefly. Then he intended to step out of his current room.
Pavel almost choked on his own breath. "Uh-Wh... WHAT ARE YOU SAYING, YOUNG MASTER?!"
Lucian stopped his steps for a moment, turning his head slightly with a lazy expression. "Ukhh, it's noisy. I already said I would go to the capital."
"Young Master..." Pavel's voice was low, now sounding like a mixture of respect and panic. "The capital city is quite far from the Hale area, it can take two hours. And... After all, do you know the way to get to the capital?!"
"No..." Lucian paused for a moment, staring at the ceiling of his room, before adding, "But I have a mouth to ask, don't I?"
In fact, he knows quite a bit about the capital—its streets, its interesting districts, even the little alleys hidden here. But that's based on the memories in the game, which he doesn't know precisely the exact position of Hale's current territory, as it has never been mentioned in that game before.
"Come on, just do my request," he said as he continued his steps, leaving Pavel standing in confusion behind him.
"Okay, Young Master..." Pavel said finally, surrendering to the stubbornness of his young master.
But before long, muttering for a moment, "Wait... Was it before the Young Master could ride a horse?" muttered Pavel to himself as he scratched his unitched head.
Meanwhile, Lucian was currently after exiting the main door of the mansion. Fresh air hit his face, bringing the scent of flowers from the surrounding environment. He walked along the path to the mansion garden.
The expanse of green grass looked so soothing under the bright blue sky at this time. A gentle breeze blows, bringing the fragrant scent of flowers. Lucian took a deep breath, feeling a peace he had never experienced before.
Just as he was about to continue his steps, suddenly there was a woman's voice from the garden.
"Ouch....!" Her voice sounded painful.
Lucian turned his head towards the source of the sound. Among the dense rose bushes, he saw Natty hunched down holding his index finger and his face shrieking in pain at this time, beside the girl were large scissors that were usually used to trim plants.
"I should have known that this flower was prickly, even though Senior had told me before," Natty muttered softly as she tried to pluck the pricked rose thorn on her finger.
".... Oh, Natty....?" Lucian asked who was standing tall on the path, currently he folded his hands in front of his chest while looking at Natty flatly.
"Hiccups...!!" Natty gasped, she covered her mouth with her hand that had previously pierced the thorns of the previous rose.
"Young Master Lucian, why... Why are you here?" she said, the last sentence from her coming out like a whisper, as if she was trying not to say it out loud.
Lucian raised his eyebrows after hearing the words coming out of Natty's mouth, he snorted for a moment then held his head while closing his eyes.
"Is it strange that I'm in my neighborhood?" he asked in a slightly raised voice.
"Hick...!! Forgive me.. I didn't mean it that way..." Natty lowered his head, he looked very nervous at this time.
Lucian was still observing Natty seriously, as he remembered that Natty in the game was not like what he had seen in the game. The Natty he remembers is a more cheerful character than he is now and not shy.
"Natty, didn't I tell you before that talking to me was looking me in the eye?" Lucian said, his voice sounding flat.
"I'm sorry, Young Master..." Natty bit her lower lip for a moment, then slowly lifted her face. His eyes stared directly at Lucian, not sure why the wind passed them both for a moment, making a few strands of Lucian's hair float. A hint of redness was visible on Natty's face at this time, either from nervousness, embarrassment, or something else.
Lucian looked at the girl's face flatly, yet in his head there were so many things to think about at the moment. He doesn't really intend to involve anyone else in his plan, but letting himself get lost or asking strangers out there is not a smart strategy.
After all, if he remembered correctly, in that gameline. Natty had talked to the protagonist about his past in the previous capital. That fact convinced him that the girl in front of him right now could help him more than he realized.
"Hey, you remember my previous requirements, don't you?" said Lucian in his usual flat tone.
"Yes, I remember..." Natty replied quietly while nodding. Her shoulders trembled slightly after hearing the word come out of Lucian's mouth. She began to imagine terrible things like standing all day in the hot sun, being a sack of throwing or worse, being fired.
Her eyes widened, and then in a panic she continued her words, "Are you going to punish me now."
Lucian raised one of his eyebrows, then shook his head gently. "I wouldn't do that," he said. He then stared straight at Natty, his expression now a little more serious. "I want you to guide me."
Natty looked surprised to hear that, her eyes widened slightly, "Guide, You...?"
"To the capital," Lucian replied briefly. "You've been there before, haven't you?"
The surprise on Natty's face was even more evident. He didn't know where Lucian, who usually didn't care about the past of a servant, knew that information from, but more importantly now, why did the young gentleman who was famously tempramental and had never been socialized ask him to go on a personal trip?