"Sir Richard, thank you for your help. Lachlan and I will stop by your wagon later, so don't leave without notice okay?" Zhenyel asked more like stated as she placed a hand over her hips, waving at him while she dragged Winford to the Adventurer's Guild.
When they arrived, they individually approached a solo section and claimed their rewards. As per her quests, she got 3x Minor Red and Blue Potion along with 22 copper coins.
After she finished submitting her work, she waited for Winford by the lobby while she read some more books and magazines that they featured for the current timeline.
Then out of nowhere, she felt a wave of dizziness crashing over her mind. Dizziness—? Zhenyel shouldn't feel as such because she was healthy and fit; she didn't skip any meals either.
Before she could even think further about the questionable dizziness, Winford was already done and was calling her name.
She stood up from her seat and placed the magazine back where she had grabbed it, making sure it was neatly returned. To which, unbeknownst to her, the magazine turned to page 39 where the headline was about an incident of a mysterious disappearance in a dungeon.
Zhenyel rushed to Winford's side while she matched his pace, looking over to the map he had in his hand.
"What's the deal with the map?" She asked curiously, blinking up at him as she watched his eyes trained on various spots of the map within the city's territory.
Winford didn't bother to reply for a few moments before he glanced at her over his shoulder, seeing imaginary sparkles surrounding her frame as he shook his head to get rid of the unnecessary thoughts.
"I took another quest." He replied casually as if what he said was normal, rolling the map closed and putting it in his inventory.
Zhenyel looked at him with disbelief. Another quest? Just when he finished two? With the moon peeking out of the clouds
"Are you serious? It's already nightfall though." She said as she tried to match his pace, he looked unperturbed at the danger level at night.
Knowing that Zhenyel might follow him and help him with his quest, he skied to a stop and placed his hands over her shoulders with a stern look.
"I will be fine. You go home and rest up. Don't even think about following me." He said as he tucked a stray strand of her hair behind her ears, his touch was gentle and deliberate.
Then without waiting for her response, he sprinted out of the Guild and disappeared from Zhenyel's sight, making her blink and agape with bafflement.
He left—! That guy!
She hissed internally as she unconsciously touched the hair he tucked in earlier, staring in the direction he ran off to.
She couldn't help but sigh and follow through with what he said, walking back home in a daze. Her mind went back to Winford, she recalled the first time she saw him and the times she grew closer to him.
She honestly didn't expect she would get close to him because he had this vibe of indescribable majesty and poise. It's like he wasn't what he made himself to be.
Before she knew it, she arrived at her house. With a sluggish movement, she unlocked the door with her own set of keys and entered, switching her outdoor shoes to the indoor ones.
"Dad. Jasminah. I'm home!" She called out as she walked inside, dropping her bag on the couch when she passed by the living room and went to the kitchen.
There, she saw her father already preparing her dinner. When he saw her enter the kitchen, he smiled at her and ushered her to a seat.
"Welcome home. San is already tucked in. I'm glad you got home in one piece. Keep it up. I'll go to bed now okay?" He said as he placed her food in front of her with a glass of warm milk.
He pressed a soft kiss on her forehead before leaving for his room. Zhenyel was left alone in her thoughts as she watched the smoke steaming up into the air from her food.
He stayed up and heated my food instead of sleeping early…
She thought to herself while she chewed on the food in her mouth, she felt incredibly grateful toward her father for his dedication to taking care of her and her sister despite his taxing work.
"You're overworking yourself again…" She murmured absentmindedly, irritated and thankful for the efforts as she sighed in exasperation.
When she finished her food, she stayed in her seat for a few more minutes to empty her glass of milk before standing up and washing the dirty dishes.
Just when she turned to the stove to store the leftover food, she saw that there was nothing else to do. Seems like her father already did it for her, she thought there wouldn't be any more things that would make her further thankful, but it appears like she was wrong.
Dad… Instead of worrying about me and my little sister… You should've used your free time to rest up… You are not getting younger as time passes by…
Zhenyel was lost in thought when she wiped her hands dry with a towel as she shut the main lights in the kitchen, leaving the small one by the dining table open while she checked everything in the house before retiring to her bedroom.
She placed her bag on the floor by the edge of the bedframe, entering the bathroom to take a quick shower. After she ended her nightly routine with jotting down everything that had happened during the day in her diary, she walked to her bed and collapsed on the mattress.
She crawled under the blanket and tucked herself in, staring at the moon with an unreadable expression as she sighed quietly.
Too much happened. Tomorrow is a new day, I hope Lachlan doesn't overwork himself like Dad…