As soon as Cain returned home, he felt an odd sensation.
“Satin?”
The house was quiet. Usually, when Cain came home, Satin would come out of the kitchen and ask if he had a good day, but for some reason, he wasn’t to be seen today.
Cain first checked the shoe rack. There were shoes for going out. His indoor slippers were nowhere to be seen. That meant he was home.
‘Is he sleeping?’
It wasn’t his usual nap time, but how could anyone be the same every day? Maybe today he just felt like taking a long nap.
Cain muffled his footsteps and went inside. The living room and kitchen lights were on. It seemed he had fallen asleep after sunset.
As he was going up the stairs, he heard whispering voices from somewhere. Cain stopped halfway and listened.
“Isn’t this too gross?”
―I don’t see how it’s any different from before. In the end, isn’t the essence the same?
“You’re telling me.”
Satin’s and the Demon’s voices were coming from Cain’s room. He wondered why the two of them were in the empty room.
Cain quietly finished climbing the stairs. Putting Satin aside, it was strange that the Demon, who was eerily aware of his surroundings, hadn’t noticed Cain’s return. What on earth were they doing?
Satin was sitting on Cain’s bed, reading a book. A faint wrinkle creased between his eyebrows. He had never seen him so focused before.
―A human body is so flexible. I thought all other humans were as stiff as the Hero.
“What do you know? You haven’t even seen it.”
―Huh? Why wouldn’t I have seen it? The other day, you and your spouse were at the dining table…
“Sh, shut up.”
Cain chuckled silently.
He wondered what they were doing, and it turned out they were reading <One Thousand and One Nights, One Thousand Princes>. He had chided Cain for reading embarrassing books, but perhaps he was secretly curious.
The room was bright, but the area around the stairs was dim. That’s why Satin hadn’t noticed Cain standing at the doorway.
―Isn’t the Hero interested in such mysterious acts?
“No, I just, well, I like ordinary things.”
―Is that so? But what is ordinary? If we consider what is familiar to be ordinary, then if one were to do such acts every day, wouldn’t that also become ordinary? If one were to actively spread it to people, it would truly become ordinary.
“Ugh, stop talking nonsense.”
Satin flinched and closed the book. Then he looked up and was startled.
“Oh, when did you get here?”
“A while ago.”
“…When is ‘a while ago’?”
“Just now.”
As Cain smiled knowingly, Satin’s eyes darted around, and he slyly hid the book. The oblivious Demon chattered.
―Welcome back! I have good news for the Hero’s spouse.
“What is it?”
Cain asked absentmindedly. It would surely be something absurd.
―It’s that the Hero is so devoted that he would never cheat! Isn’t that truly joyous news!
“Hey, don’t talk nonsense.”
Satin hurriedly tried to stop the Demon from speaking, but it was impossible to stop words spoken without a mouth.
―Lately, I’ve been suspicious because the Hero goes to meet his new friend so often when his spouse is away. Didn’t I witness your relationship? So I was worried. But it seems it was an unnecessary worry.
“No, I mean, why are you even bringing that up?”
Satin quickly glanced at Cain, as if worried he might be misunderstood.
“It really was an unnecessary worry.”
Unlike Satin’s concern, Cain didn’t think much of it. He had never once doubted him.
Of course, he didn’t like Satin being among many people. He also disliked Satin showing excessive interest in someone. He didn’t like situations where that might happen either.
These days, Satin really did go to see Rogers all the time. But Cain didn’t see that situation in a bad light.
First of all, Rogers wasn’t a child, and more importantly.
“He’s not your type, is he?”
At Cain’s words, Satin looked slightly dumbfounded. His eyes widened, and he moved his lips as if to speak, finally managing a “Huh?”
“No? I thought you liked my face.”
As Cain stepped into the room, Satin’s back stiffened. He couldn’t even get up, only twitching his shoulders as he looked for a chance to escape.
“I don’t like you meeting that flying squirrel so often. But I wasn’t worried about that. He’s too… round.”
“He is round…”
“With me here, what would you do with that round thing?”
“That’s, right.”
Cain grabbed Satin’s arm and pulled him up. Satin, who had gotten up in a daze, rolled his eyes around, looking for cues. Cain didn’t say anything and put his hand in Satin’s pants pocket.
―Ah!
As he pulled out the Sacred Relic, the Demon let out a futile exclamation.
Cain immediately left the room and threw the Sacred Relic down the stairs.
―Aahh!
Thump, thump, thump.
He pretended not to hear the sound of the Sacred Relic rolling down the stairs and returned to the room, closing the door.
“…Why are you closing the door?”
“To do something ordinary.”
“Haven’t we been doing it too… often lately?”
“It only becomes ordinary if we do it every day.”
“You heard everything…”
***
As soon as Cole saw Satin waiting for him, he said something unexpected.
“Teacher, why are you walking like a water strider?”
“What on earth are you talking about? A water strider?”
“Don’t you know water striders?”
“I do, but…”
He had no idea how water striders walked. Weren’t they insects that floated on water? Did they even walk?
As Satin tilted his head, Cole explained with gestures.
“You’re walking like this, like this.”
Only after seeing Cole’s awkward movements did Satin understand the meaning.
“…It’s because of muscle pain. I wasn’t imitating a water strider.”
“Did you do a big cleaning? My mom also talks about muscle pain after a big cleaning.”
“It’s not that. Anyway, let’s go inside.”
Cole carefully looked around to see if Cain was nearby before entering the house. Cole was still wary of Cain. Satin followed behind him, walking like a water strider.
As always, they sat at the table and started the lesson. Cole liked new lessons. He seemed to prefer literature over mathematics. Of course, liking something and being good at it were different things.
“Why is it suddenly getting dark?”
“Hmm, it’s an implication that the two of them did something.”
“What?”
“Umm, love?”
Cole didn’t understand Satin’s nonsensical answer at all. He just blinked.
‘It wasn’t a children’s novel…’
Since it was an adventure novel, he had expected something like the Dark Age, but it wasn’t similar at all. There was nothing in common except that they went on an adventure.
Before embarking on the adventure, the protagonist was quite a carefree young boy. He often met the village girl at the mill. Every time the two of them tried to do something, the moon hid behind the clouds. And then, a scene change.
Satin immediately guessed what the protagonist and the village girl had done in the omitted parts, but Cole seemed to have no idea.
‘It would be stranger if he did.’
Satin smiled awkwardly and turned the page.
Soon, the protagonist decided to go on an adventure. A desire to become a great person welled up within him.
Cole asked another question.
“It’s so weird.”
“What is?”
“Earlier, he said he didn’t want to leave the village, so why did he suddenly change his mind?”
“Well, that’s how the heart is, you know.”
“What’s ‘how the heart is’?”
“It’s something I don’t even know myself, I guess.”
“Why wouldn’t you know something that’s mine? I know everything about mine.”
He spoke triumphantly, but that couldn’t be true. Satin explained it in a way that Cole could easily understand.
“Have you ever fought with a friend?”
“Yes.”
“Have you ever thought later that it might have been your fault?”
“…Yes. I got angry and came home, but when I lay down to sleep, I couldn’t fall asleep. I shouldn’t have said those things.”
The story of his recent fight with a friend was quite detailed. Satin took out a cookie from the shelf and asked.
“Why couldn’t you think of that when you were fighting with your friend?”
“I don’t know. Why was that?”
“That’s how people’s hearts are. There are many feelings mixed up, so sometimes there are things you can’t see. You only discover them later.”
Cole munched on the cookie with his sparrow-like mouth and nodded. He seemed to understand what he was saying now.
After finishing the cookie, Cole giggled.
“It’s just like magic.”
“Huh?”
“Magic isn’t invented, it’s discovered. That’s why wizards dream of discovering magic.”
A corner of his heart tingled.
This wasn’t the first time he had heard this story. Satin had first heard it from Tim. Tim had left the world at the young age of twelve.
“Teacher?”
Cole leaned over the table, noticing Satin’s strange expression. His freckled nose twitched as he studied Satin’s face.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing. It’s just an interesting story.”
Satin smiled awkwardly and took out another cookie for Cole.
Magic cannot be invented. It can only be discovered. The same is true for the heart. No one can create a heart. You discover a heart that was in a deep, dark place you couldn’t see at some point.
And so, the protagonist went on an adventure, Satin made a decision, Cain became a different person than before, Rogers worried about Cain, and Cole felt sorry for his friend.
It was actually always there.
‘What happened to the other kids?’
Rogers said that Jack was working at the brewery. Where and what were the other kids doing? Some might be living quite difficult lives. He had thought it couldn’t be helped, but was that really the case?
If someone needed help, maybe he could help.
Satin still discovered a desire to become a better person.
