Earth: The Second

Farewell, and New Journey

After Roberto and his platoon leave the mansion, Adma decides that he have to get to the merchant district quickly. His guess is right, the merchant district is one of the places that was impacted much because of the street chaos. Every shop got its windows smashed, the doors are broken, and people are fighting over things they stole.

A similar thing happened to Mr. Green’s shop, He can see from the outside that they have to mess up everything inside the shop.

“Gon? Rika?” Adma walked inside the shop, calling the owner and the maid. But right at his first step inside, Adma can feel a threatening aura coming from his side.

“HEAAAAH!!!”

Rika screamed, she grabs a sword in her hand and swings horizontally to Adma who just entered the room. Quickly, Adma turned and used both palms of his hand to catch the blade that almost slammed his face off.

“Rika… What are you doing,” asked Adma, with his hand still catching the blade.

“Oh, you are Adma,” replied Rika plainly, as if nothing happened.

“Don’t ‘oh’ me, damn it!” shouted Adma. He sighed and then asking for their condition.

“Is this caused by the looters?” asked Adma looking inside the shop. All of the merchandise is scattered on the floor, and some of the shelves are even broken.

“Of course, have you seen the shops on our left and right? No one is saved from the hungry wolves,” commented Rika. “The situation has been escalated since yesterday night. Luckily for me, Gon closed the shop early and told me to pack my things quickly. We spend the night in our cart outside of the city since yesterday.”

“I see, so Gon himself is safe then.” quietly, Adma gives a relieved sigh. If he loses his informant, he would not know the direction he would take next.

“But why do you returned to the shop?” asked Adma.

“For work, of course. With the situation in this city, we have to close off for a moment and moved to our branches shop. I’m here to take some of the most valuables,”

She walked to the scattered merchandise, paying no mind for them, into the back of the shop. In the kitchen, she went to the clay stove where she usually cooks and presses a button that was hidden inside that thing.

With a clicking sound, one side of the wooden floor is lifted. And Adma wondered what is the valuables Rika is talking about. 

“Don’t worry, it’s not something that is too special.”

Rika grubbing up the wooden floor, and reach a small box inside. The box length is around 20 cm, with 15 cm thickness. It is easily carried by hand.

“The loss from the merchandise is regrettable. But they are just secondhand items. Instead, the thing inside is Teach’s favorite. Let’s get out of here.”

Holding the box in her hand, Rika and Adma walked out of the shop.

“Is that thing so important that Gon let a girl like you retrieve it?” asked Adma.

“Excuse me?” Rika turned back with an angry expression. “Do you want to say that I’m too weak because of my gender?”

“N-no, sorry,” Adma apologized. “But I think if it’s that important that makes him able to abandon his entire shop, then he should take it with him in the first place.”

Rika lift both of her shoulders. “I don’t know the full detail, but this job is better than having to do errands for the whole day.” 

After a while, Adma and Rika arrived at the field outside of the city, where the carriages are lining up. The people are crowded, and even they can see arguments here and there, fighting over the carriage.

“Here we go,” ignoring the commotion. Rika heads to the green wagon at the far end of the line. Without asking, she lifts the curtain of the wagon and sees Gon that seems busy with the book in front of his face.

“Teach, this is the box you’re looking for, oh, and this is guest for you.”

Finally, Gon lifts up his face from the book and looked at Adma’s face.

“Hey Adma,” he greets differently than usual.

“I’m sorry about your shop,” said Adma, which Gon only replied with some kind of suspicious eyes.

“I wonder is this the part of your plan? Killing the duke and threw the city into chaos?” is different from what Rika has been saying. Gon is clearly worried about his business.

Adma feels like Gon is going to blame him for the situation of the city right now.

“I… No… We are not the ones who killed him,” replied Adma. “Yesterday, the discussion has gone to our favor. Instead, it’s Udeka’s own fault to bring the soldier from the capital. Luckily, that soldier believes in the villagers and turned against Udeka.”

As if does not believe, Gon returned his gaze to the book that he has been reading.

“I’ve seen it myself, the situation inside the mansion,” when Adma said that, Gon’s attention once again shifted to the man.

“What remains of him is just skeleton now. Hanging in the wall, with his organs on the floor. The soldiers and workers inside the mansion are also slaughtered, all of their bodies are filling every room in the mansion,”

“...and then? What is your point?”

“None of the villagers, not even me, is the one who did that. I swear, when that happens, the villagers are too afraid to go out of their houses, and I was tending one of the wounded soldiers.” 

Gon starring at him pretty long this time. His eyes seem focused on Adma like he is counting the sins that Adma has already been doing.

Then he laughed.

Now Adma is the one who looked at him with an upsetting face.

“Is this a prank?” asked Adma.

“Of course! How is it? I used to watch a lot of stage play when I was young. I once wanted to become one, but eventually gives up,”

“Can we back to the important bits here?” Adma grumpily cut Gon’s who has returned to his cheerful character.

“Ha! Ha! Ha! alright, alright I’m sorry,” said Gon. “So, what are you going to do now?” he asked.

Adma goes quiet, he shakes his head, simply saying that he doesn’t know.

“This my last chance to say it. But my job offer is still available to you. We will go when the sun has set, and you can start right away, as a bodyguard for our journey.”

“Where do you want to go?” asked the cyborg.

“To the dungeon town, southeast from here,” told Gon.

***

The sun is setting, and it’s time to go is already come.

Adma, Father Risto, Jerry, and Kiki standing in front of the orphanage. The sun is setting as if it’s also bidding goodbye for the man who would set his new journey.

“Thank you for taking care of me these past weeks.”

He looked at Risto, then Jerry and Kiki.

The girl seemed like she is about to burst into tears. Adma realized it and kneeling in front of his first girl and the first teammate she met in this world.

“Isn’t… This too soon?” she asked, sobbing.

“I think… Yeah… But I have to keep moving forward,” replied Adma. He caresses the little girl’s head.

“Um… Adma, thank you for your help with our village. I don’t know what we will do without you,” said Jerry.

“Now it’s your turn to protect the village. Either by pen or by sword. Ok?”

“Right!” Jerry nodding confidently.

“Take care of yourself,” said Father Risto, and Adma simply replying with a nod. 

He then turns around and walked away from the orphanage. After some moment, he turned around and give the last waving for his first family.

Meanwhile, Pina is also looking at him from distance. She does not say anything, nor bid farewell to Adma. She just sitting there, smiling. Know her destiny with him is not over yet.