Jiji no. 8

Proxima

The panic Holder’s heart was feeling, was also pushing him to move quickly. Along with Jiji, they quickly travelled the crowded city of the Central Kingdom just to find that Blacksmith which, on the paper he is holding, the name was not stated. It was very irritating for him, indeed. Why would a training’s schedule would not include an instructor’s name? Was he anyone secret or perhaps hidden personality of the Central Kingdom? Was he someone that is needed to be kept by the kingdom because he’s one great person who could help the Kingdom when in terms of crisis? Perhaps.

He was the only instructor in the schedule which the name was not stated. And to think that he/she/it was the first in the schedule, that would highly not be anything that is typographically misaligned. His schedules were written in an elegantly designed calligraphy, on a vintage-looking paper burnt at the edges. The ink was black, yet, he realized that it was absorbing the majicules being sprinkled by the butterflies above which makes the ink—and even the whole paper—to produce an aurora of blue and green lights.

Beautiful, Holder would thought. But its beauty is senseless if the course would not tell him where is the shop of the blacksmith! He was already fifteen minutes late, and he imagined a huge and monstrous instructor would beat and punish him by hanging him, inverted, above a cauldron filled with frothing melted iron. No, please, not that kind of horrible punishment.

He bit his lip. He cannot find any blacksmith shop in the whole place he had scanned. No choice, he have to ask someone who knew the Central Kingdom better.

“Jiji?” Holder asked Jiji who was busy humming as it stood on his right shoulder, as if it was an eagle or any kind of bird who loves to lay rest at human’s shoulders.

Jiji then stopped humming. He purred in a questioning tone. Perhaps he said, “What?” or “Why?”

“Do you know anyone here that we can ask about that Blacksmith shop we’re going to?”

There are a lot of people in his surrounding. Everyone is busy. They were all absorbed in their own world while only existing in one real world. Most of them are walking in frowns, fast striding, heading towards gods knows where. Some of them are busy buying at the stalls which at every corners of the central kingdom, there stood, trying to compete with each other, for all of them, they were just selling almost the same things—potions, spells, armors and weapons, food, clothes, slippers and shoes; the market is alive and full of competitions.

But he dared not to ask anyone from the swarms of people, not unless one of them is someone he knew. He was just being careful. There are a lot of scams, as he heard, in the kingdom. Once you lower your guard, and they knew you pulled it down, they will attack. That is why he just wanted to be sure.

Jiji purred and whistled, “Woo! Woo!” he jumped at Holder’ broad shoulder, feeling the joy and excitement as he pinpoint someone from the crowd. He found someone.

“Do you see someone?” Holder asked, excitement also plastered on his face.

He followed where Jiji was staring. There, he saw a woman buying a blue bottle of potion to an old Baba running a*****e at the corner of the street. She was wearing a beautiful dress. The blouse she was wearing was a see-through, netted shirt that reveals the beautiful curve of her body. A red brassier covered her chest which at the edges is where gold-like coins hanged and shingled with her curves. Her skirt was a toe-length purple and red satin cloth that perfectly combines the elegant move of the woman as it look at the potion on her hand. She has a white satin scarf covering her mouth which made Holder hardly recognize her. But that eyes. Those green-forest eyes. He knew to whom does it belong. He once saw it.

“Good job there, Jiji,” Holder complimented. Jiji purred again, as if saying, ‘you are welcome!’

Holder quickly ran towards her.

With a tired an exasperated breathing, he said, “hey,” and then looked at her green-forest eyes, “you are Lalaine right? One of the Sankt Vessel users?” he made sure he would tell the thing about the Sankt Vessel User with just a small voice. He didn’t want that to be heard by other people near them. They were, as far as the professor once said, ordered to remain anonymous as the Sankt Vessel User. There is a proper time to reveal everything.

The woman in beautiful dress placed the potion back to the Baba’s stall. She said to the owner, “I will come back, Baba.” And then turned her back against him, then walked away.

“H—Hey!” Holder quickly grabbed her arms, “I need your help!”

The woman looked at her with shock painting her face. She looked at Holder, then to his hands clinging to her arms, then back to his face, then back to his hands. Her eyes surprisingly burned in rage. With a quick stroke, one of her hands—the free one—grabbed Holder’s hand that was wrapped on her. With a strong lifting force, she forcefully smash Holder on the ground with a raging grunt escaping from her throat.

Jiji quickly acted from that surprise throwing attack. He quickly moved to the ground, and laid his body flat. Instead Holder being smashed to the ground, he fell to the bouncy and cushion-like body of Jiji. He was just lucky that Jiji was there. Because if he is not, his body would have been crushed in pain again. Just like what the now dead Mr. Sandler did to him.

He quickly stood up, and looked at Lalaine. “Wh—Why did you do that?” he asked.

Jiji returned back into a slime, and growled at Lalaine. He was trying to protect Holder.

Above Lalaine then, something in white shone bright. Holder squinted. The erupted light was too bright. When flooded light started to weaken, he saw a white dove flying peacefully from above.

“Proxima!” Lalaine called. The dove above soared down, and landed its feet to Lalaine’s arms. The dove’s eyes then turned bloodshot red, just like of Jiji’s horrible eyes. It was a Sankt Vessel. Holder is sure of that.

“Hey, Lalaine, I—I am not here for a quarrel,” Holder said, trying to calm her down. Her eyes were still burning in rage, even though it was crayoned beautifully in forest-green. “I—I am just here to ask you a question.”

Holder now then felt the stare of other people near them. They are curious of what is happening. Holder and Lalaine was making a commotion.

“Look, Lalaine, I don’t know what have I done, but I’m sorry. Whatever it is.” He then looked at Jiji who was still growling and baring his sharp teeth. “Jiji, stop it,” he said. Jiji willingly obliged.

Despite his calm voice and his sorries, Lalaine’s eyes were still swirling in anger as she look at him. She wasn’t speaking. She was just silently looking at him. Maybe, she was now killing him in her imagination.

“Hey, Hey, Hey! What the boozy-woozy is happening here?” a familiar voice emerged from the forming crowd. And then, with special drunken entrance, Professor Zen showed herself. Her body is swaying as she walks, her eyes drowsy, her cheeks red, and her lips were pouted like a duck. She was already drunk. But hey, It was just a couple of minutes since she left Holder at the room in the palace isn’t it? And then now she was that instantly drunk? That fast?

She looked at Lalaine, and then at Holder. “Oh, you two!” she pointed both of them. “You’re the cause of commotion here!” she then clapped. But something in her voice sounded deep and fearful.

Soon she stoped laughing and clapping her hands. With a blank stare, she both look at them. “So . . . why the hell are you making a commotion here?” she asked.

Holder felt his soul drifted to the northern kingdoms, where ice and snowstorms are incredibly abundant. It was all because of the chilling sensation he felt when Professor Zen started to talk, and started to show that blank-dead eyes to the both of them.

“Proxima,” Lalaine called. The dove in her hand then flew, and head towards the direction of the palace. She looked at Professor Zen. “I’m going back,” she said.

“Did I tell you?”

Lalaine’s back was turned to them, and about to walk away. But when she heard Professor Zen, she stiffly stopped. She too, was afraid of the professor.

“What happened here?” she interrogated.

Holder quickly answered. “I was just approaching her because I want to ask question if she knew about this schedule I have with the Blacksmith. But she turned her back, and when I was about to stop her, she threw me on the floor,” Holder told as if a child saying something to his parents.

Professor Zen looked at Lalaine.

Lalaine sighed, and explained herself. “He held my arms. He touched me. That’s why I threw him.”

“That only?” Holder said. “That’s too shallow for you to almost crush my bones!”

Lalaine scoffed. She pulled the satin cloth covering her mouth, and revealed an exceptional beauty—way more beautiful, perhaps, to professor Zen. “That only?” she repeated Holder’s question. “You think that was just a ‘that only’ for me?”

Holder froze. Is he missing something?

Professor Zen looked at him. “It was not just a ‘that only’ for Lalaine, Holder. You must be wary of everyone’s differences here. We are diverse, but we aim to unite. By means of that, you should have cultural sensitivity,” she said. Holder realized that her being drunk had just suddenly gone. A talent she and his Baba Cicero can only do.

“I’m sorry, I was reckless,” He said. Jiji came to his shoulder, and then hugged him.

Lalaine heaved a heavy sigh, and then looked away.

“You know what, Lalaine’s just like that because you’re new here. Both she and Benedict were allergic to new people,” said professor Zen, her voice back to being jolly and alive.

“Ah!” she then said, “I have a better idea.”

She then looked at both of them.

“Since you have no idea, Holder, about where the Blacksmith is—because I intend to do that—what if Lalaine would guide you towards the place? After all, that is what you wanted, right?”

“WHAT?!” both Holder and Lalaine told.

“No, I don’t want to, Professor. Who knows, she might kill me if I was not looking at her!”

“I don’t want to help an arrogant man like him, professor! I too don’t want him!”

Both of them showed their rebellious faces from the professor’s idea.

“Oh, come on, you know you can’t say no to my commands, right?” the professor said. Their argument ended with professor smiling darkly at them.