Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
When Ye Qingxuan came down from the reception room, he saw the priest sitting in the chair of the library, going through the holy command which Ye had started copying some days ago. The priest did not seem be concerned, yet one could see the sadness in him.
Ye Qingxuan came to his side and whispered an apology, “Sorry, Father. I have disappointed you.”
“I knew you’re troublesome…” Father Bann shook his head, “But you’ve really troubled me this time.”
“It has always been tough, Father,” Ye Qingxuan laughed. “Putting up with me for so many years, it must have been hard on you.”
“Yes. As stubborn and vengeful as you were as a child, you’d give anyone a headache wherever you went.” The priest said coolly, “Now I don’t have to worry anymore, it will be so much easier.”
Ye Qingxuan smiled, and after a long silence he asked, “Father, why, why did you let me be the scribe here?”
“Because you were a child who could read and write,” the priest answered without hesitation. “You did not need food or accommodation to be arranged for you, and you worked for half of the wage. You also seemed helpless. I thought I would give you a hand.”
“That’s it?” Ye Qingxuan said in disbelief.
“Is that not enough?”
Ye Qingxuan was silent for a moment and laughed softly, “Father, you really are a good man.”
“Which is why I was good to you.” The priest got up and patted his shoulder. “Congratulations, Ye, you are fired. This is your farewell gift.”
He threw something at Ye Qingxuan who caught it. It was a three-ring holy emblem, about the size of a coin. It was a dark gold color, like some kind of token. It was engraved with a line of coding on the edge, but it was so smooth so you could hardly feel the engraving with your hands.
“What is this?”
“The Holy emblem. It means you are accepted by the church. It has been given to you ahead of schedule. I will help you with all the paperwork once I return to the Sacred City.” The priest said with ease, “With this, you can take a small loan with no interest, and get unlimited help from any church, so at least you won’t end up on the streets in the future.”
“Thank you so much.” Ye Qingxuan tossed the holy emblem into the air, caught it, and put into his pocket. His big eyes were wide and hopeful, “Anything else? Aren’t you supposed to give me a super weapon or a book with roadmaps to a super power?”
“I do not have the things you said, but there is an ax in the backyard, do you want it?”
Ye Qingxuan did not dare taking it. He was not sure if that ax would end up splitting his own skull.
“You can go and pack now. When you leave for Avalon, I will not see you off.” The priest waved and signaled for him to leave.
Ye Qingxuan stood there with his mouth open, not sure of what to say.
He looked at the slightly aged man in front of him, always cold and stubborn. Father Bann had never been good with words, or ever tolerated anyone’s mistakes, but was always an exemplary yet strange priest.
Five years ago the priest opened the door of this church, saw Ye in the snow and reached out to him. It was not charity, but a rescue. Five years later he was about to leave the church, but as he looked at the man in front of him, he was suddenly reluctant to go.
He still did not know how to say goodbye at the end, so he just silently nodded his head, turned around, and closed the door behind him. His footsteps showed how hesitant he was to leave.
Ye Qingxuan looked back, and saw the priest praying. He suddenly felt an overcoming sadness inside him. He could not stay here anymore–he needed to escape.
“Father, until now, I still think…that I was glad to be saved by you.”
As he was praying, the priest suddenly heard the young man’s farewell words. He was surprised. He looked up in time to see the white-haired boy run out into the sunshine.
The sun in the afternoon was intense and dazzling. It swallowed his shadow as if he had walked into his own future.
Five years. That kid was no longer a child.
Father Bann’s lips trembled for a moment, but he did not call out to the young man. He only watched him run farther and farther until he disappeared.
In the long silence, the priest’s mouth slightly curved up–like a smile.
–
The next day at noon, Ye waited at the dock. He carried a huge suitcase, squatting in a chair. He was waiting for the boat that had departed from Yanan, and would soon pass through his location in fifteen minutes. Its final destination was Avalon.
The Titan, the newest ship model, was made in the church’s shipyard and purchased by the East India Company. It was rumored that compared to the first generation of cargo ships, the Titan was like a small boat in terms of its weight capacity and speed.
These kinds of big ships usually did not pass through such a small pier because the water was too shallow. But when the ships did come, they would send a small boat to deliver mail from all over the world, as well as merchandises the town had ordered. Ye could get on the boat by using the holy emblem and pay the fare afterwards.
This was the fastest way to Avalon, which was the least the priest could do to help Ye Qingxuan. Wolf Flute was leaving on the same day, but by carriage. Wolf Flute was not leaving until the afternoon, so he and Victor came to send Ye off.
“You may be a bit nervous since it’s your first trip away, but you have nothing to worry about. The bounty reward will be deposited into your church account in about half a month. You just need to go to the church’s loan office with your holy emblem to pick it up.”
Wolf Flute patted his shoulder and continued to ramble on, “Take care of yourself at Avalon, and remember to find a hotel near the school first. You will be able to live in the dorm once school starts. Avalon has had some serious pollution issues for the past two years, too much smog. Uhh, you can think of it as bad air, so remember to buy a mask.”
Then, Wolf Flute paused, his expression turned sour, “Be very wary of the damn kids begging for money once you get off the boat. They will steal your money.”
“Do not worry about me, Mr. Wolf Flute.” Ye Qingxuan laughed, “I was one of those damn kids many years ago.”
“You street kids are seriously not cute.” Wolf Flute shook his head. Remembering something, he looked around. Seeing that no one had noticed him, he lowered his voice and said, “Ye, there is one thing I think I should tell you.”
“Ok?”
“For whatever reason, you have to remember that you cannot say that you are the son of a dark musician in Avalon.” He pressed down on the shoulder of the white-haired kid, “You are just some young man I met when I was travelling in the East, understand?”
Ye Qingxuan was silent. He looked at the man in front of him with genuine concern in his eyes. Ye smiled reluctantly, “You knew?”
“I am a musician.” Wolf Flute looked into his eyes and sighed softly, “Ever since I realized that you knew the Demon of Rain, I had suspected it, but I did not expect it to be true.”
Ye Qingxuan was silent.
“Easterner, silver white hair with the ‘bloodline of the dragon,’ as well as your surname ‘Ye.’ It was all too obvious. I didn’t need to think too much to know.
“Once a scepter musician with great talent, now number three on the most wanted list. He killed sixteen Anglo royal musicians five years ago, and joined the natural catastrophes. The traitor, Moon Chant – Ye Lanzhou.”
Wolf Flute sighed, “I was shocked that you are his son. It explains the Demon of Rain. After all, your father was the best demon hunter.”
“My father was not a traitor.” Ye Qingxuan whispered, “He did not betray mankind.”
“The problem is that everyone thinks so.” Wolf Flute tried to reorganize his words. At last he sighed, “I can only say that he used to be a very good person. After all, when I was in the Royal Academy of Music, I had attended his class about Eastern music theory. He even took me, a poor student, to dinner.”
“You knew him?”
“Only a little. He used to teach at the Royal Academy of Music, but quit after he got married. So, whether you just want to find out what actually happened back then, or if you want to do something about it, I suggest that you disguise yourself as an international student from the East. After all, this will be good for you.”
In a long silence, the white-haired young man seemed to be thinking hard.
“Mr. Wolf Flute, are you not afraid?” Ye Qingxuan suddenly smiled and asked softly, “Are you not afraid that I will also betray mankind, and become a traitor?”
“Ye, sometimes you are just a little kid who doesn’t know himself well.” Wolf Flute looked down at him and laughed at him mercilessly, “You know? You are the kind that’s not very creative even if you are doing bad things. So…just be a good guy.”
As he was speaking, Wolf Flute took out a thick book from his pocket and put it into Ye’s hand, “This is part of your thank-you gift in advance.”
Ye Qingxuan took the thick book. He realized that it was a notebook covered with a very old leather cover. Inside was small writing and many drawings.
The notebook was made very well. Even the leather cover was thicker than any ordinary notebook, and felt like it was made of iron.
Next to him, Wolf Flute casually opened the notebook, pointing to one of the pages.
“This was my notebook when I first went to the academy, including entry music notes from four different schools, and some miscellaneous stuff. Oh, yes, this part was written during your father’s class!”
On the page, there were only two lines of scribbled notes. The rest consisted of some very strange looking music notes. It seemed incomplete, and was unable to be identified clearly.
“Sorry, I was sleeping through my classes at that time. I didn’t even know what class it was, hahaha…” Wolf Flute laughed in embarrassment.
Ye Qingxuan was silent for a long time, then bowed to him. He put the notebook in his suitcase carefully, “I will read it thoroughly. Thank you, Mr. Wolf Flute.”
“Not at all. It’s only a notebook. Don’t worry, just don’t lose it.”
Wolf Flute looked at Ye’s serene eyes and gently patted his shoulder, “Do not worry about the past, have a good life. If you can get into the school, I will give you a gift.”
“Is that a promise?”
“It’s a promise.”
Wolf Flute backed up two steps, put on his hat, then left in the carriage.
–
The quiet ocean suddenly became turbulent. A huge ship came from a distance, causing big waves to appear, and leaving layers of ripples spreading in all directions.
“This is as far as I will go with you.” Victor lightly punched Ye Qingxuan’s chest. “Don’t miss this place when you’re in Avalon. I’m leaving as well, as soon as the priest is gone. Maybe after two or three years, if you are not doing well, you can come find me, and I will be someone famous by that time.”
“Hey, hey, do you have to be so confident?” Ye Qingxuan could not help but laugh.
“With someone as bad as me, I can only do better and better, right?” Victor pushed him, as if to drive him away, and rid him of his sadness. “No more chatting, hurry up and go! You are going to miss the boat. Don’t worry about others while you are in Avalon. I will be fine. You just take care of yourself.”
In the afternoon sun, the blonde boy with the cap grinned, a small stick dangling from his mouth like a pipe.
Victor waved goodbye without hesitating because he was convinced that one day they would eventually see each other again.
Ye Qingxuan hugged him and whispered, “Goodbye, Victor.”
Old Phil also ran to Victor’s side, its tongue sticking out. It stood on its two hind legs and patted Victor’s shoulder with a saliva drenched paw, as if to give its best wishes to a little brother. Old Phil hopped into Ye Qingxuan’s trunk, ready to leave.
Ye Qingxuan took a final look at Victor then set foot on the boat.
–
When the huge ship lifted its anchor and set sail once again, Ye Qingxuan stood on the deck, not daring to look back.
He knew that behind him, the coast was becoming further and further away. He felt like a part of him was emptied bit by bit. Perhaps a stage of his life had been left behind forever.
“Sir, please come with me.” A waiter politely interrupted him and led the way. “Your room is ready. We will arrive at Avalon in three days. We wish you a wonderful journey.”
“Thank you.” Ye Qingxuan smiled.
Just like that, the white-haired young man carried a trunk, a suitcase full of old clothes, two thousand pounds of paper money, an iron box, and a strange old dog, embarking on a journey with no return.
He was seventeen years old, and had not yet had his coming-of-age ceremony, but he was already an adult.
“I’m coming, Avalon.”
–
When the boat slowly left the pier and headed off, Victor was the only one left at the terminal.
He stared at the ocean motionlessly. His only friend was getting farther away.
“Hehe, sad? Human emotions are so weak.” A faint voice appeared, “With a short lifespan, humans have wasted so much time because of their hormones. All that just for a good dream…”
“Hey, you old devil! You’re really annoying.” Victor looked down at his chest, and sighed softly, “Blah, blah, can you shut up?”
“You dare? I am…”
“Now you’re just a worm in a bottle, afraid of the air. If I didn’t take you back with me, you would’ve been eaten by your God as a cold appetizer,” Victor said in a cold voice. “Dear Rain Artist, I’m not good with words, so if I had said something wrong, then why don’t you come out to bite me?”
“You little devil! I would’ve killed you if we were in the past!”
In Victor’s pocket was a bottle about the size of the thumb. A worm squirmed like mercury flowing, and roared, “I just made a tiny mistake while searching for eternal life! If it wasn’t for you, I would’ve had a new life!”
“Oh.” Victor sneered. He did not comment.
After a long while, the Rain Artist finally calmed down. He whispered, “Why did you have to agitate me? Why can’t we help each other? If I find a new body, you will also succeed…”
“It’s true what you said, but…didn’t you get something wrong?” Victor looked inside the bottle and at the mercury worm, “The terms of our cooperation is just my success, no new body.”
“Bastard!”
“You signed the terms because you desperately wanted to live! Although you can never clearly see the situation, there is one thing I do agree with you about.”
“Oh?”
“Power, old man, power.” Victor looked down at his own shadow. In the sun his shadow was shaking and alone, dark and pitiful. “I am weak. It must be because I have no power. I have been afraid of many things, but one day, I will be afraid of nothing…
In the burning sun, his eyes lit up like coal in the fire, with dark red flames.
“…as long as I am more powerful than anyone else.”
–
This year was an ordinary year because the world was as it had always been.
Everything in its own place.
Nations were fighting or bickering. Natural catastrophes still hid in the darkness, occasionally wandering into the human world, leaving behind disaster and destruction.
Old people, as always, bathed in the sun, while drinking afternoon tea, and aging. The women watched over their children, and gossiped about others. The men who brought home the bread, struggled through their jobs in order to provide food for the table.
The world was busy as always.
The only ones bored with nothing to do were the young.
So when they looked around this strange, big world, their eyes would light up because the world seemed like a huge playground, filled with many hopes and dreams.
The songs of the old times had ended. The stories of the new heroes had not yet begun.
During these awkward days, two young men had a coming-of-age experience on the same day, and were both ready to enter the world.
Their future would lead to many different directions.
