Asher berdiri terpana sejenak, menatap sosok Thalric yang menjauh. Sudah jelas dia menduga Thalric berniat mentransfer poin kepadanya—permintaan Thalric untuk melihat kartunya begitu nyata—tetapi dia sama sekali tidak pernah membayangkan jumlahnya.
---
Nama: Asher Wargrave
Kelas: ★
Peringkat: Peringkat 1
Saldo Poin: 30.700
---
Thalric mentransfer dua puluh ribu poin seolah itu tidak berarti apa-apa. Pikiran Asher berdengung, tak mampu menentukan reaksi yang pantas. Kaget? Syukur? Curiga? Dia hanya berdiri terpaku, menatap angka di kartunya seolah angka itu bisa lenyap jika dia terlalu cepat berkedip.
Pikirannya melayang, tanpa diminta, ke kata terakhir Thalric, 'Ash.' Thalric memendekkan namanya. Apakah Asher keberatan? Tidak juga... tapi itu aneh. Tak terduga. Tidak seperti biasanya.
Asher menghembuskan napas perlahan, desah tipis lolos, mengakui dalam hati bahwa dia benar-benar tidak memahami isi kepala Thalric. Sepanjang ingatan Asher—dari interaksi masa lalu hingga kerja sama singkat mereka saat Apocalypse—Thalric selalu merendahkannya, mengejeknya, atau berbicara dengan keangkuhan yang nyaris obsesif.
Tapi sekarang, tiba-tiba dia berlaku dengan kebaikan yang ganjil. Kontradiktif. Aneh sekali.
Asher menggeleng, memutuskan mengesampingkan semuanya. Tak ada gunanya memikirkan hal yang tak bisa dia pahami. Soal tawaran Thalric untuk ikut misi bersamanya, Asher tak berniat menolak mentah-mentah, tapi juga tak berencana langsung menerima.
Keputusannya bergantung sepenuhnya pada situasi saat waktunya tiba. Hanya karena Thalric memberinya dua puluh ribu poin bukan berarti Asher akan mulai bergantung padanya. Dia juga tidak naif hingga mengira Thalric akan terus membagikan poin dengan begitu dermawan.
Thalric Wargrave punya banyak sifat, dermawan jarang salah satunya.
"Matahari Kesembilan itu... intens," bisik Finch, suaranya direndahkan hampir tak terdengar, seolah bicara terlalu keras akan menarik perhatian Thalric. Pria itu masih berdiri hanya beberapa meter jauhnya, dan Finch jelas tak berniat menguji apakah Thalric mendengarkan. Apakah Thalric mengabaikannya atau benar-benar tak mendengar tetap misteri, sebab dia tak memberi reaksi apa pun.
"Berapa poin yang dia berikan padamu?" tanya William, akhirnya mengalihkan pandangan dari Matahari Kesembilan. Suaranya menyentak Asher dari lamunannya.
"Dua puluh ribu," jawab Asher datar. Tak ada alasan menyembunyikannya—bukan berarti ada yang bisa menindasnya karena poinnya, tak ada yang cukup kuat untuk itu. Jawabannya langsung membungkam William dan Finch. Mereka menatapnya dengan ekspresi identik—kosong, terpana, dan jelas iri. Mereka tadi sangat gembira menerima lima ribu poin sebagai hadiah misi pertama.
Sekarang seseorang dengan santai mentransfer empat kali jumlah itu seolah tak berarti.
"Katanya Wargrave saling menjaga, ternyata bukan cuma rumor..." gumam William, masih mencerna kenyataan itu.
"Terlambat tidak kalau mau jadi Wargrave? Keluargamu menerima lamaran adopsi?" tanya Finch dengan keseriusan total. Dia tahu pasti tak ada seorang pun dalam hidupnya yang bisa dimintai dua puluh ribu poin dan memberikannya tanpa ragu.
'Apakah dia yang punya kemampuan Keberuntungan... atau aku?' Finch bercanda dalam hati.
"Tak perlu dipikirkan berlebihan. Kami Wargrave memang seperti ini," kata Asher sambil menggeleng pelan.
"Sekarang kau pamer," balas William.
"Ayo jalan." Mata Asher melirik Thalric sekali lagi sebelum dia berbalik. 'Kurasa anak bungsu di setiap keluarga selalu diperlakukan berbeda,' batinya sambil melangkah.
Saat ketiganya mencapai meja fasilitator, pria itu mengangkat alis begitu melihat mereka. Ekspresi bosannya tetap sama dan abadi, seolah kebosanan adalah keadaan alaminya.
"Kenapa kalian kembali ke sini?" tanyanya, terdengar seperti pertanyaan itu saja sudah melelahkan. Dia menutup buku yang dibacanya dan menyingkirkannya dengan keengganan berlebihan.
"Kami mau mengambil misi lain," jawab Asher, nadanya datar.
"Aku tahu kalian mungkin sudah beristirahat di Baronat Rivelle, tapi bukankah sebaiknya ambil misi berikutnya di lain hari? Mungkin... tiga hari dari sekarang?" saran fasilitator, suaranya bernada seseorang yang sangat berharap mereka mau. Tapi Asher, William, dan Finch hanya menggeleng menolak.
Fasilitator tak perlu penjelasan lebih. Dia sampai pada kesimpulan yang sama dengan Vaelra dan Thalric—tim Asher jelas berusaha menyelesaikan tiga misi pertama secepat mungkin agar Asher bisa lanjut ke misi solo.
Pandangan pria itu beralih ke Asher. "Jadi, kau masih membeli breastplate, greave, vambrace, dan sarung tangan?"
"Sudah kubeli dalam perjalanan ke sini," jawab Asher. William dan Finch meliriknya kaget, bertanya-tanya bagaimana dia membeli semua itu tanpa mereka sadari, tapi memilih tak berkomentar. Bukan urusan mereka.
Fasilitator menggeleng pelan, lalu berkata, "Aku tidak bisa menunjukkan daftar misi saat ini."
"Kenapa?" tanya William, benar-benar bingung.
"Karena setelah setiap misi, siswa wajib menunggu dua puluh empat jam sebelum mengambil misi lain. Ini untuk mencegah siswa kelelahan karena mengambil misi beruntun dan berpotensi membahayakan nyawa mereka sendiri," jelas fasilitator.
"Kenapa kau tidak memberitahu kami dari tadi?" tanya Asher.
"Aku hanya mengatakan ini ketika siswa buru-buru kembali untuk misi lain," jawab pria itu dengan angkat bahu tanpa penyesalan. "Kembalilah sembilan belas jam dari sekarang, karena check-in misi terakhirmu enam jam lalu." Dengan itu, fasilitator tersenyum, mengambil bukunya lagi, dan kembali membaca seolah lega mereka sudah pergi.
'Kenapa Thalric tidak berkata apa-apa?' pikir Asher. 'Mungkin karena dia ingin aku mendengarnya sendiri,' simpulnya.
"Ayo. Kita kembali besok untuk mengambil misi dan langsung mulai," kata Asher sambil menghela napas pelan.
William dan Finch mengangguk, dan ketiganya berjalan keluar gedung bersama.
"Jadi... karena Asher dapat poin begitu banyak, ayo kita rayakan," Finch mengusulkan penuh harap... lagi.
Asher menggeleng. "Siapkan yang kau butuhkan untuk misi besok. Itu hal pertama yang kita lakukan pagi."
Dengan itu, dia menghilang dalam kabut perak, mengaktifkan Position Marker dan berteleportasi langsung ke kamarnya. William dan Finch bertukar helaan napas. Kalau misi dimulai pagi besok, lebih baik mereka memanfaatkan sisa hari untuk berlatih sedikit.
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CATATAN PENULIS: baru saja memberiku adaptasi E-book, yang bisa kalian temukan di Amazon. Silakan dicek. Terima kasih atas cinta dan dukungannya. Satu cinta.
Asher stood momentarily dumbfounded as he stared at the retreating figure of Thalric. He had, of course, already guessed that Thalric intended to transfer points to him, Thalric’s request to see his card made it painfully obvious, but he had never once imagined the amount that would follow.
---
Name: Asher Wargrave
Class: ★
Rank: Rank 1
Point Balance: 30,700
---
Thalric had transferred a staggering sum of twenty thousand points as though it were hardly significant at all. Asher felt his mind buzz for a moment, unable to decide what reaction was appropriate. Astonishment? Gratitude? Suspicion? He simply remained rooted where he stood, staring at the numbers on his card as though they might vanish if he blinked too quickly.
His thoughts drifted, unbidden, to Thalric’s final word to him, ’Ash.’ Thalric had shortened his name. Did Asher have a problem with it? Not exactly... but it was strange. Unexpected. Uncharacteristic.
Asher exhaled slowly, a faint sigh escaping him as he admitted inwardly that he simply could not understand what went on inside Thalric’s head. Throughout all of Asher’s memories, from past interactions to their brief cooperation during the Apocalypse, Thalric had always taken the opportunity to belittle him, mock him, or speak with an aloof superiority that bordered on obsession.
But now, suddenly, he was acting with an odd sort of kindness. It was contradictory. Weirdly so.
Asher shook his head, deciding to push the entire matter aside. There was no benefit in overthinking something he couldn’t interpret. As for accepting Thalric’s earlier offer of joining him on a mission, Asher had no intention of refusing outright, but neither did he plan to accept immediately.
His decision would depend entirely on the circumstances he found himself in when the time came. Just because Thalric had handed him twenty thousand points did not mean Asher would begin relying on him. Nor was he naive enough to assume Thalric would continue handing out points so generously.
Thalric Wargrave was many things, generous was rarely one of them.
"The Ninth Sun is kind of... intense," Finch whispered, his voice lowered to an almost imperceptible level, as though even speaking too loudly would draw Thalric’s attention. The man still stood only a few meters away, and Finch clearly had no intention of testing whether Thalric was listening. Whether Thalric simply ignored him or genuinely didn’t hear remained a mystery, as he gave no reaction whatsoever.
"How many points did he give you?" William asked, finally tearing his gaze away from the Ninth Sun. His voice snapped Asher out of his drifting thoughts.
"Twenty thousand," Asher answered plainly. There was no reason to hide it, it wasn’t as if anyone could bully him for his points, nobody was strong enough for that. His response silenced both William and Finch instantly. They stared at him with identical expressions, blank, stunned, and undeniably envious. They had been ecstatic over receiving five thousand points as their first mission reward.
Now someone had casually transferred four times that amount as if it meant nothing.
"When they say the Wargraves look after one another, it turns out it wasn’t just a rumor..." William muttered, still processing the reality of it.
"Is it too late to become a Wargrave? Is your family accepting adoption applications?" Finch asked with complete seriousness. He knew for a fact that there was no one in his life whom he could ask for twenty thousand points and receive them without hesitation.
’Is he the one with the Good Luck ability... or is it me?’ Finch joked inwardly.
"No need to overthink it. We Wargraves are simply like this," Asher said with a small shake of his head.
"Now you’re just showing off," William replied.
"Let’s move." Asher’s eyes flicked toward Thalric one last time before he turned around. ’I guess the last-borns in every family are always treated differently,’ he mused silently as he walked.
When the three of them reached the facilitator’s desk, the man raised an eyebrow the moment he saw them. His bored expression remained the same and everlasting, as though boredom itself was his natural state of being.
"Why are the three of you back here?" he asked, sounding as though the question exhausted him. He closed the book he was reading and set it aside with exaggerated reluctance.
"We’re here to take another mission," Asher replied, his tone flat.
"I know the three of you might have already rested at the Rivelle Barony, but shouldn’t you take the next mission at a later date? Perhaps... three days from now?" the facilitator suggested, his voice carrying the tone of someone who very much wished they would. But Asher, William, and Finch simply shook their heads in refusal.
The facilitator didn’t need further explanation. He arrived at the same conclusion Vaelra and Thalric had, Asher’s team was clearly attempting to complete their first three missions as quickly as possible so that Asher could move on to solo missions.
The man’s gaze shifted toward Asher. "So, are you still buying the breastplate, greaves, vambraces, and gloves?"
"I already bought them on the way here," Asher replied. William and Finch glanced at him in surprise, wondering how he purchased all of that without them noticing, but chose not to comment. It wasn’t their business.
The facilitator shook his head slowly, then said, "I can’t show you the mission list at the moment."
"Why?" William asked, genuinely confused.
"Because after every mission, students are required to wait twenty four hours before taking another one. This is to prevent students from exhausting themselves by taking missions back to back and potentially endangering their own lives," the facilitator explained.
"Why didn’t you tell us this earlier?" Asher asked.
"I only say this when students rush back for another mission immediately," the man replied with an unapologetic shrug. "Just come back nineteen hours from now, since your last mission check in was six hours ago." With that, the facilitator smiled, picked up his book again, and resumed reading as though relieved to be rid of them.
’Why didn’t Thalric say anything?’ Asher wondered. ’Maybe because he wanted me to hear it myself,’ he concluded.
"Let’s go. We’ll come back tomorrow to take the mission and start immediately," Asher said with a quiet sigh.
William and Finch nodded, and the three walked out of the building together.
"So... since Asher got such a huge number of points, let’s do the celebration," Finch suggested hopefully... again.
Asher shook his head. "Go prepare what you need for the mission tomorrow. That’s the first thing we’re doing in the morning."
With that, he vanished in a blur of silver, activating Position Marker as he teleported straight to his room. William and Finch exchanged a mutual sigh. If they would begin the mission early tomorrow, they might as well put the rest of the day to good use and train a bit.
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AUTHOR’S NOTE: just gave me an E-book adaptation, which you can find on Amazon. Please check it out. Thanks for the love and support. One love.
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