Chapter 14 - Nightly Charades

He sat alone in the dining room for a few minutes, for no real reason other than to let his mind process everything he had just heard.

"Argonauts, huh? So in this world, those are my enemies," He spoke quietly to himself, fiddling with the leftover vegetables on his plate.

Getting up from his seat, he moved over to the large window that looked out towards the city--although it was dark, he could still make out the sight of various buildings through the lights that kept the city bright. It was easy to mistakenly assume those lights were electronic like on Earth, but upon squinting his eyes he could see the visible flames from within the lanterns.

"This is real, isn't it?" He asked himself, pressing the palm of his hand against the cold glass.

"Indeed it is," A voice suddenly spoke up from beside him.

He jumped to the side, feeling as if his soul had left his body for a moment before turning to see it was the familiar sight of Meinhard.

"Sorry about that, I guess I have pretty quiet footsteps," Meinhard laughed, ruffling his own hair.

"Yeah, you almost made me piss my pants…" Ren let out a sigh of relief as he placed his hand against his chest, feeling his rapidly beating heart, "anyways, why're you here?"

"Just wanted to hear what you thought of my cooking," Meinhard put his hands on his side, awaiting the boy's response with a confident smile.

Ren placed his hand on his chin, contemplating his review of the dish--

"Average," Ren gave his answer.

"What--? Liar!" Meinhard jabbed his index finger towards him, "You cleaned your plate off completely, I'm not buying your answer!"

"What can I say? I was hungry," He shrugged, "I'm kidding--it was actually pretty great."

Meinhard's demeanor quickly shifted as a smug smile formed across his lips, patting his own chest boastfully. He didn't take the guy for someone who took pride in culinary skill, but Meinhard was obviously quite engrossed in the world of culinary mastery--that much as true from just one sample of his cooking.

"Well, it seems you have pretty good taste," Meinhard chuckled, cupping his hands around his eyes as he peered through the window beside Ren, "what were you looking at out there?"

"Urr, nothing particular--anyways, can you help me find my room? I kind of doubt I can find my way through that maze of halls again," He asked shyly, scratching his cheek.

It would be the third time someone had to guide him through this house. He couldn't deny that it was somewhat humiliating. The immature chef raised an eyebrow before letting out a quick sigh, then following up with a giggle he attempted to hold back.

"Yeah-yeah, you'll have to learn your way around soon," Meinhard began to walk towards the pair of doors that led to the extensive halls, gesturing for him to follow.

If there was one benefit to this gruelingly large mansion and the journey it took to and from his room--he felt confident he was getting his daily cardio done.

By this point in his drowsy state, after being beaten earlier that day by the vile witch and her goons--each step felt like he was carrying a boulder on his shoulder but at the same time, he had the strength to carry it with the end goal of his comfortable bed in mind.

"Hey, Ren?" Meinhard asked, walking alongside the boy as they passed by rows of paintings that probably cost more than he could fathom.

"Yeah?" Ren found himself blinking constantly, or rather--opening his eyes in response to them trying to shut.

"You're okay, right? I mean, this whole situation is probably a lot to take in, isn't it?" Meinhard asked with a worried tone, slowing down to match Ren's drowsy pace, "I know it isn't really my place to ask, it's just--I haven't heard you complain or anything really, it is kind of hard to believe you're handling this so well. I mean--it's great that you're adjusting well but you know--"

"No, I get it. I'm fine, really--I think maybe I just haven't quite processed all of this yet, even though it's right in front of me," Ren smiled, scratching his cheek with a slight blush, "but--thank you for asking."

Meinhard's eyes seemed to slightly widen at his response, his mouth falling agape before he shook his head, replacing his shock with a small smile.

"I have only known you for a day, but for some reason that response feels like something uncharacteristic of you," He teased.

"You know, it kind of hurts that you're able to figure me out that quickly!" Ren huffed jokingly.

After a few minutes of banter, the pair arrived in front of Ren's room, falling to silence as they prepared to part ways for the night.

"Expect either me or Norbert to wake you up first thing in the morning, so rest while you can," Meinhard waved as he began to step away.

"Alright," Ren smiled nervously at that statement that almost felt like a threat before pausing, "wait, hold on."

The boy came to a halt before turning down the hall, turning back towards Ren with a questioning gaze.

"I'm not really feeling tired now, so I don't think I'll be able to fall asleep--do you think we can just talk?" Ren asked bashfully.

"Urr, you have books in there, don't you? You can just read those," Meinhard responded.

"Yeah, well, you guys didn't consider the fact I can't read your language--!" Ren retorted with a dramatic huff following his loud words.

"Oh...right, that makes sense. How did Norbert overlook that?" Meinhard tapped his chin before his cheeks puffed up with concealed laughter.

It seems Ren won the boy over as Meinhard entered his room alongside him, igniting the lantern with a snap of his fingers. Ren watched in awe--enamored by the simple act of magic as he sat down on the edge of his bed.

"Don't act so entranced. I didn't use any magic. This lantern has a continuous spell attached to it that activated at the snap of whoever's fingers--even you could do it," Meinhard told him, instantly regretting giving him that last piece of information.

Ren quickly snapped his fingers--his eyes lighting up as the flames instantly extinguished, leaving the room in an almost complete pitch-black darkness before he snapped his fingers again. The flame inside the lantern reignited, lighting the entire room once more.

"Okay, enough of that," Meinhard sighed, sitting at the desk before scanning the shelf in front of him to look for a book.

"How about you just teach me to read and write instead of reading a book to me? You know what they say--"give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime"," Ren thought he sounded wise with that, only getting a questioning gaze from the boy.

"Hmm, are you willing to give it your all? If you're willing, I'll teach you to my utmost," Meinhard smiled, seeming ready as if approaching a challenge.

"Of course--honestly, I can't explain why, but I'm feeling motivated--!"

That was a lie--money, it was money. The faster he could get started on that book, the faster Althaus would begin paying him.

"Alright--we'll start with the basics, repetition!"

And with that, the unlikely pair of teacher and student, chef and NEET, friend and friend--began the process of learning.