Chapter 55: Exchange Of Gratitude

"Tasty?" Mei had a flummoxed expression, wondering if she heard him right.

"Ari—" But just as she was about to say something, she stopped seeing Arion putting the whole medicinal ball into his mouth.

The only reason Yaro made them in the shape of balls was that she felt that Arion might find it more delectable to eat if she made it in the shape of meatballs.

But she had no idea that right now, Arion was finding her medicinal balls way more tasty than meatballs and began to gobble them up as if he was afraid those medicinal balls would disappear if he didn't eat fast enough.

Mei was left speechless at his behavior, wondering if she misplaced the meatballs with the medicinal balls. But that was only just a silly thought since she personally tasted the meatball and how both types of balls looked different on the outside, even if they had the same shape.

She had seen Arion eat Yaro's medicinal balls before and his expression at that time was quite opposite to what it was now.

Arion, who momentarily got lost in the taste, was surprised that he was gobbling up these medicinal balls he used to hate before as if they were a delicacy.

'What the heck is going on? Why do these seem so tasty now?' Arion was even more bewildered than Mei.

He then turned his head and asked Mei, "Did Aunt Yuro come up with some cooking tricks to mask its original taste?"

"I don't think so…" Mei mumbled as she extended her hand to try out one of the medicinal balls, wanting to check its taste for herself.

She took a small bite, and her expression winced a bit as she found it bitter even though Yaro seemed to have done her best to make it taste better. 

But she knew that it couldn't taste any better than this unless the original ingredients had to be changed or their effectiveness had to be cut down.

Still, she found it okay to eat and didn't find it really unpleasant. However, this was not at all enough for her to think that it was tasty enough based on Arion's reaction.

"It still tastes like medicinal food. I don't find it as tasty as you do. I now have to doubt whether your taste buds are working properly," Mei jokingly said since she found it utterly perplexing that Arion now seemed to love food he used to hate before and dislike the ones he loved before.

She then decided to test something and offered him something other than meatballs, but Arion vomited just like when he ate the meatballs.

The food she offered was something basic without containing any herbs or meat.

Now Arion's shock turned to a bit of worry, wondering if something happened to him that made him unable to eat normal food.

"Is something really wrong with my tastebuds?" He couldn't help but ask with a blank look. He was feeling a bit sad that he was unable to enjoy his favorite meatballs but somehow ended up liking the taste of the medicinal balls.

"I am sure nothing is wrong with you. I have verified it a dozen times. Maybe if you rest some more, whatever it is, it might get alright," Mei said with concern.

"Okay. But I will anyway eat these medicinal balls since I am still feeling quite hungry. Going without food for two days can really make my stomach go crazy," He chuckled as he continued to gobble down the medicinal balls like a glutton.

Before he realized he finished the entire bowl, and even Mei said amusingly, "You have become quite a gluttonous young man. Maybe it's because you are a big boy now, hehe."

Arion smiled embarrassedly as even he didn't realize he ate all these balls like a glutton. He didn't think of himself as a person who had a large appetite. 

In fact, he was someone who ate moderately and never had any intense craze for food, including his favorite ones. Even if he was eating his favorite food, he would feel nauseated after eating a lot of them.

But now, he was able to continuously eat the least favorite of his food for whatever unknown reason.

*Knock! Knock!*

"Oh, it seems like someone must have come here to ask about your condition again. I will go and check. You can also come with me since the whole ward can rest easy once they see that you are well and good. You are quite the hero to the whole ward now," Mei said with a proud smile as she walked towards the door.

"Alright," Arion awkwardly smiled as he got up and followed her even though he felt like his hunger hadn't been satisfied.

Mei opened the door and saw Cayden and Nena along with Kisho.

"S-Sorry to disturb you again, Big Sis Mei. But did he wake up yet?" Nena asked in a low voice as she held her palms behind her back.

"Haha, Little Mei, these two had been unable to sleep, as you know. They just won't rest till they hear that Little Arion is alright. So, we three just decided to ask on our way to the market. He is at least all good, right?"

Mei was about to reply when Arion came forward and said with a smile, "I am all good, guys. Thanks for asking."

Cayden and Nena had an astonished look as they saw a tall youngster standing before them, looking completely fit without any signs of injury or fatigue...or any signs of how he looked previously.

Even though they had seen how he miraculously changed physically when he was unconscious, seeing him standing before them and talking to them felt surreal, especially when they saw the Jawfiends drag him down to their dreadful nest.

Nena felt more shocked than Cayden since she thought he had died for sure because of her. Even after everyone found him lying unconscious and looking perfectly alright, she still felt restless since he was still lying conscious, not knowing when he would wake up.

"Hoho, look at you. My boy is looking so strong and healthy," Kisho laughed as he went up to Arion and gave him a warm hug, showing his thanks and gratitude for the noble act he did that day.

Arion felt a bit embarrassed after getting a sudden hug and awkwardly hugged Kisho back with a smile.

"Good, good," Kisho said with a sigh of relief and then turned around to see Cayden and Nena still standing there with a daze and said, "You two came all the way over here to see him, and now you both have nothing to say after seeing him alive and well?"

Cayden and Nena came back to their senses, and as if in sync, they both pressed their fingers together, forming a triangle shape with their hands and bowed 90 degrees as they said together, "Please forgive us, Arion. We have sinned since we left you behind when we should have been the ones to protect you. We know we don't deserve forgiveness but—"

"Hey, there's no need of all this," Arion said in a serious tone making Cayden and Nena worry if Arion was truly angry and resentful towards them.

Even though that day Arion had told them to leave him and run, they still couldn't accept that it wasn't their fault and felt extremely guilty for leaving behind a disabled person to buy them time.

It just seemed wrong and too despicable of them in their perspective.

But that thought only lingered in their minds for a moment when Arion said as he placed his hands on their shoulders, "Please stand straight, you two. You are embarrassing me here."

Arion saw the gesture they were making with their hands and knew from his memories that this was how one apologizes to others, and this had something to do with the goddess Alara.

Hearing his lighthearted tone, Cayden and Nena felt a little better as they slowly raised their backs with lowered gazes.

Arion continued, "You two and the others have been really great and helpful to me even though I was just a disabled guy. The fact that you two even tried to help me during that crisis was enough to make me feel indebted to you guys. In fact, I would have died early if it were not for you two and the others protecting me from those monsters."

With a sigh, he said, "So I instead wanted to thank you guys for protecting a burden like me that day. So, thank you," Arion sincerely said as he made a cross with his palms and bowed 45 degrees as a gesture of thanks.

Cayden and Nena were taken back by how kind Arion was to them since they thought that he might have held some grudge towards them. But now, hearing his words, they felt as if the weight of guilt had been lifted from their hearts and instead was replaced by a river of gratitude towards Arion.

"Hoho, this is all great. We must have a gathering at Yaro's place since she has promised us all a treat the day Arion wakes up and also to spread some good news among all the tragedies we had to suffer recently. We will now go and won't keep you two standing out all here. Ah, yes, Little Arion, can I have a word with you for a moment?" Kisho asked as he gestured to Arion to move towards a corner with him.