"I'll head back to Orford first to make some arrangements. After that, I'll come find you in Einfast."
Grutt and Lord Borugan quickly used teleportation scrolls to leave, and soon, only Asa and Sandru remained atop the great tree.
"Looks like you're going to be quite busy in the coming days."
"Seems that way," Asa nodded.
"You've already become a man who no longer needs to be told what to do," Sandru sighed as he looked at Asa. "I remember back in the morgue at the magic academy—you were still just a clueless kid."
The old man, who had always been more energetic than anyone and whose emotions could be even more intense than the youngest of the young, finally showed the full weight of his exhaustion.
Aging, after all, was just the accumulation of countless helpless moments.
"All these years, I've never really been able to do much for you. Now, when you're forced into a desperate situation, I finally thought to come help—only to realize you no longer need it. I feel truly ashamed..."
Asa shook his head with a smile. "Not at all. In fact, I was only able to survive this long thanks to you. Many of the things I have now were gifts from you. I've always been grateful to you..."
"No, I owe you too much," Sandru interrupted, shaking his head. Though his voice was weary, it was filled with certainty, his face marked by a helpless melancholy. "All this time, from long ago… In fact, that bastard Magnus wasn't wrong. Things have come to this point, you've been forced down this path—all because of me. My reckless actions over twenty years ago and my avoidance of responsibility over the last twenty years… That's why I owe you. But now, when I finally want to repay it, I no longer can…"
Asa cut him off. "There's no need to say these things—because saying them won't change anything. No matter what, I am grateful to you."
Silence hung between them for a moment before Sandru suddenly spoke. "At the very least, you should know the things you ought to know."
"What should I know?"
Sandru didn't answer directly. He thought for a moment before simply asking, "What kind of people were your parents?"
Asa replied plainly, "My father was a blacksmith in the Kalendor Basin. He died over a year ago from hunger and cold. As for my mother, I don't have any memories of her. It seems she passed away a long time ago. They were both ordinary people, just like everyone else in Kalendor."
"Ordinary people? No, let me tell you, your biological parents were not ordinary people," Sandru began slowly, as though each word took great effort. "Do you want to know who your real parents were? How you were abandoned by them?"
"No, I don't" Asa answered.
"What!! Why?" Sandru was completely stunned. It was the kind of shock that anyone would have when hearing such a question. He thought for a moment before realizing. "You already knew about your parents..."
"Grandma Ail... Agrenel told me long time ago."
"What? She... she told you what?"
"She just told me that she was the one who left me at my father's doorstep."
"Then... did she also tell you who your biological parents were?"
"No. But I don't want to know."
"Why?"
"Because it doesn't matter to me. Who they were has nothing to do with me. I'm still me, and I still have to do what I need to do. What difference does it make?"
Sandru was stunned, then after a moment of thought, he gave a wry smile and nodded. "Right, there really is no difference."
Asa continued calmly, "My father was an ordinary man, but he was also great. Having a father like him is one of the few things I'm truly grateful for and proud of. That's enough for me. What do I need to know about things that have nothing to do with me?"
"It seems I've been overthinking things, thinking I could surprise you with this," Sandru chuckled bitterly and nodded. He understood now. The father Asa spoke of was the father in his heart—the one who had truly raised him. Who his real biological parents were no longer mattered.
"Well, not exactly. Anyway, thanks for the thought. I'm just busy right now and don't want to waste time on these trivial things," Asa said with a smile, though it was a wry one. "If there's time and an opportunity, we can talk again."
If there's time and an opportunity... but will there really be? Could there really be an opportunity? Sandru could only return a more bitter smile. He looked up at the sky and let out a long, heavy sigh.
On the giant treetop, countless leaves that were beginning to wither fell down one by one, signaling the depletion of the earth's energy and the collapse of vitality. This was an irreversible deadlock, and for a moment, it seemed as though the entire world was filled with the falling decay and death—a sense of despair.
After a while, Sandru lowered his head, and the fatigue, reluctance, and other expressions on his face settled into a calm, steady demeanor. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Alright, let me tell you something. This is actually something that doesn't really concern you, so you can listen without worry. I just... I just worry that if I don't tell you now, I might not have the chance to share this story with you later."
"Alright, go ahead," Asa nodded.
"I once knew a woman... well... it's strange, you look somewhat like her, actually. Funny, isn't it? But when a face like hers is on a man, it doesn't look as good, so I often call you Sissy."
"Heh, if you want to say I look bad, just say it," Asa laughed, giving Sandru a pat. It was reminiscent of the brief yet peaceful and steady days when they first met in the royal capital.
"Haha. This woman was very smart, but unfortunately, if a person doesn't have a broad enough mind, a smart brain can just become a burden, counterproductive. And women, well, their minds are rarely broad, at best they seem a little larger on the outside. You know how it is." Sandru chuckled lightly, almost mischievously.
"Heh, of course I know," Asa laughed as well.
"People who are too smart end up looking down on others, even the world itself. So this woman kept on pursuing, kept on trying, chasing after everything. But ironically, she was also a very beautiful woman. A restless woman is already trouble enough, but a beautiful woman who's restless becomes trouble upon trouble because she easily drags other men into the mess. Eventually, all the trouble converged and became an irreconcilable mess. And in the end, that woman died..."
"Thankfully, the women I know aren't like that," Asa shrugged. "A restless woman is worse than anything. But a man who's caught up by a woman can't be considered a great man either..."
"That's exactly what I said," Sandru shook his head with a sigh. "The greatest trouble with women is that they make you know full well they're trouble, yet you still can't help but get tangled up with them."
"This woman, before she died, had a son... or maybe two, I heard. The thing is, all her men were of some special background, none of them normal, and none of them paid any attention to her son. In the end, the baby was abandoned somewhere, and no one knew whether he lived or died. But before she died, she said that her son would inevitably be caught up in the same trouble, that she had given birth to him to continue that cycle of trouble. Later, it made a bunch of old guys paranoid... really funny, huh?"
"Yeah, really fucking funny," Asa responded, but neither he nor Sandru had any humor on their faces.
"Yeah, if—if that baby somehow survived, he'd definitely hate that woman and those men who didn't even know who his father was," Sandru's face darkened again as he spoke.
Asa suddenly asked, "Was the baby a boy or a girl?"
Sandru paused for a moment before answering, "A boy."
"Ah, then it doesn't matter," Asa shook his head and said lightly. "Even though this doesn't concern me, I know that as a man, I wouldn't blame anyone."
"Oh?" Sandru looked at him, intrigued.
Asa shrugged his shoulders and said, "Blaming others doesn't change anything. It's just an excuse for avoiding the issue, a sign of weakness. So a true man doesn't blame anyone, but focuses on what needs to be done. Everyone has their own reasons for what they do, whether or not it concerns you. There's no reason to blame anyone. At most, if you can't stand it, you just beat them up or kill them, no need for blame."
Sandru was stunned. He stayed silent for a long while, then sighed deeply, shaking his head as if unwilling to accept it. "Damn it. Why the hell have I lived so many more years than you, have more facial hair than you, and yet somehow, you seem to understand what it means to be a man more than I do."
"Must be because you're still young," Asa said with a grin. "Psychologically, that is. Haha."
"You brat, you really turned into a man who even surprises me," Sandru muttered, shaking his head with disbelief.
"I don't know, guess it just happened without me realizing," Asa replied casually.
"Still, I have to thank you for helping me clear my mind. This story has been bothering me for a long time," Sandru said with a smile.
"It's an interesting story," Asa nodded with a smile.
"Well then, since the story is over, I won't disturb you any longer. I know you'll be very busy. I'm leaving now."
Asa nodded at him, "Mm. It was really interesting listening to your stories and chatting. If we have the chance, we can talk again next time."
"Ah, alright, no problem. Goodbye." Sandru gave Asa a deep look, and in that moment, there was a kind of brilliance in his face that Asa had never seen before.