Hina opened the door, licking her lips too ease the dryness, then her eye landed on the man and she froze. Lina came out right after and she too froze on her steps
"Oh no"
she muttered.
The man responded with a wider grin.
Earlier....
"Hey kid! Do you know the house of a guy name Philip? "
The man asked, his grin never faltering.
"Who are you?....and also Introduce yourself first"
Free replied, observing the man with his guard up.
'Who is this man? What does he know about Philip?'
The man blinked, a little surprised. After a few second, a laugh his escaped,he wiping a tear from his face, he said.
"You a smart one!!"
And striked a pose flexing his muscles.
"MY NAME'S OKOTO. I AM A FRIEND OF PHILIP, THE GUY I WANTT TO MEET"
H
Strikung another pose, now flexing his biceps.
"Okay and what kind of friend?"
Free asked, annoyed at the flexing but still suspicious of the man.
"You are a clever one huh, kid"
He gave another pose.
"I and philip are old buddies, we rank up together during our adventurers days"
Okoto stated, he stopped his flexing but his grin never vanish.
"So you are on the same party as my father"
Free spoke, a bit surprised but now convinced because Okotohad the same energetic vibes around him just like Philip.
"So you're his son!? What a coincidence! Hina and lina raised you good, you're clever and intelligent!"
He complimented, his finger on Free's cheeks, pinching his soft warm cheeks.
"Also, i and philip aren't on the same party. We we were kinda like best friend rivals or something. We eat, chat, laugh and got beat up by Hina together"
He added, with a loud chuckled.
Free's gazed lingered on Okoto for a few second, before it drifted toward children, and saw that they played a little further, a little scared of Okoto.
"So why are you here. Any bussiness?"
He asked, letting out a tired sigh, and ome hand on the back of his head.
"Ya' quite the brat, but no, i'm here to meet Philip, Hina and Lina. A dungeon formed nearby a ffew months ago so i thought of diving it and see them while I had the time to"
He explained, his armor sliping off and his broad shoulder exposed to the sun. He flex his muscles and abs taking tthe opportunity.
"Look at my biceps, AH!. look at my abs, UHH!"
'Oookay.....this guy is a muscle freak like Philip'
Free stared, his eye brow twitched a little.
"Anyway, if you want to meet my father.... "
He spoke, which made Okoto stop showing his muscles to the people nearby.
"YES! Where is he?"
He replied, putting back his shoulder armor.
"He may be slaying monsters by now. He works as a guardian in the village"
Free answered, his expression unchanged.
"Welp! If that's the case i can wait for him!"
He shouted, and sat down, took his tent out from his bag and unfolded it.
"He-hey don't do that here"
Free helled, quickly grabbing Okoto's arms with his tiny hands.
"You can come to my house! You can wait there! "
He suggested, releasing his hand from Okoto's arm.
'If this freaky musclehead stayed here, everyone will freaked out'
He thought, and finished folding the tent.
Okoto looked at Free for a bit and smiled
"Kid, you are very kind!"
He yelled, and put the tent back into his bag.
"By the way, what's your name?"
he asked.
"F-Free..."
He answered, a bit hesitant because he knew what will happen. .
Okoto shot Free a skeptical stare, the place became silent.
"What?"
He muttered.
"Free?.."
He repeated, his laugh stopped replaced with a confused expression.
"Y-Yes"
Free nodded, looking away.
Okoto bursted out, laughing as he fell into the green grass
"YOUR NAME IS FREE! FREE!!! SERIOUSLY, DON'T TELL ME IT'S PHILIP'S!!!. Free.....AHAHAHAHAHA. KID BE CAREFUL AT MARKET OR ELSE SOMEONE WILL ABDUCT YOU THINKING YOU ARE FREE"
Okoto teased, laughing louder than before, while the children's nearby hid behind a tree, startled by the loud laugh.
"Okay, enough laughinh. Let's go to my house"
Free said, walking away with annoyance clinging to his face.
"Hey, wait!"
Okoto shouted, he stood up, raised his bag and put it on his shoulder and followed Free.
"What was that?"
A kid nearby spoke, peeking husband head out from the tree, a bit scared because of the loud scary man's roaring laughter.
Back to present...
Okoto gave a big grin,
"Ey! It's been a while!"
He beamed, greeting Hina and Lina.
"O-Okoto, how have you been? "
Hina was the first to ask,regaining her posture.
"A-Also, you visited quite early? "
"About that, i heard that a new dungeon formed nearby recently so i thought why not visit you. Been 6 years since i last seen yourr faces"
He answered, laughing in a joyful tone.
"It has been"
Lina calmly agreed, regaining her composure.
"Please come in"
She invited, walking back to the house and entered the kitchen.
"I'd be my pleasure"
He replied, beaming without a care in the world.
"Also keep an eye on your son"
His tone shifted from amusing to serious.
"W-Why?"
Hina asked, turning her head towards Free who stood beside Okoto.
"Because he is Free, what if someone took him!"
He joked, and laughed louder this time.
"That's not amusing!"
Hina yelled, relived and slightly furious.
"Well it is kinda"
Lina's voice reached her from the kitchen, she was making tea.
"Not you too!"
Hina said, looking at Lina like she betrayed her, which Lina did.
Okoto sat down In the living room, while Free headed upstairs.
"Hey, Free where you goin'?"
Okoto said, tilting to the left looking towards the stairs where Free dissapeared .
"I have something to do"
His voice echoed from the second floor.
Followed by a faint sound of door closing
"Quite the shy one...."
He muttered, sitting in the living room alone, resting a hand on one knee.
Meanwhile in the kitchen...
Lina poured tea leaves in the boiled water inside the kettle and closed the cap, while Hina stirred some green vegetables on the soup.
"I never thought he would visit soon"
Lina mentioned, her eyes moving toward the living room.
"Me too"
Hina nodded, adding some salt in the soup.
"I thought he would visit once every decade"
Lina added, taking a seat in the table while waiting for the tea to boil.
"Yes, but thanks to the dungeon that formed a few miles away, he came to visit sooner than expected"
She chuckled, as she stood up and picked the kettle from the fire pit, and poured the tea in a wooden cup.
"It's gonna be chaotic when Philip comes back-"
Hina didn't even complete her sentence when the door violently open with a loud–
Thud!!.
"Speak of the devil "
Philip slammed the front door open. And slid across the wooden floor with his sword still in hand, a broad grin on his face.
"Honey! where's lunch!?"
He yelled, throwing the sword neatly in a corner, just when he stood up–
"Ey Philip! how've you been!"
Okoto came out of the living room with a wide smile, seeing him, Philip's eye widened.
"OKOTO!!.I'M FINE AND HEALTHIER, HOW'VE YOU BEEN??"
Philip asked, a little surprised but he hid it beneath his energetic aura.
"I am fine. just look at my abs and arms!"
He flexed, veins popping in his biceps.
To which Philip responded him a flex of his own.
"HYAAAA! BABY LOOK AT MY MY ABS!!! I SLAYED 4 GOBLINS THIS MORNING"
He announced, giving another pose.
"Okay, you two should stop now"
Lina came out from the kitchen with the tea on a small plate.
"Okoto your tea will be in the living room".
She informed, putting the tea on the room.
"Okay!"
Okoto replied, mid-flex with philip.
After some time...
"Well that was quite the warm up!"
Philip said, cracking his neck and wiped sweat off his face.
" It sure was"
Okoto agreed mid chew, he was eating the lunch Hina cooked.
"You two are always like this..."
Hina sighed, lifting a spoonful to her lips, savoring the warm flavour.
"We are made for this!!!"
both yelled in perfect sync.
Lina on the other hand was outside, taking the dry clothes she hanged in the garden since morning.
"How is your journey during these past years?"
Hina curiously asked.
"Ever since you three retired and settled here, adventures have been dull"
Okoto answered.
Smiling as he recalled his adventuring days with the three, while savouring his portion.
Philip laughed, wiping the sweat from his forehead after finishing another bowl.
And after a few minutes Okoto leaned back and stretched.
"Now, time for after lunch exercises"
He stretched his hands and shoulders before exiting thedining room and walked outside.
"Wait for me!!"
Philip called, finishing the whole bowl with one gulp and sprinted outside with Okoto. And he forgot his sword.
"He forgot his sword"
Hina glanced toward the sword neatly thrown in the corner earlier, and somehow it looked sad.
Lina entered inside the house with the dry clothes.
While heading upstairs, she took a glance in the living room and saw that the tea was untouched, then her gaze shiftee to the dining room. Her lunch was eaten, a vein poped in her forehead.
Meanwhile outside–
A shadow passed through people's roof and the market square, some looked upward qhile some didn't bother wasting their time, already knowing who it was–Philip.
He passed above a whole two story house, as the air swayed his hair, the sunlight gleaming with the sweat from his face.
"I'll win this match!"
Philip laughed, sprinting through the village, when Okoto suddenly surpassed him with a single jump.
"Too slow!! "
He mocked, and Philip's eyes twitched, he took and deep breath and sprinted faster, crater formed while he appeared in front of Okoto.
Their laughter echoed through the village as Children's stared in confusion.
Two weeks later...
The midnight sky was calm, the twin moons hanging above the endless dark night.
Lina's room was dark dimly lit by a candle, her shadow trembled as the candle stirred due to the cold breeze coming from outside.
"Finally"
She muttered, a smile formed on her calm face.
Sweat poured down her face,as she peered the piece of black paper, glowing with multiple layers of enchanted spell and advanced seal scriptures she wrote.
"At last. The seal of eternity is complete.. "
She picked the seal with a pin the size of her palm, careful not to touch it, and put it inside the drawer before carefully locking it shut.
The next morning–
After a chaotic breakfast.
Free read a book in the living room, searching if it contained any new spell, Philip left for his duties while racing with Okoto, Hina slid a towel on the dining room table, cleaning the stains left by the food.
As she cleaned, Lina quietly walked inside the room.
"Lady Hina...it is complete"
She whispered, glancing toward the living room.
"I-Is it"
She stuttered, her eyes drifting to the living room where Free is reading his story book.
"We should put it in the afternoon"
Lina suggested, while Hina thought for a moment before giving a faint nod.
"Y-Yes, we should do it at afternoon"
She agreed while still hesitating.
She looked toward the living room.
Free was happily reading a children's book.
She smiled sadly.
"I'm sorry."
"But would the seal able to contain the raw mana"
She doubted, not because the seal was weak or anything it was simply because she had seen what her son could do.
"It can! the seal i made is the seal of eternity it can whitstand almost anything"
Lina puffed her chest with confidence.
"I believe it can.."
Hina cracked a faint smile while stressed.
'Please work..'
She prayed..
Lina left the dining room shortly after the conversation.
Meanwhile in the living room.
Shine✨!!.
Free's mana stirred beneath the emperor-tier seal. While Free's hand glowed radiant green, as he canneled more mana into the spell, making the light shine brighter in his hand.
'This is the brightest I got today's
He smiled faintly, what he was about to cause in the afternoon.
Lina and Hina patiently waited for the time to arrive, when they will apply the seal on Free's body.
To be continued.....