Chapter 5 The First Crack In Her Walls

The first light of dawn painted the grasslands in soft gold as Mixarnt stirred awake, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He blinked groggily, only to freeze at the sight before him. Aelries stood over him, her silver hair catching the morning breeze like strands of moonlight, her emerald eyes sharp yet oddly vibrant in the early glow. In her grip was the hind leg of a small, plump boar, its body still warm from the hunt. "Hey, human," she commanded, dropping the boar unceremoniously at his feet. "Clean this up." Mixarnt stared. 'Damn. She's actually… really pretty when she's not scowling.' he thought. Aelries tilted her head, noticing his dazed expression. "What's wrong?" "Nothing really…" Mixarnt yawned, stretching his arms above his head. "Sigh. I just woke up a second ago, and now I'm getting ordered to butcher a boar." He wasn't a morning person, but he couldn't exactly refuse, she had done the hard part already. "Where'd you even find this thing?" He asked curiously. Aelries crossed her arms, a flicker of pride in her stance. "They're called grassland boars. Native to these fields. The local tribes hunt them for meat and even use the adults as mounts." Her lips curled into a rare, unguarded smile. "This one was surprisingly fast, but not fast enough." Mixarnt raised a brow. "You're in a weirdly good mood today. No condescending tone? No fireballs? Did I die in my sleep?" "Hmph. After last night, I'd say we're even." Her grin turned smug, recalling the satisfying thunk of her rock-filled bag smacking him square in the face. But then her expression shifted, eyes narrowing. "Speaking of last night… What did you mean by calling me 'princess'?" Mixarnt's fingers twitched. 'Ah. So she caught that.' he realized. "I-it's just a reaction!" he said quickly, waving a hand dismissively. "You know, like calling a woman 'princess' when they're being high-maintenance or privileged. Human slang!" Aelries's smile vanished. "Privileged? High maintenance?" Her voice was shaking, the morning's goodwill evaporating in an instant. Mixarnt's grin turned strained. "Aha… haha! Come on, I'm just explaining!" "Mixarnt." Her palm glowed faintly orange. "Welp! Time to clean this boar!" In a flash, he hoisted the carcass and bolted toward the stream, barely dodging the fireball that singed the grass where he'd just stood. From the distance, Aelries's shout followed him "YOU'RE LUCKY I NEED THAT MEAT, YOU INSOLENT BUFFOON!" Mixarnt chuckled, shaking his head as he knelt by the water. 'Yep. Still a princess.' he thought to himself. ------------ Later that day... ------------ The scent of sizzling boar meat and aromatic herbs filled the air as Mixarnt expertly turned the skewers over the fire, the fat dripping and crackling against the flames. Beside him, a pot of rich meat soup he made earlier, the broth infused with wild herbs he gathered earlier. Aelries sat cross-legged nearby, her chin resting on her palm as she watched him work with reluctant admiration. "Hey, you really know how to cook," she admitted, her nose twitching at the savory aroma. "It's also surprising you just happened to have condiments in your pocket." Mixarnt smirked without looking up. "Ah, well, it's a habit. When I was a kid, I used to stuff my pockets with all kinds of nonsense, rocks, pretending they were shurikens or smoke bombs like ninjas used." Aelries blinked, then a soft, unexpected laugh escaped her. "Ninja, huh? I've seen one before." Her mind conjured an image of a tiny Mixarnt, scampering around with pockets full of pebbles, dramatically throwing them while making explosion noises. The thought was so absurdly endearing that she had to cover her mouth to stifle another giggle. Mixarnt's eye twitched. "Uh, I dunno why, but I kinda feel annoyed at whatever you're imagining." Aelries waved a hand dismissively, still grinning. "Nothing, nothing." He shot her a suspicious glance but let it go, focusing back on the grill. The flames flickered, casting shadows across his face as a rare, quiet moment settled between them. "Anyway," Aelries said, stretching her arms, "after this, we should start moving and look for a nearby village." Mixarnt just yawned, nodding lazily as he flipped another skewer. But as he worked, his mind drifted far back, to memories that weren't entirely his own. Fragments. That's what he was. A piece of Xarnt, the Timekeeper, carrying echoes of a past life. The other fragments, those who weren't stuck as children like him, remembered more. And sometimes, like now, those memories bled through. He saw a lonely boy playing in the dirt outside a relative's house, shaping sand into battlefields, rocks into heroes and villains. No toys, just imagination. The other kids mocked him. The adults whispered, "Strange boy. Doesn't act his age. Something wrong with him." A sharp pang twisted in his chest. "Damn, Boss…" he muttered under his breath, his voice barely audible over the fire's crackle. "Why do you have such sad memories?" Aelries's ears caught the whisper. She frowned, studying him. For the first time, the ever carefree, infuriating human beside her looked… tired. Not physically, but in a way that made her hesitate. "… Mixarnt?" She said softly. He blinked, then flashed her his usual grin. "Hm? Oh, nothing. Just talking to the meat. Gotta encourage it to taste good, y'know?" Aelries narrowed her eyes. She wasn't fooled, but she also wasn't cruel enough to pry. Instead, she reached over and plucked a perfectly grilled skewer from the fire. "If you poisoned this, I'll feed you to the next monster we meet," she warned with a small smile, but there was no bite in her tone. Mixarnt's laughter rang out, loud and bright, scattering the shadows in his eyes. "Noted, Princess." She didn't even protest the nickname this time.