Chapter 10: How to help?

Narrator's Pov

Ryan was still lying on the bed, thinking deeply about what he should do with this new ability he had just gotten.

"How does it work? What do I do anyways? Do I have to help them get rid of their guilt? Nah...that sounds too cliche, maybe I have to make them feel EVEN MORE guilt? Is this how gods feel? No, the moment they are born or turn into gods they already know what to do..."

He groaned and sat on the bed, rubbing his forehead while his other hand went inside of his Kimono picking up his phone and started to text Herta.

_____________

[Ryan]

"Herta"

[Herta]

"[Automatic Reply] Hi, I'm currently unavailable, and I won't be contacting you later."

[Ryan]

"I got a new ability"

[Herta]

"You did?"

[Ryan]

"You reply quickly as soon as I say that, uh?"

"Anyways, I suppose it's an Aeon-related ability, since I already made sure it wasn't any magic or other ability of mine"

"I was able to hear a person's Guilt inside of my head"

[Herta]

"A person's Guilt inside of your head? That sounds ominous and really intrusive."

[Ryan]

"Any idea of what I should do?"

[Herta]

"Help them get rid of their guilt? That seems like a good way to start."

[Ryan]

"That sounds a bit cliche...and simple"

[Herta]

"Sometimes the simplest things are the right ones, try talking with that person or something, I don't know."

[Ryan]

"You're really helpful, you know that right?"

[Herta]

"Don't strike me with sarcasm, if you don't have anything else to say, I'm working in something, bye."

[Ryan]

"Fine, also how do you make automatic relplies?"

[Herta]

"[Automatic Reply] Hi, I'm currently unavailable, and I won't be contacting you later."

_____________

Then...find Bronya, and somehow make her feel better? Yeah...he couldn't do that.

"I'm mostly horrible with words...I'll go ask the others their opinion"

He stood up from the bed and walked to the door, he opened it and instantly saw one of the cleaning ladies running away scared from the inside of Stelle's room, he rose up a brow and walked to the door of the girl's room knocking on it a bit.

"Come in!"

He opened the door slowly and entered, Stelle was inside, apparently coming out of a wardrobe looking... weirdly satisfied and proud of herself.

"What...did you do?" He tilted his head to the side.

"I scared a monster, why do you ask?" Stelle looked at Ryan a bit confused.

"You know what? Forget about it." He facepalmed.

"Oh right, are you feeling better?" Stelle asked while approaching him.

"Yes...my head doesn't hurt anymore"

"Then how about we explore Belobog? March and Dan Heng will come too, so the four of us will be together" she smiled putting her hands on her hips.

"Hum... I'll think about it." He looked slightly down to the floor. "I'll just ask for their opinion...the less I drag them into my problems the best."

"Okay! Oh right, I want to ask you something" Stelle smiled a bit looking at him.

"What is it?"

"How do you tell someone you love them?" She asked a bit embarrassed.

"...why do you think I know?"

"What? You have a protagonist aura all around you! Or don't tell me you're one of those dense ones" Ryan simply deadpanned at her words. "Okay sorry, but do you know?"

"Ugh...not really..." He scratched the back of his head. "I've only fell in love once and it didn't really end well..."

"Maybe I should ask March?" She rubs her chin a bit.

"Who do you want to confess to anyways? Dan Heng?" He rose an eyebrow.

"Nope~ come, I'll show you" Stelle smiled and walked to the window of the room.

Ryan got close to the window and Stelle pointed outside of it, he looked at where she was pointing and saw it, leaning against a wall, both in a menacing and beautiful way, shining as if made of silver, a mysterious aura around it.

"You're in love...with a trashcan?"

"Yes~! How could I not?" She smiled as she leaned onto the window.

"....you really are a Racoon uh?" He muttered while lookikg weirdly at the girl.

"Uh? What was that?"

"Nothing..."

"Hey guys!"

Both of them turned around looking how March and Dan Heng entered into the room, March seemed to be slightly excited while Dan Heng kept his stoic expression.

"Are you ready to go explore Belobog? We could also ask a few people if they have heard anything from the corrosion" March smiled while looking at them.

"I don't think they have that much information...knowing how the general military works, they might prefer to keep that as a confidential matter...but the corrosion in the alley besides this hotel is evident." Dan Heng sighed a bit.

"I won't be going with you guys...sorry, I kind of need to do something on my own..." When the other three looked at him a bit curious he sighed. "I...actually need your opinion in this, when we were about to speak with the Supreme Guardian...when that girl, Bronya, walked past us...I was able to hear her guilt, it's an Aeon ability, apparently..."

"So you are becoming an Aeon!" March looked at Ryan a bit excited.

"Y-you were doubting?..." Ryan looked a bit nervous at March but then sighed "not gonna lie, I was doubting too..."

"So you can hear people's Guilt?" Dan Heng asked a bit curious.

"That sounds...sad" Stelle looked a bit nervous at Ryan.

"I have no idea what to do with that ability...I spoke with Herta, she said that maybe I have to help people to get rid of their guilt?" He shrugged a bit confused.

"That sounds cliche..." Stelle spoke crossing her arms above her chest.

"That's what I said..."

"It sounds reasonable...maybe helping them will...make you stronger? If your powers have something to do with guilt, perhaps getting rid of people's guilt will give you power." Dan Heng explained as he rubbed his chin.

"Or maybe I have to make them feel even more Guilt..." Ryan sighed deeply.

"That's cruel...let's hope it's not that" March frowned a bit at Ryan's words.

"What will you do, Ryan?" Dan Heng asked crossing his arms.

"I have to search Bronya and...I suppose I have to speak with her, I'm not that good with words so I'll have a hard time...what do I do?" He rubbed his forehead.

"We can help you...if you want" Stelle smiled a bit but Ryan shook his head.

"Not for now...you three came here to deal with the Stellaron, for now I want to take care of this myself...but if I end up needing your help..."

"We'll help you Ryan, you're our friend." March smiled a bit.

"Thanks guys...sorry to bother you three with this."

"No need to apologize, for now, let's go and explore Belobog, if we're lucky, we get information" Dan Heng spoke and then he turned around. "Are you sure you don't want to come with us, Ryan?"

"Yes Dan Heng...you guys go ahead, I have to check on something before leaving...send me a message if something happens." Ryan nodded with his head.

"I say the same to you, Ryan, if anything happens, you can tell us." Dan Heng spoke before starting to walk out of the room.

As the other three followed Dan Heng to the hall of the hotel, Stelle closed the room of her room and then the three Trailblazers left, leaving Ryan alone who walked into his room and sat on the bed.

"This Aeon thing is complicated...should I write something down? I don't think Bronya would simply let me talk to her if I tell her that I'm there to help...I might need a plan..."

He pulled out his phone and in a notes app he started to slowly write a few sentences, questions and some words of encouragement he found in the internet.

"I hope this is enough...I have to find her first, if I can't find her then everything goes to waste..."

After a few minutes, he sighed deeply and put his phone inside the kimono, slowly walking outside of the room, he closed the door before walking to the main hall of the hotel...he heard a few weird whispers, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary, but when he walked out of the hotel, those same whispers grew in volume...

"If only I hadn't accepted to rewrite 'Tales of the Winterlands'..."

"I should've kept my keys in a safety place..."

"I should've realized sooner that that stupid 'Parallel Universe Printer' was a scam"

"Because of me that old man's restaurant closed and he died..."

"I shouldn't have accepted to take turns in this alley filled with corrosion..."

"This thing doesn't really have a filter uh?..." Ryan grunted a bit taking his head with his hand before sighing deeply.

He walked down the stairs that were outside of the Hotel and then walked through the district, getting to hear again and again the thoughts and guilt of everyone around him, on the distance, he saw the three Trailblazers talking before they entered in that 'Neverwinter Workshop', he contemplated following them and join them, but for now he had other things to do.

"What...do I exactly do?" He sighed deeply and looked around him. "Should I just...wander around? I do have priority over Bronya but I could try helping these people too..."

If Stelle were with him right now, she'd probably be saying something about 'secondary missions' or something like that...

Three hours...

THREE HOURS!!!

And he only helped the woman who lost the keys of that 'car' (he called it carriage but after a quick investigation he learnt a new word)...

He tried to help the Food Journalist woman, but in the process she told a huge story about how one of her critics caused a restaurant owned by an old man to close, that man was then forced to take multiple jobs, since he had no family, eventually the man died of exhaustion...

He didn't know what to do to help with that, and while talking to her, she ran away to as she put it 'cry on the grave of that man'.

He spoke with a man that got scammed into buying something called a 'Parallel Universe Printer', he didn't do anything to help, the man basically helped himself, telling his own story he got the idea to form a community to protect people from scammers.

He spoke with the guard that was in the alley filled with corrosion besides Goethe Hotel, after a quick talk...he decided it'd be best for him to quit being a guard and instead become a baker...the world lost a hero but won a baker.

He had yet to speak with that one that had troubles with rewriting a book called 'Tales from Winterlands'...

And also, the people from Belobog is weirdly open about speaking to strangers...they either trust too much on people or it's because they saw him walking besides Gepard directly to speak with the Supreme Guardian.

He sighed deeply and walked to a bench, seeing a blonde girl calmly playing the guitar while sitting on the bench, he looked at her a bit nervous.

"Excuse me...can I see here?" He asked pointing to the space besides the girl.

"O-oh yeah, sure, no problem" she stopped playing the guitar and smiled a bit towards Ryan. "It's okay if I keep playing?"

"I'm fine with that..." He smiled and sat besides the girl.

She smiled and again started to play the guitar, the soft music started to slowly calm him, he had actually started to get a bit stressed by not being able to do what he supposedly should be doing, he had indeed helped the woman that lost her keys, and he had also ruined a few opportunities making situations worse...but he still didn't feel any change.

"Maybe I don't have to make them feel more guilt or make them get rid of guilt?"

"Guilt...is not always bad, you realized that maybe a bit too late but I can buy you time... don't ever forget this feeling, for it is just one of the many ways of making humans feel like themselves, hold that feeling close to you and embrace it...use it, it will give you strength."

As he remembered those words he heard before getting to this new place...he mentally cursed to himself, he was stupid.

"Do I have to make them accept their guilt and embrace it? Goddamnit that's even worse...how the hell am I supposed to do that?"

He sighed deeply and rubbed his forehead, he already had a hard time dealing with his own guilt and now he has to help others accept their own? At this point he preferred to not be an Aeon at all...

He decided to quietly groan, his head had already started to hurt a bit more, but now more due to his own thoughts more than because of the guilt of those around him screaming inside of his head, fortunately, the guitar playing besides him made him feel a bit more relaxed...

"You're good with the guitar..." He spoke loudly enough for the girl.

She suddenly stopped and blushed, looking at him a bit embarrassed. "H-hum, thank you! Not really a lot of people tell me that..." She laughed a bit nervously. "I usually have 2 or 3 people around hearing me play the guitar, but none of them actually said something yet..."

"Hmmm...you could ask if they like how you play the guitar, I'm sure they'll say yes, they gather around you for a reason." He looked to the girl with a little smile.

"I know it's just that...the bar is so high up, with lady Serval being basically around the corner I don't normally call that much attention..." She sighed a bit sad.

"Serval? Who's that?"

"You don't know? It's the main singer and guitarist of 'Mechanical Fever', it's a pretty well known band..." With a curious look she glanced at Ryan.

"U-uh...sorry, I'm new to Belogob..." He apologized a bit nervously.

"Don't you mean Belobog?"

"Yeah, that's what I said..." He looked to the side and quickly decided to change the subject. "I...also used to play an instrument."

"You did? What did you play?" The girl asked a bit interested.

"I used to play violin, it was...more like an obligation, I had to learn to play it to look good on parties" he sighed and scratched the back of his head. "At least I ended up enjoying it..."

"H-hum...well, I do it on my free will, my family doesn't really support me, nor do they try to stop me they just...don't care, they know that at some point I'll go crawling back to beg for them to let me help in the family business..." She groaned a bit irritated.

"Family business?"

"We make clocks..."

"Clocks uh?..." He looked at her a bit interested. "You sound disappointed"

"Yes...a lot of families have their own businesses, and I have to make clocks...I never liked it but I had to do it, the ticking of those stupid clocks usually made me go crazy...that's when I started to play guitar, to distract myself, I eventually realized that unlike those sounds the clock made, playing guitar gave me more...freedom, you could say, I could choose which sound I'd be hearing, I could combine them to make music, it felt...relaxing, It made me feel like I could still choose something in my life..." she cringed at bit and covered her face with her hands, leaving her guitar on her lap. "Ugh...I sounded so cringe..."

"Hmmm...why would you go back?"

"Uh?" She kept herself silent for a few seconds. "What?"

"I mean...why would you go back to the family business, you said it, music gives you more choice and freedom, then, as long as you keep playing...you can do whatever you want, right?" He smiled a bit to the girl.

"Yes but...then what about my family? If I leave the family business...they might never forgive me, they are already indifferent about me..." she bit her lower lip while looking down at the floor.

"If only I hadn't fought with them last time...I could've explained to them what I really wanted..."

"....have you ever played for them?" He asked and the girl kept silent before shaking her head.

"They wouldn't like it...they have never really been fond of music in general, so even if I did I doubt pay any attention to me..."

"Then...play for them..." He replied and the girl looked at him. "If they are indifferent about you...surprise them, show them your talent, make it in a way they won't be able to keep a straight face"

"I... don't know....I fought with them last time we spoke about something like this, I refused to work that day and we had a big fight....I...I still feel bad for what I said in that fight..."

Ryan looked at her and felt a small cold sensation in his chest, he was feeling the girl's guilt, it wasn't just a mere sentence or whisper in his head, he could now feel the weight of her guilt...

"They are your family aren't they?...speak with them, they'll hear you out, family is something very important...It...it doesn't matter how much you fight, everything will end up right at some point, but everyone has to make their part for that...if you want your family to accept your dream, you have to accept it too..." He looked at the girl. "You're still doubting aren't you?"

"I-I'm not sure...I really want to do this but...I love my family, even if they sometimes make me go crazy with the family business...I love them, I want them to support me but I don't know if I can look at them after what I screamed at them..." She looked down onto her guitar softly rubbing it with her thumb.

"Do you...regret, telling them those things?"

"Yes..."

"Then that's something good" he smiled a bit.

"U-uh? what?"

"If you regret saying that...then that means you care about your family, even if they don't support you and are waiting for you to fail, you care about them, and that's something you shouldn't forget...go and talk with them, tell them about what you want, what you don't want, and work it out with them...they are your family, I'm sure they'll end up supporting you." The white-haired boy smiled towards the girl.

"...." She looked at Ryan but then gave a small smile. "Fine...I'll go talk to my family, I hope the support me...I never knew I'd open like this with a stranger" she sighed a bit but then stood up from the bench "thank you, uh..."

"Ryan, my name is Ryan" he presented himself with a smile.

She returned the smile and picked up her guitar. "I'm Emma, a pleasure Ryan, I hum...kind of need to go see my family now" she laughed a bit nervously.

"Don't let me stop you, Emma" he smiled while looking up at her.

"Y-yeah!" She smiled with some anxiety and started to walks way but gave a small glance to Ryan. "Thanks Ryan, I'm feeling better" she smiled at the boy before slowly walking away.

He expected the coldness to be replaced by warmth as soon as she left and he stopped hearing her Guilt, but the coldness simply disappeared...at least she doesn't seem to feel guilty anymore...

He pulled out his phone from his Kimono and looked at the hour, it was almost 5 PM....he might as well join the others and have something to eat.

He slowly stood up from the bench and started to walk...but he felt he was forgetting something...

Oh right...Bronya...

He'll search for her later! Food first.

In Herta's Space Station...

The small puppet was in her office, in front of the Simulated Universe machine, apparently checking and writing some data of the Aeons, she pressed a key...and nothing happened...she looked to the keyboard, it was an holographic one....it couldn't just get stuck, right?

"What the hell is this? Is it broken or something? I swear that if Screwllum is hacking me I'll disassemble and reassemble him as a toilet."

"Oh you poor thing....you look so confused."

She quickly turned around, seeing a woman in black standing in the entrance of her office.

"You...who are you?" She asked seriously while the woman simply laughed.

"Just someone that wants to tell you a tale..."

"I'm not in the mood for fairytales, answer properly to my question." She crossed her arms above her chest.

"You're a bold one aren't you~? Fine...my name is Turzina"

"What do you want then, Turzina?" She asked almost as if demanding an answer.

"I just want to tell you a tale, it's all I want."

"Not interested...leave" she turned her back on the woman in black.

"But don't you want to know more about Ace? Or how do you know him? Ryan?"

She slowly turned around and looked at the woman. "What do you mean with 'Ace'? Who is he?" She asked and Turzina simply smiled. "Ugh...fine....I'm listening."

★ ★ ★

A/N: It took me a while to finish this one, playing videogames while writing is starting to become a problem...

Anyways, I was really close to make Ryan rizz Emma, but no, I have perfectly thought who'll be the first one to get rizzed lmao.

Anyways! Hope you enjoyed.