Chapter 18: Beaten Black And Blue Once Garron dismissed them, the exhausted children finally started to make their way back towards the miserable lodgings they were all currently living at, however while most of the others simply looked like they wanted to crawl into their beds and sleep for an entire day straight, Riven himself looked utterly dejected for a completely different reason.
Because although his swollen knuckles pulsed painfully with every movement and exhaustion weighed heavily across his thin body, none of that bothered him nearly as much as the simple fact that he could still not sense the warmth Garron had repeatedly described throughout the day.
’The day is over, and I still cannot figure it out...’
He thought dejectedly, while in front of him, the two sisters walked with pride evident on their faces for having successfully channeled Aether for the first time in their lives.
’What exactly did they feel that I couldn’t?’
Riven wondered while quietly walking several steps behind them along the dirt road leading back toward the village.
At first, he tried convincing himself to simply forget about it for now.
Maybe he would figure it out by tomorrow.
Or perhaps the day after that.
However, the more he thought about it, the more restless he became.
Because if others could already sense Aether while he still remained completely lost, then eventually the gap between them would only continue growing larger.
And Riven hated that thought.
Which was precisely why after following behind the sisters silently for several minutes, he finally gathered enough courage to try speaking.
"Excuse me...."
Riven muttered quietly while lowering his gaze instinctively.
However, unfortunately for him, the words left his mouth at a volume that was too low for the cold wind to carry effectively.
"Um.... Excuse me...."
He repeated slightly louder this time, however once again, neither girl reacted at all, since both of them were embroiled in an intense debate with one another, as immediately, embarrassment began spreading across his face.
For one brief moment, he almost considered giving up entirely, since social interaction was not one of his strong suits.
But then, after clenching his fists nervously, he forced himself to speak properly.
"Excuse me!"
Riven finally called out loudly enough for both sisters to stop walking and turn around toward him together, as the moment their eyes landed directly on him, he immediately felt his entire face grow hot from embarrassment.
’I called them out, but now what?’
He wondered nervously, because now that both girls were looking directly at him, he suddenly realized that he had absolutely no idea how to properly continue the conversation anymore.
Still, after lowering his eyes awkwardly toward the dirt road beneath his feet, he eventually forced himself to continue speaking anyway.
"I’m... one of the people who couldn’t sense the heat inside my body today."
Riven admitted quietly while trying his best not to sound pathetic.
"So I wanted to ask...."
He continued hesitantly before glancing briefly toward the older braided girl.
"Can you please tell me what exactly you sensed when you figured it out?
I still don’t understand what I’m doing wrong...."
He requested, before awkwardly looking away and scratching his chin.
"If it’s not too much trouble.... Of course."
He added, not wanting to sound rude as the two sisters looked towards one another as though trying to decide whether to help Riven or not, before eventually deciding that he looked harmless enough.
"You need to focus on the centre of your ribcage, besides your heart and above your lungs, at the centre of your chest.
If you focus there, you will slowly feel the heat burning brighter.
At least, that’s how it feels to me.
It’s like blowing on embers to make the coals burn brighter, as the more you focus the stronger the heat becomes."
The elder sister advised, as she pointed towards the exact spot on her body where she felt her soul vessel to be present, while Riven kept staring dumbly, like a deer gazing at headlights.
’I see, so that’s where the heat is supposed to come from.’
He thought absentmindedly, not realising that he had been staring at the girl’s chest for an uncomfortably long duration now without muttering a single word.
"Ewww, sister Mary, let’s go, this creep is staring at your chest."
Stacy, the younger sister said, as Mary gave Riven a half amused chuckle before turning away, as Riven felt his face redden even more as he realised his mistake.
"Sorry..... and thank-you!"
He muttered, feeling genuinely grateful for the help, when unexpectedly, a group of privileged village kids belonging to the Trash group, came strolling down the dirt road with several small sticks, rocks and other such weapons in their hands.
"There they are! The ungrateful sisters!"
One of the boys shouted while pointing directly toward Mary and Stacy, as immediately afterward, the entire group began walking toward them aggressively.
"It’s lady Lydia and her friends, don’t say anything offensive!"
Mary warned at once, as the moment she noticed who was approaching, she immediately lowered her eyes submissively.
Meanwhile, beside her, Stacy’s expression hardened immediately.