An Accounting Error

Chapter 3

Cale attempted to help Ron and Beacrox rearrange the furniture in his room, to make space for Kim Rok Soo's mattresses. However, every time he went to move a piece of furniture the duo would jump in and move it for him. So he settled for picking up the bottles and other refuse that littered his chambers.

Ron and Beacrox exchanged bewildered looks at the sight of the young master who, up until this morning, had been a rowdy drunk more likely to make a mess than to clean one. As Cale continued to tidy his own room seemly unconcerned with others' thoughts. Cale seemed to be in his own little world as he focused on cleaning, to the point that the Molan duo and even the still-dazed Kim Rok Soo didn't exist in his eyes.

After a while, Ron got Cale's attention and informed him that breakfast would begin soon and that he best be on his way to the dining room.

As Cale left his room and began to walk down the hall, he turned back to Ron who was escorting him to his destination, and said with a gruff tone, "Ron, it's just the dining room, just because it's been a while, doesn't mean I don't know the way."

"I do not doubt the young master's ability to navigate his own home." Ron replied snidely, "However, I feel that it is my duty as a servant to ensure that you arrive at breakfast."

Cale turned back to the direction he was walking in. "Don't worry I don't intend to skip out this time," he said somberly. Mumbling under his breath about how he needed to go for his own self-assurance. "Go help Beacrox take care of our guest, I'll be fine on my own." he continued almost pleadingly.

He really needed to be alone right now to arrange his feelings and thoughts, before he had to face his family. It was hard enough to face Ron, with the weight of his future self's memory of when the Molans seemingly abandoned him. He went on to learn years later the true reason for the duo's departure, albeit much too late.

As Cale was being bogged down by the memories of what was yet to happen, Ron took the hint and left his young master to his own design.

Taking deep breaths Cale calmed himself and began the process of stilling his nerves. Luckily his wing was blessedly devoid of servants, no one was around to chide him for losing his composure. As he continued toward the dining room the lonely halls began to give way to the chatter of maidservants. As glad as he was for the stillness of his own wing, now that he had come back to the present, he was equally glad for the liveliness of the main hall. The ghastly memories of the aftermath of the wyvern raid on Rain City were chased away by the still very intact walls of the Henituse estate.

Another much more prudent reminder that that future had yet to pass, was the chatter stopping as all the servants pretend to ignore him while giving him side glances as they attempt to continue their tasks. The poor sods unlucky enough to make eye contact would flinch or in the worst case recoil in fear. That's right this was his same old present, the most feared wild card in the territory, the trash of the count's family. While worlds apart and a million times better than the crappy future in those memories, his reality was far from idyllic.

His own self-imposed isolation had always been quite painful, he had always told himself it was to protect his father's happiness, to protect their smiles. It was the best he could do to get the results he wanted, he had childishly reasoned at the time, perhaps he was just looking for an excuse to act out instead. Just great, now he was getting hung up on the past as well when he needed to focus on the right now. "Tsk," he clicked his tongue in frustration.

"Eeeep!", someone out of sight chirped, as servants began to as stealthily as they could get away from the potentially fuming young master.

"Huff," Cale sighed as the once bustling hall was cleared. Mumbling under his breath, "What are they so scared for it's not like I ever hit anybody before." While he would throw the occasional bottle at a ruffian, missing, all the same, he had never laid hands on anybody, let alone the staff.

He increased his speed briskly and tried to stay focused on the now and the things he needed to do in the present. For starters, he would stop with the whole trash act, not that he would change 180 degrees, being trash was something he had done for the better, or worst, part of the last decade, the manners of a trash were too ingrained. While this stupidly childish plan had worked, well at that, it has outlived its usefulness and if he were to keep it up it would only be to his own detriment. Now instead of acting as a trash, he is going to act as himself, as Cale Henituse.

There in lay the problem, it had always been an act, one so grand it had consumed the actor, but an act nonetheless. Now that he was retiring from the part he had played for the last 10 years he was unsure of just who Cale Henituse is if he was not acting as a trash. He was quite unsure of the answer and would have to find out for himself just who he was. The first step he reasoned would be to no longer hold back on what he wants to do just because it's untrash-like.

The final issue of the moment is, despite now knowing what his new part is, how is he to play the part of Cale Henituse, especially in front of his family?

As he approached the grand doors of the dining room and placed his hands on them, he took once again began to regulate his breathing, as he mentally prepared to face his family as himself for the first time in 10 years, it was time for his childish machinations to end and it was time to grow up. He took one final deep breath in and slowly let it out as he opened the doors and entered the dining room. As he walked in any small talk that may have been being exchanged came to a screeching halt, for the family pariah had decided to make his presence known at the abnormally, for him, early hours before the noon bell.

Had he been on better terms with his family, perhaps there would be some friendly jabs about him awakening so early. On the contrary, only his father seemed to brighten up at his appearance. The rest were not quite indifferent, his stepmother keep her composure and only had the slightest of expression changes before going back to a regal posture, that was very fitting her position as the countess. His siblings seemed wary of his presence Lilly more so than Bassen. He knew his family were good, kind, people who cared very much for him, but he had himself pushed them away leaving no room for them to push back. 

After taking in their appearances, flashes of memory played through his mind. Reminding him that this idyllic little family, that he had sacrificed his all to protect, wouldn't last if he didn't begin to take action soon, making eye contact with Bassen reminded him he had little more than 2 weeks at that. No longer able to handle the overlapping images, that strangely cover reality at times, he broke eye contact with Bassen and turned his head away from his family. He let out a garbled, "M-morning." as he took his seat at the table and focused on his food hoping it would help distract him.

Distract him it did, he didn't know if it was the longing his future self had for Beacrox's delicious cooking, or perhaps some side effect of being connected to Kim Rok Soo, but what should have been a standard breakfast for himself seemed extraordinarily grand. It was the same usual sausage but it looked extra juicy today for some reason. Maybe because he didn't have to pretend to hate such wonderful food anymore, but he felt a sense of relief as he, for the first time in a long while enjoyed food in such a way. A small simile began to form on his face as he became more and more engrossed with his meal. 

He heard the sharp sound of silverware and snapped his head up to see what had happened, skillfully avoiding eye contact with Bassen. His brother had simply dropped his fork but to Cale, the noise had been quite the shock, drawing his attention briefly to just how tense he was over nothing.

"My apologies."

Bassen calmly apologized. The servant in charge of the meal quickly came over to hand Bassen a new fork and picked up the fork on the floor. Watching that helped Cale ground himself in the moment, before he focused once again on the food in front of him. 

Cale had found the first good thing about his current situation. This breakfast was extremely luxurious and so tasty that his tension seemed to melt, allowing his small content smile to become slightly wider.

"...Ho?"

That was why he did not hear his brother Bassen's shocked proclamation.