Bell the white core mage (Being rewritten)

Into the lions den

Bell took his seat at the table. Aisha and Haruhime are next to him, with Laurier next to Haruhime. Drinks and food were gathered all around them as they were celebrating Bell's return.

It had been slightly over a month and a half since Bell's fight with Alfia. He scared nearly everyone when he collapsed in front of them, covered in all that blood. Some of them thought he was already dead before even reaching Airmids hospital.

Yet here he was, eating and drinking to his heart's content, surrounded by people who cared about him. Yet deep down, everyone had this strange feeling.

Why was Bell so calm? Why was he so cheery after what happened? His aunt faked her death and then nearly killed him for reasons they didn't even know. Something like this would break anyone.

But why not Bell? Well, to answer your question, he's doing what he does best. Hiding it. It's what he's always done, and he's really damn good at it.

Or so he'd like to think. Everyone there knew what he was doing but wouldn't touch on it. Not yet, at least. Today was a day of celebration, not an intervention.

Bell set his drink back on the table. "So I heard you all went on an expedition. Anything go wrong."

Bell was a little worried something did, but seeing as they were all fine, it eased his worries just a bit.

Welf shook his head. "Nah, nothing went wrong."

Bell smiled. "That's good" he paused as if he was about to say something else but didn't. Instead, he took another sip of his drink.

This again drew looks, but no one said anything.

So the party continued well into the night, everyone getting buzzed or flat-out wasted. At around 1:00 AM, the party finally ended, with everyone having their fill of food and drink.

As Bell was heading back to his room, however, he felt someone grab his sleeve.

"Master Bell," Haruhime quietly called out.

He turned around and saw her ears dropped and her eyes on the ground. She was either nervous or sad about something that much Bell could tell.

"Are you ok, Haruhime" Bell asked.

Haruhime was quiet for a moment before she wrapped her arms around Bell in a hug. Bell was slightly caught off guard by this, but once he got over his shock, he returned the hug.

"Ok, ok, you're alright. You're alright," Bell comforted.

The two stood in the hallway as Haruhime was holding Bell tightly. She wasn't crying, or at least she wasn't yet.

Bell just simply patted her on the back. "What's wrong, Haruhime" he gently asked.

Haruhime held onto him tighter, her head buried into his shoulder. She mumbled something, but he didn't hear her.

"What'd you say" he calmly asked.

"I was scared you were gonna die," she said more clearly.

Bell let out a sigh, and he gently caressed the back of Haruhime's hair. He didn't really know what to say. He wouldn't push her feelings aside, saying he was alright or that he made her a promise. That would just push aside the emotions she felt when he was in a coma.

"I'm sorry I scared you," he apologized, and he was sorry. If he was stronger, maybe he could've defeated Alfia. Perhaps he could've asked her why he did this. Maybe he could've had his aunt back.

Bell rolled his eyes at the idea. He wasn't gonna get ahead of himself. It was clear as day.

Alfia never loved him.