Star Sun Cave

Ch. 10 - To Whom It Concerns

Unlike most big towns in Mainland Errarion, Soban rarely gets stopped by or even considered for those who are willing to travel despite the dangers of demons lurking on every step, but many factors contribute to this statistic.

Firstly, Soban is deep underground and hard to find for someone without a map or clear directions pointing to the passages, and unlike the beginning of the Aria Caves (now dubbed this way after Bancho's explorations), the passage is reported to be one of the few places where lots and lots of dangerous creatures lurk, obviously easily countered by Demonears, but not by normal citizens.

Secondly, Mirillis is often overlooked because people believe there is nothing special about it. In the case of Magna, it's the buying and selling culture of Handulia, and in Saphrith, the quaint, white and vined streets and the sheer idea of living in a town dubbed the epicentre of all important historical events. But then again, this problem only arose since people weren't interested enough in the first place. That mainly stemmed from a certain aversion to Mirillians which grew ever since the first Errarion war ended.

Back then, Mirillians were everywhere, and unlike most races, they didn't have a defined home or region. Adding insult to injury, they looked just a little different than Paladians and had these long ears, so oftentimes they were somehow confused with those of Paladian royalty. Their appearance has changed drastically over the years due to evolution and adaptation to new environments, which was initially caused by others.

This wasn't a problem to most people, but the royalty quickly got their heads heated after a Mirillian, thought to be of peasant blood was spotted on a date with the daughter of the royalty. Then, more reports came in from the same people, sometimes from Tributals as well.

Their hate for the race grew exponentially with each action, and that bigotry still hasn't faded over the years. They don't hate certain individuals for doing wrong but blame their origins instead. Even to this day, when Mirillians found themselves chased away and locked up underground, certain people were not afraid to state their strong beliefs.

Now, putting all of that into context, you have Chyuuichi. He hasn't personally experienced much hate coming from those around him, (except for the obvious and unfortunate bits) yet, sitting here, amid all the royals, Morians, Paladians, Erans and Tributals, he felt at ease, seldom looking around and checking the expressions on people's faces, sometimes even ignoring Bancho's words which Atomu kept scolding him for.

Chyuuichi much like any other Mirillian simply wanted to be like the others and having an opportunity such as this barely gave him a moment to contain his excitement and smiles. Hearing certain words, and announcements of heading into Mirillis, his eyes lit up, and excitement overrode any troubled notion. Atomu patted his back a few times.

After Bancho's statement, instead of a sudden hush, conversations were sparked, and people whispered to one another. Concerns included the danger of this entire ordeal, his ridiculous plans, and if this would've been a thing that involved only himself, or other people as well.

"This is ludicrous! In the caves below Morta?!" A voice asked.

"You'll get killed!" Someone else responded.

"You can't defeat Shi Hon! He's unkillable!"

"But we'll be going through Mirillis!" Chyuuichi added as well, hoping to ease the tension. The person sitting next to him buried themselves in their chair, avoiding the drama.

Morio's heart kept beating fast, and stress grew, pinching his back. Jyuzou glanced at him, unsurely.

Finally, Zenon sighed, taking a stance, and putting his hands together behind his dark, olive green overalls. "If you think what we established is simple tomfoolery, then fine," he uttered. "Let go and leave this palace, if you vow to call yourself a coward and a person who believes in despair."