There have never been secrets between Iano and his twin brother, Miano. But that changes when his brother marries an heir of the most powerful fief of the village. With such power comes the right to see the face of the Goddess. Only, Iano's twin mus...
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The day after the encounter with the indigenous Anuka, Kairou woke up early at dawn. The professor's disease had plagued each of his dreams since Papa Helou had fallen ill. And his awakened hours weren't much different. The professor's disease monopolized Kairou's thoughts as soon as his eyelids parted open.
From there, he acted as if on command, animated by some kind of sense of duty stronger than any reason. The professor was his first target. Not emptying his bladder. Not a cold shower. Not morning prayers to totems.
His stroll across the campsite was filled with languor, with yawns breaking every ten steps ahead. With each step, the oppressive sinking feeling in his stomach seemed to pull his body further and further down. When his hand finally parted the tent's entrance with a swift flap, Kairou found Professor Yaniceh inside.
She had been sleeping on her chair, stiff like a board meant to hold a piece of furniture. Somehow, she straightened herself even more, directing her narrow gaze to the professor with overplayed zeal to feign being awakened all this time. Even when she spoke, she didn't turn to Kairou. "You're leaving?" she said.
"How is he?"
"He had a brief moment of consciousness yesterday," she said. "A few minutes. Then he was out again. But his state is stable for now."
At this point, Kairou didn't know whether it even was good news. He just felt he wasn't doing enough. "Thank you for taking care of him."
She scoffed. "He's a long-term friend. I have known him for longer than you have, my child. Long enough that I know if he could speak now, he would tell you to quit bothering him and go play somewhere else."
It did seem like something Professor Helou would say early in the morning. "I'm leaving then. I expect to reach the ship around midday. If I am lucky, the native Anuka will be there. If not, well, we can keep moving towards the southeast expecting the villages to be where Papa Satouka believes they are."
