Rentio

Inside Neil's Tent

Neil was lying down on his bed; his eyes were flickering while the wind gently touched his face. His hair was moving with it; he opened his eyes and sat upright.

His eyes moved around while his hands reached for his blade. "Was I dreaming?" he thought while moving towards the door. "Why is this flap open?" But his feet stopped just before the exit.

The wind was pushing the flap onto his face, but he stood still and saw the golden light coloring the region. His left hand was resting on his sword; as he moved out, he said, “Prepare the army; we are leaving now."

Neil stopped at his place. Unaware of what had happened, he turned his head; he saw the soldiers lowering their heads. ”What happened to them?" he muttered while turning towards his guards.

“Guards... Guards... GUARDS!!!” he called, but they didn't react. When Neil moved closer, they moved their eyes. "Why are you ignoring me? Guards, soldiers!! Look here... This is..."

"They won't listen to you; they are merely acting on my orders," a sweet female voice said.

”What do you mean, and who are you?“ Neil asked without turning his head.

”Judging from her voice, she is probably in her teens, but what is she even doing here?" Neil was thinking while the sound of her footsteps stopped.

Neil turned his head and saw a young girl with bright brown eyes and long, silky, black hair; she was mixing pastes in a bowl-like thing. “Greetings, Commander Neil,” she said with a smile on her face.

”What do you mean by that? And who are you?" Neil said. After a while, he continued, "I think I have seen you somewhere before..... Are you... no, not that. Yes, are you... not that either. Are you Amierto's student?"

”Yes, I am. Let me properly introduce myself. I am Rentio, student of Chemist Amierto. From today onwards, I am in charge of your health.”

“In charge? What are you even saying? And besides, where is he?” Neil looked at her, then continued, “Nevermind, I will deal with him later. As for you, I am fine, so please return to the Royal Capital as soon as possible. Guards, make sure she is safely escorted.”

The guards nodded their heads a little but controlled themselves in time. Rentio blocked his path, extending her arms. Neil tried to move but failed; as she was moving, his frustration only grew. “Amierto's student, don't make it difficult for yourself. Let me do my work and you do yours."

Rentio extended her face towards Neil; overwhelmed by this, he moved a few steps back. ”I am doing my work, Commander,“ she said while closing the gap. Neil was pushed back; when he tried to move, she would turn in such a way that any movement from Neil would only hurt her.

In those moments, her face had a genuine smile which made Neil even more frustrated. Neil felt he was heading towards the tent. Instead of moving forward, he started to move back, but before he could, Rentio grabbed his hand.

Neil was forced to stop and she started pulling him towards the tent; when they were in, Neil screamed at her, ”What is the meaning of this? Even if you are Amierto's student, that doesn't mean you can do whatever you feel like!

"Do you know how important orders are, and why are they listening to you in the first place? Where is Amierto? Call him; I want to ask him about this. And besides, you are still a student, so what do you mean by 'in charge'?"

Rentio, with that same smile, said, ”First of all, I graduated a little while ago. This will prove my identity.“ She handed a silver needle to Neil.

”I see; it looks genuine,“ Neil said after observing it for a while. While returning the same, he continued, ”And what about Amierto? Call him; I want to talk about something urgent with him.“

”Guards... Guards,“ Neil called, while Rentio panicked and said, ”He is tired and resting for now. If you want, I can call him.“

”Yes, call him. Lives are on the line; one sleep might not hurt—at least for him,“ Neil replied while moving out.

One guard moved in and greeted Neil, which he replied to with a nod. ”Looks like you can now hear me.“ The guard's face had turned red and he was still lowering his head.

”Lift your head; I won't order you with that until I settle the problem. Call Amierto; at least this might be manageable,“ Neil said.

The guard lifted his head and, after a nod, he moved out. "Commander, where are you going?” Rentio said, while her left eyebrow was slightly lifted. Neil said, “Where do you think? To prepare the army. The sun might be setting in three hours or so; can't wait any...”

He stopped midway as he saw Rentio's face was turning a little red; before he could understand, she moved towards his sword. Neil initially resisted, but if he continued the same, his sword might unsheathe, hurting her in the process.

Using this opportunity, she took hold of his sword; unable to do a thing, he decided to go along. She called for the guards; the guards entered and helped Neil remove his heavy armor.

Neil kept his light armor while the guards were moving out. "Wait! Why are you alone? Where is Amierto?" Neil said. Rentio moved her hand and the second guard moved out.

A soldier started talking, “Commander, he is not in his tent. I searched the entire camp, but there is no sign of him. Last time, some soldiers saw him moving towards that tree which is a little away from the campsite.”

“So did you search that tree?” Neil asked. “Two scouts have been sent to search the tree; they might be returning soon.”

Neil turned towards Rentio and asked, “What did you say? He was resting, right? I didn't know you meant he was resting under the tree?”

Rentio nodded her head. ”Yes, maybe. Sometimes I also don't understand Teacher's actions. Besides...“ she said while making Neil sit on his bed.

”Commander, we have a report. Can we enter?“ ”Yes, come in.“ Neil looked towards the door and saw a man roughly in his late 30s entering the room.

”Commander, we searched the area and he is not there, even in the nearby area.“

”Rentio, can you now explain where he is?" Rentio was quiet, but after Neil's constant pressure, she said, ”I don't know; he said 'I will be going'..."

”Where?“ ”I am not aware where Teacher is, or where he was going. Before leaving, he completed our graduation and made me in charge of your health until he returns,“ Rentio quickly replied.

”He didn't tell, or you didn't ask?“ Neil started wearing his armor and shouted, “At this point, Acroniya is filled with Neothaliyan beasts; they are killing people as we speak. There is no place I can say is truly safe now. And what was he even thinking? Can't he wait for a few days?”

Rentio raised her voice, ”Stop shouting! It is not good for your health, and put your armor down!“ Rentio turned her head and ordered that soldier, ”Select 20 scouts and search the area once again, and even the surrounding areas.“

That soldier nodded his head and moved out; after a while, 20 scouts were ready.

He shared Amierto's details, like his height, facial features, eyes and hair colors. After ensuring his men were ready, he looked towards Neil; Neil nodded his head and they moved out.

”Commander Neil, your concern is addressed. Now, rest,“ Rentio said, making him sleep. "Rentio..." "Yes, Commander, what is it?" "I... it's that... it's nothing. Just inform me if you find any information about him.”

"Ok," Rentio said while putting the blanket over him. Neil closed his eyes and tried to sleep. She was moving out, then turned her head a little. “I am not sure whether they will be able to find him or not; I just hope you are fine, Teacher.”

She observed Neil for a while; after ensuring he was sleeping, she moved out. Neil opened his eyes. “What was she saying? Maybe worried about her teacher,” he thought while covering his head with the blanket.

Within half an hour, one scout returned with a report, “Lady Rentio, we searched the area and found no trace of him. Scouts are now moving to other regions, but...” he paused. "As expected. Call the scouts back; Teacher might have reached his destination. In simple words, he is out of our reach.“

Within 15 minutes, all the scouts had returned and were waiting at the entrance of the camp. One of the scouts asked, “My lady, what will you tell the Commander?” Rentio nodded her head, thought for a moment, and said, “Leave him to me; I will handle him. As for you, don't tell anything about it to the Commander or anyone else without my permission. Is that clear?”

“Yes, Ma'am,” they replied.

“Good.” “Lady Rentio, the Commander is calling for you,” one soldier said while running towards her. She nodded her head and started walking towards Neil's tent.

While walking, she was thinking, “What should I tell him so he rests? I must come up with a good reason; otherwise, he will insist on going anyway. And, as for his personality, he will certainly go that's our commander.

It's not that I have any problem with his personality, as this is the reason I am here in the first place. A solid reason. Think fast, Renu, think fast.”

“Why are you still standing there, Rentio? Come in.” Rentio looked around in confusion and then muttered, “What? I am already here, but I...”

“Rentio, come in,” Neil repeated. She entered.

When she was inside, Neil asked, “Where is he? Rentio, tell me, why are you quiet?” Neil's face turned pale; he rushed towards her and started shaking her while shouting, ”What happened? Where is he? Is he safe? Did you find him? Why are you not answering?!“

She shouted, ”STOP!!!“ Neil stopped and released her; she fell onto the ground and started taking heavy breaths. After a while, her condition was much better; she stood up and roared, "What were you even thinking?! Why were you shaking me like that?! I was barely able to breathe!"

After a quick breath, she continued, "Look at my eyes. Why are you looking down?" In her mind, she had another thought, 'So this is how Teacher felt. When Teacher comes back, I will ask for a grace period.'

Neil lowered his head and muttered, ”I am sorry. I was worried about him. You know, there is no place safe now, and he is probably alone.“

Rentio said, ”I am well aware, and he is safe. We have found him, but he insisted on going somewhere. The group who found him escorted him there.“

”Who were those soldiers? I will ask them personally and bring him back,“ Neil said, walking out of his tent. Rentio grabbed his hand and said, ”We tried our best, but it seems like Teacher used a medicine on them; they are unable to recall that incident."

Neil said, ”Seriously? How much does it cost? I want a few....“ Rentio's face started to turn a little red again and she responded, ”Why am I getting the feeling you think I am lying?“ After a little pause, she continued, ”Looks like your doubt is not resolved. Let me show you a practical example,“ she added, while her hands were moving inside her pouch.

Neil quickly reacted, ”Okay, I believe you. Don't open it.“ ”Good, you should,“ Rentio said.

”Greetings, Commander Neil. Greetings, lady. Commander Neil, Commander Julicous is here and waiting for you in the main tent.“

Neil nodded. He moved towards his armor and started wearing it; Rentio rushed to help him with his armor. After wearing the armor, he said thank you and moved towards the main tent.

”Teacher was right; this was very stressful,“ Rentio said while lying on the floor, her back facing the ground and her face facing the tent's roof. She turned her head and sat upright. ”What was the need for taking his sword? This can't be helped; he is a warrior, after all. The important thing for a warrior is, of course, their weapon, just like a partner.”

Neil, I will take it from here. You can go now...

Next time on The Seventh Slayer of Acroniya

Chapter 10: Neil meets Julicous