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Chapter 29

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Walking through the dense forest was tiring when the sun was already half way on the horizon. Genno's body ached from exhaustion as his legs trembled under the weight of his own body. Even Seth's face is covered in sweat while breathing rapidly for air to enter the lungs. They've been traveling nonstop without a proper break for several hours, and it's getting hard to keep moving forward.

As they kept their pace, they noticed that they had reached another open field surrounded by trees. This could serve as a temporary resting spot for them, so they decide to take a short break from traveling through rough terrain. Finding a large fallen tree trunk nearby, Seth sat down upon it with an audible sigh escaping from his lips.

Genno, on the other hand, walked over to the log and lean against it as he wiped sweat from his forehead. "It seems like we've made little progress today," he stated as he glanced towards his friend. "I assume this is due to not taking a horse or carriage?" Frowning in disapproval of their poor choice in transportation.

But he could only laugh weakly. "You are correct; although it is a good thing to exercise, isn't it?" The young man answered with a smile as he watched the sun continue to slowly descend on the distant horizon: "Even if we can't cover much ground, it does let us see many things on our travels." He elaborated further with a hint of enthusiasm within words: "Experiencing and discovering new things is fascinating, isn't it?"

Nodding slightly, Genno accepted these claims to some degree. He himself had enjoyed long walks in nature, but anything too much can become tiring in time. "All we can do is just hope that we safely reach our destination with minimal issues on the way," he said, leaning away from an object, "speaking of which," looking over at a fellow traveler, "do you hear that?"

Confusion sparked on Seth's face. "Hear what?" Unable to discern anything besides ordinary noise made by common wildlife and insects, "it's just the usual sounds that any forest has to offer," he replied in response, which earned him an odd gaze.

"Listen closely."

Seth calmly focused his ears on detecting any unusual noise among the wilderness, concentrating on picking up the slightest changes within the ambience. He shut his eyes to narrow his attention, blocking out background noises as he intently listened to whatever was being detected.

Minutes felt like seconds had passed until he finally heard it. Faint help coming underneath the calm breeze, he strained himself in order to identify if it was merely an illusion or not, but the more he listened, the more it sounded like a person.

Realization dawned on him: "Someone is buried alive," an indisputable fact that came out of nowhere, prompting him to jump straight up from his seat before rushing out in the direction of crying for aid. "We need to save that man!" He spoke in a hurried tone as he ran to where the source was.

Genno followed suit, running after him as they rushed through dense vegetation while remaining cautious in case of hidden traps. "Shouldn't we slow down before falling into a pitfall?!" Advising a hurried friend as well as yelling out a warning when noticing potential obstacles on their way.

Ignoring the suggestion entirely, Seth pushed aside the low-hanging branch without pause. Although he never knew why he acted impulsively, it seemed like instinct or intuition took control of his actions, as though he needed to get there immediately or something terrible would happen.

Bursting out into the clearing, they spotted a small mound of dirt in the center, indicating that someone might be buried there, "his there," panting heavily after another round of exhausting activity, pointing at the pile before turning to look at Genno, who wore a similar appearance of fatigue upon his visage from behind.

In closer inspection, they can hear the man's call for help more clearly than before; his voice sounded desperate and full of fear. Without wasting more time, Seth walked up to it, kneeling down as he brushed away loose soil to uncover a hand sticking out.

Without hesitation, he grabbed hold of it and pulled forcefully. He expected some resistance from whoever was trapped beneath the ground, but instead, what came out wasn't just some peasant but a person of interest that neither would have guessed to meet in circumstances like this.

A man of aristocracy, covered in mud and dirt, desperately gasping for air after having spent who knows how long suffocating underground. His curly brown hair matted by damp earth, along with his clothes being dirty with grime, was indeed a wise man, but that wasn't what drew their attention most.

Giordano Bruno. He is a philosopher, poet, cosmological theorist, and esotericist, and he is known to have cosmological theories. Moreover, Seth and Genno had read his Copernican heliocentrism book, which argued for the motion of celestial bodies around the Sun as the center of the universe. The two of them weren't religious fanatics of sorts, but they respected and admired his works nonetheless.

"Thank God that someone came to save me in time!" Brushing off all the dirt on himself, he crossed his arms with a thankful smile. "If it weren't for the both of you, those savages would have succeeded in killing me." A sigh of relief left the relieved man as he stared at these fellow travelers gratefully.

Although he was genuinely grateful for being saved, Bruno was wary of trusting them after being betrayed by his bodyguards. "May I know your names, gentlemen?" Politely asking towards the two, wanting to know who they really are, for they haven't revealed their identities in their entirety.

Straightening up, the Son of God cleared his throat before introducing himself: "I'm Seth, and my friend here is Genno." Motioning towards the other person next to him, "We are also travelers like you," he simply replied with pleasantries exchanged between them.

"Nice to meet you two. I am Giordano Bruno. A philosopher in search of knowledge about the universe itself," he bowed politely as a greeting before standing tall once again. "Also, thank you again for rescuing me; it's really fortunate that you showed up when you did," he added while maintaining eye contact with them.

Genno, who was nearly silent the whole time, decisively stepped onto his friend's side, raising his hand towards the man and saying, "I have read your poetry before," smiling courtesy in showing respect despite their difference in social status, "it's very enjoyable to read your scientific discoveries and theories," complimenting in a lighthearted manner, "why are you even all the way out here alone though?" I was curious to know how this person got here.

Bruno swiftly shook the stranger's hand, "I never would have thought that someone would be willing to praise my work," blushing with embarrassment evident upon cheeks, "to be truthful, I got attacked by my own guards," withdrawing their hands from each other, "it wasn't before they chased me throughout this damn forest, forcing me to run away in desperation before tripping on my own feet and getting buried by them in the hole that they dug to trap me in after they realized that I didn't carry any coin purse," explaining the situation honestly.

Both Genno and Seth listen to it silently, letting him finish the story without interruption before nodding at the same time as they glance at one another in acknowledgement of their agreement. They looked back at him. "It seems like a bad idea for a lone scholar to wander in these forests alone," humorously remarked the monk. "Why don't you join with us? We were traveling to the capital."

Eyes widen. "What, really?" Surprised by this notion, "I mean, I would love to join you two as I have unfinished work there, but how can I trust you two?" Narrowing his eyes skeptically of accepting their offer readily, "for all I know, you're one of those bandits who wishes to ransom me," suspicion directed to them.

Both frowned at this; neither can deny that Bruno's skepticism was understandable, but they wish to earn his trust rather than prove themselves in words. Seth was quick to formulate a plan in mind: "I suppose it's a natural reaction you give, but we are not your enemy," attempting to ease the tense atmosphere around them. "If we were, then either of us would have attacked you at this moment," a reasonable statement uttered calmly while gesturing hands outward. "Besides, if I were truly your foe, then there wouldn't be any reason in rescuing you, is there?"

"Hmm..." Caressing his own chin, Bruno's eyes looked above with deep contemplation of this, wondering whether or not these strangers were genuine. He wasn't fooled easily, though considering that these two have saved his life despite it being their chance to rob him or, worse, kill him, is a miracle in itself.

"You got the point there," still feeling skeptical, he still accepted this offer to them regardless. "I guess it's not wise of me to reject help given to me, so very well," he said, grinning at them. "It's a pleasure meeting you two gentlemen; please take care of me on this journey together." He happily responded as though nothing happened at all.

A smile graced both of the men's lips. "The Lord has surely blessed us with another ally," joyfully expressed by the former. "It's good to have another person by our side for companionship," said the latter. They were glad that their words were able to convince Bruno enough for him to comply with their request.

But Bruno immediately froze when he heard that name: "Lord...? Are you by any chance Christian?" The question caught Seth off guard; his green-colored eyes widened. "Wait a minute! How didn't I realize this any sooner?!" Carefully glancing up and down at both of them, the answer came like a revelation itself.

His gaze fell on their respective clothing; the white robe worn by Seth was a dead giveaway that he belongs to the church, while Genno's garment, consisting of an orange vestment and cloth around the waist, gave indication that he practices Buddhism.

Eyes twitching involuntarily, the man couldn't believe how much of an idiot he is to miss those obvious hints: "How blind was I that it took me awhile to figure out who you people were!?" Exclaiming shock at this, "You two are the founders of your own religion!" It came out of his mouth naturally as he stared at them with disbelief written on his facial expression.

Despite Bruno's utter shock at the reveal of their identities, the other two burst out in laughter uncontrollably while holding their stomachs due to hysterics. This bewildered the poet greatly: "W-what?! What's so funny!?" Looking around frantically at both men cackling at the top of their lungs.

"It seems like... we just met the most unobservant person in the world." Trying to stop snickering as Seth grinned widely at the mortified man, "You are a traveler yourself, aren't you?" Noticing the astonishment that Bruno showed prior to now, "then it only makes sense for you to recognize our clothing," the latter shrugged. "We are wearing distinctive ones that can't be found anywhere else on the land, correct?"

Genno calmed himself before wiping a tear from his eye. "We mean no offense; me and my friend had just found it amusing how oblivious you are to details that were right in front of your face," apologizing in good spirit, "let's forget about it, okay?"

The philosopher doesn't know what to say; he felt hurt by being laughed at, but he realized that the two of them weren't making fun of him but simply enjoying themselves in a jovial mood. It wasn't long before he found himself mocking them in irritation, "haha, yeah," scoffing before rolling his eyes in annoyance.

Seeing him resentful, Seth regretfully frowns on what they have done as he approaches him and places his hand on the man's shoulder. "We apologize if we offended you, Bruno," showing remorse on action, "we only found it humorous," hoping to be forgiven by him, "please don't feel upset by our actions; we weren't talking ill of you, for I promise we won't do anything like that ever again," promising wholeheartedly.

A smile grew on Bruno's mouth, nodding satisfyingly. "It's fine; just embarrassing thought that it took me forever to realize your identities," he chuckled embarrassingly while rubbing his back of his neck. "Either way, it is nice to have the both of you," as Seth's hand retreated from his shoulder.

Returning a smile, the three of them agreed unanimously with the new addition joining in the journey. Thus, they resumed their trip through the dense wilderness together.

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by 3 Armored Kittens · Prodromos v.1.1 - World Anvil 0.9.15.042 © 2017-2024 [en] | Anvil Time: 00:01, Nov 13 2024