A dull ache throbbed through Sun Yunso’s head.
His eyelids slowly fluttered open or at least that was what he thought they had.
Darkness, nothing but darkness.
He frowned.
“…?”
His mind was blank.
Where was he?
What had happened?
He tried to remember, but a sharp pain shot through his head.
“Ah!”
He automatically reached up to touch his forehead, but his fingers made contact with something that was tightly wrapped around his face.
“What’s this?”
His breathing became uneven.
He blinked repeatedly and he still couldn’t see anything.
Panic slowly crept into his chest.
“…Why can’t I see?”
Before he could think any further, a calm male voice broke the silence.
“So, you’re finally awake.”
Sun Yunso flinched.
“W-Who’s there?!”
His voice trembled as he instinctively backed away.
“I can’t see you!”
The room was quiet for a second, then the stranger started talking again, his voice calm and soothing.
“Easy, I’m not your enemy.
So…
there’s no need to be afraid.”
Sun Yunso remained tense.
His breathing refused to slow.
As he attempted to disregard the stranger’s comments, he made a move to push himself up from the bed, but the instant he applied weight to his body, his strength failed him.
He collapsed onto the wooden floor with a muffled thud, the sound echoing through the room.
“Ouch…”
The man let out a weary sigh.
“What exactly are you trying to do?
I already told you…I’m not your enemy and yet you’re still treating me like one.”
Sun Yunso gritted his teeth.
“Am I wrong for doing that?”
The man gave a quiet chuckle.
“No, you’re not.”
He made his way over, his movements gentle, and then knelt down beside the boy.
In silence, he carefully lifted Yunso back onto the bed, his actions soft and deliberate.
“Your body hasn’t recovered yet.”
The man waited until Yunso was settled in and comfortable before gently reaching out to touch the bandages that covered his face.
“I’m going to remove these now.”
Sun Yunso stiffened but didn’t resist.
Layer by layer the bandages came undone.
As the final strip of cloth fell away, sunlight poured through the window.
“…!”
Sun Yunso instinctively squeezed his eyes shut.
The sudden brightness burned after days of endless darkness.
He raised a hand to shield his face.
“…It hurts.”
The man gave a small smile.
“That’s normal.
You’ve been living in darkness for several days.
Give your eyes a little time.
Then you’ll be able to see the world again.”
Sun Yunso’s hand finally came to rest after a brief pause.
The light no longer stung as much.
“…Thank you.”
The man barely nodded, then reached for a simple wooden bowl filled with steaming hot porridge and a cup of cool water that was sitting on a nearby table, and gently placed them down beside Yunso.
“You better eat, because your body needs strength.”
Sun Yunso took the bowl, then turned to look at the man again.
“If it’s not a bother, may I ask, Who are you?”
The man was quiet for a moment.
“I’ve known Su Qing for a long time, so just call me Anyu Feng.
“Anyu…
Feng.”
Yunso quietly repeated the name to himself.
“Wait.
I’ve heard that name before.”
Anyu raised an eyebrow.
“You have?”
Sun Yunso nodded.
“Master mentioned you once.
He said you were childhood friends and that the two of you traveled the world together.”
A genuine smile appeared on Anyu’s face.
“He really said that, did he?
Well, he didn’t tell you the whole story, it seems.
There were five of us, and we had a name for ourselves – The Sapphire Wolves.
We traveled all over the world, taking on requests, solving problems, and getting into all sorts of trouble.”
A quiet laugh escaped him.
“I never imagined he’d tell all those stories to his son.
He must’ve become quite the storyteller.”
Sun Yunso couldn’t help but laugh.
“He did like telling stories.”
The laughter faded and Yunso blinked after finally processing the exact word that Anyu had stated.
“…Son?”
Anyu’s smile disappeared.
He realized what he had just said.
Yunso looked directly at him.
“What did you mean by that?”
Anyu remained silent and a heavy sigh escaped him.
Instead of answering, he gently pushed the bowl of porridge a little closer.
“Eat first.
You need your strength.”
The question remained unanswered.
And somehow that silence said more than any explanation ever could.
Sun Yunso began eating his food, slowly taking his bites almost as if he was savouring his food so that it didn’t go to waste quickly.
Each bite was amazing, even though he was impressed by Anyu Feng’s cooking.
“This is amazing Mr.
Anyu.”
Anyu Feng let out a small laugh
“Thanks, I had to learn how to cook since I live alone.”
Sun Yunso took another bite whilst listening to Anyu Feng.
“That does make sense.
Anyway I already know that Master Su Qing will love this meal.
Don’t you think so?” Sun Yunso asked with excitement in his voice.
He kept on eating and enjoying the meal without a care in the world.
Anyu Feng couldn’t bring himself to meet Sun Yunso’s eyes.
Yunso saw this and was slightly confused.
“Mr Anyu, is something wrong?”
Anyu heard Sun Yunso’s empathetic voice but still couldn’t bear to look at Sun Yunso in the face.
“It’s nothing, don’t worry.”
“Are you sure, your voice already says everything.
It’s filled with sadness and regret, so are you sure that there isn’t anything wrong?”
Anyu was caught off guard.
He slowly turned his direction to Sun Yunso, staring directly at him.
His face was stiff as he was holding back his tears.
“Yunso, Su Qing….he’s dead.”
Sun Yunso dropped the chopsticks that he was eating with after he heard what Anyu Feng had just said.
“You’re lying right?
Please tell me this is just a joke, I was with him moments ago.
Yes that’s right I was with him nothing else so why….Why are you lying to me?”
“This is not a lie, Sun Yunso.
Your master died.”