Sunblind Serpent: The Zodiac Without A House

Silence hung in the air.

Marek did not speak, nor did Rhovan.

It took a few seconds for Marek to realize what he meant by announcing his name. Well, not really. Regardless, he initiated the conversation first. ”Am I supposed to know you? You don’t look familiar, to be honest. Haven’t seen you on TV either.”

’If he’s that good-looking, he must be famous.’

Then, a cough from behind the doorway was heard, loud enough that it diverted Marek’s attention from the man. It sounded familiar, and it sounded like a woman.

’Another detainee from before? There was only one woman among them... oh... the Gemini one?’

Rhovan just stared at Marek. His expression remained the same. ”Are you supposed to know me? Well, you should and probably could now.”

Marek stared at him, tilting his head to the side. ”You sound so condescending. Is that some sort of play you’re trying to pull off? Besides, where did you get those clean clothes? Did you steal them?”

”What a random question. Next question, please,” Rhovan said, letting some of his golden hair hang loose on the side of his forehead.

”Fair,” Marek agreed. ”In fact, I was just curious. However...” His expression darkened as he adjusted the strap of his backpack. ”Why were you following me?”

Rhovan inserted his hands into his pockets, looking straight in the eye at Marek. ”I wanted to find you.”

”Wanting to find me doesn’t answer my question. Let me rephrase the question for you, then... What’s your motive?”

Rhovan’s smile disappeared for a moment. Definitely not because he was offended. If anything, he became more interested in Marek. ’This nineteen-year-old Ophiuchus bearer is smart...’

”I just wanted to speak with you,” Rhovan answered.

’Tch. Speak with me, your ass.’

”You could’ve tried that first before sending people after me like they’re chasing a slippery roach.”

”I considered it, to be honest.” Rhovan summoned a chain of golden light and let it swirl around his index finger. ”It’s just that...”

”What?”

”You were too busy running away from them.”

’Tch.’

”Clearly because I was avoiding some strangers trying to tail me without really explaining why. Don’t treat everything like some kind of straw you can easily twist.” Marek’s face remained flat, his eyes never leaving the other’s.

Rhovan nodded slowly. ”That’s fair...”

Marek’s gaze continued to peer into Rhovan’s. For some reason unknown, that answer annoyed him less than if Rhovan had tried to defend himself from counter-arguments. Well, he tried, but not really.

The swirling chain circling his index finger died as the gold beneath Rhovan’s collar became brighter for a second when he laughed. This caused the others to look in their direction.

Narrowing his eyes, Marek asked, ”Are you doing that?”

”Doing what?”

”Turning other people’s attention toward you?”

Rhovan looked around as though he did not notice them acknowledging his presence. ”Well, not completely... just about 75%, I guess... I just can’t control my own greatness...”

”Then control the part that you can.”

Dario, who was just watching this spectacle happen, closed his eyes.

Marek wondered why this Taurus detainee did so.

Rhovan stared at him for another second before the golden line under his collar dimmed. However, that did not make everyone suddenly ignore him. Nonetheless, the strange insistence of Marek’s attention getting pulled toward the man weakened.

’Rhovan, huh?’

Rhovan grinned, looking amused again. He crossed his arms over his chest and said, ”You really are difficult.”

Marek’s left brow raised. ”Is that a problem?”

”Not really.”

”Then, stop complaining.”

A loud, screechy laugh came from behind Dario. Nadia soon stepped outside and said, ”I told you.”

Rhovan remained in his position. ”Nobody asked you.”

Nadia harrumphed. ”I still told you.”

Looking past Nadia, Dario, and the man named Rhovan, Marek saw the other detainees as well. They were still very much in their old clothes, even with Nadia still wearing her jacket with the detainee uniform underneath. ’They could’ve stopped by some clothing shop or something to get some new ones. They probably stink by now.’

Kellan stood farther down the corridor, his face contorting from time to time, his arms crossed across his chest. It was as if his eyes were saying, ’What are you looking at, bitch?’

Meanwhile, Eren was farther inside beside an open door by the corridor’s side. His face seemed devoid of emotion.

’An insufferable old brat and an unassuming one,’ Marek thought as his gaze went toward another guy. ’And a pretentious one who’s leaning against a wall as if he’s some detective aura farming when there’s no aura to farm in the first place...’

Then, an unfamiliar guy stood near one of the side exits, watching the route outside. ’I am not familiar with this guy, but the mark on his arm was familiar enough. Arrow. Bow... well, he sure looked like an archer with neither of those things...’

’And that’s six of them... the government might have been too busy to pursue them during the past week... but it seemed like they were not simply standing around this Rhovanski Torks guy... wait... what was his name again?’

All six of them were here. After sizing up the others, his eyes met Rhovan’s again. ”You organized them. You were the one giving orders.”

”Obviously.”

”Why?”

”By themselves, well, you know very well what could happen. Individuals who could not control their abilities upon Awakening... they would certainly be the prime definition of chaos.”

”So you’re saying they’re dumb?”

Kellan’s voice came immediately. ”We can hear you.”

Rhovan glanced at him and said, ”You have good hearing.”

The man’s forehead visibly tightened into a crease. ’This asshole...’

”Names?” Marek finally asked. ”I can’t keep referring to you guys as detainees. I need names. After all, the guy who seems intent on killing Rhovan and that guy with glasses looked identical.”

Kellan and Silas looked offended, while Nadia laughed from the side, pointing at the two. ”That’s crazy emotional damage. Imagine you’re called twins with somebody you loathe. It must feel like shit.”

Then, Rhovan proceeded to name them one by one. Marek tried to memorize the names, but he did not promise he would remember them all. Apparently, remembering names wasn’t really something he was very good at.

Their dynamics made Marek realize why Dario had dark eyes and a weary look on his face. Then, his eyes shifted back to Rhovan. ”What exactly do you want from me?”