The food arrived quickly.
Warm steam rose from the plates, cutting through the cold that still clung to them from outside.
For a while, neither of them spoke.
Garrick ate without restraint, like he hadn't had a proper meal in days.
Osric ate slower.
Measured.
Focused.
But his mind wasn't on the food.
The silence from before hadn't disappeared—
It had settled.
"…You remind me of someone."
Garrick spoke suddenly, without looking up.
Osric didn't respond.
He didn't need to.
Garrick continued anyway.
"A long time ago, my friend and I built a mercenary band. We agreed he would act as captain because he was stronger than me and an apprentice knight."
A pause.
He let out a quiet breath through his nose.
"We were nothing back then. Just two idiots with weapons, taking whatever jobs we could get."
A faint smile appeared.
"Fighting was simple. Survive, get paid, drink after."
The smile didn't last.
"But when we started getting stronger… things changed."
"Thanks to his talent, he managed to create his mana space to become a knight, despite only using a cheap mana breathing technique that wasn't kept by nobles."
His fingers tightened slightly around the utensil in his hand.
"His strength started getting a lot of attention and many mercenaries started joining us to become a big mercenary company."
"More money. Bigger jobs. More influence."
Another pause.
"More reasons to stop caring."
Osric's gaze lifted slightly.
Still silent.
Still listening.
Garrick finally looked up.
His expression wasn't bitter.
Just… certain.
"He didn't change all at once."
"Not like people think."
"It was slow."
"Small decisions."
"Shortcuts."
"Excuses."
His voice stayed calm.
But heavier now.
"Until one day… I didn't recognize him anymore."
The noise of the inn carried on around them.
Muted.
Distant.
"I spoke up."
A faint chuckle left him.
"Didn't go well."
Another bite.
Another pause.
"I left."
Simple.
Direct.
Final.
No explanation needed.
For a moment, the only sound between them was the clinking of cutlery.
Then Garrick leaned back slightly.
His eyes settled on Osric again.
"That's why I'm telling you this."
No humor.
No teasing.
"Power changes people."
A short pause.
"Fast."
Osric met his gaze.
Unmoved.
"I'm not him."
Garrick snorted quietly.
"Yeah."
Another pause.
"But neither was he."
Osric remained quiet.
'I already knew some things because of the information I paid for, but not these details and how it affected Garrick.'
He now understood better why Garrick was the way he was.
"Sometimes I miss those days when we just started out." Garrick continued.
"We grew up together as normal commoners from poor households. Neither of us had a father. We promised we wouldn't end up like them and build our own families to protect."
"Both of us ended up getting married young to beautiful women—
Unfortunately, my wife died just a couple of years later from sickness. I have long since healed from that loss, but back then it was really hard."
Osric didn't know what to say.
Garrick continued.
"I decided to dedicate my life to building our mercenary band and becoming rich enough to have our own land."
"Back then my friend wanted the same things, including having kids with his wife and raising them on his own land—
"The more influence he gained, the more authority he had, and his priorities changed. He started neglecting his wife until he threw her away like trash because he had more options according to him."
"That piece of shit started doing even more inhumane things for money, until I couldn't take it anymore."
Osric frowned.
"He crossed the line."
Garrick chuckled, but the sadness in his eyes didn't disappear.
"That's alright. It was a long time ago."
"The only thing I regret is not having left his side earlier. I did a lot of terrible things because I didn't want to betray my friend."
"Once I left, I tried looking for his former wife, but when I arrived in our hometown where she lived, she and their young child that neither my friend nor I knew about, had been killed by bandits."
"Of course I hunted them down and killed them, but it honestly didn't do anything about the emptiness I felt."
Garrick exhaled heavily before starting to laugh.
"Hahahaha! Look at this old man getting all emotional over the trivial past."
"Forget everything I said."
"That stuff doesn't matter anym-"
Osric interrupted him before he could finish his sentence.
"No."
"Your past matters and you shouldn't forget. My past is what drives me just as much as the future I have in mind."
"The same should go for you. Instead of falling deeper into that dark emptiness, follow me and find a new path to walk. Let your past make you stronger instead of dragging you down."
Garrick's eyes widened in surprise.
'How can such a young kid have such deep and serious eyes while saying such things?'
His fake laugh turned into a genuine faint smile.
"You're a really weird kid. Fine, show me that path you talk about."
Osric stood up and put the copper coins on the table.
"Let's go."
"Huh? I didn't mean literally right now."
"Where are we going?"
"I need to prepare for my fight with Piers, remember?"
'I can't even talk back to him anymore, after we had such a deep conversation.' Garrick thought.
Osric smiled while walking away.
Garrick looked at his back. It looked broader than ever.
"Let me show you that I'm not all talk."