47 FISHY TALE (2/2)
”I can add to it,” Lirzod vocalized his thoughts, a feeling of lightness developing in the chest, ”A madman is also never guilty of the madness he creates.”
His words fairly tested the brothers' patience, and they had to bust a gut to maintain weightless gazes.
”Ohh…” The crowd in the audience stands immediately took notice of them. ”Hardy Brothers are going to get revenge now. The infamous treasure hunters are finally on the move to squash those three termites for daring to steal some of their fame in this hall of fame. Excellent!” Some of them who had wanted to see the brothers trounce the youngsters during the test got stimulated now.
”Those three little fish won the test by swimming through the defenses of others while staying out of sight by hiding underwater. But now, on the ground, there's no way they can stand a chance against the five.”
”Yeah, they are in for a bitter treat now.”
By and large, swimming through the ice dumpster to win the test was a terrible idea as there were a hundred contestants during every round, and the swimmers often get stomped upon without even knowing who hit them. In consequence, not many opted to use such methods to win the test but only either to temporarily hide or to escape from an opponent. The audience, who had gotten used to seeing people brawl a lot to overcome the odds that the deck test posed, didn't feel great after the three youngsters seemingly swam most of their way through.
As a result, some audience still desired to see some blood spilled outside the ice dumpster.
”Beat those three, Hardy Brothers!”
”Let the girl go and thrash the other two.”
”No, those three won together, so all the three deserve some beating.”
”Hardy brothers?” Lirzod, meanwhile, was repeatedly tapping his index finger on the chin. ”Where have I heard that name before?”
”Hmph, you must have heard it when you are in your mother's belly,” Centry snorted, adding an ugly twist to the mouth.
”Mother…” Lirzod seemed like he was trying to remember a memory from the past. ”I think I've heard of you people before.”
”Hmph, it's no surprise. Everyone knows us,” Centry said, backing with a grin cooked with arrogance. ”Not only do we brothers hail from a renowned clan, but we also joined a certain organization which helped in boosting our fame by leaps and bounds. Though we aren't known much in the West, we are well-known in the East.”
”Oh yeah,” Lirzod nodded as he suddenly remembered something. ”You people are the ones I read in a story when I was in school. I don't quite remember its title though,” he tried his best to remember it.
”Hiding Mother and Seeking Sons,” Divas said as the other brothers lifted their chests in pride.
The audiences broke into their conversation in a hurry. ”I know that story!”
”I know that too! When Hardy Brothers were just little kids still crawling on fours, they played Hide and Seek with their mother. Their mother who went into hiding back then is yet to be found, and the five sons whom we now know as Hardy Brothers are still in search of her, which means that the game is still on.”
”Yeah, including my wife, so many people are waiting for them to find their mother and end the game, though it begs the question as to what the brothers are doing here on this ship. It's not like their mother is at Immortal Peaks.”
”It would be nice if I get to witness their reunion. Would be an emotional tale worthy of getting inscribed on stone slabs.” Some people even felt emotional.
”Got it now,” Lirzod almost sprang on his feet upon remembering the events of his past. ”You were the toddlers who scared their mother into fleeing home from chest pain that over-nurturing bred.”
A singular silence—silent, stony, and severe—birthed in the neighborhood and screamed in the minds of men like an argument impossible to refute, forcing cold sweat to drip down many a cheek. Some wished to forget what they had heard right away, but the silence didn't let them and instead spoke hundreds if not thousands of words, giving them anything but peace.
All the Hardy Brothers froze in their footsteps and shivered in a soul-squeezing silence which further massaged their souls with sickening grips. In the past few quiet seconds, though nobody reacted to Lirzod's words, it didn't mean nobody heard them.
At that time, Sariyu hurriedly came in between Lirzod and Hardy Brothers with apparent dolor on her face and broke the long-standing silence, ”Please do not take his words the wrong way. He doesn't yet know how to converse with people. He always says things he doesn't have to say.” She lowered her head more than a little. ”I deeply apologize in his stead.”
Her words did earn approval from a few parts of the crowd but failed to bring any change in the expressions of the brothers, for their souls still suffered in silence.
It may have been considered a joke if Hardy Brothers weren't around when Lirzod had stated those words, but their presence entirely changed its essence.
”What are you apologizing for?” Lirzod furrowed his brows. ”I only spoke the truth. You too know that. Many of our clansmen think the same, too. Just because we read the story in a book, it doesn't automatically make it true, does it?”
”You, seal your mouth,” Sariyu tightly shut his mouth with her hands and said to him in a low tone. ”You can't undo what you did. We fought against them inside the ice dumpster because it's all part of the test. We don't want to extend the enmity beyond the hall, understood?” she stressed the last word.
Lirzod tried to shake his head, but she didn't let him and forcibly made him nod.
”See, he's also apologizing for his mistake,” Sariyu looked at the brothers whose attention seemed to be drifting elsewhere, although they didn't move an inch.
At the time, the nearby crowd was still in shock, but they were finally able to move their mouths.
”I-Is that what truly happened?” one guy initially muttered under his breath before speaking out. ”I thought their mother was playing Hide and Seek, and these five are yet to find her.”
”Yeah, that's the tale told around,” another person nodded, ”but now I don't know what's what anymore.”
”C'mon, are you seriously giving credit to some random boy's comments?” another man waved his hand, dispelling doubts in the minds of most, ”He surely wants to make a mockery out of Hardy Brothers for giving him trouble during the test.”
”Yeah, you're right.”
”That's it, that's probably it.”
”Whew…” Seeing that people didn't fall for Lirzod's words, Sariyu felt like a load was taken off her mind, and she removed her hand off Lirzod's mouth.
”You people seriously believed that story in the book?” Lirzod snorted aloud and looked at the brothers who stood not far away from him and wore pale expressions on their faces. ”There should be only one seeker in that play, but why are there five seekers? It's not just me, but most of my friends also didn't believe the story when they read it either.”
”Don't mind him!” Sariyu shouted before glaring at Lirzod. ”You think there can't be five seekers in that play? They were just children back then, so their mother probably wanted them all to find her. I get it that you didn't get that part back when you were in school, but how can you still not comprehend it?”
”No,” Lirzod shook his head and chewed on his lip. ”I get your point, but there's something fishy about that tale, you know. They say there is no lie unknown to the heart. We will only know the truth if we ask the brothers themselves.”
”Alright, that's enough,” she grabbed his arm and began to pull him away. ”Let's get you out of here—for everyone's sake.”
Lirzod, however, still tried to persuade her, ”But what about the fishy tale—”
”The only thing fishy in this place is…” Aziz stepped forward, a flicker of hatred flashing in eyes, his clenched fist abnormally turning reddish as his stifling gaze locked on to Lirzod who was glancing over his shoulder, ”your frame of mind.” Subtle sparks of fire screaked out of his fist, ”you brought this upon yourself.” With a swift bend of the knee, he sprang forth, his twisting arm firing at Lirzod's face from behind like a fiery wolf pouncing on its prey.
.......
Author's Note:
WISH YOU ALL A HUGE HAPPY NEW YEAR!
I hope that I and you all will have a great year ahead of us. Most people try developing a new good habit or forfeiting an old bad habit from this day forth. Well, that's a good start, but how about going and giving a damn kiss to all the cheeks you can? That might just light up many lives at least momentarily. If not, at least your cheeks will be reddened by the end of the day. Ahem, in case if you want to avoid the latter, stick to cheeks that can recognize your lips.