Wine and Poison Chapter 18 -  Between Mentor and Apprentice

 

💫

 

“Master, it’s time for dinner.”

 

“I’ll eat later. Right now, I’m concentrating.”

 

Scylla grunted in annoyance. She clutched a vial of Thyrsus’ snake venom in one hand and several poisons, including hallucinogenic mushrooms, in the other. 

 

Lancion glanced down at her, noticing that she’d skipped her favorite meal and was absorbed in her work, and smirked.

 

“That’s what you said an hour ago. That skipping meals is bad for your health.”

 

“Even if I never mind…”

 

“You almost got yourself killed not long ago.”

 

Scylla winced. She’d been so happy about her work, but now the mere mention of it made her nervous. 

 

Glancing back at Lancion, she spoke awkwardly.

 

“I’m fine now.”

 

“You’d say so, because your hands and feet are stiff and your tongue is curled inside, but you’re not dead.”

 

Another shudder went through Scylla’s shoulders.

 

“But I was so frightened I thought I would never see you again, and even now my heart aches when I think about it.”

 

Lancion looked down into her eyes, her face pensive, and dabbed at the corners of his eyes with a handkerchief she didn’t know where it came from.

 

“To save such a master, I would sacrifice these lips and tongue…”

 

“Fine!”

 

He opened his eyes and stared at her.

 

“Then you will eat?”

 

“I’ll try. I will. I will, but please stop bringing it up.”

 

Scylla threw up one hand, hard, and covered her face with the other. Her skin was red where her hand hadn’t covered it.

 

“Just clean up and come out here.”

 

Lancion smirked, his face clean, with no trace of tears.

 

A moment later, Scylla emerged from her room and sat down at the table. Lancion casually placed a fork and knife in her hand.

 

The meal of the day was salt-fried shrimp. 

 

As soon as Scylla got her fork, she dipped one shrimp and brought it to her mouth. 

 

She didn’t even chew for a few bites before the whole shrimp disappeared. She was always a fast eater, but this was too much. 

 

Likewise, she quickly finished her food and returned to her workstation.

 

Lancion puts the remaining shrimp on her plate. 

 

Seeing her plate overflowing again, Scylla’s mouth dropped open.

 

“Why are you giving me so much? I don’t need this much.”

 

“From the way you’re eating, I’m guessing you’re hungry.”

 

“…”

 

“You don’t think it’s just a quick meal, do you? I’ve spent three hours preparing this meal.”

 

Scylla’s face turned disgruntled as if she had chewed a stone, but Lancion chuckled to himself as he watched her pick up her fork without a word. 

 

Even if she pretends to be cold and tough, she’s actually quite weak at heart.

 

“Please chew for a long time.”

 

“Don’t. I’m not a child.”

 

“If you were, you wouldn’t say that, or you’d listen to me.”

 

“What?”

 

Lancion reached for the handkerchief again.

 

“I still keep having dreams of you falling down…”

 

“I’ll chew it up.”

 

Realizing that he would ramble on and on about the day’s events, Scylla said quickly. 

 

‘Perhaps I should have done the work when he wasn’t around, but then I might have died,’ thought Scylla inwardly. 

 

Watching her devour the shrimp quickly, Lancion drank his water slowly.

 

“Yes. That’s how you live long.”

 

The little muttering was ignored by Scylla. Lancion’s eyes softened subtly. 

 

Ever since Thyrsus’s poison had nearly sent Scylla across the Styx, he’d been wise enough to know better. 

 

She was a fragile creature who would die quickly if she ate the wrong thing. An old human who doesn’t know how many years she has left.

 

What could he do to keep her away from death?

 

First, break her very own curse. She could never ascend to Olympus in this condition.

 

Once the curse has been lifted, the plan would be to take back the provisions of Olympus. 

 

If caught, you’d be in trouble, but they wouldn’t kill me. Immortality was tedious, so I thought I’d have some fun.

 

That way, I could prolong Scylla’s life and…

 

‘Make her stop.’

 

Dionysus’s eyes swept over her hand. 

 

They were calloused and rough from touching the poison, and he could not see her fingerprints.

 

Neither making poison, nor the vain goal of killing a god, would help her to continue her meager, short life.

 

Scylla chewed on her shrimp and looked up at him. 

 

The food was delicious, even if she was impatient to get back to the table. 

 

Lancion, who had been formulating a plan in his head, smiled softly when he met her gaze.

 

“I told you not to smile so flippantly,”

 

 Scylla grumbled, and then, as if on cue, she asked, “So when are you going to leave this place?”

 

There was a pause.

 

Lancion’s face stiffened, and then he smiled sheepishly, as if to say when.

 

“I have no intention of leaving, Master.”

 

He said it with a smile, and Scylla thought he was joking.

 

“You’re a silly boy. Answer me seriously. A youngster like you can’t stay here forever.”

 

“…”

 

“When are you leaving?”

 

Lancion curled his fingers in his hands, which were now completely cold. His mood sank to the bottom of the lake, like a stone falling to the endless depths.

 

“Master.”

 

He wiped the moisture from his mouth with his handkerchief, his eyes narrowed to hide the life in them. 

 

He had no intention of killing her, but the casualness with which she spoke annoyed him greatly. 

 

After a moment’s pause to hide his displeasure, Lancion spoke up.

 

“Have I become a nuisance to you?”

 

“…”

 

“You’re just stealing my lips…”

 

“Stop!”

 

Scylla’s face flushed red, “Stop saying that. Calling me your teacher doesn’t show the slightest respect for an adult.”

 

“I have more respect for you than anyone else.”

 

“And yet you mock me every chance you get?”

 

“So, you’re really bothered by me?”

 

Scylla scowled at him with a shrimp.

 

“You don’t need me anymore?”

 

“That’s… well.”

 

“…”

 

“That’s not it.”

 

She swallowed the shrimp and joined in. She liked his food, and she waited for mealtime except when she was immersed in her research. 

 

Not only that, but his advice had been quite helpful in her research. There was no way Scylla wouldn’t find him useful.

 

“Not really, but…”

 

“Well?”

 

“A youngster like you won’t be in these mountains for long, and with your skills, you’ll learn everything I know in no time, even if it’s just by looking over my shoulder. You’re wasting your time here, and even if there are benefits to having you around…”

 

Lancion’s anger faded.

 

She was worried about him.

 

The future of the human Lancion, to be exact.

 

She thought the promising young man was wasting his talents in Mount Cithearon, far from the city and the world. She stabbed an olive with her fork. 

 

He knew what Scylla was thinking, but her cold eyes didn’t warm up.

 

She sounded worried, but in other words, wouldn’t it be better without him? 

 

It would be a little sad, but it wouldn’t be a big deal if he was gone. No, he didn’t like it, even if it wasn’t to the point of clinging to him…

 

Lancion absentmindedly imagined Scylla clutching him around the waist and begging him not to go.

 

A pleasant flush crept up his white cheeks. In a way, it was a similar fantasy to his original purpose. 

 

He wanted this cranky, stubborn human who dared to be so cocky with him to worship him like a maenade…

 

But it had been a kind of fun game. It was different now. He didn’t want to be worshiped by her. 

 

On the contrary, he would be offended if Scylla worshiped him like some rest of the priests.

 

He needed to do two things. Stop saying funny things like when he was leaving, and stop thinking about it altogether.

 

Yes. Make it so she couldn’t imagine life without him. 

 

It wasn’t like worship. It was different. Because what he wants from her doesn’t involve blind, doll-like adoration.

 

“You tell me to eat well, and here I am, munching down. Come to think of it, I’ve never seen you eat something that hard. Is it tasteless? You made it.”

 

“I’m a slow eater. You wouldn’t know that, Master, because you always get up first.”

 

“…”

 

“I don’t mind, I’m just a little lonely, but you’re busy, so I have to understand.”

 

“…”

 

“Besides, eating alone is fine once you get used to it.”

 

Looking at Scylla, who was silent but starting to match his eating pace, Lancion smiled broadly.