After two months, Diluc and the foreign child had become inseparable. Captain still didn't say a word, but they communicated perfectly, especially because the foreign boy was always following Diluc's footsteps, as if he was a lapdog. Only when Diluc thought of some way to get into trouble, Captain would try to dissuade him, sometimes unsuccessfully. This is how it happened the day Diluc wanted to get closer to the river. It wasn't far from the vineyard, but Crepus had forbidden him.

Diluc crouched down behind a row of vines so that James, the escort who always followed him, wouldn't see him throw a stone into some thickets. When the escort looked towards the place, fixing his eyes to make sure that there was nothing and no one dangerous, Diluc grabbed Captain by the arm and dragged him behind some rocks. Then, he waited for James, whose face was distorted by the sudden disappearance of the children, to go and look for them. As soon as they were out of sight, Diluc came out and headed towards the river, but Capitan grabbed him by the shirt and stopped him. When Diluc looked at him, the boy just shook his head. His uncovered eye showed real concern, but that wasn't new to Diluc, and he ignored it.

"We'll be right back," he assured him. "It's boring to always play in the vineyard."

Captain followed him, taking one last look at the house before walking away from it.

As soon as they reached the river, Diluc took off his shoes and rolled up his pants sleeves before putting his feet into the water.

"It's cold!" he shouted, and ran out to Captain, laughing out loud. He grabbed him by the arm and pushed him towards the shore. "Come on, put your feet in."

Captain resisted, and finally Diluc let him be.

"Okay. How about this?" He bent down to pick up several small smooth stones and gave some to his friend. "Have you ever made them jump in the water?"

The boy denied and watched his friend's demonstration. Then he tried it himself, but they all sank into the water, provoking Diluc's laughter.

They spent a good time playing that, Diluc teaching Captain, and Captain failing once and again.

"How can you be so bad at it? It's not difficult," he laughed throwing a new stone, which bounced several times before sinking.

Captain just made a face, annoyed, and decided to retreat. Thanks to that, he was able to see a water slime dangerously approaching Diluc and jumping on him.

"Be careful!!" he shouted and pushed his friend.

They both rolled on the floor and Diluc looked at him surprised. Not only because he saved his life, but because it was the first time he had heard him speak. Captain got up first and discovered that the slime was not alone. Two more of his size and another one much bigger were accompanying it. Diluc got up after him and, seeing the danger, placed himself in front of his friend and took out the short sword that he always carried with him.

They had no escape. There was only water behind them, and the slimes were cutting them off by land. Diluc raised his sword. He had been training daily for a while now, but he had never faced a real enemy, not even one as weak as a slime.

Captain looked at his friend and at his trembling arms. Diluc gripped the sword more tightly and clenched his jaw ready to attack, but Captain stopped him. He took the sword out of his hands and jumped against the nearest slime.

Diluc didn't blink while his friend was dancing with the sword, because that seemed to him: a beautiful and precise dance. Captain was holding the grip with only one hand, and only grabbed it with both when he delivered the final lunge, causing the slime to explode. The enemy's water soaked Captain completely, but he didn't flinch. As soon as he was done with the first, he went for the next one.

His feet were sliding on the sand, barely brushing it, escaping from the slime with graceful movements. When he blew it up, he realized that the other two slimes were very close to Diluc. He went to attack the biggest, but the little one cut him off. He didn't have time to finish with it. The major was about to jump on a helpless Diluc. Then an arrow pierced it, and the big slime exploded over Diluc's head, who got completely soaked. Captain didn't stop to look back and see his savior. He focused on the slime in front of him and finished it off in two flawless moves.

James approached them, bow in hand and angry. He bent down to pick up Diluc's shoes and hit his chest with them before releasing them. Diluc groaned and looked down.

The escort didn't have to say a word for Diluc to follow him, but he did stop to look at Capitan, who held his gaze. He seemed to know the reason why that adult was looking at him as if he had no idea who he was.

"What were you thinking about!" Crepus roared. The children, drenched, were standing in front of him in his office. James was standing by the door.

"I'm sorry, da—"  Diluc began to say.

"Silence!" his father shouted again. "You have disobeyed me! I clearly told you not to leave the vineyard."

The kids looked down as Crepus scolded them. Diluc looked at Captain out of the corner of his eye. He wanted to tell his father that his friend had done nothing, that he had tried to dissuade him and that he had not listened to him, but Crepus was too angry and wouldn't have allowed him to speak.

"You're grounded. Both of you!" he sentenced. "Now go take a bath and lock yourselves in your rooms until I say so. Adelinde!" he shouted, and the maid opened the door. "Take them away."

"Yes, sir." Adelinde obeyed and closed the door after her passage.

"How could you lose sight of them?!" Crepus was now scolding the escort. "You just had to keep an eye on them!"

James walked near the table and bowed to his boss.

"I have no excuse, sir," said the escort. "Your son has been about to die and I take full responsibility. I will accept any punishment you impose on me."

"You've been serving me for years." Crepus walked up to him and looked into his eyes. "It's the first time you've failed me. I'm sure there is an excuse."

James hesitated before answering.

"I heard a noise in the bushes. I looked away just for a moment, but when I looked back again, the children were gone."

Crepus nodded and remained thoughtful for a few seconds.

"You may go now."

"Sir? Aren't you going to punish me?"

"You're punishing yourself enough." Crepus replied. "Next time you won't let a noise distract you."

James, surprised by his boss's decision, didn't move a finger.

"I said you can leave," Crepus insisted.

"Sir, there's something else you should know."

"What is?"

"That kid—I don't think he's a normal kid."

"What do you mean?"

"When I arrived, he had already finished with two minor slimes."

"So what? The smaller slimes are weak. He has probably trained since he was very young. It's not that weird."

"Sir, it's not just because he was able to finish them off, but because of how he did it."

"Wasn't it with my son's sword?"

"Yes, but that child—" he stopped, as if he didn't know how to explain what he had seen.

"Say it."

"I've never seen that sword technique, sir."

"I thought you knew them all."

"I thought so too. And it's not just the technique. The boy moved with precision, as if the sword were just another extension of his body."

"He's only eight years old—"

"Are you sure you shouldn't hand him over to the Grandmaster, sir?" he said lowering his voice. He knew it was a sensitive topic and he didn't want to receive another reprimand.

"He has protected Diluc, hasn't he?"

"Yes, sir, but—"

"He's not a threat. Now, back off."

Adelinde informed her master that the children were bathed and in their respective rooms, so Crepus left his office and went to see them.

First, he entered his son's room. He was sitting on the bed looking at a family photo. His father next to his mother, and she holding a baby Diluc in her arms. Unlike them, his mother had blond hair.

"I'm sure you've had her very worried today," his father told him, pulling Diluc out of his thoughts.

"I'm so sorry, dad." He put the photo aside and looked at him expecting a new scolding. But Crepus had already calmed down. He walked over to the bed and sat down next to him before putting his hand on his head. Diluc shrank back.

"I know you're just a kid, but you need to start thinking about the consequences that your actions could have. You almost died today. Not only you, also Captain."

Diluc ducked his head.

"Why can't I be like other kids?"

"It's complicated—"

"Mom died because she belonged to this family, right?"

"Why do you say that?" Crepus was surprised.

"You always say that I should be cautious because I'm a Ragnvindr. Why do we have so many enemies?"

"We also have a lot of friends. But you need to understand that, in times of war, the most powerful families are always a target."

"But we haven't done anything wrong, have we?"

"They don't care about that, Diluc." He grabbed him by the shoulder and looked into his eyes. "You're still too young to worry about such things, but you're old enough to avoid putting yourself and others in danger, right?"

Diluc nodded.

"Dad—" he said when Crepus was heading to the door. "You're not firing James, are you?"

"What do you think I should do?" he asked in a jocular tone. Something told him that Diluc had something to do with the escort losing sight of them.

"I distracted him so I could get away—"

"So you were able to throw off a perfectly prepared escort."

Diluc looked at him and immediately blushed.

"I also convinced Captain to follow me. He didn't want to."

"I hope you'll be able to use those skills against enemies instead of friends."

"Yes, Dad." He ducked his head.

Crepus knocked on Captain's door before opening it. The kid seemed to be waiting for him, not only by standing next to the desk, but by the look he directed at him, as if he were ready to face an enemy. A shiver ran down Crepus' spine. It was the first time he had seen that look on his face.

"Is something wrong?" he asked carefully, but Captain still didn't say a word. "You don't have to be scared. I know I've been a little upset before, but you've worried me a lot. You could have died."

Crepus approached him slowly. Captain was following him with his only visible eye, without blinking.

"I've come to thank you for protecting Diluc," he continued. "According to him, you tried to dissuade him."

Those words seemed to reassure Captain, who stopped clenching his fists.

"James told me how well you fought." The boy tensed up again. "It looks like they taught you an amazing technique. Is it possible that you come from the south?"

Captain didn't speak or make any movement. He kept looking at Crepus intently, as if he was going to attack him suddenly.

"What are you so afraid of?" He approached him cautiously and grabbed him by the shoulders gently while kneeling down to be at his height. "You're safe here. I promise you that no one is going to do you any harm."

Crepus wondered if that child had ever known the love of a family. He stroked his blue hair with one hand and hugged him. Captain was trembling against his chest, but he didn't return the hug.

When Crepus pulled away, he was heartbroken to see the little guy's tears soaking the left side of his face, as well as the patch that was never removed.

Diluc sneaked out of his room in the middle of the night. He hasn't been able to talk to Captain since they came back from the river. They had dined together, but their father had sent them to his room as soon as they had finished, and strictly forbade them to go out.

He approached Captain's bed in silence, but a board creaked under his feet and Captain stood up alerted. Diluc gave him a mischievous smile.

"Were you sleeping?"

Captain shook his head. Diluc pushed aside the blankets and got into bed next to him. Captain tried to stop him, but he failed.

"If you want me to leave, you're going to have to ask me in words." He looked at him defiantly. Captain only held his gaze for a second before growling and turning around. Diluc made a face and started shaking his friend. "Why don't you wanna talk to me? You've done it before. Is it that you don't know how to speak our language well and that's why you hide it? If you don't talk, you're not going to learn it." He continued to insist until Captain turned around annoyed.

"I can speak your language perfectly."

Diluc showed the proud smile he always put on when he won a game.

"What's your name?" That was the first thing he wanted to know.

"Kaeya," he replied blushing.

"Kaeya—It's beautiful." Diluc smiled and the boy blushed even more.

"Why are you wearing that patch? Do you have any problem in your eye?"

Kaeya didn't seem willing to give more information about himself, because he turned around again and didn't open his mouth. Diluc didn't want to bother him anymore. He'd have plenty of time to do it. However, he did wish to say something to him before going to sleep:

"I'm sorry I got you in trouble. I promise I won't do it again."

He did it again. On many occasions.