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(the words between ‘*’ is memory)
Sleep in the cell links a dream of someone memory.
??? POV
“Your dad is in somewhere far away.” Mum always says this to me, when she and I form a single-parent family, but I have never seen my Dad. I didn’t understand my mum, but I will try supporting her as I can.
Neither the villagers had seen my dad which is why they see her as an unfaithful and immoral woman. Furthermore, I possessed red eyes which are seen as evil at that time. This brought disasters to my family, all my neighbors pushed us out from them. Thanks that I have greater strength than all the people in the village, I started to solve problems for them to gain their ‘trust’ so we can continue to live there.
Although time filled up by almost requests from the neighbors or the other strangers, I could still call it a happy time. Yet, happy time passed fast.
All ‘trust’ vanished by fail in my mission. Greedy village head used my physical strength as the path to wealth, he claimed to complete difficult missions of ‘Monster suppression’ from the Feudal Lord. Follow missions by missions, finally, he claimed it for the King, for a higher position he seeking for which built on my effort.
Crawl higher, fall deeper. My failure led the disaster to the village, then the village head just shirked responsibility and shift the blame onto my family. The one like me who possessed great strength and possessed such portentous eyes were treated as an unwanted evil and my mum was seen as a witch because she is my mother.
“Die! One brought misfortune”18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHfLtnT68fx
“Die! Witch! Die! The Forbidden one!”18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf67Qn28rCL
“Sacrifice yourself! All Evil in the world!”
Villagers shout out with their twisted smile, smile madly for our pain. They had a blind faith that sacrifices a sinful being will suppress the anger of Gods and bless the place again, all people were superstitionists at that time.
My prayers and my begging for mercy are completely erased in the curse of the people.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8lDKLgQegx
What is my sin? Surely they would answer: my existence.
They show no regret or mercy to us, they show no appreciation to my help over the years.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtWhwppjxkz
Powerful one should help people, they take this as granted.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmyYhlxe7t8
Evil being must die, they see this as normal.
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“Penitenziagite! Penitenziagite!” The ignorant people call the fire burning like me to the divine judgment, the inflammation of justice.
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Tied to the cross, I look up to the sky, that is the burning color that I will not forget.
I thought it was the last moment of my life, end up in a flame of abhorrence, the flame of madness.
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Sorey pov
I wake up in the frozen air, it seems I have just seen someone memory, likely to connect one of the parts appeared in ‘Mayvin's souvenir’. The one in the memory was betrayed by the whole village.
Why would I see it? Is this some kind of seraphic artes? Gramps did say that by a very rare chance, the flow of external mana into a body may lead to such an experience.
I touch my pocket and I find the memory fragment given by Mayvin.
“Maybe it provides linkage to the owner of memory…..Is that Tartarus's memory?” I wondered, like Heldalf and Velvet, there was something in the past caused Tartarus to be him now. If I know all his past, maybe I can realize something.
I look up to the skylight.
It's morning now, I can tell by the brightness of the sky, with cloud floating on the blue sky.
It is rare of me to be silent and just look at something apart from ruin, causes my eyes always exploring something new, and it does not work in here.
Though, I remember that Velvet always looks up the sky like pondering something back when she was in the Tewks village with me to work for the paybacks to the old doctor.
*18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Qrp0eKfKn
“Do you like the sky?” One day I asked Velvet when she looks up the sky again.
“Not really.” She answered without adjustment in her gesture, keeps supporting her chin with her palm and watching somewhere far away to the sky, I always wonder what is she looking at.
“Then, do you like the birds?” I followed by a question when I see a bird flying past the sky.
“Not really, but…..” She hesitated as if she thinks of something.
“But?”
“....Why do you think the birds fly?” Velvet thought of the question she once asked by Artorius.
“Hmm.......because they want to see different things in the world?” I answered the question without realizing the significance of the question and I still think it is the best answer for me.
“Suit you……..and ….What if the birds don’t want to fly? Will they die?” Velvet relaxed and asked another question and I didn’t realize the reason behind the question at that time.
“.....Mmm….Even if they don’t fly, there are many things they can do. You see there are also birds like the penguin which can’t fly at all.” I answered with the knowledge I know at that time and I didn’t think too much.
“...........I see.” Velvet didn’t say more other than that which make me wondering if she seeks more than such an answer.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡURU9RhmXPA
*
Back then, Velvet didn’t know I was a Shepherd and I didn’t know she thought herself not deserve to live. She didn’t say it again after meeting Maotelus, but I wonder if she is still considering it. After experienced horrible things, what will one think about life, what will one thinks about the world?18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC2qsiTq0UV
What is the case for Tartarus? Hatred to the world?18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZmp04uKDN6
What is left other than hatred?
Is there no love left for them? Alive, miss nothing, a walking dead.
‘What if the birds don’t want to fly? Will they die?’
It is not a question to the bird, it is another question to the will of life. Maybe I should reconsider the answer next time I see her.
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Velvet pov
A bird flies past the sky in the little frame of the skylight in the cell.
Why do birds fly? Artorius once asked me the question, and my answer was: ‘Birds fly because they want to fly, they don’t need a reason.’.
Now I wondered, what if they don’t want to fly? They fly to hunt and live, then if they don’t want to fly, will they die?
I thought of a tale the Old woman in the Tewks village once told me, a story of a bird can’t fly.
*18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3hhHFyrl0c
Normally, the old woman will help the old doctor in the clinic but seems she has a break today.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn1v7CR5aXa
I have just asked Sorey for the question: “ What if the birds don’t want to fly? Will they die?”. Then, the old woman approached me and told me a story, I guessed she just heard our conversation.
“Have you heard a story of a bird can’t fly?” The old woman asked.
“I know penguin can’t fly.”
“No, it is an unpopular modern tales for children.” The old woman smiled and stated.
“Haven’t heard.” If it is an unpopular modern tales in the world, some ancient being like me is not going to know, and I am not concerning about such things in the past anyway.
“Then I will tell you, and, Sorey, you may come to listen too,” She said and then invite Sorey to come to listen to it together. Elders always love telling stories, and usually for the good sake of the kids. Even if I think it is somehow annoying, I will stay and listen to her. She started talking about the story in the point of view of the bird can’t fly.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN3qalfqdJq
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What is on the other side of the island? Whenever I see the unchanging scenery, I will have such an idea.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJzz92eSyce
Since I lived on this island, I have not left the island. Living on this island day after day, nothing changes, just a dull sense of peace of mind. There are basically no prey and no hunters, no plants, only the erosion of the waves, is an absolute desert island.
His being is what let me live this life from a boring life. He has the same characteristics as me. The front chest is white, black from the head to the whole back, and the black big bend, the difference is that his wings are much longer than mine, and he has feathers on his wings. The more absolute difference is --
"You still can't fly." He is sighed as I am so alike to him but I can’t fly. I don't count how many times he sighed, I am also annoyed with my incompetence. This is the biggest difference between me and him. I don't understand why we look so similar but so different. And this difference has also caused differences in our lives.
He always sleeps in the crevices of the cliffs and I can only sleep silently under those cliffs. I don't have the ways to get there, whether it's flying or crawling. And I can't go hunting from this island, and I can only walk around at most every day.
"Why are you flying?" Why can you fly? If I know the reason, I might fly.
"Because I have to prey to survive, you should also learn to stand on your own. When will you stop relying on the food I sent?" "Okay, well, the topic has developed into this, it is an answer full of reality, and he will turn this into a preach again. Whatever after this will be how he met me when I was an egg, he saw the egg contained me was particularly large and there were no birds around them, but he didn’t expect me to be so useless even after growing up to a large size.
"I will practice it again." In order to prevent him from starting to swear again, I quickly interrupted his words.
"Better. Hey, I am going out, look after yourself!" With his dull voice, he stalked the waves again, his black back in the dawn of the ocean. Slow and small, but very obvious, the light reflected by his flying posture is very dazzling in my opinion. Flying low in the air to nearly touches the sea level, then fly high and gliding in the sky, how free is this!
Every time he came back, it was not long, probably to remedy the amount of fish without the role of the mother. From his speech, I learned that other birds would take turns with the female birds. But the female bird with him disappeared. When he came back, the female bird had disappeared. It is estimated that it was hunted or just flew away. Then he will complain: "If you know how to fly, I have already left this barren land."
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There is nothing on this island, mostly rocks. No animals come to the island, let alone the birds having the same black and white pattern as us. He is my only conversation partner and learning object, and every time I see his flying posture, my inner admiration of the flight increases, which is the driving force for me to try to fly to the waterfront every day.
After he left, I went to practice on a small rocky reef on the south coast. I extended my wings which not long to reach my feet and in half-length as the wing-length of my partner, jumping at the top of the rock.
I fell into the water. It doesn't matter! Come again!18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8RipCAAWVJ
Fall again! Come again!
So I also fell into the water more than a hundred times today, and I hurry back every time. I have not forgotten that he said that falling into the water for too long will result in a curse that will not be able to move. He solemnly warned me that I couldn't get into the water for too long. He told me to show me that he had witnessed the horror of a friend who was struggling to get rid of the water after he was caught by the ‘black shadow’ while swimming. And he has never sailed since then.
Jumping tired, I will sit on the stone and look at the still landscape. The sky is falling into the night. The tiny stars are shining in the sky. Although it is beautiful, the scenery is the same as it is every day. Sometimes, an amazing scene may be seen, when the stars pierced the night sky with the end of their light. However, this spectacle is rare in a hundred years, so I am more look forward to seeing the rainbow-ribbons in the sky that he often tells the Far Southern Sea. It is said to be elegantly, gently swing in the night sky, it can't be touched, but it lets people feel the pulse of life.
Every time he came back, he always brought me a lot of novelty stories from the outside. This is something I can’t approach when I can only stay on this island. The world outside is very vast, there are many things I have never seen before. I hope that I can go out and see one day. For this, I have to learn to fly as soon as possible.
The flow of time cannot be seen on this unchanging island. I don’t know how many days and nights I have spent, he still has not returned. I always have an unpredictable hunch, worrying about what happened to him, maybe I have worried too much about it. Still, I continue to try flying.
Why do birds fly? I asked myself this question again. Isn't my obsession not enough?
He said that he is flying for survival, and the story he brings always comes with joy for survival. On the other hand, I don’t know how many years I am trapped on the island. The idea of survival for me is that, besides being bored still boring, can such an idea really make me fly? Or I need a better reason. For example, look at the other side of the island, look at the end of the sea, and so on?
In that case, the big stone on the beach can no longer satisfy me, I want to see farther. I want to go to the upper level, jump up to the cliff on the other side, look at the endless seascape, and then fly out!
The reason for my flight is that I want to fly, I want to see more scenery I have never seen before, this is enough.
The sea breeze slammed on me. At the end of the cliff, I extended my wings and embraced the cold air and felt the wind. I know this is my most brave test of flight, and my last test of flight, this time I will fly!
I closed my eyes, straightened my arms, and jumped down the cliff.
The air particles swept through the body quickly, and the body was accelerating and falling. This is the feeling of nose-diving.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4dHazR1Xzp
I patted the wings, but I didn't see any change, but not long after, the body became light after it pressed something. Maybe I was already flying, I opened my eyes. . . . . .18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhcqbc6vyZq
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“The story ended.” The old woman told.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvEYpdJsPcP
‘“Huh?”’ Both Sorey and I exclaimed as the story is clearly incompleted.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFSyiktEgYM
“It is ended, the author intended to keep it an open-end, leave the area of imagination.”18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXMgjeqV1MC
“It must be dead,” I commented. The story stated that the bird can’t fly for many times, I can sure the two birds are different species that one of them may be a penguin.
“Maybe, the author did say that the setting is a Great auk living with a Razorbill, but she also said that it is your choice to not perceive the story with reality setting.” The old woman stated the names of animals that I don’t understand.
“Then, the author also thinks the bird will die after jumping.”18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJi3koOmN2d
“Or maybe he just dived into the deep sea.” Sorey wondered.
“Right, even if he died, his soul may start another journey too if you want, depending on how you view it.” The old woman stated.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡri1wgDPv1J
“Why are you telling me this story?” I asked as I wonder if this does anything with ‘what if they don’t want to fly?’.
“I hope that you may perceive things differently before you think of it in that way again.” The old woman suggested when keeping things hidden in words, probably not wanting Sorey to worry about it.
“It is not healthy to always look at things with boring eyes.” She added. I feel that she is trying to persuade me thinking about the world in another way before I say I don’t want to live, even if she doubts at me.
“Got it.” I listened, but I will not promise.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQuSibUnD30
*
I thought of the story but still can’t help to think the bird died in the end. No matter how much he wished to fly, his will would not change his species, he is limited that he can’t fly. As anything happened, it is hard to change the nature of one.
Even if being a human again.
Cold, a lost sensation since me becoming a therion.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLEvtRmuxkB
There is less cold since I stayed in the region in the summer period. In Tewks village, I saw the green crops shining with the water drops on them reflecting the sunlight, the fiery pomegranate flowers bloom on the street tree embellished the enthusiasm in the village. In the night, countless stars in the black gem-like sky squinted, the weavers gently smashed on the loofah frame, the melon fields were filled with the fresh smell of melons, and the quiet night was covered with a mysterious atmosphere. There is no air-conditioner, it is not necessary for such a plain and remote village and this didn’t cause discomfort to me, I was living in a similar village.
However, I am well aware that I am in a completely opposite place from Tewks village. It is freezing here, it reminds me that cold is my most disliked sensation when I was a human. Since I got my sensation back, I am only an ordinary people now, reminded me of my powerless in this stage. I am fixed on a panel by a cold metal ring, something I may be able to break when I was a therion. That is the first time I yearn for the therion power after the awakening.
Eye wide open, I found myself being trapped in a different room from the previous “cage”. The unknown liquid is contained in different cylinder glass containers some of them is connected to the other human body lying beside my bed by some tubes. Also, some embryos with orange eyes contained in some glass cylinder in the liquid, creepy that I feel it is similar to Beta when looking at the eyes.
I can say here is similar to the clinic in Tewks village but the atmosphere is different, silence and death is flooded in the air, here is not a place for rescue, it is a place for experiment, I may as well see some ‘fail experimental products’ chained on beds, like some semi-human I saw in Titania, I was also responsible to eat those failed experimental products in there, those people failed in becoming therion. Abbey has done dirty works to figure out how the therion thing works, as far as I knew, in more ancient time than Abbey presence, pure people sacrificed to become therion and awoke Innominat when world doomed in malevolence and all 4 Empyreans asleep. People with a pure heart who is receptive to Innominat power turned out to be the necessary properties required to become a therion. Ironic, people with a pure heart are able to suppress their malevolence in normal time, it is what needed to be the therion containing the malevolence well. With heartbroken events, enough to trigger the malevolence in those pure people overflown and turn them into therion. It turned out not easy to figure out how the therion things work, Artorius used 3 years for that, with lots of failed therion in process and I don’t know how long the weird man has been doing this in this highly technical laboratory.
“Hello, my hound.” The disgusting sound of the weird man ring in the room and he will never call my name.
“You are confused? Don’t worry, just a request. As you are only a human now, can’t do much for me, I shall grant you extra ‘blessing’ with my ‘arte’ and give you a partner. From now, you will have to collaborate with a seraph of my collection and go destroy the region you were sent. Good luck.” He ordered and I didn’t have a chance to answer. He doesn’t need to wait for an answer either.
A Portal created in front of me, I am freed after I felt a seraphic arte cast on me.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ8sDZeRLQh
Obeying the order or escaping from here are the options here but I must obey. Basically, no choice for me if I don’t want to risk Edna’s and Sorey’s life, not to mention my life. I touch the metal collar at my neck to confirm its existence.
I can’t die before I save them.
I looked at my look in some reflection from the human-size glass cylinder around, knowing that my clothes are still the clothing of the Lord of Calamity, the ragged shabby black coat with the exposed strapless vest. Likely that I have to do it all again when I have said I don’t want to do this again without a reason to Sorey and Edna. Though I doubt this is a proper reason for it.
Getting to the destination through the portal, I saw a woman stand beside me. I am not used to it, the partners have been traveled together changed to another person. The woman is slightly shorter than me, wearing dresses in mainly white and blue tone and her hairstyle is double tail in mainly reddish hair turns silver at the end. Also, she has green eyes, almost remind me of Eleanor Hume if she is not in fishy(Sluggish) eyes.
“Hey.” I greeted the women who likely the seraph I required to collaborate in the following time.
“.....Hi. ” She hesitated and greeted me in a dead tone, sound like those calmed stagnant marak without a free will in my journey.
“......Eleanor.”The seraph doesn’t seem to have memory-related to Eleanor, maybe she is only having a similar look to her that the man just like to cause me confused. It is not surprising he knew Eleanor too when he knew about me, I wonder why is that though.
“.....Elea..nor?” The seraph repeated the word hesitantly.
“........Nothing. What is the nearest village or town?” I managed to pretend I don’t know her. Indeed, we should be complete strangers. It is also possible that she is the seraphic reincarnation of Eleanor but what can’t be sure of is that they are the same person. Since her eyes are dead inside, not like the one I know. Eleanor should have more cheerful eyes while always trying her best to work for people, she would not work for an Evil being except for some reasons, like kidnapping. Still, I have a strong feeling that she is Eleanor Hume.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWj0UZ75hp0
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“Tewks….Destroy Tewks.” She answered me like a robot.
“.......What is the point of the destruction?” I forgot to breathe for a moment when I heard the name of the village.
Tewks, the first village I lived after the awakening, ironically turned to be the first place I shall bring destruction. I would like to minimize the damage to the villagers if allowed, just not to repeat my sin in my original village, Aball.
“To bring the overflow of malevolence all over the world again.” The seraph stated emotionless.
Destroying the world that Laphicet tried so hard to protect it, it is not funny, like I am betraying him.
“Burn it?” The seraph urged me to decide.
“...............” I didn’t answer when I need time to consider for my action, but it seems too late when I see the eyes of the female seraph turned red. I am sure that is the symbol of something bad will happen.
“Wait!”
“I didn’t allow you the time to think about it.” The voice of the man played out from a little vibration in my metal collar.
“Damn it!”18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeImbddWggu
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When I noticed, I am already in a burning wasteland.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIbg8QTReTv
It just happened next to me, at the moment I failed to stop the female seraph casting her seraphic arte.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDoXqaJh4MG
Just a second, the lightning strike the through village like a greatsword, like it is the Anger of God. Next second, it caused an explosion and the flame engulfs the whole village, spread around the buildings and forest surrounding.
The place I have lived for two months is turned into a burning wasteland.
I can do nothing but stand to watch the fire burn down the village.
This is the wanted result of the order, if I chose to obey, then I am an accomplice of this.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQEj07Mg4oS
I watch the female seraph next to me who do no more action other from the lightning, she is watching the fire.
The female seraph has the face nearly identical to Eleanor Hume, but she just has done a cruel thing to the village. How can she do such things without a doubt? And why the hell I still have the feeling that she is the one I knew?
Anyway, she and I are accomplices who cause the fire now, and we watch it burn, we can just watch. This is the order.
The situation didn’t last long, at least the fire became weak after a while. The wall of fire that as high as the building reduced its height gradually, but then, most of the buildings are collapsed, the reinforcement steel bar in the concrete exposed.
Automatically, I run into the fire.
In the fire, the collapsed house and charred people.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI10BNc4vnh
Even for some murderer like me would find the burnt scent is disgusting, all are the scent of the burnt corpses.
No matter how far I go, only red is seen in the vision, like I am the only survivor in the fire.
I am running aimlessly in here, and I wish it is just a nightmare.
The surrounding blurred with smothery heat air. Although I can’t see it, I am sure that none of the faces of the people are showing happiness. Sound of demolishing continue as I see thick everywhere blocking my sight to see any available people or building but a blurred outline of shadow.
The fire flamed brightly and people scream lightly.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAzvupSjhBB
Miserable yell became smaller to my ear as the inexorable hell mercilessly take away their life energy by the pain they felt.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxsDVDf3V0z
The sound of demolishing concrete building blocked the cry for help when more people are being pressed under the rubble.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRyQ5nJEM2M
The surrounding wood burns and nothing is earned. It is a result must be done to save my friends.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUYQTbmNj7s
Someone cried with the face twisted. I can only be witness to the ‘sin’ I sinned.
“Velvet? Why are you here?” A villager who has worked with me for a while just noticed me when he is trying to save people.
“I see her with the woman who starts the explosion!!” Another injured villager he just saved said, possibly that he has high resonance when he can perceive Eleanor.
“No, it won’t be...Right? Velvet?” The villager asked and I give no answer to it. Since I can’t stop it and it is indeed a result I need to save my friend.
“See? She can’t answer! Cough! Cough!” The injured villager is angry at me.
“...........I can’t believe it.” The villager took the injured one away and he just gives a gaze like he hated the sight of me.
I betrayed the village that saving me in this Era. It should not be like this, I struggled.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8XNnBQsvUz
I tried to be blind and deaf, saying this is none of my business and so I may do nothing to say those victims from the village ruin.
I watched the tragedy happened as I didn’t stop the seraph to burn and destruct the village. I need to do it anyway when I have to obey the order. Any compassionate heart is only a hypocritical existence at this moment.
It is the village which first accepted me and saved me. However, a monster like me have no sense of shame, I repay them with this destruction. I laughed, see what have I done to the kind people.
What am I doing? To save two of new and only friends left in this Era by destructing a whole village, nope, may as well causing more destruction in the future? This must be wrong.
More wrong is to feel sorry to those people hurt and killed by me.
Of course, I know it is wrong, I know the weight of the sin. I can’t even apologize, cause no one to hear, there is nothing to say.
I know I am the one to blame. Still, I commit the crime again, to bring destruction to protect someone. Feel worse than bring destruction to avenge someone. Well, at least those two is saved. They should not die.
Would there be a better way? I asked myself, maybe Sorey will ask me for a better way, a way to save both sides even if I know there is no way to save without sacrifice.
I can’t bear to see someone who saves me once in mortal danger in my very eyes.
The man didn’t prohibit me to do anything other from destruction, then there is a way to redeem my ‘sin’.
I know this is ironic, but I want to help those who are victimized by me. Even if it is very hypocritical, I want to do something for them. It is certainly not wrong to want to help people, even if there is little thing I can do, I want to do to save things before everything is irreparable.
That is exactly why I run into the fire in the first place.
I run into the scene of the fire and search for possible survivors.
“...!” I see the seraph want to run after me, her eyes recovered in its original color.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3n2NkhFZoe
“Stay there, please,” I begged, at least allow me to do something right.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJLKaznaTIG
“........” The seraph looked a little astonished but stayed in the spot.
Then, I turn my head back to the hell I ‘caused’.
The peaceful Tewks in the past is now turned into a village of rubble. I remove everywhere as I could to search survivors.
“ Anyone there?” I shout and hope to get an answer from those victims.
A hand extended out of a pile of rubble as if it wants to catch a hand. I go and lend my hand without the slightest hesitation. I won't let my hesitation to bother me. There is a boy little boy under the rubbles with lifeless eyes.
I catch his hand while it starts slumping.
It is still warm and I can feel his light pulse from his brachial artery, he is still breathing and he is still living.
“Great, at least one.” Tears shredded from my eyes corners lightly for my gratefulness at this moment. I pull the child out from the dangerous space.
Hoping it is not too late, I remove the rubbles as much as I could and I am going to save as much as I could, even I may only save around ten people.
Still, something cannot be retrieved.
After finding 2 more survivors, I find an old woman lying on the ground with half of her legs buried under the rubble.
“---------No, please.” I held the old woman in my arm, recognizing that she is the one taking care of me in those days I lived in the village. I can never repay the debt fully to her and the old doctor, and I wish she doesn’t die because of this.
I tested her body temperature, obviously decreasing and her pulse is really light and slow, she is dying.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSrjcYh4K9z
I tested her breath, with a finger. Thanks to the empyrean that she still has breath.
“...Velvet, welcome back, sorry but I can't bring anything for you.” The old woman smiled weakly and said.
“Just save your energy, I will pull you out of there.” Hearing the weakening voice, I have the feeling that the one in front of me will die soon, and I can’t allow this to happen.
“No, just give up on me, I know the end is soon for me.” The old woman stated weakly and peacefully, she knew her fate and accepted it.
“No, don’t. Sorry! It is all my fault….I am the one who causes this….live, please, just a little more.” My anxiety made the sentence organization messy, and the life that is about to die is what I want to recover.
If confessing my crimes arouse the survival will of the person in front of me and arouse miracles, I would definitely confess all, let her anger brought her alive. Like what brings me alive again when I fell into the pit of Innominat.
“It is okay, I understand, I knew and you are not that kind of person….. You have your reason.” She smiled and said in a miserable cracking voice, calm like death. Maybe she already got such information if she is a member of some skillful dark guild managing information. She used to doubt me, but she still cares about me and hopes me to live at last. She tried to persuade me to live too when I was still living with her. Yet, now…….
“No…..I am a monster……….You should be angry!!” Still, she can hate me for that. I can accept hatred but I can’t accept something like this, I don’t have the right for that.
“What I see...is only a girl crying inside…I am sorry that….” Not finishing her sentence, her energy is not enough to sustain her life. Her hand lifelessly relaxed with temperature fading away, released from my hand and her eyes closed forever.
“Sorry, really, I am sorry.” I hugged her corpse tightly, feel no tears down my cheek.
The only thing I can do is to hold the old lady’s dead body out of the fire and carefully put her down onto the earth.
“Rest in peace,” I whispered and prayed to the dead, then continue to try my best to save the left survivors. I didn’t count, and I don’t need to count it. It is just what I want to do for the villagers. It is what I have to do.
Then, I leave without burying the dead, as I have no right to do it.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqSdpiYx0kz
I know I will have to kill more after today.
----------------------------------------------TBC--------------------------------------------------
A.N.18Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVxmyhNukVu
I think I will receive knives if someone really read the story until now…….well, at least I still leave hope in this chapter if you notice…..
Umm…...let’s just changing topic…. Did anyone forget the first village of the story, Tewks village? Well, even me the author forgot the name…..and I just find there are towns name generator in the Net…...Why didn’t I meet it earlier…….too late to change its name(sigh) Whatever, so I remind the name and the place with a bunch of words and memory that may be useless……..
By the way, the story of the bird can’t fly is just a created story in the middle( and it is kind of unrelated?). Even if it really like that the bird dies in the end, there are lots of possibilities apart from it. The old woman is trying to say this to velvet (and I am trying to say it is no only bad endings even if I just write chapters like this…..)
Well, it is not persuasive? That’s why I promised a good ending in the very beginning.
Hum, like the previous chapter said, wait and hope…...the pain and anger will be calmed one day….time heals all sorrow.
(The author escaped temporarily)
ns3.15.145.122da2
