Chapter 3 : The Room

With blurred vision and a severe hunger gnawing at his body, Vain woke up once again on the freezing floor he thought he had escaped unscathed.

The agony of his missing eye returned to contort his face, accompanied by the biting pain of the rusted chains pulled tightly around his arms.

Vain opened his remaining eye to the darkness once more, allowing despair to seep back into his heart.

He had believed the nightmare was over, that he had ascended to what he called paradise, until the one named "Naros" ruined that beautiful dream.

As he sat in anguish, pondering what to do now that every way out seemed sealed, the ominous voice—the very entity that had robbed him of his eye—pierced the silence of the room with a mocking tone:

"Boy, have you finally lost your mind or what? You were smiling the entire time you were unconscious."

Vain listened in absolute silence.

He feared that if he spoke, another part of his body would end up flying through the air as his left eye had, so he resolved not to utter a single word until he was certain any potential danger had passed.

The mocking voice sighed in boredom and continued:

"Ah—did I accidentally take your tongue along with your eye or what, boy?"

Vain didn't move a muscle. He remained lying on the ground, staring at the floating eye with a half-dead look of sheer exhaustion, having lost all hope of leaving this cursed room alive.

That is, until the voice spoke again, but with a completely different tone this time... a tone of shock:

"Hah! Boy, what the hell did you do? You aren't supposed to have any magic in your body!"

Vain was bewildered by the entity's words. He weakly turned his head, a look of utter confusion on his face. Coughing up blood, hovering on the brink of death, he struggled to reply:

"Cough—What are you babbling about now, you luna—"

His words were cut abruptly short. A searing focal point of overwhelming heat suddenly erupted within his heart. He whispered in a broken breath:

"Wha—what the hell is happening?"

Meanwhile, the entity could only stare in absolute awe, entirely unable to comprehend what was happening to this human. What it was witnessing was an absolute impossibility.

The heat exploded madly within Vain's heart until his eye began to water. He screamed with all his might, and though no sound escaped his parched throat, the temperature kept rising until it gradually transformed into a brilliant light emitting from his chest, spreading across the room and tearing through the pitch-black darkness.

The heat surged through his veins into the rest of his body as he writhed in excruciating agony.

As he thrashed on the ground, the light began to fade, and with it, the agonizing heat that was roasting him alive subsided. Vain unconsciously raised his hand to check his heart, which was pounding so fiercely it felt like it would burst from his chest.

In that moment, he noticed something strange; it had become remarkably easy to move.

His hand felt lighter... or so he thought, before he realized that the portions of the chains binding his wrists and ankles had completely vanished.

They had been carbonized, turned into dust scattered around his body.

Energy returned to his body. Though it could barely be called energy, given how utterly exhausted he still was from the recent ordeals, the only distinct difference—aside from the charred chains—was that his hunger felt noticeably less severe than before.

Vain was left in a state of utter stupefaction, unable to grasp anything that had just transpired.

He stumbled to his feet, dazed in the middle of the room as darkness reclaimed it, trying to process the situation. Suddenly, he noticed an eye floating perilously close to his face... Right, it was his own eye, the one he had traded for information with the mysterious entity.

Vain leaped backward in sheer terror, letting out a muffled scream, and unceremoniously landed on his rear. He scrambled to his feet and retreated to the corner of the room, desperate to put distance between them and assess the situation, until the entity's question caught him off guard:

"Boy, what in the hell did you just do?"

After glaring at it for a brief moment, Vain replied in a furious, disoriented tone:

"I don't know! And don't talk to me, you lunatic!"

Silence engulfed the room.

Vain remained in his corner, silently tracking the eye—its surrounding blood now dried—as it floated sluggishly through the air.

The entity, too, stayed silent, its gaze fixed on the wall this peculiar human was leaning against.

Finally, the entity shattered the silence with a single word:

"Boy."

Vain tensed for a fraction of a second, bracing for whatever this cruel monster was about to say next.

Then, a direct proposition from the floating eye made him even more on edge than before:

"Let us forge another contract."

The moment those words registered in his mind, Vain shot them down fiercely and without a second's hesitation:

"I refuse."

The entity replied in a calm, almost soothing tone:

"My, my, don't be like that. Hear me out, at least."

Vain remained silent, his curiosity piqued regarding what this being—which had taken his eye using this exact same trick—was about to propose.

He had already resolved internally to reject any offer, no matter what it was.

Then came a proposal he never saw coming:

"I will help you escape this room. What do you say?"

Vain froze upon hearing this sudden offer. Yet, what intrigued him even more was finding out the price.

He had no intention of repeating his previous mistake and bartering away another piece of his flesh for something that might not be worth it.

He stayed quiet for a moment, then sat on the floor, keeping his focus locked on the floating eye, and asked warily:

"What is the catch? If it's another part of my body, the answer is no."

His curiosity about the demanded price deepened, focusing entirely as he waited for the answer that would dictate whether he left this room or rotted in it.

The entity paused for a few moments... before dropping its condition:

"You will take me out with you."

Vain's pupil dilated. He had never once considered the possibility that the entity was also trapped in this room; he had assumed the whole time that it was a guard keeping him imprisoned, or simply lingering to amuse itself by torturing him slowly. Unable to believe his ears, he asked instinctively:

"What did you just say?"

The eye looked straight at him and declared:

"Exactly what you heard. I will help you leave this room, and in exchange, you will bring me out with you."

Despite the absolute clarity of the repeated offer, Vain remained in disbelief. He had been so certain this being could leave whenever it pleased.

He sat in silence for minutes, a torrential flood of questions running through his mind: "Can I really escape? Is it lying? Will it kill me if I refuse? Do I even have another choice?"

He found himself, just like the first time, calculating the odds and potential losses. Then, suddenly, an idea sparked in his mind that would alter his current fate; he belatedly realized that the entity possessed a desperate desire to leave as well.

He automatically deduced that this time—unlike their previous encounter—he held the upper hand in the negotiation.

Gathering his wits, Vain stood up straight, shedding his caution and fear.

He walked slowly toward the eye hovering in the center of the room. He stared directly into it, a single drop of sweat rolling sluggishly from his forehead to his nose before landing softly on the floor. Then, he stated with firm resolve:

"I-I have three conditions."

Silence hung in the air for a moment.

Then, the eye began to tremble mid-air. Confused and scrambling for thoughts, Vain took two steps back.

As the eye shook, the entity burst into roaring laughter, prompting Vain to pull a dumbfounded face, asking himself: "What is going on here?" The entity remarked, its voice still laced with mirth:

"Hahahahaha—boy, I think I gave you the wrong impression. Hahaha, oh my—"

It continued laughing until it gradually died down on its own.

Vain felt a deep wave of embarrassment; his face flushed red and his ears burned. The entity scoffed mockingly:

"A mere human demanding conditions from an ancient spirit! If the world knew of this, they would fall on their faces laughing."

Vain remained quiet, not fully grasping the meaning behind its words.

The entity noticed his confusion and decided to clarify its stance, proving it still held the high ground in the pact they were about to forge:

"Listen here, boy. I am a spirit. Do you even know what that means?"

Vain kept staring, his expression openly broadcasting his ignorance. The entity sighed and elaborated:

"You truly know nothing, do you? Very well, listen closely. I am a spirit, which simply means I live for thousands of years. You, on the other hand, are merely human. And in your current, pathetic state, I doubt you will even last two days before you die here."

Vain swallowed hard and fell silent. Deep down, he knew the entity’s logic was flawless. His mind raced, desperately searching for an argument to tip the scales back into balance.

He thought and thought, anxiety driving him to bite his nails.

The entity waited for his response, listening to the rhythmic clicking of teeth against fingernails, until Vain suddenly broke the silence:

"I have no proof, but if I die here, I don't think you'll be able to leave, either."

The entity stopped hovering and became completely still, as if Vain had struck a nerve. It asked in its usual mocking tone:

"Oh? And what makes you believe that?"

A faint smile crept onto Vain's face; it was as if he had been waiting for that exact question. He pointed a finger toward the other chains in the room and replied:

"The blood."

The entity sounded intrigued: "Huh?"

Vain lowered his finger slightly and explained:

"That dried blood around the other chains is deeply caked into the floor. Its color is far darker than the blood I just spilled."

The floating eye pivoted slowly toward the spot he was pointing at.

The entity stayed quiet as it took in the sight of the dried blood, now curious to hear the rest of this human's deduction. It prompted him:

"And?"

Vain continued, clearly anticipating the prompt:

"Simply put, it means that everyone who was brought into this room died shackled by those chains. From what I can see, the blood is only concentrated near the shackles; there isn't a single drop anywhere else. Your continued presence here means one of two things: either people came here, were imprisoned, and slowly died in vain because they couldn't free themselves, or you haven't met a single prisoner before me, making me the very first person you've laid eyes on."

The entity was silent for a moment, staring intently at Vain’s pale face. It let out a sigh that echoed throughout the entire room, making Vain tense up again.

Then, it spoke in a calm, measured tone:

"Boy, even if what you say is true, it doesn't change the fact that you will die soon. Meanwhile, I can simply wait for the next person to arrive, even if it takes years."

Vain gulped. He saw that this counter-argument was devastatingly absolute, regardless of what he said next. He decided to play his final card, completely disregarding the rule he had set for himself about avoiding asking questions:

"What—what are the chances that the next person manages to break free from the chains?"

Silence reigned once more, yet it stretched far longer than before.

This time, the hesitation came from the entity, the being that seemingly knew everything.

Since the impending answer would determine who held the leverage in this negotiation, Vain found himself sweating profusely with each passing second.

The suffocating tension was only broken when a loud rumble erupted from his empty stomach, piercing the quiet of the room and slightly cutting through the heavy atmosphere.

Vain’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment in the middle of this critical debate. Finally, the entity's response came in a hushed voice:

"Slim."

Vain didn't quite catch it and blurted out involuntarily: "Huh?!"

The entity repeated itself, louder and distinctly annoyed:

"Slim. The chances of the next person breaking free from these chains are exceedingly slim. They are magic-resistant."

Vain was stunned. His eye widened to its limits upon hearing the answer that completely tipped the scales of their negotiation, only to be hit immediately with a swift, direct counter from the entity:

"One condition."

Vain couldn't believe the entity had actually yielded. Even if it meant reducing his demands to a single condition, he viewed it as a sweeping victory.

Without realizing it, his legs gave out and he dropped onto his backside. The immense wave of relief washing over him after such intense pressure sent blood rushing to his face, bringing a tear of joy to his eye.

After a brief moment of respite, he sat in the middle of the room, deliberating on what his condition should be.

Declaring "three conditions" at the start had only been a bluff, mirroring the three questions the entity had granted him previously; he had no actual idea what to demand.

Thoughts raced through his mind: "Obedience? Should I demand that it obeys me? Would it even agree to that? Non-aggression, perhaps? Should I demand it doesn't harm me once we leave? Or my eye? Should I ask for it back? But could it even be restored now that its nerves have been severed?"

He remained lost in hesitation until time slipped away and his legs grew stiff and numb.

Deciding it was time to move, he stood up and approached the entity again. As he walked toward the eye drifting in the air, the entity beat him to the punch:

"Have you decided on your condition, boy?"

Vain stood tall, prepared to lay down his terms to the very being that had put him through hell:

"Help me."

The entity replied reflexively, utter confusion in its voice: "Huh?!?"

Vain took a deep breath and repeated the exact same word: "Help me."

The entity was baffled by this unprecedented demand:

"Boy, aren't you supposed to demand that I don't harm you? And what do you mean by 'help me'? Help you with what?"

While pondering his choices, Vain had come to a harsh realization: with his memories completely wiped, he had no idea what awaited him outside this room. His sole source of information was this wicked entity.

Despite his intense hatred for it, he recognized it was the most rational play he had in his current predicament:

"Help me regain my memories."

The entity was taken aback for a second time.

It genuinely thought the boy had finally gone mad, asking for assistance from the very creature that had scooped out his eye.

It floated closer until the gap between them was thinner than a strand of hair. It said nothing, merely staring deeply into the boy's unblinking eye.

Vain had fortified his resolve; he was going to force this creature into servitude as a twisted form of revenge.

The entity floated a step back. Vain held his ground, maintaining his fierce, unwavering glare.

A sigh slipped from the entity before it spoke:

"You truly are a lunatic, boy, for proposing such a condition.

Very well, I accept."

Vain echoed in sheer disbelief: "Huh?!?

You actually accepted?!?"

The entity replied with a tired drawl: "Yes."

Still refusing to believe it, as he was certain the entity wouldn't cave so easily, Vain pressed:

"W-why? I thought you would decline."

The entity justified its reasoning: "Well, you are just a human at the end of the day. You'll live for forty or fifty years at best—"

It hovered closer to his face to deliver the final part of its sentence: "Besides, I find you rather interesting."

Vain stiffened at the response.

Yet, simultaneously, a profound sense of relief washed over him as the fruits of his labor materialized, allowing a gentle, comforting smile to grace his features.

Suddenly, he felt a sharp prick in his left eye socket. He raised his hand to scratch the spot, only to be stunned—his eye had returned to its socket!

"W-what? My eye... my eye is back?"

The echo of a voice he knew all too well reverberated directly inside his head:

"Just as I thought. Residing in here is much more comfortable."

Despite the shock of his eye returning, Vain quickly realized he could still only see out of his right side. The entity noticed his confusion and satiated his curiosity with a sarcastic drawl:

"For the time being, I will settle here. Therefore, you won't be able to see through it as long as I am manifesting inside it."

The statement hooked Vain's curiosity:

"Can you transfer to another part of my body instead of my eye?"

The entity paused for a moment before snapping indignantly: "Unfortunately, that is impossible in your case."

The dismissal only grabbed Vain's attention further: "Impossible? Why?"

The entity sighed, answering with evident disdain: "Boy, you ask far too many questions... It is because of the Oath. Do you remember the tattoo on your hand?"

Vain had completely forgotten that the entity had mentioned this at the very beginning.

He hadn't given it much thought at the time, consumed as he was by simply surviving those hellish conditions.

The entity interrupted his train of thought:

"Anyway, let us get out of here."

Vain's spirit soared at the mention of leaving. Not long ago, he had been absolutely certain this room would be his tomb. He asked the entity nesting in his eye socket:

"Alright, how do we get out?"

"Walk to the wall in front of you," The entity replied.

Vain approached the wall, standing before it as he waited for the next step. The entity instructed him to place his hand against it. Gulping nervously, Vain pressed his palm against the cold surface as commanded, tense and anticipating whatever was about to happen.

After several minutes passed with absolutely nothing happening, doubt crept in. Vain asked anxiously:

"Is this really all I have to do?"

The entity snapped irritably: "Are you doubting me, boy?"

Vain scrambled to correct himself: "No, no, it's just... we've been standing here for minutes and nothing has happened."

The entity sighed, his tone thick with mockery:

"This is no ordinary room, boy. It was crafted specifically for those who wish to seal themselves away, and it permits them to leave if they happen to change their minds. However, that only applies if you haven't bound yourself in the chains... In other words, since you have freed yourself from the shackles, the moment you convey your sincere desire to leave, the door will open."

Vain grasped the situation after the explanation. He asked one final question before making the attempt:

"I haven't asked you yet, what is your name?"

The entity answered: "Well, seeing as we will be spending quite some time together, there is no harm in you knowing my name... Zeel. Call me Zeel."

Vain paused for a second, thinking the name was much shorter than he had expected, before saying:

"Alright Zeel, let's get out of here."

Vain closed his eye and channeled his entire consciousness into a single desire: to escape this hell. He conjured up every memory he had forged within this dark room—from the torture, the agony, and the starvation, to the loss of his eye, and finally, that dream he had wished would never end.

As he drowned in his concentration, Zeel's voice rang out with a remark Vain would soon wish he had never heard:

"Boy... I believe we are in trouble."

Vain's eye snapped open involuntarily, wondering what Zeel meant, only to notice that his hand was no longer touching the stone wall of the room.

His eye widened to its limits at the unbelievable sight before him.

A section of the wall had vanished, shifting into the shape of a doorway.

Yet, it wasn't the door itself that shocked Vain and the ancient spirit, Zeel. It was what lay beyond it.

Brilliant light struck his eye, which hadn't seen the sun in far too long, forcing him to quickly shield it with his hand.

Bitingly cold winds battered his body, sending violently cold shivers down his spine, right as Zeel delivered his final assessment of the terrifying landscape outside:

"Boy... it would be best if you sealed yourself back in.”