Chapter 18: Druhwood, the Town of Woodcraft (5)

“Ghg....”

I dug my nails further into my chest, the intensity had amplified several times over now. It had reached a point beyond any other incident prior. Like a gradual swelling, from feverish to as if my breast had been drenched with a leisurely flow of scalding water. It felt nonsensical. A volatile beast that had bitten whilst unprovoked—completely disregarded—and yet the teeth continued to only sink further.

Please... Just calm down already! I didn’t mean for this...to happen...! Please! I can’t stand this... It hurts... It hurts... It hurts so much!

Even so, it was without a doubt a mistake on my part. I had unintentionally allowed for myself to be caught by the cobwebs of the past. Sensitive threads that continuously lied in wait for me to stumble and be tangled in. And it had been thanks to them that—what had once been curiosity and uncertainty toward the enigma named Albel—had now shifted into an unrelenting fury toward his unabashed lying and why he had come to Druhwood in the first place. And he still had yet to reply. Instead, he remained staring at me with a now concerned look on his face.

Why...? Why are you looking at me like that...? Just like...

My body couldn’t bare the pain any longer as my vision immediately blurred and faded to black, while my legs gave out and I fell forward. I had completely lost consciousness in front of him.

❖

“Ms. Eru, you must pay mind to your temperament accordingly from now on. Like a scale, you must keep a proper balance between either side. That you that is here in front of me now, and the you that lurks within. Do you understand?”
“Not really...”
“Ahaha... Sorry, I guess that doesn’t really explain it well enough for your young ears, hm? It’s quite simple. Find something that keeps you happy, and heck, possibly even let it consume every bit of your attention! I believe this will work well enough—for now that is.”
“Are you really sure that’s all, Magister Elemnin? It’s rather...”
“Indeed, it will work, Sir Torrel. She is still but a child. The solution is rather simple due to her age. The root cause of her ‘incidents’ tend to come into form once she’s put into displeasing situations, correct? As long as she finds a hobby or interest to abate any chance of an emotional swing—an outburst—she should be fine. Of course, that won’t work as efficiently or effectively as she ages.”

I could recall this dream fairly well. It was from a time when grandfather had requested someone from Nefra to come down and check on me; Magister Elemnin. He had been a close advisor to the Crethian King of back then, and a close friend of grandfather’s during his adventuring days. He was well-versed in matters of the magical nature—and yet—he couldn’t fully give an explanation to the mark on my chest or my condition either. He did, however, understand how to temporarily suppress it based on the descriptions of my previous incidents.

“So, it won’t go away...?”
“I’m truly sorry, Ms. Eru. It seems like this is a rather strange case, indeed. Even with my ability, I can’t do anything more right now. I will attempt to gain access to and find out everything available about this mark though. Once I do, I will return and help you as best as I can, all right? I do owe your grandfather one after all, ahaha!”
“Hmm. I’m counting on you, Magister Elemnin.”
“I’ll do what I can, old friend.”

This was a dream of a situation that took place many years ago, and Magister Elemnin had still yet to find any information at all regarding the mark on my chest. No cures or ways of removing it, nor even a single lead on what it was. Taking his advice, I became immersed with creating trinkets and collecting gems initially as a hobby. As time went on, it became more than that as I learned how to vocally inscribe lesser forms of magic within the gems. The incidents had occurred less and less, that is, until now.

“!!!”

It felt as if I had been pulled out of water as I jolted awake. My eyes lingered on a fairly familiar styled ceiling. I hadn’t the slightest idea on the why said ceiling was in my sight in the first place though. On top of that, my body felt sweaty and my memory—hazy.

What exactly happened...? Am...I laying in a bed right now? I think I am.

Squirming ever so slightly, I could feel a comforting material against my back and under my neck. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that I was currently lying on one of the beds in the Mirth Oak Inn. I could recall—time and time again—where I’d fall asleep in one of the dozens of rooms and grandfather would often scold me for it.

“But...why am I here...?”
“Oh? Seems like you’re finally awake, Eru. Only about an hour or so has gone by, but how are you feeling?”
“Huh?!”

I immediately shuffled myself to the right side of the bed, almost falling off in reaction to the sudden voice. A man was sitting in a chair by the desk. He had amber-colored eyes and raven-black hair—with a long and low ponytail that made its way slightly over his right-side shoulder. In a long wisp of hair that extended from the front right-side and over his sideburns, a coloration difference of dulled white sat atop the raven-black strip that rested against his neck in his current angle.
He was wearing what seemed like rather simple clothing too; a long-sleeved black shirt and a pair of dark beige pants. I was trying to figure out who exactly was sitting in a room with me currently as I inspected them in detail.

Who—no, WHY am I in the same room as this person...? Did I end up finally falling asleep in a non-vacant room or something?! In all my years of doing this... I’ve finally made that mistake. Oh, Goddess—

“No answer, huh? Well, I’m happy to see that you don’t seem to be in pain anymore at least. It’s understandable for you to be confused and all, but I’d advise against moving around all too much right now.”
“...?”

It wasn’t so hard to figure out that I definitely was puzzled, given the situation. He stood from his seat, to which I instinctively flinched for some reason at the sudden motion. He quickly gestured with both hands up and toward his chest—as if to imply he meant no harm. While keeping a similar stance, he then pointed at a spot above me. I adjusted my head and looked up, only to then see a small, birdlike creature hovering over me.

“It’s a familiar based on the hummingbird that has the ability to apply [Minor Heal] via the flutter of its wings. It’s a first for me using this summon, but it seems like it worked successfully, maybe? You were in some pain after collapsing, so I moved you to the nearby bed. Whatever that was...it settled down shortly after using that little guy there.”
“I collapsed...? What are you...”

In the moment I gave it a bit more thought, an array of memories came forth that outlined what exactly happened. I was stunned beyond belief. Not by being in the situation itself, but more so, that my body and mind somehow forgot the pain that seemingly fractured me. Nothing like it had ever occurred to me before.

Is...is it getting worse...?!

I was left unsettled with a revitalized surge of dread. After all these years, it felt as if it had quietly disappeared. And yet, here it was again—now with a strength that was tenfold compared to prior incidents. I could feel my body resume the trembles of the past as my hands clawed into the sides of my arms.

“Eru. I apologize if this is too personal of a question, but I feel like it’s something I need to ask you. You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to, but I’d really appreciate it if you did. That being said, is this the first time something of this nature has happened to you...?”

As my eyes met the man I now remembered as being named Albel, his gaze had softened as his voice was low and gentle. It felt different than the person he was from earlier—the type of person I assumed him to be. I felt the need to give him an answer for some reason.

“...This is...the first time that it has been...this bad...”
“...I see. So, it’s something that has been recurring on a smaller scale, is that it? Hm. I may be wrong about this, but does it have anything to do with that title of yours? That [Bearer of the 2nd Deadly Sin] one?"
“H-how did you...?!”

A secret I had always tried to keep close to my chest, telling no one about. Yet, the man before me somehow knew that untold title in full. I had realized the potential connection a long time ago too. The mark on my chest had formed around the same time I had earned that title after all—including the incidents. I had refused to tell anyone due to the foreboding nature that surrounded it. To put it simply, I was afraid.
What would happen if the others found out about it? If it were something ominous and deserving of immediate action against? The thought that I could be potentially hurt far more or even killed by just having such a title was unbearable to even consider. And now, a complete stranger somehow knew about it despite us only meeting for the first time today.

“It’s because of my [Investigate] skill that allows me to see the statuses of others. That being said, since you answered my question earlier, I feel as if I should do the same.”
“...What do you mean...?”
“I gave it some thought while you were resting. Earlier, you berated me for not truly showing myself to you. You were right about that—it was wrong of me—so I apologize. If you’re to earn the trust of someone else, you must in turn, extend your own hand of trust in kind first. I want you to believe in me without any strings attached—so I’ll tell you everything I can about myself. That is, if you’d still like to hear about it?”

I nodded in response, and Albel then went on to do exactly as he said he would. Explaining everything to me. From how he came from a different world, to how he had lived in the Elven city for an entire month. About his true Class and Level, and about how he was apparently one of the 14 currently summoned Effigies.
There was truth in his prior words too, about not having any destination or objective in mind. He was quite serious about just being a simple traveler for now. The more he spoke, the more it felt as if I had done him a disservice by allowing myself to get so worked up earlier.

“So, you were hiding your identity due to being one of these Effigies...?”
“Ah, without understanding how they’ll react toward me, it was advised that I should be a bit more cautious. It’d also help with being less intimidating overall if I just came off as a Level 32 traveler too. Or I had at least thought it would. I guess that didn’t go as well as I originally hoped.”

He was now sitting back in the chair near the corner of the room as he rubbed the back of his neck with an embarrassed smile. I continued to ask him questions afterwards, in regards to his time spent in the Elven city. He told me stories of a gluttonous First Princess and about an overly astute maid that liked to joke around a little too much. Stories that altered my prior perspective of the Outer Region. It was starting to look like an entirely different place now.

“I never knew such a place existed to the far south of us... We really have been closed-minded whenever it involves anything that has to do with the Outer Region.”
“Well, it’s not as if that fear of the Outer Region is entirely unfounded. That place can be a real pain in the ass to travel through...”
“Pfft. When it comes out of your mouth, you make it sound as natural as simple labor work, Albel...”

Another hour or so had gone by as we lost ourselves in conversation. As we returned back to the topic of titles, I was reminded of what he had noted about me earlier. Since he was the first person to see my title, I could only assume he might have held some knowledge about it. Asking him, it seemed I was wrong.

“...Sadly, I haven’t a clue about it either. You may share a similar title with Marna, but you’re the first person so far that I’ve seen with that type of title. Sorry, Eru. I wish I could have helped more.”
“No... It’s not your fault for not knowing. Even someone important from the capital was unable to figure out anything, and he’s been searching for years...”

It was yet another instance where I was pulling at an empty string. Nothing at the end of it and stuck having to search—grasping for more in desperation. I’d rather not think about the title at all, but any little bit of information could help. Anything that could alleviate these worries of mine, even if only slightly. It was terrifying to hold on to something like this without truly knowing what it was—especially when it affected how I lived my life.

“When you think about it though, it’s numbered, is it not?”
“Huh...?”
“The fact that you hold the ‘2nd’ must mean there’s a chance that other ‘Bearers’ must exist and are out there, right? I can’t see that not being the case. There are seven sins in total after all. It’s similar to how you and Marna share a title, yet have different numbers.”
“...”

For some reason, that had never occurred to me before now. I was always so focused on the specific part of it being labeled as a “Deadly Sin” and yet, I had never put two-and-two together toward the fact that there could be more than one based on the number associated with my own. If anything, I tried my best to push the entire thought of the title aside whenever I could. It was never a provider of any form of happiness—bringing the exact opposite whenever I thought about it.

“...I see, you may be right, Albel... I see... I—”

Tears had begun forming in my eyes without me being able to stop their flow. After all these years, I had believed I was potentially alone in having such a sinister title. One that only gave me pain and anxiety. One where, the people and archives of Cretho, held no information toward whatsoever. Now, there was a chance I hadn't been all alone. I wouldn’t wish this mark on anyone, but that somber notion ended up releasing a barricaded flood within me.

“...I see...”

My shivering hand clasped over my mouth as I attempted to suppress my imminent sobbing. Albel, whose eyes were now closed, remained quietly in the corner of the room as he allowed my whimper to go unhindered.