๐๐ถ๐บ๐๐ฟ๐ฎ ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ล
The series of tests bore unfruitful and understandably, the researchers were mad.
Everyone was so down that even my footsteps became heavy, halfway on our way back to the village, I carried Alice on my back as her mana was already exhausted.
Inside the village, Astoria was diligently sharpening her arrowheads using a whetstone though I could see some arrows were made purely out of wood.
'Hold on, that's mine...' Thinking that I walked past her and talked. "Don't you dare use my whetstone to sharpen your wooden arrows."
"Relax, these wooden arrows are non-combat use only." She waves her hand trying to reassure me which never works at all.
With a sigh in my mind, I walked off before she called me again. "Welcome back...Himura."
"Yeah." I continue walking ignoring her annoyed gaze that's trying to say "At least say "I'm home" asshole!" Which will then be retorted by me saying that this town isn't my home.
I gracefully laid Alice onto her bed as she continued to sleep soundly, with a single glance at my back, I closed the door and left.
I sigh again and spoke. "Time to find that traitor."
Remembering where I have been and using my imagination, I created a detailed mind map of this town and walked to the unexplored areas. Dropping by the cafeteria, I saw a few researchers getting drunk while wallowing in sadness and frustration whilst I walked to a sealed crate and grabbed a few lunai frugts.
I bit onto one and opened my map to see where I first found their lair and tried to see which side of the town, where a possible path would be. A few minutes passed and I concluded that the path should be on the southwest side of the town so I immediately headed there.
A silent atmosphere, abandoned rooms, and a dirty hallway filled my vision as I walked to this abandoned part of the town until I came across a particular room.
Broken bookshelves and torn books lay among the rock and with each step I take, the wooden remains collapse on my weight.
"Hoh." But there was some respite as there was a bookshelf filled with books.
The books weren't laced with dust meaning somebody was taking and reading these books regularly.
Looking at their spines, there were a few books that caught my interest, in particular, a book titled "The Void Millennia, 100 years of nothingness".
From the look of it, this seems to be a book about the history of this world as there were books like "Herful Empire, land of the modern" and "Indix Coul, 275 years of medical research in one" next to it.
"What does modern mean for this world? Is it a land that is full of innovation like Kliyer or a modern country like my home?" I asked, completely distracted from my objective.
"And this "Indix Coul" book as well, this would prove useful during my adventures."
And then my eyes once again settled on the book ominously named "The Void Millennia".
"If I take the title literally, I would interpret it as a time where no innovations were made, people suffered which could compare to the void, both of them, an uncaring mass of nothingness, no happiness, no love..."
I raised my hand to try and grab it but before that, My hand immediately dropped on the pommel of my katana and slashed behind me.
An old man stood behind me, with brightly-colored eyes as if they were actually glowing, his mere gaze shook my heart as if being clasped but there was no time to shake in fear, no time to struggle but act on instinct.
"Ah, it's you, do try not to sneak up on me." I feigned ignorance of his murderous intent, there was no sweat in my body, and my heart, as if switching modes, beat slowly and calmly.
I'm scared, I really want to fight him here and now but the consequences would be too heavy without even finding a semblance of evidence that could be pointed at him.
He, no, it put its hands in its pockets and calmly sigh, feigning ignorance as well. It wears a black shirt and pants, a white coat, and an insignia of the town.
The way, it puts its hands in its pocket was unbecoming of an old man even if it is pretending.
"Well, I didn't expect someone to be in this decrepit library, you seem interested in that book." It speaks, taking two steps towards me, my senses screamed to run but I stood my ground, my hand resting on my katana before speaking again.
"Yeah, I don't know much about history, especially what the entire land looks like." I passed it, not letting my back be opened for it, as I passed, I saw a glimpse of something in its hand.
"I see, have you ever heard of the great barrier?" It looks back at me.
"Barrier?" I asked, thinking that he slipped up, I rested on a table, tired from fear.
"Yes, but it has many names, the red sea, the void sea, or the Null-land." It starts to speak of its history.
The earliest records say that it existed for more than five thousand years with the earliest discovery being in the year 36SL and with the most recent observation before they were trapped here being in the year 301SMTC.
"If I remember correctly SMTC means "Sun And Moon Calendar" since the oldest clocktower is located there, but what does SL mean?"
My body relaxes. 'It most definitely wants to kill me here but for some reason he just won't kill outright, meaning it either is trying to not kill me but merely capture me or he sees me as a dangerous threat. Whatever it is, there was no difference in this situation because, in the end, this was just another dance of death.'
I remember those times when I was so close to death, the grim reaper tried to take me but I led the dance and escaped. 'And it seems, it's time for round three then.'
My feet stepped on the ground gracefully towards it, prompting it to speak with the eyes of naivety. It turns its back to me, I want to stab it but I don't so I just wait for him to grab a book and flip to a page, it does so without showing me its hands
"Ah, here it is." It turns to me. "SouLenm, the kingdom of time was the first recorded kingdom to utilize a calendar but those records no longer exist and their existence is questioned, only nomads who kept their knowledge inside their minds and passed them to their children would know the truth. They used SL meaning SouLenm and they keep track of the years by how many times winter has passed since the founding of their empire."
"I see, is the location where the kingdom of time once was stated?" I asked, passing it again and going right, passing the destroyed bookshelf.
It follows, but I led it around the decrepit room.
"No, it's not written here to my knowledge."
It said, flipping page after page as it follows.
"Well back to our original topic, the great barrier, explain."
It closes the book and puts it back slowly, almost deliberately.
"Shame, back to the original topic...actually a question, what's beyond the great barrier?"
I spoke as I grabbed Indix Coul, passing it which in turn followed me with its gaze, casually putting a hand on its back.
It speaks as I start browsing this semi-intact book.
"Well, this is only a theory but I suspect that this so-called world..."
I look at it again as it turns its back on me.
"Could only be a small shard, in reality, this "world" that we live in might just be a single tiny continent."
My hand stops, and my heart starts to beat faster but I calmed down. "...what?"
Faced with genuine shock, the demonic beast of emotion walks towards me.
Suddenly I feel very small, far too weaker than I thought but that wasn't the reason my heart beats faster.
"Hmm, explain." I stopped it in its tracks, though it was too late to realize, both of us are very suspicious in the eyes of a bystander, we talk with tension in both of our voices, speaking as if both of us were foreign beings.
It expounds on its theory. As for me, I couldn't really care less so I started to ponder.
As an unaging being, I feel excited to know that I might be occupied for thousands of years possibly just traveling the world.
But I also feel so small, when compared to the vast world out there, are my problems really that important?
My motivations feel like its getting sapped but I would not be affected for long, after all this is just an obstacle for someone so puny as me.
Although, I speak from the assumption that there is something beyond the great barrier but I believe there is.
The demonic beast explains that the god of the sea might have made the great barrier to repel beings like us from invading the sea just like there are no people who live in the sky.
But Freya once said that the gods don't care for much what's happening in our realm which is why god rarely responds to someone's prayer though many religions argue that they are busy with the afterlife to be with us though I feel like that's just denial and they simply don't care.
If Freya is still suffering because Hu hasn't responded for many many years.
"You, know you should really stop trusting them so much but I can't exactly blame you."
Akira adds to my pondering.
'What do you mean by that?'
"Nothing."
"Ah"
A small wind-like noise resounded from my ears. The demonic beast seems like they noticed it too.
"Do you hear that?" It asked ominously.
"What?"
"Nothing, I need to get going, duty calls." It leaves in a hurry I tried to hear its footsteps but there were none.
My body falls weakly.
"What's with the mist?" I asked as white smoke fills the area.
My emotions overflow as I lose consciousness. I want to kill myself, then kill everyone, but I fear their resistance and also the faces of my disappointed companions but does that really matter when I start raping them along with the other women in this town?
"This is bad..." With my hands weak, I grabbed what I'm already grabbing, my katana and slowly raised it before, I stabbed myself.