Brently's consciousness returned.
"Where...?"
She was about to scratch her head with her left hand, only to notice that it was missing. She flinched.
At that moment, her hazy memories soon cleared. She now remembered what had happened in this alternate world—how she lost her hand, the absence of the demon she defeated, and the existence of that vague message written in blood, which was now wiped out of her memory.
Then there's also that child's voice.
"But... This place isn't the house. Where am I?"
Brently was no longer at the spot she remembered before she fainted. Instead, she was in some empty void. The only thing she can see from afar is darkness. Only a single floating candle hovering just at arm's length is the single source of light.
"Am I going to be stuck here forever?"
Brently thought that solving the message written in blood would allow her to go back, yet it didn't happen. Her pessimistic thought outweighed her desire to go back to the real world. She fell on her knees, her eyes shrouded in despair.
She sobbed.
It was normal, considering what she experienced earlier. The pain might've helped alleviate the fear, but now it was like the fear swallowed her whole.
She wanted to see her family and friends, continue her degree, graduate, find work, and, if possible, get married and live a peaceful life.
But perhaps Fate already sealed her in such a predicament.
Just then, a glowing orb appeared in front of her. Its form was similar to that orb she once touched in the forest.
Shaking like a leaf, she opted not to touch it. But, as if to neglect her depression and awareness, the orb slowly moved toward her.
The moment it touched her, Brently's lost hand reappeared, already attached. Flabbergasted, she glanced at her once-missing part.
A message appeared in her mind. Unlike the other orb, her head wasn't aching, yet the message was still written in blood.
Her consciousness drifted off before she could identify what it was.
"AMONG THE DEATHS, YOU ALONE SUCCEEDED
ONE DAY, ANOTHER SLUMBER WILL COME
CLAIMING ONE'S LIFE IS THE ONLY PREDICAMENT
SOME DEMONS HUNGER FOR ENTERTAINMENT."
***
"Ngh..."
Brently woke up.
With her head still fuzzy, she grunted in pain. She found herself alone in a white room and lying on a hospital bed.
"What? Why am I here?"
It seemed like she was forgetting about something important. That bugged her, but she can't disregard that she was hospitalized. Beside her is her mother, sleeping soundly. Brently figured out that she was exhausted while taking care of her.
She tried to raise her upper body, only for it to disobey her will. As of now, Brently could only move her eyes, neck, and hands.
"Hands...?"
As soon as the word crossed her mind and spouted from her mouth, her eyes landed on the left hand. She slowly clenched it to form a fist, then relaxed.
"Was there something wrong with my hand?"
She could only wonder. Soon after, her mother woke up and was overjoyed to see that Brently was up.
"Sorry, Ma. I made you worried."
"Don't be. It's natural. Now, how do you feel?"
"I'm tired. And my body was so heavy."
Brently's mother nodded before she stood and went to tell a nurse that Brently gained consciousness.
***
"Are you sure you're alright?"
"I am. Don't worry."
Brently was now at school questioned by her instructor in World Literature. It was also the subject that she and her group prepared a report regarding the topic they got assigned to. Perhaps her mother notified her what had happened.
It's Wednesday; she was absent from her Monday and Tuesday classes in order to recuperate.
Lucky for her, she was the third reporter. The first two were reported on Monday.
Brently reported in a way that emphasized the ideas while making sure only to use simple words to allow the whole class to understand, and define the advanced words. Her classmates gave a round of applause.
The report had gone smoothly.
At least in the eyes of her classmates and instructor, it was done quite nicely.
But to Brently it was a different story.
At the corner of her eyes, she spotted something ridiculous.
One of her classmates was all red. Of course, it was not the clothes; it was like he was dipped in red paint, or photoshopped to be in all red, including his skin and hair. Whatever the case may be, it was unnatural to see it that way. She looked at her other classmates, but they were the same as ever. It was just a single person who got it.
"Brently? Is something wrong?"
"N-no, sir."
She soon sat down.
However, as if right on cue, the boy trembled ever so slightly before falling to the ground.
***
"Was it just a coincidence?"
Brently sat down on her bed. The sun had already set, replaced with the flickering lights of the stars from afar and the moon illuminating the dark corners of her room.
She usually preferred not to use the lights, except when she was searching for something.
Sighing, she recalled the incident this morning. First off, she was now having an eye condition of sorts. Brently simply thought of telling her mother about it and let the professional examine her eye after class. It might be costly, but she preferred to get examined than to be blind.
But then that scenario happened.
"Me thinking about this will get me nowhere. I better sleep or else my mother will be mad."
***
Morning came.
The sun had yet to rise, but Brently had gotten herself out of bed and was stretching out. It was the norm of this household that the first one to wake up should be the one to cook breakfast.
She went to the kitchen and started preparing. Brently prepared the right amount for her and her mother—her Pa had another task abruptly, so he couldn't get home.
Fried eggs, rice, and vegetable soup are the ones in her mind.
"Oh, Brently. You're early today. Are you alright? You shouldn't push yourself."
"I'm fine, Ma. Don't worry."
Without taking a glance at her mother, she continued preparing the dishes. But then remembered her plans of getting her eyes checked, so she turned her head in her mother's direction, only to discover a horrible situation.
"Brently?"
Her mother was dyed in red. The same color her classmate had as he fell.