Ugh. Ugh, what the hell?
Ugh, this pain, my body.
Ugh, what is this burn? Ugh, my face, my eyes, it hurts so much.
I... I thought I died. No, I am sure of it. I still feel it. I saw the sword pierce my heart.
Yes, I am dead. Is this hell? Ugh.
I know I wasn't a saint, by no means a good person, but this pain is too much. Ugh, ugh.
...
Ugh, this feels better compared to what it's way better, but it still hurts. But I can at least feel something outside of overwhelming pain. There is something falling on me. It feels cool and refreshing. Is probably snow? Ugh, I just need to stand up.
I opened my eyes. It was dark, but I somehow could see. I could see really well, but the earth is rough. I feel stiff, like I haven't moved in ages. Slowly, I lean on elbows. This is kind of rough, huh?
But it wasn't earth I was leaning on. It was a skeleton. Kids, kids like me.
"Wake up! Hey, wake up, mutt! Wake the hull up!"
Ugh, groans.
"I have been trying to wake you up for some time. Your kind is supposed to have heightened senses. If I sneaked up on you and killed you in your sleep, you wouldn't even know what hit you. Humph."
"If you had any killing intent , I would have sensed it and killed you before you ever scratched me."
"Oh, really? I am told I am pretty fast. And, you know..."
The woman who is sulking in front of me is the Countess Cecelia in charge of one of the four counties of Ever-Winter. She is a beautiful redhead with plump breasts and a nice figure. The count died 14 years ago a mysterious death, a heart attack, or that's what they call it. But I know who killed him.
It was me. I killed him two days ago.
The reason is that he was a monster. He used his county as a feeding ground, faked his deathto avoid seekers, and he was going to use his daughter as a sacrifice to summon a demon. But only I know that. Groan. Ugh.
"Oh, rise and shine, dear. I thought you were gonna sleep all night."
"Ugh, why didn't you wake me mistress? I could have brushed your hair and helped you shower."
"Oh, how sweet. You worked hard last night. I didn't want to disturb you. Besides, we have a long way ahead of us and a powerful witch like you needs to be on top shape so you can protect me and my daughter."
This was Diana. She looks like a sweet young woman who hasn't passed her thirties. Long black hair, deep blue eyes but in reality This woman was the oldest person in this room, over 200 years old.
A witch.
A very weak witch who can't perform even a simple attack spell, not even the weakest one, which was common. There are a lot of witches on this continent, but most of them are used by older witches, their masters, to gain insight on a new aspect of magic.
This particular one is used for pleasure. She was sent to the county 12 years ago, in exchange for knowledge that her master Persphone needed. She was pretty loyal to her mistress, a total idiot. Anyone loyal to that bitch is an utter fool.
"Grey, you were thinking about something disgraceful, aren't you?"
"Yes."
Seemingly dissatisfied with my answer, she stood up and hugged her mistress while patting her hair.
"We need to go."
"Yes, wash up, and I am gonna go get Amber."
"Make it quick, you too, mutt."
...
"I hope you had a pleasant night."
"Yes, thank you. Here is the payment."
I paid the inn owner with 2 gold coins, while the others were packing their stuff.
"A cursed one came to our town."
"Useless scammer."
"You should keep your voice down. Just yesterday, there was a seeker who apparently butchered most of the county residents. The Countess and her daughter are also presumed dead."
"Such nonsense. The mistress of the county is a powerful witch. You think a useless mutt will be able to run amok in her county? Plus, they have the discipline of Persephone, one of the four tower lords."
I could hear murmurs around, mostly angry people, which I am used to. We have quite the reputation right now. Not a lot of us are left to begin with.
I need to finish this mission and deliver the Countess, so I could earn some money to travel to the other half of the world.
Yes, currently, I am running away, not from what happened at the county a few days ago.
No, I have the highest bounty set on me by the Emperor of the North, who is currently expanding his territory.
...
Hopefully, there was no trouble even after I left the village. It has been a few hours, and we aren't being tracked anymore. They probably didn't want to enter the Sleepless Hollow.
The Sleepless Hollow is an uninhabited forest, mostly because it's an ever-changing forest where trees are commonly referred to as kodama or devil trees who eat people, or that is the common rumors.
The reality about the dark forest is harmless. If you know your way around the forest, it is filled with specters. Ghosts seem to gather in this forest, but they can't interact or cause damage to physical medium you can only hear screams or loud laughs.
I was forced to clear this forest when I was 15 years old. It took me six months just to know how to clear it due to my vivid memory i memorized the path i have even gone through this forest a large number of times. I also lost two brothers on this journey.
"Crazy, crazy. This boar is trying to get us killed, mistress. The Sleepless Hollow, the most deadly place in our kingdom. Crazy, just crazy."
"Oh, Diana, you seem even more frightened than Amber. Look at her smiling while sleeping. Isn't she cute?"
Amber has been through a lot all her life until recently. She was cursed, damned to live her life as a monster, only to be sacrificed when she was cured.
"Get some sleep, I am gonna stay guard."
"Like hell I can sleep with all these weird and loud voices," Diana retorted.
"Oh, come here. This Nonna is gonna embrace you until you sleep," the Countess said, extending her other hand to her young lover.
Diana blushed and went to her embrace. It was weird looking at these two. Very weird.
The Countess had to know that there was no intimacy that Diana could afford. Being ordered around by Persphone from one place to the other across the continent, Diana didn't have the luxury for love. She was used to getting treated like a call girl or indulging in other fantasies of town lords across her life.
However, the Countess really did treat her with respect. Even when we spent the night at the inn, she made sure to time her orgasm with Diana's and was quite delighted when she fell asleep between her bosom.
Maybe she felt grateful to her that she didn't betray or abandon her. Her duty is to the county, and right now, the Countess is the second wife. I know for a fact that Persphone is gonna punch Diana for her abandoning her duty. I also know that the first countess and Amber are either gonna be treated "in less than a noble way."
"Can I ask you a question, Grey?"
It was the first time she called me by my name, but I honestly didn't care.
"Sure, as long as it isn't too much."
"Why are you helping us? You could take the money and leave us here. It will be much easier, and then you can go take another mission. You seekers normally don't do escort work."
She wasn't wrong. I could leave, kill the three women, and get her money. That is if I was interested in other missions. I am running away, and the best way is to meet Persphone and ask her for a favor or a trade.
"I don't turn my back on my client. Once we take a mission, we should complete it or die trying."
Obviously, I was lying, but I won't tell her the truth. I don't trust her, nor am I willing to even give her a chance to betray me. If she knows who I am or my real name, I would be dead the moment I reach the tower.
"You are surprisingly noble, Grey. You make a girl's heart flutter," she sarcastically replied.
The Countess was smart. She knew I lied, but she also knew I have no intention of telling the truth.
"Get some sleep. We have a long day tomorrow if we want to reach the tower on time."
I turned my head from her and looked ahead.
"I am gonna find you. I have to find you. It feels like if I don't reach you in time, you are gonna wither away."
"Shuri, you are the first person that made me feel human. That made me feel like I used to in my previous life. A father. The day I visited the dukedom to get you to fulfill my promise to your parents. It was like a part of my humanity returned to me. Just hold on a bit longer."
Staring at him from a small distance, she sighed and closed her eyes.
"Grey is truly cursed, or should I say Vermoth?"
She left this lingering thought in her head before she drifted to sleep.