"Eurydice, don't disappoint me." Such a gentle voice had whispered in her ear that day but Eurydice couldn't find the warmth within those words nor the hand that gripped on to her arm tightly, for sure it was going to bruise for the next few days.
"Mom?" Eurydice called out but her voice couldn't be heard no matter how much she repeated them. Surrounding her were multiple cameras standing tall with bright flashes, each and every one pointing at her. Eurydice hadn't a clue of what was happening at the time but then it hit her, this was just a dream. A dream of a long time memory she had when she was 14. Yes...she remembers this one very clearly. This had happened just after the whole scandal had been proved to be wrong. Medias, papers and people were flooding in to get an interview out of her. Eurydice had caught a cold at the time too, which explained her raspy voice and frail state. Despite her condition, her mother still accepted those requests for a chance to have her face at the screen for even just a second. Because for her mother, a second was all she needed to set everything into accord. So there Eurydice sat, on the sofa within the studio, with her head aching and body burning up. If she failed this, then there would have been consequences, consequences she didn't know of, and never want to learn about. All she needs to do is sit there and her mother would do all the talking. Yes...all that was needed for her was to be the face of everything.
Dawn had started to crack in the morning, flooding the sky into an orange hue as the people began to slowly rise up to get ready for the day. The same had gone for Eurydice who got up despite the protests of her brain, her hand automatically reaching to her bed drawer for her pencil. As she slept, an idea slipped into her mind, waking her mid-dream to write down a note for another project she desired to start. Naturally, she would roll herself over the bed and the notebook she kept by her side would be laid open on top of her drawer, that's why it suddenly confused her when her hand fell into air as she reached over. Her eyes forced itself to open, when she looked to where her usual stuff was, she was met with a different view. This wasn't her room. Everything looked different. The walls were in pristine condition, nothing compared to the tiny crack, chipped paint and stains from Eurydice's meltdowns. The furnitures shined from multiple times of being furnished, she could easily watch her reflection on its red wood. The curtains followed movement from the breeze through the open window, letting it's golden edges fly like sun rays.
"That man from before must have brought me here," That could easily be the answer. That man with his shoulder-length locks of gold, and tranquil clouds of grey for eyes. Eurydice could vaguely remember him in the short moment prior to her passing out. Which means all of it, from her dying in a car crash to waking up in the middle of nowhere, almost getting killed again-
All of it was real.
It weighed heavily on her chest. Something bubbled up inside her in the most unpleasant way possible. Like a boiling water that was left behind but never to evaporate. Suddenly, the room didn't feel so comfortable anymore. Didn't feel as pleasant and bright as she once saw it the very minute she opened her eyes. It was foreign. This is foreign. Sleeping in someone else's bed felt clumpy and uncomfortable. After all, who knew what happened in this bed before she used it. The floors, the walls, the furnitures- everything suddenly felt so wrong and out of place. She is out of place. Eurydice buried her face in her hands, her palms void of any of the blood and dirt of the previous nights. And what about these hands? Were these hands wrong and foreign too? She killed people with these very hands. And while she slept unknowingly in such a foreign place, were these hands still cleaner than they were that night? The boiling water within her never ceased, it gradually grew hotter than possible. It felt suffocating. It was getting difficult to breathe.
What happened during the time she was unwitting?
Did anything serious happen?
She didn't know. And not knowing was torturing her. The unexpected knock on the door brought her back to her senses. With a hazy mind, it took her a second to look around the room before her eyes finally landed on the doorway, just as someone walked in. In her panic, she failed to even hear the door open. Her eyes landed on the person who walked in- adorning a complicated attire resembling the outfits of princes in fairy tales, his blonde hair now neatly combed to the side.
It's him. The very same man who saved her yesterday. Compared to before, somehow something looked different aside from the outfit and hair. Maybe its the lack of aggression in his eyes but he looked...softer. Seeing her sat on the bed, awake seemed to shock him as he drew closer, behind him followed a few steps back, a maid carried a tray of food. From where Eurydice sat, she couldn't exactly see behind this blondie, but the aroma that reached her nose caught her attention in the most pleasant way.
"I'm glad you're awake," This blondie smiled, awkwardly as he stood by the foot of the bed. His hands lightly tapped on his leg as he stood, and his eyes that met with Eurydice's own stared for a second before eyeing anything in this room. For someone with a royal get-up he didn't seem to carry much backbone. Eurydice guessed arrogance wasn't a 'Buy 1 Get 1' when it came to expensive fits like it did from where she lived. "I am too," she responded which he nods, not seeming to know what to say.
"You've been asleep for a day prior to when I found you so I got worried," Blondie said. An entire day?! So it's been an entire day since that night. And what had happened for the last 24 hours? Surely she as safe...right? Eurydice didn't even notice as she grabbed a handful of sheet.
This blondie seemed to notice her discomfort and mistook it as her being worried for oversleeping in another person's house so he quickly raised his hands to explain.
"Don't worry, I thought you needed the rest since you looked really tired so I made no one disturbed you're sleep. And uhm..." He again, stared awkwardly at her, at the floor and the furnitures, his hands restless picking at his clothes. The mysterious Blondie, this is the very same guy who saved her the other day, seeming oddly strange. Eurydice thought for a second, maybe he had a twin that was more assertive? Blondie continued to stutter in his own words- they weren't even words anymore but mere syllables cutting into one another. Before he could feel even more embarrassed with his display, the maid behind him coughed intentionally to save him from disgracing himself further. The cough was loud enough in this quiet room for both Eurydice and Blondie to turn to her innocent face as she smiled as if she did nothing, and merely raised the tray she held. "The food will grow cold, Your Majesty."
Your Majesty. Eurydice stared at the man in front of her. Then he must really be some sort of Royalty. Eurydice had already accepted the other day that she must be in some other world when she saw that hologram thing when she killed those men. This wasn't the past either. Then this could only mean one thing. A god's work. Eurydice isn't actively religious or anything, however she had faith enough to believe in god.
"Right! Right...ahem," He coughs, "I thought you'd be hungry when you woke up so I brought you some food-" He gestures for the maid to step forward, as she did, she placed the tray carefully on Eurydice's lap. The aroma smelled divine! On the tray held different dishes that Eurydice never met before. Whatever that glossy pink soup is, it's going in her stomach. Somehow, the sight of this tray of heaven dissipated whatever turmoil she had only a minute ago. Seeing her gradually let her guard down at the mere sight of food seemed to please this blond prince as he grabbed the spoon the maid handed him and gave it to Eurydice.
"I didn't know what you'd like, or if you had any allergies, so I asked the chef for anything that was a safe bet." Taking the spoon from his hands, Eurydice stared at him wide eyed, "You took a bet I wouldn't be allergic on any of this?" Hearing her say it out loud. It did seem like a pretty obscure thing to do. Suddenly, he felt dumb.
"Well..." Feeling embarrassed, Blondie could only scratch the back of his neck. Seeing this, Eurydice scoffed "No... I misspoke. I'm not allergic to anything. Thank you, Your Majesty." She took a spoonful of the plate closest to her.
"Oh...oh!" He clasped his hands together, trying to pull himself upright again. Blondie looked like he was going to punch himself, he had been rehearsing how to properly portray himself in front of others but somehow he had gone and messed it up. Hearing Eurydice say she misspoke, he knew she had given him a chance to show his authority. "Right- after you eat, you can come find me if you have any questions. If you're feeling okay, I'll still have the healer come check up on you. And..." He trailed off, the maid behind him stepped up and whispered something in his ear before quickly stepping out of the room. Perhaps she was busy. Eurydice didn't know the first thing when it came to dealing with Royalty. The only thing she knew were ones she learned on TV, so she thought that the maids action seemed off. Eurydice thought people weren't allowed to excuse themselves unless they were excused...but perhaps that only happened on television. She took a bite of chicken. Blondie hadn't responded yet before the maid went rushing out of the room and could only watch the door close behind the maid.
Seriously, that didn't help show his authority at all.
"Well if you have any questions, I'm happy enough to answer them for you." He finally said the one thing Eurydice had been waiting to hear, so without wait, she set down the cutlery she held. "I have a question,"
"And that might be...?"
"May I ask for your name, my Lord?" Eurydice asked, eyes fixated on this blondie who seemed more than surprised at the question. From the very beginning, Eurydice hadn't a clue who he was but for sure she couldn't just keep referring to him as Blondie. "You don't...know me?" Blondie asked in return. Everyone in the empire should be more than aware of who he is. Is he wrong? Seeing as how he found Eurydice in the forest, maybe she lived under a rock this entire time. Perhaps she's from a neighboring kingdom who has come to visit another land. So many excuses popped up in his head in a single moment.
No, no. I shouldn't be so assuming. She must have been through some difficult things. It's not a crime to not know the emperor. Blondie nodded to himself. That could be it. Because if not, then there's one more reason...
"I'm Orpheus Oreganon, The Empires Sun." Orpheus introduced himself. Ah, so he's the emperor. Then shouldn't Eurydice be kneeling in front of him and thanking him for his grace? She considered it for a second, and the slight hesitation didn't go unnoticed by Orpheus, "You don't need to get up, please. It's no big deal," He urged her. No big deal, he says? The emperor says it's no big deal if she doesn't kneel and greet him? If Eurydice could somehow find a way back into her world she would scold all movie directors for creating such tall necked royalties. She shook her head and placed the tray away before kneeling on one foot on the floor and placing a hand on her chest as she bowed her head, she ignored Orpheus's insistence that she stay in bed.
"You did say you are this Empires Sun, is it not just to kneel before such a person?"
Am I doing this right? Eurydice could only follow the knights on television as a guide, still, as she glanced up towards the man in front of her, she was met with astonishment and bewilderment. Orpheus didn't know what to do in this situation as Eurydice stayed kneeling on the floor. This was the first time someone had ever kneeled in front of him in insistence. Every since the crown fell on his head, it was difficult to instill authority and power over everyone. No one would listen to him, and everyone seemed to wave away his words. So when Eurydice insisted on greeting him the proper way anyways, he was left taken-aback. He waved his hand "You...can get up now," Orpheus said, softly as he looked away. Well I'll be damned. Eurydice got up. Did I do it wrong perhaps? I did saw on tv some only bowed their head in respect. Courtisied even. Maybe I was being too extensive.
The silence that followed began to stretch into a lengthy time between the both of them.
"If that's all, I'll take my leave now-" Orpheus turned to walk but stopped at the tug on his sleeve, "Wait-" Eurydice called. When she realized her own actions, she quickly let go and let out a tiny apology.
"I have another question, if that's alright." Orpheus only smiled as he waited for her question. "What might that be?"
"Where am I? I'm not really sure how I ended up here. Much less what happened back when you first found me. And do you know anything about this status bar thing?" Eurydice did not hesitate to flood him with all her questions at once. If he didn't know one of those, then that would be fine but she planned to get every information she could have when the emperor himself was here. And who better could know about such things other than the head himself? Yet, despite her expectations, Orpheus didn't meet her with the answers she wanted. Instead, she was met with cautious grey wide eyes.
"You're...an Oddis?" He asked, alarmed. An Oddis, what did that mean? Eurydice never heard that before I'm her entire life, "What's an Oddis?" She asked again. This question seemed to calm Orpheus, even if for a little bit. It seems like Eurydice didn't know anything about Oddis. But the more he stared at her quizzical expression, the more the immediate wariness he felt dissipated. It went as quick as it came. Forget about Oddis, this girl didn't know a single thing!
"But you're not from around here, are you? From this world, I mean..." Orpheus needed to be sure. If Eurydice really was an Oddis, then she must be new. And if she's new, then no other Oddis may have brainwashed her yet. It's be good to bring her on his side. I can't handle losing anymore than I already have. Orpheus bit his lip.
"That... " He contemplated for a bit, cloudy grey eyes lingering in the thought itself, when his eyes landed on Eurydice's own anticipation, he found he couldn't deny her this much.
"Well, where should I begin?" He sat a distance next to her on the bed.
A few months prior to Eurydice's transmigration, a handful of people from other world's have already been sent here long ago. All in the same situation as her. These people, known to be alien from this world were regarded as Oddis. They came as human as the rest of everyone else. If not for their outfits, no one could tell they were out of place at all. Then the games started.
The games only applied to the Oddis with the world they had transmigrated in being the stage set for them. Although, the game only applied to these Oddis, not even the innocent civilians originating from this world were safe from the bloodshed of the game. The lands, people, and economy they thrived to build for generations had been reduced to nothing but a field for a cruel game. Thus, Oddis were greatly resented by everyone from this world, and every Oddis they would come across would immediately be executed.
Frustrated, Orpheus knitted his brows. The more he thought about those egoistic Oddis, the more he was reminded of the growing responsibility he would bear. He stared up, only to find dark eyes staring fixated on him, he looks a deep breath.
"Oddis are...they're the people you came across with in the forest. They're people who are in the same situation as you. People who are brand new to this world, and once the game starts- you'll also be dragged to become an Oddis just like them-" Eurydice stared, shocked. "-I'm not entirely sure about the details of the game, however the Host brings out a rank for Oddis at the end of the game. So far, it's still on-going...and my people suffered greatly as collateral damage.
When I first saw you in the forest, I saw you murder them without an ounce of hesitation- so I thought you bore the same resentment for them as I did. But it doesn't seem like the case now... You're really a new born Oddis?" Orpheus asked. Eurydice fidgeted with her hands on her lap, so that's what that bar thingie she was. If she killed an Oddis, then she basically got their loot. Somehow this seemed like a tiring experience. The more Eurydice thought about it, the idea of having to go through what she did a number of times more didn't appeal to her. She shook her head, gleaming silver locks flouncing on her shoulders.
"I recently died before I came here. Somehow hearing I'm not the only one in this situation gives me comfort..." Orpheus stared at her apologetically upon hearing that. He also heard his own fair share of Oddis origins, none of them were pleasant, "Still, there has to be a way to avoid participating in the game... This whole scenario doesn't really appeal to me." Eurydice scrunched her face, annoyed.
"You can try but I've never heard of anyone managing to do that," For many months, every single Oddis was nothing but a pain in the ass. All of them far more egoistic than the last. So e of them even believed they were specially chosen by god. Which was ridiculous.
"Your Majesty, I want a job," Eurydice turned to the man sat beside her. The request- no..rather, the demand took him by surprise.
"Huh? You want....a job?.....here?" When she nodded her head in affirmation, he didn't know what to answer.
So now sat in