"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
A young man bolted upright, screaming as he was torn from a restless sleep.
His chest rose and fell in rapid gasps. "Hah… hah… hah…" Sweat clung to his pale skin, and his dark black hair stuck to his forehead. His deep green eyes were wide with lingering terror, the nightmare still fresh in his mind.
"You're finally awake! I thought I'd lost you!"
The voice startled him, and he turned sharply to see a girl with tangerine hair and vivid blue eyes. She threw her arms around him in an embrace that was warm and desperate.
"Janika?" he murmured, his voice hoarse.
She pulled back just enough to meet his gaze, concern etched into her delicate features. Before she could say a word, he wrapped her in a tight hug, burying his face against her shoulder. His body trembled as he sobbed.
"What's… wrong?" she asked softly, her voice tinged with worry. Her cheeks flushed as she struggled to process his sudden show of emotion.
'Could it be…? Is he finally falling for me?' she wondered, her heart pounding. After all these years, could he finally be seeing her the way she saw him?
But his thoughts were far from hers.
'Never. I will never let it happen again.'
The memory of his dream flooded his mind—an entire lifetime flashed before him in agonizing fragments. He hadn't seen everything, but he'd seen enough to know what could be taken from him.
'I won't let you steal what's mine. Never again!'
He clenched his jaw, his heart burning with rage as the image of another man invaded his thoughts. That man had destroyed everything—claimed the women he loved, humiliated him, and left him powerless.
The worst memory of all was how he had taken Janika. Defiled her. Killed her.
The rage surged like a storm.
'I will kill you the very moment we meet, Amael!'
...
...
Artrious.
The god of plausibility.
It might not sound like a particularly impressive power at first glance, but trust me, it is. It really is.
Not only does she have the ability to make the impossible literally possible, but Liliana can also render certain abilities completely useless under the laws of plausibility.
Right now, we were deep within the Arten, far from the gates. Thankfully, the reinforcements must have been drawn elsewhere.
'Stem, why won't you just tell me what's going on?'
[She's an ally. That's all I can say.]
I sighed in frustration.
'Is she at full power?' I asked, stealing a glance at the figure walking ahead of me.
[No. She has yet to undergo her second awakening.]
Then why? Why was she so strong already?
In the game, she was powerful, but not this powerful. What made it even more terrifying was that she wasn't at her peak. If she underwent her second awakening… just how unstoppable would she become?
I adjusted the simple mask that now covered my face, ensuring it concealed my identity. It was better this way—better to remain unrecognizable. If word reached the Arenfords, they would descend on me before I had a chance to react.
I glanced at Lily, walking beside me. Her hand gripped mine tightly, her expression unreadable save for the faint smile tugging at her lips.
We had entered the heart of the city. The streets buzzed with activity, a sea of faces passing us by. I scanned my surroundings for the Adventurer's Guild—it had to be nearby, given the bustling nature of this district.
"What's that?" Lily asked, pointing to a small mat laid out on the ground.
We walked closer. The mat was covered with an assortment of trinkets and oddities, most of them little more than junk.
"What can I get you?" the vendor asked with a wide, practiced smile.
I glanced over the items disinterestedly until my gaze landed on a hairclip.
"How much for this?" I asked, noticing how Lily's eyes lingered on it.
"Three sephas," the man replied.
I handed him the coins and picked up the clip. It was simple but elegant, with a delicate floral design. Turning to Lily, I reached out to pin it in her hair.
"There," I said, stepping back. The clip contrasted beautifully with her blue hair, giving her an almost ethereal look.
Her cheeks flushed as she touched the clip gingerly, her smile widening.
"Let's go," I said, tugging her hand. Her grip on me tightened, but she followed without a word.
As we walked deeper into the city, my attention was drawn to a sign hanging outside a small tent.
"Fortune-telling," I muttered, watching as someone exited the tent with a grim expression.
"Let's try it out," I said, turning to Lily.
Her face was still flushed, and her smile was brighter than ever. She glanced down, fiddling with the hairclip shyly.
'I feel like I just doomed myself somehow,' I thought, shaking my head as I pulled her into the tent.
Let's see what fate has in store for me.