Siarah was an introvert, but it doesn't mean she didn't care about what was happening around her. She was focused on proving to all the creatures here that Yrena had something to offer. It was her goal from the start, so she did everything silently to enhance her power.
And now that I have all of her memories and knowledge—I could also manage and control the abilities she had.
"A hot fire... I didn't expect that," I heard Callie say, so I looked at her. Her attention was on the fruit she was holding.
Siarah—no, currently... I have the power of fire.
Why? Is their fire cold?
I simply ignored her and ate the fruit Kaleb gave me. It tasted like a combination of grapes and apples? I wasn't sure, but it was delicious.
"Let's rest here for a while, but keep your senses sharp because we don't know what creatures are in this forest," I heard Kaleb say.
I stood up and walked towards a tree. I heard Avery calling out to me, but I didn't pay attention. I climbed up a tree opposite from my companions and sat on the branches there. I leaned my back against the tree.
From where I was, I could see my companions below, and it seemed like they could also see me.
I wasn't very good at climbing trees, but climbing trees was something Siarah often did. I was slowly adapting to everything about her, but it didn't mean that my own identity as Elena was disappearing. I don't know. I'm getting confused.
For now, all I could think of was to rest. So much had happened today—since I ended up in this place.
I settled myself on the tree branch. It was surprising that I could sleep on a tree, but I didn't have time to be surprised, especially now that I was in this world. But what if I suddenly woke up and everything went back to normal? I didn't know, but it seemed like that would be better.
I gradually closed my eyes and let sleep pull me in.
---
I woke up startled upon hearing rustling from somewhere. I opened my eyes and scanned the surroundings. It was pitch dark, and I couldn't see anything. I looked up at the sky, but there was no moon visible. Am I dreaming?
"Someone was coming..."
I froze in my position upon hearing a voice beside me. I didn't speak or move.
"It was not someone, they were many," I heard another familiar voice say... Kaleb.
And if I'm not mistaken, the first voice was Levi's. I thought it was someone else; I must have been a little surprised, which is why I didn't respond immediately. It seems like we were all on the same tree, my companions and I.
I was about to speak, but I stopped when I heard voices not far from the tree where we were.
"We must be careful, especially when our opponents are those royalties. We don't know, they might be our enemies. They could possibly be studying in our school to enhance their powers and enslave us," I heard a male voice say.
"Or maybe they're just naturally strong. Their team could also possibly lead to the downfall of our world," I heard a female voice say. I didn't know them, and their voices weren't familiar, but one thing was for sure... they were our classmates.
They passed by our location, and after a while, they slowly moved away from us.
"They were careless," I heard a voice that I believe was Kaleb's say. I turned to my right and was slightly surprised to see a gleaming object.
"You're amazing, Kaleb!" I heard Avery say.
I sighed before raising my right hand. After a moment, fire slowly emerged from my hand, providing light for me to see my companions around.
"Whoa, cool!" exclaimed Avery in amazement.
"Should we move forward or continue resting?" Kaleb asked.
I remained silent.
"Let's move forward."
All of us turned to look in my left direction. Levi's serious face greeted us. After a while, he suddenly disappeared from the branch where he was perched.
I jumped down from the tree, and I could sense my companions descending as well.
"One stone down. Let's go," Kaleb said, following Levi who started walking.
Yes. He indeed obtained one of the three crystal stones we were searching for.
"How did you get that, Kal?" Avery asked, walking beside me.
"Wind's power was amazing, just like me," I heard Kaleb's reply, followed by a soft laugh.
My right hand was lowered, but the fire remained. I didn't extinguish it yet, especially since it was really dark around us.
"So you could hold your power that long, Siarah?" Callie asked.
She wants to annoy me that much?
"Longer than what you expected," I replied seriously.
Silence enveloped us. No one spoke, and the surroundings were eerily quiet. Unlike in my world where I could hear the chirping of birds or the sounds of animals in the forest, here in this world, it was simply silent.
It's quite unfamiliar... very much so. But I couldn't let it show because I didn't know what they would do to me if they found out that I'm Elena inhabiting Siarah's body.
I continued walking quietly, along with my companions. We followed Kaleb, who was in the front, holding the map. The sun had been up for almost two hours now, and we had enough food to sustain us during the journey.
I had been using my fire power as a source of light for almost two hours, so I was starting to feel unwell. Siarah's power drains energy from my body. I'm still not accustomed to Siarah's ability, so it draws energy from my own body. If I become proficient in using it, I won't have difficulty using it for a long time, anywhere, and anytime.
"Are you okay, Siarah?" I heard Avery's voice, bringing me back to reality.
I blinked a few times and, in a moment, I felt my body falling into someone's arms. I kept my eyes closed as I was feeling quite weak.
"We'll rest here," I heard a voice, which if I'm not mistaken, was Levi's.
I slowly opened my eyes. Levi's gentle and serious face greeted me as he looked at me.
"Are you okay, Siarah?"
I blinked a few times again upon hearing Kaleb's voice. I quickly moved away from Levi, almost stumbling. Thankfully, Kaleb caught me again.
"It's better if we rest here for a while," Kaleb said. I didn't hear any complaints from my companions either.
Kaleb guided me towards the shade of a tree and helped me sit down there.
"As expected, abilities consume body energy. You should always be careful when using your powers, Siarah," Kaleb said seriously as he sat next to me under the tree.
He handed me a fruit, which I took and ate.
I remained silent and motionless. I looked at the whereabouts of my companions. We had been walking for hours, so they were clearly exhausted. Luckily, we had fruits. We also had enough water to drink because of Levi—he was a water user. He could create water anytime, and we could all do that depending on our powers and strengths.
"I never expected this, but I did enjoy this activity," I heard the person next to me say... Kaleb.
"But it was still more enjoyable before, right?" he added, causing me to pause.
B-Before? Is there something I still don't know about Siarah? Does she have memories that I can't recall?
"Maybe you already forgot those things. I'm also happy that we met again," he said once more.
I remained silent because I had no knowledge of what they were talking about. If that's the case, does Kaleb have past memories with Siarah? They seem close based on how Kaleb treats me.
I didn't answer or speak. I didn't want to speak for now and say words about something I wasn't sure of.
If Siarah's necklace is missing some memories about her, then I really need to be cautious. I thought I would be fully equipped with Siarah's memories, will, and knowledge, but apparently, something is lacking. Whatever it is, I hope it won't hinder me from continuing Siarah's life.
Although part of me wants to go back to being the old me, Elena, there's a part of me now that wants to stay and live in this world. Siarah herself chose and brought me here to continue her life, so I hope I can fulfill that.
I also hope... I can talk to the real Siarah, even just for a brief moment—perhaps in a dream.
---
"We've been walking around this forest for two days, and we've only found one stone. Time is running out," Avery complained.
We continued walking through the forest. We were always on alert and hoping that another group would appear with the important stone we needed, but there was none. We didn't even see a single fierce beast or even a docile creature around.
Is this place really that vast?
I closed my eyes as I bumped into someone from behind. I immediately looked up and saw that I had bumped into Levi, who was suddenly stopping. What's his problem?
"Look who's here..."
I glanced a bit in front of Levi when I heard a familiar voice from there. And there stood Chloe, smiling at me.
We were only a few meters away from Chloe and her companions. She had five other male groupmates who were clearly strong—physically, because of their muscular bodies.
"You're looking for this?" Chloe asked and showed the two stones she held in her hand.
"She's so stupid..." I heard the person next to me mumble, so I looked at them. It was Avery, who was also looking at Chloe's direction.
"Are we victorious?" Kaleb asked.
He showed us the two stones he had obtained from Chloe's hand. Shouldn't I have expected that? He's really fast.
"How could you win?" Chloe asked with a laugh, capturing everyone's attention.
I saw Avery gaping when she saw the three stones Chloe held.
We didn't know her ability. We underestimated her.
"Fight them," Levi said seriously.
For a moment, I couldn't move from where I stood. I saw my companions rushing forward, seemingly eager to engage in a fight as well, as the muscular men also ran towards us.
We didn't know their abilities—without that knowledge, we couldn't guess their weaknesses.
"Finally, it's now the two of us. You know, I'm really annoyed with you. Acting like you're one of them? I didn't mind losing in this task, but before that happens—I want to fight you first. Show me if a Yrena royalty has any worth," Chloe said.
I saw her slowly walking towards me. I wasn't sure if I could fight back as Siarah, but I knew I wouldn't back down as Elena.
I remained in my position, keeping my gaze focused on Chloe as she approached.
I froze as I felt something beneath my feet.
I sensed energy coming up from my feet, gradually turning into an electric-like sensation that traveled up to my knees. I couldn't move.
"Well? Aren't you going to make a move? Beg me, and I may spare you," Chloe said with a smirk, as if she wanted to show that she had already won between the two of us.
I didn't like her tone. Though her words may sound normal, her voice was unpleasant to listen to—not intimidating, but rather grating to the ears because of its sharpness.
"Beg me, and I may spare you," I repeated her words.
I felt the sting of electricity entering my skin, but I didn't react to it because I could endure the pain it brought. Was electricity her power? If that's the case—
"W-What did you do?!" Chloe shouted in a questioning tone.
I closed my eyes as I slowly felt the electricity dissipating from my feet. I opened my eyes and saw Chloe staring directly into my eyes, her own eyes widen with astonishment.
Using just the gaze of my eyes, I extinguished the flames surrounding Chloe. I could also see certain parts of her uniform charred from the fire.
"Y-Your eyes..." Chloe whispered, still looking at me.
I took a step closer to her. With only three steps taken, I saw her retreat.
"What's wrong with my eyes?" I asked, halting my steps.
"T-They turned red..." Chloe whispered in response.
Why? Was it bad? Everyone has different eye colors. And besides, they're not mine—they naturally belong to Siarah.
Maybe it was part of the retention between Siarah and me.