----Chapter 4----
The girl was still unconscious, her small weight pressing against my back as I trudged through the forest, wrapped in a blanket I had taken from Kaleen's pack.
Each step dragged me closer to… somewhere.
A town.
What was it called again?
I furrowed my brow, memory clouded. But I remember Kaleen and Deran explaining the town a while ago.
Iskervale, dumbass.
Zeberu's voice sliced through my thoughts.
Iskervale. Right.
I adjusted the blanket around her shoulders.
Before leaving, I'd searched through Kaleen's backpack.
Random trinkets, cracked necklaces, water-stained books… and at the bottom, a pouch of gold coins. Griffins etched into each one.
I had pocketed the pouch, figuring I'd need it once we reached town.
Then, I suddenly realized. Those coins… they had already been in my pocket when I first woke up in this world.
Why?
The question burned in my mind. I wanted to demand answers from Zeberu, but I hesitated.
No. This mystery, I'll solve myself.
I stayed silent.
"You chatter too much for a vessel. Arguing with you is pointless. Save your breath for when it matters," Zeberu said.
"Hey, was that a threat? What do you mean?" I muttered.
The girl stirred, and I gently lowered her to the ground. Her eyelids fluttered open, confusion clouding her features.
"Where… am I?" she asked, her voice soft and shaky.
"You're safe now,"
I said, crouching beside her.
"Do you remember anything before you became that Aetherwyrm? How did you get corrupted?"
I flooded her with questions.
"I don't know!" she cried.
I tried to read her aura with my Eye of Deception, but saw nothing. No color.
Was it malfunctioning? Or was she telling the truth?
I gave up. "What's your name? How old are you?"
She blinked, brushing tangled hair from her face.
"Nicaea. And I'm older than you."
I nodded slowly.
Not the answer I expected, but my eyes still saw no colors, so she was telling the truth.
I stood, stretched, and gazed at her again. Her strange, serpent-like tail twitched behind her, curling against the dirt.
"Do you know," she asked suddenly,
"There's a swamp not far from here?"
Her question froze me. The swamp.
The adventurers—Kaleen and Deran—and the coins. Their greedy faces. Their blood staining the earth. The coins in my pocket.
Coincidence? Or something more?
"There's someone moving," she continued, her voice cutting through the silence.
"A boy. Barely alive. Surrounded by the dead."
My chest tightened. A memory flashed:
a younger me, lost in the forest, chasing shadows. The crushing silence, the unbearable fear.
Then...Kenji appeared, his warm smile, his steady hand leading me home.
That fear, that loneliness… what if that boy is feeling the same right now? And his life is in peril?
I clenched my fists.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes," she said firmly.
I sighed, staring at the path.
"I'm heading to Iskervale. But… if someone's alive in that swamp, I can't ignore it."
Nicaea pushed herself up.
"I want to go there too."
"Why?"
I asked.
"Because there's one living among the dead," she replied, her voice unwavering.
I studied her. No fear, only resolve.
"It's dangerous. We don't know what's there."
She grabbed my arm, her grip firm.
"I need to go. It's calling me."
"Calling you? Fine," I said reluctantly.
I didn't argue with her anymore. Thinking back, she had been a massive Aetherwyrm not long ago, so she was definitely strong enough to defend herself.
"Stay behind me, no matter what."
"Yes. I understand," she said.
••••
The sun bled orange into violet as we reached the swamp. The stench hit first—wet rot, heavy and foul. We crouched behind a rock, peering into the murky expanse.
Shapes moved. Two goblins, smaller than most, green-gray skin mottled and scarred, carrying crude stone axes and torches.
They sniffed the air, muttering in their broken tongue.
"Humans… kill… kill…"
I understood them.
"How can I understand them?"
I whispered.
Not your first time hearing goblins, boy. I'm translating their filth, Zeberu said smugly.
"Mister—" Nicaea tugged my arm, panic in her eyes. "They found us!"
The goblins snarled, raising their axes.
Good luck. These weaklings are nothing, Zeberu chuckled.
They charged.
The first swung wildly, its killing intent glowing blood-red in my Eye of Deception. Too bright. I dodged, the axe burying itself in mud. My dagger sliced, freeing its head.
Behind me, the second goblin gurgled. Nicaea's tail coiled around its throat, snapping bone.
"Wow, that was…" I paused. "Brutal, but thanks."
She nodded, breath steady.
"No problem."
••••
We pressed forward. Nicaea moved faster, running on all fours, unsettlingly graceful.
A predator of land and water.
"Do you still sense the boy?" I asked.
"Yes. Barely. But he's surrounded," she said.
The swamp thickened. Then, a needle whistled through the air.
Nicaea's tail snapped up, deflecting it. Venom hissed against bark. She coiled her tail around my waist, dragging me clear of the next volley.
More shapes emerged. Goblins crawled from the shadows, from the muck. Dozens.
I drew my dagger, but Nicaea moved first. Her tail lashed, striking goblins.
They fell like puppets, their bodies tossed aside. She cleared a path, leaving a trail of groaning, twitching corpses.
But two stood out.
One, tall and wiry, mottled skin covered in dark splotches, mouth gaping, fangs dripping green saliva.
A Spitter, holding a crude reed pipe.
The other, bulkier, rigid, gripping two long spears. A Hunter. Its yellow eyes locked onto me.
I swallowed.
"That Spitter was trying to kill me with those poison darts."
"Assumptions". Zeberu hissed, amused.
"Thinking makes your fear tastier."
The goblins roared as the ambush began.
Then the Hunter Goblin moved first.
Its killing intent flared red. I dodged as its first spear flew, grazing my shoulder. Pain jolted through me.
Blood dripped down my arm.
Before I could react, two smaller goblins lunged. I sidestepped the first, my dagger slicing its throat. The second stumbled, and I kicked it away, turning back to the Hunter.
The second spear followed. I twisted aside, the wood slicing air. The Hunter hissed, snapped its fingers, and both spears flew back into its hands. The remaining goblins began to encircle me.
Be careful, boy! That one's stronger. He can think. Don't rely on your eyes... you can only predict movements, not what's hidden. He is your nightmare.
The Hunter lunged again.
I crouched low, dagger tight, eyes locked on his chest.
"Just be quiet and watch,"
I shouted, partially annoyed.
Then, our eyes met. His still burned red.
He threw both spears. One scraped my wounded shoulder, opening it wider. I grit my teeth, nearly stumbling.
But I closed the gap. He was empty-handed.
Panic flickered in his gaze. Still, I didn't trust it. A knife, a dagger—he might have something hidden.
Then the thought hit me.
"I'm right behind you!" I screamed.
The Lie bent reality. My cursed tongue flared.
For a moment, doubt rippled through him. He twisted his head to check behind him.
That was enough.
My dagger sliced through his neck. His head rolled into the mud, eyes wide, mouth frozen open in disbelief.
I staggered back, panting, blood dripping from my arm.
••••
Then, a scream tore through the swamp.
Nicaea's tail lashed. She closed on the Spitter with ruthless speed, weaving through jets of venom. Claws tore across its chest. She slammed it against a tree, her tail crushing its neck.
Her fangs sank deep. The Spitter gurgled and twitched, then went limp.
I froze. Brutal. Efficient. Terrifying.
And then, my knees dropped all of a sudden.
I collapsed into the mud.
"What's… happening to me…"
I gasped, coughing blood. Black veins crawled across my skin, pulsing with unbearable pain.
Finally,
Zeberu's voice slithered, manic with delight. My power is sinking into you.
Endure it, boy. This agony is the hymn of your rebirth.
"Shut… up…" I growled, clutching my chest.
"I'm… not…"
Not in control? Exactly. You never were, he laughed, sharp and cruel.
Every swing of your blade, every breath you wasted fighting, all of it, mine.
Did you really think you were the hunter?
My vision blurred. Nicaea's pale face hovered, her eyes blank. No aura. Nothing at all.
"What… does that mean…"
It means, Zeberu purred, rising in manic triumph, you are not in control anymore.
Darkness swallowed me. My body grew heavy.
Sleep, boy. His voice was the last thing I heard. When you wake… the world will know Zeberu has returned.
And I sank into the black.