Hey. Have you ever committed any crimes?
-CLANK-CLATTER!
You didn't? Me neither.
-CLANG! CLANG!
That meant neither of us had ever been in jail before. Legally, at least. So, let's just say that someone tricked you and got you locked behind bars because of it.
Would you be mad? Obviously. Would you want to tear them apart? Maybe. But personally...
'Huff...huff... This is pointless. The iron bars are way too tough. Am I-really going to die here?'
...I could not forgive myself for digging my own grave like this.
If only I had questioned more.
If only I had refused her.
If only I had started faster.
Now it was useless to regret, but I still did it anyway because I needed something. Something to distract me from this lonely cell. From all that injustice.
Violence against others was one thing, but violence against oneself was incomprehensible. Madness, really. I wanted to blame that nun girl. Maybe she hid this fact from me, scared that I'd refuse her if I knew.
Maybe that's why she left so quickly.
-KLANG!
...How long could a human live inside a cell? Without food, maybe 3 days. This cell was quite cool, maybe because I was underground. But what about hygiene problems? Could a modern high schooler like me endure it?
Absolutely not.
"Somebody! Anybody! Is anyone there? Help me! Please..."
Futile, but I had to at least try it. I was that desperate.
I must have found something of use there. To try to escape. Even a rock would have been fine.
"This is not fair..."
Mumbling pathetic words, I started searching this cell thoroughly.
***
A very, very long time had passed.
The cell was about 5 square meters. It had become my tiny little world for then. I had even counted the number of tiles there. Nothing was useful there.
Partially gave up. I reminisced about my past and daydreamed about another future, had I not been trapped here. What adventure could I have gotten into? What kinds of people would I have met? Maybe I could have seen that ronin guy again. He was cool as hell.
The hunger was relentless. It felt like a countdown for my demise. Constantly reminding me of the predicament I had brought to myself.
The deafening silence. The steady drop of water. The flickering of the torches. They tormented me endlessly. If I stopped daydreaming for a moment, I'd have gone mad.
...Ahh, I thought I would pass out soon. I hadn't gotten any proper sleep. I could not get used to the cold floor at all.
-Tap, tap
'Huh?'
An unfamiliar noise. An approaching light. Before my thoughts could speak, I saw her.
A pure white robe with unique patterns, golden blonde hair flowing down to her waist. Her face was serene, with a hint of surprise. Her narrowed blue eyes stared at me.
"...You don't seem to be a hollow, who are you? And why are you here?"
Seems like I was saved.
***
"...So, you are a Chosen One, summoned by a mysterious voice in the name of fate to here. However, you have been locked here since yesterday, yes? I'm sorry to hear that."
"Y-yes, you might find it hard to believe, but I'm telling you the absolute truth. I swear!"
After using a key to unlock the worn-out door, I told her my entire story truthfully. There was no reason to lie to my saviour, after all.
"Please give me your right hand."
"?"
I quietly followed her words, holding out my right hand.
She grasped it with both of her hands, then revealed an unusual sigil on the back of my hand. It glinted in the dark; never once had I seen it before.
"You are indeed a Chosen One. This sigil here confirms that."
She gave out a faint smile.
"I should bring you back outside as soon as possible. This place is not safe. Still, I need to perform some recovery miracles for you first."
"Recovery-what?"
"Hold still."
Radiant light spread from her palms. A vernal warmth that felt so distant. The uncomfortable hunger and tiredness that had plagued me vanished. It felt like waking up from an afternoon nap, refreshing, in short.
"You should feel better for now, but we should get moving now; You need some real rest."
"What was that just now?"
"A recovery miracle done by offering a prayer. That one will revitalise you, but it's just a temporary treatment. Now, follow me."
Trailing behind her, I started asking her questions.
"So, uh, what is your name? Where are we? What are you doing here? Ah, thanks for saving me, by the way. I would have died miserably for sure if you had not been here. I'm truly grateful."
"I'm Angela, a saintess in training from the Order of the Guiding Star-Solaris. This is a ruin under the Order's control, and we are on the fourth underground level of it. I'm conducting a quarterly examination of this place. May I have your name?"
"Oh, right, my name..."
Now that I thought about it, my old name was hard to say, and I had no particular attachment to it, either. To celebrate this new beginning, I chose a new name.
"Cain. Call me Cain."
"Then, I look forward to working with you in the future, Cain."
It did not sound so bad. For a name I just arbitrarily used, that is.
***
Ascending the staircase, I gathered my mind and started asking her more questions.
"Where exactly is this ruin located? How are the other Chosen Ones?"
"We are in the Empire of Evaleon, near the outskirts of it, to be precise. I didn't hear much about the other Chosen Ones, but they are treated with hospitality wherever they appear. They are the ones chosen by fate, after all."
"Why is that?"
"It's for many reasons, but the main reason must be due to the Prophecies. A long time ago, the founder of the Empire predicted that when humanity needs help the most, the Chosen Ones will appear and bring peace to all. His words are revered by everyone, so rest assured, you will receive adequate respect from the people here."
At least I didn't have to worry about things like proving my identity and such. This was certainly convenient.
"Right, so what exactly are we fighting against? I heard all this stuff about 'evils of Terra', but I don't really get it. Can you explain it to me?"
"To put it simply, the Alliance has been at war with devils and their servants for more than a hundred years now. I don't know how the war is progressing exactly, but having the foretold Chosen Ones to fight alongside us is reassuring. Devils can only indeed be called 'evils of Terra'. Their servants have been tearing us apart for centuries. I can only pray for it to end one day."
I saw. Their situation was indeed precarious. However, with our arrival, the long-standing stalemate would be broken, and peace would come to Terra. Just imagining myself being hailed as a hero made me grin like a fool.
"Stop. There are enemies in front of us."
Stretching out her left arm to stop me, she slowly drew her sword from the scabbard. The blade gleamed sharply from the torches. In the darkness of the hallway, several silhouettes were moving.
"They are hollows. Slow and weak, but plenty in numbers. Stay close to me."
"...Yes."
I felt ridiculous for entertaining the thought of being a hero while being protected by a girl. Oh well, whatever, not like there was anything I could do.
From the darkness, limping zombie-like monsters slowly approached us. It looked like it was straight from a scene from The Walking Dead.
"Blessing of Strength."
Her body glowed briefly. It looked like she had used a miracle.
Angela held her sword steadily, preparing to cut down anything that came near.
The hollows crept closer. Right when the first one was about to enter her sword's reach, the sword was already raised above her head.
-Shing!
A hollow's head was clearly cleaved in half. It fell with a 'Thud!'. Swiftly, she assumed her stance again and stabbed the hollow to the left. It too collapsed helplessly.
Smoothly alternating between slashing and stabbing, she cleanly took care of any hollow coming near us, without much movement from her original position.
'Wow, this is the first time I've seen swordmanship directly. Handling this many monsters while protecting me, she must be pretty skilled, or are the monsters just too weak?'
My assessment would not go anywhere, not like I was that knowledgeable. Watching her silently, the hollows were taken care of after a few minutes. They really were quite weak.
"All of them have been taken down, so you can rest assured now. Let's get moving."
"Wow, you are so reliable. I don't know what I'd do without you, really. Again, I'm indebted."
"...You flattered me. I'm merely doing what is right, so no need to thank me."
I looked at her attentively. This girl, despite being smaller than me, was truly reliable. Also, as expected of a saintess in training, she was undoubtedly beautiful. What? It was a total reversal of the damsel-in-distress trope.
Oh well, whatever, might as well go with the flow. I should get to know her more.
"Uh, so why do you learn swordmanship? Surely a saintess candidate like you doesn't need to learn something like this, right? Since, like, you can do miracles and all that stuff."
"Yes. But I learn it anyway, since I can, and it will be helpful. Besides, miracles are not omnipotent; there are problems that only the sword can solve."
Angela was more pragmatic than I thought.
"Where are we going after leaving this place?"
"We will be heading to the city of Edenhal, where I'm currently training. It's just about an hour walk from here, so bear with me a bit more."
"Edenhal? Can you tell me more about it?"
"It's my hometown. The city is not that big, but it has been improving so much lately that it's hard to believe. I'll show you around when I have the chance."
"Really? I'll be in your care then."
The winding hallways and the flickering lights. The way out was surely long. I thought we were on the second floor now. Soon, we would be out of this accursed place. Never again did I want to be locked in. It was a sickening experience.
Yet, I could not shake this dreadful feeling that I would see this place again eventually.