The rattling of the carriage wheels carried us away from the mansion. Both of us were uneasy. Naiadler looked as if he were about to speak, but he continued to sigh instead. Neither of us said a word. Finally, Naiadler broke the silence.
Naiadler – It's all your fault.
— What do you mean it's all my fault? You fought with me too.
Just as I was about to lose my mind from anger again, the carriage stopped. Slowly, we turned our heads forward. We were at the ruins. We ran to the front of the carriage. No one was driving it. For a moment, I looked at Naiadler. "He had begun to break down."
I ran with all my strength. Someone grabbed my collar and pulled me aside. Just as I was about to scream, someone covered my mouth. Finally, when I dared to open my eyes, I saw Naiadler in front of me. He was as terrified as I was.
We leaned against a wall. Inside my head, those words kept repeating: "You won't harm him."
Naiadler was gripping his daggers tightly. So tightly, in fact, that his hands began to bleed. Unlike him, I had no weapon. We wouldn't survive this place.
Naiadler – Don't be foolish. Take one of the daggers from my hand.
He extended the dagger in his left hand toward me. I grabbed it quickly, and we ran deeper into the ruins. Finally, I had a moment to catch my breath. I leaned against an old wall, broken and covered in moss. The darkness around us allowed me to see nothing beyond my immediate surroundings. I could clearly hear my heartbeat.
Naiadler – At this rate, we might die of hunger and thirst.
— What do you mean? Don't we just need to get out of the ruins?
Naiadler – The ruins draw a person in, creating a separate void. Unless we destroy the core of this place, we will never escape. And on top of that, this place is like a labyrinth! The darkness everywhere is just an extra challenge!
"Why did Odasaku leave us in such a place?" Was he really so untrustworthy?
Naiadler picked up some flint stones from the ground, struck them together, and lit our path with the sparks. We walked. The monster behind us seemed to have given up.
Naiadler – First, we need to find water. I think I heard a sound around here while we were running.
— Fine, then let's go there.
Naiadler – But we have a problem. "If we leave here, we may never reach the same place again."
— Don't tell me one of us has to stay here.
With calm composure, Naiadler said:
Naiadler – Scouting is much more dangerous, so I'll go. There's no danger around here.
— No, you don't understand what I mean! If you…
Naiadler shushed me.
Naiadler – You'll attract the monsters here.
He walked slowly and "disappeared into the darkness."
My legs could no longer support me. I had to stay calm. He would surely return. I tried in vain to calm myself. I had a feeling that if I remained composed, everything would go better.
I could have been sitting there for hours, minutes, even days. I had already lost track of time. And wasn't I supposed to be the strongest? Yet here I was, still in need of protection. What was the difference between the me of then and the me of now?
Would Naiadler never return? I was slowly being swallowed by fear. I knew it, but there was nothing I could do. I just sat there. Perhaps while I was sitting, Naiadler was fighting a life-or-death battle? My lips were dry, as if no water had passed through my throat for centuries.
With absolute determination, I stood up, about to leave when I heard a sound.
— Shhh!
The sound pierced my ears. It was extremely shrill. I thought Naiadler had returned. Excited, I turned around, only to see a shapeless, fleshless creature before me.
It had no skin. Its eyes seemed ready to pop from their sockets. It had no teeth; its mouth existed only to digest. Its hands were unnaturally long and thin, and it walked on them. Its legs were short, and it had three of them.
I gripped the dagger in my hand and ran. The creature chased me with that shrill sound again.
With great determination, I turned back and drove the dagger into the monster's eye. It collapsed immediately. It was far easier than I had expected. Strangely, I began to laugh, turned my back, and walked on, caring nothing for the consequences.
Naiadler – FOOL, LOOK BEHIND YOU!
When I turned back, it was already too late. Its hands had reached me. I was about to be devoured.
Part 2: Flowers That Must Be Lost
Naiadler rushed behind me, stabbing the monster repeatedly with his dagger. I collapsed to the ground.
Naiadler was covered in blood from head to toe. Perhaps his own, perhaps the monster's—he never told me.
Naiadler – DIE! DIE!
We both looked utterly pathetic. Naiadler held both daggers and began hacking the monster to pieces.
— What are you doing?
Naiadler – We'll take this monster with us to eat.
— What! Are you serious?
Naiadler – Do I look like I'm joking?
He really didn't. The area under his eyes had turned purple from panic, strands of hair had come loose from his braid, and his eyes had darkened. He already looked finished. I sat next to him, grabbed the other dagger, and began chopping as well.
Naiadler – What are you doing?
— Isn't it obvious? I'm cutting the monster. After all, the two of us are going to get out of here alive, right?
After I said that, Naiadler quickly snatched the dagger from my hand, looking at me with absolute determination.
Naiadler – No, the one who will get out of here alive is you. I can be reborn as many times as I want, but you are human. Your survival comes first.
I stood up, furious. How could he sacrifice himself for me? JUST THINKING ABOUT IT FELT LIKE A CRIME.
— NONSENSE!
Naiadler's eyes were completely black. He looked at me and…
Naiadler – Don't shout, you'll attract the monsters.
I couldn't stop him. I couldn't change his mind. WHAT IF HE DIED BECAUSE OF ME? NO, NO, NO—I could not watch another person I cared about die again.
I sat down to calm myself, breathing deeply. Naiadler had apparently finished chopping the monster. He tugged at my arm. I hit his arm.
— FOOL! I DON'T NEED YOUR HELP!
Naiadler – Don't you understand? I can…
I cut Naiadler's words short.
— WHAT, JUST BECAUSE YOU CAN BE REBORN OVER AND OVER, DOES THAT MAKE DEATH WORTHLESS? YOU ARE NOT WORTHLESS JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE NOT ONE OF "THEM" OR SOMEONE ELSE!
Naiadler fell silent. He turned his back and gestured for me to follow. I followed him. Perhaps I had overreacted a bit. As if nothing had happened, we walked for hours. Naiadler stopped.
Naiadler – Here it is.
My eyes were dazzled. I immediately shielded them with my hand. When I finally opened them, moonlight gently illuminated the parchment in the center. Around us, two collapsed walls were covered in moss. Grass, insects, and animals wandered the area. Water poured from the hole above like a waterfall.
While I was staring blankly, Naiadler had already lit a fire, built a tent from leaves and branches, and waited for me. I limped toward him.
Naiadler – What happened? Why are you limping?
— I twisted my ankle while running. It's not that important.
Naiadler tore a branch and a long leaf from one of the trees and began wrapping my leg.
Naiadler – Since we'll be running constantly, you'll need this leg.
I said nothing. I simply stared at the moon through the hole in the ceiling. The moon was truly beautiful, even though I was trapped here.
Naiadler – Dinner's ready!
I turned toward the fire. For someone who once ate a pig raw the moment he caught it, this was a huge improvement. I sniffed the food first. Nothing seemed wrong. I took a small bite. It was fine…
Naiadler – So, who's keeping watch?
— Isn't it you, since you can be reborn as much as you want?
Naiadler – I think it should be you. "AFTER SUCH A TOUCHING SPEECH…"
The last part he said in an irritating tone.
— I thiiiink it should be you, since I need this leg.
Naiadler stood up and smacked me on the neck.
Naiadler – I'll do it, coward.
— Who are you calling coward!
We decided to take turns keeping watch until the moon gave way to the sun. We quickly gathered our belongings and headed toward the core.
Part 3: The Thing Inside the Core
Both of us were confident. All we had to do was have one of us distract the monsters while the other destroyed the core and freed us. It seemed we had a long walk ahead. Just in case, I had taken the parchment with me. In the darkness, we could only see a little of our path thanks to the sparks from the flint stones. I opened the parchment.
The moment I opened it, a scream full of pain echoed. The scream was very short—clearly, someone had died. I turned my head toward the source of the sound.
There was a huge claw-like thing sticking out of Naiadler's stomach, as if he had been impaled. His pure white blood stained everything. My legs gave way. Helplessly, I sank to the ground. Everything had happened so suddenly. The only thing I could do was whisper a word from my lips:
— Na… Naiadler…
End of Chapter
Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Even the thought of seeing your theories and thoughts in the comments is very exciting. "The chapter's name was Pandora, but didn't we see anything related to it?"