As I hugged Livia, I felt a deep warmth, both from the front and the back. It wasn't an unpleasant warmth; it was rather comforting and familiar.
When I looked at Livia crying while burying her face against my body, the negative emotions I had been feeling finally disappeared.
The purple flame that had completely enveloped me now spread to cover Livia as I held her. I knew the Sigil's flame produced no heat or comfort, but that wasn't its purpose; it was there to calm me.
I smiled slightly as I noticed small white embers beginning to form and move around us. I realized that the heat coming from my back was from that white flame.
I could feel Milaine's hand on my back, although it wasn't a hug; the effect of the flame felt like one.
It was a good feeling, a very pleasant one. I was sure it wasn't just for me; it was there to help Livia too. Although I didn't say so, I was grateful for the small gesture.
I stayed there, hugging Livia and caressing her head. Meanwhile, there were two flames enveloping us. The only sound in my mind was the muffled cry from the fragile girl now in my arms.
***
After a while, Livia had finally stopped crying; she was wiping away her tears with an embarrassed face, while she moved a little away from me.
"S-sorry, I don't know what got into me," Livia stammered.
I smiled bitterly as I let the girl settle down a little.
"It's okay, Liv. You didn't do anything wrong, I am the one who should apologize. Sorry, I was being mean," I said.
I really didn't know how to explain what had happened to me.
'What am I supposed to say? My instinct was affected by an 'undetermined' ability and made me feel aversion towards you. Fuck no, that sounds horrible.'
I felt the hand that had been resting on my lower back rise, carrying the white embers with it. By this time, the flame of my Sigil had also disappeared.
I leaned back against the wall with a noticeable sigh. Once again, the three of us were in a dim light, gazing into the distant darkness of the cave. This time, I wasn't going to let go of Livia's hand.
"Thanks..." I whispered, this time directed at Milaine.
She gave a simple nod before speaking.
"Different people deal with trauma in different ways. Some isolate themselves in their minds, others bottle up their emotions, and others suffer episodes like these," Milaine said.
I didn't say anything. I just nodded. I didn't think that applied to me; I wasn't having an episode or anything like that, I wasn't being affected by something. UNDETERMINED.
However, it seemed to make sense to Livia, judging by the way her face lit up. Although her eyes had been a little red, she now seemed to have regained some vigor.
"Yes, yes, I think so too. I read that people with PTS often suffer cognitive and mood disorders," Livia said while glancing at me sideways.
'Post-traumatic stress, huh? I guess that makes sense... but I still don't think that's my case.'
There was no point in thinking about it. Whether it really was post-traumatic stress or not, I had no way of knowing. Nor did I know exactly what the cause might be.
'I just hope UNDETERMINED isn't that. I'd have to erase my entire fucking life if that were the case.'
After rejecting the idea, I decided to focus on reality and the only thing that truly mattered at this moment: survival.
"What do we do now?" I asked as I looked at the holes that had formed in the ceiling of the cave, near where the worm's corpse lay.
The red sky covered in black smoke was a reminder that we had to move.
"Sandworm. We still have to eat what's left of it," Milaine explained.
I was honestly exhausted, physically and emotionally. So much had happened today and the last thing I wanted to do was move to eat a giant worm that tasted like shit, and on top of that, it was acidic.
"Do we really have to do that now?" Livia asked, a hint of concern in her voice.
"Try it yourself, use Augury," Milaine said.
I glanced at Livia; she seemed a little hesitant at first, but then decided to close her eyes. I heard her make a contemplative hum for a few seconds before finally opening them.
"Will we be okay if we don't eat the sandworm today?" Livia asked, the color of her eyes changing to gold for a second.
After that, Livia frowned a bit before speaking while looking at me.
"She's right," Livia said.
The way the question was phrased seemed a bit strange to me, so I asked out of curiosity.
"Why that question? It sounds a bit specific, doesn't it?" I asked.
"Huh? Oh, yes. The thing is, they only give me a yes or no answer," Livia said.
"I see," I said.
I found it interesting. I wasn't sure why I'd previously felt so much rejection and repulsion at the mention of that Gift.
'Now my Instinct is also quiet…'
However, there was still that fragment of the last gift.
'Fury of an ancient witch... If I take into account the adversity... That cannot be a coincidence, I'd better contact Violet ASAP.'
"Do we have to eat it all today?" I asked the group.
"At least you have to eat something; I won't be able to cure you if you don't have energy reserves."
'Energy...'
The word echoed in my head, the origin of Essentia. Before I could consider whether Milaine's flame had anything to do with it, she spoke again.
"Eating the worm will also strengthen our bodies and build resistance as Innate Abilities. In any case, we can't stay in the cave much longer."
"You mean that?" I pointed to the open part of the cave ceiling.
"Yeah, but we also have to move before the ground starts to crack. Sulfur levels will soon skyrocket in the caves; it's no longer safe here." Milaine said
"How do you know that? The sulfur is outside too. And don't give me that 'the moderator explained it' excuse because I'm not going to believe it,"
Some things were believable, and the excuse that it was the moderator's initial explanation was fine at first, since neither Livia nor I heard it.
But I'm not stupid either; I knew Milaine was hiding something. I even mentioned it to Violet at the time. Knowing general information was one thing, but knowing where to go and what would happen was another.
I wasn't really upset. I just wanted answers, even if it was just a few.
Milaine closed her eyes and remained silent for a short time before speaking.
"Like Olivia, I also have a Gift that allows me to know some things that are going to happen. It's something similar to Augury, so to speak," she said.
I glanced at Livia, who was still sitting beside me, our hands still intertwined. She was looking at me with a touch of embarrassment, her cheeks flushed pink and her blue eyes briefly turning gold. She nodded.
"Okay, you could have started there..." I said as I looked back at Milaine.
"Yes, I suppose... Although, It hasn't exactly been precise lately either..." she said.
"She tells the truth," Livia whispered to me.
I smiled at the kind gesture. If Legemens still worked, I too could tell if someone was lying to me.
At the same time I felt a little relieved; perhaps Livia hadn't yet seen my status window, and that's why she was sharing with me whether Milaine was telling the truth or not.
"What about you, Eleonora? That purple flame was your gift, right? What does it do? I need to know in order to better plan our roles," Milaine asked me with a certain curiosity in her voice, while she moved a little closer to me.
Livia also moved closer to listen; she was practically breathing down my neck.
Apparently, those two weren't the only ones paying attention to me now.
[The Goddess who doesn't believe in friendship is listening closely]
[The Goddess who enjoys battles is listening closely]
[The Goddess who dislikes gods has started to watch you]
'Jeez, so many people watching...'
The appearance of the last goddess surprised me, but I didn't have time to reflect much on it, as I felt the anticipation that was now forming for my response.
'What exactly can I say?'
I knew that if I lied, Olivia would find out. Maybe she'd cover for me, but that might just pique her curiosity and make her want to peek through my window. So that option was out.
I wasn't sure how good an idea it was to mention I used witchcraft now that gods were watching. Spells fell into a different category than Gifts and innate abilities, and I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.
I looked at the section on my status screen.
Spells (Unique): [Sigil] [Legemens]
'It clearly says 'Unique' there...'
Avoiding the question would have made me sound suspicious; it was logical and pragmatic. I had to say something convincing, true but ambiguous.
"Um... the flame allows me to 'burn' things that belong to me in exchange for giving me access to other abilities."
Silence.
Too much silence.
Beads of sweat were starting to trickle down my face. When I glanced at Livia, her eyes were golden and she was staring at me.
'LIVIA! Please, it's not a lie!'
Perhaps I was a little ambiguous with the definition of 'burning things,' but they didn't need to know what Essentia was. At least, I didn't feel comfortable talking about it with goddesses watching me.
[The Goddess who doesn't believe in friendship sent you a private message. Do you wish to read Y/N]
[The Goddess who enjoys battles sent you a private message. Do you wish to read Y/N]
'Ugh, it was obvious...'
Since the girls weren't saying anything, I decided to see what the goddesses were saying. They both sent an identical message at the same time.
[Who gave you the Gift?!]
'Shit... right, they wanted to give me a gift...'
[The Goddess who enjoys battles has started to insult The Goddess who doesn't believe in friendship]
[The Goddess who does not believe in friendship threatens The Goddess who enjoys battles by telling her about ~[censored]~ and other shameful secrets to the mortal Eleonora]
[The Goddess who enjoys battles has risen from her seat and is going to the domain of the Goddess who does not believe in friendship]
[The Goddess who doesn't believe in friendship is calling the God who would do anything for money for help]
[The Goddess who...]
'Jeez... I don't need to know that.'
As I closed the tab with the notifications, the two girls on either side of me broke the silence at the same time.
"What did you burn earlier, Leo?" Livia asked.
"What kind of 'other abilities' can you acquire?" Milaine asked.
"I burned away some tremors I was feeling, also some pain when I ate the worm, and a bit of my tablecloth. And about the abilities... I'm still not entirely sure... I need to keep burning..." I said.
'That should count as truth, shouldn't it?'
Milaine seemed to place a hand on her chin and remained silent. Livia's eyes had turned blue again; now she was looking at my hands.
"By any chance... is your class 'Witch'?" Milaine asked.
***