Once again wandering through the snow, this time not aimlessly, having a clear goal.
Throwing a last glance at the abyss, Noctis thought about the numerous suicides that happen every year by jumping into it, Siana almost having become one of them. This was, in fact, one of the leading causes of death, alongside breaches and disputes between tenants.
Taking a slightly different way from the one he had taken before, Nox turned a corner to see a place slightly better lit than where he was standing now.
The new setting brought a shift in atmosphere: two people were having a friendly chat, not caring about Noctis's presence at all, almost as if he wasn't there in the first place.
What a peculiar time to go wandering, especially considering the surface wasn't the most tourist-friendly location. Well, who am I to speak? I ended up here at this time as well.
Chuckling inwardly at his musings, Noctis asked himself. Why did I go out again, and why did this need partially disappear after that encounter?
Getting closer to the couple walking arm in arm, Nox silently listened in on their conversation while pacing by.
Man: "Oh, come closer, you little minx."
Woman: "Ha ha, stop it, you."
Man: "Oke oke, have you heard the government started a big new construction project?"
Woman: "Hmm... Yeah, what was it again?" The woman asked herself, answering the question with a bit of pride, the next moment.
"... Right, they are planning to build a giant wall around the settlement."
These two were clearly quite close, speaking in a familiar tone and openly showing affection.
As he continued, Noctis was confused by their conversation. Is a new wall really being built around the city? And who would call this thriving metropolis merely a settlement?
According to my parents, the original wall was built around 200 years ago. What are they talking about? Is there a second wall being built to expand the city, that doesn't make sense? We have always built downward rather than expanding the city in breadth, as the terrain around the city has never been very suitable.
From north to east, there was a gigantic cliff, where Abysscity had reached the absolute limit, including the edge into the city instead of expanding the wall, and the rest was surrounded by a few kilometers of flat land, which was then followed by a mountain belt. Of course, the main reason for not expanding was the beasts living in the surrounding areas, which made it dangerous to incorporate their territory into the city.
Not dwelling on it for long, since people could be strange, and Noctis lacked the context of their conversation, he moved on, his steps taking him into the next part of the quiet night.
After a few moments of walking forward, Nox noticed that the feeling of having to go somewhere had fully disappeared. Why all of a sudden? Looking back to where the couple had walked a few seconds ago, there was nothing. Have they turned a corner? Feeling something off, Nox ran back, checking the nearby alleys, but found no trace of them; their trail was hard to distinguish in the snowstorm. Wearing a deep frown, he gave up on the pursuit as it seemed illogical and unlikely for him to find them, especially considering that he had little time left to spare.
Letting out a deep sigh, Nox started walking back in resignation, with suspicious thoughts haunting him the entire way.
After wandering back through the building, he asked the secretary to have the armband removed.
He clenched his hand a few times while rubbing his now freed wrist. There, two small marks, almost invisible to the eye, were now all that was left from the armband. Not sparing it a particular thought, he headed to his room to go to sleep and think about the happenings in a safer environment.
***
Later, letting himself fall into the fluffy embrace of his bed, Nox noticed how quickly stress could build up once more.
Lying there, he started playing around with the thread he was producing, slowly trying to create a pattern once more. This had its uses, but in truth, he did it to calm his strained nerves and realign the accumulated, less-than-productive emotions while trying to figure out the situation.
While he was at it, Nox started summarizing and grouping the events of the last few days, hoping to build connections between them, now that he could view them from a more objective perspective.
So starting, I met that man, who, for some reason, wanted to take me, whatever that meant. He used some crazy reality-bending abilities and obviously had the opportunity. But... he just stopped in the middle of the process, saying something. What was it again? Oh, right, he took too much time. Shortly after the officer showed up, but would someone like him really be scared of a random officer?
Denying that subconsciously, considering that the man had such abilities, and Nox could not believe that such a level was that common.
He also told me we would meet again. What did he mean by that? A cold shiver ran down his back as he considered. Did he mean he would come back for me?
The biggest problem was that he couldn't even tell anyone about the guy, as every time he even thought about it, the thought would immediately disappear.
Then there were those symbols surrounding me when I awoke. Recalling some of them, but not all, as he did not have the time to study them, especially when they disappeared almost immediately after he noticed them.
Well, there are ritualistic languages, so maybe if I learn them, I'll be able to recall. In truth, he had almost no point to work on or to figure out anything connected to the runes, so he was basically grasping at straws when it came to that matter. Well, I would have had to learn about these languages eventually, since it was part of ritualistic magic, whatever that entailed.
Then there is the point of earning a bit through the class system, which rewards specialization. If I'm realistic, I won't be able to get more this week, since I'll get my share tomorrow and won't be able to compete with the others in any fields. Let's hope the newcomers get some kind of compensation, considering that the others will obviously have the advantage of experience.
Maybe I should slowly start thinking about what I should prioritize. No, that wouldn't make any sense, considering that I have yet to really experience all the categories and dont know the exact grading system. How could someone play a game well if they couldn't even understand the rules?
Then there are the things I'll need to practice. Merely at the thought, a grimace appeared upon his face. In the last few days, he had learned so many new things, and every single one of them required hours of practice, and that was ignoring the time he had to spend assimilating his Authority, which would definitely take a lot of time. Letting out another sigh, he then started thinking about the newest of his problems.
How exactly did I end up helping Siana, and what did that feeling represent?
The feeling weakened when I helped Siana and then disappeared when I listened in on that conversation.
Ignoring the latter, as there was simply too little to go on, Nox thought about what led him to that place, or how he ended up there.
I was there because I was taking a walk, which is untypical for me, considering I'm a homebody. I took that walk because my head felt cluttered with conflicting thoughts, which made me crave some fresh air and... those thoughts came because I had that dream,... what was it about again?
Thinking back, everything seemed to go a bit too... purposeful. Everything led me to another thing, which, in the end, led me to meet Siana.
As if everything was fated to happen.
Considering I most likely have a fragment connected to fate, could that be why? Was I being guided to a certain outcome? Or am I still being guided?
The thought alone made him uncomfortable. This could simply be Nox accidentally using his ability, but the thought of being under someone's control without even knowing it... It was, in itself, quite creepy. But it undoubtedly fitted fate-related abilities quite well. Fate, after all, was the force that controlled all happenings.
Unsure how to feel about this, Nox simply procrastinated on addressing the issue, if one even existed in the first place. He could be simply imagining things, and all of this could have simply been one big coincidence.
Realistically, I'm not able to do much on my own, but asking people about these dreams sounds quite risky.
I don't even know what's plaguing me for sure, and worse, I dont know how the government would deal with me once they find out something's wrong with me.
He had little trust in the government, to say the very least; he had seen many atrocities over the years, and the government had done little to discourage people from murder, rape, and other cruelties. Simply making sure that the bodies left behind by the chaos wouldn't be hidden or disposed of quickly. Throwing them into the abyss without a care or respect.
For now, it doesn't seem to be harmful. Let's first learn more about how the government handles irregularities. If it becomes more dangerous to hide it than to tell the government, I can still change my mind later.
Making up my mind, Nox decided on how to proceed.