Chapter 14 – Menace to the World
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I'd like to express my deepest apologies for not uploading for a whole month (again). I had a surgery in August and right after recovery, school started. However, those excuses don't make up for the lack of my writing. I'll try to stay on schedule this week, or maybe change it up to once a week coming out on Saturdays. We'll see going forward. But anyways, please enjoy! :)

Avice struggled to get back onto her feet. The taste of blood lingered in her mouth. Her muscles ached, and it was difficult for her to breathe. Shivers went down her spine as the cool air pricked her sweat-soaked skin. Her head and heart throbbed. Quite literally everything in her body was screaming at her to collapse to the ground right now and recover. And yet despite the immense pain coursing through her weakened body, she wore a triumphant smile. 

A truly powerful wave of joy and happiness encompassed her. It was as if the dam blockading all of her emotions cracked slightly when she thrust her arm into the monster’s mouth. An overwhelming surge of euphoria and ecstasy came along with her finally killing the beast and watching it disappear into dust. She couldn’t even recall the last time she had done something as incredible as this, if ever.

But… 

How did I… do that? That single thought invaded her moment of bliss, and brought her focus back to reality. The image of the sword ‘spontaneously’ erupting into flames, destroying the monster came to mind. That wasn’t English… she thought as she tried to replicate what she’d spoken beforehand.

However, her thoughts were interrupted once again when a sharp pain stung her head. She thrust Dall’s sword into the dirt and used it to keep herself standing. Her entire body heated up, and cold sweat drenched her back. Her vision began to blur. 

She sucked in the cool air and exhaled slowly, her body relaxing slightly.

Misha, who was standing a few feet away from her with a dumbfounded look on his face, wore a grand smile on his lips. He had never seen such a fantastical way of using a magic sword like that, and this random stranger that showed up out of nowhere used it as if it was one of the Legendary Instruments. I have to know who this girl is, he thought. So with that in mind - “Hey,” he called out from behind her. Without waiting for her to respond to him, he reached his hand out to grab her shoulder.

However, before he could, Avice twisted around and slapped his hand away. And in quick succession, she stumbled backwards, her uneven footsteps kicking up the dirt in front of her. Now a further a distance away from him, she held her hands closer to her body and glared at him. He took a step back in surprise, but when he tried to move closer to her again, she raised her fists, indicating she was ready to fight if he moved even an inch. To him, her appearance was akin to that of a wild beast, leaping away from its predator.

Avice kept still for a few moments when she realized that Dall’s sword was still stuck in the ground, and that Liss and Misha were now closer to it than she was. She glanced back and forth between the two, who both wore surprised looks on their faces. Liss’s expression, however, quickly changed from surprise to anger, and she withdrew her sword. 

Crap, crap! Avice cursed herself for forgetting where she was. Because the glare in Liss’s eyes was one that Avice was familiar with. Here she was, her body weak and tired, and her only weapon was right where her potential enemies stood. 

I can’t afford any trouble as I am now, she thought. 

Despite the intense and ruthless training she’d endured by her father, keeping up her stamina, prolonged exercise, and excessive strenuous movements were things she could never get a grasp on, often resulting in her father berating and beating her. As such, Avice loosened herself up slightly and dropped her arms to her sides. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m not too fond of people touching me.”

“N-No, it’s okay, I guess.” Misha’s voice trailed off. He nodded, and was about to walk over closer to her when Liss jumped in front of him and threw her arm out to stop him. “Hey, hey what’re you-”

“Misha,” Liss said sternly. Avice clenched her fist. Now Liss was just checking off all of Avice’s warning signs. The glare was one, and now Liss’s tone of voice… Avice knew them well, as almost every single person back home held that same attitude towards her. “Don’t get close to her.” Liss stepped forward. “Be careful,” she warned as she lifted her weapon and trained it onto Avice. “What the hell are you?”

Avice’s head spun like a whirlwind. What is this girl asking? What else could Avice be besides a normal person? Then her eyebrows rose as she thought back to Melody, the young elf girl she met two nights before. Of course… If things like Elves existed, surely other things aside from Humans existed as well. However, Avice had very limited and lacking knowledge of this new world she found herself in. There were many things that differed from her own such as the gigantic wolves, the Spirits, the non-humans, the older-aged aesthetics, and the existence of magic and… literally everything else. 

She was also focused on another thing that caught her attention: Liss’s quick betrayal. First they were working together, and within seconds of doing what they needed, she found herself another enemy. It was a typical situation for Avice. She initially believed that Liss was being cautious because of her hostile attitude towards Misha, but Avice knew that this was different. 

Damn it, she thought. 

She held her hands in the air and said, “Listen. I don’t know if you’ll believe me, but I’m a-”

“Answer my question,” Liss snapped. “Otherwise I’ll kill you where you stand.”

Avice bit her lip. “I’m a human,” she said, deciding that she needed to be as truthful and outright as she could be. 

“I’ve never heard a more bold-faced lie,” Liss scoffed. “You can use magic, right? See the Spirits and all that? You have to be able to, because I’ve never seen a human wield a magic weapon like that before. Even the Emperor or the Heiress wouldn’t be able to pull off something like that.”

“Liss! Calm down!” Misha said, trying to pull Liss’s arm down. “You’re spouting a bunch of nonsense talking about the Emperor like that.”

“Misha-”

“And besides, this girl’s helped us out, didn’t she?” he said with a smile. “Who knows, maybe the Icalians’ve made some stronger equipment and we haven’t seen them in the shops yet. We can’t speak so rudely with this girl, you hear me?”

“Look at her eyes, Misha!” Liss shouted. “They’re purple.”

Avice cursed under her breath. These damn things, again, she thought. She brought a finger to her eyes. Her violet eyes. The very things that she believed to be the cause for all of her suffering. She was bullied because of them, she was ostracized because of them, ridiculed because of them… The damn things that she was forced to conceal and hide from society under colored, brown contacts. If she could, she would’ve dug them out right then and there to prove that her eyes had nothing to do with who she was. 

Misha blinked. In that very moment, Avice could feel all of the kindness and respect that this stranger held for her go down the drain. Her newfound potential ally was slowly but surely being pulled away from her. Every second he stared at her stung. 

Then, just as she feared, he withdrew his weapon. His casual, kind stare transformed into a glare filled with hatred and malice. “You’re a damn criminal,” Misha muttered. 

Now there were two hostile people before her. Avice’s breath was short, and her heart pounded in her ears. Great, what am I going to do now…? She was so exhausted she could barely stand straight. Now more so than ever did she need to escape this predicament. 

She knew her staying here for a prolonged period of time would eventually lead to her death. However, she also knew that if she attempted to make a break for it and run away, she would immediately be impaled and killed on the spot. All options to fight were dashed, because she would lose within seconds. 

In order to ensure that she get out of this situation alive, she needed to talk. One wrong word out of her mouth would spell the end of her life. She gulped, saliva lathering her dried, hoarse throat. Despite her attempts to steady her breathing - to muster up as much bravery as she could - her legs still shook. Her hands twitched, and the tips of her fingers grew cold.

Avice gritted her teeth. Even after her first victory - a victory that she would surely remember for the rest of her life - she was being forced into a dangerous corner. This is such bullshit… she groaned. 

“Please listen to me,” Avice said slowly, forcing herself to sound strong. “You’ve gotta explain it to me. What’s wrong with my eyes?” she asked. The two’s glares grew stronger, but she carried on saying, “Why are you so pissed off?”

“’Pissed off’?” Misha scoffed. “You’re insane, you know that? Parading around with your eye color like that. How’ve you not gotten yourself killed yet?”

“Your very existence is a menace to the world. You're defying Continental Law,” Liss said. “Anyone impersonating an Aldrian is to be put to death.”

Aldrian. 

That word.

That title.

That name.

That label that she’d heard from the people around her after the fires broke out in the town - after she found herself in that space. Avice had never heard the word in her entire life until she ended up in this world, and ever since, she’s heard it enough times to make her sick. 

The Aldrian title seemed to be a very well-loved and adored name in this world. And so far, a copious amount of people have called her such. The strange man who killed everyone in the town had arrived because she was an ‘Aldrian’ was among them. Garnell, too, knew the name. Even the bandit leader was aware of it, and these people were too. And that one voice she’d heard in that space… 

She was clearly ignorant about it. And as such, Avice wanted to get as much information as she could. She took a deep breath and asked a very simple question. “What is an Aldrian?” 

Their jaws dropped. 

Liss was the first to get her act together, as she responded saying, “What kind of stupid question is-”

A dreadful, powerful roar knocked them down off their feet. Realizing that it came from behind them, Liss and Misha swiftly turned their heads. Avice, too, tried to see what monstrosity was capable of such a terrifying sound. However, she couldn’t imagine what she saw next. 

Emerging sluggishly from the darkness of the trees came a towering creature nearly triple the height of Avice. Its lanky, scrawny body swayed side to side as it inched closer and closer to them.  The entirety of its body was made up of a fleshy, pink skin. There were no visible muscles, nor were there any defining features resembling that of a human’s. 

Her heart practically stopped as she saw its face.

Or rather, where its face would normally be.

Because just like the rest of its body, its head was wrapped up in pure skin. No eyes, no mouth. Just the unsettling, blank canvas.

It stood still as it rested its creepily long fingers against a tree. It tilted its head all the way to the side such that where an ear would be was touching its shoulder. 

Then, the bottom half of its face melted away, revealing a pitch-black hole. Avice’s breath stopped. Tears were coming to her eyes. 

What… is- 

Another ear-piercing screech penetrated her ears. 

She screamed as she threw her hands up to cover them. It felt as if her soul were leaving her body. All energy that she once had was slipping away all at once. Tears poured down her cheeks as she curled up into a ball. I can’t take this! I want to die!

Once the hole closed up, Avice found herself snapping away from her thoughts. 

“I-I-It’s an Unaccounted!” Liss cried as she scrambled to her feet.

“W-What the hell’s something like that doing here?!”

“Those damn bandits never said anything about this!” she yelled, her face also covered in sweat and tears. Blood dripped down her ears. Avice reached to touch her own, and she could feel the warm liquid trickling down her chin. “Three monsters and that was it! That’s what they said, didn’t they?!”

“Yeah, but not a damn Unaccounted!” Misha growled. “We have to run!”

The Unaccounted tilted its head once more. Then raising its head as if it discovered something, it lowered its thin arms. The three watched as it dug around the bushes beneath its feet. Avice wondered what it was looking for. Then, her breath cut short when she recognized where the monster stood. 

Once it found what it was looking for, the Unaccounted raised it up high in the air for everyone to see. In its huge hand was the figure of Daryl, struggling and stabbing at its wrists to set himself free. The color drained from Liss’s and Misha’s face. 

We’re dead, aren’t we? Avice thought. 

But to her surprise, Misha shook his head and brought out his sword. He shook Liss’s shoulder and grinned. She gaped at his expression and demanded, “What the hell are you looking at me like that for?!”

“We’re Wanderers, Liss!” he said, his voice shaking. “Think about how much gold we could get from the guild by killing this thing! Imagine it! The one in a million people who get to get to brag about how they’ve taken down an Unaccounted!”

“You’re unbelievable,” Liss moaned, her body slumping weakly. “How can you even say that…?”

“But most importantly, we ain’t leaving without Daryl,” he said. “I’m not about to let a brother in arms die on me like that.”

Liss wrinkled her nose and nodded. “Those bandits owe us an explanation, after all,” she said. “Daryl! You better make sure you stay alive! You hear me!?” 

The two of them dashed towards the creature. 

Their battle surely must have been quite epic. Two weak warriors, right after defeating a rare, truly dangerous monster, jumping straight into the fray once more to rescue their friend trapped in the hands of their enemy. It would be a story that they would pass down to their children if they ever made it out alive.

Avice, however, wasn’t interested in any of that. She just wanted to get out. Alive.

Thus, before she could even see the outcome of the battle, before she could verify whether those three would end up dead or be victorious, she made a break for Dall’s sword and ran into the woods. 

As far away, she thought. I need to get as far away as I can. 

She immediately thought of the creek she had passed prior to killing the first monster. She thought that if she could at least arrive there, she’d be able to get back to the clearing - back to where she knew she’d be safe. 

She scrambled through the trees and the brush. Her breathing was rough and ragged, and sweat dripped down in front of her eyes. Her body was screaming at her to stop moving, but she couldn’t. Everything around her was cold to the touch. The bottoms of her feet were freezing. Avice’s eyes twitched to stay open. 

She tripped over roots jutting out of the ground, crashed into multiple trees, and found herself barely jumping over ledges to push on forward.

After what seemed like an eternity passed, Avice found herself thinking something dangerous. Maybe I’m a little safe, right now. Despite her efforts to keep moving, her body was giving up on her. I can relax a little, can’t I? I can at least do that, right? 

Her eyes fluttered, and they were about to shut when a brilliant gleam of white flashed in front of her. Her heart nearly jumped out of her chest. She thought that another monster was coming around to kill her. This time, one of those despicable Despairities that were part of Fora town’s destruction. Her weakened state of mind snapped back to focus. She forced her legs to keep running. 

She looked back and forth, side to side, trying to see any more instances of that cursed color.

However, as much as she tried, she couldn’t see anything resembling a Despairity. 

Her heart calmed down slightly, believing that she was safe for the time being. However, that short glimpse forced her to remember what had happened in that town. The image of those monsters eating people, destroying the buildings… that terrifying memory of her being surrounded by them, they’re vicious fangs ready to chomp down and slaughter her. 

Okay! Okay! I get it! She yelled at herself, telling herself that she was intentionally seeing things to get her moving. 

She ran and ran. Sweat drenched her clothes, her vision grew blurrier and everything in her body grew dangerously numb until she finally came upon the creek. 

A rush of happiness exploded inside of her. I can finally make it back! She thought. However, as soon as her heavy feet crossed the water, she felt a sharp pain in her neck, and her entire body collapsed.

H-Huh? She blinked rapidly, trying to figure out what had just happened to her. I-I’m on the ground?

Avice tried to move her arms and legs, but nothing seemed to be doing anything. 

Then, a sharp clicking chattered behind her. 

She panicked and turned her gaze to where it came from. Damn this world. Damn everything… 

What greeted her were four, huge, red balls lighting up the darkness of the forest. 

She tried forcing her body to move, no matter how much it denied her wishes. 

Underneath the balls were four smaller orbs. 

She yelled and screamed, crying out, “I hate this!” 

It was one of her worst fears, enlarged to an ungodly degree. Its bulbous, hairy body crushed the brush beneath it, and its long, elongated black legs dug deep into the earth. 

Her breathing was sporadic. 

The terrifying beast was slowly coming upon her. 

She believed that this was it. 

Her whole life of taking in all of the bullshit around her and trying to make the most out of everything she could… every single decision she made, every emotion and every thought… it all led to this moment. 

To perish and die in an unknown world, without anyone knowing. 

However, that single thought resonated with her. Would she really let herself die like this? If her body wasn’t moving, then surely she just needed to force it to. I can’t give up… she thought. I have to get back. I have to go back home… 

Her chest swirled with a mix of misery, fury, and a powerful desire to get what she wanted. That outburst of emotion she had had before felt similar. That was the time she had used magic. At the discovery of this, she decided to use it to get out of here as fast as she could. But, she didn’t know how she could utilize it. She remembered that she wasn’t even the one using her ‘powers’ that night. It was that other person sleeping inside of her. 

And besides, she couldn’t even move her body in the first place.

“So this really is it.” No amount of emotion or sentiment could save her now. However, “I won’t give you the satisfaction!” she yelled loudly. “I’ll fight even when I’m in your god-damned stomach! You hear me!?”

The blackened vile creature was at her feet. I’ll make sure that I’ll be the worst thing you’ll ever eat you damn bastard!

Avice waited. Even if she said and thought all of that, it wouldn’t do much if she couldn’t even move her body. It frightened her that she didn’t even know if she was already being eaten alive. So she just grit her teeth and waited for when she could finally see the spider. However, no matter how long she waited, nothing was happening to her body. 

Confused, she tried to move her body once more. This time, to her delight, she found that whatever kept her from moving was slowly disappearing. She was about to get up completely when she heard a violet crack, and a loud and powerful howl rumbled before her.

Thunderous crashing and violent thrashing shook the earth beneath her.

She jostled around, and when she was finally able to at least twist around and see what was happening, she was immediately blinded. For merely a few feet behind her were two giant masses of a piercingly bright white swirling around a mess of black.

What the hell is going on!? Avice initially thought. However, realizing that this was her golden opportunity, she casted everything else aside and forced herself to continue onward.

The clearing was bound to be nearby. 

That was the only thing that Avice could believe in. The only hope that fueled her distraught and tired body.

However, as she continued to move, the sounds of the fighting never ceased. She made the decision to make a quick look back, and as she did so, a huge spindle of web shot towards her. She let her body collapse to the ground, and the web zoomed past her and grabbed onto a nearby tree. 

Before she could make sense of what happened, the tree was ripped out of its roots and cast backwards.

It’s still after me? No, no, it doesn’t matter! As long as I make it to that place, I’ll be safe!

She forced herself to crawl. If nothing else in the world would listen to her, then she needed to at least force her very own body to. So she forced herself to keep moving - keep going to live. I’ll make it! I swear! 

Avice grit her teeth and crawled. 

Dirt was shoved into her mouth as she made her way, but it mattered little. Twigs and sticks on the ground stabbed into her flesh, and jagged rocks cut into her arms and legs. 

But none of it mattered. They were all just cuts. She could afford cuts. I’d even lose an arm or leg… she thought. But I’m living. I don’t care.

The commotion behind her never ceased. In fact, they were getting louder.

But it didn’t matter.

It didn’t matter.

Avice thought that over and over again. Her mind was filled with only those two phrases. To keep going. 

To not stop.

Then, the sounds of the trees crashing and the ground tearing up behind her stopped. It was then that she noticed that her eyes were closed the entire time. 

Avice blinked slowly, trying to make sense of what had just happened. O-Oh, she thought. 

The bright and blue sky was above her, the white clouds passing by without a care in the world. The grass beneath her was soft and wet. She inhaled, taking in the fresh aroma of the flora around her. All sounds of life outside the barrier were dulled as well. Only the gentlest songs of the birds perched on the trees filled the area. And there, sitting against the same tree she had left him, was Dall, sleeping soundly. 

“I-I did it,” she cried. 

All tension in her body disappeared all at once, and she knocked out.

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