“Hey, wake up, big man!”

 

My eyes open slightly, and I rub them with my hands softly. After I finally opened my eyes completely, I saw two familiar friends standing at the end of the table.

 

“Steven! Where have you been?!” Bella says with both frustration and concern in her voice.

 

“I–” 

 

“Yeah, you’ve got some explaining to do, big man!” Leif interrupts. “The missy here has been worried sick about ya!” 

 

“W-what time is it?” I ask, stretching my arms and avoiding the question.

 

“It’s almost midnight. Both of us recently got back from our quests.” Bella says.

 

“Midnight? What kind of monsters have you been fighting for you to take that long?” I chuckle softly.

 

“None of your concern, big man! More importantly, you still never answered us! Where the hell have you been?” Leif says in a forceful manner.

 

I inhale and exhale. “Before I say anything else, have you two made your reports yet?” 

 

They both shake their heads. 

 

“Make your reports first and then I’ll tell you.” 

 

“Alright, alright…come along, missy,” Leif sighs as the two of them head to the counter.

 

I’ll tell them anything that they ask about, but I can’t let them know anything about what happened to Mrs. Frost.

 

It’s obvious everyone in the village, including them, will know about her death by tomorrow, but how will my friends react if they find out I was the one who killed her? 

 

Madeline can still tell the guards on me and there would be nothing I could do. She hasn’t done anything yet from what I know, so maybe she doesn’t intend to. But regardless, it’s still a possibility. I have to be careful.

 

I have no idea what will happen, but there’s definitely a higher chance that I’ll get caught than getting away with this crime.

 

My thoughts were running rampant in my head. I was stressed out about everything. Come on, just calm down. I’ll deal with things as they come, right? I’ve already decided that. Worrying about it won’t fix or change anything that’s happened.

 

“Alright, big man. We’ve made our reports.” Leif says as the two of them return to the table and take a seat. 

 

“How much money do you have now?” I ask.

 

“Twenty gold pieces between the two of us. We’ve both taken two Slaying Quests so far, each five gold pieces each.” Bella says proudly. 

 

“Ah, that’s good. We’re making progress. One step closer to a boat,” I nod. “Alright, about where I was these past couple days… I was in the forest outside the village.”

 

“The forest? The hell were you doing there? I thought you weren’t taking a Slaying Quest!” Leif utters in surprise. 

 

“I wasn’t. I took what I thought to be an easy quest. A simple delivery. It wasn’t until later on that I found out that the delivery was to be made to someone who lives inside the forest…”

 

“Damn, it looks like it wasn’t easy judging by your appearance, big man. Looks like you’ve had one hell of a battle! But you still managed to do it by yourself though, so that’s great!” Leif smiles.

 

I pause for a moment and then I reply, “I didn’t do it by myself, Leif. I had a partner.”

 

“A partner? You formed a party with someone else?” Bella asks. 

 

“Yes. I didn’t want to, but I was practically begged, so I couldn’t bring myself to say no. But if it wasn’t for my partner, I wouldn’t have made it out of there alive. I owe it to them.” 

 

“Where is this partner of yours, then? What’s their name?” Leif asks.

 

“Her name is Madeline. She’s a new adventurer, same as me and Bella. Just a young cleric. She’s definitely home now. Hasn’t seen her family in a couple days.”

 

“Ah, geez… I guess anything can happen on your first quest, huh? In any case, both me and the missy are glad you’re okay.” 

 

“Thanks. I appreciate it.” I say in a dry tone of voice. 

 

“Steven? Is everything okay?” Bella asks, clearly noticing my lack of energy. 

 

“I just need some rest. It’s been really rough for me. Rough for my partner, too.”

 

To my surprise, neither of them asked for more details about Madeline or the quest we took. I guess they were satisfied with my answer. Either that, or they didn’t wish to press me too much. They can tell how detached I am right now.

 

“I understand, Steven. You can head to the inn for the night if that’s what you want.” Bella says.

 

“Actually, we have a few spare rooms here in the guild!” the receptionist calls out from her desk. “Sorry to eavesdrop on your conversation, but just letting you know!”

 

I walk up to the front desk. “How much for a night?”

 

“One silver piece per night, sir.”  

 

I guess it wasn’t a bad deal. Better than sleeping outside.

 

I reach into my satchel and pull out a silver piece and place it on the desk.

 

“Thank you, sir. Now let me show you to your room.” 

 

The receptionist led me to the back hallway of the first floor of the guild, and there was a hallway with a few doors. These must be the rooms she was talking about. 

 

 There weren’t as many rooms in this guild compared to your typical inn, but it made sense since this place didn’t particularly specialize in lodging like inns did.

 

“You’re in luck, sir. You just rented our last room for the night. There’s a fireplace along with a soft bed within. I hope that you’ll find it comforting.”

 

“I will, trust me.” 

 

When I walked into my room, I instantly felt the warm heat coming from the fireplace. The flames weren’t too high, but it kept the whole room lit. I smile slightly as I look around the room.

 

“I should really take a bath, but… I don’t want to leave this place.” I say to myself while closing the door behind me. 

 

I decided that a bath would have to wait. This room already felt like home to me. I remove my shoes and socks and feel my feet warm up due to the flames. It was relaxing. Resting was the only thing that I could do to escape from all of my problems.

 

I lay down on the soft mattress and sink my head into the pillow.  I had to rest while I still could. I close my eyes and attempt to drift off.

 

I couldn’t fall asleep. All of the thoughts in my head were keeping me awake. I know I should ignore everything for now, but it’s just impossible. 

 

I stare up at the ceiling, the flames of the fire slightly visible in the corners of my eyes. The room was dead silent aside from the faint crackling of the fire. 

 

I close my eyes again in another attempt to fall asleep.

 

After a few minutes, I heard a few knocks on my door and my eyes instantly opened once again. Who could it be? Maybe it was the receptionist. She might have forgotten to tell me something.

 

“Steven, it’s me!” 

 

The voice was faint from behind the door, but I could tell that it was Bella’s voice. 

 

“Steven? Can I come in?” she asks as she continues to knock. 

 

“Yeah, just a second…” I answer while I sit up and put my tunic back on.

 

After doing so, I head over to the door and open it. Bella is standing at the door with her arms folded across her chest. The expression on her face was solemn. 

 

“Do you need something, Bella?” I ask, uncertain of why she’s here.

 

“We should talk,” she replies, looking up at me. “May I come in?”

 

My face began to heat up, and it wasn’t from the fire. She wanted to come inside my room and talk? Was she trying to make a move?!

 

I gulp and scratch the back of my head nervously. “Sure, I don’t mind. Come on in.” 

 

I open the door wider, and Bella walks inside. I shut the door behind us.

 

“Wow, this is a nice little room. Very cozy.” she smiles, looking around the place. 

 

Bella takes off my red baseball cap on her head and sets it on a counter near the bed, revealing her small yellow horns.

 

“Steven, come and sit with me.” she says as she sits down on the bed.

 

I don’t say a word and sit down next to her. The light of the fire made her look a lot prettier than usual. My face flushes.

 

“So, what did you want to talk about?” I ask.

 

“What’s wrong, Steven? I know that there’s something bothering you. We should talk about it.” she says in a direct and firm tone of voice. 

 

I avoid eye contact with her and stay silent. I couldn’t tell her. What would I even say?

 

“Steven?” she says quietly. 

 

I close my eyes and start shaking my head, my lips almost about to tremble. 

 

“Steven. You have to tell me something. Please. I want to help you.” 

 

I appreciated that, but this didn’t concern her. These were my problems that I was dealing with. I didn’t need her to know about them. I didn’t want her to know about them.

 

“Steven, just tell me!” she snaps suddenly. 

 

My eyes open in shock and I look her in the eyes. 

 

“I’m sorry for being pushy. I just want to help, you know. You shouldn’t shoulder all of your problems alone. That’s why I’m here for you. Just tell me. You know you can trust me.” 

 

I take a deep breath and finally say something. “I told you I just need rest. I’ll feel better tomorrow.” 

 

Bella smacks me on the face. “Stop lying to me. Tell me the truth right now.” 

 

I rub the part of my face that she hit. It stung. I guess I really had no choice. I had to tell her.

 

 “I’m just… afraid.”

 

“Afraid? Afraid of what?”

 

“A lot of things…” I sigh, looking down at my hands in my lap. “Right now, I’m afraid of how you’ll react if I tell you what’s going on.”

 

“How do you think I’ll react?”

 

“I feel like you’d be disgusted with me. Hate me. Things like that.”

 

“That will never happen, Steven. No matter what. I could never hate you. You saved my life. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you.” 

 

“Okay, I’ll tell you…” I begin. “I killed someone while I was gone. Two people, actually.” 

 

“I’ve killed people too, Steven.” 

 

“I’m sure you’ve had your reasons, though. You killed in order to protect your family, right? But this is different…” 

 

Bella stays silent, awaiting the rest of my answer.

 

“The first person I killed was justified. I killed him in order to protect myself and my partner. He’s not important, but I’d might as well tell you anyway. But as for the second person… there’s no reasonable justification for it. I killed her out of blind rage. An innocent woman died at my hands.”

 

I clench my fists tightly and continue. “I just lost control. I think I’m losing my mind, Bella. I don’t know what to do now. Sooner or later, they’ll find out that I’m the killer. And when that happens, I may not be able to fulfill my promise to help get you home.” 

 

“I see…” Bella says with a dejected look on her face.

 

“I’m sorry. If I go on trial, you know there’s no chance I’ll get away with it. You must know how it goes…” 

 

“Yeah. No matter where you live, if you’re ever convicted of murder, the sentence is always death…” 

 

Tears start to form in her eyes after she utters those words. “I don’t want you to die…”

 

“I don’t want that either, Bella. I wanted to do much more. But that’s how it’s starting to look. I just don’t know what to do right now.”

 

“Let’s leave tomorrow morning. We can make money somewhere else. We can escape while we still can. They can’t put you on trial if you’re not here! I don’t care if it takes us years for us to get to my homeland. I want you to be by my side when we do.” 

 

Would it really be that easy? Can me, Bella, and Leif just walk out of here in the morning, leaving Corrina Village behind? It sounds like a great idea, but…

 

“I don’t know if I can…” I say softly. 

 

“What? Why not?!” 

 

“I don’t know if I can live with myself after this. I hurt my partner. She’s afraid of me. She saw me commit the murder right in front of her eyes. I’ve scarred her for life, and I will never forgive myself for doing so.” 

 

“Then what are you planning to do? Apologize to her?” 

 

“Turn myself in. That’s enough of an apology, I think. I also can’t live with the guilt. I can’t keep going knowing that I’m alive while a man’s wife is dead." 

 

I heard that man's scream. Mr. Frost's scream upon discovering his wife's bloody body. It will haunt me forever.

 

“No, please don’t do that! You can’t do that, Steven!” Bella cries, tears now starting to flow from her eyes.

 

I smile slightly and wipe her tears away. “I’m sorry, Bella. This is my decision. I need you to understand, okay?” 

 

“I don’t understand it at all! Why are you just going to throw your life away like this? What about me? Or your other friends? What about us?!"

 

“I know. And I’ve already thought about that. I thought that I could keep going as long as I had something to live for. I thought I could keep living knowing there’s important people in my life that need me. You, Leif, Catherine too. Various others. But after thinking about it over and over, everything that I was thinking was empty and meaningless.  I don’t have the will anymore to follow through. I can’t do this for much longer.” 

 

“No, you have to live! You have to try! You’re not being fair! You can’t just leave us all like this! That’s selfish! Don’t let yourself be overcome by this guilt! You’ve made mistakes, but…” 

 

Bella couldn’t finish her sentence. Tears just keep coming. 

 

“Trust Leif. I know that he’ll get you back home safely. You can count on him.” 

 

“Stop… stop saying that… you’re not going anywhere!” 

 

“Also…if you ever see Catherine again someday, tell her that I’m sorry I never made it back to her and the others.”

 

“I said stop! I don’t want to hear this!” 

 

“Will you do that for me, Bella?” I ask, ignoring her words.

 

The only thing I can hear from her is her sniveling and crying. 

 

“Will you do that? Answer me, Bella.” I say in a firmer tone. 

 

“Okay,” she finally nods, her voice breaking, “I will.”

 

“Thank you. Thank you, Bella.”

 

She jumps into my arms, and I give her a long, warm hug. This will be the last time I’ll get to feel her touch. 

 

“Why are you doing this?” she asks quietly, holding onto me tighter. 

 

“Because it’s the right thing to do. I know it’s selfish, but I have to do this for myself and nobody else. If I don’t do this, I don’t think I’ll ever know peace again.”

 

“Okay… I understand, Steven.” she nods, finally accepting my decision. 

 

I smile. “Thank you, Bella. Please take my satchel. Everything in here will be of use to you as you continue on your journey back home.” 

 

I hand her my satchel, and she holds onto it as if she were holding a newborn baby. 

 

“I’ll never forget you, Steven…”

 

I look at her one last time with sadness in my eyes. “I know.” 

 

Those were the last words I uttered before leaving the guild in order to speak to a guard.