I clutched my bleeding arm close to me. The situation was looking so bad. The green gem on my bracelet cracked. I knew that I couldn't use it anymore. Crap, it was my only way of communicating with Evi and I lost it. I took a deep breath and readied offensive spells. I wanted to subdue these imbeciles. I had to hold back because I didn't want to kill them.
Teacher Rossa was fighting not far from me. Her experience in battle was obvious. She breezed through the fight like it was nothing. I fired more spells. I conjured a hurricane at them. The spells they threw at me immediately halted. They got sucked into the raging hurricane. I took the chance to advance more to their hideout. Teacher Rossa was right behind me.
"What took you so long to do that spell?" She complained.
"I don't know, teacher. Probably a fucking magic blade was chucked at me?" I retorted.
"Hmph, you have so much more to learn, brat."
I ignored her remarks and together we demolished the door. We stepped inside and the sight infuriated me. I saw people, and even demi humans chained up to the wall. This was a cruel sight. We found the main perpetrator in no time. He was cowering inside a closet. In a fit of rage, I just destroyed the closet not caring if I hurt him in the process.
"Have mercy! Have mercy!!" He was an old man.
"You don't deserve mercy." Teacher Rossa declared. She floated him up in the air and not gracefully slammed him on a chair and tied him up tightly. He was trashing and cursing the whole time.
"I'll walk you through the process here, you tell us the truth or we hurt you to get the truth out of you." She offered. "Your choice."
"Go to hell!" He screeched. He looked insane.
"Okay, that's good. I've been itching to torture your kind after all." Teacher grinned. I stepped back so that she could do whatever she wanted to him.
My ears were ringing with his screams. This was most probably not the first time Teacher Rossa tortured someone. She hit where it hurt the most and I almost felt sorry for him. At his old age, he should be resting or something and yet here he was, getting his fingernails pulled out one by one. Still, he probably deserved it after all he did to these victims. I decided to release the poor victims. Most of them were already dead but some were still breathing, although weakly. I gave the weak ones healing potion and colours returned to their faces.
"Stop! Stop! I'll talk! I'll talk!" The old man hollered in desperation.
"Oh really? I'm just getting started though." Teacher said scarily. She could be a sadist when she wanted to.
"No! Please! I'll talk!" He was trembling violently.
"Resse, come here." She called. I walked over to them. Her eyes darted toward my bleeding arm. "Aren't you going to wrap that up?"
"Eh, yes. Yeah." The slow corrosion on me made me feel so disoriented. I couldn't truly feel where the pain was coming from. I didn't even realise I was still bleeding. The Regen Potion worked. The dark spot was still there but the spreading was really slow. It took like at least 3 days for it to start getting bigger but I barely noticed the change of size. Still, it was making me feel weird. I produced a bandage and tied my wound.
"Answer the questions truthfully. Or else.." Teacher glowered at the pathetic looking old man. He shuddered and nodded weakly.
"Why did the Dark Side want to build a portal to the alternate world?" I asked the question. His eyes widened and a manic grin formed on his cracked lips.
"Why not? Imagine the power we could get from the alternate world! Technologies, knowledge and creatures never known before! Can you imagine the future where we, the Dark Side, are able to rule over the whole world!" He cackled. There was something wrong in his head.
"What did you do to Delina Martin?"
"Ah, that's a name I haven't heard in a long time. She was dead, wasn't she? Because of her damn illness." He shrugged. Teacher and I exchanged looks with each other. Grandmother was sick? He studied our expressions and scoffed. "You didn't know? Because of her illness, we changed our target to her granddaughter instead."
"What kind of illness?!" Teacher snapped. He cowered under her glare.
"Mana Disorder." He uttered in fear.
"What?" Teacher gasped. I didn't know what kind of illness that was but from her reaction, it must be a critical condition.
"How did you know about that?" I added.
"We.. We monitored her mana. The irregular fluctuations of the flow of her mana were too obvious. That was the main symptoms of Mana Disorder."
"What happened to Resse Martin, her granddaughter?" My heart was beating so fast. This was the moment I could know the truth.
"She.. She's.. You." His eyes widened in realisation. He looked like he had seen a ghost. "You.. You were supposed to be dead!"
"I'm alive. What did you do to me back then?" My hands clenched, trying to control my temper.
"We.. We took the chance when Delina was at her weakest due to her illness. We grabbed the little girl. Put her under a sleeping curse and we used her to make the portal." He didn't dare to look at me anymore. Maybe because I looked like I could kill him in a second. "Her mana was enough to conjure the portal. But.. That idiot made a mistake. The portal became unstable and exploded. A lot of our members were killed. I.. Barely survived that explosion. Nothing was saved in that accident. All of our research and works were destroyed. The little girl was gone without a trace. We thought that the explosion destroyed her whole body."
"What mistake?"
"He miscalculated the amount of mana needed to stabilise the portal."
"What happened after that?"
"The Dark Side was divided. We had to disband. So few members left and all of our work was gone. We went separate ways. I wanted to recreate the portal and I know the others are doing the same." He looked down, his eyes became unfocused. He was losing steam.
"Did you succeed?"
"No. The magic inscription of the portal was destroyed during the explosion. I can't recreate it again." He sounded broken. His eyes closed and he finally passed out. Teacher sighed heavily and looked at me.
"What do you think about this?"
"I guess, the only explanation I have right now is.. I got transported to the other world during the explosion and the Resse of that world ended up in this world." I ran a hand through my hair, feeling stressed out.
"Well, that's likely what happened. Even from the information we got from them, highlighting the theory that there can't be two same people in the same world."
"Because I entered the other world, the Resse there automatically sent here to replace me. It's.. I don't know what to feel right now." I walked toward the corner and sat down. I felt exhausted. I leaned my back against the wall and let out a heavy sigh.
"So, you're always been the original Resse of this world." Teacher said with a sad smile.
"Yes.." My voice was weak. I didn't have the will to talk anymore.
So, no wonder I never felt any sort of attachment toward the other world ever since I came to this world. The only thing I've missed from the other world was only Evi, my best friend. It was easy for me to adapt to this world. That feeling like I didn't belong anywhere growing up in the other world was actually the hint of my origin. I've never belonged there. This was too cruel. I didn't even get to say goodbye to my grandmother on her dying day. I was too young to piece it together. I thought I was in the same world as the one when I lived with my grandmother. She isolated me in that old house. She did that to protect me but that was also why I couldn't differentiate between this world and the other world.
Evi. The girl I've met under that tree was the Evi in this world. I closed my eyes, clutching my messy bandaged arm. Maybe that was why she felt so familiar. If only.. If only I didn't get transferred into the other world, we would meet again in the Ascar Academy, we would spend all the time together and.. No. It was useless to think about this. It was all in the past. I couldn't change the outcome of the past no matter what I did. This was too overwhelming.
Suddenly, the familiar cold feeling washed over me. My body felt light and all of the pain on my body just vanished. In fact I barely felt myself anymore.
I opened my eyes and it was the freakishly white room again. So, I was brought here again.
"Hello again, child." The voice spoke in my mind.
"So, I'm always the original Resse in this world."
"Yes. That's why the balance of this world was tilting. The original Resse was gone from here."
"Why don't you bring me back as soon as we got switched?"
"I can't interfere with the livings that much. It's easier to meddle with the deads and then switched the two Resse to their rightful place."
"You waited for us to die."
"Yes. Sending the glowing plants your way worked best."
"Wait, what?!"
"The other Resse was also fascinated by that plant. I was amused that both of you made the same foolish decision to consume it."
"Wow." I wasn't amused nor impressed.
"Anyway, you took a long time to find the truth. The balance of this world is tilting again because you're not by the true ruler's side."
"You could've just told me the truth when we first spoke though. And I wouldn't be here right now if you did."
"I can't do everything for you, child. You have to find the truth yourself."
"Yeah, I guess so."
"Out of mercy from me because you've been through a lot. I'll give you one last gift."
"No thanks."
"Child, you have no say in this." The voice sounded irritated.
"Last time you gave me a gift, I experienced the most painful thing in my life!" I was taking out my anger on a freaking god. I didn't care anymore. I've got nothing to lose anyway.
"You'll be thankful for this gift."
"I don't know about that."
"This is it, child. This will be the last time I spoke to you directly. Live well and happily after this."
*
When I opened my eyes, I was in an unfamiliar room. I couldn't move my body. It felt like I've been asleep for so long. I heard footsteps coming from the outside. The door opened, revealing Teacher Rossa. Her eyes widened to see me looking back at her.
"Oh my god, Resse! You're awake!" Tears brimming in her eyes and immediately embraced me. I smiled weakly. I couldn't return the hug. My hands felt so stiff. My mouth felt heavy to speak.
"I thought you won't ever wake up again.. oh god, don't scare me like that again." She pulled away and looked at my face. She then helped me to drink water. That gave me a little energy.
"Don't force yourself to move yet. You need food first." She teleported away and reappeared back with hot meals.
She feed me. This awfully reminded me of the time grandmother took care of me when I got sick. This was making me feel nostalgic. I almost forgot how to chew but Teacher was so understanding. She was patient and guided me.
"You've been unconscious for 6 months." She told me when the plate was empty. My eyes widened. I slept for that long?! "I know. It's a shock for you. I guess it's due to the curse. It put a lot of strain to your body."
"I.. I have to get back.." I spoke hardly. Ugh, I sounded like someone who smoked for 100 years.
"I know. I'd send you back to Atheen but.." Teacher trailed off. She carefully lifted up my shirt. I froze when I saw it. The corrosion had taken over more than half of my torso. "When you were unconscious, the spreading was faster. If you didn't wake up sooner, you wouldn't last for another week."
"We are hunted by the remainder of the Dark Side. It was too risky to get back to Atheen. Your condition is critical. I don't want to risk it." She continued, wiping off the tears from the corner of her eyes. "They knew that our destination would be Atheen. So, I had to take a detour to shake them off. Huh, I'm too old for this. They're lucky I'm not in my prime right now."
"Thank you, Teacher. You've done alot for me.." I told her sincerely. She smiled warmly at me. She rested a hand on my head and patted me gently. I couldn't help but smile.
"This is the least I can do, kiddo. I should've been there for you and Delina back then. This is my way to make up for that."
"I.. I don't blame you, teacher." I exhaled.
"I know. It's just… I just want to."
"Thank you." I uttered softly.
"No need to thank me. Just make sure that you survive this, it's enough for me." She stood up from the chair. "Princess Evi has the divine healing. It's probably the only way to cure your curse. That's how those emo imbeciles knew why we will go to Atheen."
"I.. I see." My heart hurt when I thought of her. I missed her so damn much. I wanted to see her so badly. I wanted to hear her voice and hold her hands. I wondered how she was doing.
"Princess Evi isn't well." Teacher told me, knowing what I was thinking. I snapped my head toward her, alert. "Well, her fiancée went missing without news. She was waiting for her love to go home and forgot to take care of herself."
"I.. I have to contact her. To tell her that.." I stopped myself.
"That you are cursed?" She finished it for me. I bit my lip and closed my eyes. "Calm down first, Resse. First of all, we need to take care of the imbeciles. If they followed us to Atheen, the princess will be in danger. Especially when she's not in the best state right now."
"Right. Yes, you're right teacher. Let's take care of the fuckers first." My motivation to protect Evi became the fuel for myself to stay strong. I couldn't fall here. I had more things to do.
"Great. You made up your mind and now you need to rest and gather your strength." She nodded with a smile.
The next day came so fast in my opinion. I was able to move around thanks to the strengthening potion and spell Teacher gave me. As long as I could move and use magic, it was enough for me. Teacher made the preparation and discussed about our strategy. It was going to be risky. We were dealing with a bunch of maniac that didn't have anything to lose.
The plan was simple. We just needed to lure them out into the trap. Subdue them and handed them over to the authority. Of course, we need to track down every single one of them so that we wouldn't be dealing with some fuckers that wanted to revenge or hunted me down again for their stupid portal.
We showcased ourselves in the open and they immediately took the bait. They followed us to the place where we placed the trap. Teacher and I drew magic circles to bind them. As soon as they stepped into the area, chains looped around them, rendering any movements or magic casting. It was the most powerful bind magic. We weren't playing around. We wanted to make sure these fuckers went down.
We caught 3 people in the trap. As for the others, Teacher kindly forced our capture to give us their whereabouts. Kindly, I meant to torture them into submissions. We hunted the rest by directly confronting them in a brutal magic battle. I wasn't holding back. They pissed me enough that I wouldn't show any mercy.
This hunt took approximately 2 weeks. It took longer than it was supposed to because Teacher didn't want me to overdo it. I wasn't in great shape after all. The potions and spells kept me going. They were the reason I could even move around freely. I could feel my body declining. Sometimes, breathing became like hard labour. I had someone in mind that reminded me to survive this.