Chapter 52 – An Unforgettable Memory
Pia was hanging out with Noah’s group, but she felt a bit detached. She was doing just fine playing her part, and she could chat with everyone without any hiccups, so no one realized anything was off with her.
Even if they had noticed, the kids themselves were in such a mess mentally that they probably wouldn’t have even thought to check on her.
Whenever she felt thirsty, she’d think of a refreshing glass of water; and in times of distress or joy, Pia always thought about Lian. It was as natural as bleeding when you get cut.
[Pia, are you okay? You didn’t eat much earlier.]
‘Yeah, I’m okay.’
[Really? That’s a relief. If you feel uneasy anywhere, just let me know.]
‘..Thanks.’
[Hahaha, it’s what I should do! After all, it’s what you asked for, Pia.]
Pia didn’t see her sister’s hallucinations anymore. Instead, she was now hallucinating about sweet, affectionate Lian and hearing lovely voices of him.
She was seriously losing it.
But those hallucinations and voices weren’t all bad; they barely held together the crumbling pieces of Pia’s sanity.
Thanks to those, she managed to cling to her will to live until now. Even with the hallucinations and voices, she felt happier than before.
But that happiness quickly faded. Memories she desperately denied, screaming that it wasn’t her fault, started haunting her on chilly nights, tightening around her throat.
“Pia… why’d you do that to me?”
Lian looked at her with disgust in his eyes.
“I always cherished you. Why?”
I’m sorry, so sorry. Truly, I am.
No matter how much she begged, she couldn’t speak, like a stuffed animal turned to stone.
“I said I’d help you! I promised to save you!”
Right, you did say you would save me.
Her memories were twisted. She agonized over words Lian had never said as if they were reality.
She lost the ability to identify what she did wrong or what the truth was.
“But why did you do that? Why? Why did you lead me to death? Pia, why?”
The voice filled with resentment burrowed into her ears, gnawing at her brain. Unable to bear the agony, Pia jolted awake.
She mumbled like a crazy person.
“Sorry, sorry… so sorry… I’m sorry…”
Her fragile mind couldn’t accept the guilt that felt like it was melting her brain. She started pushing the haunting remorse away to survive.
“No, it’s not… I’m not wrong. That’s right… it was your fault.”
Pia faced her sins over and over like someone thrown into hell, despairing and committing the same mistakes repeatedly, as if caught in purgatory.
Her actions resembled those of priests willingly enduring pain in their ascetic practices. Maybe because of that, Pia began nurturing a strange belief.
“Salvation, yeah… I’ll be saved. Yes, Lian will… Lian will save me—”
Like all humans in need of hope, Pia sought her salvation. Her savior was Lian.
*
Jess was a blessed beastkin with better wisdom than others, but she was also a slave. Her mom, constantly shackled by heavy chains, would tell her,
“You’ve got to act like a dumb beastkin. That’s how you live longer.”
No master wants a smart animal. They wanted a pet beastkin that’s amusing yet dim. Jess’s mom knew that and brainwashed her with that logic.
Not long after, Jess’s mom got dragged into a cruel match and didn’t return.
“Jess, I’m scared…”
Jess’s stutter and slightly exaggerated actions were all products of her mother’s upbringing. She understood these traits were one of her shields.
That’s why she didn’t bother to change them. And one day, she met Lian.
Jess figured it out quickly.
‘Ah, this person is kind.’
Jess clung to Lian, calling him her master, the one who fed her tasty food.
Dozens of slave traders had offered her nice treats or garbage, but she never viewed them as her masters. Still, she called Lian Master because saying it might get her slightly better food and a cozy place to sleep.
Calling Lian “master” followed the same logic.
Jess felt affection for Lian but kept her guard up. Her instinct as a beastkin was ringing bells.
That person is safe; if I’m near him, there’s no chance of harm or tough times.
For Jess, who grew up as a slave, “absolute safety” sounded like a line from a cult. That’s why she kept a wary eye on Lian.
Then, ‘that incident’ happened.
Beastkin usually eat more than average humans because they burn energy faster.
The strength difference between a well-fed beastkin and a starving one was monumental. So, Jess ate whatever she found, whether it was a rat or a bug.
That’s how she got through each day.
‘There’s nothing here…’
In the prison where Jess, Noah, and Nero were held, there were a few insects crawling around, but they were all smaller than her pinky finger. That wouldn’t hold her over.
‘I need to find something to eat…!’
She tiptoed around the cell while everyone was asleep.
‘Ah, a hole!’
Pulling on the prison bars, she uncovered a tiny hole just big enough for her to squeeze through. It looked like someone had made it for an escape. When she fitted the removed piece back in, the hole was perfectly concealed.
‘I’ll sneak out, grab a bite, and return.’
It didn’t have to be gourmet; even eating a rat or a bug was fine by her. Jess slipped out of the cell, her nose twitching as she headed for the kitchen.
‘Mmm, it smells good.’
She sniffed around the kitchen, rummaging through everything.
‘Not much here…’
There was less food than she hoped for, but at least it wasn’t a barren wasteland. She grabbed a half-broken piece of bread and a small bit of cheese, then ducked into a cabinet under the sink, shutting the door. Just as she was shoving the food into her mouth—
BANG!
“!”
A huge noise startled her. Jess’s ears perked up, and her tail stood straight as she tensed up.
‘Did they catch me…?’
Swallowing nervously, Jess pressed herself into the corner of the cabinet. If they discovered her escape, she had to stay as quiet as a mouse.
How long passed?
“It’s getting hot…”
The kitchen was heating up way too much. Realizing something was off, Jess opened the cabinet door that had been shut tight.
“Uh..?”
Whoosh—
Bright flames greeted Jess. The kitchen was a blazing inferno.
“Cough! Ugh!”
The acrid smoke stung her eyes and choked her breath. Jess quickly realized the fire was out of control. There was no escape from this nightmare.
Even a clever beastkin like Jess panicked facing ‘death’ at her young age. Without her mom’s soothing embrace to run to when spooked, she shut the cabinet door and curled into the corner.
Crackle, crack.
The sound of something burning and the smell of charred flesh assaulted her nose. The fire hadn’t yet reached her hiding spot, making it seem like a distant tragedy.
Jess imagined something utterly absurd. What if the fire couldn’t reach inside the cabinet, leaving her perfectly safe somehow?
It was a ridiculous thought, but it was the only thing Jess could conjure at that moment. As tears formed in her eyes and her breath hitched…
“Jess!”
His voice echoed through the chaos. The moment she heard it,
“Waaah…”
Training to stifle her cries fell apart as she let it out. The door she’d shut swung open, and a kind, worried gaze came pouring in.
Wrapped tightly in a wet cloth, she felt the desperate rush of her master’s breath and heartbeat, along with the smell of burning flesh.
In that moment, Jess realized she’d remember this forever.
From that day on, Jess devoted herself to Lian, acknowledging him as her true master, beyond mere words.
Jess had only one goal—to protect her master and make him happy. Young and inexperienced, she did her best to help however she could.
Then one day, Lian, her master, vanished without a trace.
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