Chapter. 58
Time seemed to freeze. Zavi's body did not move, his mind sinking into Zuhen's words that still echoed in his head.
'Why me? I don't understand how the person in question is that dangerous. Or… were they the ones who sent that bounty hunter?'
His breath felt caught in his throat after thinking about it more carefully and thoroughly.
He instinctively turned to the right and left, then stepped forward with intent, thinking of following the two of them ahead to get out of the forest he had never set foot in before.
The forest in North Moran, Hava district. He knew the location. Yet this place felt different, too different. Silent. Too quiet as if it were a theater that had been abandoned by its audience for far too long.
There were no animal sounds. No rustling wind. The air felt frozen, as if the forest itself was not breathing. And strangely, the metallic scent and the stench of rotting flesh pierced deep into his skull.
Unconsciously, his jaw tightened on its own.
'Alone again. Huh, it reminds me of that woman who always smiled.' Zavi imagined the moments when he was still on Earth.
His thoughts drifted to someone, a woman he had once saved. To everyone. Moreira, though they had only just met. His friends, and his family, they had once become the reason for his purpose to survive in this world.
Now their whereabouts were unclear. Esvalen acted indifferent after learning that Moreira had disappeared, never caring about him, indeed.
Forn was still unconscious from his coma. That was what he knew. Leo was unknown, gone without a trace on Street No. 12 Ahiston which had been partially destroyed by the demonic horse. Zeta, the woman with a beautiful and captivating face, whose obsession with the occult, and who had once shared space within his body, vanished without a trace as if swallowed by the earth itself.
Albert's location was also unknown.
And his family… In Vica… his house on Street No. 12. He knew only part of the district had been destroyed. He knew there was a possibility they survived and... perhaps Ren together with his partner would protect the two of them.
He had once lost everything on Earth. He could not bear to lose again, it would make his heart feel as though it were being sliced by a thousand blades.
His brows furrowed, his teeth chattered.
'Damn it… I will find you. Whoever you are, you fucking bastard.'
Anger burned in his chest like embers drenched in oil. Unconsciously he clenched his hand too tightly. His fairly long nails pierced into his own palm.
The sting only registered when blood began to seep out.
He stared at his hand, his breathing slowly stabilizing as his steps came to a halt.
His body froze for a moment, not out of confusion, but out of awareness.
He must not be carried away. There were things he had to do. Find Moreira, fulfill that cooperation promise. Or find out the purpose behind the agenda of why the demonic horse had been unleashed in Moran.
Find the person who had made him a target. And understand how the ability now residing within him worked.
But now, it was not only the forest that held danger. There was something within him far more terrifying.
It was the resolve and resentment that had taken deep root in his chest.
'Ah, I do not care whether this method is right or wrong... Transferring into this body and being affected by the occult has already made my head spin. And now, them, and the one who initiated that bounty.'
Unconsciously he closed his eyes for a few seconds, before saying in a restrained tone, "Come out... Ruler of the Sky."
The moment those words were spoken, a grayish white aura formed into the shape of a majestic eagle with wings without feathers, without flesh and skin, only transparent, stretching as far as he could estimate.
The eagle let out a piercing screech, loud enough to ring in Zavi's ears as he stood beside it, and loud enough to reach the two of them who were hundreds of meters away.
Zavi took a deep breath, then exhaled calmly to steady his thoughts and said with a faint smirk, "Find him. And locate the whereabouts of the two of them."
Even though he knew that Zuhen and Miss Felina could not be trusted just like that, and their sudden arrival made Zavi think twice.
'This is a bad idea, I know that,' he thought as he continued walking.
'But my sleeping talisman and summoning talisman have disappeared from my pocket. That is very strange. And regarding the presence of someone watching from there.' Zavi lifted his head, staring at the mountains and hills covered by trees and creeping vines.
"You will die, you bastard," he muttered, his gaze empty ahead, hoping the eagle would succeed in killing him and thinking of bringing the corpse back to him.
'But this feels strange. Why would that person reveal his own location as if I, no, more precisely, is he targeting the three of us?' Zavi felt his head spinning as he thought about it.
The surrounding atmosphere, so unnaturally calm, seemed to trigger his adrenaline and the unease that had taken deep root in his chest.
Passing through paths filled with creeping vines and hanging roots, while remaining wary of thorny plants that might brush against his skin.
He kept walking.
Thinking as quickly as possible about how to get out of this forest and reach the nearest settlement, if only to calm his mind and rest for a few hours.
His body felt like an empty shell, moving only because of an unseen push. As if if that wind stopped, he too would collapse and never rise again.
Yet the resolve to keep moving forward still remained. That resolve forced him to move his legs as usual, pretending to forget the earlier events that had torn apart the deepest part of himself.
Several minutes passed.
He walked without a certain direction, pushing aside branches, stepping over tree roots jutting from the damp soil. Until finally, he found fresh shoe prints, footprints that looked hurried, as if left behind under compulsion.
Zavi narrowed his gaze. He knew that their objective was not merely an "arrest."
'What are you actually trying to show, Mr. Smoker…' he thought quietly.
From a distance, a faint orange light flickered at the corner of his eye, only for a moment, yet enough to draw his attention.
Not long after, he arrived at a small village located on the edge of a wide river with a strong current that could be heard even from afar.
He stepped firmly across the suspension bridge that stretched over the river. The planks creaked softly beneath his weight. Occasionally he glanced to the right and left, observing the hanging lamps lined along the village road, their light warm yet dim.
In contrast to the turmoil still inside his head.
The small village of Noir became the gateway toward Hava, as well as a storage place for various harvests, fruits, wheat, grains, and vegetables that could only grow in that soil, depending on the climate and seasons that were not always friendly.
Its warehouses were made of wood typical of the region. Not large, not grand, and clearly incomparable to other districts or large cities out there that already used iron and metal as the main structural supports of their buildings.
But that was more than enough for Hava.
From here, cheap staples were sent to Moran. And Mayor Alistair had never intended to fully depend his people's needs on the large city in Norn.
Though called a village, the number of residents settling in Noir was quite large. Wooden houses stood close together, hanging lamps dangled in front of doors, and some activity still remained even as the night was nearly over.
The sky began to pale. Dawn would soon appear from the eastern horizon.
Zavi put his pocket watch back after checking the time. He scanned his surroundings, searching for an inn that was still open all night.
Not long after, he found it. A bar, still crowded even though the early hours were nearing their end. From dozens of meters away, the roaring laughter and curved shouts were clearly audible, mixed with the clinking of glasses and the pounding of tables.
Zavi let out a slow breath.
'No other choice,' he thought, his body too exhausted to look for a quieter place.
The wooden bar door opened with just the push of his body. Intricate symbols were carved into its surface, and the sheen of oil between the wood grains made it glisten under the dim lamplight.
Once inside, he glanced to the right and left.
Faces flushed by alcohol filled the room. Glasses were raised high, laughter burst without direction, their voices colliding in the air thick with the scent of liquor and damp wood.
The corner of Zavi's lips lifted slightly, almost forming a faint smile as he saw it directly.
'Ah… I am not quite sure I want to drink it.'
He immediately walked toward the long table where the bartender stood. Two customers were there, one sitting pensively, staring at the glass in front of him as if weighing a major decision in his life.
The other was a woman in a white shirt, a gray suit jacket hanging casually over her shoulders. She swirled her glass slowly before finishing the remaining drink in a single last pull.
Zavi raised his gaze to the bartender.
The man had a thin white mustache, his facial lines firm and sharp. His uniform was immaculate, a clean white shirt wrapping his body with precision, a black vest fitted perfectly to his posture, and a dark tie tied neatly at his neck. A black suit hung behind him, yet his formal aura remained strong even without wearing it. His blue eyes stared straight and intensely, as if able to read a customer's intentions before they spoke.
"Lemon mint soda mixed with tonic. No alcohol," Zavi said, his voice restrained yet clear.
The bartender's previously stern face softened into a thin professional smile. He turned around, taking a bottle from the wooden rack where various non alcoholic sodas were neatly arranged.
A few seconds later, he poured the clear carbonated liquid into a metal container, added fresh lemon juice and mint leaves, then shook it in a closed shaker. The sound of ice and liquid clashing was brief yet steady.
He opened the lid.
The drink was poured with precision into a small glass before Zavi, fine bubbles rising to the surface.
"Here you go."
"Thank you," Zavi said softly.
He finished the soda in one gulp.
The fresh and sharp sensation immediately touched his throat. Cold, carbonated, slightly sour, leaving a trace of mint that made his breath feel lighter.
'Ahh… not bad.'
For a moment, his head felt clearer. His tired body seemed to receive a small push to keep standing.
The woman in the gray suit began to watch him the moment he tapped the table several times with the tip of her fingers covered in black gloves.
The room seemed to freeze for a moment, before the bartender approached carrying a red bottle of beer in his right hand, and Zavi glanced at the woman with a puzzled look.
His fingers clenched under the table after noticing the expression on the woman's face that seemed to suggest a sense of disbelief toward herself.
"Why are you looking at me?" the woman suddenly asked, her voice hoarse, aware that Zavi had been watching her from the side.
"Ah. Um..." He tried to avoid her, but couldn't. "It's... it's okay, sorry if I disturbed you," he whispered, the corners of his lips slightly raised, almost a smile.
He quickly stood up, took three sen coins from his coat pocket, and placed them beside the small glass before exiting the overly crowded bar.
His mind reeled as the woman spoke to him with a serious expression, as if she herself didn't want to be disturbed by anyone, including him. Or perhaps she wanted to vent her emotions by drinking alcohol!