The Anomaly's Path

Bang!

The door of the room burst open with a violent noise, and before I could even process what was happening, something crashed—no, slammed—into me.

”Young Master!!!”

A voice wailed right into my ear, high-pitched and full of raw emotion. ”You finally woke up! You’re alive!”

Oh crap, I can’t breathe.

It took me a moment to realize someone was sitting directly on my chest, pinning me flat into the soft mattress. I blinked rapidly, trying to clear my blurred vision and see the source of my sudden suffering.

There she was, right on top of me. She was clinging to me like a lifeline, sobbing and shaking as if I were a ghost about to vanish. But most of all—she was heavy.

Damn it. My lungs felt like they were being squeezed flat.

”Huff... hey,” I gasped, fumbling to push her back. I struggled for even a tiny breath beneath her weight. ”Calm down... and get off me. I can’t... breathe.”

She froze.

Then, she finally realized what she was doing. Her eyes widened in horror, and she scrambled off me in a total panic, nearly tripping over her own feet.

”Ohh.... S-sorry!”

She stepped back quickly, standing by the bedside with her face turning a deep, dark shade of red.

Huff... huff...

I gulped in the air, my chest heaving up and down. If she hadn’t stood up that second, I really thought I was going to die before I even got a chance to live again.

Damn it, this fucking body is really weak.

I lifted my gaze and met her eyes.

”Hey...” I said between ragged breaths. ”Don’t ever do that again. I seriously thought I was going to die... again.”

She looked even more embarrassed now, the red spreading from her cheeks all the way to her ears.

”I... I am sorry, Young Master. I was just so... worried.”

I stared at her. This was Lyra.

She was Leo’s personal maid—or now, my maid. She was the one person who had stayed by his side constantly, even when things got ugly. Looking at her now, she looked exactly like the fragments in the memories I had just inherited. Silky, beautiful black hair and deep emerald-green eyes.

Even back when the old Leo was a total piece of shit to her, she stayed. She was one of the people who got hurt the most when Leo was suffering through his jealousy and his messy, angry puberty. But even then, she never left his side.

In the game, there was a hidden cut-scene showing her reaction when Leo died during his Path Awakening. She had grieved for him with a broken heart. She was deeply, dangerously loyal.

...And she was powerful.

In the game, she wasn’t just a maid; she was known as ”The Silent Blade.” She led an elite assassination group and had access to a web of information that spanned the entire continent. She had killed countless people on the orders of the Duke. She was supposed to be cold-blooded, sharp, and merciless.

...And yet, here she was. Standing in front of me, shaking and blushing like a flustered girl.

I might really go crazy at this rate. This world is a lot more complicated than the game pixels showed.

I sighed again and tried to lift my body up. But it was a bad idea. My arms started shaking immediately, my strength giving out before I could even get halfway.

”Tch...”

This body barely had any muscle at all. Still, I forced myself to move, groaning as I tried to at least sit up.

Seeing me struggle, Lyra’s instincts kicked in. She immediately reached out.

”Y-Young Master! Let me help you. Please, don’t strain yourself.”

She offered me her hand. Even though I was still a bit scared of her—knowing she could probably snap my neck with two fingers—I hesitantly took it. Her grip was firm, steady, and surprisingly warm. She helped prop me up, and I pressed my back against the headboard of the bed.

She stood there, shifting her weight from foot to foot, her eyes darting around the room as if she were waiting for me to say something—or perhaps waiting for me to start shouting at her like I used to.

I stared at her for a moment, the silence stretching out between us. ”...What? Do you have something to say?”

Silence.

”If you have something to say, then just say it,” I muttered.

She finally looked me in the eye, her voice small and trembling. ”Um... Young Master, are you really alright?”

Huh? What kind of question is that?

I calmly replied, ”Yeah. I’m okay. I’d be a lot more okay if people didn’t jump on me.”

She looked embarrassed again but asked hesitantly, ”I... I thought you were really gone this time.”

Hm? Gone? Was she praying for my death? Or was she just that scared?

I let out a dry, bitter laugh. ”Hah... you really want me dead that badly?”

But she didn’t laugh back. I looked into her eyes and realized she was serious. Dead serious. She stared at me, her emerald eyes clouding over with a strange emotion.

”Young Master, you were out for a whole day. You were... screaming. Twitching. Like something was tearing you apart from the inside. We thought you were dying. The healers said your soul was in shock.”

My mind suddenly stopped. A whole day? Did I really pass out for a whole day just because of the soul-rewrite pain?

That bastard System...

[It was not my fault. I warned you that the synchronization would be extreme.]

Warned me, my ass. I felt that pain, and it was unbearable. It felt like being flayed alive from the inside out. How much pain does it take to knock a body out for a whole day?

[You passed out because your soul was being torn open and glued back together. Be thankful you’re still breathing.]

Shut up. I don’t want to hear anything from you right now.

Lyra’s voice brought me back to the room. ”Young Master? Are you really alright?”

I looked at her and nodded. ”Yes. I’m fine. Just a headache.”

Then, silence again. She just kept staring at my face, looking for something. Damn it, this awkward silence was killing me.

Then, I remembered the memories I had just received. Leo had never said ”sorry” to her. Not once. Even though she did everything for him—cleaned his messes, took his insults, and protected him.

I looked at her, my heart thumping a bit. ”Um, Lyra?”

”Yes, Young Master?”

I stared into her emerald eyes, trying to look as serious as possible. ”I... I just wanted to say sorry. Sorry for everything. Sorry you had to bear so much of my bullshit. Sorry for hurting you. And most of all... thank you for taking care of a brat like me.”

I figured that would be for the best. If I apologized and got her on my side, she could be my greatest ally. With her ”Silent Blade” skills, she was a cheat code.

But her reaction was totally different from what I imagined. She didn’t cry. She didn’t smile. She gave me a blank, hollow look. A look that seemed genuinely... disgusted.

Wait... disgusted? Did I make a mistake?

Why did she look like she just stepped in something gross?

I frowned, ”Hey. What’s with that look? You look genuinely disgusted.”

She kept the same blank face and whispered, ”Is there something wrong with you, Young Master? Did something happen when you passed out?”

She moved closer, pressing her cool hand against my forehead. I could smell the faint scent of flowers on her. ”You don’t have a fever... but what happened to you? Maybe I should call the doctor. Your brain might be permanently damaged.”

I gently removed her hand, feeling somewhat annoyed and embarrassed. ”Nothing is wrong with my brain! I’m just... being thankful to you. Is that so hard to believe?”

Damn it. How much did the old Leo make her suffer for her to have zero trust in a simple thank you? To her, me being nice was a sign of brain damage.

But she wasn’t convinced. She turned toward the door. ”I am definitely calling the doctors. And the Duke. This is an emergency.”

I barely managed to grab her sleeve to stop her. I looked her straight in the eyes, my expression hard.

”Hey, look at me. Look into my eyes and see if I’m lying or not. I know I’ve done a lot of bad things. I know I was a scum. I hurt a lot of people, and I can’t change the past. But I can at least try to change the present.”

I looked away and sighed. ”You’re one of the people who got hurt the most by me. Even when I was a total asshole, you stayed.”

I looked back at her, my voice turning soft. ”I mean every word. I am thankful for your help. And I am going to try my best to change myself. I don’t want to be that guy anymore.”

And I really meant it. I didn’t just say it because of Leo’s memories. I said it because I wanted to change, too. My death back on Earth made me realize how much of a coward I was. I ran and ran... until I died.

However... for the first time, I didn’t want to run.

This world of Aetheris is a dangerous place. I can’t survive here by doing nothing. Especially when this world is already destined for doom. I don’t want to die a second time without accomplishing anything. If I want to survive, I have to clear up Leo’s mess.

...And the first step to surviving was cleaning up these broken relationships.

So, I looked at her again, my hand still on her sleeve, and said it one more time.

”I am... truly sorry, Lyra.”

She stared at me, her mouth slightly open. For the first time, the ”Silent Blade” looked like she had no words at all.