Chapter 180: The Cruelty of Being Blessed with Power
Slimo looked back up at Jacob as tears started to well in his eyes.
"You seriously don’t remember them?"
Jacob walked over to Slimo and grabbed the heart once more, studying it carefully.
"I... do. Kind of. This feeling that I have is strange. It feels like two forces inside me are clashing against each other to remember who this belonged to. All I know is that this was made by someone close to me and that they made it for someone special."
Slimo began to reflect why he was always the only one who was capable of remembering these things whe others couldn’t.
’What is so different about me that I’m unable to forget certain things when others can?’
Suddenly, the realization hit him.
"I... don’t have a Zalo."
Jacob looked at him, confused.
"What did you say?"
Slimo stood up.
"I don’t have a Zalo. That’s it. That’s what makes me special compared to everyone else."
Jacob continued looking at him strangely.
"I thought we already knew that?"
Slimo ran up to Jacob.
"Listen, I have thought my entire life that those blessed with Zalo’s were much luckier than everyone else. I always thought it gave them such an unfair advantage over others. However, for the first time, I’m seeing the disadvantages of having something so incredible too. The reason you are struggling to remember these people is because of the power that has been bestowed upon you, Jacob."
Another memory flashed in his mind. Back at the prison when the guard tried teleporting him into the cage with the others and nothing happened.
"That too... Jacob, I don’t know how to explain it, I don’t really know if I can explain it, but not having a Zalo seems to be granting me some immunity to something. To some extent, that is."
"What are you talking about?"
"There’s certain things that I have learned that I can’t share with Zalo users because they will forget it immediately. Back in the prison camp, one of the guards tried teleporting me to the cage with you all, but their power didn’t work. Think about it: I am the only one out of our group who doesn’t have a Zalo. That has to be why the power didn’t work on me!"
Jacob’s eyes widened as Slimo revealed more. Jacob interrupted him before he could continue.
"There’s still something that doesn’t make sense to me. Why am I the only one who can at least vaguely remember about them whereas others have no recollection whatsoever?"
Slimo looked at the arm that contained Jacob’s curse mark.
"Perhaps that is something that comes with that dark mark."
"But wouldn’t Maria be less affected too if that was the case?"
"It’s not that simple. Your roles in the end times are vastly different from each other."
Jacob looked at Slimo darkly.
"How did you know about our roles?"
A silence fell over them. Slimo’s heart started to pound in his chest. For some reason, Jacob didn’t seem like himself suddenly. His eyes were masking a dark resentment in them, but Slimo could see through it. Taking a few steps past Jacob, Slimo walked out of the bathroom.
"We should get back to the others. Do you mind carrying those sets of armor for me?"
Jacob’s eyes turned back to normal, and he looked at the two empty armor sets on the ground.
"Yeah, no problem!"
Slimo still looked back at Jacob cautiously.
’Was that the curse mark talking or him?’
After feeling such a random spurt of darkness pour from Jacob’s being, Slimo had decided to never tell him the true nature of his power, and hope that he would never find out what it is one day.
Both Jacob and Slimo walked back to the group waiting for them outside the education center. Slimo was carrying the small wooden figure and Jacob was carrying the armor. As Jacob revealed himself to everyone, something strange happened. Tears started falling out of Luna and Lidia’s eyes, but their faces remained expressionless. Slimo saw what was happening and walked up to them.
"Is everything okay? Why are you both crying? Do you remember something?"
Luna was the first one to talk. She touched her face and looked at the tears on her fingers.
"That armor looks familiar. Why are my eyes watering like this from seeing an armor set?"
"I think I have allergies."
Slimo looked at the ground and continued leading everyone back to the house. The deaths of both William and Sydney still weighed on his heart heavily. He decided to give them a proper burial by himself if he had to. After a few moments, everyone had finally reached the houses once more.
The sun in the sky started setting. Slimo watched it fall over the walls as the sky turned darker shades of blue. He sat on the steps of the house, holding the armor sets and wooden figure in his arms. After a moment of silence by himself, he stood up and started walking towards the gate of the kingdom.
Ten guards walked in front of him as he was about to walk on to the bridge.
"Hey, you. No leaving beyond this point during nighttime."
Slimo ignored them and tried to pass, but they continued jumping in front of him. One of the guards tried shoving him back slightly with no success.
Slimo sighed and put the armor sets down.
"You will let me pass. I’m only warning you once."
The guards looked at him cautiously.
"You have no room to make threats, civilian. You’re outnumbered ten to one."
Instead of arguing back, Slimo simple grabbed the first guard by his helmet and effortlessly threw him into the water surrounding the kingdom.
"I won’t ask again. Move."
The guards readied their weapons to prepare for a fight.
"This will not go unpunished!"
They all circled around Slimo, preparing to strike.
"NOW!"
All of the guards sliced their weapon at Slimo’s armor. However, each weapon that smacked against it shattered into many pieces. Slimo slowly grabbed his large broadsword that hung off his waist. It felt perfectly balanced in his hands as he held it. It almost didn’t feel like a sword, but rather an extension of his arm.
With one wide swing, the guards, as well as their armor, exploded under the weight of his attack. five guards instantly slaughtered with one swipe. The remaining guards strike attacking while he wasn’t looking. However, Slimo easily dodged their attacks and kicked them all into the river.
He tucked his sword between the plates in his arm and slid it through to clean the blood as best he could before he sheathed it once more. Then, he picked up the armor and wooden figure and continued walking out into the grassy plains surrounding the kingdom. After finding spot comfortably away from the stone walls, he got on one knee and used his hands to bury a massive hold in the dirt.
Three moments passed before he was complete. He grabbed the armor sets that were still intertwined in each other and laid them in gently. Slimo stared at the armor in silence as the stars glistened off their polished iron.
"Vastra findrel ester vastra tol."
Suddenly, a small hand laid on Slimo’s shoulder. He didn’t react. Jacob walked next to him and took a knee in front of the hole.
"Something tells me I should be here for this. I’m sorry if I was interrupting something. What was that saying just now?"
Slimo sat in silence for a few moments.
"It’s a forgotten tongue of the empire that was. It means ’from the earth you came and to the earth you go.’ People used to say it at burials of their loved ones."
"I see."
After a few more moments of Silence, Slimo started to bury the armor. Once it was completely covered, he took the wooden figure and placed it on top of the small dirt mound.
"I will carry on your memory. Alone, if I must."
Jacob stood up and started walking back towards the house.
"We will have things waiting for you when you return, Slimo. Do not fell obligated to return fast if you need to mourn a bit longer. I understand the feeling of loss all too well."
"Jacob."
Jacob turned around. Slimo still looked outward, away from the kingdom.
"The kingdom we are living in is not a kingdom. We are living inside a corrupted leviathan. Lidia should have told everyone else by now."
He slowly turned around.
"We can’t stay here any longer. Prepare your things tonight. We will find a way to escape come tomorrow."
Without questioning it, Jacob nodded his head and started walking back towards the house.
As he walked, thoughts started flowing in his mind.
’What the hell does corrupted mean? Is that a new class of creature? Do all creatures have it or is it only powerful things like leviathans? And wait... we’re living inside of a leviathan?! One that’s outside of time?!’
When Jacob got home, Squabee appeared to have dried tears running down her cheeks. Jacob walked up to her and bent down.
"What’s wrong, Squabee?"
Squabee pouted further.
"Why can nobody remember William and Sydney?! They were our best friends and now everyone is pretending they don’t exist!!"
