Chapter 157- Somi Clearsky (Part 3)
If one asked Rin what he thinks about something as strong as the bond between siblings, he would only describe it as 'Unbreakable'. There is simply nothing that can rival the bond of a family and siblings are one of those cases.
No matter whether they were alive or dead, siblings should never forget each other. They share the pain in the toughest times and the happiness of their highest moments. That's why, to a certain extent, Rin understood Emilia's complicated feelings at the moment.
She had lived 17 years of suffering with curiosity eating away from her sanity. She had tried to search, ask, and go above and beyond not even to get her sister back but to just know how she died. As much as that broke her from the inside, she had accepted that her sister was no more. However, for her to honor her legacy, she wanted to know how. If it was at the hand of the Demon Monarch or one of the Demon Generals then she can finally execute her revenge for her sister's shed blood.
This was a personal matter no matter how Rin looked at it. However, he also had a bad hunch about this. If someone as strong as Somi was killed by a Demon General not only did that mean that the demons were now stronger than the strongest of humans but they also were somehow able to also kill all the expedition members except one.
The horrifying realization of such a possibility being very high made Rin's spine go numb for a second.
'If one of them can do that… Then, what can 10 of them do?' He frowned as he thought to himself. Such a level of power was something Rin's mind can't comprehend. If such beings were to be freed from the demon realm, it might be the end of this world.
'Power… I need power as fast as possible.' Rin thought with a tinge of worry in his eyes.
His daily progress with training and leveling up was decent and could even be considered great. But, he felt as if he was lacking greatly in terms of instant power gain. His power was a high risk, high reward based so the more threats he faced the more Action Points he will get and the more strength he gets.
'The end of the first month is very soon. I will probably move floors, finally.'
Since Rin had been collecting points from all the things he had been doing, he was sure to move up. He didn't know what the next floor has for him but he was sure to find things that will help his training.
As he was thinking like that, he found himself in front of the dormitory again. Emilia had already entered inside but since Rin can't really enter the girls' dormitory if he doesn't want to be labeled a pervert or a creep so he waited for them to come out.
After that, they all returned to Emilia's office. From the moment Emilia entered the girls' dormitory and got Elise and Sorophi out, they were all silent oddly. Rin wanted to ask for the reason for such weird behavior but Elise signaled for him to not say anything.
'Did Sorophi reveal something?' Rin thought.
It was possible that Emilia learned about something and only wanted to discuss it when they are in a completely safe place where no one can eavesdrop on their conversation.
Back at the office, the group sat in silence. The solemnity of the place made it hard for anyone to say anything exceptionally when Emilia, the one that should've started speaking, was looking at Sorophi silently, not averting her eyes.
The latter wasn't looking back, however, and was merely playing with her teddy bear. Sighing, Emilia stood up and walked to the window before looking outside.
"Did you read the book, Sorophi?" Emilia asked.
"... No."
"Why?"
"Because… Rin told me not to." She said.
Flashing a weird gaze at Rin, Emilia continued.
"Well, you can read it now."
"I…" Sorophi tried to deny her order but Emilia was faster than her.
"You can read it."
Sorophi's eyes blinked confusedly before they shifted toward Rin who could only nod his head at her. He knew that Emilia knew better than he did when it comes to this matter so if she decided it was safe for Sorophi to read the book then it was most likely the case.
Seeing that Rin accepted it, Sorophi pulled out the book and opened it. Then, with an emotionless expression, she started reading the book. However, that expression froze quickly as her muscles stiffened visibly. Yet, even with that, her eyes didn't stop moving as she read the book and her hands didn't stay frozen as they kept flipping pages continuously.
Then, for the next 15 minutes or so, the only sound that echoed in the room was of pieces of paper being flipped rhythmically every minute or two.
The shock in Sorophi's eyes only grew bigger and bigger by the second. Rin watched her closely with a hint of worry on his face. He didn't know why but he felt as if what she was going through now was slightly similar to what he lived through, maybe even worse.
Although she's an extremely strong individual that strode the path of her mother, she lived all her life not even remembering her mother's face, her voice, or even the last words she left for Sorophi. That in and out of itself was something that no one should go through. Yet, here she was, facing that past, not knowing what to think or do.
Seeing someone as scary as Sorophi being faced with an extremely harsh truth was not a fun sight to admire.
Eventually, Sorophi reached the part that Rin was waiting for. His breathing stopped for a good 3 seconds.
*Drop*
A moment later, Sorophi's hands released the book and it fell down to the ground. Her face seemed to be confused, and desperate yet also in deep pain. As she looked down, she started shaking her head ever-so-gently.
"N-No… That's…" She uttered under her breath in a faint voice. However, because of the silence, the three could hear her quite clearly.
The first one to react was Emilia who turned around and walked toward her before she picked up the book.
"Did you remember something?" She asked as she pointed at it.
For some odd reason, Emilia didn't seem to be eager to open the book. If Rin had to take a guess, it was most likely because she feared that if she read it, she will only open the traumas and scars she has again. In fact, if she had the choice, she would've not made Sorophi read the book. But, for the sake of finding the truth, sacrifices were bound to be made.
"I… That's…" Sorophi tried to form some kind of phrase but all she ended up saying were incomprehensible words.
"You recall something, don't you, Sorophi? I know you do. I know it's hard. But for the sake of your mother, you must tell me. What exactly happened that day?"
"I… I… Really don't know. The only thing I remember is that… M-Mother looked abnormal, way different from how she normally is. Her eyes were red and ominous… It was as if she lost her mind completely. She… attacked father and… Killed him. Then, I don't remember anything else." Sorophi uttered with great difficulty.
"Attacked your father? Why?" Emilia pressed her with questions even though she knew Sorophi didn't have an answer. Since the moment this matter was pulled out, Emilia had been driven more by her emotions than her rational thinking so she couldn't control herself when trying to know the truth.
"I don't know…"
"Red eyes? Ominous? Did she get controlled by the demons? But, that's impossible. Demons can't control humans at all. That can't happen." Emilia muttered.
From the description Sorophi provided, this kind of behavior fit that of a demon. But, not only was this something that demons can't do at all but their target was Somi. Controlling someone as strong as she was is nothing short of a joke… a bad one at that.
Control magic does exist and even humans can use it. However, demons didn't have the same mana cores as humans so they couldn't have an affinity with nature that's why Emilia didn't believe in that possibility.
However, even if that was the case and even if the demons had the strongest control magic, the chances that it could affect Somi were close to none. But…
Suddenly, Emilia's eyes widened at the thought she reached. Just the mere idea of it sent a chill down her spine.
'The only way for it to be possible is if she… allowed them to cast their magic on her.' She thought.
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