Kapitel 6: Ryuu's Dilemma

Dragged in the inn, the boy slept with the girl standing in his moment of peril.

He, a mute spectator to the horrors of the world, born young without a guide roaming the streets of Orario naturally was not something, the girl named Ryuu would invite in her home to. She, herself on her life as an adventurer has had countless regrets, countless what ifs, however, the cruel reality never courted to her favor, throwing her in an everlasting pit of sorrow and despair.

The regrets never truly left her heart, even after being saved by Syr, Ryuu would only remain an hollowed husk, wasting her days pitifully working towards repaying her savior. The void in her heart, everlasting, would never go away, prisoning herself to endless nightmares of countless what-ifs and as if it wasn't cruel enough would wake her up to relive another living nightmare.

There was no day or night in such life, no hope to live for another and so this hollowed husk of a body lived and breathed for its savior until it could repay the price for its salvation.

That is how one like Ryuu lived her life until today.

It was the same uneventful day, filled with the same actions done over a countless times through the span of several years. The boisterous atmosphere of the inn felt monotonous. However, things started to change from here on.

Anya Fromal, on a break from her usual job, busy on filling the role of her friend. However, tonight she was supposed to be here around this time except she wasn't.

Worried, Mia excused her the moment, sending her to search for Anya.

Ryuu quickly found her in the marketplace, however, she currently appeared to be distressed, looking at her unusual behavior, the answer immediately came to her mind.

'Something's wrong'

Approaching the distressed, she came to know her story, about her knight in white horse and his Chasity in trouble. While she wouldn't trouble herself to protect such a boy, however, through the insistence of the girl who she could open her heart to, she ran after the boy.

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It was a tale old as time, a young girl surrounded by bullies screaming for the hero to save her. The hero arriving in time saves the damsel in distress earning her love and they kiss.

However, such wasn't the reality of the situation, a young boy with muddy eyes stood before the adventurers, as an adventurer herself, going through countless adventures taught her to read a person's through their eyes.

The boy in front of her rejected, feared the world around him. The lens of his soul counted all as enemies, reminding of her very self.

To Ryuu, it seems to be a mirror to her own pitiful self and truly the situation played out not much different than her own. The only difference marking that, the boy wasn't lost to his despair yet.

She hated him, hated his eyes filled with fear considering all as enemies, like a rabid animal lashing against anyone and anything that even tried to get close to him.

Seeing the boy, Ryuu came to her own conclusion, 'it won't be long till the mirror looks back at me'

It was too late for her to receive salvation, however, may it be remorse or guilt some part of her mind entertained the idea of saving the boy.

As if she wanted him to save her in exchange.

The thought of romance, love was forgone for her unbeaten deadly heart and so the girl named Ryuu descended to battle relieving her past once more.

She struck against the adventurers with enough strength to knock them out, as a level 4 adventurer, uncontrolled the same move would have killed them, she then ran towards the leader, knocking him out as well.

The fight wasn't anything flashy but just a continuation of movement practiced over a million times. However, to outside spectators even such actions were hard to follow, such were the woes of those unblessed by gods.

However, there are always exceptions, heroes for instance are born with much higher stats than average person. That may have been the only sane conclusion, her mind could draw after seeing the boy's eyes were able to follow her movements.

Now, in front of the boy, she stood not as adventurer but as murderer named Ryuu. She asked of his origins considering the possibility that the child was lost.

However, reality seemed to again disappoint by providing the answer that she fully expected. Leaving him here to fend for himself was something no one would blame her for but a part of her refused to turn her back on the boy.

In her mind, the image of the boy was little by little overlapping with hers, thinking as if she finally lost, Ryuu closed her eyes focusing on calming her emotions. The fact that the only light she could see was of the boy was not helping matters at all.

And so Ryuu, decided to refuse her mind and let her heart make the choice, making the mind numbing pain finally go away.

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Ainz POV:

It was an abyss, a conundrum of fragmented memories shattered in millions of pieces. Each memory, goes to its own timeline and each timeline with its very own branch of choices.

"Interesting"

The timelines however, seemed to be like the nerves pulsating at every second. It felt organic, it felt living the conclusion that his mind could reach would be his very being devoured which makes his self currently living inside an entity. However, such thoughts could not shake his mind, at least in such place. His body too collapsed leaving behind his bony avatar, that went countless trails and tribulations in Yggdrasil.

Memories unknown flood his mind sending back to his blissful sleep.

Two entities came forth challenging the other to make their move,

One whispered "why?"

Other replied "Not ready. Needs more time"

One admonished, "Enough time"

while other countered, "No time"

Until a cackling was heard in a distance far from reality. A voice older than time, looked over this distortion for a fraction of millisecond and so screams began drowning this once living organism towards an hellish death.

With its final screams marked the end of a millionth possibility.

The entity looked towards the skeleton sending it back towards the realm of living, hoping to see what entertainment it would present to the table.