Chapter 283: The ash that lingers in the air [2]

Chapter 283: The ash that lingers in the air [2]



It was dark.

Darkness embraced every inch of my surroundings.

I could hardly hear or see a thing.

'Where is this...?'

I looked around me.

Still, it was dark. Regardless of how much I looked, all I saw was darkness.

'What is going on?'

I tried to speak, but I found my voice stuck inside of throat. Regardless of how much I tried to speak, my mouth refused to open.

Moving my body, I pressed my hand forward where I felt something.

It was smooth to the touch, with hints of warmth. I knocked several times with my knuckle, "Tok, Tok―!', and each knock felt rather light.

'Wood...?'

That appeared to be the case as I tapped again.

Tok, Tok-!

I stopped when I realized it did nothing. I then ran my hand around me and tried to get a feel of my surroundings. It was to my shock that I realized that I was trapped on all sides.

I didn't panic immediately and continued to run my hand around the area I was in. Because of how dark it was, I found it hard to properly feel everything.

Still, I tried to map my surroundings in my mind.

Trying to fully understand my circumstances and the spacing that I had. As my hand traced to my left, I stopped.

'Nothing.'

The space was completely empty.

Or at least, it felt empty.

Tok, tok-!

Knocking on the wall facing my left, my brows jumped up in surprise. The sound... It was a little different compared to the other walls.

It sounded a lot less hollow and a lot more firm.

.... It didn't feel like it was made out of wood.

'How strange...'

I knocked on it several more times but soon stopped when I realized it was leading me nowhere.

I wasn't panicked. If this was really made out of wood, then it was as easy as tearing a piece of paper for me.

While it was true that I was a mage, my physical capabilities were far above that of a regular person, and without a second thought, I punched the wall ahead of me.

Bang-!

A loud bang resounded as my fist connected with the wall.

The sound was rather loud, but outside of that... nothing happened.

'Eh...?'

I blinked my eyes several times.

'How does this make sense?'

Feeling the wooden surface before me, I was stunned to see that it was still smooth. Not even

a hint of a scratch or dent. This was especially so for the area where I had punched.

That was also incredibly smooth...

'What's going on?'

I still didn't panic, lowering my head as I started to ponder over my situation.

'If that doesn't work, then I can try something else.'

Bringing my hand forward, I tried to cast a small spell.

I went for the chains, but...

Tzzz-!

To my shock, the magic circle that I wanted to form shattered in less than a fraction of a second.

Stunned, I could only blankly stare at the darkness as I imagined my empty hand in my mind.

But that wasn't the part that I was focused on. No, that didn't matter to me.

What mattered to me was the fact that...

'Gone.'

I hardly had any mana within me.

It was only extremely minuscule, but that was it.

'My physical body seems to have regressed, and practically all of my mana is gone...'

What kind of fucked up situation was this?

My frown tightened as I desperately held onto my composure.

Touching the side of the space, I repeatedly knocked on all sides, hoping to find some sort of

clue to my situation, but that proved to be meaningless as even the hours passed, my situation remained the same.

11

....."

The darkness continued to embrace every part of my body, but it felt stifling.

With the passing of time, I started to feel suffocated.

The space was small, and I was trapped, unable to get out of the space or scream for help.

'What's going on...?'

I was sure that I had used the third leaf on Kiera, but what was up with this situation? It made

no sense.

Lost in my thoughts, I continued to wait.

Something was bound to happen, right...?

I continued to convince myself that that was the case, but...

".....

Nothing.

Even as the hours continued to pass, I remained stuck in the dark with no way out.

I was confined within a small space, stuck and alone.

My breathing became shorter, and my head started to feel light. From time to time, I'd knock around to feel for something that could get me out of this space, but it was all to no avail.

It suddenly started to grow hot.

Sweat trickled down the side of my face, and breathing became more and more difficult.

11

......

My mind remained firm under the circumstances.

I continued to remain calm and just waited patiently. I had experienced far worse in the past.

This much I could handle.

But there was also a limit to how much I could handle.

Ten hours.

...At about the tenth hour, my legs started to cramp.

A cigarette of all things...

'Haha.'

I would've never expected the smell to ever bring me comfort, but here I was, relishing the

sensations that it brought.

I thought about getting a little taste but stopped myself.

'This is enough.'

.... Even if I wasn't disgusted by the idea, I just didn't feel like it. I was different than the me of

the

past.

I didn't need to use it to help me escape my reality.

All I needed it for was the light that it brought me.

And so,

Snap-

The moment one cigarette finished, I'd lit up another one and just emptily stare at the

floating red circle. The light it provided was extremely dim, and while I tried to get a better

look at my surroundings, it was of no use.

In the end, I was just left with no choice but to remain seated where I was.

Unlike before, I felt much calmer.

I continued to light up one cigarette after another.

Snap, snap, snap-

By now, its scent had already spread through every corner of the space, and it was all that I

could smell.

It wasn't a pleasant smell, but within the darkness and suffocating confines of the space, it

felt extremely comforting, distracting me from all the bad thoughts.

I was starting to become addicted to it.

'Huh...?'

Reaching out for another cigarette, my heart dropped when I realized it was the last one.

Before I knew it, I ended up using all the cigarettes available.

....And still, nothing happened.

11

Closing my eyes, I rested my head back.

Snap!

I didn't think twice before lighting the last cigarette.

Tzz!

A red circle floated before me.

Entranced, I kept my eyes firmly locked onto it.

'What do I do? How can I get out of this space? I don't understand... What's with this situation?'

Questions flooded my mind as I started to think about what would happen once the cigarette finished, but as time passed, the quieter my mind became.

I just focused on relishing the comfort the light brought me.

I knew that I didn't have much time.

With time, the circle dimmed.

As I watched it happen, my heart sank deeper and deeper into my body.

What was I going to do after it was gone? What was I-

Clank!

It was all of a sudden when I heard a loud sound my head sprang up. Looking back, the space I

was in shook as I heard what appeared to be the muffled sound of conversations happening

outside of whatever I was caged in.

To Tok-

I rapidly tapped onto the box, trying my best to get them to notice me.

'Hello!? Anybody there?'

Clank!

It didn't seem like they could hear me, but the shaking continued.

Despite the agony that accompanied each movement, I turned my body toward the direction

of the sound. Soon, I saw a thin, long white line seeping into the darkness that surrounded

me.

It was a thin line that grew wider with each second, allowing for the light to fully invade the

space.

My eyes squinted with pain as I struggled to keep them open, and...

"There's someone here!"

"We've found her!"

Several faces appeared before me.

I couldn't quite see their features due to the light, but I couldn't care less. I was finally going

to be out.

I was finally...

"Here, come with me."

11

My body stopped as they reached out for the space beside me.

I realized something.

They... weren't looking at me.

Turning my head, in the area where I thought there was a wall blocking me, I saw a young

figure. Her frail body trembled uncontrollably, and her white hair seemed to cling to her gaunt face. She was shivering so violently that it was almost painful to watch, and my own body froze.

Most unsettling were her ruby-red eyes.

They were locked on the tip of my cigarette, following its every movement with a haunting, desperate fixation.

Her hands reached out for it, but no words came out of her mouth as the figures dragged her

away.

I stood frozen on the spot for a brief moment before darkness returned as the doors to the

cabinet closed.

It was then that I understood.

"Oh, I see."

My voice returned then, but I no longer had any words to use.

"...."

In the silence, I sat alone in the space.

Just me, and the ashes that lingered in the air.