Records of Rebirth

|[Ophelia is alive, but she isn't awake yet.]| I told Typhon and he sighed in relief but he still had a pained look that made my heart ache.

I felt deeply remorseful and wished I never messed around with Abyss magic – if only I had been more careful, Ophelia wouldn't have had to suffer.

Eventually, Typhon recovered enough to look at me, and this time he was much calmer. [I got everyone out as you requested, but everything happened so fast. I couldn't bring all of them out in time.]

That was understandable, I'd already seen the dead wolves.

However, behind Typhon, there were quite a mix of creatures watching us.

I counted the nestlings present and there was none missing, the Veladrys were there, Morgana's reptiles were also there, alongside quite a number of grey wolves lurking behind the trees – he saved far more than he gave himself credit for.

|[It's alright.]| I replied. |[You did a good…]|

But my voice trailed off as I saw Morgana approaching from the corner of my eye.

After hearing what I said, she was noticeably ashen, her bright eyes glaring menacingly at me.

[What happened to Ophelia?] She demanded, a tremor in her voice.

However, Typhon glanced at her, and she stopped speaking. Her eyes now torn between wanting an answer from me and leaving us both to return to the cave.

|[She's sleeping in the cave.]| I said to her. |[You can go back and see her, but you can't wake her up – she needs to rest.]|

Morgana immediately looked relieved, and nodded before taking off.

The captains and other nestlings followed, along with the reptiles and the wolves, but Typhon remained.

|[Have Lyra take a look at her when you return.]| I said to him. |[Her magic may be able to help.]|

However, even when Lyra followed after the crowd of returning nestlings, Typhon didn't move, his gaze remaining fixed on me.

[I saw her. She was barely breathing and bleeding to death.] He spoke with a heavy tone as he looked me straight in the eyes. [How did you manage to save her?]

It seemed I couldn't avoid giving an explanation, after all.

|[I will tell you later.]| I avoided his question, stopping him from probing any further.

The Nymph wasn't far away, and she was watching us intently, the dark fae on one bare shoulder, and my summon, on another. 

She simply listened to my explanation with a serene look on her face, and I was reminded once more of the quiet danger she posed.

|[Go back and guard the others.]| I said to Typhon. |[I will return soon.]|

Typhon was hesitant but when he followed my gaze and saw the Nymph observing them from behind, he realised something else was going on there.

[I'll come back here, if you don't return soon.] Typhon said with a wary glance at the Nymph, who simply smiled at him.

She didn't seem to mind being suspected, in fact she seemed to enjoy it – which made me wonder if something had occurred in my absence. 

Eventually, Typhon left with the dark fae, as did the surrounding Veladrys, leaving me and the Nymph alone.

But instead of talking, the Nymph turned her back on me and walked deeper into the forest, her flowery red dress disappearing behind a tree.

Seeing her leave made me sigh – I had a feeling she was upset, and with no one around, I followed her into the forest.

The Nymph moved quickly in an effort to confuse me, but I tracked her easily through my summon, able to make quick turns before traces of her disappeared.

Was she angry that all my creatures had swarmed into her forest without warning?

However, the more I followed her flighty figure, the more withered trees appeared surrounding us. She had walked right into an Abyss dead zone, and I realised the situation here was worse than I thought.

|[I'm sorry...about this. It was an accident.]| I called after her, causing the Nymph to stop. |[I tried my best to redirect it.]|

[What happened?] The Nymph turned around, her ruby eyes deeply saddened. [What was that…thing? It came out of nowhere. It broke through my barrier like it was nothing and killed everything in its path.] 

The Nymph was visibly shaken and I let her embrace me, listening to every word she said without complaint.

If she was concerned about more events like this happening in the future and wanted to leave me, I wouldn't exactly blame her.

|[I promise it won't happen again.]| I said as soon as she calmed down. |[You looked after my nestlings and I'm extremely grateful for that.]|

The Nymph looked up at me, her shoulders trembling slightly, but her face had softened a great deal.

[It can't happen again.] She insisted.

|[It won't]| I agreed.

I didn't want to talk about the Abyss, and I was grateful when she didn't pry any further.

Instead, she pulled herself up over my back, her body now resting between my wings, and I wriggled uncomfortably.

|[What are you doing?]| I asked.

[I want to see the damage.] The Nymph firmly replied. [I need you to show me everything.]

It couldn't be helped and I sighed.

The Nymph had the right to be concerned for her forest, and I agreed, but I hoped what she saw wouldn't make her hate me. 

Soon, we were flying up in the trees, examining the true extent of devastation.

It resembled an arrowhead, originating from my cave and spreading out in a sweep across the forest.

Included within this boundary were withered trees, dead lakes, monsters who all died suddenly and even neighbouring caves that were now visible.

Blackened and scorched, it took the place of all life that once inhabited the area.

A blight, now all the more stark with the sea of untouched greenery around it.

I wanted to see how far it went, so I kept going higher, but the Nymph gripped my back, her body pressed tightly against me like she was in some kind of discomfort.

[Not so high.] She gasped, her legs clutching tightly. [I can't take it…]

Hmm?

When I looked back, her dark hair was in disarray, her body strangely limp as she hugged me, and with her legs revealed, I saw the tip of her toes were now transparent.

Her entire body was turning ghostly pale which made her clutching onto me look even more pitiful. 

I began my descent immediately. It seemed the Nymph had an aerial limit as well as a boundary on land, and she was extremely relieved when we touched the ground. 

Although she seemed slightly weaker, her body had recovered its colour.

[Thank you…for taking me.] The Nymph said, her voice a gasp. [I hope you will…be more careful next time.] 

I nodded. I expected her to ask me a few questions and was surprised when she didn't.

Soon, several Veladrys appeared to support her on the ground, and I let them take her away. 

|[Let me know if you have any issues in the future, I'll try my best to help you.]| I told the Nymph, and after saying our goodbyes, I took off towards the cave.

Inside, I quickly headed over to Typhon who had settled beside Ophelia in the room I placed her.  Morgana, along with all the captains were also here, and they all watched over Ophelia with concern. 

With several nestlings waiting outside, the area of the cave became rather crowded, yet strangely desolate. I observed as Lyra she used her [Cure] in an effort to wake Ophelia up.

After several tries with no effect, I told her not to bother.

There was nothing physically wrong with Ophelia.

Rather, aside from her unconsciousness, all of her stats were full, with her body completely devoid of injuries. 

When Typhon spotted me, he left the others, and we entered another room to talk in private.

[So, what exactly happened?] He asked.

Instead of explaining, I simply showed him the ring.

|[I used forbidden magic to open something I shouldn't have, and it backfired on me.]| I replied.

In hindsight, I couldn't believe I risked Ophelia's life for something so trivial. A big part of me wanted to throw the ring away and never see it again.

Typhon also looked at the ring with spite. [The Grandmaster you mentioned must cherish it deeply. Have you tried opening it yet?]

|[No.]| I replied.

Sensei must have done something because the ring's magic circuit was now stable, the mana signature it contained, overwritten with [Abyss magic]. 

The silver ring even glowed with a reddish hue, like molten metal. 

But I hesitated – how ominous. 

Was it truly safe?

[What do you plan to do with it?] Typhon asked.

To throw it away would be a waste, and since the ring was no longer volatile, I decided to see if it was worth something after all the distress it caused.

|[Stay back.]| I instructed Typhon.

While Sensei might have made it stable, who knew what other tricks the grand master had to play?

I couldn't be so certain, so it was better this way. 

However, as soon as my mana spread over the ring, it opened up harmlessly.

Hah? 

I immediately dumped out all its contents and an avalanche of junk spilled out.

Most of it was meat and vegetables which greatly annoyed me but sprinkled in among them were other things like bread, fruits, some kinds of corn, butter, honey and even some strange, bottled beverage.

The things I was interested in, but there was more.

Next came all sorts of scrolls, potion jars, weapons, tools, strange maps, a pendulum, and a compass – there were even monster corpses and cores.

Among all the stuff, my eyes drifted to find the journal, catching sight of a rectangular object.

Unlike the mass of scrolls, it was tiny and looked similar to a book.

[Not bad.] Typhon said when he saw the entirety of the haul.

I was still annoyed with everything leading up to this, but he was right. I retrieved the journal and scanned through the rest of the items with [Mind's Eye] to see if they were as harmless as they looked.

However, something below the ground caught my eye.

All the nestlings were with Ophelia in the next room, so it was out of place to see one moving towards the underground.

When I focused on the figure, I realised it was Apollo and he seemed to be making his way deeper underground.

Seeing this, I was immediately upset. 

But more than anything, I was disappointed he would choose to leave while Ophelia's fate was undetermined.

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