Silen found himself lying on a surface. When he opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was hair. His own black hair covered his eyes. He moved his hand to see the figure standing next to him.
As he did, a girl's voice exclaimed,
"Oh, you are awake!"
As he brushed his hair aside, he got a clear look at her face. She was a girl around his age, looking at him with a smile. There was a hint of warmth in her eyes. Her blonde hair gave Silen a clue.
'A commoner?'
There were no commoners in the palace.
"Where am I?"
The girl, who had been staring at him, immediately averted her eyes.
'Nervousness?'
Then, in a soft, barely audible voice, she said, "At my house… Ahem, I mean, we are in a village called Rim, Eastern Praugh."
It was then that he realized he was lying on a bed, with a window to his right through which he could see a forest outside.Silen decided to play along with her nervous demeanor. He spoke hesitantly,
"I-I'm sorry, but I can't seem to remember anything."
Hearing this, she frowned and said,
"I found you lying near the edge of the forest. That was about a quarter of an hour ago."
'Makes sense, since that was around the time I was stuck in the minimal phenomenon after losing consciousness.'
She spoke again.
"It's strange. If you came through the forest, your clothing doesn't look touched by anything. No dirt, no tears. It's almost as if you fell from the sky."
Silen could only follow up with his lie.
"I don't know…"
Silence ensued. The girl did not press further.
But soon, she looked at him again, stuttering and blushing,
"Are you really not a deity?"
This confused Silen, and he showed it vividly on his face.
"Huh?"
Can she sense something?
Seeing his reaction, her embarrassment grew. She blushed and smacked her face. "Never mind, then. So, you're human."
For her, the sentence was an answer to herself, but for Silen, it became a question. 'Am I?'
For some reason, this question shocked him. 'I feel desire and pain like an animal, but I'm also consciously aware like a human… but am I one? Do I lack something?'
He didn't have much time to dwell on it. After all, he was currently in a stranger's house.
He sat up, and the girl stepped back.
This time, it was Silen's turn to ask a question.
"Can I ask your name? I'm Silen."
She smiled and replied gladly,
"My name is Ehi."
Silen nodded and continued,
"Nice to meet you, Ehi. I must thank you for giving me shelter."
She waved her hand, seemingly dismissing his thanks.
"It's not even worth mentioning. So, you remember your name but nothing else?"
Silen nodded, not acting shocked or confused.
"You seem puzzled. I do have memories of my past, but not of how I got here. I don't even know how old I am at this moment. If I follow my trail of memories, they abruptly end at me entering a temple by a lake, though I can't remember why I went there."
'This is the second conversation I've had since gaining my freedom, and in both, I was forced to lie. What a fraud! It's not like I can tell anyone I'm a being older than this world or that I'm related to the king. That alone could spark an endless spree of assassinations if the news got out.'
Ehi listened attentively. Silen was unsure if she believed him.
"Well, it's not good to pry into someone's past. And you don't look to be doing alright. Your eyes look out of sync with your expression for some reason. I'm not shaming you, but it's just strange. Also, you look extremely pale, it's definitely not healthy."
Silen was taken aback by her remarks. 'What's wrong with my eyes?'
His mind drifted to the changes that had occurred since leaving the church. The most immediate was his clothing.
He wore a long, flowing black gown made of sheer, lightweight fabric that moved gently with each motion. Its wide sleeves, edged with lace, hung gracefully from his outstretched arms, and the high collar and fitted waist were detailed with delicate embroidery. Though he couldn't fully see how it suited his face, he knew he had been quite beautiful to begin with. His frail body and features, in his estimation, seemed to complement it perfectly.
But the dress wasn't the only thing he had received. A small blade hung at the right side of his waist, slender and precise, with a silver sheen on its sharp edge. The most noticeable part was its design. The hilt, made of some unknown, dense metal, was crafted with such intricate, almost organic details that it seemed otherworldly. There was something about its design that Silen couldn't quite pinpoint. The handle, made of the same metal, wasn't comfortable to hold, but the grip felt almost unyielding.
The moment he saw the blade, he knew what it was.
'So, this is the ceremonial blade.'
Each pilgrim carried such a blade; without it, the final ritual was impossible. One could say the entire journey was to find the temple the blade belonged to.
On the left side of his waist hung a pouch. He touched it. It had weight but made no sound of items inside.
'Is it a spiritual pouch?'
Though it took only a few seconds to observe his body, it felt awkward to do so mid-conversation.
Silen stood and said,
"I wish I could reward you, but I only have this blade, which seems tied to the temple and the cause of all this, and this pouch, which is empty… Anyway, I must leave now."
Ehi shrugged and asked,
"But where are you planning to go?"
Silen replied with a smile, pointing toward the forest.
"In there. I'm planning to transcend right there."
Ehi's eye twitched. He wasn't sure what she was thinking, but it seemed along the lines of,
'He's gone senile.'
Silen didn't mind.
Surprisingly, she regained her composure quickly.
"Oh, okay. I'm praying for your success, then."
In her mind, she thought,
There's no guiding the blind, as they say... even if the blind is good looking.
She lightly clicked her tongue but didn't voice anything out.
With that, she and Silen walked to the door.
He stepped out, bowed to show his respect, and left. She closed the door behind him.
'I should continue with the plan I made while being transposed.'