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What made Osnia’s condition so strange?

This was a problem I couldn’t solve on my own.

Above all, it was already late, so I had to start sending Titania back to her room. If it got any later, it would definitely affect tomorrow’s classes.

“Titania, it’s too late. You should get some rest.”

At that, Titania looked at the sleeping Osnia with a worried expression.

“But what about Oz? I’m too worried to just leave her like this…”

I shook my head and replied.

“I’ll be here. If anything happens, I’ll call you immediately, so don’t worry.”

“Um, if the instructor is here, it should be fine… But if anything really happens, you must call me right away! Even if there are no visible injuries, there could still be internal issues. She needs to stay hydrated, and if her condition worsens or she shows signs of discomfort, immediately—”

“I’ll manage just fine, so now go back to your room.”

I firmly interrupted Titania’s concerns.

I wasn’t an expert in magic, but I had dealt with countless injured people during the war. Wizards running low on magical power or with malfunctioning circuits were no exception, and at the very least, I knew what sort of symptoms shouldn’t occur.

“Promise me you’ll call if anything happens?”

She left the room, unable to tear her worried gaze from Osnia, wearing a face full of reluctance.

The room left by Titania was dark and quiet. The only sound was the soft breathing of the sleeping Osnia.

I pulled a chair closer to watch over Osnia’s condition.

Osnia’s breathing was calm, and compared to when we first exited the forest, her complexion had improved. Perhaps it was thanks to Titania’s vitality magic.

It didn’t seem like leaving the room would cause any major issues, but I figured a day or two without sleep wouldn’t affect my own condition too much. So I decided to stay and keep watch, just in case.

“Hmm…”

I quietly stared at the sleeping Osnia and found myself thinking of something else.

It was about the illusion of Ella that the forest spirit had shown me.

Until now, I had buried thoughts of Ella deep within my heart. I thought if I buried them, I could eventually forget my memories of her.

After coming to this capital city, I had no intention of looking for Ella. To be honest, if she was doing well, that was fine, and if not, I was not ready to face the truth.

However, recently I had heard stories that might involve Ella, and now facing this illusion of her, my thoughts began to shift.

Experiencing her illusion made me realize how hard it would be to completely shake her from my heart, and I ultimately came to a decision.

I would check on Ella’s whereabouts just once.

To do that, there was someone I could find. I knew just the person for the task.

While I was lost in my thoughts, night passed, and the morning sun gradually began to rise beyond the window.

At that moment, Osnia awakened from her sleep.

She slowly opened her eyes, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Then, as she looked around to confirm where she was, she noticed I was in the room and blinked in surprise.

“Instructor…?”

“Yeah. Did you sleep well?”

I greeted Osnia, who still seemed unable to properly comprehend the situation.

Osnia watched the morning sunlight slowly streaming in from the window, finally realizing that she was lying in her own bed.

She hesitantly asked in a soft voice, as if she were afraid.

“Did you bring me here…?”

I nodded slightly and answered.

“That’s right. You don’t remember much?”

“…Everything feels hazy, like it was a dream.”

“Hmm… I see. Then what do you remember?”

Osnia could only recall walking the forest path with me, and she couldn’t remember anything after being led by the spirit. The only faint memory was that she thought she might have seen my face.

I briefly explained that I rescued her from the hallucination shown by the forest spirit and that Titania had cast a spell to restore her vitality.

After a moment of silence, Osnia’s expression softened and she nodded.

“Titania… I see.”

Then, suddenly, a wave of guilt washed over her face, and Osnia spoke in a trembling voice.

“I’m so sorry.”

I spoke calmly to reassure her.

“It’s not your fault that you fell into the spirit’s illusion.”

However, Osnia seemed to disagree with that. She bit her lip in confusion and averted her gaze downward.

“Right before I fell into the illusion, I heard a strange voice.”

“A voice?”

Osnia slowly nodded her head in confirmation.

“It was my parents’ voices.”

With a slightly self-deprecating smile, Osnia continued.

“It sounds ridiculous. They’ve both been gone for a long time…”

She appeared to feel a deep sense of shame for having fallen into such a simple trap. As if she wouldn’t have fallen into it had she been thinking clearly.

That statement further convinced me that something about Osnia’s condition today was indeed strange.

I spoke cautiously.

“…It seems they were not good parents. I didn’t see any traces of you in their home.”

Osnia nodded in agreement.

“I was… trapped in the underground attic. I lived there as if I wasn’t even there.”

“……”

I had suspected that already, but when it was confirmed, I swallowed hard.

Osnia remained silent for a long time, chewing her lower lip as if she was deeply hesitant about something, and then finally steeled herself to slowly begin to share her past.

“Since I was little, I could see things others couldn’t, hear things that weren’t there.”

Osnia spoke in a trembling voice.

“Because of that, strange beings were always lurking around me. Sometimes they helped me, but mostly they caused problems.”

“Strange beings?”

“Spirits, evil spirits, monsters, fairies… sometimes beings beyond that.”

Titania guessed that Osnia had attracted the attention of more than just spirits. Osnia’s explanation confirmed that suspicion as a fact.

“…The villagers thought I was cursed, and the village priest led the charge.”

Osnia looked pained as she spoke about her past, furrowing her brow, and her voice faltered with trembling shoulders.

Eventually, the room fell into an uncomfortable silence. Fear and pain from the past still lingered in Osnia’s eyes.

Instead of pressing her to continue, I thought it best to end the conversation here and placed my hand on her shoulder.

“That’s enough. You don’t need to force yourself to talk.”

Osnia still needed stability. If she wasn’t ready to share her past, there was no reason to pressure her into doing so.

However, Osnia slowly shook her head and continued.

“You protected me, Instructor.”

“If you’re talking about rescuing you from the spirit, it was my responsibility since I was right there and couldn’t stop it—”

“Not that.”

Osnia’s violet eyes fixed on me intently.

“You experienced my past… firsthand.”

“……”

In that cabin, from the horrific violence and curses of her parents and the villagers.

The girl Osnia, with her eyes closed and ears covered, just pitifully crying and begging in her childhood.

It reminded me of my own powerlessness in the past.

Osnia smiled faintly at my silence.

“Thank you.”

“…I didn’t do it for gratitude.”

“Yeah… but still.”

A brief pause filled the room. However, unlike before, this time it didn’t feel uncomfortable.

Osnia hesitated a bit before continuing.

“…Anyway, as you can see, I lived like that in the village. Pest, demon, witch… I was called all kinds of names.”

“Somehow, you weren’t driven out of the village.”

“Thanks to my parents and the village priest. They were trying to….”

Osnia paused for a moment.

“…Make me repent. They believed even the child of a devil could find solace in the goddess’s embrace, or something like that… to be honest, I don’t really understand it.”

Given Osnia’s reaction, it was clear that their notion of repentance was not carried out in a good manner. It must have involved far too harsh torture and various forms of violence for a child to bear.

“Then one day, suddenly, a war broke out…”

Osnia stopped there and continued with the bitterest expression I had ever seen.

“…Real demons came to the village.”

 

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