Chapter 5
Compass Continent
Even in a new world, completely different from my own, there was a chorus of a thousand birds, chirping life into a new day. While the birds chirped happily outside, Catherine worked her hands around my body. That sounded off. What I meant was that she worked her fingers around the bandages wrapped around my body.
She tied the loose knots around my shoulders, my wrists, and even the base of my back, where my upper and lower body meet. The entire time, she remained dead silent, like she'd rather not be there if it could be helped. I still couldn't figure out why she was helping me, how or what she would benefit from helping me. Perhaps she wanted to turn me in to retrieve the price on my head. Or maybe she was just helping me out of the kindness of her heart.
Whatever the case, it's more beneficial for me to believe the latter. Less stressful for me that way.
Catherine finished patching me up. The bandages were tightened around their loose ends, even the ones on my eye.
"Thank you." I whispered.
Catherine's ears twitched slightly. "You're welcome." She whispered back
The cat ears really were the perfect reminder that I was in a fantasy world. I mean, if we were reborn in Eden's body at a different, less mutilated time, my heart would've sung in joy.
Hang on. Fantasy worlds typically have magic, right?
The world did, in fact, have magic. From Eden's memories, at least those on the surface, magic was rather common. Too common. I made a mental note to investigate the magic lead later as Catherine led me out the door. It was barely daybreak, and the air was still moist from the rain of the day before. My first foot outside was greeted by wet dirt. The mud clung to the bottom of my shoe.
All the ruins I'd seen before were still there, still very much in tethers.
"We'll cut through the south." Said Catherine as a matter of factly. "We'll avoid the larger towns and villages as we make our way to the Central Empire."
"I'm sorry, Central Empire? Isn't that the most heavily populated country on the continent?"
"It is."
"Then we should avoid it entirely," I blurted, my voice breaking on the last word. "You said we're avoiding all the larger towns and villages. Going to the biggest megalopolis sounds like a bad idea for more reasons than I can count."
"Mega...mega what?" she stuttered.
"Doesn't matter. Look, I say we should avoid it entirely."
One could say I was being forceful about it, a bit crude, too. Asking her to do more than she already had was wrong of me, I knew that. Still, I was in no rush to get killed.
"Please," I begged. "There's got to be another way."
Catherine's eyes widened, like she was almost astonished to see me beg the way I did. I had no problem with begging. My life was very much in her hands.
"Very well." She sighed. "We'll avoid going through the Central Empire. Meaning we'll have to cut through Sauralis."
As soon as she finished her sentence, she started walking. I followed close behind her like a lost child. My legs were surprisingly sturdy for all their injuries.
"Sauralis?" I echoed.
"Yes, Sauralis. You've never been there?"
"Not for as long as I remember, no."
Technically, I wasn't lying, though I wasn't telling the whole truth either. Sauralis was no more than a name to me at that point. A name of a country I was unfamiliar with.
"That's probably for the best." She said.
"Why's that?"
"Sauralis, much like Ester and Neil, is in alliance with the Central Empire."
"Hang on, wait. Could you run that by me again? Slower this time."
She eyed me from my feet all the way up to my hair. Her ears dropped, her eyes furrowed, and her tail straightened a bit, too.
"Weren't you born in this country?"
Crap.
"Well, I mean. No, actually, I was born in Ester. My family's there too, so really that's the main reason why I wanted to go back." I explained.
"I see."
"Yeah. I mean, I came to Weiss after I-"
"There's no need," she raised her hand. "The less we know about each other, the better."
"Um, thanks?"
I wasn't exactly sure how to react to that. I mean, it did raise questions, sure, and part of me did feel like she was hiding something. Actually, she might've been hiding a lot, but with the shoes I was wearing, it wasn't really my place to judge.
"Basically," she continued. "What you are saying is, other than Ester, you have little to no knowledge about the other countries?
"Ugh, well, I wouldn't say that."
I mean, some of Eden's memories provided the broad scope of the general map. The continent itself was named the Compass Continent, and as the name suggested, it was indeed shaped like a compass. There were four points on it: north, east, west, and south. The north country was called Neil, the east- Ester. To the west, where I found myself standing, there was Weiss, and to the south was Sauralis. In the centre of the continent lay the Central Empire. A megalopolis that acted as a convergence point between countries.
"I know there are at least five countries on the continent. And Sauralis is the south one, right??"
"That's right, and like I said before, Sauralis, Ester, and Neil are in alliance with the Central Empire. Rather, it'd be more accurate to say that they're in alliance with the Saint Christian Church."
Lore detected!!
Back in my old world, I lived for that type of lore. 'Saint Christian Church' had a nice ring to it too. My curiosity got the better of me, and I ended up asking against my better judgment.
"Saint Christian Church?"
"Wow, you truly are a country bumpkin," she began. "The Saint Christian Church is a religious order, the most prominent one in the entire continent, no less. The rulers of Ester, Sauralis, and Neil are devout followers of this order. That's why their countries are in alliance with the Central Empire."
We continued walking as Catherine explained her point. The desolated, village-like outskirts were a few paces behind us, and ahead of us was a mildly vast terrain that stretched as far as I could see. There were a few hills, but there was no town or building to speak of.
"Ideally," Catherine continued, "We'll assume that even if news of the king's death did reach the other countries, they won't take any action to find you."
"Why's that?" I swallowed my own spit, preparing for the answer.
"Weiss and the Empire haven't been on the best of terms. Even if the king did die, I doubt the church would do anything more than pass their regards."
Dark. I thought.
"Alright, so if news of the regicide does come out and the church does decide to take action."
"Nowhere is safe." Catherine finished my sentence.
"Awesome."
Just one hammer after another. I started feeling like fate really was trying to do me over. Like it didn't want me dead, but it didn't want me fully alive either. Though I guess I ought to be grateful that I had Catherine. She was a great help, and I couldn't overstate just how much I needed her.
"Thank you, by the way." I blurted.
"For what?" she said without turning.
"Everything. I don't really know why you're helping me, but I'm thankful either way."
"…. It's fine. Don't think too much about it."
I don't know what came over me, but at the time, it made sense for me to make some sort of gesture to thank her. Just a small token or act that would show her just how much I appreciated her help. Though in hindsight, I may or may not have been possessed by something. Maybe it was my impulses. Maybe it was the real Eden. But when I reached my arm out to touch Catherine, it started glowing as bright as the sun.
Catherine's neck started glowing too, and she let out a shriek reminiscent of a dying beast. It was horrifying, but it's what came after that that was truly scary. I heard laughing. A twisted, proud cackle that rippled through my head.
Come on now, you're making me sound like some sort of knockoff.
The sky itself seemed to breathe somehow. A giant, golden chain stretched high, binding something that looked bigger than the world itself.
That's right, keep going! Please don't stop now, I'd like to know more! Much more. I live for the lore!!
A gigantic, massive eye covered the sky. It looked down- it looked at me. The sky and I locked eyes, and my heart sang.
Pause. Is this a romance!? Is this the beginning of a twisted romance or something else?