Reincarnated Into A Dead Woman's Body In Another World-Chapter 113: Arc 3, - 23: A Moment in Silence

Strewn about, were the bodies that began to rot. The scent of blood in sunlight—an iron-like scent she had come to recognize. Through strands of blonde, she stared at what damage she had dealt...

A few marks on her adventuring gear, gunshots beneath the layers that bruised her skin underneath. Hey, this was what it was made for; some scuff marks were not the greatest issue...

She circled the carriage, looking onwards to the grass that had so oddly grown... What would happen if she stepped out? What would happen if she dragged the bodies out...?

No vehicles had come in or out they said... She pondered why, as she pondered another thought. If she steps out, then she may not be able to step back in... Perhaps just a paranoid assumption, but did she really want to test that theory?

Besides... this had to be reset.... Amongst the corpses were the three of them... that she cared for so dearly- She shut her eyes, to stop herself from brooding any longer.

She had a goal, a mission, to undo all of this within this odd radius of time. Soon, all their luggage were open on the ground.

’Of course Fumeko had food... Stop Jotou... Don’t cry, don’t cry. You can change all of this...’ She quickly moved to find a canister of water in Hotaru’s bag.

She then, finally sauntered over to the three, laid against the carriage... The veins of poison spread across their bodies, any visible skin was marked with bluish-green.

Her eyes looked away... ’Save them... save them... That’s the promise... I will meet you all again... You’re not dead yet...’

She faced the road back; the road she had to traverse all the way on foot. Hours on a horse-driven carriage. How long would it take to walk...?

_

The Moon overlooked a cloud filled sky and yet not a drop of rain. The police guarded the borders of Hartamat, pacing and pacing; some taking a break to smoke and chat.

One particular officer stopped and squinted to the road ahead, musket to his side. "Hey, need some help over here," he signalled as his comrade threw his cigarette down and stomped it out.

A lone figure walked forward down the road; hood covering the head and face staring at the road as the figure took one step after the other. The figure made it all the way, boots tracking bits of grass stuck to dried crimson.

"Hold it right there. Where do you come from?" the policeman put a hand up, halting her steps.

"From north, obviously," an elegant tone spoke back, but it had no vigour, still not looking up from her hood.

The other officer went forward, "Madam, you realize there’s a travel ban, correct? You may not enter Hartamat. How did you even- you walked all the way here?"

The first policeman furrowed his brows, "The closest thing north from here is Galuvit Town..." The other patrol officers turned to view the circumstance...

"I left Hartamat this morning for an exercise run," Jotou pulled her hood down, a purple headband on her blonde locks. "I’m the Thundering Blade and I was caught in your little travel ban.

I went to the minister directly to request to survey the area. It took me a while, but I’m back. Not much out there... So, if you’ll just let me in, I can go back to my lodging and get a good night’s rest.

I have to deal with a rogue battalion tomorrow, unless you want to explain to Minister Saady at this time of night, that you kept me out of the border of Hartamat and I was unable to aid in tomorrow’s battle?"

"Uh..." the guards stuttered. The news of her blonde locks and her beauty alone already had her identified by the two.

The gaze of her brown pupils, half-covered by her lids as she glared... and glared... "We apologize... Thundering Blade; enjoy your stay..."

Jotou walked past, into Hartamat once more. Items concealed within the several pockets under her coat. She made her way to where cabins sat row by row.

"That’ll be two silver," the clerk requested. Jotou fished out two silver from Hotaru’s purse and slid it across the counter. Jotou’s eyes darted to the calendar behind the receptionist. ’19th of August...’

She handed Jotou the keys, "After the ban, I expected you’d regret checking out so quickly. Say, where’re the redhead and the girl in purple? Your friends, right?"

Of course now of all times, people had to be nosy... "They’re staying elsewhere tonight. They’ll be back though."

"Oh, alright then. Have a good night."

"Yeah, you too," the words barely left her lips, more out of curtesy than sincerity; Jotou walked away.

The room door...’How many times have I opened this door?’ The knob twisted, creaking into the unlit room. Soft light peered through the curtains, the room completely clean like the first day they were here.

One step... then another... ’Breathe... just breathe...’ One foot after the other, the wood felt her weight. She reached the light to turn it on—the dim yellow.

She sat on her bed, plucking out the items in her pockets; the blade she unsheathed and kept against the nightstand. Silence... Nothing but the chirps of bugs outside.

Alone—with nothing but her thoughts. The silence, it spoke louder than any conversation; in the absence of it... all she could do, was play in the field of her memories.

What else was silence good for, if not to reminisce? ’They’re not dead... I can reset this.’ She glanced at the items, was there really nothing to reminisce?

Bluish-silver watch around her left wrist; she petted the glass, watching the little hands tick like her heartbeats. Reminded of the night under a tent, with its owner... "I think of you and my mind, slows down..."

Asobi’s wand in her palm; she could still remember the day she bought it. Using it almost every second till the blonde had to carry the elf back to the guild...

The bluish sleeves she unpacked from Hotaru’s luggage; the day she so happily adorned her adventuring outfit. When she signed that contract to let her in the party.

The one thing, she had of one more person was worn on the blonde’s head. She stared across the room—a bed. Neatly kept. She remembered what she was told about this headband...

That the brunette had trusted her so much to show her, her scars... What did she ever do to earn such a trust? A little chuckle escaped Jotou, "There’re so many things I did to earn your trust. And your admiration..."

’Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Stop crying we have something to do tomorrow Jotou.’ She shook her head, but her gaze never left the bed across her.

"She’d act so bratty... but when I cried she barely hesitated to comfort me..." sobs intertwined with her words. Jotou slipped down the bed, landing with a thud against the floor.

Her hands grappled her own face, pressing into her skin and cheeks, whimpering and crying. Her breaths heaved and stammered, "Stop. Crying!"

"They’re not gone. They’re not gone," her voice quivered, going higher and higher; like it begged for that to be the truth. The paranoia crept in, "What if this reset won’t bring them back?" along with the doubt.

The faces—the faces with veins spread across, with poison coursing through. She did not even hear Asobi’s breath. Alone. Alone. Alone.

"CRASH!" All her friends gone in one crash and she woke up in a coffin. Now she sat, weeping on the floor; all her friends gone again.

"Mm-mm!" Jotou shook her head, "No. I’ll fix it, I’ll fix it, I promised. Keep it together Jotou, you need to rest," she wiped her tears, breathing and grunting.

She stood up and took a deep breath. "Stop grieving, they’re not dead you idiot," her head felt light. Her heart stuck together—still not torn, still beating.

The blonde took deeper breaths, having to sleep in her adventuring gear for the night. She walked forward, holding Fumeko’s bedsheets.

With the headband on, she kept Hotaru’s watch by the nightstand. Asobi’s wand she held like a teddy bear as she laid her head onto Fumeko’s pillow—Hotaru’s sleeves kept close to her chest.

She stared to the light of the room dimly giving a glow. She tossed and turned over the next few minutes. A headache went over her mind like a lawnmower going over grass.

Everything seemed fuzzy. She shut her eyes, heart beating faster as she saw nothing but darkness. She jolted her eyes open. The fear seeped in; like they were watching—the three of them, watching her sleep.

’I’m fine. Everything will be fine tomorrow; Trailon will get what’s coming for them...’

’I killed so many people... They’re bad; they’re bad. They wouldn’t hesitate to kill me and they didn’t hesitate with them. Then no mercy from me; not a second thought to you all... Die like the bastards you are.’

This long night, it was going to take more than a few hours for her to fall asleep, no matter how many times she closed her eyes; and no matter how many times she tossed and turned on the bed...