The moment Theodore asked about Eastcliff, the air within the carriage became ridged. After spending a moment too long in silence, Annaliese finally replied.
"Let's find somewhere quiet first, alright?"
Theodore did not question further. Rather, he already had an inkling as to why Annaliese was behaving in such a way.
Annaliese took Theodore atop the walls of the city. On walls, a row of gargoyles, flesh golems encased in a stone-like shell, were stationed. Motionlessly, they stood atop these walls, keeping watch without the need for rest or sustenance.
It was due to these enormous walls that Lancea was called the fortress city. That being said, few people even knew about Lancea itself. Most knew this place as the 'Mage Tower,' not even realizing that there was a city at the tower's base.
It was only natural. While the tower could be seen from all over the country of Nix, the city itself would only be known to those who have actually visited.
Standing atop the walls, a town could be seen below, across the waters. It was the town by the lagoon, unceremoniously named Lagoon Town, for it was built by a lagoon. It was a town of little significance, though it did have a bit of history.
Apparently, the town used to be a siege camp from before the time of the empire. The siege against mages supposedly took so long that eventually, the camp turned into a village and then a town.
It was a somewhat funny story, but Theodore was hardly in the mood to listen to Annaliese tell it.
"Annaliese, can you tell me now?" Theodore asked, impatient from the anxiety bubbling within him.
"I wasn't supposed to tell you this. The information was considered top secret not just in this city, but also within the empire. Maybe it's better you don't hear about it."
"Just tell me already!" Theodore yelled, finally losing all patience.
Stolen story; please report.
Annaliese was silent for a moment. Due to her face being hidden behind a mask, Theodore could not tell if she was taken aback or enraged by his behavior.
"Please, Annaliese... Please..." Theodore begged, his voice now small and pathetic.
With a bit of hesitation, Annaliese began to speak.
"An Abyssal Rift had expanded in Eastcliff and formed a Corrupted Domain..." Annaliese then paused, realizing that Theodore, though reincarnated he was, might not understand what she was saying. "In short, a Corrupted Domain is an area where Aether becomes corrupted and the natural laws become unstable. It's a pretty dangerous place to be in, and Eastcliff was in the middle of it. The Paladins of Eustia and even some mages had been dispatched to deal with it. I was amongst those that were dispatched. The Abyssal Rift was eventually closed, but no survivors had been found. Everything caught within the Domain were either dead or... worse..."
Theodore's mind went blank. It would be a lie to say that he did not expect it. Ever since he had that dream, he had nothing but bad premonitions, premonitions that he tried to keep at the back of his mind. He had wanted to think that it was just his imagination, that he was just worrying too much, that he was taking a silly dream far too seriously. However, upon finally hearing it from Annaliese, Theodore felt something snap within him.
Theodore could not remember when he had made it back to Kalman's workshop. By the time he realized it, Annaliese had already left and he was by himself in his room.
(It was my fault... I did that... It was me...)
Back then, the Demon Lord's Aether had sealed Merry within a Corrupted Domain. It was meant to be a stable one with limited scale, sustained by a small Abyssal Rift feeding off a leyline. It was not expected to expand. However, a major enough shift in the leyline could potentially change things and the expansion of the Rift and Domain was not out of the question.
With the expansion of the Domain, naturally, Merry, the Corpse Eater would be able to move about.
What Theodore had experienced back then, what he had tried on many occasions to dismiss as a dream, was likely a phenomenon caused by a flimsy connection between him and Merry. After all, they were both beings that had inherited from the same cluster of Demon Lord Aether. There was a part within them that was the same, entangling them to one another.
That was why he had that dream. He was seeing what Merry was seeing, experiencing what Merry was experiencing, and feeling what Merry was feeling.
(If the Demon Lord had not placed the seal there. Something like this wouldn't have happened. It's all the Demon Lord's fault, it's all 'my' fault!)
And then, as if the tension in his body were all set loose at once, Theodore lost all strength in his body and collapsed to the floor. Tears flooded from his eyes and Theodore, uncontrollably, began to sob.
***
End of Chapter 107
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