After the whole celebration was over I headed back to the room I had rented. It was quite late and if I had to make a guess it should be around four to five in the morning. Surprisingly this world has a similar day-night cycle to earth however there are differences still. For example, earth's days are made up of twenty-four hours while this world's days are of ten. Another thing that is different and that I had to get used to is that one minute is actually a hundred seconds, the same for one hour. Well, I take it back, this world's time scale is quite different from earth but at the very least there are still seconds, minutes, hours etc. It would have been a pain if it was something too different from what I am used too.

Anyway, after the celebration was over everybody headed back to their respective houses. As I threw myself onto the bed I began thinking about what happened. Once again I had pushed myself too far, name it luck, fate or destiny but somehow I managed to survive. I can't keep going like this, I have been through all this life or death situations but only now do I realize that I wasn't taking this world seriously. Maybe subconsciously I still think this is some kind of dream but the pain is real, the people are real, how could all of this be a mere dream? I need to take my well being into consideration too.

From the wolf-like monster on the forest to the dungeon incident and now this. Three events were I could have easily died! Most of them are my fault to boot. In the forest, I went farther than I should have not to mention I wasn't paying attention. In the dungeon, I should have done the smart thing which is to convince Dan and Lizz to go back and report it to Diana. Finally here! I should have kept my emotions in control. Even though I say these things I don't regret my actions.

In the forest, if I hadn't been almost killed by the wolf then chances are I would still be clueless about soul abilities. If I hadn't gotten myself into that trap in the dungeon then I wouldn't have my core or either Naru nor Pyrka. Finally, if I had kept my head cool and didn't rush into the orc settlement chances are that by the time they get subjugated more people would have been kidnapped and killed. I don't regret my actions, but that doesn't mean I shouldn't reflect on them. I have been reincarnated once, I don't think it will happen again.

Okay, from now on I will be careful and cool-headed. My life is a priority I need to keep in mind. Talking about my life, how the hell did I manage to survive to have my body cleaved almost in half. I mean maybe with all my mana I could heal something like that but I was completely dry at the time! Not to mention that weird cool feeling and the light. Wait! now that I think about it Diana did say that monsters that possess a core would absorb other monsters cores! Then did that larger orc had a core? That is a possibility but then how was it so weak? I mean yeah it was stronger than the rest but it was still way weaker than let's say a dragon. Well, maybe it had just developed it and didn't know how it worked. I will leave it at that and ask Diana or Oliver later, for now, I should get some shut-eye.

The next morning I woke up due to the rays of light that came through the window. I had forgotten to close it before going to sleep. Groggily I dragged myself out of bed to close the window before realizing most of the pain from my wounds was gone! Checking my body I could spot a few scars here and there, especially one that went from my lower right hip all the way up to my left should and if my guess is correct it should go all the way back down through my back to my right hip. I am nonchalant about it since the scar is no more than a discolouration of my skin like the others I had before. After a few days at most a week, it should go back to its normal colour.

Not getting permanent scars is good and all but I can't wrap my mind around how did I heal so fast! It should have taken another day for me to be back in tip-top shape! At that moment a realization hit me. Chances are that I did absorb the orc's core, therefore enhancing my own. Then maybe, just maybe my mana reserves and mana regeneration increased! If that is the case it would explain why I healed faster than normal. Wait! that also explains the slight tightness in my chest! the core must have increased in size. The slight discomfort I felt the previous days is almost completely gone which means my body has already gotten used to it.

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As I kept thinking of this and that I changed clothes since the ones I am using right now are borrowed. I mean I couldn't participate in the fest with tattered and blood-covered clothes could I. Thankfully I was given a simple dress to use meanwhile, I did have a chance or two of clothes but the chief insisted. It was troublesome so I accepted and went with it. The clothes I am using right now are the same I use for adventuring, pretty much my uniform. It's a pair of black tight pants that resemble jeans but are made of some monster's hide. Knee-high brown leather boots made of another monster's leather with a metallic sole, I like to call them heavy-duty boots. On top of a simple long sleeves black shirt, I have a brown leather chest plate reinforced with a thin iron plate. Finally, for my hands, I like to use fingerless gloves.

After dressing myself I went downstairs where I had a nice breakfast/lunch since I woke up quite late. You can't blame me for that since last night I went to bed quite late not to mention I needed rest to heal. Either way, as I ate I decided to stay here for another day. Why you may ask, the reason is simple, I want to go site seeing, eat the local cuisine etc. In other words, I want a small vacation. As I kept eating the innkeeper lady came to my desk with a bit of a saddened expression. I wondered why but it didn't take long for me to guess the reason. She told me that later today the burial ceremony would take place. The chief had invited me last night but it seems he wanted to make sure that I would go so he told the old lady to remind me.

Of course, I would assist. I mean why not? Even though I don't know them I still feel the obligation to pay respect for those that died. I like to believe they gave their lives so the others could live, I know it may be a stupid way of thinking but this way they are tiny heroes in my mind and that is what counts.

I took my time to walk around the small village, there weren't any tourist attractions or anything worth noting either but I think that's fine. The place was lively with kids playing on the streets while their parents did their jobs. Just this was enough to warm my heart and make my walk worth it. I spent the rest of the day chatting with the guards. They were extremely bored and became chatty as soon as I approached them. They told me many stories, some more interesting than others. When the sun was about to begin setting I walked towards the cemetery. It seems this village has the custom of burying their dead at sunset.

The sight was depressing, to say the least. Many wives that had lost their husbands were crying, however, they weren't the only ones. Mothers that had lost their sons or daughters, men and women that had lost their lovers. The list went on, I won't say something stupid like if I had been then earlier maybe I could have saved more people. That is a naive way of thinking. I know I did all I could but that doesn't remove the fact that people died. That doesn't remove the suffering of losing your loved ones. This world is cruel, no, it's not only this one, is it? I died at the age of sixteen on earth, many would say that I died young but I guess life is just like that, unpredictable.

The ceremony ended when the sky had gone completely dark. Everybody left with tears in their eyes towards their homes. I, on the other hand, decided to go one walk once again. As I walked the chilly breeze caressed my cheeks, it was a nice feeling, a relaxing one. For the first time, I decided to take a good look at the night sky. To think that I had been living in this world for over a month and never took my time to appreciate the beauty of its night sky.

The pair of moons that drifted in the sky were the first thing to catch my attention. Unlike earth's moon, this two were of bright colours. The first a deep red that resembled blood, while the second glowed with a deep blue. Around them an endless sea of dark with an innumerable amount of white dots that painted a majestic picture. I wonder if earth's night sky was this beautiful. After a while, I went back to my room.

"Amelia are you alright?"

"you look a little depressed"

The first one to talk was Pyrka followed by Naru. I gently smiled at them while conveying my thoughts. I will live and enjoy this world to its fullest. I know there will be a lot of challenges in the future but else can I do but tackle them head-on? I will continue moving forward no matter what. Think about this and that I closed my eyes and slowly fell asleep.