Nostalgia

James continued the practices of breathing and focusing. But the more he breathes, the more he is convinced that the healer must be a sadist. This is because as his lungs expand as he inhales, the pain didn't surface until the lungs fully expanded. Therefore, because of the pain, it would be much easier to take shallow breaths. But taking shallow breath made his breathing rapid and his entire body uncomfortable. It felt like trying to scratch an itchy spot at your back but your hand can't reach it. Furthermore, the pain is playing a good role in stopping him from clearing his mind and focusing. In fact, all he could do is focusing on the pain and naturally, the pain brought back the memories of him getting beaten up by that big man. Still, he slowly adapts his pain and was able to ignore after consistent practice.

As he was breathing in and out like someone in a deep sleep, his ear twitched as he sensed a presence approaching him. His body hair stood up as a flight and fight response.

He opened his eyes and glued it to the door.

The doorknob turned and….

"Oh, you are awake."

James breathed a sigh of relief but he remembered something: never assumed he is safe. So he was on guard again.

"What...*cough*….shit…that's painful….Why are you here, Lily?"

"To visit you duh. You have been unconscious for 3 days again."

"Really?"

"Yup. So do you want to give up?"

Give up sure sounds like a paradise to James now. By giving up, he would not need to suffer like this again. However, James knew he had nowhere to go.

"Nope….shit." Even talking is painful to James.

"Why? Don't you think that all of this is suicidal?"

"Yes. I think all of this is insane. But, the fact I am still alive told me that whatever world you guys lived in must be more insane than this. I believe demons don't really show mercy to their prey huh?"

Lily eyes widened. She didn't expect James' answer.

"I don't know if all of this is part of the training or you guys just have a special welcoming ceremony involving torturing the shit out of newcomers like me until I really die off. Or maybe you guys are just using me as your stress toy to express all of your pent up anger by having that big guy punched me to a point of death while the other spectator watched in amusement. And your role here, Lily, is to give hope to people like me so that I won't feel that terrible after all." James blurted out all those words that he didn't notice he wasn't feeling pain after all. Then, the pain struck.

"…Shit…my chest."

"You can quit you know. We are definitely not trying to use you as our stress toy. As you said, it's all part of the training."

"Well, you told me I have 2 days to rest but that fellow ambushed me in the middle of the night. So, I assumed they told you to relay that information to have me let down my guard and relax when their actual plan is to strike me when I am at my most relaxed state. Well, maybe if what you say is true, that I can really quit, you have to know that I have nowhere to go."

"You can always return to your hometown right?"

"And then what? I think I would have ended my life right then and there after the incident."

"I didn't expect you to be real suicidal. Don't you have parents?"

"I am an orphan, Lily. I was raised by Father- "James stopped. He started to remember his childhood. Those days when Father raised him. The Father's face full of laughter. The times when he scolded him when he did something reckless. The times Father held his hand to walk down the streets. The times Father said a cold joke and nobody laughed. So, all those times, Father was already a demon trying to eat his children? Or was he possessed by one? If yes, when did it begin? What is even a demon?

"You were raised by the demon you called it as Father?" said Lily.

"Apparently, yes…."

"Lily, what is a demon?"

Lily raised her eyebrows at the question but answered it anyway.

"A demon is a corrupted being. They cast aside their humanity and indulge in their sinful desires. Thus, by casting aside their humanity, their human appearances were often twisted as a result. Making them extremely unpleasant to look at. However, high tier demons and even the Demon Lords themselves can alter their true appearances to appear like a human to deceive the public."

"I see…. Can demons possess people?"

"Yes. They can corrupt other people soul and transfer their own one into it and used them as their vessels. Which is why demons are often long-lived. But this is mostly done by the Demon Lords and high tiers demons because it involved high skills. The most common way for demons to preserve their lives is through feasting at other humans."

"Then the demon from my hometown…. could it be that it possessed my Father?"

"I am not sure. Demons often used a lot of trickery and forbidden craft to hide carefully and deceive the innocence. Sometimes, they can implant a little part of themselves into the subconscious mind of humans and slowly corrupt them from within until they can fully control their host."

"I see…."

James closed his eyes. He felt sleepy.

"I will go now. This time I assured you that they will not ambush you. I swear upon God's name."

"I hope that your friends won't belittle your oath," said James and Lily left the infirmary.

This time, James had plenty of days of rest. He has rested for 7 straight days. Throughout the entire period, he was constantly on guard until he could not even sleep soundly but to his disappointment, nobody came to attack him at all. So, all those days feeling stressed out was in vain.

However, he did feel something strange began to happen. As he was constantly meditating and deep breathing, he started to hear things that were far away from the infirmary. He could hear idle chats although there's nobody in the room near him. At first, he thought he was really going insane.

But he soon realized that this must be one of the features of Soul. Enhanced perceptions. Every time a nurse was about to walks in, his body could sense her presence approaching. He could even hear people talking on the upper floors. However, sometimes, his perceptive field had taken in too many voices that everything became noises and he could not make out any audible interactions.

But, one time, there was this experience that James would remember vividly.

The surrounding was quiet because it was the middle of the night. The sound he managed to detect was the distant hoot of an owl from the trees. Everyone should be asleep.

Then, oddly, he heard music. It sounded like someone was plucking the strings of a violin. Then, he heard a hum. A soft and soothing hum which strangely made James felt relaxed. The sensation was as if the music matched the vibration of his entire body. It matched his heartbeat. It matched his breathing. And everything was in sync. Perhaps, it was his breathing and heartbeat that matched the melody that was sung and played by this mysterious individual.

James listened attentively to this music and to the sound it produced. The melody and rhythm seemed to have triggered something in his brain. He felt a sense of nostalgia.

"Where have I heard this music before? It's so familiar."

James began to search through his memory archives.

"Hmm... was it Father who sang this tune before? Or was it Sister Maria? Was it one of the children? Stephanie?....No...it doesn't match."

Images after images flashed across James's mind as he tries to find the missing pieces of this puzzle of "Where have I heard this music before that is so soothing and relaxing to my ear?"

"Was it the guy who sells vegetable near the market? Or was it the hymn often sung by choir every Sunday...?"

The hooting of the owl faded away in the distant. And then, without being aware, James fell asleep soundly.

He woke up the next day and jerked up his body. He could not believe he has fallen asleep and was asleep soundly. It was morning. The church and the city came to live. And no matter how hard he tried from that day onwards, he still could not find the music that was played on that day.