V2Ch75 New Free Day

Whoever was in my room was quiet. They snuck in while my back was turned. They hid above the doorway. I only knew something was amiss because...

"You opened the door further than I left it. Otherwise, I never would have known. You're good."

I heard someone land on soft bare feet. They strode closer and sat on my bed, next to my waist.

"Nyot good enough, I guess..."

I was hoping it was her. She is the only one I would be willing to talk to right now. Without lifting my arm, I decided to ask.

"Who is Leo?"

She made a pained grunt. As if the question had hurt her.

"He... We were lovers. We fought all the time. We would always make up for it that night or in the morning. We started to spar one day. He got competitive and in turn, I did too. I have a strength. Something more than the average beast-man."

So, she is what I was pretending to be.

"I can't consciously call upon this strength. It seems to happen out of the blue. It happened with nya, and it happened with Leo... I killed him. I didn't mean to. I just... got excited and used too much power. I crushed his chest. I can't get that imyage out of my head. All of that blood. It came from his mouth and nose. He didn't last long. I prayed that he only suffered for those few moments. It was horrible..."

"I know how you feel."

"HOW!? How can nya possibly knyow?"

She shouted at me.

I sat up. Her face was buried in her hands.

"I watched my wife die."

She shrugged in place as if she regretted asking. Her sobs got quiet so she could listen.

"I watched as she was hit with a spear in a battle. This healing power that I have? It isn't my only power. When my sorrow overwhelms me, everything around me begins to disintegrate. Everything. I held her body and watched as her fur began to disappear. I saw the flesh under her flesh. I watched her bones fall into nothingness. This happened while she was in my hands. She was my first wife. We were only together for less than half a year. I still loved her."

Her hands were now on her knees. She was still lightly sobbing.

"I watched my wife's sister, die. I was the cause of many friendly and enemy deaths in the middle of a battle. I damned a race to the bottom of the dying ocean. I crushed a major village and burned down a major territory. I've caused so much sorrow, pain and death. I never wanted any of it. Sometimes my powers are uncontrollable, just like yours."

I let out a shuddering sigh as all of these memories came flooding back to me.

"Trust me when I say, I know how you feel."

"Does it still hurt?"

"Every time I remember. Sometimes multiple times a day. If I'm lucky, only once a day."

My arms were getting tired from bracing my upper half on the bed. I moved back toward the wall and laid down on my left side, facing the door.

"I'm sorry, again. I made a fool of myself. I assumed that I was the only one in pain when you are living with so much more. I had no idea that you were someone who knows more about living with this kind of pain than I do."

"Your wrong. You're assuming that my pain is different than yours. Just because you lost one person, it doesn't mean your pain is any less than mine."

I closed my eyes. I was tired and wanted to sleep. I only stayed awake to listen to anything else she had to say. She just sat there on the bed. I guess she 'is' locked in here at the moment.

"Did you want to leave?"

"Can ny stay here for the night?"

I was surprised that she wanted to stay. I didn't mind though.

"Yeah. That's fine."

I struggled to shift as I pulled the blanket out from under me. I covered my still-clothed body and opened the blanket for her to get in with me. I never saw her face as she laid down and moved closer to me under the blanket.

I could smell her hair. She smells nice.

By morning, I found myself alone. I reached for my pocket. My C-rank card was gone. I looked at the door. It was closed. I walked over and felt something under my foot. My card was on the ground. I checked the handle. It was locked. She must have locked it from the outside and slid the card under the door.

I got dressed and went for a morning stroll. I found a small shop that had breakfast meals to-go.

Today was a free day. I had no plans. I thought about returning to the assassins guild later. And I might stop by Goldie's for dinner. I had my next brawl in the fighters guild tomorrow. No reason to visit there today. I just spent my time outside and browsing a few shops before going back to the assassins guild.

It was earlier than normal. I didn't care since I was ready to leave the city any day now. I saved up over 900 gold coins. A small fortune. It came quickly thanks to the Assassins Guild and the Fighters Guild.

In the Fighters Guild, you are allowed to place bets on yourself but there is a cap on how much you can bet if you are participating in the fight. When I managed to reach the rank of top fighter, the betting cap for me was severely reduced. That was the main reason I stopped accepting random brawls. Only the arena-sanctioned brawls would net me more money than betting on myself. After I win tomorrow, I should be well over 1000 gold. I'll probably start heading south the day after the fight.

I made the change into darker clothes after returning to my hiding spot. I moved quickly to get to the entrance of the assassins guild.

Today's password was, "Dripping Fangs." The door opened as usual.

I was greeted just inside the entrance by a member that I did not like.

He was the last one I wanted to see today or any other day.