Boon And Bane

Reina watched with wide eyes as Rein stopped before the end of the corridor that she had reached.

Bright light now poured into the earlier dark pathway, illuminating the end of the pathway and allowing her to discern what laid beyond it.

Reina watched in awe as what she saw on the other end of that corridor was nowhere close to the dilapidated structures she had seen before Rein had entered this building.

On the other side of the pathway that she had walked was lush greenery and its surroundings that resembled a thick and healthy forest.

Earlier she had seen the deserted worn-down buildings but now she was viewing an unpopulated wilderness in the middle of nowhere.

The trees were the only living beings in sight as not even wild beasts were to be seen.

However, more than this beautiful yet shocking sight, Reina had different thoughts in mind.

'How did we move from that ruined town corner to this beautiful place in the middle of nowhere?' She tried to understand what might have taken place.

All Rein had done was walk through a pitch-black corridor that was connected to the basement of that dilapidated building so how did she end up here?

As much as she was aware of, Rein was still in the Capital of Valanthur and there was no forest close to that area.

So how did she arrive at this lush green woodland which looked nothing like the neighborhood she had last seen?

The hole in the wall which acted as the exit of the secret pathway had brought her to that strange forest but Reina did not know what kind of place this was and neither did she have any clue about what Rein was up to.

Therefore, she watched with curiosity which was the only way for her to fill up the gaps in the memories she possessed.

She did not have to wait for long as her predecessor finally showed signs of movement.

Standing between the two contrasting areas, the dark passage and the green forest, Rein clenched her fists tight.

In the next second, her core tightened as though she was preparing herself for what might happen next.

'What is she trying to do?' Reina wondered, confused at the grave air around her predecessor which was something new for her to witness.

The Rein she had seen in her memories until now was gentle and kind, sometimes too silent, making her presence extremely weak.

However, if anyone were to look her way right now, they would be captivated by her stern appearance as she stood at the end of this corridor and would not be able to take their eyes off her.

Her entire body radiated seriousness and her clenched jaw only added to the mystery circling why she seemed so perplexed right now.

While Reina was trying to figure out what was going on, her predecessor took a step ahead, finally preparing to walk out of the corridor where she had stood rooted until now.

With her raised foot she took a step from the stone pathway before laying it down onto the vast bed of grass in front of her.

In the same way, she moved her other feet as well, bringing her whole body onto the other side of that corridor.

The moment her body passed from the secret pathway and entered the lush green area, a tingling sensation overtook Rein's entire body.

That wasn't all as a heavy wave of nausea washed over her, making her stomach churn vigorously.

Now with both feet onto the forest land, she hunched her body forward and began to retch uncontrollably in the next instant.

Reina too felt queasy yet had to suffer in silence as she had insisted on triggering this memory earlier.

Thus all she could do was reluctantly watch her miserable predecessor vomiting the entire contents of her stomach, fertilizing that bed of fresh grass before her.

'What contents!? She was on an empty stomach!' Reina scowled as she could feel the acids of Rein's stomach spewing from her mouth.

Though she was only recalling a memory of Rein's, for Reina, it was equivalent to reliving that memory.

Thus allowing her to experience everything that her predecessor had felt in that moment.

Sometimes this was a boon as one of the first memories she had obtained was that of the warm touch from the older lady who she now knew was Rein's mother.

However, most times were a bane to Reina as she was given the unnecessary opportunity to feel everything Rein had endured, like at this very moment.

'Win some, lose some.' Reina was aggrieved yet succumbed to her fate and went back to the matter at hand.

Thanks to the memories she triggered and even experienced now, she recalled that Rein had gone outside the Palace on an empty stomach.

Now she knew exactly why her predecessor had chosen to starve herself even when she knew that she had to undergo such a cumbersome journey to reach this place.

Rein had opted to travel on an empty stomach for the sole reason that she knew exactly what was awaiting her at the end of that secret pathway.

After all, this wasn't the first time that she had come here and every time she stepped through that pathway and onto the grass field, the outcome was the same.

The contents of her stomach would inevitably be transferred onto the ground below.

Thus, after experiencing that nauseating incident for the first few times, Rein had learned her lesson.

Coming here on an empty stomach was the best alternative she found rather than having to deposit her insides onto the outside.

However, even then, she was plagued with the retching which was something she could not prevent no matter what.

As for the mystery behind why she had to come all the way here and even why she underwent such pains was solved in another memory that had also been triggered in Reina's mind.