Chapter 4-ANOMALY and PROBABILITY (2)

I walked with Marie for a while.

The late afternoon sun was soft, casting golden streaks through the trees that lined the village paths. The dirt road beneath our feet was worn smooth by years of footsteps. The breeze carried the faint scent of wildflowers and chimney smoke.

She turned to me with a gentle voice."Did you recover your memory?"

"Just a little" I replied.

"Well" she said with a hopeful smile, "a little is already much progress, don't you think?"

"You're right."

Her smile widened at that, warm and genuine.

"I hope everything went well at the inn," she said after a pause.

"Thanks to you, it did."

For a moment, silence fell between us, but it wasn't uncomfortable. The kind of silence where thoughts simmer just beneath the surface.

"Marie" I said, turning to her, "I've meant to ask… why did you help me yesterday?"

"Why, you ask?"

She tilted her head and seemed to ponder for a while, looking up at the slowly darkening sky.

"Because… you looked like you needed help."

She wore an almost naive expression, as if the answer should be obvious.

"But you helped me so much without even knowing me."

"Well, hmm… how should I explain it?" she murmured, her eyes drifting to the path ahead.

She looked cute, struggling to find the right words.

"I just felt like I should help you."

"And today, you kept me company again. Aren't you afraid I could be some kind of criminal?"

"No," she said firmly. "I know you're not."

"How?"

"I just do."

I didn't ask any more questions after that. Something in her certainty silenced me.

We arrived at the pond in the center of the village—a quiet, still place where the water reflected the golden light of sunset. I'd wandered through this village for hours earlier that day at dawn, so the surroundings had already etched themselves into my memory. Stone houses, crooked fences, and flower gardens struggling to bloom despite the season.

"We walked quite a bit" I said.

"We did" she replied, a little confused by my sudden shift in tone.

"I didn't thank you properly for giving me money for the inn."

"Well, you did now" she said with a small laugh.

"I'm sorry for asking so many questions."

"It's okay."

We sat on a stone bench by the pond, its surface barely rippling. The air was quiet, save for the occasional croak of a frog or rustling leaves in the wind.

"When I talked with the innkeeper, she mentioned a devil that came to your village some time ago" I said.

"Why do you want to know about him?" Marie asked, her tone suddenly more cautious.

"Because I'm curious. Why did he do that to your village?"

She hesitated, eyes fixed on the water. Then she began to speak.

"I assume you already heard that he killed half the village."

Her voice was quiet, burdened with something deeper than just memory.

"Do you know why he did it?"

I said nothing. I let the silence speak for me.

"Because we had killed his family."

She looked off into the distance, eyes far away.

"Ten years ago, all the believers followed a call from the gods. We were told to eradicate a species similar to humans… but not quite. The only difference was in their eyes. They glowed dark red, like blood."

She paused, then continued.

"They said it was a curse. The gods had abandoned them. That was why their eyes were like that."

"Why call them devils?" I asked softly.

"Because the gods abandoned them. And if the gods are the absolute good… then what does it mean when even they turn away from you?"

She looked at me.

"They say it was because those people did something so atrocious that even the gods couldn't forgive them."

"So… you think he wanted revenge?"

"I think so" she whispered.

"Luckily, he only killed the men who could fight. My parents weren't among them."

"You seem… almost enthusiastic, considering half the village was killed."

She gave a small, guilty laugh.

"Well, I love this village. And I know it's evil to say this… but when he came, he killed all the criminals too."

Her expression grew strangely wistful.

"You know, this village used to be a rough place. Lots of crime. People starving. Now… it's a paradise."

She stood up, raised both arms into the air as if embracing the whole world.

"I love it here. Not many people left to disturb the peace. And because so many died, there's no hunger anymore."

She began spinning slowly in place, smiling, her dress fluttering slightly with the motion.

I looked at her in a completely different light.

This really is a medieval world, I thought.

I chuckled softly to myself.

"Why are you laughing?" Marie asked.

"No reason" I said, still smiling.

"I hope you weren't laughing at my dance."

"No" I replied, still smiling warmly at her.

She sat back down, arms crossed, feigning a little sulk.

To be honest, it was hard to believe that this was the same girl who had, not five minutes ago, romanticized the killing of half her village.

The contrast between her innocence and the dark truths she told was almost surreal.

The whole situation was strange… and a little funny, in its own twisted way.

I had gotten everything I wanted from our talk. Now it was time to start putting the pieces together.

"Can I ask you one last thing, Marie?"

"Again?"

"Haha, just one. I promise." I giggled a little.

She laughed with me, then looked me in the eyes.

"Okay" she said softly.

There was a second of silence. But it felt like an eternity.

"Before you ask, I have something to say."

She began to look up at the sky, her expression softening as clouds drifted lazily above us. The warm glow of dusk painted her face in amber light.

"Maybe I know why I helped you…" she murmured.

Her voice was quieter now, more fragile.

"Maybe it was because I felt guilty… for being happy about their deaths."

Not once, while she said that, did she look at me. It was as if she wasn't speaking to me at all—but to herself, like she was finally admitting something she'd buried deep inside.

"What is my name?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper, a faint smile playing on my lips.

Her eyes widened slightly.

"Your name… your name was..."

"What was your name again?"

[2/3 mysteries solved]