Knowing that you were right is something that usually brings a rather pleasant feeling, but in this case it only filled me with a sense of… pity.
The reason?
Some time after I asserted my importance before the Changing Star, she herself asserted her importance before everyone else, becoming one of the most important people in the city.
This did not sit well with the city's current ruler—something understandable, considering the nature of the star—which led to growing tension between the followers of both sides, eventually ending with her leaving the city.
After the Changing Star moved to the outskirts, things gradually calmed down. Without her to lead those on the outside, they lost influence, and Gunlaug's men were quick to remind them why they had been cast out in the first place.
There were no casualties during this period, only a harsher oppression from Gunlaug toward the outsiders, who anxiously awaited the return of their savior.
And when she finally returned, things became… violent… or bloody… or whatever word one might use to describe the current situation.
But returning to the point: as soon as she came back from the outside, she challenged Gunlaug and, in some way that is still debated, ended up killing him.
As you can imagine, that only caused more people to die, because when Gunlaug fell, his "lieutenants" turned out to be far more ambitious than expected. Now we are locked in a civil war until someone manages to crown themselves ruler.
Whoever ends up ruling the castle does not truly concern me, though I do have a slight inclination toward a certain star.
Of course, thoughts like those would get someone killed by the other factions right now, but as the only cartographer, I enjoy a certain "immunity" to say what I please—within limits, of course.
Murdering someone from any faction goes beyond that limit, which is why I can be considered a neutral point in all this bloodshed. I am not someone you can kill, but neither am I someone who poses a threat.
That unique position was the reason I felt safe continuing to stroll through the castle's corridors, now stained with the dried blood of those unfortunate enough to cross paths with the wrong person.
Though, to be honest, aside from me, anyone walking these halls at this hour either wants to kill or be killed—and unfortunately, I have had the displeasure of witnessing some of those… unfortunate encounters.
And I must say, they show no consideration for who they face; you can be a general of your faction or just a normal person, and they will still attack you.
This led to some rather… unbalanced confrontations, ranging from elite squads hunting down someone from the outskirts, to groups of outsiders facing an elite hunter.
The outcomes varied, but the essence was always the same: everyone was desperate to kill anyone on the opposing side.
It was while passing near the lower section of the castle's main tower that I heard the sounds of a fight. Someone was trying to kill someone else just a few meters ahead.
Should I go check on the situation?
Would that change anything?
No. I lack the ability to truly intervene in combat—not only because I am not specialized in fighting, but also because of my neutral position—so I had to let whatever was happening ahead run its course.
The moment I turned around and walked a few meters away, I heard the sounds of the fight fade,
which meant the confrontation had already ended, and that I might have been able to save whoever had died—but chose not to.
Will that affect my ability to sleep well?
Not as much as it probably should. Of course, it is a somewhat disturbing thought, but even if I had intervened, someone would have died anyway, so my presence or absence changed nothing in the long run.
Or perhaps this is simply me justifying the fact that I let someone die to preserve my untouchable status—justifying putting my own interests above another person's life and feeling no guilt for it.
I kept debating with myself for a while as I walked back to my room, ready to end the day without any real incident.
Or so I thought—because finding a corpse in front of your door is not something you expect… and even less so when you know that corpse.
That body was, up until that moment, probably the only person I truly cared about in this castle, the only one who came close to being a friend.
That body… was Sevec's.
He lay there on the floor, sprawled in a pool of his own blood, which continued to grow with every passing second as it kept flowing from wounds that had yet to stop bleeding.
Seeing him like that, I quickly lifted him from the ground and opened the door to bring him into my room.
Once inside, I laid him on my bed, hoping there was still a chance to prevent his death.
The first thing I had to do was stop the bleeding so he wouldn't bleed out, for which I used a Memory I had purchased some time ago:
[Spark of Hope]
[Description: There was once a young man in a city consumed by darkness who wished to bring warmth and light to others. With that desire, he created amulets that drove away the darkness and brought warmth to his people, turning him into what would soon become a symbol of hope.]
I held Sevec's body as I summoned the amulet, pressing it firmly against his wounds and activating it at full power. The heat burned the skin and forced the wounds to close.
I repeated the process for every injury on his body, which were numerous and deep. Whoever did this hurt him more than necessary, as if they took pleasure in watching the blood spill.
When I finished, I took a moment to assess his condition. His body was far more damaged than it should have been, but without dwelling on that, I went to check his pulse…
There was none.
Seeing this, I immediately summoned [Radiant Flash] and placed it on his chest, activating it with a bit of power in an attempt to bring his pulse back.
But it was useless.
Refusing to give up, I continued trying to restore his heartbeat for what felt like hours, until I ran out of essence to activate the amulet.
At that moment, I was forced to accept the truth: Sevec was dead… he had died even before I found him, though not by much.
Whoever killed Sevec did so one or two minutes before my arrival, considering that blood was still flowing from his wounds.
They must also be exceptionally skilled to kill him while making so little noise that I did not notice.
Someone elusive enough to avoid me, or someone with senses sharp enough to feel me approaching and retreat before I arrived.
Very few people are capable of killing Sevec. Even fewer could do it so silently. And if we also consider the fact that they managed to get far enough away without me noticing, that number drops to zero.
Which means someone was hiding their strength. That someone is extraordinarily skilled at assassination, quite bloodthirsty, and very good at remaining unnoticed.
But I am also very good at finding things…
So let's see which of us is better.
[Radiant Flash]
[Description: A bolt of light trapped within an amulet by someone who hoped to drive away the horrors of darkness with its glow.]
From now on, I'll include the descriptions of unexplained Memories here.