Chapter 12
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Episode 3 - Anomalous [3] ─────────────────────────────────
Doyle guided Sohel and me to a large café; it was part of the real estate agency, where, during the workers' break hours, they usually came here to eat.
As Doyle guided me, I couldn't help but think.
'For a Victorian-era café, it's very modern.'
Doyle looked for a table with two seats, pulled both chairs back, and gestured for Sohel and me to sit.
After I sat down, Doyle said.
"It's not yet the agency workers' free time, so I can't order you any food or drinks. However, sir, I promise to take you to a great lunch after noon that you will definitely love. Then I will leave; I'll be waiting for you on the stairs, my lord."
Nodding, Doyle left while Sohel said with a slight laugh.
"They gave you a very talkative assistant."
Rubbing my temples, I couldn't find what to do about Doyle's strangely open mouth that only seemed to let out word after word.
Sighing, I said.
"From what I heard from the leader of the Black School, it seems that Doyle has been alone without a superior."
Sohel looked at Doyle's back, which soon disappeared from both of our sight.
Then I reminded Sohel of her purpose.
"So, what do you have to tell me?"
Sohel moved her pink eyes toward me with a conflicted expression.
'It's possible that she isn't a transmigrator; however, my suspicion is that she trusted me a lot in the Passage, as if she knew that everything that happened there, I knew.'
Of course, it's just one of my many suspicions; however, it could also be the most accurate one.
Looking at Sohel, she soon parted her lips and said in a low voice a single word.
"Lottery."
"..."
My thoughts raced so fast that they overheated my brain.
All my suspicions became reality; I was sure, I was sure that she is a transmigrator.
A transmigrator who awakened in an unfamiliar body after winning a lottery with a mysterious box as the prize.
'I knew it, she is a transmigrator; however, now I have new thoughts. For example, is she a possible enemy, or will we somehow end up in conflict in the future?'
Considering the few transmigrator novels where it wasn't only the protagonist who awakened in a fantasy world, but there were others like him.
Inevitably, the other transmigrators came into conflict due to circumstances, thoughts, desires, or goals.
Regardless of what it was, Sohel could be a future enemy, or from another point of view, I would be her enemy.
Hiding my smile after confirming my suspicions, as if I had known everything from the beginning.
I nodded slowly while sighing and said.
"Lottery, so you're also a transmigrator."
Sohel, without hiding anything, nodded and then said.
"After winning that lottery, which contained items that the protagonist's friend obtained, as well as her clothes shown in the novel's illustrations, inevitably, as a fan of the novel, I tried to win the lottery at all costs, and in the end I succeeded. But I never thought that would make me enter the world of the novel."
I nodded, feeling the same as her.
As a loner who panics at being in front of a crowd and a person with so many nerves, I never had hope of winning anything.
After winning the lottery and sleeping to open the box the next day, I never would have thought that it would give me the key to enter the novel I read the most.
"The same thing happened to me, except that the box I won contained the protagonist's items."
Sohel nodded, then I remembered something and said.
"By the way, did the lottery box appear to you when we came out of the Passage?"
This was a question that occurred to me.
If I, who won that lottery, and that mysterious box had things related to my transmigration, then wouldn't it be the same for Sohel?
After a few seconds, Sohel nodded.
"Yes, I checked it, and there were only a few items; however, they were items like a Supernatural Object that the protagonist's friend used throughout the story. Besides her clothes, there were more things, such as a notebook, a coin with the name Witch and the symbol corresponding to the Path of the Witch, as well as a walkie-talkie."
"...."
As expected.
'So what her box contained wasn't that different from mine; however, she didn't say that it contained a divine fragment as well as a diary.'
Though the latter could be easily explained, since the protagonist's friend and right-hand woman did not write a diary.
'The protagonist was the only one who wrote a diary.'
Sohel fell silent, and then said.
"And yours."
At that moment, a dilemma arose.
'Should I tell her everything that was in the box, or should I keep the Divine Fragment and the Diary to myself?'
For example, my first doubts about whether she is an enemy or will become one in the near or distant future.
I shouldn't talk about the Diary, and even less about the Fragment, unless I am stronger than her.
However, new thoughts came to me.
'The Babylonian Path is a Divine Path; logically, it should be stronger than any other path that isn't Divine.'
I knew that it was most likely that there were more Divine Paths that I was currently unaware of.
It was impossible for there to be only a single Divine Path.
After thinking it through, I reached a conclusion.
'I don't think she would gain much from the Divine Fragment, since she already has a Path and therefore it wouldn't be useful to her for anything other than simply knowing that Divine Paths exist. Besides, if she wants to know more about it, she could come to me when I advance to higher Paths and, over time, I find answers.'
Adding to that, perhaps she knows that I possess or remember information from the novel.
No ordinary person could remember the entire plot of a novel that was published continuously for eight years.
'And regarding the Diary, my Supernatural Power gives me the intuition that it might not unlock the other pages if Sohel takes the Diary.'
That means I am the only one who can unlock and perhaps see the contents of the diary.
After reaching a certain closure, I said,
"Alright…"
I told Sohel about the Diary, the fragment, the walkie-talkie, and the other items.
After hearing it, Sohel's expression was unexpectedly calm.
"I'm not surprised that you have things that were never mentioned in the novel. The idea that we are inside that novel was shock enough for me."
I sighed for a moment, and after a few seconds of deliberation, I said,
"There's also the idea of why we don't have the memories of these bodies. For example, Sherlock Holmes is only known to be a criminal and nothing more, but what's unexpected is you. The name Sohel is never mentioned."
Sohel nodded as he said,
"I thought about that too. Normally, a transmigrator inherits the memories of the body they possessed; however, in our case, that didn't happen, giving us a confusing environment and no room for ideas about what to do."
However, I couldn't help thinking that perhaps the memories are locked.
This theory arose after seeing the protagonist's Diary, which I deliberately have to unlock page by page.
'Maybe that's the case.'
While I was thinking, Sohel suddenly opened his eyes as if he remembered something.
"You know why I suspected you were a transmigrator."
"Because… I answered the questions of the first scenario with great confidence, and also knew information about the others that the rest didn't know."
Sohel nodded but at the same time shook his head.
"That would be half of it. The other half is because I remember hearing that there wasn't just one draw but three in total. The first, which could be considered the Gold prize, would be the box containing the protagonist's belongings. The Silver prize could very well be the protagonist's friend and right-hand partner, and the Bronze prize could be the protagonist's childhood best friend. That's why I have a suspicion."
I nodded after being surprised for a moment and murmured.
"There may be a third transmigrator."
Sohel nodded as she deliberated and said.
"We can't rule out that there is a third one; in any case, we have to find them."
I nodded in the same way.
Knowing who all my possible enemies were was a great advantage.
'Of course, I must keep in mind that transmigrators are destined to be enemies.'
While thinking, I curiously realized something.
'My thoughts, as well as my attitude, are slowly changing. Before, I didn't think in a very strategic way; I was simply an introvert with panic about drawing attention or being seen by many people. Now I analyze, make plans, formulate assumptions and suspicions… could this be an influence of the original Sherlock Holmes…?'
I didn't dismiss the idea as I looked at Sohel; perhaps she was also going through the same process as I was.
After a moment, Sohel suddenly said.
"I have no intention of being enemies. Before awakening in this body, I was a famous idol, and my hobby was reading
After falling silent, Sohel looked at me while I sank deeply into my thoughts.
She claimed she didn't want to be an enemy; however, destiny existed for some reason.
No one knew what the future would bring, and even less could you decide your own actions with absolute certainty.
'Even if Sohel claims it, I still must be careful.'
After a few seconds, I finally said.
"I don't want us to be enemies either. However, your goal and mine… no, I still don't have a clear goal. Even so, I have no intention of returning to Earth."
After saying that, Sohel seemed surprised.
She opened her mouth and at first said nothing, but finally asked.
"You don't want to return to Earth, why?"
I shrugged as I replied.
"It's simple. I have a condition that I can remember throughout my entire life and that inevitably affects my brain. The doctors claimed that I could die at any moment without even realizing it. I lived with that idea stuck in my head."
I paused briefly before continuing.
"Also, my life had no meaning. I got up, worked, went back home… and the next day the same. An empty cycle. Because I am introverted, I didn't make friends; I was too nervous and didn't like going out. One day I thought that everything I did, day after day, would be exactly the same until the end of my life."
I clenched my fists slightly without realizing it.
"I had no dreams, no goals, nor anything I truly looked forward to. I just existed. And I knew that, even if I returned, nothing would change."
I took a deep breath before concluding.
"However, in this world I can experience new things. Also, because of this body, my thoughts and my way of being have slowly changed. In short… I feel better here. Even if I don't end up having friends or a family."
"And besides, if in the case of returning to Earth, what happens if I wake up in another person's body, what happens if the life of that body was worse than mine."
It was a decision I made almost immediately when I transmigrated.
I knew what my entire life on Earth would be like.
I knew that, because of my condition, I would eventually die sooner or later.
I knew that, by myself, I wouldn't change my situation.
And I knew that I would always remain in solitude because I was like that, and that was me.
There was no different me who could save me. I wasn't brave, and I couldn't do anything for myself; day after day, I simply let myself fall into loneliness.
"I understand."
Sohel didn't say anything else and remained silent.
Then, after a few seconds, I said.
"Then let's end it here."
Sohel nodded, stood up from her seat; I did the same, and both of us returned to the reception where Doyle was.
I walked toward Doyle while Sohel went toward the door behind the reception.
She was probably going to meet with the members of her School and her leader, just as I was going to do.
"Let's go."
Urging Doyle to guide me, I soon arrived at a huge office where my desk was. Although there was no computer, there was a telegraph, a stack of paper, several seals, and documents, among other things.
'My position as part of the real estate agency is equivalent to that of a section chief on Earth.'
I sighed; I already had a clear idea of why I needed an assistant obligatorily.
Doyle then said.
"Sir, the leader of the School said that you could take the Record Test."
I turned back, looked at Doyle, and thought.
'It's true that the leader of the Dawne School said that… I don't know what that trial is.'
After a few seconds, I asked Doyle.
"What is that Record Test that the leader of the Dawne School mentioned?"
Doyle nodded and then began with the explanation.