Anomaly

Chapter 354 – The Primordial Fear [72]

Emily stood with her arms crossed over her chest, her fingers resting stiffly as her gaze remained fixed on Althea, direct and unwavering. There was a subtle curiosity in her expression, mixed with a faint air of indifference.

As for me, I stayed silent. Not that it was particularly difficult, after all, telepathy was my main means of communication. Still, this time the silence wasn’t just habit; it was necessity. My mind was crowded with thoughts, spinning in a whirlwind that was hard to organize. There was too much to process, too many layers to understand.

Especially the fact that a ghost was calling me aunt... a ghost who, by some absurd coincidence, was also Emily’s younger sister. I let out an almost imperceptible sigh, feeling the strange weight of that reality settle on my shoulders. Yes, of course. Just another perfectly normal day in my life.

Emily was the first to break the silence that had settled after her exchange with Althea. She took a deep breath before speaking, her voice firm yet carrying a subtle hesitation: “First of all, I want to ask you something”

Her gaze met Althea’s, who watched the situation unfold with distant calm, as though she stood at the edge of the scene itself. Still, there was attentiveness in her eyes.

When Althea lifted her head to face her directly, there was no surprise, only quiet expectation: “Why me? Why...”

Emily cut herself off, frowning slightly as she reorganized her thoughts. Her fingers twitched faintly at her sides, betraying the tension she felt: “Why help me?”

Actually, I was curious about that too. Althea had always been inflexible when it came to anything that challenged her authority or violated the principles that defined her existence.

Bringing someone back to life was a line she never crossed, just as Nekra never took a life with her own hands. Still, there were rare exceptions, carefully justified.

I imagined that, in Nekra’s peculiar moral sense, being attacked and merely defending herself wouldn’t exactly count as killing. Maybe, in her own “dictionary” that was simply restoring a temporarily broken balance.

That said... even though I couldn’t say with certainty that Althea had brought Emily’s sister back to life, mostly because I honestly didn’t know whether a ghost could even be considered a form of life, something about this situation felt off.

It was rare to see Althea act so altruistically. To be honest, she wasn’t exactly someone you could trust without reservations. Althea had never been entirely trustworthy.

Maybe my thoughts slipped onto my face, or maybe the suspicious look I was giving her was enough to tip her off, because at some point she slowly turned her head and her eyes met mine.

“Our sister! You just thought something incredibly rude, didn’t you? It’s written all over your face!” Althea began in a whiny, accusatory tone, puffing out her cheeks in an exaggerated pout as she narrowed her eyes like she had just uncovered a grand secret. Actually... isn’t my face completely neutral right now?

“I’m not even that mean!” she crossed her arms in protest, turning her face slightly to the side in a dramatic gesture, though a mischievous sparkle still danced in her eyes: “Sure, I like to have fun sometimes and mess with people, but I’m essentially pure. I mean... I’m life itself, you know?”

For some reason... when she wanted to, she could be strangely convincing with her words, as if she knew exactly which notes to play to disarm any resistance. In the end, I found myself feeling unfairly guilty for accusing her without concrete proof, even though, technically, our previous interactions already said enough.

I let out a quiet sigh, looking away for a moment before giving in: (Alright... you’re right, Althea. Sorry)

Althea’s eyes became strangely bright at my words, as though a gentle flame had been lit in her irises. In a quick, light motion, she floated toward me and wrapped her arms around my neck in a tight, unexpectedly warm hug.

Tenebrya remained silent at my side, gripping the edge of my sleeve tightly, her fingers revealing intense emotions that flowed toward me like a flood.

“Our dear sister! How could I not forgive you? Of course I forgive you... I would forgive anything, dear sister, because I love you so much!” Althea declared, her voice dripping with exaggerated sweetness. The affectionate, dramatic tone of her words made everyone in the room watch us in awkward silence.

It was Emily who broke the silence that had lingered for several seconds. She cleared her throat softly before speaking, naturally drawing everyone’s attention.

“So...” she began, letting the word hang in the air for a moment as her eyes moved across the group: “Can we get back to the main point?”

I sighed inwardly at Emily’s words, slowly exhaling through my nose before turning my gaze toward Althea, watching her from the corner of my eye. The soft light highlighted the lively sparkle in her eyes, and it didn’t take long for her to notice my attention. Her smile stretched from ear to ear, almost radiant: “Of course, dear sister!” Althea replied enthusiastically.

Still clinging to my neck, Althea turned her gaze toward Laura. Her expression softened slightly, though the playful gleam remained in her eyes. A mischievous smile curved her lips before she spoke: “Actually, it’s nothing too complicated...”

She paused briefly, shrugging casually as if it were obvious: “Our sister seems to like you a lot, so I thought helping you find your sister, so you could say what you couldn’t before... might earn me some points with my dear sister”

Her eyes sparkled with light mischief, and her tone dropped into a conspiratorial murmur after a brief pause: “... and maybe earn me a few extra cuddles and affection as a bonus” As she finished speaking, Althea tightened her arms around my neck just a little more, clearly pleased with her own reasoning.

The looks everyone cast toward Althea were unmistakable, filled with understanding and just a hint of judgment. It didn’t take long for them to realize that the reasons behind her actions were far from pure, in short, she did it just to get some affection and attention from me.

Some exchanged discreet glances, others simply sighed as if they had expected something like this all along. Honestly, this is so typical of Althea that I can’t even feel surprised anymore. I just watched, giving a slight shake of my head, already used to her little schemes.

Emily seemed to understand that as well when she brought a hand to her temple, gently massaging it as if trying to push away an annoying thought. “Right... I should’ve seen that coming,” she commented casually, though there was a hint of exhaustion hidden beneath her calm voice. She didn’t seem to care much about impure motives, or maybe she was just pretending not to care.

Then she cast a sideways glance at the specter beside her, her eyes softening for a brief moment: “You haven’t changed much, Ellie...”

Emily looked like she was about to continue, but the words died before they could take shape. She remained silent for a few seconds, taking a deep breath as she organized her thoughts: “I’m sorry I couldn’t help you” she finally said, her voice quieter: “I wasn’t fast enough back then... and I ended up hurting the person who cared about me the most... the one who understood me better than anyone” Emily’s expression hardened, her eyes losing their brightness for a moment.

The specter, who I now knew was named Ellie, listened in silence. Her face remained neutral for several long seconds after Emily’s words, as if she were sorting through old memories before answering.

Then a calm, gentle smile appeared on her lips, soft and comforting, tinged with almost melancholic tenderness as she looked at her sister. Ellie slowly shook her head, denying it with quiet kindness: “That wasn’t the case, sister”

Emily raised an eyebrow, looking at Ellie with a clearly skeptical expression, her arms slightly tense at her sides. Ellie immediately noticed the reaction and let out a small amused sigh.

“I was stubborn back then... believe it or not, I still am” she said, letting out a quiet laugh. For a moment, her gaze softened even more: “But I don’t blame you. I never did. I still love you... maybe more than I’ve ever loved anyone in my entire life. Coming back here and seeing you following our dream...” her voice faltered briefly, filled with restrained emotion: “... fills me with immense pride, sister”

Emily remained silent, her lips slightly parted as if the words had gotten stuck somewhere between thought and voice, unable to take shape. Her eyes wavered, revealing hesitation in the face of what Ellie had said.

I watched the exchange between the two without interfering, limiting myself to observing like a spectator on the sidelines. Personally, it felt strange to step in when the matter clearly belonged only to them. Still, something caught my attention.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed something different about Ellie. Her legs, already translucent, seemed to emit a subtle glow, a faint light pulsing softly like a flame. It was discreet, yet clear enough to stand out at first glance.

Emily seemed to notice it too, in fact, everyone did. It was hard to ignore something so obvious. The atmosphere grew strangely silent for a moment.

She took a few hesitant steps back, her eyes fixed on Ellie, filled with confusion and a trace of concern as she tried to understand what was happening. Her gaze faltered for a second... until sudden realization crossed her face, slightly widening her pupils.

“Oh! Looks like my time’s up” Ellie said calmly, her voice soft and indifferent. She let out a small sigh, her shoulders relaxing, and a faint smile appeared on her lips: “Well, sister... I managed to say everything I wanted to. So I guess I don’t have any regrets anymore”

Emily watched in silence, her expression dark as her eyes remained fixed on Ellie. Her lips moved slightly, as if words were struggling to escape, but no sound came at first.

Ellie slowly closed her eyes, simply waiting for the inevitable disappearance, as if she had already accepted the end of that moment. Then Emily’s voice echoed, soft, but firm: “I’ve always been proud of you too”

Ellie opened her eyes abruptly, surprise clear in her gaze, as if those words were something she had never imagined hearing. Her fingers twitched slightly, and her breath faltered for an instant.

“I know I’m difficult... a little arrogant and maybe too convinced of myself...” Emily continued, looking away briefly before meeting her eyes again. There was a small pause, filled with rare vulnerability, as her gaze settled on Ellie’s.

“But... whenever you told me how amazing I was, or how proud you were of me...” A faint smile appeared at the corner of her lips, shy and sincere: “More than any discovery... those were the moments that truly made me feel proud of myself”

Ellie said nothing. Her body was already almost completely dissolved into an amalgam of soft light, with only her head remaining visible for a few brief moments. Luminous particles drifted away slowly, like golden dust carried by the wind, as her presence became increasingly ethereal.

Even so, before disappearing completely, Ellie smiled, a small but sincere smile, filled with calm and acceptance. It was a silent gesture, yet full of meaning, and it seemed enough to convey everything Emily needed to know, as if words could never reach what that final look managed to say.