fessions of the Historian are non-tinuous pseudo chapters that feature a timeframe far removed from the main story. They will not affect the main story’s update schedule, and will instead be uploaded at random intervals alongside them.

  Ep 169. fessions of the Historian: Student and Teacher

  If one’s race is defined by their physical attributes, then what race does a life unbound by such attributes belong to?

  For eons, we have simply called such phenomena manaspawns: clumps of mana itself taken form of life.

  However, without proper shape nor form, they were given numerous names besides…numerous titles besides. Monsters, spirits, familiars, phantoms…

  Livestock. Pets. Friends and enemies.

  And, at times…

  ? ? ?

  “H…help…”

  “Hmph.”

  The man reached out his hand in desperation as his soul was slowly sucked out of his being.

  Despite his dying pleas, the man’s voice remained unanswered within the fogs of Mire Forest.

  Soon, translut smoke would be whisked out of his mouth; the rest of the body would fall limp, falling to the ground in a deathly silence.

  The monster slowly rose to their feet, staring down at the dead in pt. His crow head darted about, following the clump of eerie blue smoke that he’d forced out of the man’s body.

  Raising his cws, he sshed at the air, shredding the remains of their soul to useless, fading pieces.

  “I’ve never seen such a disgusting color before.”

  Meanwhile, two other men watched in horror from a short distance.

  The monster resembled a man, as bck, feathered figure suggested otherwise. He’d torn their friend’s soul out of their body and, scowling with beast-like eyes, ripped it apart.

  “M…Monster of Mire…!”

  The mours ominous gaze towards the man who had spoken.

  “Disappointing. Has my name already been fotten?”

  In the blink of ahe onster seemed to disappear from sight, only to reappear before the two men.

  One of his feathered, cw-like hands gripped a man by his head. The other immediately turned, abandoning his captive friend without a sed thought.

  The monster’s menag gre fell onto the victim he held.

  “Now, then. Shall we examine your soul ?”

  But before his feast could begin, a sharp voiterrupted the monster’s sav.

  “Let go of him!”

  A silver arrow apahe sudden shouting as the bolt whizzed past the monster’s eye.

  As soon as the mouro see where the sudden attack had e from, his captive used the distra to kick at the monster’s frame, freeing himself from the grip to hurriedly flee from the se.

  “…”

  As the runaway’s footsteps faded into the distant fog, only the monster and his assaint remained. And as the monster remained ihe assaint’s footsteps grew louder and louder, their emerging silhouette being clearer by the sed.

  “…There. I found you.”

  A silver-haired cat half appeared from the fog, holding a crossbow in hand. Her hutire and on clearly suggested that she wasn’t the Mire’s resident.

  That being said, hunters were hardly a new sight to the monster.

  Once he fiudying the newer, an insulting ent was all he had to offer.

  “A puny runt. Iing.”

  “What did you say?!”

  The crow-like figure swiftly ignored his hunter’s backsh. He wordlessly stepped forth, approag her with eyes full of pt and annoyance.

  In response, she raised her on once more, aiming its head towards the approag crow.

  “D, don’t e any closer! I’ll shoot!”

  “Go ahead.”

  She did as told. As soon as she pulled at her crossbow’s trigger, another bolt zipped across the air to bury itself.

  …Into a tree some distance away.

  “What an astounding hunter you are. You might as well be shooting blind.”

  “It was a warning shot!”

  “This…”

  The monster’s footsteps came to a halt. He raised an arm as a translut crossbow took shape in his hand, and he soon pulled the on back, cog a magicked bolt towards his target.

  “…Is how you use a crossbow.”

  As the arrow was released, the hunter erected a haphazard barrier to shield herself from the mana bolt flying at her.

  As the two spells made tact, the bolt exploded in a burst of fmes, sending the hunter sprawling bad coughing.

  “Ugh…seriously? A mohat use magic? Talk about unfair…I wish I could use spells like that.”

  When she looked back up, the monster was beaming ba amused grin at her. Apparently, fttery worked here.

  ‘Wait...that means talking works here.’

  The half abruptly cleared her throat, getting up to her feet to tinue speaking.

  “…You know, I know everyone calls you Monster of Mire, but I know who you really are.”

  “Oh?”

  “Xar…that’s your name, isn’t it? Former Akeian ander. People say he went missing after the empire’s colpse. Who would’ve thought he went back to being a wild monster?”

  Xar mused at the hunter’s description of his past. Ever since his return to the Mire, she’d been the very first tnize who he was.

  “If you came here knowing who I was…you must have a pn in mind, yes? Failing that, you simply chose a glorious way to suicide.”

  Despite the monster’s patronizing smirk, the hunter seemed to pay it no mind. She only rubbed her , seriously pting the question over.

  “Hm…”

  “?”

  “Hmm…”

  “…What.”

  “Hmmm……”

  Xar’s expression twisted into a frown as the hunter made inprehensible noises. He raised his hand as masses of green fog swirled into his palm, f a screaming mass of energy.

  “If you’ve nothing to say, then-“

  “Meh.”

  Just as the monster was about to bst away his assaint, the half abruptly interrupted the cast with a single sylble.

  The rest of the answer followed suit.

  “You know what, Xar? I got nothing. I don’t want to die, I actually really want to live. But I don’t really have a pn in miher.”

  The monster’s magic fizzled out. His eyes twitched in disbelief.

  ‘…Is she an idiot?’

  Xar shook his head. Surely, a hunter couldn’t be this stupid.

  “…If you wish to live, why show yourself here?”

  This time, the hunter beamed back. She sighed in irony, shrugging back at the monster’s question.

  “Why not? Whether you kill me or not, I die soon anyways. I may not look it, but I’m actually pretty sick. So I came here, thinking…hey, maybe I try to do something nice before I die.”

  “And your definition of ‘something nice is attempting to kill me.”

  “Pft. Who do you think I am, you? I stay as far as I from using violence.”

  The hunter pletely withdrew her on before approag Xar, stopping only a few steps away. The half crouched down to brush off the fallen leaves off the forest floor, seating herself on the revealed soil.

  Xar remaianding in fusion as he watched the half’s strange choice of behavior.

  Truth be told, his disdain for this supposed ‘hunter’ was growing worse by the minute.

  “…And so you’d rather give up and sit?”

  “What? No. ’t you see I’m trying to have a talk with you? Here, have a seat.”

  “I have no reason to participate in a ‘talk.’ Especially with a hunter.”

  “Psh…don’t you ever get lonely? Living alone in a forest like this.”

  “…No.”

  “Hey, look at that. You just talked to me.”

  “…”

  A small ughter followed suit as Xar stared at the hunter in disbelief.

  And still, she beed him over, beaming a wide smile at him.

  “This is how you get along with others! Talking. Why don’t you give it a try? I’m Rien. Rien Meria.”

  “…”

  Instead of responding, Xar abruptly turned away, walking into the distance as he abahe lone hunter.

  However, she remained sitting for a while longer, waving towards the bck, feathered figure that was disappearing into the fog.

  “e back soon!”

  ? ? ?

  One day ter, a peculiar smoke rose above the Mire’s fog, filling the forest with a warm st of cooking.

  When Xar appeared at the se to dis its source, a familiar hunter was sitting on a small stoirring the innards of a metal pot that hung above a small campfire.

  “…What the…”

  “Huh? Oh hey, you’re here.”

  As soon as she noted Xar’s appearance, Rien invitingly wove her hand, being the monster over.

  “Want some potato stew? It’s pretty good.”

  The monster snorted in ill amusement.

  “…I left you be as it seemed you were ill in the head…but now it seems you’re crossing the line.”

  “Line? What the heck are you talking about? We’re in the middle of a forest. I do whatever the heck I want.”

  Small sparks of fire threateningly blitzed out of Xar’s hand. He began to stepscloser towards the hunter, his gring eyes glowing in an eerie light.

  “Then there shouldn’t be anything stopping me from killing you here either.”

  “Meh, go ahead. I told you, I’m gonna be dead soon anyways.”

  Even in her aate, Rien proceeded to scoop out a portion of the pot’s boiling tents into a separate bowl, it towards her guest.

  “Here, do whatever you want, but sit down a first.”

  “…”

  “This is how you get along with others.”

  For aremely brief moment, Xar sidered accepting the food.

  However, as soon as he processed the thought, the bck figure grimaced in disgust at his own thoughts.

  Following suit, he briskly turned away to leave the hunter yet again.

  “…e back soon!”

  Once again, Rien watched the feathered figure disappearing into the forest’s fog. She retreated her offered bowl of stew, taking a quiet sip herself whilst she stared into the monster’s fading silhouette.

  “Pfft…talk about being shy.”

  ? ? ?

  And the day…

  Fallen leaves ched underfoot as Xar once again made his way to the hunter’s camp. The smoke of her campfire hadn’t go.

  ‘Is that woman still lounging around? What could she possibly be doing now…’

  When Rien noticed the bck figure emerging from the fog, she curtly wove her hand.

  Much to Xar’s surprise, the hunter was fortably ying in her hammock with a book in hand.

  “Oh hey, wele back.”

  “…You must be the only person to ever lounge around in Mire with a book.”

  “Pft, sure, and you’re so much better off. You literally do nothing all day, don’t you?”

  “…”

  “Hahaha, see? Lounging around with a book isn’t so bad in parison.”

  The half rolled out of her hammock, getting up on her feet. She quickly rummaged through the baggage beh, produg another book to offer tuest.

  “Here, I have a book you could read too. I even teach you!”

  “Teach? What would you-“

  “Alphabets!”

  The monster looked down at the book being offered.

  To whit, the title read: ‘Alphabets for Toddlers.’

  Not that he could evehat. But he could at least tell who the book was for, what with all the letters and colors on the cover.

  Xar looked up to meet Rien’s eyes. She was grinning as usual, whily annoyed him more.

  “…Do you have a death wish?”

  “What are you talking about? I told you on the first day, didn’t I? I want to live.”

  “A you tinue your mockery. Do you seriously expect me to read this?”

  “I mean, I wasn’t sure if aaught you how to read. Figured you might o learn the alphabet first…”

  “…”

  Truth be told, Xar didn’t actually know how to read. At all.

  However…

  The monster snatched the book from Rien’s grasp, tossing it into the campfire. The fmes momentarily roared as the book was ed, redug it to ders in a matter of seds.

  “I have no need for a child’s book.”

  “Hey, you could’ve just said no! You didn’t have to throw it into the fire!”

  “A fitting end.”

  “Hmph…so, you do know how to read then?”

  “…”

  “Well? Do you?”

  “…I do not o know.”

  Rien crossed her arms with puffed cheeks, clearly unsatisfied by the answer. She walked over tgage once more, rummaging through its tents as she shouted towards her finicky guest.

  “Jeez, poor book. Here, e over! I’ll teach you how to read. You pay your tutor fees ter.”

  “…”

  And as per usual, Xar briskly turned away to leave the se.

  But this time, Rien quietly snickered to herself, watg the monster fade into the distance.

  “e back soon!”

  ? ? ?

  With another day came another visit from the Monster of Mire.

  Although this time, Xar curiously sed the surroundings as he approached Rien’s camp. The smoke from her campfire hadn’t been visible today.

  And when he finally arrived, only a lump of smoked coal id where the fire had been.

  “…?”

  One brief s, and he could tell that the rest of the camp was still intact.

  In the distance, he soon spotted the familiar hunter: dozing off on her hammock without a care in the world.

  And to her immediate right was a growli, baring fangs that dripped with saliva.

  ‘Seriously?’

  As soon as the growli pouowards the sleeping hunter, Xar dashed into the camp in a burst of shadows, intercepting the attag beast. With his own shadowed cws, he tore through the beast’s underbelly with ease.

  Ohe beast powerlessly fell back to the ground, Xar s its untimely death, pulling out his cws to shake off the blood that coated it.

  “…Tch.”

  ‘A pointless gesture. This shouldn’t have ed me in the slightest-‘

  The monster’s thoughts came to an abrupt end as his eyes fell on Rien. Her eyes were wide with surprise, staring at him in silence.

  Slowly, Xar opened his mouth.

  “…Were you not asleep?”

  “I was. Until you came.”

  “…”

  “You’re a lot han people say, huh?”

  “…It was a ce.”

  The monster briskly turo leave as usual. However, this time Rien jumped off her hammock, pulling on the monster’s wrist to stop his departure.

  “Wait, wait! You just saved me, I ’t just send you off like this.”

  “…What now.”

  Rien beamed in delight as she poiowards the dead campfire. Two ft stones id beside it, along with a pile of books between.

  “Special deal, I’ll tutor you for free. My lessons are actually super expensive, you know?”

  “…”

  “I insist!”

  The monster let out a quiet sigh as the excited half dragged him off towards her pile of books.

  ? ? ?

  And a few days after that…

  ‘…Why do I tiurning to this pce.’

  Xar began to question his life as he once again found himself walking back to Rien’s camp.

  He rapidly shook his head as he tried to justify what he was doing.

  ‘No no, that’s not it. This is my territory to begin with, I should be free to roam. That hunter is the intruder. Yes, that…’

  “Ugh…hf…”

  The monster’s thoughts came to an abrupt stop as he noticed the familiar half sitting by the fire, groaning with an agonized expression. Her face was drenched with sweat, and one of her hands ainfully gripping at her heart.

  “…? What-“

  As the monster rushed to her side, Rien forced her eyes open to see Xar’s face.

  In her hazy vision, Rien noticed a faint, inexplicable ge in the assortment of Xar’s feathers: a slight ge that a stranger may mistake for a simple ruffle.

  The half slowly reached out her hand, caressing her fihrough the monster’s feathers thten them as they were before – ahe small oddity refused to fade.

  Despite her pained expression, Rien still mao let out a small ughter at the sight.

  “Ah, haha…gosh. Are you worried?”

  A heavy frown crossed the monster as he ched his hands.

  “No, I’m smiling. In delight.”

  Rien only snickered at the monster’s reply. Every snicker felt like mounds of iron smming into her chest, but it was still worth it.

  “…Sorry, I don’t think I do much today. I-“

  “Be quiet.”

  The monster hovered his hand over the hunter’s throbbi. A soft green light began to glow iween them.

  As Xar’s spell took effect, Rien could feel the pain in her chest gradually melting way; eventually, she couldn’t feel a thing anymore.

  After briefly examiniate, Rien turning to Xar with a surprised, delighted look.

  “Woah…how did you do that? Magi’t cure diseases.”

  “…It’s only a pain remedy.”

  “Ohh…that’s still pretty amazing though!”

  Hearing Rien’s praise, Xar cleared his throat in embarrassment – though that certainly didn’t stop the hunter from teasing him further.

  “Maybe if you were this nice all the time, you’d have some frien-“

  Rien’s sentence was cut short as the monster physically sealed her lips, gripping her bbbering mouth with two fingers.

  “Shut your mouth.”

  “…Aay a oon wii a ee.” (Says the oh a beak.)

  “…”

  After anh, Xar let go of the half, turning to leave as usual. Rien painfully rubbed her lips – whiow hurt more than her chest – but she still had to say her usual piece.

  “e back soon!”

  “…”

  Xar ighe remark and tio walk aimlessly. It was nothing new for him to roam the foggy forest like this.

  But strangely, it felt different that day. And it didn’t take that long for him to realize it.

  ‘…Something’s wrong. Was there another spell in pce?’

  The monster ched at his ow. He didn’t even have a beati, but it felt strangely heavy.

  ‘I left of my own volition. What is this ination to return?’

  He gnced around. It was the same foggy forest as usual; nothing was out of the ordinary. Or so it should’ve been.

  ‘Strahere shouldn’t be anything that could threaten me in this forest…’

  A, it felt as if he was standing before a t enemy.

  After a brief pause, Xar turo face the path he’d e from. He couldn’t see much beyond the fog, but he hadn’t e very far still.

  And in the distance was the familiar hunter, no longer suffering from the pain of her disease.

  However, her physical state remaihe same – which wasly an ideal state, from what he’d seen earlier.

  “…Rien, was it.”

  Soon, Xar pletely turned around, pag back to the camp. He had to, lest he never learn what this heaviness inside was.

  But when he arrived, Rien’s eyes were closed, and the half eacefully ying back against her baggage on the floor.

  Not a sound came out of her. Her breathing was so scarce, she may as well have been pletely silence.

  ‘She’s not…?’

  The monster immediately gripped Rien’s shoulders, trying to shake her awake.

  “Hey, half!...Rien!”

  “…Ehh? Why?”

  Rien zily rubbed her eyes as she was shaken back awake.

  “…”

  ‘Oh. She wasn’t dead.’

  Xar awkwardly stared at the half. He immediately let go of her shoulders, looking away in shame.

  …Whily fused the half further.

  “What’s wrong? What’d you wake me up for?”

  When the monster tinued his silence, a pyful grin spread across the hunter’s face as she rose to her feet.

  She leaowards the feathered figure, noting the same ruffle in his feathers reappearing once again.

  “Wait…did you e back because you were worried? Wow, that’s pretty toug.”

  “…I only returo ask you a question.”

  “A question? What question?”

  “Did you pce a spell on me?”

  “…Eh? What?”

  “I feel at u feels as if a predator is looming over my back.”

  “Oh, really now?”

  After an amused snort, Rien leaned forward, mischievous eyes staring into the monster’s.

  “Do you feel empty and uneasy all the time? Like you wanna escape o somewhere else or run back here?”

  “So it WAS your spell-“

  “Look at that, I was right on day one. You are lonely.”

  “…What?”

  “You’re lonely.”

  Rien tapped the monster on his shoulders twice. She then slowly rose to her feet, walking over to their usual stos by the fire.

  After taking a seat herself, the half beed her student over – and he’d relutly follow, taking a seat at her side and lighting the fme once more.

  Rien wore a reassuring grin as she tinued.

  “I mean, of course you’re lonely. How could you not be? You’re a person living alone in the middle of nowhere.”

  “…I am not a ‘person.’ I am a monster borne of this forest’s mana.”

  “Ehh…hm…”

  “…”

  “Hmm…”

  “…What?”

  “Hmmm……”

  “What??”

  After a serious ption, Rien came to her own clusion – which was soon spoken out loud.

  “Nope. You’re just aypical person to me.”

  “…Have you gone mad?”

  “Listen, I mean…you’re pretty much just a person who looks a bit weird. Like…a half, but with a lot more croerson? If you went around saying you’re a half, people would believe you.”

  Rien’s ears twitched as she circled around to stand before Xar, poking at the monster’s chest.

  “You eat, you read, and you eve lonely. If that’s not a person, what is?”

  “…I’m not…”

  Xar’s voice soon trailed off as he realized what he was saying.

  Just a few days ago, he could refute all that was being said: he did, he didn’t read, and he certainly wasn’t lonely.

  But now, he could no longer cim as so.

  When Xar trailed off without any firm denial, Rien threw her head ba a shhter.

  “Must be nice, beihy and all. Skilled with magic, too. I wouldn’t live like that if I were you.”

  “…What are y to say.”

  “Oh, nothing, it’s just…you know, instead of sulking alone in the middle of nowhere all the time, maybe it’d be better if you lived with other people.”

  “…I am ao mankind. I’ve killed in thousands under Akeia’s name.”

  “Oh?”

  Rien raised a brow, as if intrigued by the st remark. What should’ve been an easy death threat arently ing across as something else eo her.

  “You sound like yret it. Was it against your will?”

  “…”

  Xar her firmed nor dehe hunter’s question.

  But now, one good look at his face was all the answer Rien needed.

  “You know what’s the best remedy tret?”

  “…What?”

  “Do something nice for others.”

  Despite Xar’s incredulous stare, Rien’s eyes remained firm. She clearly wasn’t joking.

  “Besides, it sounds like you do want to be around people. You just ’t because you’re scared people won’t like you.”

  “That’s…not…”

  “Oh, please. Look me in the eye and tell me I’m wrong.”

  “…”

  “See? You ’t. I bet that’s why you don’t even kill anyone uhey try to kill you first.”

  “…And how would you know something like that?”

  After a brief shrug, Rien poio herself.

  “Look at me. I’m still alive. But those thugs that tried to kill you? Dead.”

  “…”

  Xar maintained silence. He had absolutely no ter to that.

  The hunter shrugged back again, pressing her point further.

  “, it might not be that bad. Go somewhere south, and I doubt people will reize you. ge your name, wear some clothes, and…maybe go be a teacher like I always wao. Sounds pretty nice, doesn’t it?”

  Xar scoffed at the idea. He couldn’t even begin picturing himself fitting that description.

  “…I’ve just barely learned how to read. Teag is out of the question.”

  “Oh? So you would if you could?”

  “…”

  Rien only ughed at Xar’s ck of answer. Unlike him, she could totally imagine him standing in front of a css.

  “Since you’re so good with magic, maybe you bee a magic teacher. Or wait…since you’ve lived for a really long time, maybe you’ll be better off teag history. That sounds fun.”

  “Your death must be nigh. Every man I’ve met teo spit nonsense before their demise.”

  “Hehe. Maybe.”

  A brief siletled in as Xar made his way over to the fire, sitting ooo the half.

  Rien threw her head back as her friend took a seat. The fog was slowly beginning to fade away as night settled in.

  “…You know, I never actually wao bee a hunter.”

  “…?”

  “Ever since I was little, I really liked teag other people. Back then, I wao bee a teacher.”

  “…And why didn’t you? You weren’t too bad at it.”

  “Who wants a dying person to be their teacher?”

  “…”

  Rien shifted her gaze back towards the bck figure beside her. She nodded her head, approving of the picture she’d painted in her mind.

  “So you go do it. And tell me what it’s like ter.”

  “You’d be long dead by then.”

  “Still! You never know what might happen.”

  “No such day will e. Nothing lies beyoh.”

  “It’s rude to talk back to your teacher.”

  “…”

  “And that’s how you make your students zip their mouth.”

  The disbelief in Xar’s eyes never failed to make the half giggle. He wasn’t so menag when making that expression.

  “Hehe…just you wait. When we meet again, it’ll be your turn to teach me what you learned in life.”

  “…”

  “Be o me, okay?”

  Again, Xar didn’t bother to ahe half.

  In her approag death, Rien would die and fade away like any other. Their bond was insignifit and temporary, unworthy of being noted or remembered.

  ‘…Surely it’s all meaningless.’

  Surely, no day will e when he’d see such a pure soul again.

  ? ? ?

  Anything be a manaspawn. Anyone could be a manaspawn.

  Then, by definition, a manaspawn remains unbound by the ws of rad biology. Perhaps their name, ‘monster,’ roots from our inability to uand their existence.

  But to derstanding should not mean to fear. The horrors of the unknown only remain as horrors until one braves the darko see their form.

  Though, admittedly…

  To bel them an abomination is far simpler than braving their depths.