Keeping an eye on the stunned monster, the nameless girl quickly assisted Wiseman in his step. The two made rapid pace to lose line of sight from the fiend. Turning into the second-floor hallway, various doors leading to private sleeping quarters were abundant. Picking one at random, the duo found a two-bedroom unit and ensued a brief moment of respite. As they entered, the young woman continued to hold her breath and braced her back against the frame. If they were successful in their retreat, then they would be able to recover some of their energy before attempting another escape. If not, then their time was extremely limited. Fortunately, all that could be heard was silence, allowing her to exhale and slide to the floor quietly.

  Once the girl’s breathing had stabilized, she noticed that Wiseman had collapsed from exhaustion. His body was slumped over next to the bed with one hand still clutching the bedframe. While the elderly man had no open wounds, running with bruises, injuries, and starvation certainly did not contribute to his waning energy.

  “I'm fine, I'm fine. I just… need some rest” Wiseman spoke while gasping for air.

  With a concerned look, the girl helped prop him onto the bed as they reorganized their thoughts. Seeing as they were stuck for now, she decided to explore the room. Two beds lay side by side divided by a nightstand, looking like they hadn’t been occupied in decades. Opposing the beds was a wide countertop drawer coupled with a pair of cabinets on both ends. Black lilacs also resided in the vases sitting atop the drawer. Near the door was a closet and across the room were windows displaying the outside world.

  The windows attracted her at first glance. Similar to her name, the memories she once held of the world appeared foggy, disjointed, and as if they never existed. However, basic concepts seemed unaltered such as food or items. While it felt strange for memories to be missing, it also felt right that her recollections did not exist to begin with. Given the opportunity from the window, this moment would not be forgotten for as long as she lived. These would be her first true memories after all.

  ‘Is the world flat? Are there trees? Buildings? People?’ she wondered.

  Then, her mouth gaped as she stared into the vast sea of sand-coloured buildings. They stretched as far as the eye could see, some were elevated and others were lowered. Buildings that once housed various purposes but have since lost them due to time. Old signs faded to planks of wood and clear windows now covered in dust filled the streets of the large kingdom. While most buildings seemed unsubstantial, a single structure trumped the rest of them all. An enormous castle perched atop the highest point of the land basked in the velvet-stained moonlit rain.

  The old man spoke while lying down across the room, “I suppose you’re looking at the kingdom castle, Drifting Peak,”

  On closer inspection, she noticed the castle had several wings keeping the upper segments afloat.

  ‘One, two, three… six!!’ She counted.

  The girl was astonished, after all, how could such a building exist architecturally?

  “That castle once housed our king.”

  Wiseman suddenly appeared emotionally nostalgic but he continued nonetheless.

  “However, he has long since disappeared, forsaking this land and its people to the madness of the blood rain.”

  Finishing his thoughts, Wiseman gathered his energy once more and stood up from the bed. He then strolled toward the closet while the girl continued staring at the spectacles ahead of her through the window.

  Within the closet were various pieces of clothing. Robbing the storage of its wares, Wiseman draped on a black double-breasted lapel vest and a long-sleeved white dress shirt. He then replaced his blood-stained pants with regular black trousers alongside a pair of dress shoes. Finally, he threw over a white ruffled collar blouse, black trousers, and a sleek black trench coat to the girl. Holding up her newfound clothing, her eyes glimmered but then she quickly remembered something.

  ‘You gonna leave?’ she judgementally stared at Wiseman as she held the clothing in her arms with one eyebrow raised.

  Briefly confused, Wiseman dully questioned, “What?”

  Nothing changed. Her stare persisted and pouting began.

  “Ah! Apologies, every young lady needs their privacy. I suppose I can do some scouting before we depart.”

  Watching the expression on the nameless girl relent, he silently opened the door and attempted reconnaissance for the pair. The noise of a creature hounding on the flesh and bones of the dead once again filled the air. He moved closer to the balcony railings that overlooked the lobby and the one-eyed fiend could be seen feasting away at both human and monster carcasses. Then, a large oval shadow loomed over the monster from the inn entrance.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  ‘It’s the egg-shaped bastard that chained me up here!’ Wiseman thought.

  The new monster had an ovalish body and stick-like curved limbs, defying the regular anatomical structures of other animals. It wore a fancy suit equipped with a cane in one hand. Its face then featured a stylish mustache and a pair of scornful eyes. It scanned the room and threw a fit in rage, smacking the humanoid monster with its cane over the back.

  “What happened here!!?” It loudly exclaimed.

  However, the larger monster failed to verbalize the situation and merely cowered. It appeared to struggle with higher cognitive load thinking. Instead, it pointed toward the second-floor balcony railings, insinuating that whatever had caused the wreckage in the lobby had gone up there. Recognizing their limited time, Wiseman agilely retreated into their room and found the girl changed and ready to go at a moment's notice.

  “Hmm, we’re currently trapped. A monster capable of intellect has appeared and is on the way up the stairs, which if I recall, is our only exit.”

  The reason as to why Wiseman had been trapped in the first place was due to the ovalish fiend’s cunning plans. It had lured him into the inn by using the survivors in the cells as bait. After being invited into the lobby, the muscular monster then ambushed him. The egg bastard enjoyed the screams of its victims and shackled them to the walls of the basement for torture.

  Wracking his brain of any knowledge that could assist him, he considered the variables in his vicinity. First, there were two enemies in their immediate surroundings. One functioned off instinct while the other had an intellect similar to humans. Second, there was himself and the girl. Neither of them had weapons, however, they did possess some level of teamwork shown in the last encounter. Third, the only plausible exit would be down the stairs and through the front door. Any other means would result in injury such as jumping out the window. So far, with only these variables, Wiseman believed their odds of survival to be bleak.

  Thus, he was left with requesting assistance from his meagre ability. He began chanting in an incomprehensible language and the whispers of knowledge from all sources rippled into his mind.

  ‘Attempt a closer analysis of your enemies and don’t forget your surroundings. Believe in her concept!’

  Listening to this hint, Wiseman ruminated about his adversaries once more. First, the one-eyed lump of muscle. The only advantage it truly had was strength. Otherwise, it had two major weaknesses, the massive eye on its chest and how mentally slow it was. Second, the egg man. While it was intelligent, perhaps its outer appearance would be a drawback. Similar to a genuine egg, the duo could potentially crack the fiend right open with ample force.

  Wiseman pondered while gazing at the nameless girl, ‘Believe in her concept…? Perhaps she could awaken an ability in a crucial moment?’

  “Young miss, would you like to learn that trick I performed earlier on those keys?”

  For a while, the girl had been carefully observing Wiseman as he mentally contemplated and was caught off guard by this sudden question.

  ‘He wants to teach me his magic tricks? This seems like a bad time…but I'm not one to decline!’ She thought as her eyes shimmered.

  Wiseman sighed but continued, “Alright miss, as we have a limited amount of time, I will simplify it as much as possible.”

  She tilted her head in confusion.

  “First, think of an idea or abstraction. These could be elemental or even philosophical. Sift through as many as possible then once a concept matches well, the process of resonation will ensue.”

  The nameless girl closed her eyes and attempted to concentrate on his instructions. As she had no recollections of philosophical topics, she prioritized simple ideas and emotions.

  ‘Excitement… Fire… Nervous… Cold… Hopeful… Wood…’ Yet nothing changed.

  Cognizant of her struggles, Wiseman provided more detailed advice, “Perhaps think of something that deeply impacted you?”

  ‘Maybe…the feeling I had when I woke up in that room filled with corpses? The feeling of… nonexistence.’

  As she ruminated upon her concept, the environment began to alter and Wiseman watched in near disbelief. He did not expect much in such a short amount of time yet the girl had succeeded right in front of his eyes. The surrounding air had gone numb and a static-like presence had taken effect around her.

  Once her concentration was broken, he quickly asked her, “Well? What concept did you end up with?”

  Her eyes were as clear as mud, completely indecipherable but she responded truthfully nonetheless, “Nothing.”

  The concept of nothing was quite extraordinary as it was abstract and philosophical. However, the powers and abilities of such a concept would solely depend on its user’s interpretation.

  Wiseman sighed and explained, “Now that you have a fixed concept, you will be able to conjure supernatural abilities using your interpretations of ‘nothing’. Remember this, the concept is an anchor or medium that channels your willpower. That being said, we can’t wait around for you to invent an ability so let’s focus on cracking that damned egg.”

  The girl was quite saddened by the concept she had attained. After all, she was hoping for something more useful. She felt as if anything could have been better than nothing.

  Nevertheless, their time was limited, so the two focused on hatching a plan to crack open the egg monster. With no weapons, the best resolution would be utilizing their environment. However, they were in a bedroom complex, not an armoury. Yet they had to make do if they wanted to live.

  After careful analysis and discussion, the plan was rushed but simple, one person would sit by the windowsill awaiting the egg to see them. This person would act as bait and actively taunt the fiend to rush closer. The second person would then slam the door on the egg, wedging it in between the frame and the door panel. If successful, they would be able to vertically curb-stomp the monster. Soon enough, footsteps on creaking wood flooring could be heard coming up the stairs. They were now in the hands of fate.

  “I suppose we shall gamble with our lives on the line tonight,” Wiseman muttered as the girl opened the door.