Chapter 89: But, Why…? Who? HOW?!

’Where... am I?’

Peace blinked his eyes open, making out hazy figures sitting around him.

’Ah, right. I fell down the stairs. After...’

Peace rolled his head to the side, spotting Dita sitting against the wall, one hand resting on her sword. Her gear was pristine, as if she hadn’t fought a single battle since entering the dungeon.

On Peace’s other side sat Maura and Yulis, both watching Dita with suspicion. Ralph had also woken up, but looked worse for wear as he groaned and whined, lolling about on the ground.

Volkar was still out cold.

Finally...

’I see the pain hasn’t subsided!’

Peace felt as if his legs were being roasted on a bed of coals.

Someone had patched him up, setting his broken ankle in a makeshift splint. But they definitely hadn’t used a potion on him.

Not that one would have mattered...

His ankle wasn’t just dislocated; the bastard Knight had well and truly snapped it. His only hope of a full recovery lay in leveling up.

If that even worked...

Normally, he might have been able to accept being unable to walk for a while. But the pain?

Simply unbearable.

Seeing Peace thrash around, Dita’s calm voice floated through the tense air.

"You’re awake... can you tell these people I know you?"

’Let me get some rest, you devil!’

Letting out pained gasps, Peace opened his mouth to respond, but Yulis spoke first, pointing his sword at her.

"I said stay quiet."

Dita’s gaze narrowed on Yulis.

"Hmm... I was surprised to see you’d got yourself a party, Night Elf. I assume our deal is null?"

’I don’t care about that right now!’

Screw caution and screw the chance of betrayal...

’I want to sleep! Knock me the fuck out! This shit hurts!’

Peace grumbled, then awkwardly nodded his head.

Raising his sword toward her neck, Yulis said:

"Quiet..." He let out a light sigh, then added, "And I don’t care if you know him, unless you can give me a good reason why you’re here alone."

Dita’s face scrunched up.

"Asking for answers yet telling me to be quiet... genius. Besides, I already told you, I’m cashing in a favor."

Yulis clicked his tongue.

"At least give a convincing lie."

"No, it’s the truth. A woman saved me and asked me to go to the Light Temple the next time the dungeon opened and wait here, at the stairs to the lower floor... alone."

"A person can only be so gullible... I already told you, stay quiet until you feel like telling the truth."

Dita shrugged.

"I guess I’ll keep talking then."

Yulis hung his head, a fierce glint in his eyes.

"You’re insufferable."

’Can’t they shut up?! My ears are ringing!’

However...

Although pain was making rational thought difficult, there was something Peace felt he’d finally understood.

’The Witch... she’s talking about Ghost Girl! Shit, ouch!’

Peace made the horrible mistake of moving his left leg even slightly, causing him to yelp in pain.

"Yakahoo!"

Maura looked at him melancholically as she whispered:

"I did all I could. I’m tapped out right now, so you’ll have to bear it for a bit."

Peace shivered, then said:

"N-no worries!"

Tightening and relaxing the muscles in his face as if the gesture would make the pain go away, Peace returned to his thoughts.

’If it was you she’s talking about, Witch, then... how?’

How had that woman known Peace would end up here, in a situation where Dita would be perfectly positioned to save him?

’It makes zero sense!’

Divinations and oracle Traits existed in the game, yes, though they were incredibly rare. The problem was that every one Peace or his sister had encountered worked more like a sixth sense, warning them away from certain locations or dangers.

Nothing that actually predicted the future...

A game couldn’t do that. It couldn’t predict what a player would do.

But...

How would such an ability work in reality?!

Could someone truly peer into the future?

If not...

’Then why was Dita told to wait there?! It makes no sense otherwise!’

There was also the chance that it was all a coincidence, that whoever told Dita to wait there hadn’t known Peace would end up needing to be saved...

’Fat chance!’

Peace was starting to think his first meeting with Dita hadn’t been a coincidence, either. It was almost as if fate itself had intervened, playing it’s hand to force them together.

’Why is my life here so strange?!’

And that was only one of the implications. Besides being in this world in the first place, Dita’s presence in the Light Temple raised so many questions that the whole thing felt like one big ass onion Peace had little desire to cut into, especially right now.

The only thing he really cared about was reaching his sister and becoming strong enough to make their reunion a reality.

To that end...

Surviving took precedence over figuring out the truth.

Peace threw a question into the open air.

"H-how long has it been?"

Dita replied as if nothing was out of the ordinary:

"Only a few hours."

Taking a few deep breaths, Peace managed to push himself up and look around.

’Where do we go from here...?’

Peace wasn’t talking about the path down. What he really meant was Dita. How was he supposed to get the group to accept her, let alone her help?

No, not even that.

First, he had to figure out whether he should trust her at all...

This was only the second time they’d met, and both encounters had found Peace thrust into a generationally shitty situation, utterly bereft of luck. Plus, there was the supposed involvement of the Witch of Corruption, who’d oh-so-graciously ’kidnapped me into the backrooms’ the last time Peace had been in the dungeon.

Peace asked:

"This woman... what else did she say to you?"

Yulis clicked his tongue, then said:

"Don’t entertain her—"

Ignoring the haggard Day Elf, Dita tilted her head, then replied:

"You believe me...? Oh, never mind, of course you would... But, no, that was all she said."

’Uh...’

Peace tilted his head towards Dita.

"’Of course I would’...?"

Brushing her hair behind her ear, Dita pursed her lips and looked away.