The Land of The Dead Hero

She did not kill me, and has since then learned to accept me. I am not sure what brought on such a change, but now I share a room with her and my sister. The entire family lives in a confined space with limited privacy. It would seem that the whole mill has only three living quarters, with one being used by the animals in winter for warmth. To that end, I find it perplexing that they separated me with so much space - was it fear, hate, or something else?

Anyways, as much as they tried to make up for it now, I could hardly affectionately snuggle up to my mother. No, I did not trust her at all. I refused to believe people change that easily. In real life, I would be around 27 now, while in this world, I am only 27. I do not know her whole story, only bits and pieces. But I know what is behind those dark eyes.

She hates me. And always preferred my sister.

"What will we do today, Miss Canalyse?" The sound of my voice startled her. She could hardly get used to the fact that I spoke so intelligently at such a young age. Yes, as much as my body refused to obey anything I ordered it to, my mind was instead making up for it. Still, my arms and legs were growing as if they were just waiting for me to tell them to move. As if it were a possibility. 

I hated feeling so powerless.

"Well...um...today I would like to take you to the market. You have been lying down on your own since birth, never seeing much of the outside world...While your sister was taken there almost immediately...So I think it would do good for you good to see the world a bit,"

This woman is truly a saint, and I don't understand why my mother dislikes her so much. She even carries me on her back like an old woman carrying wooden sticks. No one ever stops and helps her. Not Elias, nor my mother. They just let her drag me around, as I get heavier and heavier. 

"You are very kind, Miss Canalyse...Thank you. I would like that very much."

To be honest, since I have been reincarnated, I have not seen much of the outside world. Only the pine walls and ceiling, which have slowly but surely been driving me insane. I genuinely believe I have a separation anxiety from my phone and computer - I need stimuli, but the best thing to stimulate me is...Well, just finding joy in anything around me. For example, a burning candle. 

I am just so BORED.

"Well, you see, Arailt, normally it is customary for a child to be introduced to everyone in the village immediately...However, your parents wanted to wait until you were a bit older, due to your delicate condition. And they ordered me to do it, seeing as they are going with your sister today on some important business in the Hero's Church."

Another way to pass the time is to listen and, well, think. I want to understand this world, so I am putting together some bits and pieces. "Hero" is a title thrown around a lot. He is the center of almost all the bedtime stories they tell us. He has a church in this village, and I presume he has others elsewhere. This Hero shares my name - Arailt - which confuses me, as I don't seem to be viewed positively by others, especially my parents. I believe the village's name is "Barem", as I have heard Canalyse say once: "We never had such a bad winter in Barem!" last year. 

Luckily, as a child, I can bombard her with just about as many questions as I like, and she doesn't find it strange or tiresome at all. 

As she carries me on the dirt road with pine trees - our mill is about 20 minutes away from the main village, just a bit upstream by the river - I breathe in the gentle air of the forest and fields, enjoying the touch of the Sun on my skin. 

"My father wants to sell flour to them, right?"

Her awkward smile, followed by: "Well ehhh, not sell exactly..." as she adjusted me on her back - she also tied me to herself with a rope, which was unpleasant but I tolerated it - showed how much I caught her off guard with my question. I was only two years old, but I was already asking her questions about things like that, which seemed to make her uneasy.

"He has to do it as a sacrifice to the Hero's Church...For the war, you see...One cow and around a third of his wheat to the Church...And one cow and another third have to go to the village for free to prevent hunger...Only the rest he can sell for profit..." 

She shrugged as the outline of hay-made roofs appeared on the horizon. I could see the smoke rising from their chimneys, with the large white tower of what seemed to be a church at its center. It was almost amusing; we were going to the same place as my parents and sister, but I had to receive this special treatment. It was almost as if I wasn't meant to be seen with the rest of my family.

The war. This land was at war. I grasped as much as I could between conversations. Although it wasn't yet affecting this village. Was the frontline somewhere else? And who was the enemy? They didn't seem to be too eager to discuss "adult" things before us. Perhaps they didn't want to discuss it at all. But it appeared at our door anyway. It was always there. Just...in the background. Yet at the same time, somewhat close. Definitely closer than in the real world. The anxiety I saw in my parents' faces about it was very real.

Elias's father went to the war and perished - around a month ago, two knights in white pieces of armor came to our house with condolences and a chest full of his belongings, which were put in the attic I can't reach. I suspect because they probably contained some stuff they didn't want us to see. 

I must somehow convince Aer or Canalyse to get that chest for me.

It's funny, I even remember those knights' names. It was an old man with green hair who carried an aura of profound wisdom. His armor was used; I saw the scratches on it, and he had a missing ear. They both had green shields with an emblem of two crows, I remember that too. His name was "Berich" or "Barach", something like that, and he pinched my cheek when he showed me to him. He seemed decent enough. He mentioned that he was a friend of my grandfather, but none of the family seemed to know him, and they regarded him with a bit of suspicion, although politely and with tremendous respect. It appeared that being elderly is considered highly unusual in this world.

I remember Anasa saying to Elias, after the knights left, that: "I don't know who that was, but I have never seen a man that old, let alone in the Council's army."

That woman knight, Lady Cryselle, was a completely different cup of tea. First and foremost, I don't think she said a word the whole time they visited us. Not even condolences, even though I thought they were somehow companions of our grandfather, or a greeting. She was simply "there", almost like a bodyguard of Berich. Maybe she was mute. I remember she had half of her face covered with some sort of silk mask. Perhaps a result of an injury? The way she was moving was strange. It was clear she was trying to accommodate for her partial loss of vision by tilting her head to the side, which her body followed, causing her to lean somewhat to the right. She also kept her hand on her sword, which my father considered rude, as if she were always ready to attack us. But luckily, she didn't draw it.

Now that I think about it, Canalyse wasn't home when they were there. Not only that, when she came back, she was covered in hay. Was she hiding in the barn?

Strange.

"Ah, Canalyse! Hello!"

A blue-haired young woman working in the fields spotted us and waved at us. I would wave at her back, but well...my body can't move. Canalyse quickly turned around to her, and said: "Oh, hello, Lady Bluefrog! How is Xert?" And she stopped for a short chat. "Oh, same old, same old. Although he is a cheerful one, I'll tell you that. Well, he takes after me," she said and pointed at her chest with a smirk. "Well, anyhow, who might this young child be? You carry him almost like a backpack!"

Canalyse nervously twirled, seemingly accommodating to my weight.

"This is Arailt from the Zolid's windmill! Arailt, meet Lady Xala Bluefrog. She is a former adventurer, so you better listen to what she has to say!" 

And to those words, she added a protective little pat. Although she was cheerful, Lady Xala's smile seemingly froze up as my name was mentioned. She blissfully closed her eyes for a moment. When she straightened up and leaned on the scythe, I could imagine her being an adventurer more. Well, now she was certainly taking it easy - I could tell the clothes she was wearing were practical and comfortable. But to be fair, she was working the fields. Maybe those fields belong to the house with blue walls just at the corner of the field. It was the first house you would encounter when traveling in this direction. It was not really in the village itself, but rather near the forest.

Well, I could imagine an adventurer or a warrior living on the outskirts, if they just want some peace and quiet. Still, blue walls? That was certainly an interesting design choice.

I wonder if Bluefrog is her maiden name? It sounds specific.

She did not speak for a moment, and that made the whole situation awkward. There was that horrible, awful silence I heard more than enough in my old life. Especially when I made some cringy joke.

Was that what my existence was in this world? A cringy joke? Something to frown upon? Was I really that useless and awful? 

I can hold a conversation at the age of two. Back in the real world, that would be nothing short of a genius.

Oh, how much I hated this feeling. This feeling of being inadequate. Useless. When someone feels you are just trash, but does not even have the decency to say it out loud.

"Nice to meet you," came out of my mouth regardless. When Lady Bluefrog heard my voice, she immediately looked to the side, as if she couldn't believe it or found it displeasing.

"So he is like Lillia then. I can understand why they are hiding him. Still, is it safe to bring him to the village?" she asked Canalyse. "You, out of all people here, should know that place is hardly tolerant of such things..."

I don't understand. I am like Lilia? So she knows someone who is like me? She may be unable to move either. I can't waste this information. What is this world? What are they not telling me? What am I missing? Why is it not safe to bring me anywhere? Mother and Father didn't care that Canalyse would take me to the village. She specifically asked them. And what did she imply happened to Canalyse? I thought people here liked her!

Why am I so strange to these people? Can't they really tolerate that I have a disability? What sort of backward barbarians are they, huh?

"No, he is not like Lilia. He is named after the Hero. And the Hero chose him. I know it. It's only a matter of time."

"Ehm..." I tried to step in, but no one was listening to me. Lady Bluefrog opened her eyes and smiled.

"Well, I've heard rumours that the Witch chose him. And my dear, it was not just me who heard that. Everyone heard that...After all, Anasa wasn't shy about it even just a couple of days ago."

What. What does that mean?

It seemed that those words upset Canalyse. She started shivering and was holding me more aggressively. She was pent up. It was clear that such comments made her flustered. She inhaled as if she was getting ready to speak, but Lady Bluefrog interrupted her before doing so:

"Of course, if the Hero chose him, that can be easily proven. Did the fragment find its way to him yet?" she asked almost teasingly, but there was a genuine interest in her voice.

The fragment? Fragment of what?

"Ehm..." I once again tried to speak, but was silenced by Canalyse's words.

"No, it has not," she said dismissively, as if she were defeated and humiliated. "But it will...I know it will...Maybe today at the market...it won't find him if he is just stuck in the mill..."

Lady Bluefrog laughed throatily.

"Hah! I've seen many such wishful thinkers. He is what, two to three years old? I've seen men and women die for those fragments in caves, duels, and battles just to prove they are worthy. Fools, who believed that the mighty Hero's sword and its gifts were waiting for them...somewhere. That they are the next Arailt. That they will win, and defeat all evil, because specifically they are so pure...Like I said...arrogant fools..."

She crossed her arms on her chest as I tried to make some sense of it all. The fragment. Was it the fragment of the Hero's Sword? Could it find me itself? It sounded like some fairytale prophecy. But I saw the Sword. I saw it inside that ball. It was shattered, yes, but the fragments were already there.

"He is-" Canalyse tried to speak for my defense and made two steps.

"I saw the sword." My words cut through them like her scythe through the fields. Canalyse looked up at me, as my chin was resting on her hair. Lady Bluefrog once again laughed at my comment, seemingly finding it amusing. "Quite talkative for a two-year-old...Children can be quite creative...And quite fond of attention...Xert, for example..."

"I saw the Sword. It was purpl-"

Lady Bluefrog's face became so stern and severe that I didn't even finish those words. She looked at me, and then at Canalyse.

"You saw his sword?" she asked me directly, her words surprisingly strict. It felt as if I had said something awful or bad. I didn't understand it at all.

"Well, yes..." I said nervously, but I didn't say more, as I felt I didn't understand what that meant. I shouldn't mention that ball, or anything that happened. That I was reincarnated and so on. That could end badly.

"...in a dream..."

I couldn't think of a better excuse.

"Then I believe taking him to the market is the right choice," Lady Bluefrog suddenly said in a tone that was almost an order. "But I didn't kn-" Canalyse appeared flustered and confused, and it seemed that she was nearly ready to take me back. 

What did I do? What does this all mean?

"If he saw the Sword, he wasn't touched by the Witch. He was touched by the Hero. I saw a fragment before...They really are purple. He is correct. And I don't think even you knew that fact, Canalyse. So he must have seen the real thing."

She nervously shook her head. 

"I...I have to discuss this with Elias first...I mean...if he saw it..."

Why? What would happen?

"But he met two knights of the Council and they didn't notice anything...I had hoped that maybe they would bring it to him..." she continued murmuring. "But when they didn't, I began losing hope..."

They were supposed to bring it to me? One only pinched my cheek, and the other ignored me! Or maybe it's in the chest?

"Take him to the market, my dear. Let him meet the people. You cannot stop the Sword from finding its way to him, so why not help the process when he's so young? Your original idea was correct. It was I who was doubtful - for all my preaching about the fools, perhaps I was the greatest one..."

I shook my head.

So, seeing the Sword is a good thing, or a bad thing? Why are they all cryptic about it?

"I don't understand anything! Canalyse, explain it to me!"

I shouted more aggressively than I should have. Like I was barking orders at a dog. That made Lady Bluefrog slightly frown. But perhaps she excused it because I was so young. I immediately regretted my tone, but I was flustered so much because I felt they didn't even register me existing at all. It felt like I was just an outside spectator to the conversation.

Still, I regretted my tone immensely.

"A fragment of the Hero's Sword will find you...it finds all blessed by his touch...so that they may put together the Sword...And I hope that when it does, it will heal you...Because I can't...that's all I want...You are chosen...I know it...I know it...I...I saw it..."

How does she know it? Does she perhaps know I was reincarnated? No, it doesn't seem that way.

Or wait...is it because she can use magic? But magic is usually associated with Witches...

Wait. Is this what Bluefrog meant by "Canalyse should understand"? Is Canalyse a witch, too? And is that a bad thing? She can certainly cast healing spells and has some sort of magical education, although she isn't wearing a pointy hat and walking around with a staff like Gandalf. She's more like the herbalist type. Perhaps a druid? I can imagine her fitting in that category.

Lady Bluefrog's frowning was intensifying. She was clearly displeased. At first, I thought it was just about my reaction, but no, there was something more behind it.

"Do you know what happened to Lilia?" she asked me suddenly, which caught me off guard. I had no idea. I heard that name the first time in this conversation.

"Ehm... no... I'm sorry..."

She scuffed. 

"No one does. Not even the foxes in the woods," she whispered, as if it was explaining anything.

"I must go tend back to my work," she said simply and bowed. She picked up her scythe and began moving to the blue house slowly and elegantly.

"We should go," Canalyse said, looking at the tower of the Church in the village before us. It was basking in the midday Sun. 

The bell on it tolled.