'I want to know more about her!'
Even though I say this, how can I do that? She possessed all the knowledge, all the power. She was probably aware of my curiosity, but she chose silence. That meant she didn't want to tell me. So, I simply couldn't ask.
One thing I was sure of: Miria would tell me eventually. I didn't know where this trust came from or why I had so much faith in her, but I trusted her. I trusted that she would tell me what she thought I needed to know. And when I needed to know about what happened in the strange space beneath the castle, what was behind the door, or even the Tower of Mirrors, she would be the one to inform me about all of it.
Still, there were two other questions I felt curious about—ones I felt confident enough to ask out loud.
"Miria, what did you mean when you said, what kind of hero I would be and what kind of worlds I would play a role in? I don't understand."
Miria turned to look at my face, a wide smile adorning her beautiful features.
We were now walking side by side through the corridors of her castle. We had already left the basement floor, though the name didn't fit the strangeness of what I had experienced there.
Miria was leading me somewhere, but I hadn't had the chance to ask where. One reason was that I was too busy sorting through the chaos in my thoughts. The other, perhaps more important reason, was that ever since we left the basement area, Miria had been in an extremely good mood. So good, in fact, that she had been smiling the entire time. Every now and then, she would stop walking and start kissing me for no reason… Although it interrupted and disrupted my thoughts, I didn't mind at all.
Eventually, I managed to settle my thoughts about what happened below the castle and had to ask about something.
Luckily, Miria didn't seem to mind the question. Her happy smile didn't fade.
"There are many types of summoned heroes," she began. "Such as the Savior—the Messiah—the Champion—the Beast—the Cursed—the Sinner… and many others. A world cannot choose which kind of hero it summons, so it's more or less a gamble. Given your circumstances, I had a suspicion you would become a False Hero. But I was wrong. You will not be a False Hero in your summoning..."
I waited for Miria to continue, but instead, she just started laughing uncontrollably. And I just watched, not understanding.
Even though I had now learned more about this whole hero matter, I didn't feel particularly interested. After all, all I wanted was to regain my memories. The hero seed, for me, was just a means to that goal.
Miria suddenly turned to me, her laughter stopping, but she was still smiling. She cupped my cheeks, her hands cold yet comforting against my skin.
"You are my Lian," she said, "and you will be the greatest hero to ever exist. I'm certain of it!"
'What…?'
I couldn't understand her words. Was this her answer to my thoughts? But she should know that I am only interested in recovering my memories. Why would she suddenly say something like this?
She hadn't been this excited when she still thought I would become a False Hero. So, what kind of hero would I become that would make Miria act like this? Even I felt curious now.
"What kind of hero will I become? You seem to know," I asked, looking directly into her eyes.
Miria stared back into my eyes for a few seconds before shrugging. "No, I don't know… As long as you're not a False!"
Once again, my mind fell into chaos, trying to make sense of her words. But before I lost focus, her lips pressed against mine for a long time, as if she was sucking the thoughts directly from my mind—and that wasn't far from the truth.
When our lips finally parted, Miria looked at me with a gentle expression. "It doesn't matter. You will find out on your own sooner or later. If not, I will be there to tell you. Trust me."
'Didn't she just say she didn't know?' I thought.
But despite my thoughts, I couldn't bring myself to say no to her while she looked at me with such an expression. It felt like if I did, it would be like killing a butterfly or stealing candy from a child. She was just... too happy!
"Why are you so happy?" I couldn't help but ask.
Miria tilted her head slightly, looking a bit guilty, as if her happiness was a secret only she knew, and she felt bad for not sharing it.
I waited for her answer, but she only looked at me in response, opening and closing her mouth multiple times, as if even she didn't know the answer or how to share it.
In the end, she simply said, "I learned something new today. This is the first time in a very long time—too long for your mind to comprehend—that I have learned something new. And I am happy for the knowledge... and happy with you."
I thought carefully about her words, about their meaning. But I could only connect them to what had happened below, and even that didn't tell me much.
In the end, I could only be happy for her. I never imagined I would see her act like this—like an overly excited girl. And in some way, Miria was exactly just that—an overly excited girl.
'I guess I have more than just my memories to wait for...' I thought to myself, letting her drag me through the castle.
A few minutes later, Miria and I stood before a closed gate. Just by looking at it, I could tell that whatever lay beyond it was not ordinary.
'Didn't she already show me every place in the castle during our tour?' I wondered as I looked at Miria.
I turned my gaze back again to the gate, examining it curiously. It was a double-door gate, towering over us at more than ten times my height. Like every part of this stone castle, which had its own unique decorations, the gate itself was adorned with patterns I couldn't understand. But unlike the patterns on the door beneath the castle and the Sixth Tower, these ones were not glowing—they were dormant, if that was the right word.
I turned again to face Miria with my questions, but this time, I didn't need to ask them.
"This is my castle front gate," Miria said with a smile. "We're going outside."
My eyes widened in shock at her announcement—I couldn't believe her words. I still remembered clearly when she told me I wouldn't survive outside on my own. But then again, the fact that she was with me made me feel at ease. She had protected me all along in the strange space beneath the castle, and she would likely do the same this time.
'But why would she want to go outside?' I thought.
Before I could voice my thoughts, Miria answered them.
"We still have a domain tour ahead of us."