Two minutes had passed since Zavi first entered the Chapena district after such a long time without feeling at ease, followed by a faint light illuminating the narrow road.
Unwilling to look back and unwilling to think about the ritual or the strange encounter with that woman, Zavi took a deep breath, trying to calm his mind before continuing on.
At last, he reached the street where his house stood and stopped in front of the door. He stared at it briefly before turning the doorknob.
Click…
He pushed the door open slowly so it would not make a sound. The inside of the house was eerily quiet, with only a dim light above the round table in the living room, as if the house were unoccupied.
"Ren… Isabelle… Can you hear me?" Zavi muttered nervously, scanning every corner of the house, including his own room.
Silence. There was no reply, and Zavi's breathing grew heavy.
"I already told you…" A gentle yet cold voice crept into his head. "You won't be able to escape me," said the mysterious presence, revealing neither a face nor a location.
His eyes widened.
"Huh. Who was that?" Zavi grew alert. "Are you the woman I met in that dream?" he asked, his body trembling.
"That wasn't a dream… Mr. Zavi. Actually, I—"
Before the mysterious woman could finish speaking, Zavi's consciousness began to fade. His vision blurred, and he collapsed face down in front of the entrance to his house.
"Tch… annoying."
"…"
Darkness.
Fear and emptiness piled together in that instant, a sensation far too familiar. He had been at this point before.
"…Hey. Zavi. Wake up. Why were you screaming like that?" Ren's voice sounded panicked, far too close. His eyes stared intensely at Zavi—into a pair of blue eyes now wet with tears.
What… was I crying just now?
The thought surfaced unconsciously.
Once his eyes fully opened, a violent throbbing greeted his head. Nausea rose from his stomach, catching his breath. That was how it felt when Zavi finally woke from a sleep that felt far too long and far too deep.
Yes. His encounter with that insane woman had indeed happened. Not in the real world, and not in another world either. Everything had taken place in his subconscious—a space he had shared with that strange woman, since who knew when.
"How long… was I asleep?" he asked softly, his voice nearly drowned out by the pain in his head.
Zavi's gaze shifted. Beside him, Isabelle, his younger sister, sat leaning forward with her arms resting on the bed, asleep with slow, steady breathing. Zavi smiled faintly at her, even though his memories of that woman had vanished without a trace, as if she had never existed.
But one thing remained.
The ritual had failed.
He did not die. But his body was now paying a price he did not fully understand.
"I'm not sure," Ren answered quietly. "But Isabelle found you lying in the middle of the road on Friday afternoon. A lot of people had gathered around you… some of them even said you were already dead."
Ren swallowed and took a breath before continuing. "Today is Saturday, the twenty-seventh. It's twelve noon."
Zavi frowned.
"Yeah. I understand…" he whispered weakly.
Even Ren, a Receiver, did not realize what had changed within Zavi. He already possessed that ability. Magician. But for now, he merely had it. Without control. Without understanding. Without even being aware of it.
Author's note: A Hollow, who possesses one of the fifteen currently known supernatural abilities, each with different traits that increase with levels from one to five, is not necessarily called a Receiver.
A Receiver is, without exception, a Hollow. Because they obtain their supernatural abilities through ritual, allowing that power to flow directly within their body, with the added requirement of consuming an herbal potion to control it. Unlike a Hollow who gains power through a contract with an otherworldly being, storing that power within an object—not within their body—and not needing to drink any herbal potion.
"If you're fine, that's good," Ren said, then turned away after realizing something. "Oh, Mother left earlier. I don't know where she went. What I do know is that she didn't say anything since this morning."
'After seeing Mother's behavior, I couldn't let her go out alone. Luckily, I asked Veranica to watch over her, and of course I'll pay her with a bottle of red wine,' Ren thought.
Silence fell once more.
And behind Zavi's still-weak body, something had awakened—silent, waiting, and not yet ready to be revealed.
Click.
The door opened wide, letting air from the living room slowly flow into the bedroom. Then Ren stepped out, making sure to close the door behind him.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
From inside the room, Zavi could clearly hear Ren's footsteps as he climbed the stairs.
"Being hungry really isn't pleasant." The rumbling of his stomach broke the silence, bringing life back into the quiet room.
He got up, sat on the bed, then tried to leave it slowly so as not to wake his younger sister. But the moment he stood, his legs trembled—unable to support his weight—and he collapsed straight onto the floor.
Thud…
The sound echoed clearly throughout the room, disturbing Isabelle's deep sleep. She woke up, rubbing both her eyes, and saw something vaguely beside her.
"Who's there?" she murmured weakly, then yawned.
"Ow… ow ow…"
Startled.
"Huh. You're awake already." Isabelle stood up and pushed the chair back. Relief and worry mixed within her.
Without thinking and without helping him up first, she hugged Zavi tightly. She didn't even care that her older brother had just fallen.
"Ah. I c-can't breathe properly. Get away from me!" Zavi said, his body shaking.
Isabelle released him and stood there, looking at Zavi with her mischievous smile.
"Sorry, sorry. I got carried away." Isabelle stuck out her tongue slightly.
Zavi looked at his sister with a gloomy expression and said, "Help me stand up. I think I've forgotten how to stand."
"How can you forget how to stand?" she asked in disbelief. "You're lying, aren't you? I'm sure of it," she said, guiding Zavi to his feet and pulling a chair over for him to sit on.
Then she added, "Could it be… you got rejected by a woman?"
'Indeed, after Zavi had his feelings rejected by a woman, his heart had shattered and felt empty. He didn't know what to do anymore, and he had accidentally spoken about that rejection to Isabelle, having no friends to confide in.'
He frowned.
"Why do you always bring that up? Is there nothing else you can do to cheer me up?" he asked, then raised his voice—not harshly—telling her to leave his room immediately.
Isabelle grew sullen after hearing those words.
"So a younger sister isn't allowed to be in her older brother's room?"
"No," Zavi answered without the slightest hesitation.
Isabelle puffed up her cheeks in anger.
"Fine, then. I'll leave."
She turned around and stomped out of the room.
"Hey, Isabelle. Don't tell me you're angry?" Zavi frowned.
The door slammed shut, the impact echoing throughout the house, startling anyone who heard it—including Ren, who was outside.
"What was that sound?" Ren glanced back. "Are they doing something strange again?" he muttered to himself, unaware of what was going on in the minds of his two siblings.
Then he continued walking calmly, searching for their mother while also gathering information about what had happened in the city or the kingdom, along with anything important.
Meanwhile, inside the room, Zavi kept calling out his sister's name.
"Isabelle… Oh, Isabelle. I'm sorry if my words were too harsh."
Was that too harsh? It didn't matter. What mattered was influencing her thoughts and emotions so she would come back to him.
Isabelle was still standing in front of his bedroom door.
'Hmm. Did I go too far?' Isabelle thought, her heart uneasy after hearing his words.
Click. The door opened slightly, just enough for one of Isabelle's eyes to peek through.
"Yeah. I'm sorry too," she said, her expression gloomy. Then she opened the door and walked back in.
Zavi smiled inwardly.
'Just as planned.'
They stared at each other for several seconds, until Zavi finally revealed his true intention.
"I haven't eaten since Thursday. Would you make me something to eat?" he asked, his eyes sparkling as he tried to convince his sister.
"Huh, fine, fine."
Isabelle turned around and walked toward the kitchen to prepare something simple, tasty, and filling.
A few minutes later. Isabelle entered the room carrying a plate in her hand with two slices of sandwich that she had just heated up.
"Ah... I forgot to tell you," said Isabelle as she handed him the plate.
Zavi took it, then said in surprise, "Tell me what?"
Isabelle walked to the side, sat on the bed, and crossed her legs.
"Who was it?" she thought, touching her chin to remember. "A woman who came to see me that time. And she asked me the same thing, 'Where is your sister?' I answered her, she was unconscious, lying weakly on her bed."
"Oh... I remember her, her name is Zeta Audervin."
Zavi opened his eyes wider.
"Zeta, you say?"
"Yes." Isabelle walked over to the window and tilted her head back to gaze at the beautiful ceiling and the birds flying by.
'I see. In that case... I have no other choice but to meet that person as I had planned.'
"Thank you, Isabelle." Zavi glanced at Isabelle, then ate all the sandwiches on the plate.