Past – Eileen

Eileen couldn’t believe the scene before her eyes.

“…Why are you doing this here?”

“Orca, I told you not to bring Eileen.”

“I didn’t want to bring her either?! This is driving me crazy!”

What appeared before the girl’s eyes was her father, whom she hadn’t seen since early childhood.

Eileen blankly stared at her father-no.

At what used to be her father.

“You told me. That you were the strongest. That you’d never die.”

She couldn’t hear what people around her were saying anymore.

Unable to bear the emptiness in her heart, the girl muttered as if spitting out the lump in her chest.

***

Eileen’s father had been praised by everyone since her earliest childhood.

Stories about him being the world’s strongest or the Sword Saint naturally reached young Eileen’s ears. As a child, she felt immensely proud of her father being praised by everyone, even though it wasn’t her own achievement.

“Dad, you’re amazing! I want to be like you!”

“My daughter. To become as strong as Dad, you’ll have to work very hard.”

“I can do it! Because I’m Dad’s daughter!”

Eileen took pride in her kind and strong father, wanting to become like him herself.

Perhaps the talent was hereditary.

When the Sword Saint saw Eileen swinging a tree branch while imitating her father, he glimpsed the spark of extraordinary talent.

“…Daughter, want to try holding a sword?”

“Yes!”

“Here, watch closely what Dad does.”

Having glimpsed his daughter’s talent, the Sword Saint handed her a small wooden sword and performed a sword dance before her.

“There, how’s this? Like this…?!”

“Dad, you’re so cool! Like this? It’s fun!”

He was astonished when he turned to explain the proper stance.

Because she was perfectly mimicking his movements, despite it being a simple sword dance.

Without any explanation, just by watching.

This child will go far.

Intuiting this, the Sword Saint began teaching Eileen swordsmanship.

Eileen happily learned swordsmanship from her beloved father, eager to receive his praise.

The peaceful family routine shattered when Eileen had been learning swordsmanship for about half a year.

One afternoon when expensively dressed visitors came to their house as usual.

“Daughter, Dad… has something to tell you.”

“Huh? What is it?”

“…Will you be okay alone for a while without Dad?”

It was a blatant question.

A notice that he’d be away for some time.

Naturally, Eileen vehemently resisted the idea of not seeing her father’s face.

…Well, being young at the time, her resistance only amounted to turning her head away and refusing to talk to him.

“She’s really sulking now. What should we do, honey?”

“What can we do? She’s still a child. Eileen? You’re making things difficult for Dad.”

“…”

“Hmm… I don’t want to be hated by my daughter.”

Her father smiled bitterly as if troubled, then spoke as if struck by inspiration.

“That’s right. If Eileen stays a good girl, I’ll be back soon. Really. Promise.”

“…Really?”

“Yes. When Dad returns, I’ll let you eat all the snacks you love until you burst. Really.”

“You promise?”

“Yes, promise.”

To young Eileen, a promise was something that absolutely had to be kept no matter what.

Dad said he’d be back soon. If I wait just a little, he’ll let me eat my fill of snacks that he always said were unhealthy and only gave me small portions of.

A day passed, a week passed, a month passed, and Eileen waited.

Clutching only her father’s promise.

“Mom, when is Dad coming back?”

“…He’ll be back soon, Eileen. Let’s wait just a little longer.”

“…”

But her father never returned.

Her mother’s previously relaxed expression hardened, and the atmosphere at home grew increasingly cold.

Yet Eileen still believed in her father. Because her kind, loving dad couldn’t possibly lie.

It must be because Eileen wasn’t being good enough.

Remembering how happy her father looked when she held a sword, she became increasingly obsessed with swords.

Because holding a sword made her feel like her father was beside her.

Then one day.

Eileen noticed that the flashily dressed people she’d seen before had come to their house again.

After those people appeared, Dad left somewhere. I should teach them a lesson so they never come to our house again.

With that thought, Eileen followed them.

Unfortunately for her, Eileen succeeded in tailing them without being noticed.

If she’d been caught, she might have continued loving her father.

“Madam, I apologize for bringing such unfortunate news. The Sword Saint has gone missing.”

“…Is my husband… dead?”

“No body has been found. With no signs of battle, we suspect desertion…?! Who’s there!”

“E-Eileen…?!”

Leaving behind her shocked-looking mother, Eileen locked herself in her room.

Dad couldn’t have run away. Dad was the world’s strongest. Why would someone who can’t lose to anyone run away?

But that man said Dad was missing.

Young Eileen didn’t fully understand the man’s words, but she comprehended the situation itself.

Dad wasn’t defeated, but disappeared.

He abandoned Mom and me and ran away. Liar. He said he’d come back soon if I was a good girl.

He said he’d let me eat lots of delicious snacks.

Liar, liar, liar.

The girl suddenly realized.

That her father would never return.

But the girl didn’t want to accept it.

The fact that her father would never return.

So the girl decided to become a bad child.

From that day on, Eileen stopped holding the sword her father loved.

She stopped studying to be a good girl too. She simply drifted along, doing nothing.

To people who whispered about her being a fatherless orphan, she boldly shouted that she didn’t need such a father.

Declaring that if she ever met him again, she’d kill him with her own hands.

Because she thought if she did that, her father might come find her and scold her severely.

But still, her father never came.

As she grew older, Eileen became unable to tell whether she wanted to meet her father or kill him.

And now.

Eileen faced the corpse of the father she’d both loved and hated.

***

“Hah. I wanted to kill him myself, but he’s already dead.”

“…”

“What’s with you all? Why those reactions? Showing awkward concern that doesn’t suit me? I’m fine. Just a bit disappointed I couldn’t kill him myself.”

She had no interest in dead people, even if they were alive it might be different.

As Eileen muttered this, Ophelia hugged her.

“What’s this, Teacher? It’s stuffy.”

“It’s okay not to pretend to be strong.”

“Pretending to be strong? It’s not like that. Do you really think I’d be sad seeing a loser who abandoned his family and ran from war?”

“…I don’t think he actually ran away.”

“What?”

Eileen glared at Orca with murderous eyes.

Didn’t run away? That’s impossible.

But unlike usual, Orca with her red eyes seemed certain.

That he hadn’t abandoned his family.

Eileen screamed in rage.

“If he really didn’t run away, then why is he here?! This place is far from our home! There were sightings just a few years ago! Then he should have come to find me. Why didn’t he come?”

“Not sure where he got caught, but he was cursed. What a nasty hobby.”

“…A curse?”

“Among demons, there are sneaky bastards who steal bodies and pretend to be the original owners. This is one of their infectious curses.”

“What, what do you know…”

“I know these things best-being a demon myself.”

At Orca’s twisted smile, Eileen finally realized.

What stood before her now wasn’t the demon-possessed Orca, but something dormant within her.

But that wasn’t important to her right now.

What had that demon just said? A curse? Infectious type?

“It’s a blood-borne curse. The more genetically similar, the easier it is to infect.”

“…”

“Once caught, it spreads uncontrollably. The only solution… Hmm. Besides burning all infected people? Since blood is the medium. Ah, don’t worry too much. Without the host’s blood, you won’t catch it now.”

Though she’d abandoned her studies, Eileen with her sharp mind understood everything the demon said.

So they’re saying there was a reason Father never came to see me?

…Cut the crap. How would they know?

There’s no way I can accept such a story.

As Eileen tried to retort, she paused at the feeling of her teacher stroking her head.

“…Teacher?”

“It’s okay, it’s okay. I understand being shocked by sudden news.”

“Wait, what…”

“It’s alright. Teacher will stay by your side forever. You were lonely, weren’t you?”

“…”

It was strange.

Even when her mother comforted her, she’d felt nothing.

But her teacher’s voice was mesmerizing, as if trying to draw her in.

“You don’t have to feel lonely anymore. You have me and your friends. It’s okay not to be lonely anymore.”

Listening blankly to her teacher’s voice, Eileen finally realized.

That she had been lonely from the very beginning.

That she quit swordsmanship training because holding a sword reminded her of her father.

That while claiming not to miss her father, she missed him more than anyone.

“…You know, Teacher. I was lonely.”

“It must have been hard.”

Eileen realized.

That telling herself she was fine without her father wasn’t armor-it was a prison.

That she never truly wanted to be alone.

“I wanted to kill Father… Because he has to be alive for me to kill him.”

If she didn’t think about killing him, she’d unconsciously start believing her father was dead.

But even if her father had really been alive, could she have killed him?

Who knows. Seeing how she was now, she might have thrown a childish tantrum instead.

She imagined her father floundering with apologies… Though it was a dream that could never come true now, it made her happy.

“It’s okay, it’s okay… I’ll stay by your side.”

“…Really?”

“Of course. Teacher will always be by your side. Promise.”

Another promise.

The promise her father made right before never returning.

Eileen hesitated momentarily, wondering if making this promise would make her teacher disappear too, but eventually nodded.

“Okay, promise.”

Because she needed undeniable, absolute hope-no matter what.

Eileen decided to believe in a promise one more time.