Chapter 63: Anomaly (1)

Three days after the Tartarus incident, an unexpected change came over Sion’s body, disrupting her usual routine of eating and living well.

She first noticed something was wrong right after waking up.

“….?”

The lower part of her abdomen, which had been fine the day before, suddenly began to hurt, as if it were being poked by thick needles.

Worse still, her inner thighs felt sore, as if she’d overexerted her muscles.

A clear sign that something was wrong.

– “? Uh, Sion? Why are you rubbing your stomach all of a sudden while changing clothes?”

“I don’t know, I’m not feeling well…”

Sion frowned as she replied.

It had been 10 years since she had awakened to her past life’s memories, and during that time, she’d never once dealt with any kind of illness.

Not because she was naturally healthy, but because her body, filled with magic, didn’t succumb to typical sicknesses.

Her internal magic constantly maintained her balance, much like a gift from nature.

For someone like Sion, even a deadly disease with a 100% mortality rate would only give her a mild headache.

But now…

“Did I eat something poisonous yesterday? No, I ate the same cafeteria food as everyone else… So why is my lower abdomen in such pain…?”

Sion groaned, clutching her stomach.

She could easily cast a Delay Pain spell to suppress the pain temporarily, something she’d done many times before, like when her leg had cramped up in the past.

But this time, the cause of the pain was unknown.

Masking the pain without knowing what was wrong might mean missing a more serious warning.

“Well, I can’t take it anymore. I’m going to the bathroom.”

– “Alright, take care…”

Exia called out with a worried tone as Sion headed toward the bathroom.

After all, they’d been together for over 10 years now.

It was only natural that Exia would feel concerned when someone as resilient as Sion suddenly complained of pain.

She hoped it wasn’t anything serious…

CRASH!

– “!?!”

Suddenly, a loud noise echoed from behind the closed bathroom door.

– “S-Sion?! What happened in there?! Are you okay?!”

“……”

No response.

The silence stretched on for a few more seconds.

Then, the bathroom door slowly creaked open, and Sion emerged, her face pale as a ghost, staggering with shaky steps.

“…….Blood”

– “Huh? What did you say?”

“…….Came out……”

– “??? What the heck???”

Exia asks with a voice full of anxiety.

To her question, Sion slowly slowly turned her head like a ghost and muttered eerily.

“Blood was flowing out from my lower abdomen”

Ten minutes later…

– “Huuuuu! Nooo! Sion, you can’t die! You’ve only been alive for 15 years since your resurrection! You can’t go like this! It’s too soon! What will we do?!”

“Shut up! I’m not dying!!”

– “But you said you were bleeding! And you don’t even know why! Soon, all the blood will drain out of your body! You’ll turn into a living mummy!”

“Didn’t I tell you to be quiet?!”

The room was a complete mess.

Exia was wailing in despair, while Sion was trying her best to suppress the rising panic.

Though their reactions differed, the underlying emotions were the same—confusion and anxiety.

“Alright, calm down, both of you.”

Mana, who had rushed over after receiving an urgent message, tried to bring the heated atmosphere back under control.

“Let’s go over this again. You woke up with stabbing pain in your abdomen and weakness in your legs. Thinking it was some kind of stomach issue, you went to the bathroom and found blood. Is that correct?”

“Yes…”

Sion nodded, feeling a deep sense of humiliation at having to discuss such matters with an old comrade, especially a woman.

But pride wouldn’t help her find the cause, and not dealing with this might lead to something much worse.

Mana brushed her hair back, thinking.

“Anything you can think of that might explain this? Did you get hurt during a fight? Eat something dangerous?”

“Impossible. When I fought the Abyssal Fiend, I didn’t get a single scratch. And as for food, I could eat cyanide by the spoonful without a problem. Nothing like that would—”

Sion suddenly froze, mid-sentence.

She fell silent, her face showing that something had just clicked.

“…There might be something after all.”

– “Wait, what?!”

Exia’s voice shot up in alarm.

– “What do you mean there’s something? What did you eat without telling me?!”

“Well, you know how we recently got that sample of life essence bloodstone?

The one made from pureblood demons’ blood? It’s meant for purebloods to consume, but since my soul is still technically demonic… I wondered if I could digest it, so…”

– “…You ate it?”

“…Yeah.”

– “You’ve lost your mind!!!”

Exia screamed, her voice filled with fury.

– “Are you insane?! What are you, some kid swallowing random toys?! Why would you do that?!”

“Well… I thought maybe if things went well, I could regain the strength I had in my prime.

And even if it didn’t work out, with all the training and power I’ve accumulated, I didn’t think it would be a big deal…”

– “And what are you planning to do with that strength?

You’re already the strongest on the continent as you are! You should be taking better care of your body instead of pulling stunts like this!”

“Urgh…”

Sion couldn’t come up with a proper rebuttal and hung her head in shame.

To think there would come a day when she’d lose a verbal argument to Exia.

Even Mana, who had been silently watching, wore a rare expression of disappointment as she looked at Sion.

“So, how much did you eat? One? Or more?”

“…Just one. I didn’t want to overdo it and cause any side effects.”

Mana sighed in relief.

“Well, at least it was only one. With the amount of magic in your body, one shouldn’t be enough to do any lasting damage. Still, just to be safe, I’ll excuse you from classes today.

Don’t go wandering around, and make sure to rest up in your room.”

“I appreciate your consideration.”

Mana nodded and cast a quick teleportation spell to leave.

Once again, the room was left with only Sion and Exia.

– “Admit it, you feel embarrassed, don’t you?”

Exia teased, clearly enjoying her moment of victory.

“…Shut up.”

Sion’s voice was barely audible, but it was as good as admitting it.

– “Well, look on the bright side. At least you get to skip boring classes.

Why not use the time to develop some new spells or something?”

Sion sat down at her desk, trying to convince herself that this wasn’t so bad after all.

Aside from the shame of how it happened, this situation wasn’t too terrible.

Who didn’t enjoy a break from responsibilities now and then? Even the Demon King wasn’t immune to that.

At school, Sion had to act proper, pretending to be the model student, but here in her room, she could be herself, free from all those burdens.

Today, at least, she’d get some uninterrupted personal time…

“YO! I’m here! Hero, are you alive?!”

“Wha—?!”

Sion, who had been about to lean back in her chair and relax, nearly jumped out of her skin at the sudden voice and the door slamming open.

It was Therese. The elder of the twin sisters—who, as of late, Sion had mentally dubbed the “Annoying Twins.”

“Oh, what’s this? You’re awake? So why didn’t you come to school?”

“G-Goodness…! Could you please at least knock before barging into someone’s room, Therese?

How rude is it to just walk in unannounced?!”

“Haha, sorry, sorry~ I thought you’d still be lazing around in bed. I went to your class this morning and didn’t see you.”

Therese grinned, strolling casually into the room.

Ever since the last incident, these twins had been way too casual with her, especially Therese, who now acted like they were lifelong friends.

Sion, on the other hand, wanted nothing more than to keep her distance from them.

“So, what’s up? Why didn’t you come to class?”

“My… my body isn’t feeling great today. I got permission from the principal to take a day off.”

“Eh? Really? What’s wrong with you?”

“Nothing serious, just—”

Just as Sion was about to brush her off with a vague excuse…

– “Oh, you’re gonna love this!”

Exia cut in before Sion could answer, still furious.

– “You remember that red stone we retrieved from Tartarus? The one made from sacrificing lives to create a spirit stone?

Well, this one here, without telling anyone, just ate it! Why? Because she was curious about what would happen!”

“Wait, seriously?! And then what?”

– “No idea! Since this morning, she’s been complaining about stomach pains, weak legs, nausea, and to top it off, she just started bleeding from her lower abdomen! You can imagine how worried I’ve been!”

Exia let out a dramatic sigh, clearly relishing the attention.

– “Honestly, Sion’s way too much trouble to take care of, don’t you think?”

“…..”

This idiot! Is she really using this chance to gloat over her “victory”? Is this her revenge for the windmill spin?

Sion ground her teeth in silent frustration.

She could cast a silence spell to shut Exia up, but that would be admitting defeat—something she wasn’t ready to do.

However, as Exia continued her rant, Therese’s expression shifted.

“Hold on,” Therese said, folding her arms.

“Let’s go over this again. Stomach pain, weak legs, nausea, and bleeding from your lower abdomen. These are all the symptoms you’re experiencing?”

– “Yes! And it’s all because she ate something without thinking, like she always does—”

“…Just to be sure, has this ever happened before?”

– “Uh? No, never,”

Exia answered, caught off guard by the shift in Therese’s tone.

Therese tilted her head, a puzzled expression on her face, before asking,

“Are you sure it’s not just period cramps?”

“…..Huh?”

Both Sion and Exia turned to look at each other, equally baffled.

Period cramps?

What the hell is that?

“I figured as much. You two have no clue, huh?”

“Period cramps are the pain women experience when their body releases an egg that didn’t get fertilized.

It usually happens about once a month for women. Pretty much everyone goes through it.”

“But I’ve never had these symptoms before,” Sion protested.

“Well, that’s because when you’re younger, your body doesn’t produce eggs.

As you get older and your body matures, it starts happening. This is what we call a ‘first period,’ and honestly, you’re pretty late to the party.”

Therese chuckled brightly.

“Anyway, congratulations! You’re officially a young woman now! If it gets too uncomfortable, let me know—I can teach you a few tricks to deal with it.”

“…”

“And hey, since you didn’t know about periods, I bet you don’t even have any pads, do you?

I can lend you some! I’ve got plenty back in my room. They might not be the exact right size, but—”

“…….”

“Uh, Hero? You listening?”

“……………..”

That day, Sion locked herself in her room and didn’t come out for the rest of the day.