The road to the capital was stretched out before us, after that first night Sara had returned to being herself... or rather she'd returned to being the new Sara that had been created from the latest events.
When morning came, she assisted me with packing up the tent, and even cooking our breakfast.
Even when we were about to set out on the road she argued about how she should share the load and help in carrying the travel supplies.
I had at first just assumed she wanted to hold onto some things fearing i would abandon her, leaving her without anything at all to survive with out here in the wild.
But as we walked on, and i saw her struggling to keep up while holding pack containing only food, and a few animal parts and drops, all without saying a word of complaint that opinion changed.
She was either trying to prove herself useful to me, so i wouldnt cast her aside, or she was trying to prove something to herself instead.
Because she got exhausted quickly, we had to take many breaks to let her recover.
During one of these breaks we finally had our first real conversation since setting out.
"Why are you going to the capital?"
"I think my siblings are there, and... well one of them i need to kill."
"Kill!?"
"Yeah... hes gone down the wrong path... and well i need to stop him before he cant harm anyone else."
"But why does it need to be you?"
"Why? Well... its because, its my fault he was able to become as strong as he is, resulting in him acting as he does now."
"Eh?"
She seemed confused by my words, how had i made my siblings stronger, so for the next hour i spoke to her about the cleaned up version of my history.
About how i was talented, and chose to hunt monsters to help the orphanage, how i had agreed to have my orphan siblings join me in the hunt, how i had taught them how to fight, how to hunt, how to survive.
And lastly about how upon our awakening ceremony all three of them awoke to rare job classes that cause their former selves to disappear on the spot.
And in their place new terrors were born, one was driven by his ego, and endlessly was seeking more and more fame, while another was seeking power without care for how he gained it, while my sister... well i didnt really know anything about her yet, but there was a bad feeling in my heart since the other two had already been going astray what was to stop her?
I dont know why i was telling her, perhaps it was because i needed to say it, without it mattering just who it was i was saying it too. I needed to get the guilt i was carrying off my chest.
What came after this disclosure was a renewed Sara.
She kept asking questions as we carried on our journey, about everything... Why we took certain paths, how i had killed monsters or animals, why i could just vanish and reappear in another place.
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At first I gave simple answers.
Then she started watching me whenever i was doing even simple things, and eventually, I realized what she was doing, she wasn't merely curious, she was studying me.
She had heard the story about how i had trained my sibling and what came from it, but she seemed to think that if she didnt ask for training and instead learned on her own she could avoid becoming just like those three.
After having watched the third rabbit be discected she volunteered to do the next one i captured.
Her technique was rought and her cuts shaky, but in the end she did manage to replicate everything i had previously been doing.
Effectively passing down the skills Sister and Mother had passed down to me.
But when she was done, i caught her staring down at the knife in her hands, and wasnt sure if she was thinking dark thoughts about using that knife, or if she was experiencing trauma from seeing the blood on the knife.
"I have to learn." She stated resolving herself.
But i was right there and couldnt help asking Why? Why do you need to learn?
She didn't answer immediately.
Then she said the words so quietly that I almost missed them. "If I'm going to kill him."
My hand stopped what it was doing, turning to look her full on.
"Someone took everything from me, my father, my home, my reason for living... and the only thing i can do is get my revenge, avenging my father so he can rest peacfully in the beyond." As her words spilled out she looked almost relaxed to finally be speaking the thoughts that had been racing around her head. "I know what you are probably thinking, but please dont talk me out of it, this is the path ive chosen and will walk it to whatever end."
There was no rage in her face.
That was what bothered me, there was determination. Cold, frightening determination.
"I need strength." She spoke having turned her face to look directly at me and making her request.
And suddenly I understood, she had picked up on something, be it that i knew how to train her to the point she could achieve her revenge, or simply giving her the power to get it .
I looked away unable to look her in the eyes, rejecting her request felt like i would be rejecting her very way of life.
It was all my fault, if she hadnt been taken, her father wouldnt have been hurt in the first place, though if that hadnt happened perhaps she herself would have also died alongside her father by the hands of the second assailant who came later.
But now she was asking me to give her power, to create yet another monster that would be unleashed upon the world, all so she could find whoever was responsible and kill them... but what would come after.
Would she kill herself, or would she fall completely into darkness and turn into yet another monster i would need to take care of.
I could only nod my head, i was agreeing to train her, but i wasnt agreeing to modify her status.
Each time we stopped to rest, i gave her a task, swing a wooden stick 100 times, perform things like pushups, squats, or even planks to increase her strength.
At night i would have her run around to increase her agility and stamina.
The people of the world somehow earned their skills without being able to assign their points themselves which mean there must be a natural way to assign those points throught training.
At dinner she'd have me tell her stories about my fights with Bandits, and monsters.
She would sit on the edge of her seat hearing about those fights as if she were listening to a story about a hero slaying a demonking.
But after days of this, she once more seemed to change.
At dinner that night she didnt ask for a story and instead kept averting her eyes from looking right at me.
"What?" i couldnt help asking since this was abnormal given what i knew about her, even checking my face to make sure there wasnt anything on it.
But what she said next was enough to shock me into falling off the rock was sitting on.
"I know you're training me as a person, you said it before your sibling gained power thanks to you, but you never told me how they were trained which meant you didnt train them, because they were you siblings." Her face was red as she paused to continue, "If so i want you to give me power but not as a person... so take me as your slave, on the condition that you'll let me get my revenge."
Eh.
Even as i lay there on the ground staring up at the sky, i couldnt help but wonder how it had come to this.
She had been training for only a week and yet seemed to think her pace was slow, which i couldnt answer if it was or not, having never watched someone train regularly to gain stats.
But to think she had gleemed the hidden answer about how i could give her power without needing to train... and even offering up what remained of her life in exchange...