Aftermath

By the time the heavens glowed to signal the end of the odyssey, Al was lying on the ground, his limbs spread open as if he was making snow angels in the mud. One might look at him and think that he was resting… but the truth was that he had collapsed, and if not for the timely death of the villain, it might have been his loss.

'Too close…too damn close. I never imagined that he would have coated his dagger with poison, and if it weren't for my precautions…'

Not for the first time since his cowardly escape, he got this thought. Yet, for now, he stopped it and waited for the system to heal him and teleport him out.

He had heard a lot about the magical healing abilities of the odyssey system. After all, in odysseys with no danger, it was required that anyone who was injured should live no matter how great the injury was, so the talk was that it was always waiting on hold, somehow present everywhere like the gods to save those who were on the brink and bring them back with almost no effort.

In his last odyssey, he had managed to not sustain even a scratch, so the contrast was almost funny. Even now, he could still feel the poison that was eating away at his body, making him gasp to draw breath as pain radiated throughout each and every part of him.

It had also been difficult to hide his veins that had turned blue. In the end, he had had to use the cheap rouge of the wife of the bartender he had kidnapped, and thankfully, because no one had looked closely, it had worked.

As for his plan… It had completely hinged on the hero continuing his heartless actions so that a point would be reached where he would just need to throw in that parchment to tip the scales. The man had cooperated wonderfully, and hence, he had had no option but to face the wrath of those who really, really did not want their pasts to be laid bare.

Using the secrets of those he was in command of to obtain a foothold in their minds was one of the first ideas he had written down that he had truly been proud of. He had known that if used properly, it would lead to a complete reversal of the situation… and that was exactly what had happened.

"All goals have been met. The odyssey has ended. Victor: Villain."

A sudden feeling of weightlessness and the voice from the heavens interrupted his stream of thought. He felt himself being teleported, and then… it was as if he had been dipped into a hot spring.

This description came to mind abruptly, as he remembered the trip his family had taken so many years ago. He had been a child, so he didn't recall much, but a few flashes still surfaced from the deepest corners of his memories.

A private jet, an army of servants, a floor of a hotel cleared just for them, and a hot spring that was bought exclusively for their use for the duration of their stay.

Apart from that, the only thing he remembered perfectly was the sensation of feeling all the pores on one's body open in response to the heat before absorbing what could only be one of nature's greatest gifts, and right now, as he felt his flesh knit and his bones be set back in place with not an ounce of pain affecting him in the slightest, he knew that all of the stories were true.

He wished that he could stay there, hidden in the safe cocoon that had formed about him. Alas, it ended too quickly, and with his face showing disappointment, he opened his eyes to find that he was back at the odyssey station.

He didn't make the same mistake as the last time. Hurrying forward, he half-walked, half-ran in the direction of the podium behind which stood the same woman who had talked kindly to him before. There was a different podium beside her's that had a smaller queue, but still, he decided to wait to take his reward from her.

When he reached her, she raised her hand to her mouth and gasped comically.

"Oh, my! What is this? Has such a young villain won another odyssey, already? I've seen so many go gallivanting in the city after winning just one! Are you the young master of some powerful family, perhaps? Oh, tell me now, so that I can swoon all over you!"

Winning the odyssey in such a spectacular fashion had put him in a really good mood. He still remembered all the hate he had felt for the hero when the man had subjected him to so much pain, so it had been extremely satisfying to see him being thrashed and killed by the same people he had sought to murder. The cherry on top of the cake had been the two women he had ordered to be released using a guard he had managed to buy back to his side. He had bristled with rage when he found out about what he had done to them, and even though he had recalled that they wouldn't remember anything, it was something that hadn't felt right to him, at all.

Deciding to go along with her, he put both his hands on his hips and leaned back. Letting out a booming laugh, he said, "You've guessed it! I'm a young master… of a family that is going to grow powerful because of me! So you better start swooning now, or you won't have a chance in the future!"

He could hear someone behind him grumbling, but he ignored them. Holding her hand in front of her mouth, the woman laughed and said, "Alright, alright, I'll keep that in mind… now, let's move this along, or I'll be scolded by my supervisor."

Her pure laughter reminded him of a time when his mom used to burst out laughing at his jokes, no matter how bad they were. The memory made a wave of sadness suddenly appear, but as he had learned to do long ago, he shoved it aside to deal with it later and nodded. Stretching his hand forward, he scanned it on the invisible machinery inside the podium, and a moment later, the kindly lady raised one eyebrow and looked at him as if she was truly impressed, now.

"You really don't cease to surprise me, young man. You've completed both objectives, and obtained a bonus reward! Here you go… one healing ward, as you requested, and one entrance pass to an auction that is going to be held in two weeks! I hear that there are going to be a lot of precious objects up for sale, so break out your emergency fund!"

For a moment, he could only pause and stare into the distance as he remembered the sad state of his finances. He snapped out of it when the one behind him said something about how it was taking so long, so with another nod, he walked away from the podium and toward the exit.

The glum mood remained even after he put away the cloak and wore his clothes. But after that… a sudden thought immediately made him perk up.

'That little guy will be waiting for me! I wonder if he woke up! And…with the healing ward, I might be able to make mom wake up this time!'

Cherishing the images of the pitch-black husky and his mom sitting up in her bed, he walked out confidently…but he stopped, mid-step, as a familiar face peeked out of the crowd of people in front of him who were all hurrying along in the large road that led out of the odyssey station.

It was that of the hero who had stolen from him the last time, and left him bleeding on the side of the road. He grinned maniacally as he spotted Al, and his intention became clear: he wanted history to repeat.

Gulping, Al turned to his right and raised his hands to shove through the stream of people exiting the odyssey station.

A scream made him pause. He had been looking in the direction of the hero repeatedly to make sure that the man was far away, so he hadn't been paying attention to what was in front of him. When he looked around to see what was wrong, he found the problem.

His hands were resting on two soft mounds that were heaving up and down.

Another scream made him look up to find the face of a woman glaring at him. The suddenness of the situation made his mind go blank, and for a moment, his body continued what he had told it to do before.

He pushed, and her eyes widened.

The last thing he remembered before being slapped into unconsciousness was her hand being drawn back, and the spongy sensation in his palms that felt oh, so incredible.