[23.3] Something Stolen

I lay in that bed for weeks without being able to move.

I had no appetite.

I had no will to live.

However, that woman wouldn't let me go.

Every day, she would come in to sing to me, feed me, bathe me, and even help massage my muscles in hope that I would soon regain control over them.

Before I had arrived, the body had been a living corpse. From the moment Della's daughter was born, she never opened her eyes, she never cried, and she never moved.

She looked like a child who was just permanently asleep.

She remained that way until I occupied her body and forced her heavy eyelids open.

…But I still had the memories from another life that I desperately wanted to forget.

Della walked into the room humming and holding a bowl of soup, "Good morning, darling! I've brought some tasty breakfast!"

I glared at her, "I... I don't want to eat!"

She forced on a smile, "Nora-"

I grit my teeth, "Stop calling me that!"

She paused and then changed her words, "Reika, you must eat. You've been getting so thin. I'm worried you'll get sick and-and-"

She paused and pinched her eyebrows together.

She took a deep breath, "I don't want to see you in pain… So here, let me help you eat so you can get nice and strong."

She put the spoon to my mouth.

I summoned all my strength to shove the food out of my face. It splattered across the floor.

I heaved heavily, "I. Said. I. Didn't. Want. To. Eat."

With a faint and pained smile, she bent down slowly and picked up the discarded food.

She forced her voice to be cheerful, "You can throw things now… How wonderful. You're getting stronger. Soon you'll be able to walk and-"

I scoffed, "Stop trying to act like a saint. People like you are all the same. You act all nice, but as soon as it no longer benefits you, you turn into a hateful beast."

She paused, then smiled at me softly, "Reika…"

Grossed out by her overly affectionate tone, I made a face, "What!?"

She spoke meaningfully, "I won't leave you. I will never betray you. Most importantly... I will never hurt you."

My heart thumped in my chest.

She rubbed my head gently, "I will be your number one supporter, no matter what."

I smacked her hand away, "Liar. You're just like the rest."

She continued to smile, "I will work hard so that you know my words are true."

With that, she left the room.

I stared at the closed door with an emptiness inside of me.

I muttered, "You'll give up eventually."

…But she didn't.

She continued to act like a saint. The only day I ever saw anything other than a smile on her face was the day she barged into the room in a cold sweat. Before I could say anything, a man wearing a long black coat walked in behind her. His face was stern and there was no hint of tenderness in his eyes.

I met his stare without wavering.

Patrick followed behind, staring at the priest nervously.

Della spun around and chatted anxiously, "R-Reika is better now, so you don't need to check on her. She woke up and-"

The man interrupted, "Reika? Wasn't it Nora before?"

Her voice was low and timid, "Ah, well… That… Um, I thought a name change would be nice."

He narrowed his eyes at her and hummed judgmentally, "Is that so?"

She laughed nervously and averted her eyes.

I scoffed, "I thought priests were supposed to be kind."

He looked back at me without any sense of warmth, "Child, if I were you I would be begging for kindness."

Immediately a sour feeling filled my mouth. I spoke in a mocking tone, "I won't ever beg."

"We will see about that."

He bent down to sit next to me and pulled out a wand.

I watched him with sharp eyes as a light fled from the tip and circled around me.

He abruptly pulled his wand back and stood up. He glared at me before turning to leave, "Della. Patrick."

She flinched, "U-Uh! Yes!"

They followed him outside of the room and closed the door behind them. I focused my ears to listen in on their conversation.

The priest spoke in a voice without compassion, "That body has an imposter inside of it."

Patrick spoke quickly, "How can you be sure? I didn't notice any-"

He interrupted, "That child was born without a soul. Now she suddenly has one, but I cannot detect any mana. She can also speak perfectly despite being so young and never learning how to talk. There's only one answer. It's a demon here to wreak havoc and destruction."

Della whimpered, "B-But she seems like a nice girl and-"

"Nice!?" He snapped at her loudly, "That creature is a demon sent here to beguile and push you off of the path of heavenly light! It's not nice! It's manipulation!"

I tightened my fists as an uncontrollable dark emotion swirled in my chest.

It's not like I asked to be here!

I'm just a mere puppet in the hands of fate.

I can't walk.

I can barely even lift my head.

Why would I want this kind of life!?

Why would I want to manipulate these people when all I really want is to find a dark cave and disappear!?

Forget people.

I'd rather never see a human being ever again.

I chuckled under my breath, "Humans are far worse than any demon."

I loosened my fists and stared up at that ceiling.

The priest's voice was firm, "I am going to collect the rest of my men and return. We will exorcise this demon immediately."

Her voice trembled, "A-Ah… I see…"

Patrick spoke slowly, "Do you really think that's best?"

"It is."

I heard the priest's footsteps depart.

Each step echoed the darkness I felt inside.

My eyes slowly turned to the ceiling as I stared up at it with dead eyes.

I knew they were the same as the others.

I will be thrown away.

I will be alone once more.