Restart Again: Volume 1 by Adam Scott (pocket ebook reader TXT) 📕

gaze as I spoke. “They didn’t. They had plans for her...awful, unspeakable things. They tried to…” I hesitated a moment, but continued on. “They tried to hurt her, and I killed them for it. I killed all of them.” The memory played back in my mind in fuzzy fragments. Everything was blurred with a red haze as I watched them die again. What...what did I do to them? That tunnel vision, that spell...what was that? It made me shudder. Without the adrenaline pumping through me, remembering that night made me feel unclean.

“Good. They were evil men, and the world is much better off without them in it.” She stood, wiping away the tears that had welled up in her eyes. “Now, I should go calm down Lia. She’s just so easy to tease that sometimes I get a bit carried away.” Giving me a small smile, she turned to leave, but stopped at the door. “All of your things are in the crate against the back wall. If you’re feeling up to it, dinner is almost ready upstairs. You’re welcome to join us.”

“Thank you...oh. I’m sorry, but I never asked for your name,” I realized mid-sentence, feeling slightly rude.

“No need to apologize, you’ve only been awake for a few minutes. My name is Hana Corell, and my husband’s name is Marten Corell.” Hana gave a small, respectful nod. “Thank you for saving Marlia, Lux.” She turned to leave, but I called out to stop her.

“Hana. Have any guards come by while I’ve been asleep?” It was an awkward question to ask out of nowhere, but I needed to be sure my theory was correct.

Hana put a hand to her cheek, thinking for a moment. “No, not as far as I know.” Her eyebrows raised in worry. “Should we be expecting them?”

I shook my head. “No, they shouldn’t have any idea where I went.” Giving her a pleasant smile, I bowed my head. “Sorry to bother you.” With that, Hana turned and went upstairs, leaving me alone in the basement. I breathed a sigh of relief. I guess that confirms it. Lia was never a real prisoner. They just locked her up down there where nobody would think to look for her.

I stood and moved to the crate Hana had indicated, taking a quick inventory of my things as I started to dress myself in my own attire. My clothes, armor, and personal effects seemed to be all accounted for. As I got dressed, I found my left shoulder to be sore, but not unusable anymore, for which I was extremely thankful. Apart from the aches and pains of malnutrition, I felt surprisingly good. Once I get some real food down and drink more water, my head should finally clear up. 

After I had dressed in my normal clothes, leaving my armor and effects in the crate, I made my way to the wooden stairway in the next room. It was clear to me that the basement was only used to store materials for Lia’s father’s trading business, and a rough path to my resting area had been shoved aside in a hurry. Had the guards come looking for me, it would have been easy to hide me among the dozens of boxes down here. Well played.

I climbed the stairs and pushed open the wooden door at the top, wincing as the full light of day shone down on me from an opposing window. I was in a small den with a few cloth chairs around a table and a large animal pelt rug splayed out on the floor. The walls looked to be composed of a plaster-like substance coated with a bright yellow paint. Here and there along its expanse hung decorative wooden carvings and woven wreaths, giving the room a very homey feeling.

To my left, I could hear voices floating out from around a corner, so I set off in that direction. Walking through an unfamiliar house by myself made me feel as though I were a home intruder, sneaking around to steal valuables while the family ate in the other room. I did my best to shake off the feeling as I rounded the corner, entering what was apparently the dining room.

The first thing I noticed was the heavenly aromas wafting from the open kitchen directly past the dining table. The smell of roasted fowl, fresh baked bread, and boiled greens made my mouth water, and I had to stop and take a prolonged inhale to satisfy the initial cravings. Lia and her mother were working together on something I couldn’t see, though I could hear the tapping of knives against a cutting board. Directly in front of me, a stout, hairy man sat at the round dining room table watching them work.

I immediately felt uncomfortable again, standing unnoticed in the corner of the room. Should I...leave? Wait around the corner for them to start eating, and then come in again? I don’t want to startle them, maybe—

My thought was cut off abruptly by my stomach gurgling loudly, apparently convinced by the lovely smell of food to be hungry again. The man in front of me spun around in his chair and let out a small shout of surprise when he saw me standing behind him.

“By the Primes, you scared me!” He let out a hearty laugh. “My heart nearly jumped from my chest!” Lia and Hana were also laughing, most likely startled by the yell.

“Lux, you’re up!” Lia shouted happily. Instantly, she put a hand to her mouth, looking stunned by her own exclamation. She shot a sideways glare at her mother, then quickly turned back to whatever she had been working on. Hana covered a laugh and turned back with Lia, leaning over to whisper something in her ear. Although I couldn’t see her face, I could tell Lia was feeling sheepish.

“You know, I didn’t think you’d ever wake up. When they dragged you out of that forest, you looked pretty rough.” The man stood from the