Chapter 58: CH. 58 | Responsibility and Consequences

"B-But how is that possible?"

Theo looked at Avara, and suddenly the nausea in his stomach peaked. Unable to hold it back any longer, he threw up, and to his surprise, it was blood.

The sight sent a chill of worry through Avara.

[Warning! Temporal Status percentage has increased]

[Temporal Status: 12%] [↑5%]

His eyes settled on the system panel, which explained the jump in his Temporal Status percentage.

Theo had traveled across the timeline into the past. Even though it was brief, the effect on his Temporal Status was huge.

Avara hurried over with a glass of water. Theo drank it down and made sure he was steady and calm.

The truth had shaken him, but he tried to keep the shock from clouding his mind.

"How are you feeling?" Avara asked.

"I’m fine. I’m starting to calm down," Theo answered.

"Thank goodness," Avara said, sitting back down on the long sofa, "You really scared me."

Theo wiped his mouth clean of blood and finished the rest of the water. Slowly but surely, he started to feel better.

"Are you okay?"

"I’m okay, thanks, Ava."

"Now I don’t get it," Avara said, "How did you know they’re your parents? I mean, did you actually meet them? Did you talk to them?"

"Out of everyone in my party, you’re the only one who knows exactly what my power is."

"Honestly, I don’t mind telling you about it," Theo said.

He took a deep breath and showed her the Eye of Eternity Ring on his finger, then explained how the ring’s power worked and how it had let him travel into the past.

Avara listened. Every so often she added her own thoughts, based on what her father used to tell her.

"My father was once sent into the past with the help of Lord Aslan’s power. That’s how he saved the last of the Birdfolk before they were enslaved."

"So what you’re saying is that you can travel into the past using your Authority and that ring?" Avara asked, pointing at the ring on Theo’s right hand.

"I can, but I’m worried about the consequences. I know this power is terrifying, way beyond what any class could give me. But great power comes with great responsibility, for me and for everyone else," Theo explained.

"I know using Foresight can eat away at my lifespan down the road, but I have no idea what the consequences are when I use it to look into the past."

"You think too much, that’s what you’re like right now," Avara said, "What matters most is that you do your best to keep your power under control."

Avara leaned back and picked up her can of cola, "With that power, you could become humanity’s hero, or a villain worse than the Nether Emperor."

Theo turned and pointed at her, making it clear he had no desire to become a villain. Avara nodded and kept talking.

"That’s not what I meant," Avara said, "Your power is so huge it can influence whoever uses it. So you have to be wise about how you use it."

"Can you imagine how terrifying a villain would be with a power like yours? He could learn from the past, then steal every opportunity by traveling into the future."

KNOCK!

While Theo and Avara were talking, a knock came from the door of his apartment.

Theo glanced toward it reflexively, then asked Avara to change forms again.

Avara finished off the cola, stood up, and waved her hand, turning into a crow.

She flew over and perched on Theo’s shoulder like nothing was out of the ordinary.

He peeked through the peephole and saw Thalia, Aya, and Lily standing outside. They’d brought something with them.

Thalia? Why are they here?

Theo opened the door and greeted them. Thalia smiled at him, and Aya and Lily did the same.

"What is it?"

"Nothing much. We just came to bring you lunch," Thalia said, "I know you wanted to be alone, and I get it. But at least don’t forget to eat."

"Sometimes getting lost in our own heads makes us forget everything else."

Theo took the package, which held neatly wrapped food. Since Thalia had done what she came to do, she started to say goodbye.

"Wait."

Thalia and the others stopped in their tracks. Theo called out to them again.

He apologized for how he’d acted at the guild, saying his words might have come off as harsh and uncomfortable for Thalia.

Avara was right. I don’t have to think about everything. I don’t have to worry about what happened in the past, or what’s going to happen in the future.

What I need to think about is right now, because right now is the time I’m actually living in.

"It’s fine, Theo."

"I understand what you’re going through. We’ve had our own hard times, and you’ve helped us through them," Thalia said.

"Maybe the best way we can help you with your problem is to just give you space for a while," Thalia said.

"No."

"I’ve already worked through it. I’m doing a lot better now," Theo said, "Come in and relax. It’s really hot out there, and there’s cold cola waiting for you inside."

Thalia glanced briefly at Aya and Lily, and they nodded, agreeing with what Theo said.

They walked in and sat down on the sofa, with Aya being the first to settle in.

"What about you, Aya? Did you pick out your skill?" Theo asked, carrying three cans of cola over to them.

Aya turned and smiled, giving a quick nod in response. She’d gotten the skill she needed, based on Lizzy’s recommendation.

"That’s great. I can’t wait to see what you can do with it."

"How about you? Did you level up?" Thalia asked, and Theo turned and nodded.

"I did," Theo said, "I’ve got 20 attribute points I haven’t spent yet. I might do it now."

Thalia agreed. She took the food into the kitchen to get it ready for Theo, while Lily walked over to the apartment window and gently petted Avara, and Aya pulled up her own system panel just like Theo.

[Attribute Points successfully allocated]

[STR: 25 || AGI: 15 || MAG: 20 || CON: 20 || DEX: 10]

[Attribute Points: 0] [-20]

Theo decided to put more points into Magic, since he’d realized that using his skills takes mana.

The higher the number, the more his power and capacity would grow.

He glanced over at Aya and asked how she was doing. She was a little confused by the attribute terms, Theo was happy to explain them to her, even giving her recommendations that fit her class.

Aya got it done without any trouble, and she bowed her head in thanks.

From the kitchen, Thalia came back carrying a bowl of potato and meat soup for Theo.

"Eat up. The others and I already ate before we came."

"Thanks, Thalia," Theo said.

Theo ate slowly, tasting how rich the soup was with spices. He finished it in under ten minutes.

"We decided not to go solo hunting today, considering how you were feeling," Thalia said.

The young man took the initiative to pull out Michelle’s letter and read the last paragraph again.

He found a message telling him to go to Archan Village and meet a priest there.

According to Michelle, the priest was a friend of Hana, who was, after all, Theo’s mother.

"There’s actually somewhere I want to go," Theo said.

"Where?" Thalia asked.

"Archan Village."

"Archan Village?!" Lily gasped, her voice cracking a little.

Theo turned to look at her, and Thalia and Aya did the same, "What’s wrong? Do you know where that village is?"

"Of course I do," Lily said with a big smile, "Archan Village is my hometown."

"Oh, that’s perfect! I never would’ve guessed," Theo said.

"That’s because nobody ever asked," Lily said.

"How long does it take to get there?" Thalia asked, looking at Lily.

"By horse cart? About five to six hours."

Theo turned to check the wall clock. It was noon. If they left now, they’d reach the village around five or six in the evening.

"What do you think, Theo?"

Theo glanced at Thalia, Aya, and of course Lily. He didn’t want to waste any time. He wanted to wrap this up as fast as he could and get back to focusing on improving his abilities.

And to do that, he had to meet that priest. Theo could only hope the priest was still there and hadn’t gone anywhere.

"We’re leaving now!"