I woke up by a bed of lavender.

Something scurried across. It was a rabbit-like creature with long, backward-bending legs. It hopped in large strides across from me before disappearing into a faraway thicket.

It returned with lavender in its mouth. It paused in front of me, cautiously.

I looked down at the purple beside me. I stowed one of the little things in my pocket before moving away. The small furry creature plopped the items in its mouth on the flowerbed and scurried off into the thicket once more.

The purple clustered in one, concentrated pile. The otherwordly creatured kept adding to its density.

I took in the sight and smell. I smiled.

However, I didn't feel anything. My body felt hollow, like a tiny house with paper-thin walls. There was nothing inside the house. No furniture, no appliances... nothing.

It was full before, but the inhabitants, as troubling as they were, left. Normally, tenants left signs of their stay, bad tenants morefully so. Trash and infrastructure damage were the evidence of existence, the traces of troubled times and tears.

However, there was nothing within those walls anymore except the feeling of something vague and powerful.

The goddess imparted me with something.

And she also accepted my misfortunate everything.

If someone were to write my life story, what would they call it?

A story of suffering, and catharsis.

What's left, the conclusion, was but eraser dust and opaque lines.

This unordinary creature...

This unordinary feeling within me...

It was much like the belief that I could do anything, that I could accomplish anything, and that I could achieve my wildest dreams. Like in the real world, unrealized potential was just a feeling.

I got up and dusted myself off.

I looked around.

Behind me, rough plain stretched as far as the eye could see. In front of me, there was a lake and the thicket that the rabbit-like creature ran into.

To the side of the thicket was an opening, and a path.

To go in or not to go in?

Well, I suppose I had no other option.

On the way to the path, I passed by the lake and caught sight of my reflection.

Blank eyes stared at me. A blank face in old, tattered clothes. The old smile that so forcefully occupied my memories was gone.

Also, my hair had turned white.

Don't tell me...

Accelerated aging?

My face had remained youthful, if not a little more stern.

Thank goodness.

This person in front of me...

Who was he?

Was that me?

His face fit well with his cold hair and awkward stance.

Did the goddess do this to me?

I should just be grateful that I have another chance at...

I lost my train of thought, and shaking my head, I continued forward.

___

I entered the thicket that widened and deepened as I entered.

Trees shot up and up and up. They towered over like skyscrapers.

The path was paved not with yellow bricks but with aged stone.

A small, single-shaded sky blue bird twittered by.

I followed the road that led straight forward. Sometimes it winded about, but it was mostly consistently monodirectional.

I walked down without question, taking in the new sights of a new world.

This was my first time forest-bathing.

Huh.

While thinking of such things, I heard a sudden yell. I stopped in my tracks.

"Lead it this way!"

"Alright!"

They were the voice of two people. One male, and one female.

The voices grew louder, and so did a third, rumbling sound of someone or something grunting.

I jumped out of the way and hid behind a tree.

Two people emerged from the opposite side onto the path. One wore a light cloth garment studded with metal reinforcements. The other wore a simple dress.

They dug their feet into the ground and raised their weapons. The guy wielded a one-handed iron sword. The girl wielded a wooden staff.

I watched hidden away.

Then, in a timely manner, the owner of the third voice appeared.

It was bald, green, and small. It wielded a bloody dagger with sharp nails.

Despite its slender appearance, it danced hautily, towering over the two with its nimble movements.

It smiled a humanly-unnaturally wide smile.

Then, it crouched low.

"Not this time!" the woman uttered, before holding her staff up. It glowed with an earthly tone. Small rock spires shot from its mouth toward the green goblin.

Two out of three hits missed.

The last one hit square at the foot.

"Uguuuuuu!!!!!!!"

The green creature dug at the ground, quickly creating a sizeable enough hole for it to crawl through.

"Hah! Take this you mole goblin freak!" the man yelled. Under the fired rocks spires, the guy had swiftly closed the distance and, following the spires successful third hit, he grabbed the green creature's wiry foot before it could disappear. It flailed in the air.

"My apologies to your kinsmen," the man said. "You have deftly evaded all of our attacks thus far. I have to congratulate you. Nobody has enjoyed the privilege of holding off Denz the powerful swordsman for this long!"

The mole goblin struggled. It did not make any considerable progress at escape.

"Heh... a tenacious one you are! I admire that. A monster, caught in the clutches of a powerful adventurer, doomed to an untimely demise... Still, you have strength to fight! On the brink of death, you, a lowly little rascal... How you struggle still! How you dream still! How you hope still!"

"Oi... Denz. Stop tormenting the creature and just kill it already," the woman said.

"Not until the weakling scrub gets an earful for the damaged it caused to my beautiful face! How am I going to find a suitor now?" the man complained, flinging away the bloodied dagger that belonged to said weakling scrub.

"Nobody wants to marry you, Denz," the woman retorted.

"You don't have to tell me! I already know, Emilia!" the man woed.

I watched this exchange from behind a tree. Eventually, I stopped watching and just listened.

Fifteen minutes went by. They were still going at it.

The mole goblin had stopped struggling. It limped in the air.

I sat in the shade. My foot edged out of cover. It peeked, then hid, then peeked again.

Then, that's when I saw it.

Another little rabbit-creature.

It hopped toward me with its long legs in smooth strides.

Then, it stopped and looked at me.

I stared back at it.

It wasn't staring at me in the eyes. It was staring at something lower.

It was staring at my pocket.

A little purple stuck out.

"Ah... It's you again..." I muttered.

It suddenly accelerated to me. I had but a split second to react.

Like a large bullet, it shot toward me.

I baredly dodged out of the way.

Now that it was at point-blank range, it wrestled with me for the stolen lavender.

We both rolled around behind a bush.

"Wait a moment... Who's there!?" Denz exclaimed.

"Eh?" Emilia muttered.

At that moment three things happened.

1. The rabbit successfully stole the lavender from me and ran off, kicking me with its hind legs and launching me out onto the path into full view.

2. Distracted by this, the goblin swiftly scratched the hands of Denz, causing him to release the monster. Once on the floor, the mole goblin dealt two more blows at Denz's legs before scurrying underground.

3. Emilia tried casting magic again, but before she could finish, the mole goblin reappeared, already too close. It kicked at Emilia, launching her backward.

This all happened in the span of fifteen seconds.

Just like that.

The last two standing were me and the mole goblin.

We stared at each other.

Crap.

What have I done...