The Infinite Night

Chapter 17: Ayamani's Scheme Part 2

As they continued walking together, Ayamani suddenly threw a small rock at Nia'le.

"Tassa, your stupid friend is throwing rocks at me," Nia'le complained.

A second later, another rock flew toward him. This time it was much bigger.

"Tassa, your stupid friend threw a rock at me again. And this time it wasn't a SMALL rock!"

But Ayamani still wasn't finished. He picked up another one and threw it.

"Tassa, your stupid friend threw an even bigger rock at me again! Are you freaking listening to me?" Nia'le exclaimed.

Tassa's frustration finally reached its limit. She furrowed her brows and clenched her fists.

"Will you both stop it?" she shouted.

She planted her hands firmly on her hips.

"My goodness, you two are so irritating. I can't believe you guys!"

Nia'le opened his mouth to respond, but Tassa quickly cut him off.

"Nia'le, stop talking."

Then she turned toward Ayamani.

"And you, Ayamani, stop throwing small, big, or even medium-sized rocks at him!"

Unfortunately, Ayamani ignored her completely.

Instead, he threw a humongous boulder at Nia'le.

The impact shook the ground.

Nia'le didn't even get the chance to complain this time.

Tassa felt the earth tremble beneath her feet. A loud crash echoed through the area, sounding as if a massive rock had fallen from somewhere not far away.

Her expression immediately changed.

"Nia'le?"

There was no answer.

"Nia'le?"

Still nothing.

"Nia'le!"

Silence.

Unbeknownst to her, Nia'le was lying unconscious on the ground, drenched in his own blood beneath the enormous boulder.

Tassa's worry grew with every second.

She was about to call for Ayamani when something unexpected happened.

Suddenly, she saw Nia'le standing before her in the Infinite Night.

Tassa froze.

"How did you get here?" she asked.

Her eyes narrowed as she tried to make sense of the impossible sight.

The Infinite Night was a mysterious realm that only certain beings could enter. Humans were never supposed to appear there unless they were dead.

And yet, Nia'le was standing right in front of her.

Tassa gasped and instinctively covered her mouth. Filled with disbelief and concern, she hurried toward Nia'le.

"Wait, are you... don't tell me you're... dead? But how?" she asked.

Nia'le rolled his eyes.

"Your stupid friend happened," he replied. "He threw a giant boulder at me. I told you he was throwing rocks at me, but nooo—"

His voice suddenly faded.

Tassa was looking directly at him.

For a moment, Nia'le forgot what he was saying. Her beautiful green eyes held his attention completely, leaving him speechless.

Realizing what had happened, Tassa's eyes filled with tears. She quickly embraced him.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I should've listened to you."

Nia'le hesitated before gently returning the hug.

Even in this strange situation, he was grateful for one thing.

At least she could see him.

Suddenly, Ayamani appeared and pulled Tassa away from Nia'le.

"Glad to see you," Ayamani said coldly.

Nia'le glared at him but didn't reply.

Ayamani simply turned his back and ignored him.

The tension between them immediately returned.

"Will you two stop it?" Tassa exclaimed. "You keep fighting every time you see each other!"

"I didn't say anything," Ayamani replied.

Nia'le immediately punched him in the stomach. "Pontius Pilate" Nia'le murmured.

Ayamani rolled his eyes.

"You are so childish."

Tassa groaned and rubbed her forehead.

"Please, Ayamani. Bring him back to life. If you two keep this up, you'll never stop arguing."

Ayamani looked annoyed.

"I hate seeing his face in both dimensions, but I really need to talk to him. This is my only option."

"What do you want to tell him?" Tassa asked.

"I just want to tell him something."

"Then say it," Nia'le replied.

Ayamani's eye twitched.

"You really want me to throw another rock at you, don't you?"

Before the argument could continue, Tassa grabbed both of them and slammed their heads together.

"STOP FIGHTING!"

The two instantly fell silent, while rubbing their head.

After a few moments, Ayamani looked directly at Nia'le.

"Go to the shore. Find a large rock. Behind it, there's a girl. Bring her home with you two."

Nia'le folded his arms.

"Not until you apologize for dropping a mountain on me."

Ayamani clenched his fists. For perhaps the first time in his existence, he experienced a level of annoyance he didn't know was possible. Still, he chose not to argue. Instead, he returned Nia'le's soul to his body. The next moment, Nia'le opened his eyes and found himself lying on the beach once again.

"Being able to kill and revive people whenever you want is such an unfair ability," he muttered.

Nevertheless, he followed Ayamani's instructions.

Eventually, he found a massive rock near the shore.

Curious, he walked around it and discovered an unconscious girl lying behind it.

Without wasting time, he carefully carried her back to Tassa and gently laid her on top of the large rock.

Tassa reached out to touch the girl.

The moment their hands met, Tassa suddenly felt dizzy.

Before she could react, her body went limp.

"Nia'le!"

Startled, Nia'le quickly caught her.

But the instant he touched her, the same dizziness overwhelmed him.

His vision darkened.

And he collapsed.

Ayamani immediately rushed forward.

He caught Tassa before she hit the ground while Nia'le's unconscious body fell beside them.

The mysterious girl's touch had rendered both of them unconscious. Or perhaps, it had done something far stranger.

Slowly, Tassa and Nia'le opened their eyes.

They found themselves standing in an unfamiliar world.

The sky looked wrong.

The landscape looked wrong.

Everything felt strangely distorted, as if reality itself had been twisted.

Nia'le looked around in confusion.

"Where are we?"

Tassa examined their surroundings.

"It looks like the Infinite Night," she said softly. "But it's not."

Ayamani appeared nearby.

"This is a Wring Righ."

Tassa tilted her head.

"Wring Righ? What is that?"

Nia'le immediately folded his arms.

"The word he obviously invented."

Ayamani, never one to tolerate mockery, immediately smacked Nia'le on the head before continuing his explanation.

"This is where the girl's soul resides," Ayamani said. "A demon took her soul and imprisoned it here. If you don't act quickly and retrieve it, she will face dire consequences."

Nia'le furrowed his brows.

"A demon? How can a demon take her soul? What did she do?"

Ayamani folded his arms.

"The demon trapped her soul here, most likely because of a deal she made. I don't know why it chose this dimension, but that doesn't matter. Our task is simple. We need to rescue her soul from this place."

Tassa tilted her head.

"But Ayamani, is this place similar to the Infinite Night?"

"No, my dear," Ayamani replied. "The Wring Righ is completely different. Everything you can imagine can manifest within its boundaries."

Nia'le immediately looked skeptical.

"Anything?"

"Anything."

To test Ayamani's claim, Nia'le imagined a protection.

To his surprise, a glowing object instantly appeared in the air.

His eyes widened.

Before anyone could react, he quickly grabbed it and shoved it into his pocket.

Ayamani glared at him.

Nia'le immediately raised his hands in surrender.

"I didn't mean it! You didn't exactly give me a precaution before sending us here."

Tassa frowned.

"What was that? A candy wrapper?"

Nia'le smiled.

"Could be. Depends on its flavor."

Ayamani smacked him on the head again.

"Focus."

Nia'le rubbed his head.

"Why is violence always your answer?"

Ignoring him, Ayamani continued.

"Time works differently in the Wring Righ. One minute here is equal to one week in the real world."

Both of them froze.

"One minute?" Nia'le repeated.

"Yes."

Nia'le immediately pointed at him.

"Then keep our bodies alive like you did before, right Tass?"

Tassa nodded.

Ayamani sighed.

"I will. But there is another problem."

His expression grew serious.

"If you stay here for too long, Ixartxist may discover your location."

Tassa stiffened.

"What do you mean?"

"The Infinite Night is different," Ayamani explained. "Ixartxist already knows you're connected to that realm. Your presence there wouldn't raise suspicion."

He paused.

"But the Wring Righ is another matter."

Nia'le folded his arms.

"How would he even know?"

Ayamani looked at him.

"Because a soul has weight."

Nia'le blinked.

"A soul has what?"

"A soul has weight," Ayamani repeated. "A body becomes heavier when its soul is present and lighter when it's separated. If Ixartxist notices the change, he may realize that Tassa's soul is somewhere it shouldn't be."

Tassa lowered her head.

Ayamani's voice softened.

"I won't let him take you back, even if it means death."

For a moment, silence settled between them.

Then Nia'le ruined it.

"But aren't you dead?"

Ayamani slowly turned toward him.

The silence became even more uncomfortable.

Tassa quickly changed the subject.

"Ayamani... who exactly is Ixartxist?"

Ayamani's expression darkened.

"I'm sorry, Tassa."

He looked away.

"I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

"I just can't."

Although disappointed, Tassa nodded.

"Thank you anyway, Ayamani. You've helped me more than enough."

A faint smile appeared on his face.

"You're welcome."

He stepped backward.

"I wish you both luck."

As Ayamani prepared to leave, Nia'le suddenly grabbed his rugged cloak.

"Hold on. Where do you think you're going?"

Ayamani removed Nia'le's hand.

"I need to watch over your bodies. If I don't, you'll die."

He paused.

"Not that I would particularly mind if it happened to you."

Nia'le rolled his eyes.

"Likewise."

Just before leaving, Ayamani suddenly reached into Nia'le's pocket and pulled out the protection.

As Ayamani turned his back, Nia'le muttered under his breath, "I don't like rough fights."

As if annoyed by the comment, Ayamani let the ground swallow him whole, leaving Tassa and Nia'le behind.

"Hey!"

Ayamani examined it briefly.

"I don't trust you."

"I wasn't even going to use it."

"Exactly why I don't trust you."

Without warning, Ayamani crushed the charm in his hand.

The object instantly crumbled into ash.

A gentle breeze carried the ashes away.

Nia'le stared at him.

Ayamani stared back.

Nia'le crossed his arms.

"You know, for a Grim Reaper, you're surprisingly petty."

Ayamani simply vanished.

Nia'le sighed.

"I was going to imagine another one anyway."

Tassa immediately smacked him on the head.

"Don't."

Nia'le rubbed his head.

"Why is everyone hitting me today?"