The One and Only Sami Chapter 13

“I can’t smell the scent, but someone…”

Sami raised a finger and pointed in one direction.

“I think they’re inside there.”

Even as he said it, goosebumps broke out over his skin, and he rubbed his shoulders.

Why did he feel like someone was there? The strange sense of displacement coming from beyond the rushing water continued to sharpen his senses.

Sami swallowed hard for no reason. Their eyes met.

Inside the dark cave, Razard’s eyes—usually a brilliant gold—faded into a deep almond hue. Because of that, he looked even calmer and cooler than usual.

Sami looked up at Razard’s strangely composed gaze before letting his shoulders slump.

“I guess we have to go in…?”

“If you feel something. That is why we entered the oasis, after all.”

“…Razard, you really need to ask for other people’s opinions more often.”

Razard burst into laughter. The refreshing sound of it was actually quite annoying. The moment I’m done helping him this time, I’m cutting ties for good. Sami made the vow once again as he followed Razard into the curtain of water.

The further they went inside, the thicker and whiter the mist became.

The water draped down along the cave walls like tapestries, and shallow pools gathered beneath their feet, making a rhythmic splashing sound with every step. For a moment, he thought he saw shadows in the water, but then he wondered if he was just seeing things.

Somehow, it was getting harder to breathe.

The air grew heavy. Bluish smoke swirled. A scent that was acrid yet sweet filled the space.

“Razard?”

He wanted to grab onto the man’s sleeve and follow. The moment Sami reached out his hand and called his name—

—Are you looking for something?

A voice he had never heard before shimmered behind his ear. Startled, he looked around urgently, but he couldn’t feel a single sign of anyone’s presence.

“Razard, just now, something…”

I heard a sound.

Sami stammered as he turned his gaze forward again.

“Uh…?”

And only then did he realize. The fact that he ‘couldn’t feel a single sign of anyone’s presence’ meant…

“Razard?”

It meant that the presence of the man who had been standing right in front of him had also completely vanished.

Though his attention had been stolen for a mere second by the strange sound, it had only been long enough to turn his head once. He had evaporated as if he had never been there to begin with.

A panicked Sami was calling his name repeatedly when it happened.

—Are you looking for that person?

“…!”

The voice came again. He definitely hadn’t misheard it.

The whispering voice was hard to distinguish as male or female. It was just a damp but soft, beautiful tone, sounding as if the speaker were behind a thin membrane. Even though he was hearing it clearly, Sami felt as though he were under a spell, unable to calmly deduce who it belonged to.

The whispering voice carried the smell of burnt bark and a faint scent of apples. This was a cave beneath a lake; there was no way such a smell should exist here.

“I hear a strange sound. …Razard, Razard!”

—So that is his name.

“…”

The moment Sami realized the voice was acknowledging him and speaking to him, he clamped his mouth shut.

A humid energy, completely different from the dampness of the water, surged over his shoulders. It felt as if a large hand was crawling up his back, its fingers moving like a spider.

—Then what is your name?

Don’t speak.

Sami pressed his lips together until they turned white, refusing to make a sound. Even though Sami knew nothing of sorcery, he knew that a ‘name’ was important.

Both the sorcerer Bisan and Razard had made sure to ask for his name before performing any magic.

—How strange. You are fire, air, water, and earth. How did you gather and settle like this? It will take some time to untangle and consume you, but…

The sound rippled like water. It was cold and wet.

—Not that it matters. It’s much better than being trapped in a gemstone.

Sami shuddered and shook his shoulders. He wanted to throw off this chill clinging to him. But the more he struggled, the more the voice wound itself around his ear.

—We are not bad. Come now, little one. Look at me.

An invisible force pulled Sami’s shoulders, forcing him to turn around. Sami, who had been trying to avoid its gaze at all costs, finally ended up looking back. A figure appeared clearly before the boy, who was gritting his teeth and trembling.

“Ah.”

The strength left his legs. Sami collapsed to the ground.

“We are merely you. The you that is not held by that fire.”

The voice, wearing the appearance of ‘Sami,’ smiled gently at him through that damp energy.

Fire?

The nonsensical words soon became reality. A red light spread below, and when he looked down, flames were lapping at Sami’s feet.

“H-hyah!”

“You didn’t know.”

The figure wearing ‘Sami’s’ face tilted its head, then continued calmly.

“I’ll help you. I can take you out of that fire. If only you tell me your name.”

The tighter Sami shut his mouth, the more fiercely the fire roared. It didn’t burn his body, but the sensation of heat was vivid.

Liar! You said it wasn’t like entering a cave alone, trekking through poisonous mists, resisting a serpent, and defeating a Djinn to get a lamp. It’s exactly the same—I’m risking my life!

“I’m going to burn to death at this rate, Razard!”

The moment Sami shouted out in a burst of emotion, the flames shot up crimson, far over his head. Swallowing even his loud scream, the fire finally consumed Sami.

“Now, I’ll ask again.”

In the center of the fire, the face that looked exactly like his own smiled gently. Without a single sign of being bothered by the heat, in a very calm and quiet voice, it asked:

“What is your name?”

⚜️

“…”

He was gone.

Razard looked around at the empty surroundings. He started to speak with a furrowed brow, but then closed his mouth again.

Sami had vanished.

“Well now.”

However, now was not the time to call out. Razard nonchalantly stuck the sword he was holding into the cave floor.

Even though Sami, who had been following right behind him, had disappeared without a trace, Razard showed no sign of panic. Instead, he simply folded his hands over the pommel of the sword, rested his chin on them, and stared calmly ahead. As if he were waiting for something.

“…Hurry up.”

Or perhaps, as if he were hoping for it.

Razard slowly closed his eyes. Inside his closed eyelids, it was blood-red, as if the sun were floating inside them. It was a broad daylight he was already familiar with.

Razard exhaled slowly; even in his short inhales and long exhales, his breath felt hot, as if sparks were flying. It was always like this when dealing with an unsettled Marut. Razard regained control over his feverish body and calmly opened his eyes.

“There you are.”

In an instant, Sami, who had disappeared, was standing before him as if he had appeared in the blink of an eye.

It was a relief that the boy who had vanished so suddenly had returned, but the Sami approaching Razard now was not the little kid who usually stared up at him with wide eyes like a desert jerboa.

“Razard.”

“…”

‘Sami’ reached out a limp arm. Razard obediently leaned down to make it easier to reach. Razard, who had been watching him with a blank expression, gave a smirk.

Sami looked at that face with eyes that were still hazy. Drenched from head to toe as if he had been dunked in water, he lacked his usual warm vitality.

The thing that was Sami, but not Sami, spoke again.

“Did you come to find me?”

“Yeah.”

‘Sami’s’ hand touched his cheek. It smelled surprisingly cold. But Razard didn’t mind; he kept his eyes on Sami and leaned his cheek into the touch.

Razard, with half his face buried in Sami’s palm, narrowed his eyes and smiled.

“Is that body comfortable?”

Instead of answering, ‘Sami’ let his hand slide further down. He seemed to place his hand on Razard’s shoulder, then used that weight to gently push him down. He took a short breath in and an even longer one out.

“You already know everything.”

As ‘Sami’ leaned his face toward him, even his lips were slick with moisture; just a slight movement of his mouth produced a wet, smacking sound. Between his slightly parted lips, his neat front teeth and red tongue were visible.

I wonder what it would be like if he always made this kind of face, Razard thought casually as he placed a hand on ‘Sami’s’ shoulder.

“So, didn’t you push this body toward me on purpose?”

A silent smile hung on Razard’s lips.