"Pathetic."
That was the only word that Eric could describe to himself as he left the hospital building and disappeared into the massive crowd, stopping at a busy street nearby.
He had the perfect opportunity to kill Aurora right then and there, and yet he didn't.
Something just... stopped him from stepping over that final line for some reason.
He wasn't sure exactly what, but it had definitely succeeded.
'My moral conscience, perhaps?'
'...'
'Yeah, not a chance.'
Even if he behaved completely differently in this life and was self aware of his repulsive actions now, whether it be the current ones or his past lives, he was fundamentally still the same Eric Porter from before he regained his memories.
That much was still somewhat clear at least.
So why was he behaving like this?
Like he genuinely cared for the characters of the novel in the first place.
Especially when he had absolutely no reason to, and every reason to hate them.
'...'
"Whatever, I'll just forget about it for now." Eric muttered with a disgruntled look on his face and decided to just head back home for the time being and worry about how he was going to deal with this later.
But before he could even begin heading back however...
"Does this mean that you're letting her go for now?" Aria's voice could be heard right behind him, catching Eric completely off guard.
"Hmm? Aria? When did you get behind me? I thought you were going to stay behind with your best friend." Eric stated.
"Mmm, maybe when you were still walking in the crowd? Somewhere around there. And I mean, originally, I was going to stay with Aurora for a bit after you left, but she still didn't want to talk to me, so I left as well." Aria responded straightforwardly.
"I see... and could you elaborate on what you meant by me 'letting her go' by the way?" Eric questioned.
"Oh um, you know, you called her pathetic earlier and that you'll forget about it for now, so you know…"
"..."
"Am I wrong...?"
"No… but it depends entirely on her I suppose." Eric knew that Aria misunderstood what he had just said to himself and didn't bother clearing it up.
Hearing this, the tense expression that Aria has had ever since she had spoken to him about Aurora this morning immediately soften up, and she nodded repeatedly.
"I understand! Just give me some time, and I'll convince her not to go after you anymore, okay?" Aria stated enthusiastically.
"Even if you know that I was in the wrong to begin with?" Eric asked straightforwardly.
"Of course! It doesn't matter what you did, and I don't think I want to know about it regardless, but as long as you're willing to let her go, then I think there's a way to settle all of this without her having to die." Aria said with a carefree smile on her face and didn't look the slightest bit bothered or uneasy whatsoever.
"..."
"So? Can I? Can I try and convince her? Please?" Aria questioned with a pleading look in her eye.
"...Go ahead. Suit yourself." Eric felt that it wasn't going to work, but he was willing to give it a shot anyways.
"Great! Thank you! I promise that I'll yield good results! I'll get going now to start right away, see you later!" Aria exclaimed and waved Eric goodbye quickly and started rushing back into the crowd.
But before she was about to squeeze into the crowd and go back to the hospital however...
"One last thing. I know you told me not to tell her anything about you before, but is it okay if I tell her everything I know about you now, given the situation and all?" Aria wanted to confirm.
"Go for it." Eric had no clue what exactly Aria knew about him, but he didn't decline it and casually responded.
"Alright, thank you! Bye!" Aria happily yelled back and then disappeared into the crowd, finally out of Eric's sight once and for all.
For a moment, Eric stared into the crowd deep in thought, contemplating if Aria might actually be able to pull this off.
But that was just wishful thinking.
He was like like oil and Aurora was like water.
Those two simply just can't coexist with each other, no matter how hard someone tries.
With that in mind, Eric stopped gazing at the crowd and finally headed straight back home again, hoping to finally get some time for himself at last.
He deserved it after everything he's been through after all.
He thought so at least.
***
Back in Aurora's hospital room once Eric and Aria had left the room entirely, Aurora pressed her bandaged hand to her throat, where the pen had nearly pierced her, and clenched her teeth in frustration.
She had no clue why he didn't kill her right then and there when he had ample of chances to do so and no reason not to, but she didn't like it one bit.
It felt like he was toying with her, telling her that her life was completely out of her control, and she felt helpless about it.
Of course, this wasn't the first time she had felt helpless, having experienced it many times across her 28 regressions and this being her 29th regression now, but this...
This was just way too much for her to handle.
After all, unlike all of the previous situations where she had eventually managed to overcome it by different means such as discovering a weakness her enemy has and using it to her advantage, this one felt actually impossible to overcome.
She has thrown a grenade at him, stabbed him in the abdomen, and even emptied a full magazine into him when he had nowhere to run, and still, he manages to get up and fight her off without a care in the world every single time.
Not only that, but he seems to know everything about her, both psychologically based on what he had uttered to her at the parking garage, and factually as he knew about her regression.
Worst of all, he can now even apparently regenerate after his body has been riddled with wounds, returning to normal as if nothing had happened.
Even that massive hole in his thigh, which she didn't know where he got from, seemed to have close up and disappeared completely.
No matter how she looked at it, she couldn't see any way to kill such a supernatural being at all.
It truly was...
"Unfair."
Teardrops formed in her eyes as she tried to push the image of Eric, drenched in blood with a cold, lifeless expression, out of her mind, but couldn't.
She just wanted for all of this to end.
The regressions, the people coming after her, the killing… all of it, just so she could return back to a normal life and finish growing up just like everyone else.
That wasn't too much to ask, was it?
Of course it wasn't.
"SO WHY CAN'T I EVEN HAVE THAT?! JUST LEAVE ME THE FUCK ALONE ALREADY YOU BASTARDS!" Aurora roared and kept slamming her bandaged hand and her cast hand against the bed until the pain forced her to stop.
Luckily, none of the medical staffs came in here while she was having a breakdown, and so she just leaned back against her bed and looked up at the ceiling again after managing to calm herself back down.
Right at that moment though, someone came into her room.
"Um, hi again Aurora. This is the 4th time I've come to visit you now after that incident... 5th time if you count me coming with... 'him,' I guess." Aria timidly waved to Aurora and lightly smiled.
"..." Aurora didn't respond back to her as usual and remained silent.
Honestly, she just didn't even want to talk to anyone at all right now, even if it was with her best friend.
Aria wasn't surprised by this however and pulled a chair close to the bedside before sitting down and saying, "I'm not going away like before just because you won't talk to me though, so if you don't want to talk, just sit there and listen to me quietly."
"..." Aurora angrily glared at Aria for not giving her the space she wanted like before, but she still didn't say anything.
Not until...
"So, um, that guy you tried killing earlier, Eric Porter..."
"I think, no, there's no doubt about it anymore, even though he has denied it before, but..."
Aria then paused for a moment, unsure if she should actually say it or not.
But eventually, she looked directly at Aurora, her eyes steady in a way that felt almost unhinged, and then said...
"Aurora... he's... definitely a being beyond our wildest imagination."