For a moment…
my brain stopped working.
Amity Blight.
Standing right next to me.
This was impossible.
Wasn't this too early?
She wasn't supposed to appear in my story yet.
I had planned to avoid the main cast for as long as possible.
And yet—
here she was.
Staring directly at me.
"What?" she repeated, narrowing her eyes.
"You're acting weird."
I snapped back to reality.
"N-No! I mean—"
I straightened up and coughed.
"Nothing. Sorry."
Why was I nervous?
This was just Amity.
…Right?
The same Amity I had watched for years.
The same future top student of Hexside.
The same girl who—
No.
Focus.
The vendor slammed a clawed hand onto the counter.
"Are you two buying something or wasting my time?"
Amity ignored me completely and placed a small pouch on the table.
"I need a hardening potion."
The vendor grunted and started searching through his stock.
Meanwhile, I was panicking internally.
What was I supposed to do?
Leave?
Stay?
Pretend I didn't know who she was?
Before I could decide—
Amity suddenly looked at me.
Her eyes moved to the objects in my hands.
Cards.
Watch.
Sunglasses.
"What are those?"
I froze.
"…Artifacts."
Her eyebrow lifted.
"Artifacts?"
I nodded seriously.
"Rare human artifacts."
Silence.
Then—
She picked up the sunglasses.
Put them on.
And frowned.
"…Why do I look powerful?"
I almost laughed.
The vendor leaned forward.
His eyes widened.
"What is this strange enchanted eyewear?"
I blinked.
Wait…
Were they actually buying this?
Maybe human junk really was treasure here.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Amity crossed her arms.
"How much?"
I stared.
"…You want to buy them?"
She looked offended.
"Obviously."
Then she pointed at my watch.
"And that too."
A grin almost appeared on my face.
This…
could work.
Maybe fate wasn't as rigid as I thought.
Maybe…
meeting Amity early wasn't a disaster.
Maybe it was an opportunity.
But just as I was about to answer—
A loud explosion echoed through the market.
BOOM.
Everyone turned.
Smoke rose in the distance.
And I immediately recognized what it meant.
The guard.
Eda.
The chase had begun.
Amity looked toward the noise.
Then at me.
"Trouble."
She narrowed her eyes.
"You're coming with me."
…Wait.
What?
"…Wait, what?"
Before I could even react, Amity grabbed my wrist.
Her grip was surprisingly strong.
"No time," she said.
And pulled me with her.
"H-Hey!"
I nearly stumbled as she dragged me through the crowd.
People were running everywhere.
Merchants shouting.
Creatures panicking.
The market had become chaos.
In the distance, I could hear guards yelling.
Just like in the original.
But…
I wasn't supposed to be part of this.
At all.
"Why am I coming with you?!" I whispered.
Amity didn't slow down.
"Because you look suspicious."
…What kind of reason was that?!
We turned into a narrow alley between crooked buildings.
She finally stopped.
I leaned against a wall, catching my breath.
First the forest.
Now this.
I was going to die from cardio before magic.
Amity crossed her arms and stared at me.
"Now explain."
I blinked.
"Explain what?"
She narrowed her eyes.
"The artifacts."
"…The sunglasses?"
"All of it."
I hesitated.
This was dangerous.
One wrong answer and she might think I was insane.
Or worse.
A scammer.
I coughed.
"Well…"
"They're human inventions."
Her eyes sharpened.
"Human?"
I froze.
Oops.
Too much.
Too fast.
She stepped closer.
"You're not from around here."
That wasn't a question.
It was an accusation.
My mind raced.
Lie.
Quick.
"I'm… a traveling merchant."
She stared.
Silence.
Then—
"You're terrible at lying."
…Great.
I was finished.
But instead of exposing me—
Amity smirked.
Actually smirked.
Interesting.
"You're weird," she said.
Then she held up the sunglasses.
"But these are amazing."
I almost choked.
Was this really happening?
Before I could answer—
A shadow passed overhead.
We both looked up.
Something huge flew across the sky.
And on top of it—
I recognized a wild mess of gray hair.
Eda.
And beside her—
Luz.
My chest tightened.
There they were.
Beginning their adventure.
The story was moving forward.
But somehow…
mine had already gone off script.
Amity noticed where I was looking.
"You know the Owl Lady?"
"…Maybe."
She studied me.
Then said something I absolutely did not expect.
"Come to Hexside someday."
I stared.
"…What?"
She adjusted her gloves casually.
"If you have more 'artifacts'…"
"I might be interested."
Was—
Was Amity Blight inviting me?
Before I could respond—
A horn blared through the streets.
Guards.
Searching.
Amity clicked her tongue.
"Tch. I have to go."
She started walking away—
then paused.
Without turning back, she tossed something toward me.
I caught it.
A small purple coin pouch.
I looked up.
"For the glasses," she said.
Then after a pause—
"And don't die, weird human."
She disappeared into the alleys.
I stood there frozen.
Coin pouch in hand.
Heart racing.
Did…
Did I just accidentally befriend Amity?
I looked at the pouch.
Then at the sky where Eda had vanished.
A grin slowly formed.
Maybe…
changing the story
would be a lot more fun than following it.