Karen's inability to cross the final threshold of withdrawal and possibly die is the only good news. with her mind cornered she can't help but show what's caused it. the confusion of a neko brought up human coupled with the danger and strangeness of the mission having her put on edge since she left the village. Sil's revelation and sudden predatory attack on Bob having pushed her over the edge. karen's fears are scars on her mind that may grow, the fear of being eaten and anyone who might do it to her, the fear of the monsters and unknowns of the forest, the fear of the magic she wields but does not truly understand. and now, enshrined as the sum of all her fears, is Sil', sil a creature brought into this world by the same powers karen seeks to master, Sil who showed that no one is safe from her predation when she devoured Bob, sil who represents another member of the myriad fearsome creatures of the forest.