Meanwhile, in the peaceful town of Ashinlu, in the dark alleyways where a dark sorceress is rumored to reside, three children looked around with wide frightened eyes. Their knees trembled from the unpredictable noises of the rats squeaking in the canals. One of them spoke, trying to convince his two friends to return to the main street where the streetlight provided safetiness, but one argued back that they still haven't gathered any clues to prove the existence of the ghosts that fell prey to the sorceress' evil magic.
"If the evil sorceress appears, we might just become the ghosts that will soon become clues!" The light-haired boy with blue eyes, standing tallest among the three stared angrily at his stubborn ginger-headed peer who remained stubborn.
"You spineless giraffe! We haven't even covered half of this alley, and you're scared!?"
"Well, we've seen enough of this eerie darkness! I want to go home!" The smallest, with the darkest hair color couldn't help but wedge between his friends' conversation. He seemed to have just been dragged by the two, and didn't care about ghosts or evil women possessing black magicks.
Their argument echoed in the empty alley, but the starting squabble halted as soon as a blue light appeared out of nowhere.
"Eeekkk!! It's a ghost! It's a real ghost!"
The three children screamed as each tried to scamper out of the alley in fear, but because they were too panicked, they didn't realize a looming shadow standing behind them.
The smallest one bumped into a soft wall, and tumbled on his butt. Immediately, the three concluded that it must be the evil sorceress.
"W-we're so sorry! We don't want to become ghosts! Please spare us!"
A sigh escaped from the Imaya's lips at the cute children who bowed at her feet in fear. "Kids should not wander in dark alleys at night." Imaya raised her lantern to light up the surrounding area much better.
The fearful faces of the children appeared clearer now, and they sighed in relief after seeing that she was human. Once they calmed down, they quickly went behind her, and pointed at the ghost that appeared while screaming at her to get rid of it.
The adults told them not to approach the lady merchant recklessly, but since she was the only adult present who was capable enough to save them from the ghost, the kids couldn't be bothered to remember their parents' warnings.
"What ghost..?" Imaya quickly scanned the area, until she saw a bloodied body sprawled on the ground. She couldn't hold her gasp. "Kids, quickly go and fetch the herbalist! It's a wounded person!" She immediately ran to the figure, confirming her guess.
Sierra Alvior..!
"It's not a ghost..?"
"Stupid! If the lady says it's a person, it's a person!" The quick witted child with ginger hair who was probably responsible for their trip in the alley was smart enough to confirm the situation quickly. One look at the splotches of blood on the unconscious person convinced him. He quickly dragged his two friends to find the herbalist. "Let go get Uncle Sam!"
***
I felt a strange numb feeling in my body as soon as I started to gain consciousness. I groaned, feeling like I've barely made out of a twelve-hour operation. I hate that feeling the most.
"You're awake. Thank goodness." A soft voice called out beside me, so I made an effort to look at her. If the teleportation was a success, then it should be Imaya.
Her veiled face greeted me as soon as my vision cleared. It was a familiar yet unfamiliar face. I opened my mouth to talk but no words came out. Instead, tears welled my eyes, and I wept like child. I don't know why. I could only feel slight discomfort from my wounds, but there was a terrible pain in my chest. It hurt so much that I could only sob even though I tried to utter words.
Despite my unreasonable behavior, Imaya pat my head to comfort me. "It's okay... Feel free to cry until it hurts no more..."
"Hey! The lady is crying! We can't just barge in!" A few minutes of crying, and I heard high pitched voices coming from outside the room that could only belong to children.
"Oh no... Why is she crying?" A soft trembling voice asked worriedly.
"That's why I told you we shouldn't have come here." The third one sounded the most logical among the tree. I couldn't help feeling curious, and soon my tears dried.
"They're the children who saw you in my porch last night. They must have come to visit." Imaya uttered with a sigh.
"I see... Then I shouldn't meet them with a face like this. How embarrassing." I uttered, as I wiped my tears away. I did my best to quickly compose myself and forget about the nightmarish memories of what transpired in Ma-i. Anyway... I'm safe now. And surely, he wouldn't look for me now that he got what he wanted.
"You don't have to force yourself." Imaya passed me a wet towel to wipe my face and I thanked her with a smile.
"...It's okay... A little distraction will help me."
"Remember why we all tagged along! We need to confirm it. The lady may be a ghost-! Ouch!"
"Also remember that the three of you promised to behave if you came with me." The new voice seemed to belong to an elderly. I looked at the door curiously where the muffled conversation was coming from.
"That must be the herbalist." Imaya stood up. "Are you alright now?" She confirmed with me, and only went to open the door after seeing me nod.
"Good morning, Mister Goodwill. I'm thankful that you're taking time to see to my request." Imaya is as elegant as ever as she showed him inside the room. "The patient is awake..." Turning to the kids, she nodded and told them they could enter, as well.
"It's my duty to treat patients, Miss Imaya. I hope the patient and the lady don't mind that I brought the kids with me?" The old herbalist smiled as he came around the bed to see me.
I tried to muster up a smile in return. "It's okay. The kids must have been very shocked to find me lying on the ground. Thank you very much for treating me, Mister..."
"Sam. I am called Sam Goodwill, and these three are all children of my neighbors. The blond one is Rainerus, the ginger is Theobald, and the last one with the dark hair is called Galeren. They are all very nice children... with a little bit of eccentric curiosities." He added the last bit with a sheepish smile.
I nodded understandingly, as I looked at the kids with a smile.
"Well..? Do you guys think I'm a ghost?" I asked, humoring their interests. A look of horror stained Mister Sam's face after realizing that their conversation was heard.
I giggled, when even the kids seemed alarmed. They suddenly all shared a look of embarrassment that was quite different from the initial sharp gazes that tried to see through my very convincing human disguise.
"If she became a ghost, she might have haunted you for screaming in terror at the sight of her when she was alive. Be thankful to Mister Sam that he was able to save her." Imaya joined in the fun as she tapped them on their shoulders one by one.
"W-we apologize for our rudeness, lady... And thank you, Uncle...!"
The herbalist could only sigh as he shook his head at our insidious joke.
What can I say? Kids are fun to tease. I couldn't help thinking as I looked at their tearful faces.
***
A/N: It's my hobby to tease my toddler niece when I'm bored. 🤭
