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ANNOYANCE was very evident to Edna's face right now. She keeps on blabbering and mumbling about something in silence while her feet stomped on the desserted eerie land. The sounds of bird chirping and the whisper of the wind enthralled her ears like they're singing a beautiful lullaby yet there's no people here.
Edna couldn't help herself but to wail. "It's frustrating! We keep on walking but no one is here! Is this some kind of joke?!"
The sight of beautiful green environment behold her but she can't sense the mana of every human who lives here though there's a lot of big houses build beside the trees, enchanting by the green scenario.
They already walking for an hour but they can't find any traces of human living in this land yet there's a house and different cleaning tools. She doesn't have an idea where they are since the map which serve as their guide was lost while they are traveling from Avalon to this town with no folks.
Ang malas talaga nila ngayong araw na'to.
"Master, here." Zerav lend her an apple. "I know you were hungry so I picked some of the fruits while we are on our travel."
"Thank you." She accepted the red bright apple as she felt her tummy grumbles inside. Luckily, Zerav was too reliable and becomes a responsible man. She didn't know that he can be like a gentle person, far from the soul collector she first met who doesn't have any interest but to eat live souls.
It was a good decision to make him come to our journey so that he can protect us from both danger! What an amazing companion!
"Are you sure that apple is edible? We don't know if that apple has a poison on it or you put poison on this fruit." Alaster barge in and grabbed the apple she was holding. His cautious eyes were inspecting every inch of the red apple.
Even though he agreed with Edna to take Zerav in their journey and make her a familiar, he still can't trust this guy who once was their enemy. He still cautious whenever the soul collector was so near to Edna since Zerav wants to take her soul as what they had in their first meeting.
He can't easily give his trust to someone especially this guy who attempt to take Edna's soul despite of informing him that this guy was once cursed by some witch. Hindi niya alam kung may iba bang binabalak ang lalaking ito at bigla na lang sasama sa kanila.
"I'll eat it to make sure if it was edible since I am the one who picked it." Balak sanang hablutin ni Zerav ang mansanas sa lalaki pero inunahan na siya ng knight.
He ate it without hesitation. The sweet drops of sugar invades his mouth fully. It was delicious but there's something stuck within the apple. Hindi niya nilunok ang kinain na mansanas kaya ay niluwa niya ito sa lupa.
"What?" Edna looked at him in disbelief, trying to read his sudden actions.
"There's a hallucinating spell combined in the apple." Napasinghap si Edna sa sinabi niya. Tinapunan niya ng masamang tingin si Zerav. "I know you are out of this but you should learn to be cautious next time or else you'll put Edna's life in danger. Don't be so careless, Soul collector."
Zerav eyes flashed an apologetic look and apologized but still Edna was there to comfort him saying her own words of wisdom "Don't be. Just be careful next time, 'kay?" she caressed his back.
Alaster felt a lump in his stomach when he saw that beautiful sight of Edna and Zerav and they look like a lovers in that picture. Nagkaroon lang siya ng familiar ay kinalimutan na siya ng dalaga. Halos na kay Zerav kasi ang atensyon niya at para siyang nakipagkompitensiya sa lalaki para bigyan siya ng atensyon. He doesn't have any idea why he is acting like this. He felt sick upon looking at them too close and have the urge to punch this Zerav guy but he's just restraining himself from commotion.
What's with him? He's really weird this past few days after he meet this witch and ask for a journey. He was famous for being a silent midget, a cold person, and a cautious knight yet he found himself talking with this witch and treating her nice. In fact, he already given his own trust to her and he had this own guts to be overprotective of her in any threat which is in contrary to his own beliefs and behavior.
Why is it? Hindi niya rin alam dahil maski siya ay naguguluhan sa sarili niya.
HINDI alam ni Edna kung anong nakain ni Alaster at bigla na lamang ito nawala sa mood. Lalapitan niya sana ito para tanungin tungkol sa mansanas pero sinamaan lang siya ng tingin nito at nilagpasan siya dala ang mga mabibigat nitong yabag.
She was still in puzzled while staring on his back when a low creak of branches from her behind catches by her enhanced ears. Nilingon niya ito pero wala siyang ibang nakita kundi ang mga nagsasayawang dahon sa hangin.
Does it was just her imagination or someone was watching her closely?
"Edna!" Alaster yells her name making her to turn back into her own reality.
Napag-iiwanan na pala siya ng dalawang binata at siya na lamang ang hinihintay. Alaster face was now in his rage state and she couldn't help but to gulped while staring at his pitch ocean orbs ozzling with danger.
"C-coming!" Dali-dali siyang tumakbo patungo sa dalawang lalaki at 'di na inintindi ang nararamdaman niyang kakaiba sa lugar tsaka nag-isip ng mga bagay na kanina pang bumabagabag sa isipan niya.
May hindi tama sa lugar na'to. Saan ka ba nakakita ng lugar na may bahay pero walang tao? She find it weird and she think that Alaster and Zerav were also thinking the same as hers.
And what triggers her curiosity the most was the apple containing a hallucination spell. Bakit nagkaroon ng ganoon ang simpleng prutas na 'yon? Unless kung may naglagay ng spell sa mismong prutas na 'yon. Ngayon lang siya nakakita ng prutas na may taglay na mahika at wala siyang nabasa sa mga libro na may ganong klase ng prutas.
She temporary stopped from walking when she noticed something in the ground where they are crossing. Lumuhod siya para makita ito ng malapitan.
—It was a small trace of magic circle.
What does a magic circle doing in this land with no humans nor anyone else? She touched the magic circle with her bare hands, destroying it and she felt the overflowing mana releases from it's trace down to her body then a realization strucked her!
This kind of mana! No, this magic! Could it be the—
She attempts to opened her mouth to call for Alaster and Zerav but someone grabbed her from behind and close her mouth by the use of it's palm. She was still in great shocked and couldn't even use a small amount of magic since all of her energy was slowly draining and fading all of sudden. Hindi niya inaasahan ang bagay na'to!
Her senses were shutting down and her eyelids keep on closing, drowning her into the depth of darkness.
"Alaster... Zerav... Feel my existence..." she called out their names in her mind, sending them a message before she passed out. She do hope that they'll get her warning about the danger of this place.
They shouldn't set their own feet in this land, in the first place. It was their very great mistakes because this land was vanished for a long time ago. Nowhere to be found. The existence of every people who lives in here where already left the world and only their soul remains in this place.
In short, this land was owned by the ghost known as the poltergeist.
IRRITATION sketched on Alaster's face when he realized that Edna was no longer with them without leaving a warning. Even Zerav couldn't trace the single location of her own master since he was her familiar. The disappearance of Edna Fritzhald was intriguing since she vanished without leaving a trace or a signal. They can't even sense any mana wandering around the place so it's weird to think that Edna was abducted yet they had a feeling that it was actually happened to her.
Masyado lang talagang magaling ang mga kumuha sa kanya. Nararamdaman nilang may pumipigil sa kanila na gumamit ng mahika para hanapin kung nasaan ang babae kaya tingin nila 'yon ang kumuha sa dalaga.
"Do you have any spells that you can use to find her?" Alaster asked Zerav but he just shrugged and shooked his head while wearing a worried yet frustrated face. Zerav was blaming himself for what was happened to Edna and this making Alaster blood boils! He doesn't want someone who is a problematic idiot, saying that the whole blame was for him. It's making himself sick.
"Crap!" Alaster pinched his nose as a bucket of thoughts appears in his mind. Who the hell abducted that witch? At bakit siya nakuha? Hindi niya alam na may pagkapalpak pala 'yong babaeng 'yon. He thought she was smart and genius yet she still making herself easily to abduct although she had already her familiar beside her!
Fvck! Why do I keep insisting that familiar thinggy? I should concentrate on planning to rescue Edna from those goddammit kidnappers!
While they are in a great thoughts and brainstorming, a short voice suddenly passed through their minds. It wasn't a message but an order.
"Save the whole village against poltergeist.."
Alaster frozed as he heard those term. His mind went blank and he couldn't believe that poltergeist existed somewhere. If poltergeist were the enemy that they runs into, they really in a great danger. Edna is in danger!
A poltergeist is a spirit of those people who died and leave their existence in this world and since they are a spirit, they obtain a greater amount of mana in their body. Masyado silang mahirap kalabanin dahil isa na silang spirit. They can't never been touched.
"Let's save my master." Tiningnan siya ni Zerav at tinapik ang kanyang likuran. "I don't know what poltergeist are but it seems that they are really a dangerous one."
Hindi na nagsalita si Alaster at tumango na lamang. Hindi niya dapat unahin ang kanyang personal na takot. He is a head knight and he doesn't fear anyone. He's strong and can make everything frozen by his touch.
"Can you locate where she is?" the head knight glanced at the guy whose now in the middle of deep thoughts.
"They'll still blocking my spell but I'll do my best to alter it." Zerav closed his eyes for a moment and begins utter some spells in different language which he can't understand.
For a while, there's a pang of pain crossed upon Zerav's face yet he still keep on moving forward. A trace of black scars appears in his body, eating his clean flesh and it screams bad yet he succeeded.
Zerav suddenly collapsed after completing his spells. Alaster runs into him to check if he's okay. Panting heavily and wearing a tired face, Zerav told Alaster where the witch located. He seems trouble from altering the spell of those damn poltergeist and it consumes a lot of his mana.
"Save my master..." Zerav told him while catching his breath. He rested his head in the large tree while healing himself. "My healing magic takes time so I'll become a burden to you if I come with you in this weakened state."
"Kay." In a cold voice he spoke. Sa ginawa ni Zerav ay nabago ang tingin ni Alaster sa lalaki. Hindi niya alam na tapat pala ito sa babaeng witch at mukhang hindi na ito ang dating soul collector na nakilala nila.
Kaunti na lang ay makukuha na nito ang tiwala ni Alaster.
Alaster took something in his pocket and handed it to him. It was an elixir that Edna gave to him to replenish his energy. "Drink this elixir while resting. Don't die on me because your master will be sad if you die." he sounded sincere yet there's a hint of jealousy on his voice upon thinking that Edna treasures Zerav so much. What the heck?
Zerav just chuckled. "Rest assured, Mr. Knight. I think you'll be the one who needs to be careful since you are her friend. I'm just his servant and nothing all so don't be jealous."
Alaster frowned. "I'm not jealous! " angil niya pero ang totoo ay selos na selos na talaga siya. Hindi niya alam kung bakit nagawa pa niyang magselos sa kabila ng sitwasyon nila.
Matapos ng usapang iyon ay nagtungo si Alaster sa lugar na sinabi sa kanya ng lalaki. Hindi niya kayang makitang may mangyaring masama sa babaeng 'yon kahit na alam niya sa sarili niya na kaya nitong protektahan ang kanyang sarili.
Lihim niyang hinihiling na sana ay nasa maayos na kalagayan lamang ang dalaga.
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