The elder was quickly regaining sanity, judging from his decreasing groans and the disappearance of the disturbing-looking veins. At last, the elder's eyes opened, and everyone in the room released the anxious breaths they were holding. The old man sat up and waved his hand over the five healers' heads, muttering gibberish which the healers accepted with grateful and modest visages.
It should be noted that reincarnation had not been on Hannah's rather empty agenda. But getting back to her real world and celebrating Christmas with her family had been(well, until she was swindled, that is.). Nonetheless, the evident existence of magic(and spirits) rekindled her wish to see her beloved family.
Despite her death, if there was anything that could defy the known laws of physics and even death itself and also give Hannah a chance to return to her world, that would be the unexplainable phenomenon called MAGIC.
Regardless, why would she want to return to her crappy life as a hermit? Hannah, however, knew that despite the inequity of her crappy life, there were people who cared deeply about her in that world. As for this new world of hers with silver-haired erotically-dressed people...well...she had felt no attachment towards it thus far.
So, to cut the long story short...
Hannah, now a black-haired girl who looked six years old, stood up, attaining the attention of everyone in the room. The elder tilted his face to her and he instantly regained his previous terror.
Hannah smiled obliviously to the elder, her short strides approaching him. "You! Elder-san!" she addressed him, coming to stand before the robed geezer.
"W-What is it that you need, Oh Great One?" the elder inquired reverently, a stutter to his croaky voice as he avoided the little girl's endearing gaze, as though she was a monster who craved to devour him alive.
Hannah arched a brow and patted his shoulder with her tiny palm, smirking delightfully. "Don't be so tense, sensei! Lighten up a bit! So, when are we to start our magic lessons, sensei?"
The elder's jaw slackened. His beady eyes widened so much that Hannah could see his aqua-blue pupils. "Lessons? M-My Lord, what do you mean?"
His question was ignored. Hannah smiled and set her palm firmly on his bony shoulder, applying the most pressure and intimidation she could while in a child's body.
"Oh? So we start the magic lessons right now? Thank you, sensei!"
* * *
"You...my Lord...scratch that. I already know you are not the Lord I once knew, at least...not spiritually. Who are you?" questioned the old man. The room had been emptied and now he sat in front of me in the quiet hut.
"Are you asking an amnesiac that question? Talk about a splendid way of psychological torture," Hannah retorted, curiously sipping the green liquid that had been served for her.
A bizarre sensation suddenly assaulted her taste buds. The villagers had called it a herbal beverage that made one feel like they were younger, but it tasted like a bunch of random weeds blended with a dash of dog pee. Rather than feeling younger, she felt as though she had her lifespan halved.
The girl's face paled as she set the wooden cup down.
"The spirits have informed me that there is an abnormality with your existence. Your consciousness seems to be...very peculiar..." the old man expounded, thoughtfully, his gaze overly wary as he watched her stick her tongue out in disgust.
She was trying to use the air to blow away the taste clinging to her tongue, but to no avail.
"If you are..."
"Ugh, they call that a herbal beverage? I would rather eat a tree root," she remarked derisively before sputtering to the elder, "Who I am doesn't matter. What matters is your magical aptitude, sensei."
"I do not know what you seek from me, being. Nonetheless, if you intend to harm any of the Santos clansmen, you shall die," he responded. His beady eyes were becoming more distinct with the provocative rising of his eyelids.
"Oh yeah? Lucky for me, I'm a kind person, so I guess I don't need to die, right?" Hannah inquired.
"Um...I believe so," the elder responded doubtfully.
"Great! Thanks, sensei. Anyways, for now, let's overlook all that nonsense and talk about this village. I want to know everything about this world, including the knowledge of spirits and magic!" Hannah excitedly said.
The old man, quelled into lowering his stiff guard, cleared his throat before saying, "Well then, I will begin by explaining our...village, you called it?"
Thereafter, the elder gave an exhaustive evaluation of the village. Hannah had been wrong to call it a village, for it was mostly a clan of a special race known as Santos. The Santos Clan, driven to near extinction now, was an evolved version of the elves.
"Ah, that explains the pointy ears," Hannah thought, noting her ear's sharp edge.
The clan had been almost cornered into inexistence due to the low birth rates. Because females were few, women were highly valued to the point that the previous clan leader had killed quite a few male infants.
The Santos Clan was characterized by hair the color of snow. A clan leader would be born every five decades, and they would be called 'Lord'. Hannah's new body was that of a black-haired girl, yet she was unanimously declared the Lord by the spirits--something that had never happened before.
The elder explained that Hannah was a half-blood, her mother being a Santos elf and her father being of obscure origin.
"A father of unknown origins?" Hannah felt excited just by hearing such a mysterious point, "What if my dad is some sort of mafia king? Or what if he's an emperor...ah, scratch that, what if he's a demigod?"
The elder could somehow read her thoughts(they were written all over her face). He said laconically, "Your mother was a strumpet who strayed outside the forest and entertained some bandits. She later returned to the clan, expectant with you, and informed us that your father was an unknown bandit she had drunkenly copulated with."
"Uh, is that so?" Hannah asked, feeling as though the old man's words were a bucket of ice-cold water. Ah, even though she barely knew her parents, he could have at least spoken kindly. So her father was NOT a mafia king or an emperor or a demigod...but he was a bandit.
"Where is my mother then?" Hannah decided to change the topic, though she was indeed curious about her mother.