"Your prejudices are more than what you see! Don't even dream of having the Pure Spirit with such bad prejudices! Even if you do 100 years praying, you won't got it!"
________
Taja's shady gaze returned. This luck was only once in a month. A girl from The House of Herbals, who wear a veil over her face. She rubbed medicinal cream on Taja's injured wrist.
"Don't get exposed to water overnight, it will take a long time to heal," said the girl briefly.
"You are ... Shaninka?" Taja called the girl's name. Not often, but more than once, Taja nursed him.
The girl replied with a gentle gaze, the way she looked represented a smile behind the thinly moving veil.
"Yes, I am."
Taja notices Shaninka bandaging wound, "You are very kind and good physician. Thank you."
"I'm just a student of medicine herbal, not a physician," objected Shaninka, the girl wearing the veil. Her eyes and eyebrows curved between the gaps in the veil.
"What is it?" Shaninka completes the last bandage on Taja's wrist due to an incident during The Competition of Excellent Archery. There were also many injuries to his legs. The clothes he was wearing were torn apart.
"Why do you always wear the veil?" Taja diverts the conversation. But Shaninka only answered with a surprised look.
That is why since earlier, Taja noticed him. Shaninka was silent while looking down. He felt awkward being watched like that.
The sound of the door being forced open and suddenly Raojhin appeared with many bandages on hand and feet. Hair was a mess. The clothes were torn in several places.
Raojhin stopped at the door. Looking grim and full of emotion, he approached Taja on the bed.
"I see you!" Raojhin pointed harshly at Taja.
Taja was surprised to find Raojhin's arrival very unfriendly.
"I see you, demon!" Raojhin's breath was ragged, the eyes were very deep serious and sharp at all. Seeing Raojhin's clearly unfriendly attitude, Taja got up.
"What is this?" getting up from the couch, he confronts Raojhin. While Shaninka backed away slowly.
Some people who were in the medical ward room panicked. They thought that there would be a feud between two The Young of Praja.
Followed by a group of praja. About dozens. Emerging from the direction from which Raojhin had come. It turned out that Chairman Sujinsha had also come with them.
"I saw something on his leg!" Raojhin shouted.
All eyes saw Taja's feet tread bare. There are some wounds. It doesn't get any weirder.
"I saw something sticking out of his leg ... also fingers ... turning into roots gripping branches!" cried Raojhin, "His fingers ... moss green!"
Everyone was silent for a moment. Watching Taja's pair of legs. Feeling strange and surprised. Antara sees Raojhin who was behaving strangely and Taja who is standing before them all.
"You seems ... shaken!" Lorr En suddenly appeared among the arriving crowd of clergy.
"If it wasn't for him, you would have fallen from a great height!" replied Lorr En firmly. His face held his distaste for Raojhin.
Chief Sujinsha mediated. Not taking sides with anyone who was fighting.
"Raojhin, it might be one of tricks! Please, go back to your treatment room!" said Chief Sujinsha.
"No! It was not a trick. I really saw him ...," shouted Raojhin more and more fiery, voice rising.
"He was changed ... now his legs and arms are back to normal!" Raojhin persists in words. All the people were confused about Raojhin's attitude.
"He, the demon!" Raojhin shouted loudly. His body trembled with mad emotion, and his eyes were full of suspicion. While the finger pointed at Taja.
"He's the one sneaking around all this time!"
"The invisible figure!"
"Food thief!"
Raojhin shouts furiously. As a result of words, everyone became scared and cynical.
"Stop!" Taja interrupted emphatically. Beside him, Lorr En braced himself in case someone suddenly attacked.
"Get out of the way!" Raojhin grew increasingly irritated and rebuked Lorr En. Ao then Chief Sujinsha notices Raojhin who was in a dark eye.
"Is it about the point result? You are still the winner, Raojhin!" Chief Sujinsha said.
"No! It's not about points. It is about the truth that Taja is not human! He is a demon!" Raojhin seemed to no longer care about Chief Sujinsha's attention.
"Raojhin, calm yourself down!" said Chief Sujinsha. Everyone looked cynically at Taja.
In all these years, Raojhin had never displayed such a strange temper, let alone attack like this. Raojhin was quiet and didn't say much, suddenly turning like someone who wanted to kill.
"Stop fooling us! There is no way a human could have survived from such a height!" Raojhin tries to reveal logic.
"He holds your hand so you don't fall to the ground!" Lorr En defends Taja in silence.
"Someone with training can do it!" Chief Sujinsha seemed to side with Taja.
"Go back to your room, Rao!" Chief Sujinsha ordered once again.
But Raojhin still disobeyed. Everyone was astonished at Raojhin's overly presumptuous attitude.
"All your prejudices are beyond what you see!" Taja tried to speak.
"So ... do you're calling me a liar?" Raojhin restrains himself, not to attack Taja. Even though deep emotion.
"I didn't say," replied Taja, "Don't dream of getting The Pure Spirit!" Taja said firmly.
"Your prejudices are more than what you see! Don't even dream of having the Pure Spirit in such bad prejudices! Even if you do 100 years praying, you won't get it!"
Everyone was surprised to hear Taja's firm words. He was a praja who had recently been accepted into Tanapura, but his firmness, once said, was able to influence many people.
Chief Sujinsha fell silent again. Trying to digest Raojhin's words.
"We didn't get stuck in the branch... but he ... he gripped the branch with his feet and hand ... he ..." Raojhin slumped. Anyone who was there knew that Raojhin was in a bad condition after falling into a tree from such a height. Several people immediately helped Raojhin back to another room to continue the treatment.
The room was quiet again, only a few people were still in the ward where Taja was receiving treatment.
"Calm down! Everything will be fine, he's just a little shaken up!" suddenly Princess Alingga appeared, coming into the room from the main door.
"Yes. He will recover soon," said Shaninka.
Taja was silent in his own mind. Everyone already heard Raojhin's accusation.
"Demon?!" Taja was astonished.
"I was even with them at lunch," muttered Taja, shaking head at the memory of Raojhin's treatment.
"He is simply jealous of your abilities!" Lorr En chimed in.
"So far, Raojhin has always excelled. He wants to find a fair opponent," said Putri Alingga, correcting Lorr En's opinion.
"About the Invisible Praja, it has been around for a long time. Even before you were in Tanapura. So there's no need to worry about it," said Chief Sujinsha before leaving the room. Putri Alingga and Shaninka also left the place.
It was quiet again, only Taja and Lorr En were left in the medical ward. The other cots lined up looked empty.
"Why are you careless?" Lorr En glanced at Taja and whispered a little.
"How could I let him fall from a tree that high," Taja replied flatly, returning to the bed.
"At least don't let anyone see your other form," said Lorr En to warn Taja to be more careful. Looking around, he was worried that someone else might have overheard their conversation.
Taja just silent, realizing his carelessness, "Looks like, we're going to have long days and long years here," Taja took a deep breath.
"Didn't I tell you before, so we have to leave Tanapura!" Lorr En replied.
"I don't know ... I feel ... there are many things that will be revealed here," Taja felt a strange sign while living in Tanapura, "Besides, where are we going to?" he turned to Lorr En.
Remember that they have no choice. Have no goals. All this time on the run from one place to another.
Traded as slaves. On the run and caught again over and over again. Hiding in the forests for years.
* * *