After breakfast, Val, Barbara, and Lyle headed toward the cave. Lyle sat on his mamma's shoulders, quite content to see the world from 8'5'' height. To him, who was only 4'4'', the sight from above his mom's shoulder's was always a delight. Not to mention his legs cushioning against her massive pillows that always gave his stomach butterflies.
The people in this world had unique biology tailored for accommodating and utilizing a potent force such as mana. Thus, for men to be 9 and women to be 8 feet tall at the very least was the norm. A 6 feet boy was either a child or a dwarf.
The group stepped inside the cave as darkness contrasted with their sight. It took some time to adjust to the darkness and settle on the Lumin radiance the Lumin stone provided in Barbara's staff.
With the Dark Gahnite abundant in the mountain range, the cavity was no doubt vast. Just the ceiling was several dozen feet high, covered with stalactites that dripped water into the little pond inside the cave. Multiple floors spiraled downwards—most probably the work of its former residents. The idea was already confirmed when they found the entrance covered with a huge boulder.
With the atmosphere being humid and the surface being wet, it provided a good condition for several floras to grow, like the luminous fungi, some edible and herbal mushrooms, and other species that didn't need much sunlight, like frogs and insects.
An earthy smell prevailed in the atmosphere, quite soothing to any human.
As they crossed the pond, Val spoke, "Lyle, you wait here and observe the pond like usual. We will quickly take a look at the floor below before coming back."
"I also want to come."
"No, it could be dangerous inside. You wouldn't like danger, would you?"
"Ugh," He grumbled and slid down his mother's back. He took his aunt's staff for lighting and approached the pond.
Val and Barbara took out another Lumin stone and advanced towards the floor down below.
…
Lyle's tenaciously curious gaze bore through the dark waters of the pond, locking on the tadpoles swimming inside. A smile imperceptibly crept upon his face, yet his innocent eyes held numerous questions, unanswered.
He felt like being hung upside down on a tree branch, eyes yearning to capture the distant scenery, yet unable to.
Unable to hold his curiosity, he stretched his hands to catch a tadpole to observe it up close. Alas, it undulated away.
He tried catching another one, but it escaped once again. Then another one. He tried multiple times, but still couldn't catch a single one.
Then, a miracle happened. A wave came towards Lyle, slowly morphing into a pair of human-shaped hands. They stretched toward him, a tadpole caught up in them as if offering it to Lyle.
Lyle then cupped his hands, and the water hands put the tadpole into it along with some water. Lyle giggled in delight, watching the tadpole undulate freely in his grasp.
It took a few moments before it dawned on him, that something inhuman happened before his eyes.
"Eep!"
He screamed, threw the tadpole away, and crawled back several feet.
"Mommy!"
"Coming! Don't panic!"
It didn't even take a few moments before Val was right before him, scanning the whole perimeters of the cave. Lyle jumped and crawled up his personal defense tower.
"What was it?" Val asked without losing her vigilance. Barbara also came by this time.
What Lyle told them left them stupefied.
"There's a ghost in the pond. Two water hands came out of it and handed me a tadpole."
"What?" Both exclaimed in unison.
Val gestured to Barbara, and she took her staff and spread out her dark mana. A few moments later, she shook her head. "There's nothing here other than these harmless little creatures in the water."
"See, it might just be your imagination," Val assured, but Lyle wasn't buying it.
"No! I saw it with my own eyes. I even held the tadpole in my hands!"
Despite how he protested, the two women weren't believing it. It irritated him to his core, but what could he do to convince them?
The next day, he dragged his Aunt and stretched his hands like he did before, mustering all his courage. Alas, he was bound to be disappointed once again, as nothing happened in his Aunt's presence.
When his Aunt went to the lower floor, the hands showed themselves once again when Lyle was all alone.
He screamed once again and called his aunt to watch the show. Unfortunately, they disappeared with a splash.
This went on for a few days until Lyle was annoyed and no longer afraid. When he was alone, cupping his hands forward, the hands didn't show themselves this time. But water slowly arose and morphed into a humanoid figure. "I'm also afraid of strangers, you know."
Before this horrifying scene, Lyle lost his voice and strength in his limbs. His heart pounded in his throat, and his mouth flapped like a fish out of water. His body shuddered as he fell on his butt.
He tightly closed his eyes, as if that would make the ghost go away. It didn't, but a few moments later, Lyle registered what the ghost had said.
Ghosts fearing strangers? Was that a new trend?
But the words did quell his fears a bit, and he opened his eyes. It had feminine curves, and if that wasn't enough, she had two massive bonkers on her chest. She was definitely a woman. With a gentle smile on her face? The whole figure was transparent like water, so it was hard to tell.
"Why do you fear me, child?" She asked in a soothing tone that further lowered his fears.
"Aa-aren't you a g-ghost?"
"Hehe, no. I'm a nymph."
"What's a nymph? Is it a monster?"
She blinked twice, not expecting such categorization. "Child, I'm far from a monster. Um, let's say, I'm a spirit of water."
"Spirit of water? What is that? Will you eat me?"
"Pfft. Why will I eat you? I'm not a monster."
"Then what are you?" Lyle asked.