"And you are?"
Mors stopped, staring at how Lu protectively held Vita in his arms and tilted his head.
"Her brother, perhaps?"
Lu nodded and used his Wind Element to cool Vita down, as she was starting to have a fever.
'I should've intervened sooner…'
Then again, if he did, no one else would teach Vita about this all. Vita was a lovable naive child for the village's people, and for some others, she was a good tool to be used.
No one wanted to clear her naivety, and she was so young in any case. A 10 years old girl, she barely knew a few things.
Lu knew the situation exactly, and yet, he himself could not explain it to her. She thought of these people as her family, and she thought of these creatures as her friends.
Breaking the illusion was both hard and painful.
That was the reason behind him letting Mors go on, despite how Vita got hurt.
'Some pain… Is always necessary.'
He softly sighed before piggybacking Vita and getting closer to Mors, until the latter told him to stop.
"What do you want from me? I've warned your sister to not come here again the first time."
"I'm not here to blame you. I've warned her the same as well. Sadly, she's just a reckless kid."
He gave another sigh before directly asking, "Mors, death, a child with a power that works in a complete opposite way of Vita. So, who are you?"
Mors' face went blank suddenly. When Vita asked him about his identity, those were the words he told her.
But aside from them, he believed he had no identity. And so, his answer was simple, "I'm just what you mentioned and nothing more."
Lu hummed softly and looked around, noticing how the Forbidden Area was truly a place where death roamed.
He chuckled as he thought about that while looking at Mors.
"A place where death itself roams. Who knew that rumors could be this true?"
Mors was about to leave after hearing that, but was stopped again by Lu.
"Don't go. I have an offer for you, something you may enjoy."
"Hmm?"
After catching Mors' attention, Lu smiled wickedly as he whispered.
"Let's make a simple and quick deal here…"
After discussing the details, Mors surprisingly agreed, which made Lu relieved as he took Vita out of the Forbidden Area, Butter the butterfly following behind them of course.
"I just hope this idiot gal is actually alright…"
The physical pain could be healed, and so could the mental eventually. However, the shock of her beliefs being questioned was not something a 10 years old girl was supposed to know yet.
Unfortunately, Vita did not have enough time to grow up before being forced to understand this. Lu had waited enough, and the waves of secret clashes were knocking on the doors.
Eventually, they reached the village again and Lu sneaked into Meria's house, surprising her as she was making some herbal medicine.
"Lu! Why are you here-? VITA?!"
Meria sensed the unique aura of Lu at first and then sensed Vita's faint one, which indicated that she was either seriously sick or severely injured.
Lu was one of the people who knew about Meria's real condition, so he quickly explained.
"She's having a high fever, and overused her power as well. I can't disclose the details for you yet, but she probably has a strong mental shock right now as well."
Meria was speechless but she did not delay, she immediately picked Vita up and laid her down in the bed while using her Elements to examine her.
"Her body is damaged but not severely, her fever is due to her mental shock and overusing her power. Lu, be truthful with me, how did this happen?"
Meria was actively using her Elements to heal Vita's body and fever, yet, she could not help but ask Lu about what happened.
"Vita was also injured yesterday, this surely isn't a normal occurrence…"
Lu scratched his cheek and stood awkwardly, as much as he wanted to tell Meria about it, he felt it was quite early and wrong.
His plans were based on information he should not be able to have yet, and leaking such knowledge was equal to delivering his neck to his 'dad' on a silver plate.
He eventually bowed his head to Meria and apologized, "I'm sorry, Auntie. Can't say at this moment."
Meria stared at him for a while before sighing, 'Why do children love to keep secrets nowadays?'
It was something understandable in a way, but this also worried Meria to death. How can she help them if they never told her the problem?
Meria could only opt for resignation regarding this, but her heart will never be at ease with Lu and Vita going around and getting hurt.
"Knowing you are becoming responsible is great and all, but please lean on us adults a bit sometimes, yes?"
"No promises."
Lu did not even wait before giving his answer with a casual smile that made Meria throw him out.
"Since you are a big guy, you can leave and no need to worry about anything then. See you at another time, big Lu."
Lu flicked his own forehead while chuckling helplessly at Meria's reaction.
It was something he could not help with, so he just shrugged his shoulders before leaving the place.
Meanwhile, Meria put her hand on Vita's head and activated her unique chant which was supposed to help Vita to calm her inner turmoil.
This time, however, Meria was able to hear some things Vita was thinking about, and those questions made her tearful.
'Who am I…? Am I really loved…? Why they no wanna stay with me…? Is… Someone using me?'
Meria felt her heart aching but she did not take her hand away, she knew she was helping Vita in a way or another. Even if she felt hurt by those questions, it was also an appropriate punishment for her.
Was Vita being used?
Meria smiled sadly as she mumbled, "Yes, Vita. You are being used by everyone shamelessly."