Away from home, in this mysterious world, everyone remained on high alert. All their senses heightened, especially Heidi, presently darting through the bush with three orcs in pursuit. After about ten minutes, breathless and exhausted, she spotted a large pit up ahead. Dashing towards it, she only stopped running when she saw what lay beneath – a ten-meter-deep pit filled with thorns of various sizes, the larger ones adorned with smaller thorns dripping fresh blood.
"Great! I just have to find a way to trick them here," Heidi said, panting heavily. She stared towards the direction the orcs were coming from, waiting for them to appear. Suddenly, their thunderous footsteps paused, and everything fell silent until a cry of pain echoed through the forest.
"Ah," Heidi involuntarily shrank as she heard the painful cry. "This voice belongs to the orc who bought me. What could be so wicked to torture it in such an inhumane manner?"
"Who are you, human?!!! Where do you come fr... Ahhhhhhhhhhhh."
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhh."
The three orcs' cries sent shivers down Heidi's spine as she cautiously moved towards the source. Though she wouldn't have approached under normal circumstances, the word "human" sparked something inside her, urging her to discover the person responsible for this. Arriving at the location, she saw the orcs' bodies lying on the ground, eyes white and limbs twisted in unimaginable ways.
"W-Who could do this?"
A cool breeze swept through, and she closed her eyes gently, sensing a warm familiarity in the wind. "Forget it. I'm just being delusional; I think it's because I haven't slept or eaten in a while... No, I need to find the rest first... No way, I'm eating first. I'm no use if I die of hunger before finding them."
*****
"Ahh! L-Leave me alone!" Isabelle gasped for air as the orc caught her neck and raised her up.
"Do you think I am stupid enough to be seduced by a human? You need to be educated properly." The orc's voice rang in Isabelle's ear as dizziness set in. It didn't take long before the air in her lungs was exhausted, and her eyes closed as her breathing stopped.
Throwing her over his shoulder, the orc hung its club on its waist as it carried Isabelle away.
****
"Ughh." Isabelle opened her eyes, grabbing her neck, thinking she was still being strangled by the orc.
"Don't worry, lady. You are in my care now." A refined middle-aged man appeared, holding two cups of a strange liquid in his hand.
"Who are you? What do you want? I will call the cops!" Isabelle jumped back in fright, looking around the tightly shut house for an exit or escape route, but she found none.
Sipping on the coffee, the man wiped his tongue elegantly as he spoke in a cool manner, "If you are looking for a door, I'm sorry, you won't find one. I had to make this place a secret, or else the orc would have found me."
"What do you mean?" Isabelle kept walking backward, glaring at the man vigilantly. She took one more step and slipped. Trying to stand up, she realized she was sitting on blood. She trailed the blood and discovered the source – none other than the orc that tried to kill her.
"You can thank me later," the man said as he sipped on his coffee again.
"Y-You. W-Why are you helping me? You don't even know me." Isabelle stammered nervously as she approached the man vigilantly.
His immensely calm aura scared her a lot; she tried looking into him, but he was like a concrete wall. No matter how much she tried, she couldn't see the other side of it.
The man dropped the coffee as he inspected Isabelle with the side of his eye. "Go to the room on your right; inside, you will find everything you need – bath, clothes, everything you need. And if I were to take a guess, you are not from around here, right?"
Shocked, Isabelle glanced at her clothes and realized they were made of different materials. His appeared to be smoother, contracting to his size, and the silk it was made of glittered like gold compared to hers. "Yes, you're right. I am not from around here. I came from a far distant world."
"Now, this is getting interesting." Picking up his coffee again, the man shifted to a more relaxed position as he stared at Isabelle.
"Well, me and my friends fell into a wormhole from Earth, and it took us here," she explained shortly.
The man frowned slightly as he searched his brain. "Earth... Never heard of it before. By 'wormhole,' I think you meant a portal, right? You and your friends traveled through a portal."
"You can call it that too."
"Anyway, you should have a warm bath, get changed, and then you can go if you wish," the man said as he blew a speck of dust off his shoulder away. Sitting back, he took the book beside the coffee and started reading.
'He is letting me go just like that!' Isabelle almost couldn't believe her eyes and ears as she walked towards the entrance. It was the place the man pointed to as he said she could leave. Standing at the entrance of the door, she was just a second away from stepping out, but her walk paused. As she turned around and walked towards the bathroom, she realized she couldn't reject the offer of a nice warm bath after everything she'd been through. She entered the room and was immediately shocked by the grand size of the room alone. It was like a world hidden in the man's secret cave.
Luxurious tiles adorned the walls and floor, and the bathtub, more like a small pool, was invitingly warm. The flickering candlelight added a touch of mystique, creating a comforting ambiance. Isabelle hesitated for a moment before giving in to the allure of the bath.
As she immersed herself in the warm water, the events of the day replayed in her mind. The mysterious man's actions perplexed her, and she couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to this situation than met the eye. Despite the strange circumstances, the warmth of the bath eased the tension in her muscles and provided a momentary escape from the unfamiliar world outside.