After a lengthy debate of unanswered questions, Vincent finally gave in and said he wanted to rest at Aily's home.
"What is this?" Vincent asked.
"Jasmine tea. Is this your first time trying it?" Aily responded with another question.
Vincent sighed again. He couldn't understand why Aily always responded to questions with questions. He sat down, watching Aily as she busily moved around.
"What are you doing?" Vincent asked again.
"Preparing medicine. Do you want some of this medicine?" Aily replied, ending with a question.
"No, thank you. I'm healthy enough!" Vincent replied tersely.
Aily stopped talking and focused on preparing medicine for her mother. Once she finished, Aily moved to the kitchen.
Curious, Vincent followed her to the kitchen and saw Aily skillfully preparing something.
"What are you cooking?" Vincent asked.
"Mustard greens. Sorry, I don't have any meat for us to eat, but if you want some, I can catch a wild rat outside," Aily explained.
"I don't eat rats, so thanks for the offer," Vincent replied.
"Should I catch a frog instead?" Aily asked.
Vincent's expression remained blank. Aily's questions were always outside of what he expected.
"No need. Oh, by the way, I still don't know your name," Vincent said.
Aily stopped what she was doing and turned to look at Vincent.
"Aily," she replied briefly.
"Alright, so you live here alone at the base of the hill?" Vincent inquired.
"Why are you asking? Do you plan to take this house?" Aily looked panicked. "Please, take anything you want, but don't take this house. If you take it, where will my mother and I live?" she said, suddenly kneeling before Vincent.
Vincent was surprised by her words, realizing she misunderstood his intentions. He helped Aily up without saying much.
"Please don't take this house," Aily pleaded.
"I never said I wanted to take this house. I already have my own home. You don't need to worry," Vincent clarified.
"Really?" Aily asked again, to be sure.
"Hmm," Vincent hummed. "But I haven't seen your mother?"
"She's in her room, still unwell," Aily answered honestly.
Vincent was still too curious about Aily's life; after all, she bore a strong resemblance to the girl he had seen in the mirror of destiny.
"Hmm," Vincent muttered.
He didn't know what else to say because it seemed Aily's words didn't require an answer.
"Um ... Sir, I—" Aily's words were cut off as Vincent interrupted.
"Vincent," he said simply.
Aily nodded, smiling as she spoke, "Vincent, please take a seat over there. I'll prepare some food for you."
"Thank you, but I'm not hungry," Vincent replied, still standing by her side.
"Alright, then I'll go tend to my mother. You can rest on my bed. It's over there," Aily said, pointing to her worn-out bed.
Vincent nodded and headed to Aily's bed, letting her attend to her duties.
"How can a human sleep on a bed like this? My back and bones might ache sleeping here," Vincent grumbled.
"Sorry, there's no soft mattress here. How about I add some layers of clothing to make it less uncomfortable?" Aily suggested, overhearing him.
Vincent looked at Aily, let out a long sigh, and lay back on her bed.
"No need. I'm already tired and just want to rest," Vincent replied.
"Alright then, rest well, Vincent," Aily said.
Vincent didn't reply further, lying with his back to Aily. For some reason, he felt an ache in his chest witnessing her life like this.
"Is she really my destiny? Why do I feel this way? It's so uncomfortable," Vincent thought to himself, clutching his chest.
The night grew late, with no conversation or sound—just the soft noises of small animals filling the quiet, cold night.
Vincent sat up again, looking around. He wondered where Aily would sleep since he was using her bed.
He found her in the kitchen, asleep on a long bench without a blanket. Vincent raised his hand in the air, and a warm, thick blanket magically appeared over her.
Vincent moved closer and knelt beside Aily, wanting to take a closer look at her face.
"I'll help you and your mother if you truly are my destiny. We'll live in the demon realm. But for now, I can't be certain if you're the girl I saw in the mirror of destiny," Vincent murmured.
His heart was genuinely stirred, though he wasn't sure if Aily was truly his destined one.
Vincent then entered Aily's mother's room, reciting a few incantations before leaving the house late into the night.
* * *
The rooster crowed, signaling the arrival of morning. Aily woke up feeling unusually refreshed.
"It feels like I dreamed of sleeping on a soft mattress," Aily whispered.
Still savoring the comfort, her sense of smell picked up a familiar aroma.
"It smells like mother's cooking ... Wait, mother's cooking?" Aily said in surprise, sitting up quickly.
She looked around, noticing her home was clean and tidy. Her hand touched the usually thin, rough mattress, now feeling soft.
"What a beautiful dream," Aily said.
She closed her eyes again, relishing the dream that felt so real. Suddenly, a familiar voice called her name, making her open her eyes and look toward the source.
"Aily, what are you doing? It's already late, isn't it time to go to work? Hurry up and get washed and have breakfast. I'm waiting for you at the dining table," a woman's voice called, referring to herself as her mother.
"Mother?" Aily whispered.
Her eyes widened, filling with tears. She was filled with joy but, remembering this was only a dream, quickly turned away and began to cry.
"Aily, why are you crying?"
Her mother's voice echoed again. It couldn't be true. Her mother, who was usually bedridden, now looked refreshed. Impossible.
Aily's shoulders trembled, fearing she might not wake from this dream. She grew scared, thinking that her mother had perhaps already left her.
"No! No! Why does this feel so real? I'm not ready to lose you, Mother," Aily cried.
To be continue…