Jerry's house, located on the edge of Silver Dew Town, was a slightly outdated but cosy little wooden house. The outer walls of the cabin were polished with age, and the garden in front of the entrance was filled with flowers of all colours, filling the air with a faint scent of flowers. Jerry's mother had passed away many years ago, but his mother-in-law still maintained a neat and tidy routine, as if she was waiting for someone to return.
Jerry came to the door and said, 'Granny I'm home! Open the door quickly.'
In a few moments the wooden door opened, only to see a kindly old woman with a head full of silver hair and a face covered with the marks of age. She was dressed in plain clothes, leaning on a walking stick, with a kind smile on her lips.
The granny noticed the two beside Jerry and said, 'Jerry you're back, are these two your friends?'
'Yeah! Granny, they're travellers passing through here.Vetril and Eleanor, they'll have to tell me stories about the outside world later!' Jerry responded.
'Vetril, Eleanor, come in and sit down.' Granny greeted the two warmly and introduced them into the living room. The living room was simply and warmly decorated, with an old wooden table in the centre, a few chairs around it, and a few yellowed photographs hanging on the wall. The people in the photos had warm smiles, as if they were telling stories of the past.
'Right, I seem to have forgotten to buy something! You guys sit down first! I'll be right back,' Jerry suddenly said, and without waiting for the others to say anything, Jerry flew out of the house.
'That kid! He's still so confused about what he's doing, I can't help it.' Granny said with a smile.
Once Jerry was out the door, Vetril and Elinor chatted with their mother-in-law. Elinor was an inquisitive girl who couldn't help but ask questions. She noticed that among the photos in her mother-in-law's house, there was a picture of Jerry's parents together, so she couldn't help but ask, 'Granny, where are Jerry's parents? Where are they now?'
Granny's smile faltered slightly, and her eyes became slightly dazed. She gently stroked the photo as if she was stroking a loved one in her memory.Vetril noticed that his mother-in-law's hand was trembling a little, and he gently patted Elinor's shoulder, signalling her not to pursue the question. But Elinor seemed not to notice the change in atmosphere and continued to pursue, 'Granny, can you tell us the story of Jerry's parents?'
Granny sighed, a trace of sadness flashed in her eyes, but she quickly regained her composure. She looked at the photo and slowly spoke, 'Jerry's parents ah ... their story is a long story. Do you guys know? This town didn't used to be called Silver Dew, back then it was just a poor little place where people had trouble even feeding themselves.'
Both Vetril and Eleanor froze. They had never imagined that this seemingly peaceful town had such an unknown past. Granny continued, 'Jerry's mother came from out of town, she was a water mage when she was young, and even though she was only a trainee mage, her strength was considered to be at the top of the list among ordinary people. When she came to this town, Jerry's father fell in love with her at first sight and began to pursue her. At first, Jerry's mother didn't like him, but Jerry's father was so persistent that he eventually touched her heart. After they married, Jerry was born.'
Granny nodded and continued, 'Jerry's father was a simple man who always thought of surprising his wife. Once, he left town alone to find a special gift for Jerry's mother. But after that day, he never came back. Jerry's mother waited for him for a long time, but never did. She thought her husband was dead, but because Jerry was still so young, she couldn't leave town to look for him. Until seven years ago, when the cultists came.'
Eleanor frowned and asked, 'The cultists came? Why did they attack the town?'
Granny sighed, a hint of sadness flashing in her eyes, 'They wanted to take over this land and use the water veins here to cast dark magic. Jerry's mother knew about it and stepped forward. Although she was a trainee mage, her water magic was doubly effective with the underground water veins, and she summoned water elemental elves with her life to protect the ordinary people in the town. However, the power of the water elemental elves was not enough to completely destroy the cultists, and they could only banish them in the end. Jerry's mother, meanwhile, used up all her strength in the battle and entrusted Jerry to me before she died.'
'Then this Jerry boy is really strong!' Eleanor said, at the same time she noticed that Vetril beside her was a bit emotionally upset.
Vetril listened to Jerry's story with a flash of sadness on his face, it reminded him of himself and how his fate was not the same.
Granny nodded, a trace of nostalgia flashed in her eyes, 'Yes, ever since Jerry's mother sacrificed herself, perhaps because the previous magic had triggered the underground water veins, so every morning the town's water vapour began to condense into dewdrops. These dewdrops are miraculously effective in lifting abnormal states, such as drunkenness, poisoning, and so on. The people thought it was a gift from the water elemental elves and renamed the town Silver Dew.'
Vetril was silent for a moment and suddenly asked, 'Granny, you mentioned that Jerry's father left in search of a gift. Do you know where he went?'
Granny shook her head, a flash of confusion in her eyes, 'I don't know. Jerry's mother never gave up looking for him either, but she couldn't leave town because Jerry was so young. Maybe he's still alive somewhere, maybe he's dead. It's all a mystery.'
Eleanor said thoughtfully, 'Maybe one day we can find out what happened to Jerry's father.'
Granny sighed and said, 'Maybe. But Jerry's mother has been waiting for him for a long time, and she can't wait any longer.'
Vetril and Eleanor were silent for a moment, and they felt a pang of deep sadness. It had never occurred to them that Jerry's family had such a complicated and sad story.
After a while, Jerry never came back.
'Why isn't this boy Jerry back yet, it's so worrying.' Granny said worriedly.
Suddenly there was a knock on the wooden door of Jerry's house, the mother-in-law thought it was Jerry coming back and immediately went to open the door.
The person who appeared outside the wooden door was not Jerry but a young man who said anxiously, 'Granny it's not good! I saw Jerry running towards the back of the hill!'
'Oh no! The back hills. That boy is really not to be trifled with, doesn't he know that it's dangerous to go to the back of the mountain so late in the evening?' Granny said anxiously.
'It's fine, granny why don't you leave it to us! Jerry is like a brother to me.' Vetril said, having heard the conversation between the two.
'That's no good, you are just kids, let me go to the town and ask some adults to come along' said granny.
'It's alright granny, just leave it to us, don't look at us as young, we're very strong, and it's too slow to go and gather people now, it's better to let us go and see what's going on first!' Eleanor said.
'It's not that, it's the fact that the back of the mountain is going to be foggy in another hour! Because every time it gets close to 9pm, the back of the town's mountains get foggy, and although there's no great danger, it's easy to get lost in it and not find your way back.' Granny explained.
'It's fine, this problem can be solved with magic.Vetril let's hurry up, how can we miss such an interesting thing!' After Eleanor finished speaking, she first asked for the direction of the back of the mountain, then before that she took Vetril's hand and flew away.
'Granny, don't ever worry, we'll get Jerry back safely' Vetril's voice shouted from the distance.