"You aren't even married yet and you want to adopt a child?" Phils laughed.
"No — I'll be married within two years," Prince Sam replied. "Don't worry. I've already sent Philip; he will make sure nothing happens to her."Phils laughed again.
Sam relaxed for a second, then suddenly landed a punch on Phils face. Phils laughed loudly.
"You should have told me that sooner, you idiot," Sam said, half annoyed.
"Well, I never accepted that answer from you," Phils shot back. "Also, Sam — what you said just now really stung."
"If the truth stings, so be it. Truth stings people. And don't speak to me again," Sam snapped, then turned and walked away.
Phils watched him disappear into the night.
---
I opened my eyes to complete darkness. Night had settled, and my stomach knotted with hunger. I climbed down from the branch as best I could. Sounds moved through the trees — many shapes shifting and watching — and I knew they were there.
I took a step forward. Something sharp arrow pierced my cheek. My cheek started to ooze blood, and I put a hand on my cheek. I was happy to see the blood. I started to feel something good, as if my heart was fluttering at the sight of blood. I raised my head and looked at the sky. The night looked beautiful to me. I cried out loud. I started laughing.
I stared back into the trees. "How long will you stare?" I called, the words low and steady. "You're making me remember old days—let's make those days fresh again."
"Where did the girl go?" a voice whispered, panicked.
"Hello. Sorry—but now you'll have to die," I said, smiling.
The men advanced. Panic made them clumsy; one collapsed as if fainted with dread, another froze. Fear rippled through them more than any blow. Only one man stood in front of me, trembling the way I once trembled in my childhood.
"Don't be afraid," I said, softer now. "You're older than me. I learned to respect elders a few days ago. But if my other side has hurt anyone… I have done what I had to do." I gripped his throat with steady hands.
"I killed all your companions," I told him plainly. "But because you have already accepted your end, I'm going to give you a chance to live. You don't have to obey your Master anymore. You are free."
"As soon as you are free, go to your family and live happily with them" I said smilingly.
He loosened his stance and stepped back, drawing his sword again. "You think I'll be scared of someone like you?" he snapped.
I stood before him without flinching. "If you must do it, then do it. I love my blood, that tickle, that tolerance are beautiful" I said happily. I looked into his eyes, he was confused.
"If you don't want to kill me then I will kill you. My voice was calm.
He hesitated. Then, as if the terror of his choices overwhelmed him, he went limp and sank to the ground — not from a wound, but from the shock of facing his own fear. He lay still, I caught his neck and let go after some time because he was dead, I hugged him.
I wrapped my arms around him. His body was warm and oddly peaceful. In that moment I felt the hush of someone's last wish: not violence, but a quiet farewell.
"Your life hasn't truly ended," I whispered. "You received that small gift the earth sometimes gives its children when they go — a farewell held with kindness. I want that gift too, but I cannot give it to myself. I want someone to say goodbye to me, with love."
Tears came to my eyes. I could feel the quiet wish inside him — the desire to have his final moment be with someone, not alone. I brushed his brow with my hand and placed a soft, reverent kiss on his forehead — the same gentle gesture Phils had once given me.
"Now you are free," I said, relief lifting my chest.
I tried to leave, but exhaustion and hunger pinned me down. My legs trembled. I lay back on the cool earth beside the quiet figure and felt the faint warmth of the body against me, like a last echo of a heartbeat. It felt almost like an embrace.
I needed someone's love at that moment. I relaxed my body and lay down on my back. I placed my hands on the corpse. It was dry and warm, and it felt like I was hugging someone.
I closed my eyes. Darkness drew close, then a single, faint blue light appeared — a small, steady flame, like a star far away. It drew nearer and, slowly, the light took form.
Where the flame touched air, a woman seemed to rise — a beautiful, otherworldly figure. Her skin was like polished night; her hair held pale blue threads; her dress flowed like moonlit water. I could not clearly see her face, but there was a tenderness in the curve of her mouth, a quiet smile as if she were remembering kindness.
She drew me into her lap and cradled my head. Her hand stroked my hair with a gentleness that calmed every tremor. The night around us grew still and warm. The fear, the hunger, the ache — everything softened.
Wrapped in that peace, I sank into a deep, untroubled sleep — the kind of sleep that stitches up small wounds of the heart. For the first time in a long while, I felt safe.