"Ha…! Ha…! Ha…!" Gasping for air, Sungah sprinted through the desolated city streets with her life on the line.

"Chase her! Kill that witch!" A massive crowd of men trailed her from behind. Most of them hurled apples and other kinds of fruits from behind in an attempt to hit her with only a few making contact with her body. Even so, her pace remained consistent and unyielding.

Moments earlier, she was still invisible to the crowd's eyes as their attention was focused on the death of the witch. Their deafening chants of celebration overshadowed her footsteps. It gave Sungah a chance to slip away from the gazes of those maniacs.

However, she never took measures for any possible individuals to turn their head around rather than encore along with the crowd. Such an unexpected occurrence was the leading cause for her pursuit. An ordinary looking man just so happened to have a strange urge to look behind his back.

Which has now unfolded to her current predicament. Sungah continued to swing her legs frantically, her stamina declining at a terrifying speed. She herself knew her own body's limit, and it was extremely near. Just a few more seconds and she would soon tumble onto the ground from exhaustion.

But her chasers gaver her not a single moment for her to catch even a whiff of air properly. She needed to think of something fast, otherwise she too would become a victim of unjust violence. Hope seemed to be out of her reach until she noticed the path diverging into three segments upfront.

Deciding to take a gamble with her life, she made a sharp left turn and hurried into an alleyway before she could be caught. Her hands quickly covered her mouth in order to dampen the sound of her breathing. The large mob passed by Sungah as they continued going forward, unaware of her ploy.

Once the reverberating echoes of sprinting became distant, a loud and exhausted gasp escaped from her throat. Her weakened legs finally gave out, causing Sungah to collapse onto the ground.

"Ah…ah…ah…" She pants aloud, unable to focus on anything else apart from her worn-out condition. Regardless, she swiftly covered her mouth—the sounds of two men holding a conversation while walking closely, causing her fight or flight instincts to kick in.

"Ah, shit! Why did that damn witch have to awaken her powers at that time!? If it had been a little later, I would've been the hero instead!" A guard shouted angrily, hitting one of the buildings out of frustration.

"Relax, man. It isn't your fault it just so happens for the witch to awaken her powers at that time. Blame it on your bad luck. But hey, I became a hero so it's all good in the end in my opinion." Another guard replied nonchalantly, trying to soothe his partner's rage.

"Besides, you saw that woman that ran away earlier. If we manage to catch her, and for her to possibly be a witch, we can make you a hero today as well. Trust me." He added. They both continued chatting about, oblivious to their surroundings as they passed by Sungah's hiding spot.

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Silently, she waited for the both of them to be faraway enough for them to not hear her footsteps. Once the two of them had disappeared from her sight, Sungah cautiously made her way back to the manor. Each step she took made the smallest and faintest sound possible for she did not want to risk being caught and eventually, she had arrived at her destination. But a problem soon arose.

The once opened gates that greeted visitors with open arms were closed tight. Heavily-armed guards enclosed the entire manor from the west, east, south and north, leaving not even the smallest opening for any potential intruders to break through.

The darkness only further complicated Sungah's situation alongside her lack of glasses. They had been destroyed way back when the apocalypse first hit earth. She was near-sighted and everything further than 15 centimeters from her eyes looked blurry and disoriented.

Nevertheless, the darkness, albeit providing additional difficulty for Sungah to try and creep slowly back into the manor—provided just as of an equal value in terms of protection, the guards' eyes barely noticing the figure shrouded by the darkness.

She leaned back against the rough and coarse wall before falling onto the ground. Taking deep breaths in order to calm her anxiousness, she curled up into a ball as she laid down and braced herself for a night in the musty and modly alleyway.

"Ha…I give up…So…tired…" She mumbled, her eyes half-lidded. Her physical and mental state was a wreck and she could no longer bear to ignore it.

She recalled the pleasant and uncomfortable memories she had created with the new residents of the world. The relationship she had with Florin, Aiala and basically every single individual within the manor. From the bottom of her heart, she wished to maintain a mutual relationship with all of them but she knew it was impossible due to many factors—mainly because she didn't belong in this world.

Tears dripped down her cheeks as she cried herself quietly to sleep, grumbling inwardly regarding the current circumstances she was forced to face without any preparations whatsoever.

…

Within the mistress's study room…

A youthful blonde-haired woman with stunning blue eyes, clad in a regal dress befitting of her noble status, meticulously sorted the abundance of paperwork piled up on her desk. Her hands moved rhythmically alongside her humming, revelling in the serene and quiet atmosphere within her office.

But soon enough, the peaceful and tranquil ambience inside of her room was broken by the intrusion of a distressed Florin. Her face flushed and breathing erratic, walking towards the madam's desk in an agitated manner.

"Please…help her." She begged, gasping for air while gripping the madam's desk tightly as she caught her breath. Her pupils dilated, reflecting her concern and worried for her friend's safety. Beads of sweat dribbled onto the floor, her eyes staring deeply into the lady's irises.

"That is in no way to greet your mistress, Florin." The lady quipped but upon recognising Florin's genuine desperation, she instantaneously put her pen aside to hear Florin's request.

"Please…help Sungah. She's out there…somewhere. Probably helpless and scared." Florin implored, her voice hoarse from all the shouting she did before in an attempt to pinpoint Sungah's whereabouts.

"...She stepped out of the manor, I assume. Sorry, Florin. But for me to help her…will be impossible." The mistress sighed and redirected her attention to the insurmountable piles of documents in desperate need to be organised.

Florin slammed her hand on the desk, breaking the lady's concentration away from the worthless pile of papers in comparison to her beloved friend's life.

"Please…I'm begging you. Do something and help her…please…" Florin pleaded earnestly, bowing down at her in a last measure before she would forcibly exit the mansion herself to search for Sungah.

An exasperated sigh escaped from the lady's throat, unable to ignore Florin's earnest plea. She looked down at Florin, giving her a hand as she lifted her from the floor of her study.

"Alright, alright. I'll try. Don't get your hopes up too much if she is already dead. And even if she is, I'll bring back her body for you to mourn if that's what you want. You have my word, so please exit now."

Florin nodded feverishly, feeling over the moon to have had her request accepted. She exits the madam's study room with renewed enthusiasm. The doors closed softly, leaving the blond-haired woman to honour her words.

"Ha…I've gotten too soft. Well then, let's see…" The lady said while looking at the palm of her hand. A soft, yellowish glow emanating from her lapis blue eyes. "Park Sungah, a commoner from an unknown family, unknown nationality and unknown date of birth. Just what is she…some sort of ghost I rescued? Well, no matter. Even if you hide in the deepest, and darkest corners of the world…I'll still find you."

…