Deep in the thick forest, Mira and Bintang walked along a narrow, overgrown path. The canopy above cast long shadows, filtering the moonlight into eerie, shifting shapes. Mira seemed calm, her eyes scanning the surroundings with practiced ease. In contrast, Bintang’s eye darted nervously from side to side, his hands trembling slightly as he gripped his book. The dark forest loomed around them, its ancient trees standing like silent guardians, and Bintang couldn't help but wonder if it was safe to walk through such a place.
“Hey Bintang, did you feel what I feel?” Mira’s voice broke the silence, casual yet alert, as she continued to look ahead. Bintang stared at Mira, trying to mask his rising fear, confused by her words. He swallowed hard, the sensation of unease creeping over him. “Well, I take it as a yes,” Mira continued, her tone almost playful. “There’s something hidden, slowly walking toward us.” Her words sent a chill down Bintang’s spine. His fear spiked, and his awareness sharpened, his eyes scanning the darkness frantically, half-expecting something to lunge at them from the shadows.
As they kept walking, Bintang felt a presence, something unseen watching him. They passed a tall white flower, its petals glowing faintly in the moonlight. Bintang felt a sudden urge to turn around, sensing that whatever it was had crept up behind him. He spun around, eyes wide, and froze. A giant flower with a massive eyeball at its center stared back at him, unblinking. Bintang’s heart raced, and he let out a strangled gasp, quickly ducking behind Mira. She turned to face him, and seeing his terror-stricken expression, burst into laughter.
He reached out and shook Mira by the shoulders, trying to snap her out of her laughter. Just as suddenly as it had appeared, the giant eyeball flower vanished, leaving behind a trail of golden dust that floated away on the breeze.
Realizing it was a trick, Bintang’s frustration grew. He shook Mira harder, his face showing his annoyance, while she continued to laugh “Okay, okay, okay, oh my lord!” Mira said, still laughing as she tried to calm down. “Okay, this is fully my fault, sorry for scaring you, hahaha, you... hehe, CAT!” She struggled to catch her breath, her shoulders shaking with amusement. Bintang’s face flushed with a mix of embarrassment and anger. Unable to hold back his irritation, he lightly punched her shoulder. “Sorry,” Mira said between giggles, wiping tears from her eyes. Bintang quickly wrote in his book, then thrust it in front of Mira’s face. She read it aloud, still chuckling, “THAT IS NOT FUNNY, YOU ALMOST MADE ME HAVE A HEART ATTACK.”
Mira laughed again, clearly enjoying herself. “Well, I guess I got the achievement for getting you a heart attack!” She grinned, reaching out to pinch Bintang’s cheek. “You’re cute and also easy to scare. That was funny for me.” She finally let go, her laughter dying down. Bintang felt something was off, and he began writing again, his brows furrowing in thought. He showed Mira his book: “Wait, why didn’t it hurt?”
Mira looked at Bintang, her smile softening. “Well, I never thought it would work. If you’re confused, let me explain,” she said. Bintang listened carefully, his eyes fixed on her. “Let’s just say I summoned something that cast a spell on you, making you feel like... well, like a human, instead of getting hurt.” Bintang looked even more confused and wrote a short question: “So that means I am healed?”
“No, you smart cat,” Mira replied. “It means you can feel like a human even though your body isn’t healed. You’ll still feel the air passing by, someone pinching your arm like this,” she said, giving his shoulder a quick pinch. Bintang flinched but noticed it wasn’t really painful. “See? It hurts, right? But not that much.”
As they spoke, two carriages pulled with horses passed by them on the narrow path. Still in the same expression while noticing it mira quickly closing the eye on her forehead, concealing her identity.
The first carriage was richly decorated, its occupant a plump, The wealthy man gazed out from his carriage, eyes filled with disinterest as they passed Mira and Bintang. He didn’t bother to give them a second look, his expression one of quiet arrogance, completely lacking suspicion. To him, they were just another pair of travelers, insignificant in comparison to his own importance. His finely tailored clothes and relaxed demeanor showed no concern for the world around him, as though he believed himself untouchable.
The second was a cage on wheels, filled with elves, their faces marked by hopelessness and resignation. Bintang’s heart sank at the sight, his body tensing with concern. He started to move towards the carriage, but Mira’s hand shot out, grabbing his arm firmly.
“You know,” Mira said, her voice suddenly light as if to distract him, “my brother and my sister would love your scaredy behavior.” Her casual tone contrasted sharply with the joyfull sight of the elves being carted away. Bintang watched the carriages disappear into the forest, his heart heavy with disbelief and concern.
Once the carriages were out of sight, Mira’s grip on Bintang’s arm tightened, and he looked up to see her faked smile, her eyes betraying a hint of anger. She turned to him, her voice low and serious. “We have the same mind. I have a plan, and this might be terrifying, but please bear with me.” Bintang nodded silently, a sense of resolve settling in him as he agreed to Mira’s request.
The anger inside her spoke with a mischievous tone, "You thinking what I’m thinking?" Mira glanced at the carriage, feeling a wave of discomfort as she looked at the hopeless expression on the elf's face. In her mind, she responded, "Yeah, like it or not, this is just between me and them."
Realizing the situation and what she about to do, the voice of anger grew slightly irritated. "Ugh," it groaned, but then settled into calmness. "Fine, release the hound."
A small smile crept onto Mira's face, agreeing with the suggestion. The gentle voice, observing quietly, chimed in with an unsettling yet playful tone, "This is going to be fun," accompanied by the sound of something softly cracking, as if savoring the moment.
The rich man felt sleepy as he watched the uninteresting scenery roll by. The dense forest around him was nothing but a blur of dark shapes and shadows. With a yawn, he leaned back in his seat, boredom weighing heavily on his eyelids. “So... yawn... how long is it going to take us to reach the capital?” he asked, his voice sluggish with fatigue. He directed his question toward the driver holding the reins of the horses. The driver glanced back, his expression neutral. “Still a long way, sir. But if nothing slows us down, we should reach the capital in a couple of hours.”
The rich man’s face twisted in irritation. “Well, hurry up already. The sooner we get these whores moving, the faster you get paid,” he snapped, waving dismissively at the driver. The driver nodded quickly. “Yes, sir. I’m on it.” He urged the horses to pick up their pace, their hooves clattering louder against the uneven path.
Suddenly, a menacing growl rumbled from the depths of the forest. The sound was low and guttural, resonating through the trees like a warning. The rich man furrowed his brow in confusion, peering out of the carriage window. “What was that?” he asked, his voice now tinged with unease. The driver remained silent, his eyes scanning the dark forest as the horses began to slow, sensing danger.
The rich man’s patience wore thin as the carriage came to a halt. “Driver! What’s going on? Why are we stopping?” he shouted, his voice rising in frustration. When there was no response, he opened the carriage door and stepped out onto the path. “What the hell do you think you’re doing? We have no—” His words caught in his throat as he saw the driver with the horses fall asleep. The reins lay abandoned, dangling loosely from the coachman's seat.
Panic set in, and the rich man’s eyes darted around the silent forest, the shadows closing in on him. He turned slowly, every nerve in his body on high alert. His breath caught as he spotted a demonic beast emerging from the darkness. Its fur bristled, and saliva dripped from its gaping maw, eyes locked onto the rich man with a predatory hunger.
Terror washed over him. Without a second thought, he bolted, running deeper into the jungle, abandoning the carriage and its occupants. His heart pounded in his chest, each step a desperate attempt to escape the beast’s sight.
Inside the second carriage, the elves peered through the bars, eyes wide with fear as they watched the scene unfold. One elf, her face pale and resigned, stared at the approaching demonic beast. She knew there was no escape. Closing her eyes, she tried to brace herself, waiting for the inevitable end, her heart heavy with despair.
The elves in the cage carriage huddled together, trying to make sense of the strange scene unfolding before them. The sound of a girl's laughter cut through the tense silence, growing louder and more carefree, echoing among the thick trees. "Oh my lord, I can't believe you didn't see how that man ran away like a girl," Mira said, clearly amused by the sight of the rich man fleeing in terror. She continued to laugh, enjoying every second of it.
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Beside her, Bintang was writing something down in his book, his expression serious. As Mira’s laughter filled the air, he finished his note and turned it toward her. "Why did we let him run away? Shouldn't we just kill him?" read the words on the page.
Mira glanced at the note and then looked at Bintang with a touch of disappointment. "Shouldn't you call me big sis?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. Bintang’s eyes widened as he realized his mistake, his face flushing slightly. Mira's disappointment melted into another round of laughter.
"Calm down, I’m not mad," Mira said, waving off the concern with a carefree hand. "Besides, that man has already run deep into the forest. He’s lost. He’ll be stuck in this forest for months... or years." She shrugged, her tone nonchalant, as if the rich man's fate was of little consequence.
Bintang’s eyes were filled with curiosity as he looked at Mira. She met his gaze "Don’t ask me how long he’ll last out there. With that fat body, I can't tell how long," Mira added, her voice tinged with both humor and indifference.
As her words hung in the air, the two of them walk slowly toward the cage carriage, the sound of Mira’s laughter still lingering in the forest, a haunting yet strangely comforting melody that echoed in the ears of the captive elves.
Bintang rushed forward and summoned a sword into his hand. He gripped the lock tightly and attempted to destroy it with a hard stab, but the lock was too strong. The blade wasn’t enough to break it. Meanwhile, Mira stood still, looking at the elf, her mind drifting to painful memories. A flood of hatred surfaced as she recalled a thousand arrows shot by elves, blocking out the sunlight as they aimed for her. She remembered the elf priest who had falsely accused her of stealing an unknown book and the relentless hunt she endured for years across the world.
Without another thought, Mira silently cast a spell beneath the elf inside the cage, her hands unmoving. The elf stared in shock as the spell took effect, while Bintang watched, puzzled by Mira’s sudden action. The elf disappeared from the cage, vanishing without uttering a word. Mira’s face remained tense, her discomfort with the elf evident.
Once the elf was gone, Mira took a deep breath, calming herself. Bintang, still confused, rushed over to her and shook her gently, his hands gripping her shoulders. Mira looked at him and spoke calmly, even as he continued to shake her.
"Relax, Bintang, it’s not like I killed them or anything," she said.
Bintang slowly stopped, his confusion still evident. Mira continued, her voice steady.
"I freed them, simple and clear. I sent them to an elf kingdom I visited once. I don’t want them wasting my time, and besides..." She turned her gaze to the sleeping horses lying on the ground beside an empty carriage. "We’ve got a job to do. How about you sit in that empty carriage, and once we start moving, I’ll explain why I did that?"
Bintang released his hold on her shoulders, his expression softening as he accepted her suggestion. He headed toward the empty carriage. Mira, still focused, looked at the sleeping horses. She cast a spell to wake them, and as the horses stirred, she climbed into the driver's seat, hesitating for a brief moment.
She shook her head, dispelling any lingering doubts, and grabbed the reins. With a firm pull to the left, the horses turned and began to move, taking them in the right direction, the same path she and Bintang had been walking before.
As Mira guided the horses, she knocked on the carriage behind her, waiting for Bintang’s response. After a brief pause, Bintang knocked back, signaling he was inside.
As the air filled with the sound of wind, Mira bite her lips thinking about something while Bintang remained silent inside the carriage. Mira take a deep breath as all of her burden inside her that keeping her mouth fly away, starting to let go from her back, she take it out.
"If you.....still confused, let me... " She take another deep breath before then take it out"Let me answer all your questions," Mira said, her gaze fixed ahead as she drove the carriage. Bintang leaned closer to the wooden wall, pressing his ear against it to listen to what she had to say. Mira took a moment, breathing deeply to calm herself before speaking again.
"The first question is probably why I cast that teleportation spell. That's simple—why should I free them and take them all the way to the elf kingdom when I can just teleport them from where they are? No need for another long, unnecessary journey."
Her voice was steady, her expression serious as she continued, "The second question you might have is..... Is why I did it so suddenly without telling you. You saw my face, Bintang. I can’t hide it. I have a long, bitter history with the elves, one that I think you should know so that you understand why I did what I did."
Mira glanced briefly at the bright blue sky as if gathering her thought, she smile in joy telling Bintang "It all started when I visited one of the many elven kingdoms. Back then, it was a place where many different races lived together in peace. Humans, elves, and other beings coexisted without conflict." Her smile falling as her tone getting serious "Now… it all started when I visited the castle. For no particular reason, I stayed in that kingdom for two days. Then, out of the green, the elf king requested to see me."
She sighed, her tone darkening as she continued. "When I entered the throne room, it was empty—no king in sight like.... No one in there to greet me." As her face slowly filled in anger "But suddenly, she appeared behind me, a priestess, welcoming me while walking toward the throne. At first, I wasn’t suspicious because she was a priest" her tone soften "I always believed in full those who wear that title because that means they are divine and follower of god" her expression turn into dissapointment "not until she passed me like a ghost. That’s when my view of elf change. She took two of the most important things in my life, she took something that was a gift ever since i was adopted. I was shocked. And before I knew it, an entire army of elven soldiers appeared at the entrance to the throne room, bows drawn, and they started shooting at me."
She sighed deeply, her fingers tightening ever so slightly on the reins as she spoke. "Well, luckily for me, I was blessed with a good father. He... Appear infront of me and took the hit of the arrows, shielding me." Her voice grew quieter, as if the memory weighed heavily on her. "At that moment, all I could do was watch as the elves hurt my father. And that priest..." she paused, her jaw tightening, "she just stood there, staring at the book with that look of interest on her face, smiling like maniac"
The horses clopped steadily along the path as Mira’s gaze drifted toward the horizon. "The book belonged to me, and it knew it. It flew back to me. The priest tried to hold onto it, but I told her it was useless—she didn’t have the strength. My father saved me that day, using his magic to get us out of there." Her voice darkened with each word. "That’s when it all began. That’s when I started hating the elves. After they shot my father with so many arrows, how can I just stay silent?"
Bintang, from his place in the carriage, could feel the tension radiating from her words. She was calm, but anger simmered just beneath the surface.
"I knew my father wasn’t seriously injured by the arrows, i mean she once taking much bigger threat then that but...." she continued, her hands now resting loosely on the reins, "but seeing it—watching him take the hits while I stood there in silencr—it tore me apart." Her eyes flashed with the same intensity she had felt back then, and for a moment, her grip tightened again.
She took a breath, trying to regain her composure. "He went home, and I kept going on my own. That was four years ago." Her tone softened, though the edge of bitterness remained. "After that incident, many of the elven kingdoms banded together. They hunted me for three years, forcing me to run, to avoid conflict at every turn."
The rhythmic sounds of the horses’ hooves filled the silence as she reflected, her posture easing, though her eyes remained hard, fixed on the path ahead.
Mira's gaze remained fixed ahead, waiting for a response. The minutes stretched out in silence, the soft clopping of hooves filling the air. After a moment, realization dawned on her face.
"I forgot," she muttered under her breath, her voice softening as guilt crept in. Her usual calm tone shifted, tinged with a hint of embarrassment. "You can't talk..." She glanced down, her grip on the reins loosening as the weight of her mistake settled in.
Bintang knocked four times against the carriage wall, the rhythm light and almost playful, as though trying to reassure Mira without words. She smiled, the comforting sound easing the tension. Her earlier guilt faded, and she found herself relaxing, her mood lifting once more.
Inside the deep forest
“Huff... Huff... Huh…” The rich man staggered, his chest heaving as he gasped for breath. His clothes were torn, and his once-immaculate face was now smeared with dirt and sweat. After what felt like an eternity of running, he spotted a tall tree and collapsed against its trunk, sliding to the ground. Exhausted, he muttered bitterly, “Damn those demonic beasts... They said the route was safe...”
He glanced around the dense, shadowy forest, fear clawing at his chest. “And now I’m lost in this stupid place. It’s only a matter of time before the knights realize I’m missing and come looking for me...” Anger simmered beneath his fear, but before he could wallow in it any longer, a soft, eerie sound reached his ears. A leaf being crunched underfoot.
His blood ran cold. Slowly, he turned, his heart thudding painfully as his eyes met with a pair of glowing red orbs watching him from the darkness. Terror gripped him, paralyzing his limbs. The creature in the shadows began to move, the red eyes inching closer and closer until it broke into a sprint, rushing toward him.
The rich man’s scream echoed through the forest—raw and filled with agony—before it was swallowed by the trees, as something unknown dragged him away into the darkness.
Mira heard the scream pierce the air. Her lips curled into a smile as she recognized the voice. “Good for him,” she remarked casually, her tone laced with satisfaction. The voice of anger inside her let out a small, satisfied laugh. Mira urged the horses onward, focused on her next destination, the sound of the forest's vengeance fading behind her.