From the darkness behind the elf, Siri suddenly emerged. The mysterious girl scanned me from head to toe with the same look Bauha gave me when she first met me as her student before her bright colourful eyes travelled up toward the elf with puffy eyes.

The two looked almost ghost-like as even the warm light of my torch didn't give much life to their pale faces.

I turned around and led them toward our village. As we walked through the tight paths between the tents, many people walking past glared at the elf behind me.

A raid made by only a couple of elves would have caused more devastation than the raid done by furcoats today. Bauha once described how the village was set ablaze by sun-soaked flames and how half of the tribe was taken from us either by elven swords and magic or being dragged into the night in heavy chains.

The worst part was that the elves hunted the battle filed for our masks, cutting them off from even the dead. Depriving their souls of the only protection against the soul stealer.

A strange feeling ran down my spine, causing the hair on my skin to stand up as I shrank under their gaze. Speeding up to gain some distance away from the collateral rage vented on Iris I glanced back to see her walking unfazed by the stares, her eyes vigilantly scanning her surroundings while her eyebrows were slanted into her usual bored frown.

Turning around, I headed toward where Ba and my tent were.

Around the burning campfire, the statue of a god of death was softly lit up by its orange and yellow flames. Around its damaged hulking body, a pack of children with bone-white masks were playing around adorning its emotionless mask-like face with various grass-made trinkets.

"They must have cleaned your golem since the last time I saw it."

The children's adornment for the golem wasn't unfounded as it had stayed with Ba, who I quickly dragged onto Clack before the attack had started. On the way to ride away from the fighting, I had stopped to help Leu to organise the children in the nursery.

The golem had used its blade to kill all the furcoats who dared to approach the nursery. The level 100 golem lay low at least a dozen furcoats by itself and even after having its left arm pulled off by a giant furcoat with curled horns and white curly fur it continued to fight until the Wyrm's arrival. I don't know which of the caretakers who manage the nursery had cleaned the guts off the golem since I was instantly called to help Bauha with saving the wounded but they did a good job getting all the blood and other filth cleaned from the many small crevices the golem had.

"I don't get it anymore." The elf sighed as her left arm dropped limply onto her side as she stared at the sitting golem with a child on its knee.

"Nu, you came back!" Leu jogged over to me, she was the same age as me and was now training to be a tamer since I was chosen to be the next shaman. "I thank you from all my heart for coming when you did. I would have told you my name if you already didn't know it." Her body bobbed up and down as she squeezed my hand.

HOW much strength do you get working with animals each day?!

"Leu stop, stop, it hurts!"

"Oh, I am sorry I level up a couple of times since you and your brother went away," Seriously we were only away for like three weeks at most, you make it sound like it has been seasons since we last saw each other. "I see you have brought company..."

"Yes, they will be staying with me for the time being." Leu gave me a baffled look which stung as I knew why she was making it since age wasn't the only thing linking us together.

As Leu turned around and walked back to sit next to the fire, the one-armed golem stood up as the two foreigners walked pasted it. The boy thrown off his perching spot fell onto the ground but instead of bursting into tears, he stood up, turned around and laughed as he tried to pull the golem down again along side the other children.

We stopped as Siri hesitantly walked over to the golem, carefully tiptoeing between the many children curious about the cloaked figure with a beautiful face. The pale girl's eyes lit up as she touched the golem causing the soil beneath them to attach itself to a black blob which took on the shape of an arm.

Hesitant shouts of joy came from the children as they all rushed Siri, they happily clung onto the confused girl's legs not letting go. While she was under assault the pale girl stared at the children with great confusion before I felt her confused gaze change to seeing the kids as curiosities. I took a peek at the elf standing beside me and saw her forehead had dipped into a larger frown.

I walked over to help the stuck girl as the children refused to let go even after being told by Leu to stop. It took us a good long moment to free the pale human from their small chubby hands. When we finally arrived at my tent I lifted the fabric for the elf and Siri to enter before going after them. Thankfully someone had brought Ba to our tent as I saw him laying flat on a layer of furs.

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"Did you two want to eat something?" I asked as I put my bag down and prepare to exit again.

The cold beauty instantly nodded to my question with way too much excitement behind her eyes than such a question should cause. My words looked to not have reached the elf who was observing the inside of the tent, running her finger on the raised earth benches.

Inside each tent, there was a flat circle with a fireplace in the middle for cooking and heat but around the edge, there was a wide bench made out of packed earth with a higher level which was considerably smaller in width known as a shelf. The floor was where people sat and ate while the bench was where people slept or stored things which didn't fit on the shelf.

Where Men-in-steel and Iris are from, do they put everything on their tent's floor or do they make another tent only for their belongings?

"How was this made?"

"Ehh, when we move to a new place Bauha spends all day with spirits to make these for everyone. She often collapses in the late phase so the next day we throw a party for her." I answered, remembering my first time seeing my Bauha erect dozens of mounds of packed earth for us to use for tents.

"And for what reason are you raising earth like this?" So they do live in tents with only one floor.

"It keeps the tent standing when the wind picks up in strength, especially in the wind season it is impossible for a tent to stand unsupported. It also helps with keeping everything tidy I guess. Do you want to eat?" I asked again seeing Siri piercing me with her eyes.

"Yes, please. Do you need help with carrying it?"

"No." I replied before walking out of the tent.

I jogged to Arda where I asked for some food. Since we have just come back she gave me four bowls of porridge with one thin slice of treated black meat to go with it for a promise to help her cook tomorrow in the early morning before my classes. I quickly accept the bowls before she could begin to chat with me.

Once I stood with her to keep the company of an "old and lonely" woman for two phases and I can't remember what even she was talking about.

"Deliciousness?!" I heard Siri's excited voice through the fabric as I stood in front of my tent, when I stepped in I saw Iris sitting on the bench while Siri stood beside Ba with a large book near his head.

The girl almost ripped the bowl out of my hand as I offered it to her. Her pale cheeks quickly filled with the steaming porridge before the elf tapped her on the shoulder.

"Horry." Siri gave me a nod before slowing down.

"Thank you." Iris said as she took the bowl from me.

"No problem," I reply before walking to Ba's side. "Are you feeling well?"

"Kind of." He replied. He tried to reach for his bowl but he clearly struggled to move a single muscle.

"Take off your mask so I can feed you."

He clearly didn't like the idea of being fed by me, especially with people watching and he give me an obvious sign of his discontent in a form of a stare.

When did he change to being like this? Old Ba would have given me a quiet grumble before saying "Yes sister" and do what I said. Did the elf hitting him on the head changed him that much?

I put Ba's head on my lap and fed him his porridge and a small portion of mine with a wooden spoon. As I cared for my sick brother I spotted the girl quietly watching us. I didn't have to wait why did she watch us as she quickly climbed on the elf and nuzzled herself into a comfortable position in Iris's arms.

The elf's permanent frown softened slightly before disappearing as she watched the girl eat another bowl of tasteless porridge with such infectious enthusiasm it made eating it more bearable.

"Are you tired?" She asked Siri who opened her mouth and let out a loud yawn.

"Nyo," I saw the elf make a small knowing smile as the girl in her hands stood up. "I have too many things to do to be tired." She proclaimed, puffing out her chest. I couldn't stop staring at the girl as I realised she and the elf were speaking my langue. Did the girl knew my language from the moment I met her or did she learn it so quickly?

"Such as?"

"Experimenting." The adorably confident answer spoken in a funny accent somehow made the elf drop her smile as the girl walked over to my brother.

Ba's eyes weakly watched Siri get closer to him. For a split second, a flash of light lit up the already glowing embers acting as Siri's eyes. Her innocent aura seemed to wither away as her smiling eyes turned cold betraying no emotion except for great curiosity aimed at Ba.

Ruu sometimes resembled how Siri looked right now when someone had caught a wild terror bird in need of taming but the ghostly pale-skinned human looming above me had something burning in her eyes which scared me. A cold, almost feral desire to do whatever she was about to do to him.

"Kia, I think that's enough experimenting for today." The elf's calm voice caused the girl's eyes to return to normal before a frown appeared on her pristine face so very much like the frown the elf was making now.

Was I wrong and they are related in some way? But that will mean Siri is not a human unless the two were similar to us and their parents had died and they grew up together. That doesn't make sense, elves age at a much slower rate than humans and Iris looks about my age if not a little older.

"But Iris, I haven't done anything wrong."

"I know you haven't done anything wrong."

"What is that supposed to mean!?"

"It means what you think it means."

"Grumble, grumble... you are annoying now." Even Siri's grumbles are precious!

"I know but I like when you are pouting."

Even from behind, I could see the girl's white skin flush pink as she covered her face with her hands. Everyone inside the tent watched the Moon-and-Sun which hasn't escaped her attention as the pale girl climbed up the bench and curled up into a ball in the dark corner of the tent.

Both Iris and I exchanged glances as we simultaneously shrugged at one another. After some time the elf lit up the fire beside me using a spell and walked passed me toward the girl who quickly stood up and turned into the ball where the elf previously was. I could hear a heavy sigh coming from behind me before the sound of wood and dried feathers crackling in the fire filled the tent alongside a pleasant wood scent.

Ba who must have been exhausted from recovering from Bloom quickly fell asleep. I still couldn't believe the little black and white ball curled up on the bench had cured him but as my fingers moved his hair away from his eyes I could feel his feverish warmth on my skin. Only the living have the privilege of being sick.

As time passed and I felt my eyes getting heavier from watching the fire dance I saw Iris check if I was asleep. She then gave the ball a gentle shove causing the snow-white human to lift her head. I couldn't hear what they were saying but the girl began to thump her fist on Iris's chest clearly more in embarrassment than anger while complaining to the elf.

Iris patiently listened to the flushed girl before saying something to the girl, who appeared very thoughtful and serious afterwards. Even when the petite girl tried to look serious I couldn't take her seriously as she appeared even more huggable but the tall and calm elf was more mature than me as she waited for Siri to speak up.

Wait! What are they doing!?

Iris shook her head while a big smile crept on her face. The elf leaned forward and closed her eyes. A mysterious purple light illuminated both of their faces from below before Siri kissed Iris on her lips. The slightly older-looking elf seemed to hold her body back as the inexperienced girl sheepishly sealed their lips for a very long moment.

Why am I feeling hot, I-I'm not jealous am I?