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ลำดับตอนที่ #1 : Void 1 Salika the Witch
Void I Salika the Witch
One magnificent way to start a beautiful day is to find a dead person on your front step.
The birds were chirping and the sun was shining brightly through the morning mist. It was a perfectly fine morning.
A girl of seventeen opened the door of her Barrier Repair shop. Today would be a good day for business, however, the door got stuck on something. She peered out with her odd eyes, one turquoise one gold. A women was lying face down on the steps, that’s why she couldn’t open the door.
"If yer gonna die, die somewhere else, please. It causes trouble if you want to die on my front step. I'm trying to do business here, and you could imagine a customer's reaction if he finds a corpse in front of the store." She said as if finding a body was the most ordinary thing in the world. Well, speaking of that, she usually found dead drunks in front of her shop. They probably thought her shop was a white witch’s cottage and the witch would send their souls to…wherever they’re supposed to go. Moreover, during her witch training, she saw dozens of dead people it became a normal thing for her.
The body did not move. The owner of the store sighed and inspected the body, which seemed half-alive. It was a young women whose age was difficult to tell because she was lying face-down. She wore a simple dark red dress. Upon closer inspection, her clothing appeared to be made from fine fabric, with golden embroidery, tailored with finest of fine craftsmanship. There appeared to be no dews on her clothing, so she could not have been here long. The store owner twitched her nose. This women smelled like trouble.
"Better leave her here while I can." The store owner stepped over the woman's body and closed the door behind, remembering to flip the store sign from Open to Close. It was early in the morning, and no one would be around these parts of Praya early enough to see her ignoring a dead person. She could hang around the market and have breakfast at her favorite rice congee stand or help uncle Ton carry his cart of tofu. Every time she went over to help, he gave her a huge block for free. When she was a distance away from her shop slash home, she realized that she had no money on her.
She took a step backwards and took a peek. The dead woman was still there. Why were the undertakers so slow on their job? Oh well, undertakers are not the reaper. It’s not like they know instantly when someone dies. She should inform them. No, wait, helping uncle Ton before he got to the market is more important, or else her free tofu would be just a daydream. Wait, no, if she went to the market without any money, it would be even weirder…
"I guess I have no choice then." She tried to side step the women when a hand grabbed her ankle. The store owner froze and glanced down at the paper white fingers clasping her.
"You are... Praya's best witch… in casting and repairing magic barriers?"
The store owner was silent. Sweat trickled down her face. The ex-dead woman looked up, revealing her garnet red eyes. Saliva drooled from her pink lips.
"Feed me..."
There was a moment of awkward silence as they stared at each other. The store owner shook her ankle free and walked back into her shop at the speed of light, then slammed the door shut. But when she turned away from the door, she found out that the pale women took a split second to slither inside. The women repeated her request.
“Food, please?”
The owner’s brows furrowed to the point where they knotted into a ribbon. In the end, she sighed and picked up a jar from a shelf.
“Eat this and tell me what you want.”
Once she had a good look at the women, the owner could tell that she was only about a year or two older. Her sharp eyes were garnet red, her hair raven black, and her skin fair, like those people of the north. Her straight hair was carefully trimmed so that the bangs were all equal in length. The way she picked up a piece of shortbread and delivered it to her mouth was refined and graceful, like those of a noble or royalty.
The store owner slammed a cup of tea on the table.
“Who are you and what do you want?” She dragged a chair and sat down opposite of the black haired woman.
“I’ve never been to Praya before, could you tell me what this particular kind of sweet is called?” The woman ignored the question.
“It’s made of lard. Why do you care? Just tell me who you are.”
“Lard! How peculiar! I never guessed lard is used to make a treat this sweet!” The woman gave the owner a big smile. The owner let out a long sigh, trying to calm her temper. The women just kept on chattering: “Oh my, were you perhaps saving these for something? I apologize; I shouldn’t have eaten so much.”
The owner eyed the jar of shortbread. Over half was already in the women’s stomach. She felt as if a friend came over to her house and ate all the treats she saved for herself. She couldn’t just chase this woman out, either. Judging from her appearance, this woman was big money, and might even lead to what she had been searching for these past years.
“Thank you for the treat. So it is about time I introduce myself.” The woman wiped her fingers with a handkerchief, a big smile plastered on her face as if held by invisible hooks. She proceeds to dab the handkerchief on her pink lips, then spoke. “I go by many names—”
“Just get out of here. I fed you. People saying stuff like I go by many names usually do not mean good.”
“Please, aren’t you a witch? Where is your hat?”
“Witches in the south don’t have hats, damn it.”
In the north, some witches were born with ridiculously large hats that serve as storage and regulator for their mana. In the south, however, witches relied only on their bodies and particular magical items to use magic. The owner was the latter type.
“You are a witch. But your mana level is only average… no, actually you’re way, way below average of a regular person who cannot use magic. I wonder why that is?”
“I only do barrier erection and repairs. If you’re not here about that, then move your pretty ass out of here before I turn you into the guards.”
The other party’s lips unfurl into a soft smile. “Alright. My real name is a secret that brings bad luck. I’ll let you call me Esca.” The woman, Esca, put her hand on her chest as she introduced herself.
“I’m Salika.” The owner followed suit.
“‘Salika’ that means ‘magpie’ is it? That is a truly beautiful name. Very Praya-ish.”
The town where the owner, Salika, lived was a peaceful town bisected by a river. The town was called Praya. Most people worked in farms and lived in wooden houses raised at least a meter from the ground to avoid floods. There were relatively few people, so everyone knew each other.
Salika met Esca’s eyes. The client’s red lips curved up into a wider smile, while her stare became sharp. This sign told Salika that Esca would reveal her purpose soon.
“I’ve been looking for someone who would accept this job. Even though it has nothing to do with barriers, I reckon you might be able to help.” Esca stood up, her black hair spread around the tiny of her back like a black velvet waterfall.
“I’m not taking risks.” Salika struck the offer down. “You look like a Little Miss that caused some sort of mayhem and so ran away from home. And those Little Misses that hide their true name and has the skill to see someone’s mana level do not ask for simple, low-risk jobs. This is not a good sign. I might be pulled into some stupid mishap, which is the last thing I want right now when I’m low on money. Find someone else, pretty sister. Don’t concern yourself with a simple witch in this underdeveloped kingdom.”
“Please, don’t let me come all the way here from Melling on foot for nothing. You might consider the offer once you hear it.” Esca reached her hand out to Salika’s and wiped the I-give-no-care smile off her face. Salika glanced at the woman’s feet. They looked horribly beaten.
“Take me across the Void. And I will give you what you desire most.”
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