"Allen, did you bring the guest here?" The white cat turned around. Its voice was deep and gravelly.
"Yes! Elder!" Allen yelled, "He has what we want!"
"Why are you yelling…?" Angele was speechless. He did not expect a squirrel to have such a loud voice.
"Well, the Elder is having trouble with hearing…" Allen shrugged.
"You mean salty peanuts? That's my favorite." The Elder nodded.
"How much peanuts you got there?" it asked.
Angele thought for a second, "About one kilogram, I believe."
"What? You're not selling them?" the Elder asked.
"It's one kilogram!" Allen ran to the cat and yelled to its ears.
"One kilogram?" the Elder nodded, "I wanted more, but I'll take them. Sigh, I haven't had salty peanuts in a while. When I was in Santiago, there was a town named Kodo by the north of Liliado, and people there made damn good salty peanuts for me… Alright, Allen, let him choose the item he wants."
"Got it."
"Sorry, I have a question actually. Do you know Moss Town?" Angele decided to ask, "What happened to it? No one lives there?"
The Elder didn't hear his question but Allen did, "You mean Moss Town? It was abandoned about ten years ago, why do you ask?" Allen stared at Angele confusedly.
"What? Ten years?" Angele was shocked, "Nothing… I'm just asking."
"Fine. Ten years ago, one of the people that survived from the Moon Gin Garden went crazy and killed everyone in the town. No one tried to rebuild it after that. I told you before; Moon Gin Garden is extremely dangerous. Nine out of ten people who enter it will die. I'm actually surprised that you made it out in one piece," Allen explained, "Alright, let's go claim your item."
'But the information I collected didn't mention any of it…' Angele was sure the food he ate was real, and the hotel owner he met was not an illusion. He thought for a while and realized the information he obtained came from books of the distant past.
One hour later, Angele left the forest with a small gray egg, and a group of squirrels took the snacks from his carriages.
As Angele jumped onto the carriage, Allen appeared from nowhere and jumped onto the back of the horse, "Wait, Angele, the Elder has a message for you. The curse of the garden is not lifted yet. Also, do not travel alone." Allen was speaking in a serious tone.
"What? Don't travel alone?" Angele hesitated. He did not know why, but he started to feel a chill again. He had thought he was already done with the garden.
"Tell the Elder that I appreciate his advice." Angele forced a smile, "I think I'll be fine, I'm usually very lucky."
"I hope so." Allen jumped off the horse and walked toward the forest.
Angele shook the reins and the carriage started moving.
"Angele, take care!" Allen yelled from behind, "I hope we can meet again."
Angele heard Allen's words and smiled.
Angele traveled for five days at full speed and he finally left the Moss Mountain.
He arrived at a small town and rented a room in a hotel.
"Your oil plum cake and milk, enjoy."
Angele nodded, watching the owner's daughter putting down a cake served on a plate and a glass of milk. She left after making sure the order was correct.
Angele grabbed a piece of brown cake and took a bite. The cake had been cut into pieces. It tasted sweet and sour combined. Angele had several pieces and even drank a whole glass of sweet milk. He put down several silver coins on the table and returned to his room on the second floor.
Angele's room was by the end of the hallway. He needed a quiet place to meditate and to process the materials he acquired from Moon Gin Manor. He needed to preserve them before they dried up, so he rented a relatively quiet room to perform the procedures.
Angele locked the room and closed the windows. He lighted up an oil lamp and released some energy particles in the air. He wanted to make sure no one was trying to peek through the door or the window. Those energy particles would alert him when people were nearby his room.
Angele took the large claw out of a black bag and put it down on the table. The claw weighed about five kilograms, and its surface was coated with translucent oil. It was shining under the light. Angele applied the oil he acquired from the school for preservation.
Angele took out a black bottle out of his pouch and removed the wooden stopper. He poured some white dust onto the surface of the claw and started rubbing it thoroughly.
Time passed by and darkness fell before Angele could notice it.
He rubbed his eyes, stood up and stretched his body. Suddenly, something strange caught his attention.
Angele saw a girl wearing a red one piece standing behind him from the reflection of the window.
"Please, help me!" the girl cried, "I saw them again just now, but no one trusted me."
Angele turned around immediately. He recognized the girl, it was Messi's granddaughter.
Her eyes looked as if she had no soul, and her words were disorderly. Moreover, she kept crying. The red one piece was nearly torn apart.
"How did you get in?" Angele asked.
The room was locked, yet the girl just appeared in the middle of the room. Angele could barely understand what she was saying.
"Please!" The girl stared at Angele, her eyes unblinking. It made Angele feel uncomfortable.
Angele took a deep breath, "What are you talking about? Where did you go that day?"
"I…" The girl hesitated. Angele was sure she was wearing the red one piece he had seen that day, and she was badly wounded.
The light from the oil lamp disappeared for a second. Angele turned his head around to check but no one was around the table. The girl disappeared after Angele tried to talk to her again.
Chillness crept upon his spine.
"I need to go. I can't stay here anymore!" Angele started packing up.
Angele left the town and started heading back. The girl did not come to him after that night at the hotel.
However, she came again several days after. Angele was sitting beside the campfire at night, surrounded by the shadows of the trees. The moonlight was the only thing that made things visible.
The girl walked out of darkness. Fear and anxiousness were written all over her face.
"Help me, please…" She was groaning, "I really don't want to… I really don't…"
Angele stood up and stepped back. He tried to keep a safe distance from the girl.
"What do you want from me!?" Angele shouted.
"Help me! Please, help me!" The girl cried and started approaching him.
"You didn't answer my question last time! Now, answer it!" Angele knew he was probably not dealing with a living human. The girl was strange; she did not seem to have a soul and she could locate Angele's location easily.
"Question? What question?" The girl stopped for a second.
"Where did you go that day? At the garden?" Angele asked in a gravelly voice.
"Garden? What garden?"
Suddenly, wind put the fire off for a second. Angele's sight became blurry and the girl disappeared again.
"Damn it!" Angele cursed as he wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
Ten days later, Angele was one day away from the Lennon City.
He decided to spend the last night in a small town then go straight back to the city after. Angele thought the girl would not appear if he kept traveling. Although he barely rested these days, he felt relieved. Zero never alerted him when the girl appeared, nor did it not make any records. It was very strange. Angele could not determine what the girl actually was.
Also, it seemed like the girl's time was frozen at the last minutes in the garden. She was begging Angele to help, and she only appeared when Angele was alone at nights.
"Maybe I'm too far from the garden now? And the strange power can't reach me anymore? Whatever, I need a break anyway."
Angele rubbed his temples. He was very tired at the moment. He stood up and poured himself a glass of water.
"Please, help me!" The girl's voice suddenly appeared from behind.
Angele froze. The voice was very close, almost as if the girl was yelling beside his ears.
He slowly turned back and saw the girl standing at the corner quietly. There was no window in this room and the locked door was the only entrance.
"Please help me!" the girl yelled again. She stared at Angele's eyes without blinking.
"F*ck you!" Angele shouted. He raised his hand and threw the dagger toward the girl.
*PON*
The dagger stabbed into the wall and the girl disappeared again. The room became quiet again.
Angele wiped the sweat off his face with hands.
"What the hell!" Angele was getting nervous, and his expression looked horrifying.
"Damn it! What's going on! If it's a curse, something should happen to me, and I'll be able to find the solution."
Angele walked around the room and saw a ray of bright light shot through his bag. Angele hesitated for a second and got excited.
He quickly ran to the bag and opened it. There was a gray robe inside, and the cross on its back was flickering with light.
"It's Master! She's summoning me! I can finally return!" This was the first time that he couldn't wait to see the 'cute' face of that old witch.