Tale Of The Half-Blood Wizard - Chapter 118

My destination was the playground near my old school, the same place where it happened It was the place where Zie shooting took place. It was where Winnter met the shadow creature when I followed her that night. I felt like she was distracting us by guiding Mickey’s tracking ability, so the cat brought me to a place that was far from the park.

It was right; I saw she was there when I arrived just like that day. It seemed that she had noticed I followed her that night. It was highly possible because Winnter had a special ability. The creature sat on the park bench, while she was playing with the park swing. They seemed to giggle at each other’s joke and laughed shamelessly just like two friends that were enjoying each other’s company. I began to think that when she said that she was going out to buy a new charger for her cell phone, maybe she was actually met the creature.

I couldn’t hear all of their conversations clearly covered behind all those giggles but once in a while, I could still hear the laughter from the two of them. The creature was just like a human, it could walk and even laugh just like a normal person. I just had to confirm one more thing, I had to ensure myself that Winnter couldn’t smell the rotten foul odour stench stretched from it I also needed information from Vio, so I thought I would make every thing clear tomorrow.

“Tha” I heard Manji’s voice near me. I looked around and one of the Manji was already standing beside me.

“You’ve to get out of here. If you get caught, I won’t be able to help you.” Manji warned.

I nodded in understanding although I still wanted to be here to figure out what they were talking about, I felt Manji had a point too. That creature threw Aras so easily like nothing back then that day, couldn’t imagine what it could do since I was alone with Manji?

“Very well then” I sneaked and walked back home after that. I was content to ensure that Winnter was actually with that creature.

…

I made a slightly different breakfast menu for today. I made chicken karage and I added it with curry leaf of koja bay leaf. I also added shitake mushrooms to the rice that was almost done then I took it out of the cooked rice before they cook the rice

“Eh?” Mirai screamed as soon as she put the rice in her mouth.

“What?! It’s just rice, just hurry up and eat! I’ve to go to Azalea’s place today.” Winnter said it so rudely to Mirai.

“It’s so sweet and fragrant,” Mirai said as she continued to inhale her steaming rice.

Winnter put down her spoon roughly. “Tha, I’ve got to go.” She said curtly while she was looking at me disapprovingly.

I tried to ignore her gaze and I chose to sit in my chair then I began to have my breakfast. “Have a nice meal, Mirai” I had to eat before going to school or I would just eat at ten o’clock.

Winnter didn’t just see with her eyes, and I must always remember that. She was able to see her surroundings by using the waves, so it was just a matter of fact that she knew that I was there that night and it was highly possible that she also knew that I was there last night. Perhaps she also knew that I was currently testing her sense of smell at this moment.

Yesterday when I asked her to fetch me ginger, there was actually only one ginger in a jar full of bitter gingers. The resemblance between those two was uncanny as the two of them were physically similar as they both had slightly golden skin. It would be quite difficult for average normal people to distinguish, which was which just by looking at it without smelling.

Today I also tested Winnter’s sense of smell once again by using the aroma from cooking the rice by putting shitake mushrooms on it—after thirty minutes of cooking—the rice would have such a sweet and very distinctive aroma. Such a normal, average, ordinary person would have asked why it could smell so pleasantly delicious like that; just like the savorous aroma from the dish with curry or bay leaf in it, sure it would have such a delicious, distinctive aroma.

Now I understood that Winnter couldn’t smell any of it, which meant that her sense of smell was completely gone. That was the reason she didn’t smell the rotten foul odour stench stretched from the creature, even though it was so close.

…

I waited while I was talking to Charon by the river Mother. That man told me a lot about the soul or spirit; most of the souls or spirits didn’t even realise the fact that they were passed away. He also told me a lot about many more; along with the process of the journey of those souls or spirits until he brought them to the place of Kerberos.

“Kerberos once told me that the number of souls or spirits that exist will always equal the number of people who died, is that true? Then, what about the wanderer?” I remembered that back then if I didn’t immediately return to my own body when I made a pact with the Manjis, I would have become a wanderer, a wandering soul or spirit. That meant that the number of existing souls or spirits would have decreased if I really didn’t return right on time back then.

“Yes, the number will remain the same. The number of existing souls and spirits in the realm of the spirit would always be the same as the number of the people who died. The wanderer, or the wandering souls and spirits, they were something different, most of those wanderers who are roaming the realm of the living; they don’t really die, even if they’re destroyed.” I was a little bit confused by Charon’s explanation here.

“What do you mean?” I asked him, having no intention to hide that I was confused.

“Have you ever heard of people that were being sacrificed, Tha?” I just shook my head while I was hearing Charon answer me back with this question. “Death for those who were being sacrificed isn’t a real death. Their bodies may have been destroyed, but I won’t be able to bring their souls or spirits to the place of Kerberos place. Those who were being sacrificed aren’t dead for us because they have to carry on what they have ordered; reasons why they were sacrificed in the first place. They will have to keep on going until it’s finished until it’s completed; then I will pick them up by myself.” I couldn’t help but think that his explanation somehow sounded so unfamiliar for me, or maybe it was just because I was the one who was never known about this whole souls and spirits stuff before. I didn’t even know what he meant by the word ‘sacrifice’ and ‘really dead’, was it literally, was it figuratively, was it a certain term for a certain field, or was it something else.

“Those who were being sacrificed will never die until all the given tasks are fulfilled. The essence of death is to cut off all the connections with the world and if the connection still exists, the souls and spirits will continue to wander until all the task is completed, until all the connections are vanished, even if his body is destroyed.” Charon seemed to understand that I was confused about the meaning of his explanation so he said that. “That is just an example of what I’ve come across. There are so many things that can cause souls or spirits to become a wandering spirit actually.”

Charon was staring at the bank of river Mother on the other side at this moment with such a gloomy and sad stare in his eyes. “Each and every day I see some of them, wandering souls and spirits, they keep asking me to take them to the place of Kerberos, but I just can’t do that, I can’t. That’s way beyond what I’ve been assigned for.” He said it, also sounded gloomy and sad; the way he stared, the way he said, all about him was just sad and gloomy.

“Just imagine it you will feel so tortured and tormented that you can see people around you but you can’t interact with them and they think that you don’t even exist. I’ve asked that I can take them, but I just can’t do anything because I’m not the master of the underworld. Even Kerberos wouldn’t be able to do anything about it. We have our own duties and we can’t do anything outside of our control and what we’ve been assigned for.” This time even if it was only partially, I could understand Charon’s point.

A few seconds had passed, I heard a knocking sound, and I understood that it meant he had come. I quickly looked back and sure enough, Zie was already here.. I didn’t take Mickey with me today on purpose so he could keep an eye on Mirai and Winnter.