Chapter 15 Meeting the Healer

The wooden floor creaked under small bare feet. Milliscent sat on a rug, surrounded by dolls made of straw and cloth, their button eyes glinting in the soft glow of a magical crystal. She laughed, arranging the dolls in a row as if they were guests at a ball. Her hair, still childlike, cascaded over her shoulders, and in her hands, she held a doll resembling an elf with a sword.
“You’ll be a heroine, like me when I grow up!” she whispered, smiling.
Sunlight streamed through the window, its rays dancing across the room like playful characters in a game — sunbeams scampering about.
An ordinary, pleasant day of childhood.

But suddenly, the light in the room dimmed. Shadows on the walls quivered, as if coming to life, and the sunbeams fled, hiding in the corners. One shadow, thick and black as tar, slithered toward her. Milliscent froze, her heart pounding. She tried to back away, but the shadow moved faster, enveloping everything around her. The dolls toppled, their button eyes dulling.
“Daddy!” she screamed, and a tall elf with kind eyes rushed to her, his sword glowing blue. But the shadow was faster. One strike — and he fell, his eyes fading, black blood, thick as tar, splattering onto Milliscent, soaking her dress, hands, and face. She screamed, but the sound was swallowed by the darkness.

Milliscent jolted awake, her breath heavy, the bedsheets tangled as if she’d been fighting in her sleep. Morning sunlight filtered through the wooden shutters, trying, as in her dream, to cheer her with dancing sunbeams, but her heart still raced. She sat up in bed, touching her face as if checking for that black blood. Only sweat, cold and sticky. She sighed, trying to calm herself, and stood, her bare feet touching the cool floor. It was just a dream… A dream she’d seen a hundred times but never got used to. Or maybe she just didn’t want to.

She quietly approached a wooden tub filled with warm water, heated by a small magical crystal. Shedding her shirt, Milliscent sank into the water, feeling the tension slowly ebb away. Her skin, pale and marked with small bruises from the fight, shimmered in the reflected light. She traced her fingers over the scars on her shoulder — old battle marks that reminded her who she was. But now… now she felt different. After everything that happened, after the clash with the Shadow Beast… Was she weakening? Or did it just seem that way?
Her magic, which once let her read minds, was slipping away like sand through her fingers. Each attempt grew harder, and the resulting headaches were becoming unbearable. If this continued, she might start fearing to use it, or… lose it entirely.
She closed her eyes, submerging her head underwater, imagining for a moment that she could wash away not just the dirt but the fear lodged in her chest.

Emerging from the tub, she wrapped herself in a thin linen towel, her wet hair clinging to her shoulders. Milliscent walked to the small kitchen, where herbs and elven roots lay on the table. She began preparing breakfast, chopping greens with a focus that seemed to distract her from her thoughts. Domestic routines, when not done daily, could indeed be soothing. The process, the process, and the immediate result… Something everyone lacks in everyday life. In moments like these, preparing breakfast became a full-fledged act of creation.
But her gaze involuntarily drifted to the room where Bogdan slept. He lay on a narrow bed, his chest rising slowly, his torn shirt slipping to reveal part of his shoulder. His face, even in sleep, was tense, as if battling something in his dreams. Milliscent paused, knife in hand, feeling her heart tighten. He looked so… vulnerable. And yet dangerous. The dark veins on his left hand, pulsing even in sleep, reminded her he was more than just an outsider.

She quietly stepped closer, her towel slipping slightly to reveal her collarbone. Milliscent leaned in, gazing at his hand resting on the sheet. The dark veins seemed alive, whispering something she couldn’t hear. She reached out, her fingers trembling, and for a moment, she wanted to touch him.

Her eyes moved to his forehead… So broad and, despite his youth, wrinkled. Either he doubted too much or was constantly surprised… There was no other explanation. She recalled their first meeting, their evening walk through the city. She couldn’t fathom how a person from another world, who had so recently entered her life in such a bizarre way, had become… so close to her. As if he alone knew who she truly was. As if his sarcastic yet kind gaze saw right through her.

She ran her fingers through his hair — gently, barely touching, like a soft breeze, so as not to disturb his sleep. Her lips drew closer to his… But Bogdan stirred suddenly, his eyes snapping open, and she jumped back, nearly dropping her towel.

“Mhmhm…”
“Good morning!”
“Uh… good…”

He sat up, rubbing his eyes, trying to orient himself in the day…

“Wow…”

“Idiot,” Milliscent quickly adjusted her towel, her cheeks slightly flushed. “I was just… checking if you’re alive. You look like you’ve been on a bender in one of your… what did you call it? Pubs?”

“Hah, pubs!” I laughed, trying to hide how my heart raced from her closeness. “You don’t even know what a pub is. It’s a place where people drink tons of alcohol, watch football, and sing silly songs. Want me to show you sometime? We could set one up at home.”

“No way!” Milliscent, fearing Bogdan had noticed something, decided to flee back to the kitchen. “Breakfast will be ready soon!”

“Wow, nice!”

Bogdan was clearly surprised by such a pleasant wake-up. A half-dressed elf was the first thing he saw after a not-so-pleasant dream. The dream itself was vague and a bit creepy. But he quickly pushed aside unnecessary thoughts and hurried to start his morning routine after breakfast.

Milliscent, meanwhile, set the table and tried to change the subject.

“How are you feeling…? Your hand…”
“It doesn’t hurt anymore… And you? You got hit harder than I did…”
“Don’t exaggerate! It wasn’t me who crashed through several century-old trees with a diameter of plus-minus infinity.”
“I’m fine… I know you’re worried, but your concern is kind of embarrassing. It’s like you’re my mom.”
“Hah! Embarrassing him… What, you think I’d be a bad mom for you…?”

It was a casual, everyday joke, but Bogdan drifted into memories of his mother… How is she doing? She was a strong, willful woman, yet deeply sensitive… How did she react to my accident…

“Hey?”
“Uh… what… No… I don’t want you to be my mom!”
“I was just kidding.” Milliscent noticed Bogdan’s mood shift but didn’t know why or how to help.
“Sorry… I just thought of my mom…”
“Oh… I didn’t think… Damn,” Milliscent felt deeply ashamed.
“It’s fine. How could you know?”
“I could’ve thought it through better.”
“Don’t worry about it! Besides, if you’re telling me everything you’re thinking, it means you already trust me and feel comfortable around me!”
“Of course I trust you!” Milliscent blurted out without thinking…
“Whoa… So confident… I trust you too! In this world… you could say you’re my only and most important person.”

She snorted, but her cheeks flushed again.

“You’re impossible,” she said, but her smile betrayed how much she liked his words. Probably ten, a hundred, a thousand times more than she let on. “Is everyone in your world this weird?”

“Nah, I’m just special,” I grinned, but noticed her gaze turn more serious. “What, you already miss my beach stories? If I’m not mistaken, you were super curious, and I didn’t even finish!”

“Maybe a little,” she gave me a light shove on the shoulder, but her smile was tinged with sadness. “But eat up, we’ve got to see the healer.”

The healer, an old elf with a white beard and eyes that had probably seen every ailment in this world, awaited us in a small room filled with the scent of herbs and magical potions. His name was Talir, and he looked like he knew everything about everyone but kept it to himself. His appearance suggested he could identify any city resident with a single touch, and there were certainly plenty of them here. But that wasn’t surprising… I didn’t know his age, but… had he perhaps delivered every baby in this city?

Milliscent sat on a wooden bench, and I extended my left hand, feeling it throb again. I’d never liked doctors, so I often resorted to self-treatment in my past life. But Talir… I wasn’t afraid of him at all. On the contrary… I wanted to trust him?

“Hm,” Talir leaned in, his fingers gently touching the dark veins. “Strange. I don’t sense magic, but… there’s something.”
“Literally…? Or… I don’t know… Somehow different…”
“Structurally… everything’s normal. Bones, nerves, muscles… all the same. But on a sensory level, your hand… it’s as if it’s not yours at all…”

“Is that bad?” I asked, trying to joke, but my voice betrayed tension.

“I don’t know,” he looked at me, his eyes serious. “But it’s definitely not a typical curse, if it’s a curse at all. Interesting… Interesting… Now tell me what you feel.”

I started explaining — about the pain, the voice, how the power surged during the battle… Talir just stared, as if seeing through me, nodding.

But suddenly, the pain became unbearable, like molten metal poured into my veins. It had never been like this before. Never this intense! I clenched my teeth, trying not to scream, but the world around me blurred. My entire body fought to contain this explosion of pain, but it was like a child against this force. With a loud cry, I collapsed to the floor. My head fogged, my consciousness slipping away. And then I heard her. Not the voice in my head, but something else — a torrent of thoughts, sharp as blades and so loud they drowned out everything. Against the blurry backdrop of my perception, I heard them impossibly clearly and loudly. They rained down like catapult stones on my already fragile consciousness.

FAILURE!
PATHETIC!
UGLY!
TRASH!

And again, even louder, the voice unrelenting, continuing with renewed zeal!

FAILURE!
PATHETIC!
UGLY!
TRASH!

I pressed my hands to my ears, but the voices didn’t stop. They were feminine, filled with pain and self-loathing. I looked at Milliscent, her face pale, her eyes glistening with tears as she rushed toward me. She grabbed my shoulders, shouting something to Talir as he scurried around the room, likely searching for medicine. She didn’t hear what I heard, but I think… if she’d dared read my thoughts at that moment… I tried to say something, but the world spun, and I sank completely into darkness.

When I came to, Milliscent was holding my shoulders, her face close, too close. Talir stood beside her, holding a vial of green potion.

“You… Are you okay?” her voice trembled, but she tried to stay composed.

“Yeah… I think so,” I rubbed my temples, feeling the pain in my hand subside. “What was that? My head… Insane pain…”

“You passed out,” Talir said, his voice calm but his eyes betraying worry. “This isn’t a simple case… I don’t know if it’s your hand… or something else… But the potion helped, which is at least some information…”

Milliscent looked at me, and I knew she was scared. Not for herself — for me. I wanted to tell her about the thoughts I’d heard, but something stopped me. She was already on edge.

Before I could say anything, the door opened, and a young elf in a guard’s uniform entered. His face was serious.

“Milliscent, Bogdan,” he said. “The elders are calling a secret meeting. They want to see you. It’s about the Shadow Beast and your scouting mission at the border.”

Milliscent nodded, but her hand gripped mine tighter than usual.

“Alright,” she said. “We’ll be there.”

I stood, feeling my head still buzzing from those thoughts. Failure. Pathetic. Ugly. But why did I hear them, and where did they come from? And why was the voice in my head silent when I heard her? I looked at Milliscent, and her worried eyes met mine. She was hiding something, and I knew this meeting would be more than just a conversation.