Good News, and Bad News.

The angry jeering finally stopped, a disturbing silence falling now. Annie looked at the crowd. She could see mixed expressions. Some were resentful, some were confused, and many were hesitant. They just needed a small push.

"Please," Annie said slowly, making sure to measure her words. "I can't ask for all of you to give the same portion you always would. Just... Please, spare anything you can. Whatever you cannot provide, I will pay myself."

Slowly, the people started to move. First of all, the beggars tried to hand back the money Annie had given them. She pushed them away gently, smiling softly at them as she shook her head. After them, the woman from the inn stepped forward and handed over a bag.

"This is... What you paid extra for the room. And for the dress, since you returned it."

Annie looked, nodding gratefully. "Thank you," she said.

A few men stepped forward, adding a few pieces of some kind of gold to the bag. Annie had absolutely no idea if they were Golden Bits or Gold Coins, but she'd need Lilin's help to know what the tax was even supposed to total to, so she wasn't going to worry about it now. She simply held open the bag as many of the townsfolk stepped forward and added to the bag. The bag grew heavier and heavier with each contribution, slowly filling. 

Annie couldn't stop smiling. None of this was part of the plan. Her plan had failed the moment the townsfolk stayed angry after her bow. No, this wasn't her plan anymore, this was the trust she had asked for. This was a blessing, a kindness. If Aramasa had a hand in any of this stuff, then Annie thanked her deeply for it in her heart.

By the end of it, Annie struggled to lug the bag over her shoulder. Each step felt heavy, and she felt herself wishing she could be young again. She kept going, though. She had to deliver the news to Lilin- and make sure that this was enough money.

Annie made it to the hut, but it wasn't exactly easy. She could feel the soreness in her legs eating away at her, her muscles struggling to make it the last few steps. When Euwelyn opened the door, Annie nearly collapsed.

"I-I got the taxes," she said in between heaving breaths, "C-Can you please take this bag?"

"Oh, my goodness, yes!" Euwelyn reached out and yanked the bag away from Annie, gasping at its weight. "Goodness, you carried this the entire way here? You look like a mess!"

Annie nodded, stumbling her way inside and quickly taking a seat in a chair. Her legs screamed their thanks as she finally took a seat, and she started to massage them. "Goodness, that was a struggle. Old age really creeps up on you, doesn't it?"

Euwelyn's expression suddenly fell. She had been trying to ignore it, but Annie was right. "Miss Smith... Do you know why you're suddenly aging?"

Annie chuckled, noticing the drop in Euwelyn's face. She wanted to keep the mood light, but this seemed important enough not to sidestep. "Well, I'm not entirely sure, but my best guess is it's my Mana Deficiency. Something about my Core not taking in enough Mana."

"I... See," Euwelyn replied slowly. "I... I've seen situations like this before. May I... do something to get an idea of how much Mana remains in your Core?"

Annie nodded. "I don't see why not."

Euwelyn nodded again, hesitation showing in her face. She didn't want Annie to know, but each time she had seen somebody with this disorder, it had killed them very quickly once their rapid aging began. It was never gradual, either. They were a young adult one day, and a week later they would be passing away. The only way she could predict the time remaining for them was by finding out how much Mana remained in their Core.

She slowly brought both of her arms to Annie's shoulders, gathering Mana from the air surrounding her and pushing it through Annie. This was by no means an official process, but by forcing compatible Mana through Annie's Life Core, she could use the amount converted to estimate how much Mana remained within the Core. Taking a deep breath, Euwelyn gave Annie a small warning.

"This will burn."

Annie tensed as a massive heat spread through her body, starting in her chest and rising to her head before burning its way to her arms. It felt immensely hot, but not to the point of being painful. She managed to breathe deeply, Euwelyn's warning more than enough for her to brace herself in time.

Euwelyn absorbed the Mana from the forced Core Conversion, slowly rifling through it. She could feel the essence of the Mana crowding together, and she had to focus to be able to sift the different types. The air Mana was still dense, but that was to be expected since she grabbed it out of the air. The more she sifted, the more she found a lack of Life Mana. She searched desperately, her focus beginning to falter as she searched for any signs of change. Each time she felt the presence of Life Mana, she told herself it wasn't as bad as she thought.

It had barely changed. Euwelyn's stomach clenched. This couldn't be true, she wouldn't believe it- yet she had known it to be true before she even started. Her hands let go of Annie, but her arms refused to move away. Each time she thought about moving, she wanted to do it less. It was like trying to take a step forward in a march towards a cliff's edge.

"What is it, dear?" Annie asked, seeing the bad news painted clearly on the witch's face.

The question finally forced an answer from Euwelyn. She took a deep breath. She had to steel herself.

"Miss Smith," she said. "You have... Less than a week to live."