Chapter 6. First encounter. (I)

When I said that every corner has its own story... some of them are stories that are personal to me. Stories that I haven't told anyone. So, I have one corner that is very special to my heart. If you loved the view we saw from the bus, you will love the view from there. In addition, if we were lucky, we'll be able to see a Spirit's destruction from a slightly different angle. What do you say? Do you want to?" he asked happily. "Yes!" She jumped excitedly.

They walked through the alleys towards the walls surrounding Gillua. Through a breach in the wall, Loy led them out, and they continued walking on the green hills near the town, on the opposite side of Nash. After a steep walk, at the end of the hill, there was a bench. "We've arrived." Loy announced happily.

The bench had a perfect view of the open landscape. The green grass filled the entire horizon line. The sides of the horizon were covered with tall trees. Just by looking, one could see that this is a land untouched by human hands. The abundant grass waved in the free wind. The spectacle was breathtaking.

"You can't see that from the bus window." Loy smiled proudly, as the sun slowly descends in the background and the sky changes colors. "It's...amazing..." Lin said mesmerized. "I used to come here a lot as a kid and watch the sunset. Hope things will change for the better. When I was really young, these walls weren't here, and neither were the spirits. Back then, you could easily see the sunset from almost anywhere in town. Today, the bench and the view were left behind. At least for the rest of the townspeople." Loy smiled to himself as he placed his hand on the bench sentimentally.

"I've never seen such landscapes.. everything was always surrounded by buildings and rocks... it's beautiful..." she said fascinated. Right?" he asked rhetorically, as he looked at her and smiled.

"Now all that's left is to wait. But, not that we'll be waiting here for too long as the cold is going to intensify rapidly. If we're really lucky it will happen in the next few minutes. Look over there, at the person standing at the end of the tower." Loy pointed out. On the edge of the guard post, stood a man in his thirties.

"He scans with his binoculars every few minutes, to see if there's anything on the horizon. He has to do this all day and night. Most of the time, he won't find anything. Boring job huh?" Loy asked. "Yeah..." Lin answered. "Wait, so can he see us from there?" she asked.

"Technically, yes." he replied. "And isn't it dangerous for us to be seen by him? Wouldn't we get in trouble?" she asked. "Dangerous? No... there's really no restriction on exiting Gillua... it's not that the walls are here so that we won't leave. They're here so that spirits won't enter." he replied.

"Are you afraid of them?" Lin asked in wonder. In a flash of a moment, a face burning with green Energia appeared in Loy's imagination. Its eyes were black, and its pupils shone a white light. It had a wide smile as the dark world around it burned in its flames.

"Afraid...? I don't know..." Loy answered with concern. "I don't think so. At least not from the little ones. There are other spirits to be afraid of... but luckily they don't come here..." Loy answered in slight shock.

"It's really quite a distant place... I used to live in a city bigger than Nash. Whole Gillua is smaller than our main street... How do you usually spend your time here?" she asked.

"Hmm... How do I answer that?" Loy pondered in his head.

"Do you even have internet?" Lin wondered aloud.

"Y-yeah..." Loy stammered. "Remember the deal. You mustn't lie." A dark voice appeared for a moment in Loy's mind. Loy opened his eyes in surprise.

"The truth... I don't know what I'm doing here... most of the time I don't do anything... my main hobby is walking...?" Loy answered skeptically and raised an eyebrow, wondering to himself if this was even considered a hobby for someone his age. "Oh really? Why?" Lin asked right after.

"Damn it! Hard questions already from the get-go huh?!" thought Loy, gritted his teeth.

"Ah... I'd rather do other things... but sometimes it feels like I don't really have a choice..." he replied.

"Well, if you want, we can spend time together again. I don't know anyone here, and I have fun with you." Lin said with a smile.

"Really?!" Loy wondered out loud, then covered his mouth in shock. Surprised that it came out loud. Lin laughed out loud when she saw his blushing face. "Of course." She answered smiling.

The sun has already gone down, and the visibility with it. The guard picked up his binoculars after a short rest. He began to scan the horizon. From the height of the position, he was able to see almost a complete circle, except for the second entrance of Gillua, where there was another guard. He scanned around, among the distant trees, in the long hills.

"There! Look!" Loy suddenly shouted excitedly.

In the distance, a doll hovers a few hundred meters away from them. The doll was all white, except for a black dot at the end of its head.