That single encounter with the mysterious demon in the woods changed several things: First, the children in the orphanage began to see me differently. They’ve convinced themselves that I’ve been stained with evil. Only Mother, the head nun of the orphanage, could ritually cleanse me according to the unorthodox Sariyan tradition and render me pure again. However, telling Mother to dispel the evil touch would also mean telling her what happened and accepting her grievous chastisement. In the end, they just agreed to keep their distance from me.

The second thing that changed was that the children never played the test of courage in the woods again. They were too afraid of encountering the demon once more. They also disliked the idea of possibly getting punished for dirtying their clothes with mud.

The last thing that changed was how I began to see everything. The village never felt so small. Before I met Master, I never imagined a world beyond the village. Past the thick forest, there was a different kind of life. There were people who talked and dressed differently. There were sights far more stunning than the village scenery. There was knowledge that extended a great distance beyond the limited education provided by the orphanage.

I was no longer satisfied with the daily lessons we were given. I hungered for the knowledge that was far beyond my reach.

The sacred book Mother was holding contained all the answers. At least, that’s what they repeatedly made us believe. We were taught that it was all that mattered for us to live. After all, we were probably going to be stuck in the village for the rest of our lives.

Nobody dared to question its authenticity.

Where did the book really come from? Who wrote it?

“These are the words of the Goddess, therefore we must follow its teachings.” With her gentle voice, Mother would tell all the children.

Everyone would believe every word. They didn’t really have a choice.

How did they know that those were the words of the Goddess?

I had to know. I decided to ask Mother one day. She was praying at the village church’s altar, a lofty wooden structure that housed statues and alleged relics of the goddess Sariya. The corners were also decorated with eerie wooden statues of saints recognized by Sariyan tradition. After hearing my questions, her face grew serious.

She reached out her hands and touched my cheeks as if I was a precious relic. “My dear, doubt has entered your heart. You must not be swayed by heretic musings. Those are the works of the devil.”

She doused me with a small bottle of holy water she always carried with her and uttered a prayer that would supposedly protect me. Afterwards, she instructed me to never ask those questions again. I just had to believe. Faith would save me.

None of my questions were answered.

Each day, I tried to take every chance I could to sneak back into the forest and find the stone tower again. Unfortunately, I couldn’t remember the way. I returned several times to the boulder by the creek hoping there would be a book there again like last time. There was always no book nor any sign of anyone stopping by. Nevertheless, I continued to revisit the places where he might have been at.

One day, I discovered mysterious flashing lights coming from deep within the woods. They would glow white for a moment before fading back into dim lighting. I approached the area slowly, ready to run at any sign of danger.

Drawing closer, I had a better view of what was causing those lights. It was him.

"Little one, you came back." He was quick to notice me.

In front of him was a strange set-up composed of flasks that all connected to an iron pot in the middle through a series of pipes. The pot looked like it had been left heated for days through burning firewood underneath the stand upon which it sat. Its lid was almost completely removed, revealing a strange metal object inside.

“Is that magic?” I asked.

“This is alchemy.” He bent down and picked up the object in the middle of the pot.

“What are those for?” I asked curiously.

“To build machines. The strongest metals are only obtainable through alchemy.”

He held up the shiny lump of metal for me to examine. I could almost see my reflection.

“Lunatia. A special alloy created by the alchemists of old. Only a few are able to decipher the cryptic codices they left behind, so the production of this alloy has been extremely rare.”

“It’s beautiful,” I remarked without taking my eyes off the metal.

“You have good eyes, Little One.” He kept the chunk in his leather bag.

“I brought you a gift.” I took out an apple from my pocket and gave it to him.

"How kind of you. You shouldn't waste that kindness on me." He took my little gift and placed a gloved hand on my head. “This place is dangerous. You better head back to the village. Stay well, Little One.”

He turned to leave.

"Wait!"

He stopped and turned around.

"Can I stay with you?" I asked. It was only after the words escaped my tongue that I realized how rude I must have sounded. Mother would have hit me.

He paused to think. "Interesting. As long as you do not interfere with my work, I will accept your company. You will have to work hard to feed yourself and clean up."

I smiled at his answer. “I will.”

"You must also never return to the village and say anything about me. If you can abide by these conditions, you are certainly welcome to stay in my tower," he added.

“Understood.”

He held out his hand. I took it and walked with him to my new home.

I never knew his name, but he became like a father, a teacher, and a guardian.

He was everything to me.