The child keeps coughing for a while, and calms down in a minute. Once the situation calms down, the child realizes that Roswald was holding her in his arms. She pushes him aside and goes to the corner of the room, creating space between them.

Silence toke over the room. Roswald was surprised that he was tossed aside by a child whose build was so weak that it almost crumbled when you squeezed it.

"I'm sorry," the child said, and looked at him with pitiful eyes.

"It's fine, by the way, are you alright?"

"Yes, um, thank you," she said, while grabbing her clothes tightly.

"For what?"

"The food, you gave me food and clothes. Thank you,"

"Oh, no, it's alright, that's what I should do," he said nervously.

The child looked at him and smiled slightly. Roswald felt happy, but he didn't understand why he felt that way.

Once again, the room became silent, and the atmosphere was awkward.

"You should rest more. I won't do anything bad to you, so you can relax," he said, with reassuring eyes.

"Why?" she said in silence.

"What? You said something?" he asks.

"Ah.... No," she said, panicky, waving her hands sideways.

"I see, will, call me if you need me, I'll be downstairs,"

Roswald takes the tray with food and then goes out of the room and heads down to the inn restaurant to rest. While the child calms down and lays on the bed with worry, she wonders aloud what will happen to her from now on.

The child keeps thinking and thinking until she closes her eyes and falls into sleep. The sun has yet to set, and while the child is asleep, Roswald heads out to the guild to take a quest.

It didn't matter to him what quest he might do, so he picked two randomly. He then goes out of the city gate and heads to the nearby plains to complete the quest he has on his arm.

The quest was all about slaying goblins lurking near the plains, investigating the cause, and retrieving a herd of sheep abandoned by their owner.

Roswald arrived at the plain where the quest was located, but when he arrived, he didn't see a herd of sheep or any goblins lurking by.

He continued walking and was suddenly stopped by the sudden appearance of one goblin by the side of the tree. As soon as he locked eyes with it, he didn't wait for the goblin to react. He slayed the globin with the blink of an eye.

After he slays the goblin, he sees two sheep tied up by the tree, and at their side were tools used for grinding meat. He looked around and kept his guard up. As he sensed no other goblin, he then freed the sheep and secured them in a safe area.

He kept searching and searching by the side of the plains. He then saw a huge cave covered by the trees surrounding it, and it was in a place where one would miss it.

The trees completely hid the cave entrance, and he had a hard time getting in, so he used his sword, cutting the edge of the tree vines, but the vines kept growing as he cut through them. It turns out that the tree vines have magic imbued with never-ending growth.

As Rosawald realizes, he immediately uses fire magic to burn the vines along with the body. As the vines blazed with fire, they let out a shriek. The sound was so loud that it alerted the goblins inside the cave.

She fled in a panic, her steps so small that she was never far from the pursuers; she was apprehended and returned to the village, where she was tightly bound in a wooden stick surrounded by a blazing fire.

*gasp*

*quick breathing*

The child woke up in a fright, her body trembling in pain. She was dreaming of the day she was chased by the villagers where she had previously resided with her late mother.

She looks around in the room and realizes that she was only dreaming and calms down, when suddenly Ramy opens the door.

"Oh, hello there. I thought you were asleep," Ramy said with a smile.

The child was cautious of her, so she didn't approach any further than where she was.

"Roswald, you know the man who was here with you? He's not here right now, so,"

"Where?"

"Huh?"

"Where is he?"

"Oh, he said that he was heading out for a while,"

"...."

"Is that it?"

"Uhm, yes?"

"I'm asking where he is,"

"He didn't tell me, but he said he'd be back before sundown, so you don't have to be worried," Ramy said in a soothing voice, attempting to calm the child.

"I see," the child said, then suddenly her stomach grumbled.

"Oh my, you must be hungry. Wait here, I'll bring you lunch," Ramy said, then headed down the stairs.

The child didn't understand Ramy's behavior towards her and was hesitant to receive kindness from others. It was a strange and unknown feeling for her.

"Dad, can I borrow the kitchen for a minute?"

"Why?"

"I'm just going to cook something,"

"What are you going to cook, and who are you giving it to?" Ramy's father said, in a panicky voice.

"Relax dad, I'm just going to give them to the child upstairs,"

"What? Ramy, did you enter the room again? "

"Don't worry dad, its fine. He's not here anyway. "

"Hayss, do whatever you want,"

"Thanks dad, love you,"

"Hm," he muttered, and danced happily while laughing.

The child was dazed while Ramy was still cooking. She walks near the window and looks out. She sees children happily playing with each other and people passing by shopping with their families. Seeing them, she remembers the happy memories when her mother was still alive, but also the bad memories.

The two of them lived in a small cabin in the nearby small village. They would pick up flowers and make flower crowns out of them. Her mother would put the flower crown on her head and mutter and cry,

"My baby, my beautiful baby, I hope you can be happy every day." I'm sorry that I said." She didn't understand her mother's words until that day.

One day, the villagers started acting strangely and uttering words like,

"devil, get out of this village now," and started throwing rocks at the two of them. Her mother kept silent as she was hit by many rocks.

Her mother protected her so she was not hit by the coming rocks. She was afraid of them. She was trembling in fear as they continued walking and arrived at their house, and calmed down as soon as they entered.

As she relaxes, she notices her mother's scars and the uncontrollable flow of blood; she was about to go outside and seek help when her mother stopped her.

"Baby... stop, I'm alright," her mother said, smiling gently.

"Mother, why are they throwing rocks at us?" she uttered as she cried.

"I'm sorry baby, it's my fault," her mother said as tears fell from her eyes and she hugged her tightly.

The child remained silent as her mother cried while holding her through the night. The sun rises, and the child wakes up from her sleep.

She hears people banging on the door of their house. She feels afraid and bitter. She gets up from her bed, goes out of her room, and comes near the door.

She brings up her courage and opens the door, facing the people outside. As soon as she was seen by the villagers, she was dragged out of the house and some barged into the house searching for her mother, who was laying on the bed sleeping, but as they opened the door, her mother was nowhere to be seen.

The villagers were so furious that they dragged her all the way to the center of the village and threw her to the ground. She could hear her limbs crack from her ankle and her knees were bleeding.

The villagers looked at her with disdain and vicious eyes. She trembled while in pain. They kept calling her the devil over and over and throwing rotten eggs at her, while some were only looking at her refusal to help.

The mayor of the village approached her with murderous eyes and uttered

"Little girl, where is your mother?"

"I don't know," she said while her mouth trembles and tears falling continuously from her eyes.

"That can't be done. That can't be done. Are you lying to me right now? "

"No, I really don't know!" she yelled.

"Little girl, don't test my patience. Tell me where she is now!" the mayor said as he slapped the child hard enough for her to not sit.

The child cried. She was in greater pain than she could hardly bear. Her mother was watching as her child was bullied by them.

The child uttered, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, please don't kill me," over and over as she was beaten nonstop.

"Unruly child, how dare you beg before me? You're just the child of the devil,"

"It's yours and your mother's fault that the village is in this situation," villager A said, as he beat the child's feet with a long stick, causing her feet to bleed.

"Blame yourself and your mother for living in this world," Villager B and villager C protested.

The child's mother couldn't bear to see her child get beaten up by many people, so she came out of hiding. Her companion was trying to stop her from going.

"Stop, you can't go."

"I have to, my child. I can't leave my child. Sorry," she says, and runs towards them.

"Marianne!" her companion shouted in fear of losing her.

"I'm sorry, El, take care," she said, as she smiled gently and gracefully.

"I'm here, let my child go," she said, with no hesitation in her eyes.

"Mom?" the child said, faintly.

"Hump, you're finally showing up, you devil. It's taken you long enough. "

"Let my child go, you satan"

"Hump, your child?" The mayor said while laughing villainously.

"How could the child of the devil be spared? You make me laugh. "

"You, you all, don't you feel pity? My child is only five. How could you do this to us when we did nothing to all of you? "

"Did nothing? Hah! Look around you. The crops and animals are dying. Nothing? Look what you two did. "

"It's me, only me. Leave my child alone... Please," she beg kneeling on the ground.

"Sure, let's say we could spare your child. What would it do to us?"

"That's right!" the villagers protested.

"I'll do anything you all say. You can beat me or kill me all you want. Just spare my child. I beg you. "

"Fine, we'll let the child go. Hey you there, throw the child into the forest,"

"Yes, mayor."

Villagers B, D, and E carried the child into the forest as they were told. The mother of the child was dragged back into their house and locked up, then one of the people lit up the matches and burned down the house.

To be continued.