I knew that the spirit woman was not entirely bad.
I had collapsed in front of her, and she had taken good care of me. She had brought me back home, safe and sound.
I saw her every morning. She could have taken advantage of the situation at any moment, while I was sleeping… but she never did.

I could have been worried, unable to sleep again. But on the contrary… surprisingly, I felt secure.
Her presence was somehow reassuring.

I just wanted to understand better who she was, but she kept avoiding me.
Every time I looked at her, she ran away.

Was I too scary?
Maybe she was afraid I could hurt her…

Well… considering my past… who wouldn’t be?

These past few days, I had been training a lot.
I needed to increase my stamina to avoid collapsing like last time.
I had felt my energy reserves dwindling at an alarming rate. I had to find a way to stop it.

With each passing day, I felt a shift in my power.

The more time passed, the more clearly I could see the spirit woman.
The floating mist gradually took shape: a light levitating fog, surmounted by the spirit’s torso and face.
As if this were her 'true form'.

Sometimes I caught her whispering words.
She had this habit of talking to herself.
It made me smile, just a little.

But her voice… her voice kept bothering me.
I was almost certain I had heard it before.

That evening, I was returning from yet another dungeon expedition.

In the distance, I saw her, flying through the air toward the manor.
From time to time, she turned furtively, as if checking whether I was still following her.

And then it hit me.

A memory.

I was eight years old… maybe nine.

At that time, I was constantly bullied at school.
I was accused of everything and anything. Probably because of my power.

The power of darkness is a curse.

I had the 'luck' to be born in this country…
In some other lands, children born with this power were executed at birth.

'Luck' was an exaggeration. My life wasn’t any easier because of it.

That day, I was falsely accused of stealing something — something important, apparently.
Several students surrounded me.

I knew that if I used my power to defend myself, I would face the consequences.
So I held back. As always.

An adult arrived. I was being lectured.

And that’s when I heard it… a voice.
Angry, but almost inaudible.

“They piss me off, those little brats! Accusing without proof when the object is in Kureha’s pocket! Oh, I want to punch her, that piece of @&ù%!”

« An ally…? » I had thought.

So I repeated what I had heard:

“It’s easy to accuse people without proof. Did anyone actually see me stealing anything?
By the way, Kureha — since you’re the first one accusing me — why do I see the stolen object in your pocket? Can’t you even hide it properly?”

I looked at her with a cold, accusatory stare.

She froze, completely shocked.
She must have wondered how I knew.

Kureha had been punished that day.
And the other students had kept their distance ever since.

Looking back… it was her.

It was her voice.

The voice of the spirit woman.

I kept thinking about that memory during dinner.
I couldn’t even bring myself to touch my plate.

« I need to talk to her. I have to ask, » I thought.

But I didn’t know how to approach her without scaring her away.

« She must be on the roof…” »

I walked onto the terrace.

I opened the door gently, trying not to make a sound, trying not to frighten her.
She was there, her back to me, her gaze lost in the starry sky.
She was humming a tune I didn’t recognize.

« If I surround her with my darkness… not to trap her, just to materialize her…
Would she understand that I mean no harm? That I only want to talk? »

I began.

Slowly, darkness filled the terrace.
At its touch, her legs took shape.

Then she turned.

She was looking at me.

And this time, there was neither fear nor worry in her eyes.

She was finally looking at me.

Perhaps… I had succeeded.