Chapter 3: THREE
"Oh my god!" Althea exclaimed when she was a human lying on the ground, pool of blood around his body. From the footprints of the blood, she could tell that he had run inside the forest with a bleeding body. She could not see his face as blood was covering his entire body. And checking his face did not even seem important to her as the wounds on his body had affected her.
"He is alive, "She whispered as she checked his pulse but it was very weak. The man grunted in pain and whispered, "Save me… I have to return…"
Althea felt pity in her heart. She wanted to save him. She wanted to save every wounded creature in the world but she could not do that. Taking advantage of the loophole of the promise that she made with her mother, she was helping the animals. She knew that she could not help this man even if she wished. There were two main reasons for this: first she made a promise to her mother that she would never heal any human and second, even if she broke that promise and went to heal him, her magic would not be enough as he was on the verge of death and he needed a healer as strong as her mother. She would only be able to prolong his death with her magic.
"I am sorry. I cannot save you, "Althea whispered. She turned to leave. Her heart was so heavy that she could not help this person. As she was leaving, she heard a familiar sound. She turned around to find Aurora standing beside the bleeding man. She noticed that Aurora's white fur was marred with blood. It showed her that it was Aurora who brought the man here.
"Aurora, what are you doing here?" Althea asked. Aurora came to her and started rubbing her head against her in the same way it did while asking her to save Ljuna. This time Aurora seemed more desperate and worried, begging her to help the man.
"You know what will happen if I overuse my power, "Althea whispered. Aurora still went on to kneel on the ground to beg her to help the man. In this entire world, Althea could refuse anyone but Aurora who was her first friend in this world. It was Aurora who kept her company when she was lonely in the world. She could not say no to Aurora when tears were leaking from her beautiful eyes.
"Okay, I will."
Althea remembered using magic on the man but she did not remember what happened after that. Not a single flash of memory was in her mind about meeting the man there. All she knew was that the day she saved that man, her life took a big turn to her misery.
After that day, Althea never met Aurora or any other unicorn again.
It was not just Aurora or the magical creatures that left her, there was no trace of Janette in her life either. All she remembered was lying on her bed in the castle, alone waiting weeks for Janette to come back.
However, the animals in the forest had witnessed a strange phenomenon that day. The entire forest had engulfed itself in green and golden flames. Though the flames did not hurt any creature, it was enough for the scared animals to not left their shelter for days.
***
A month later, Janette did not return but her father's men did. Her father sent his soldiers to look for her in the forest. Seeing army men outside her door with her father's household crest made her relieved. She was not happy but it was better than living here alone in the forest where her miseries had begun.
Once again, her optimistic disposition made her trust her father. Thinking that he might finally pity his daughter, he would take her away from this forest. However, this time he threw her in a place worse than she ever was– an orphanage run by the Hamilton household. For the next two years, she witnessed what it meant to live in hell every day and night.
This year Althea was Eighteen years old. She was standing in the office of the Orphanage caretaker with a lowered head.
"Althea, you asked for six months. We gave you more than two months. It's time for you to go, "The orphanage caretaker said sternly.
Althea bit her lower lip and managed to nod her head. She knew that he had superseded his authority by letting him stay in this orphanage for more than two months. She was supposed to leave the orphanage when she turned eighteen but having no clue how to live in the real world, she decided to stay in this orphanage. She would rather live in a familiar hell than an unfamiliar one.
"I saw the job notice in—"
"No!"The orphanage caretaker said. "You have been doing odd jobs at the orphanage and prolonging your stay here. You can't do it anymore. As for that job, we found another person."
Noticing that he had been hard on this girl he said, "Child, you are one of the smartest kids I know. Why are you ruining your life by staying here? Go out. Find a job and live a comfortable life. I know you are capable of that. You will never be able to live a normal life here."
Althea just stared at her feet. He sighed, looking at her frail but stubborn body. "You want to hear the truth. Fine, I will tell you. You are not like the normal kids in the orphanage. You and I both know it. People call you a freak because you stay alone. You do not belong here. You have the potential to do something great but you choose to stay here and help the maids. This is not right."
Althea murmured, "I belonged nowhere. Neither with them nor here."
'Will I ever belong somewhere?' She asked this question herself.
The caretaker was able to sense her murmur. He sighed and said, "Go back, Duke Hamilton has announced a requirement for workers for his new place in the north. I will try to get you a job there. If you take this job, you do not need to think about shelter or food. And you know the recruiters often give preferences to the applicant from the orphanage."
Before Althea could say no, he added, "You are in no position to refuse this offer. Both you and I know that you cannot stay here anymore."
Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
-- Power
stone