'Fucking cowards.' Iris thought.
It wasn't like she chose to be born into a family of maguses. She wondered if life in Asnar would have been better for her and her family. She also believed that maguses like her would have been able to protect the humankind from the supernatural beings of Asnar if the humans hadn't hunted down her kind.
Wouldn't it be better if they supported humans with magical abilities instead of annihilating them? She thought.
The Cursed Ones. This was what everyone called those people who were found with any kind of magical ability.
One of Iris's best friends, Chrysanthe Vale, once told her the horror of those people who were found to possess magic. Iris didn't want to imagine what could happen if people found out about her ability.
"There might be another blizzard coming soon." Amelia Buchanan commented, reminding Iris that they needed to return to Calaren Town before nightfall. Her hold on the hilt of the sword tightened as her blue eyes surveyed the snow covered path in front of them.
Iris turned her head to her left, her eyes narrowing as she sensed the sudden disturbance within the forest. Her face turned pale when she realized that there were two powerful beings heading towards them. Whoever they were, she was sure that they were bad news for her group.
"Something is coming. You all need to leave now." Iris told her friends as she took an arrow from her quiver and tried to scout for the highest tree she could find. However, not a second passed, and she was rooted in place.
A shudder ran down her spine. Two powerful darklings were fighting against each other. She had never sensed this kind of presence from the darklings in her whole life.
Dark. Eerie. Deadly.
It was as if their mere presence was trying to intimidate her. If they stayed here for another moment, they would end up dead soon.
"We aren't going to leave you here." She heard Amelia insist, refusing to listen to her suggestion.
She and Chrysanthe were the only ones who knew about Iris's ability, so Amelia was also aware that Iris could sense the presence of a darkling. Furthermore, she knew that one of the reasons why their group was able to avoid any encounters with the darklings was because of Iris.
Amelia had never seen Iris this scared. Iris was one of the most courageous people she knew in her life, but seeing her friend blanched like this, Amelia realized how dangerous it would be for the three of them to linger here.
Iris hesitated for a moment, but on Amelia's lead, the three of them ran as fast as they could. Luca gritted his teeth as he tried to run faster, but the deer he flung over his shoulder was delaying him.
Breaths coming in white clouds as they rushed through the snow. Iris stayed close to Luca, just in case he needed assistance. As she paused to look behind them, she cursed inwardly as she sensed the presence of the two darklings coming closer towards them.
Suddenly, a strong blast of wind hit the three of them, sending them several feet forward. Iris hit the trunk of a large tree while her friends laid on the thick snow on the ground, grunting in pain. She gasped as she tried to heave a breath, wondering if any of her ribs were broken from the impact.
Iris forced herself to sit up, but she was feeling dizzy. She could sense the darklings drawing closer towards them, and she struggled to help Amelia back on her feet. They needed to leave now or else they might get caught in between the two darklings' fight.
Once she was assured that Amelia was safe, she pushed the carcass of the young deer from Luca's back and pulled him up.
"Are you okay?" She asked, the thick fog of her breath clouding her eyesight. She wound her muffler back around her face as the cold was starting to seep through her clothes.
The snow was starting to fall again, and the wind was becoming harsher.
"What's going on?" Luca frowned and grunted when he felt pain on his shoulder.
"The traveling peddlers might be right." She muttered as they continued to crunch through the thick snow, their heads bowed against the wind.
Iris wondered if the blizzard was being caused by one of the darklings. After all, there were rumors that powerful darklings were able to manipulate the weather to their liking.
'How very convenient.'
If she had that ability, she would have ended this long winter already. It would be easier for them to scavenge for food through the forest and rivers if the springtime comes.
"Let's get going." Amelia helped Luca with their hunt, telling Iris to keep close. While she was afraid of getting killed by the darklings, she was more worried that they might capture Iris. There was no telling what they would do if they found out that Iris was one of the 'Cursed Ones'.
The wind was growing fiercer and harsher. Iris kept her senses on high alert, just in case something or someone was targeting them. Fear nearly petrified her when she sensed the darklings reaching closer. She stayed behind Luca and Amelia to look after them.
Finally, Iris spotted the third mark leading to their hometown, which only meant that they were about to step out of the forest and into the outskirts of Calaren Town. The darklings wouldn't dare to step within the human dwellings, courtesy of the treaty they had between them.
"We're almost there." Amelia panted. Judging by the way she struggled to keep her pace with Luca, Iris knew that her friend was already exhausted.
As the three of them exited the forest, Luca and Amelia fell on the ground, heaving for breath, while Iris sighed in relief when she sensed the darklings had seemed to stop during their escape and were still in the midst of their fighting within the forest.
The sun had already set and the night had fallen when Iris reached her family's cabin where she lived with her mother and two siblings. The snow that piled up on their foyer was so thick that she had a hard time dragging her foot gears from it.
'I'll need to clean up later before another blizzard hits us.' Iris groaned inwardly. She could still feel the ache all over her body from the impact earlier.
Iris heaved a deep breath and felt pain on her left side, making her flinch. She calmed herself down before striding toward their front door. The last thing she wanted was for her family to be worried about her.
By this hour, her siblings should have retired for the night, but it was obvious that her delayed arrival had forced them to stay awake past their bedtime.
The lights were still on and she could hear her younger brother, Ren, burst into laughter from the inside. Whatever he said to their mother had made the older woman chuckle, while her younger sister, Junifer giggled.
Moments like this were what reminded Iris why she needed to work hard. Before her father passed away from his illness, he made her promise to look after her younger siblings and he apologized for leaving behind a great responsibility on her shoulder.
Iris could only nod her head and lower her head. While young girls her age were being taught how to do needlework and household chores, she had to join the men of their town and learn how to provide for her family after her father's passing.
She brushed off the snow that clung to her muffler and lowered her hood. Her teeth chattered as she hurriedly knocked on the door. Her breath fogged right through her face and her fingers were starting to feel numb from the coldness of the night.
Iris hoped in heart that winter would be over soon. If this weather persisted, she and her friends would have no choice but to push further than the area they covered earlier to find sustenance.
She didn't wait for too long as the door flung open, revealing her mother's worried face. The sigh of relief that escaped from her lips wasn't lost to Iris.
Her mother was turning forty soon, but the lines on her face made her look older than her actual age. Her long pale blonde hair - the color Iris inherited from her mother, was tied into a tight bun. She was standing in front of her, bundled in a thick blanket Junifer made for her on her last birthday.
"Iris." Her mother sighed and gave her a good look. "We've been worried. You've never taken this long to come home before."
Iris scratched the side of her face and averted her gaze. Her short hair, which ended above her shoulders, gleamed with the warm glow light that was coming from the fireplace that had been keeping them warm and alive throughout the long winter.
Her color was starting to return as she stepped inside the comfort of their home. She blinked twice, thrice, as her eyesight adjusted to the light that welcomed her home.
"Sorry, Mother. We were delayed by the sudden blizzard that hit the forest. I'll try to get home earlier next time."
She purposely omitted the part that they were almost caught in between the fighting of the darklings. It would only make her mother worry more about her if Iris informed her of the disturbance earlier.
"Sis!" Ren came rushing to Iris with a wide smile on his face. His dark midnight hair, which he inherited from their father, was tied into a low ponytail, reminding Iris that he needed a good haircut soon.
"Do you know? Reverend Carmichael praised me today. I aced my exams last week and the results were announced earlier. He said that if I could keep it up, I might be able to get a recommendation to participate in the scholarship exams at the capital." He said, his bright eyes showing excitement.
Ren held high regards for Reverend Carmichael and respected him. However, Iris couldn't help but be wary of the priest, given that the priest and acolytes were the ones assigned by the royal family to hunt and persecute the maguses roaming their land.
Thankfully, Iris was the only one of them who manifested the magus blood in their family.
Iris messed around with Ren's thick hair and grinned ferally. With her short hair and thin stature, one could easily mistake her for a young man.
"That's good, Ren. Keep it up and Sis and Mom will do our best to help you get to the capital."
Which was almost impossible right now and Iris couldn't help but frown inwardly. Aside from hunting for food, Iris also collects valuable herbal medicines her mother could sell at the town center on weekends. The sales were enough to let them buy things they needed at home and send her siblings to the local school.
"Hey, wouldn't that mean that we'll also come with you to the capital? We promised to stay together, right?" Junifer asked as she passed Iris a clean towel and a clean set of clothes.
She had the same shade of hair as Iris, but unlike her elder sister, Junifer's hair reached her waist and was tied in a loose braid. Her hazel colored eyes curved as she smiled.
"I've already drawn and warmed up your bath. I just hope it remains warm enough not to freeze you." Junifer warned her. "There's still some soup left for dinner. It should be warm and ready by the time you are done with your bath."
"Thanks, Jun. You're the best."
Iris wanted to give her sister a warm hug, but couldn't because of how dirty she was. She instead gave her younger sister a warm smile. Junifer and Ren must have collected and chopped some woods earlier and warmed her bath while they waited for her return.
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