Jhed looked up. Silia stood at the counter. His eyes went wide. His whole body was trembling. His lips shook. Disbelief written across his face.
"So you want this card back." Silia held the teleportation card in her hand, her smile unsettling, eyes locked on Jhed.
"Give it back — that's mine." Jhed reached for it. But Silia kept pulling it away, left, right, toying with him.
"Give it back—" Jhed raised his voice. His mind was full of questions — what is she doing in the guild? But right now, getting the card back was all that mattered.
"Should we help, Jhed?" A voice came from behind.
He turned slowly. His eyes were wet. Maruls and his party stood there.
"Maruls — you're all alive. Then who did I see out there?"
"That was us too," Maruls said, his face expressionless.
"I don't understand any of this." Jhed pulled hard at his own hair. Everyone stood quietly, watching him spiral. No one moved to stop him.
Jhed looked back at Silia. She'd been staring at him the whole time.
"Why are you staring at me?" Jhed snapped. She stayed calm.
"Maruls — look, she has the teleportation card. She's the one who stole it. Grab her." Jhed pointed at Silia and turned to Maruls.
They all looked at her.
"They won't listen to you," Silia said. "And honestly, you're boring me now. Besides — frightened blood tastes bitter. So just die." Silia met Maruls's eyes. Maruls drew his sword instantly and cut off Jhed's head before he could react. Why was Maruls obeying her? And how were they here, alive, when Jhed had seen their bodies outside? And how had Jhed himself appeared in the guild from the road?
Silia walked over to Jhed.
"This card is going to be very useful. I'll be able to teleport anywhere and taste fresh blood whenever I want." She laughed. Maruls sheathed his sword. Silia crouched down. Blood had spread across the floor on all sides. She dipped one finger into it and tasted it.
"Not bad." Perhaps this was the secret behind her fair face — she killed people and drank their blood. But how had she gotten into the guild when every high-class adventurer in town was searching for her? And all of them had vanished. And Shine falling from the sky still made no sense.
"Everything is so dull. I'm still hungry. I need more blood." Silia said. Her nails had grown long. Maruls and his team had disappeared. Now it was just Silia and Jhed's body.
As far as Silia was concerned, Jhed was dead.
But he wasn't.
Jhed's body began moving — fast. Silia was looking at the card when she heard it. She turned around, eyes going wide.
"How—?"
Jhed stood before her, exactly as before. This time — Silia was the one who was afraid.