The continent Kahrlin lay to the west with Korral as its capital. Behind the city, there were vast, broad rivers, and scattered around were huge lakes with considerable distances between them. The water displayed various colors, some shimmering in the sunlight while others cast a beautiful rainbow hue. To the left stood a vast forest of beech, birch, and oak trees, with colossal canopies resembling cauliflowers. There was a long queue leading into the city, but it moved swiftly, and when it was their turn, Liam produced a black card with a logo of a golden ring.

"Welcome back." greeted a guard who received the card and waved it in the air in front of him.

People strolled around in medieval attire mixed with ancient garments, some lightly dressed with visible patterns on their skin, all adorned with floral motifs. Some carried books in their hands, while others had them in a shoulder bag. They passed by a large market selling colorful fruits and plants, and a sweet exotic aroma hung in the air. A man sliced a mango into cubes, and a delightful sweet and creamy scent wafted through, causing Mai to break into a smile.

Suddenly, there was a sharp clanging of metals striking against each other, and she caught the smell of fire, molten metals, as a warm wave passed them by. They drove past a blacksmith's road where only men stood working in rows with heavy tools, sparks flying around them. They wore long black leather aprons and wielded large hammers as they pounded on various objects. There were both young and old men but no women present.

On the way, they stopped at a temple, and the men woke up Master Kjeld and helped him into the temple. Moments later, they returned.

They continued on, and later they stopped in front of a large building, Master Kjeld's place.

After unloading all the belongings, Master Kjeld looked at Mai and asked, "Do you have a place to stay?"

She shook her head, but before she could answer, he waved his hand, signaling the group to arrange a room for her, which she gratefully accepted. She helped them unpack, tended to the women, and bathed those in need. She cooked for them all, cleaned up, and helped out wherever a loving hand was needed. It was the least she could do for them. Blue was allowed to stay in the large garden outside Mai's room, where there was a window with a nice view.

They quickly set up a ceremony in the garden on a small white round stone altar that was already there, used by the group for daily prayers. They placed the remains of the women all around the altar and sat waiting for a shaman to perform the ceremony for them. They waited for a long time, and the food grew cold. Everyone was exhausted after the journey, but the ceremony had to be completed so that the souls could be sent off.

"Do you really believe there's still a soul left in those remains?" Mai asked, doubting there was anything left when a brain was missing.

"We live in a believing world, and faith is very strong here." replied Ellen, a young woman with short blonde hair, who was preparing the candles on the altar.

They managed to find a shaman quickly as a priestess was out of their reach financially. They also required membership in the Spirit Temple, which none of them had.

They waited another 20 minutes, and Mai couldn't bear it any longer and stood up.

"The food is already cold. We need to make something new before the shaman arrives, if she even comes. Don't you think we've been deceived?" she asked, beginning to place the cold bowls of food on a tray.

There were people who exploited others' suffering happening everywhere in the world, and this situation was no different.

The group was confident the shaman wouldn't cheat them because Master Kjeld had personally gone to find one. He wasn't present, and Mai doubted a shaman would accept his request in his condition. They had invited the shaman when they entered the city and had specifically mentioned when they would need one. It had been several hours now.

Mai looked up at the sky and saw the sun's red rays shining on a cloud, making it blood-red.

"It will be dark soon, so their spirits won't have time to depart." she furrowed her brows and bit her lip.

She chose to take the ceremony into her own hands and asked Liam to find some ceremonial attire, immediately starting to cook again. To her surprise, no one objected.

Shortly after, small bowls of hot food were placed around the altar at each of the women who had passed away. Mai stood in a long white robe that reached her ankles, barefoot. The sleeves were long and flowing, reminiscent of a hanfu, a Chinese flowing robe. Her hair was tied up in a tight bun with white flowers, and a paper butterfly.

"There wasn't any shaman attire, so we found these priestess clothes, but they're used." said Liam, scratching his cheek.

"It's beautiful even though it's used. Thank you." Mai said, smiling at them all.

Everyone sat in a large circle in a prayer position when suddenly the door opened. A young beautiful woman appeared. She wore a long white silk robe with simple white flower patterns, and her blonde ponytail was tied with a thick white matching ribbon. She gasped for breath, struggling, while two middle-aged women with tight smiles appeared behind her, wearing similar robes. Their eyebrows were as thick as snails' shells.

One of them furrowed her brows and said in a harsh tone, "What are you doing? You can't start a ceremony without us!"

They quickly approached the altar and looked around at the group, their gaze landing on Mai, who stood in the middle at the altar.

One woman furrowed her brows and asked, "Who the hell are you? What do you think you're doing?"

Mai furrowed her brows and replied in a cold tone, "What are you doing? First, you arrive late, and then you barge into a ceremony. How rude."

The woman gritted her teeth and extended her right hand towards Mai, who suddenly felt a hard slap on her cheek. It burned, and she felt it in her gums.

"You vile, dirty witch!" the woman said, looking around at the group. "Who brought her in here? She tarnishes our name. When the Shaman Circle hears about this, there will be consequences."

"I invited her. You're late, ladies. The ceremony has already begun." Master Kjeld hobbled in with a wooden stick and a black robe draped over him.

Mai hurried over to him and helped him onto a chair. He looked up at her, noticing the mark of the slap on her cheek, and furrowed his brows. She just smiled lightly at him and nodded.

The young shaman looked over at Liam and asked, "Sorry for our tardiness, but I'm the one to perform the ceremony. Let's start it now."

She sat down in front of the altar and took out a white cloth, laying out golden tools. She lit an incense stick with a strong scent, making Mai wrinkle her nose.

The young shaman looked at Liam and reached out her hand towards him. "Give me all of your personal belongings. One from each."

Hilda remarked they had nothing, causing the shamans to turn around, but they sent Mai a disdainful glance on their way out.

Mai wanted to continue with their ceremony, which made the shamans pause. They were against her, and after a long heated argument, they allowed the young shaman to stay to oversee it so nothing went wrong.

Mai looked around at the group and asked, "Did they have anything they liked, such as food, animals, or the like?"

They revealed that the women loved flowers because they were fascinated by runes, which were influenced by Master Kjeld. They handed Mai a stack of paper, and she borrowed Liam's quill. With everyone's help, she drew all the women's favorite flowers. When she finished, she placed them around their remains and found small flat stones like the ones Master Kjeld had used in the Enchanted Maze.

"What do you plan to do with them?" the young shaman asked in a curious tone.

Mai was about to glance at Master Kjeld, but when her gaze landed on the young shaman, she was reminded of an important thing.

"Everything you see and hear during ceremonies. Is it something you need to report?"

The young shaman raised her brows and replied, "If you really manage to complete the ceremony, then I'll take this to my grave."

Mai smirked and commented, "You're smarter than those grumpy donkeys."

She cautiously asked Master Kjeld if she could borrow his hammer, to which he didn't question. She approached the first stone and placed the drawing of an amaryllis on it, which was Karen's favorite flower. She extended her energy into her hand and struck the stone hard with the hammer, causing it to resonate. She attempted to extract the flower with her left hand, but nothing happened. She furrowed her brows and tried again. Still, nothing. She emitted energy again and struck the hammer hard on the stone. She repeated this several times, and suddenly she felt exhausted and tired. She stopped and looked at the hammer, now glowing red.

"Do it for Karen's sake. I'll make it up to you next time." she whispered and emitted energy again to the hammer.

It trembled and transformed into a golden color, and suddenly red symbols lit up on it. She lightly struck the drawing on the stone and held her left hand against the flower, gently pulling it out. She removed the paper and placed it on the stone. She lightly struck the stone with the hammer, and the rune penetrated, glowing. Mai continued to the other stones, and long after, she finished and wiped the sweat from her forehead. She sat in the middle in a praying position and closed her eyes.

"Let us all pray." she said aloud, and everyone folded their hands in front of them and closed their eyes.

"Dear God, please send these souls to your garden. If they are guilty, then I bear their guilt. It is my fault they met their fate in this way. Thank you, Almighty Father."

Mai was overwhelmed by emotions, and a tear welled up, rolling down her left cheek. The stinging sensation from the slap area remained, and she tasted a salty tear. She began to sing her favorite song as a tribute but mixed up the lyrics.

"There are so many without friends,
without love and kisses,
People, no one else knows,
where can they find light?
Let them play in the crown of the tree of life,
Let them feel that life is great,
let them behold the blue horizons
and the gateway of the sky vault."

As she finished her song, she opened her dark eyes, which now emitted a white glow. Suddenly, the runes lit up in various colors and hovered over the remains of the women, penetrating their clothes, which lit up. They transformed into white dust and quickly floated up into the sky and disappeared.

Mai smiled at the sight and felt she had accomplished something magical.

"Thank you, Almighty Father." she whispered, shedding a new tear that she didn't wipe away.

The garden was completely silent, and even the young shaman was speechless.

Suddenly, she spoke. "Isn't that something only a Rune Master can do..."

"You're a man!" she suddenly exclaimed loudly, waking up the others.

Mai was shocked by her words and furrowed her brows.

She held her head in her hands, sighed deeply, and said, "I'm tired, Master Kjeld. We all need to rest."

He nodded and said, "We'll leave dinner at your door, but can you meet at the entrance at 8 p.m.?"

At 8 p.m., Mai stood ready at the entrance. She had been instructed to dress a certain way: her hair was tied up in a bun, and she wore a hood that covered it. She wore black pants and a white shirt with a white hooded cloak over her, the same as Master Kjeld's group.

Master Kjeld showed up with Liam and the other men. He inquired about her interest in runes and whether she would like to learn about them, but Mai reasoned that she was a woman. According to Liam, only men could become a Rune Master because of their anatomy, which could hold more mana than women.

Master Kjeld refused to let her go and said, "There's a Rune Master Tournament coming up, and I'd like you to participate. If you win, I'll be your student."

Mai sensed no irony in his voice and repeated her words from before, but he stuck to his words, sparking a heated argument between them that lasted a moment until he commented on her attire. This prompted her to check herself again.

She snorted and glared at him. "Are you saying I should dress up as a man just to participate in a Rune Master tournament? Have you lost your mind?"

"Not Rune Master tournament, but The Rune Master Tournament. Your disguise is already working. None of us could recognize you when we saw you, right boys?" Master Kjeld looked at the men, who looked away embarrassedly in silence.

He didn't give up, and after several minutes of discussion, Mai relented.

She sighed slowly and said, "Fine. I just have to win, right?"

He nodded and sent her a wide, mischievous grin and nodded.

"But I won't have an old man as a student. Besides, it doesn't make sense." she hurriedly said in a stern tone, gritting her teeth.

"Come, let's visit the Rune Master's Guild. The Dancing Poppy." said Master Kjeld, and as they walked across the street, Mai had a small conversation with Liam about the Rune Master Guild.

On the other side of the street stood a black wooden building, an inn with a small wooden sign that had scratches with the text "The Dancing Poppy" engraved on it. There was an engraving of a red poppy with two green stems and leaves on the sides, smiling as if welcoming guests. To the right, there was a small engraving of a beer mug.

"Quite literary." commented Mai, breaking into a smile.

She looked forward to having a nice cold beer.

At the entrance stood two men with large beer bellies resembling innkeepers, and they wore black leather aprons, but there was a golden sword hanging at their hips.

"Rune Master Kjeld. Welcome back. I see you've brought your team with you this time." said one of the men, scanning them all with his eyes and stopping at Mai, furrowing his brows.

"It's illegal to bring children in." he said, looking at Master Kjeld.

Mai bit her lip and furrowed her brows as she felt her heart racing loudly.

"I'm 33 years old, so I'm sure I'm old enough." she said in a loud and clear tone.

The man raised his eyebrows and sent her a sharp glance., "Really? You look like you're barely 20."

He looked at Master Kjeld and said in a stern tone, "The Dancing Poppy is only for men over 30 years old. You know that. Since when have you become a godfather, Rune Master Kjeld?"

Mai held her head, took deep breaths, and repeated her mantra: Take it easy.

The Dancing Poppy was a secret sect that was part of the Rune Master Guild, accessible only to members, and Mai had to get inside no matter what.

Without thinking twice, she asked the men to check her age, but when they asked for her identification, they shut her up. She bit her lip. Screw it!

Master Kjeld defended her and came up with a quick lie: she was still an apprentice, and her Rune Master certificate was being processed. They still refused to let her in, even though he tried several times to persuade them.

The other man suddenly pointed at Mai's face and said, "She's definitely under 18. She looks like a little child."

When Mai was young, she always had to show ID in the city, but as she got older, she enjoyed having a youthful face, but now it was a challenge.

"Just scan him." Liam suddenly said.

One of the men took out a small golden coin with a flower pattern and held it over Mai as he moved it around in front of her. Mai felt like she was being frisked in airport security and felt a strange sensation in her heart.

The man suddenly raised his eyebrows and stopped. "You said you were 33, but you're 32. It doesn't make it any better that you lied about your age, but you've passed the age limit. Come inside."

He waved them in, and the others wasted no more time, but Mai stood frozen in place as she repeated the number 32 in her head.

"Weren't I 33 before I died? How did I get younger?" she mumbled, looking at the man who had scanned her.

Was it possible to acquire that type of age detector?

 

 

Song: The Tree of Life by Hans Holm and Erik Lindebjerg