Chief Amitabha continued, "I reached the border area. The growling of the wild beasts brought fear within the troops. They lost the will to fight, but Officer Ray's father didn't falter and he killed one beast and raised the moral of the soldiers. He organized the soldiers, kept on defending the border."

Shiva intervened, "Seems like Officer Ray's father is very strong."

Officer Ray eyes were filled with tears, Only Chief Amitabha eyes caught this, and he wiped his tears. "Father has passed away ten years ago. Sorry Chief, I got emotional, please continue."

"I know the pain of losing someone close Officer Ray, don't say sorry.", Chief Amitabha.

Shiva also knew how it felt when he lost his father; the pain was fresh as it had not been a month since his father has expired. Officer Ray said his father expired ten years ago, isn't Chief's wife passed away at the same time? That means these two deaths may be connected. Maybe I will find the answers after Chief Amitabha finished his story.

"The dead bodies were increasing as time went by, when we thought it was the end for us, a chunk of big rock crushed a beast in front of eyes. Earth magic I said to myself. I looked behind and it was the adventurer troop, they made it in time. Three of them changed the tide of the battle. They were covering their face with a hood. Two of them were Silver Rank swordsmen and the mage was Gold Rank. Yes, you are thinking right, the mage was Hiya's mother. But at that time, I didn't know that person was a woman. 

The swordsmen dashed and took charge of the front. The mage was supporting them from behind with buffs and support magic. Their swords' movement was like swift wind, splitting the wild beasts in half just like razorblade passes through a leaf. They kept moving forward, clearing the beasts, only leaving their body behind. The wild beasts started to fall back. They tried to run away, but they couldn't. Jiya chanted a mantra and an invisible wall blocked their way. They were trapped like a rat in a cage. And Jiya raised her staff and chanted the mantra of the sky; the sky became dark, filled with clouds. The sound of thunder clashing with each other made me uncomfortable. So this is the power of a Gold Rank Mage I thought. As soon as she finished her mantra, she ordered us to step back. A bolt of thunder pierced the clouds and landed straight on the trapped wild beasts. The dark surroundings filled with bright light, as someone turned on a big crystal light. After a moment, it went back to normal. Only the corpses was lying on the ground.", finished Chief Amitabha.

"That much I heard from father. He was hospitalized for the next two months because of the wounds. Within that time, you got married to Jiya.", said Officer Ray.

Shiva spoke, "So within that span of time, something must have happened that lead to the marriage."

Chief Amitbabha's smiled a little, "Yes, you are right Shiva. That indeed happened. After that incident I requested them to stay at your village and enjoy or hospitality. They agree and I prepared the guest houses for their stay. Next morning, I accompanied the adventurer to the boarder site; the corpse of a wild beast is very precious. You can sell their skin, tooth and tail for a very high price. I was wondering why those two swordsmen only came and where the mage was. While they were collecting from the wild beasts, I went to survey the damages. 30 soldiers died, 40 were injured badly. Not a small number."

Shiva exclaimed, "The damage was that much high." Shiva realized the strength and terror of the wild beasts. *They are indeed terrifying*   

"Yes, the numbers easily showed how much damage we took that night. If the adventurer didn't come in time, the damage would increase more." Chief Amitabha paused for a moment then continued "While walking along the border, I heard someone was playing flute. I followed the sound of the flute and saw a beautiful lady was playing it. She was wearing a beautiful silk gown. The beautiful green colour felt as only made for her and her hair was playing with the air. Her flower shaped earrings enhanced her beauty. My eyes were frozen by her charm."

Shiva said, "Love at first sight."

Chief Amitabha smirked, "Before I could approach her, a danger already stepped in. A Horned Kobra serpent was approaching her from the branch of the tree. There was no time, I rushed myself and pushed her but the serpent bit on my leg. I have read in the book that a Horned Kobra's venom is very deadly; the neurotoxin attacks the nerve system at a rapid speed. My eyes felt heavy, my senses started to feel dull. My vision started to fade. A blurry figure pulled me up. I could hear faded voices. 'Hold on… I will take you to the doctor…'"

"How tragic!",stated Officer Ray.

"I didn't see that coming." Exclaimed Shiva.

"When I regained consciousness I found myself in the hospital. The lady was sitting on the chair with a face mixed with tension and a sense of worry. We started talking, and we kept going. It still feels as it all happened yesterday. Later I expressed my love to her, and she gladly accepted it. And without any delay we got married." said Chief Amitabha. 

Shiva like a baby, "Wonderful! It was just like romantic love stories."

Chief Amitabha let out a loud laugh, "Well, can't deny with you."

"It was all fated.", said Officer Ray.

Shiva was meaning to say something, Chief Amitabha noticed his body language, "I know I know, you want to know the incident of ten years ago."

"Yes, if you please kindly," said Shiva.

Chief Amitabha started his story "Jiya quitted her job as an adventurer and devoted herself as Village Chief's wife. Two years later Hiya born. She came as a boon to us. She is blessed by the heaven. The prosperity of our village steadily kept increasing. Days passed to month and months passed to years. Ten years passed in blink of an eye. One day Hiya with her friends went in the jungle to collect the golden lily. She heard stories from her mother that the leaf of golden lily is a very rare ingredient for making tea. She wanted to find it for me as my birthday present. In search of the golden lily she went deep inside the forest. It was almost noon, I was watering the plants. My servant came to me and said that a little girl along with her mother wanted to see me. I told him to bring them inside. He took his leave and brought them inside. The little girl upon seeing me started crying. I tried to calm her down and asked what happened. She said "Uncle please help Hiya, she fell in the cave."