Stranded Stranger

Chapter Five: Possession

It wasn't easy to take the clover leaves since there were many orcs watching over them. Without hesitation, Shawn did his best to help Alice kill them because it was his task after all, and he also wanted to become stronger.

It was quite convenient to have the equipment he borrowed from the adventurer's guild, as he used it to attack the orcs and defend himself. He wasn't hurt due to his silvery-white armor, and he could fight the orcs using his sword.

“Are you okay?" Alice asked and slashed an orc that growled behind her. She had fully mastered her skills as a superspeed, and killing those orcs was just a piece of cake for her, unlike Shawn, who was already struggling. “Do you need help? It seems like you can't defeat an average-size orc."

"What? An average-size? How can you say that if it is the largest orc I have ever seen?" Shawn asked, his eyes widening in disbelief.

Alice laughed at him mockingly and sneered, "Please step back, mister strange. Let me handle this ogre before it can tear your flesh into pieces."

Shawn didn't want to be underestimated, but he also knew he couldn't defeat that huge monster, so he followed Alice's order. In his eyes, it was an oversized orc; its size was triple that of ordinary orcs.

Alice walked towards the orc and prepared to slash it when Shawn stopped her. He heard an unfamiliar voice coming from somewhere. At first, he couldn't believe it, but when he heard it again, he was sure it was the orc who was begging to spare its life.

"Wait! Don't kill it!" Shawn shouted and walked towards Alice. "I heard it say something. Can't you hear it?" He asked.

"What are you talking about?" Alice answered curiously. "I don't hear anything. How come that an orc could say that? That's impossible!" She gripped her sword, preparing to attack again.

Shawn was surprised by what Alice said. So it meant that he was the only one who could hear the orc? He was sure that he heard it begging for its life, so he asked it for its name.

"I'm Shriek Orchard," the orc growled. "I'm begging you; please don't kill me!"

"You poor thing. Don't worry, we won't kill you," Shawn said while caressing the orc's head. "Alice, let's leave this one alive."

Alice was speechless as she slowly sheathed her sword. She couldn't say anything out of Shawn's kindness towards the orc. It was rare to see someone who could be so generous with them.

"Are you sure?" Alice asked, thinking that Shawn was absolutely a strange man. "It may take revenge if you let it live."

"Don't worry. I'm sure it won't hurt us. Besides, you're strong enough to end it if it attacks us," Shawn reasoned.

Alice blushed after hearing Shawn praise her. She covered her face when he stared at her. Perhaps she already had feelings for him, but she also remembered what Ava told him. She shouldn't get near him, or else that maniac would skin her alive.

Alice turned back and said, "You're really a weird stranger. We better collect those clover before another group of orcs appear."

Shawn nodded in agreement, and then they began collecting the clover leaves. Meanwhile, the smile on Alice's face did not disappear, as if she were enjoying being with the weird but kind stranger.

After a few moments, Shawn suggested to Alice that they should go back to the capital as they had already finished their quests. But Alice told him that she still had another mission to do.

Shawn asked her what kind of mission it was, but she replied that it was confidential, so he shrugged and headed back to the guild house with the clover plants they collected. He continued to the counter and gave them to Emma, as he had promised.

Emma accepted the leaves and complimented, "Wow! You're so amazing, Shawn! How did you get these without anyone's help?"

Shawn did not reply. He slightly scratched his nape, thinking about the girl who helped him. He was sure he couldn't finish this quest without her help, and he was thankful to meet her.

"Is there something wrong?" Emma asked.

"Um, nothing. I just remember that I have to go home now before it's dark. Bye!" Shawn waved his hands and immediately walked towards the front door and got out of the guild house.

"Uh, okay, let's work together again next time!" Emma smiled while waving. She then picked up the clover leaves and brought them into the other room to liquidize them and make healing potions.

Shawn knew that those leaves weren't enough to exchange for the equipment he borrowed, but Emma didn't even bother telling him to return them. So he promised to do his best to repay her kindness. He would do his best to earn money and buy equipment for himself.

The sun was already setting on the horizon when Shawn arrived at the house where he lived with the people he considered family. He was excited to tell them what happened because he had never had this kind of feeling before. He felt like he had a playful little brother, a strict mother, and a waggish grandfather.

As he opened the door and got inside, Shawn was flustered by what was happening because Ava and the old man were going back and forth in the corridor as if they were in a panic. He also hadn't seen Ash, which made him wonder where he went.

"What's happening here, Geezer?" Shawn asked.

"Something's wrong with Ash. A strong demon is trying to possess him," the old man replied worriedly. "I've already called Florence to assist us because even me and Ava can't defeat the demon."

"How come he's possessed? We were still talking before I went to the capital—will he be fine?" Shawn asked, as he didn't expect that something would happen to Ash at the moment he left.

"Don't worry, I'll drive that demon away," a boy whispered while passing beside them in the hallway and continuing towards Ash's room. He got inside and started doing his job.

Shawn's eyes turned wide, seeing the dark light devoured by the greenish light that scattered from Ash's room. He couldn't understand what was happening, but he hoped that Ash would be fine.

A few moments later, the boy got out of the room and walked towards them. He had greenish eyes and high eyelashes, and his ears were long and pointed, which made him look exactly like an elf. He smiled while approaching them with Ash behind him.

"Florence Elmore, sir, at your service, sir!" he saluted.

"How's my brother?" Ava asked anxiously. She was eager to know what happened to her brother and if he was just fine.

"He's possessed by Lynx Hollow. I don't know the exact reason for this possession yet, but be thankful that I made it at the right time," Florence explained.

"Lynx Hollow?" Ava asked as her eyes turned wide.

"Yes. She's a witch who lives in the Spade Kingdom," Florence replied. "You should be careful because witches can be hostile."

"Isn't she the woman who also tried to possess Ava before?" the old man asked. "What's the deal with her? Why would she try to possess them? Did they do something wrong with her?"

"There's only one reason why she could possess them; it's because of their inability to master their skills," Florence replied.

"Do you mean that I can't control my power?" Ava asked loudly.

"That's not what I mean, Ava. What I mean is, you never got possessed ever since you mastered your skills, and that might be similar to your brother; he can only avoid the possession if he can fully control his power," Florence explained.

"I see, you have a point. But you mistook one thing. It wasn't that I hadn't mastered my skills when she tried to possess me; besides, I was already freed when you arrived that day," Ava replied.

"Do you mean that there's another reason?" Florence asked.

Ava was stunned as she remembered something. Lynx Hollow was one of her friends before, including Allen Flinch and Alice Wonders, but she changed when she met Caleb. She was once their ally, but she has become a threat ever since she left the Land of Dusk.

Shawn noticed that Ava seemed to have lost her kindness, so he touched her shoulder, telling her to be strong. He didn't know the whole story, but he didn't want them to be sad because of that.

Meanwhile, Ash ran toward them. He couldn't remember anything except for his last conversation with Shawn before he left the house to go to the capital. After that, he didn't know what happened.

"Sir!" Ash shouted. "Are you from Forbidden Forest? Have you seen my sister? How about Allen? Did you have a fight?"

"Ash! How are you? Are you okay? Do you feel hurt? Why are you asking him? Don't you miss your sister?" Ava continuously asked as she touched her brother's face and scrutinized him closely.

"I think you've fully recovered from the possession," the old man remarked, observing Ash act as he used to.

"Possession?" Ash asked curiously. "Do you mean I was possessed? I couldn't remember anything. Please tell me what happened. I thought I was just dreaming."

"Do you mean you don't remember anything?" Ava tried to get her brother's attention, but it seemed that he had not noticed her because he was only talking with Shawn.

"Stop bothering Shawn, Ash. He's tired from his quest. You should let him rest first," the old man interrupted.

"It's fine, Geezer. I'm not tired at all, but I'm hungry," Shawn said, mumbling as if he were sleepy.

"Look who's not tired!" the old man remarked, and they all burst into laughter before they continued inside the dining room.

"What's going on?" Ava screamed.