Chapter 24 (English)

< "I got so scared, but I couldn't make a sound out of fear," > Shiro said.

Shiro continued < "The creature was covered and looked similar to our male guards. When it realized that I was awake, it stood up and came towards me. My body didn't move and just as it stood in front of me I closed my eyes and resigned myself to dying. But she hugged me. At that moment I was very confused, but I heard an elderly and weak voice." >

The being looked at her and said with a very worried mood < "I'm so glad you woke up. I thought you wouldn't wake up. I was very worried about you." >

< "I looked at her confused and didn't know how to react," > Shiro explained.

Then the creature took off its veil and it was an older woman around 60 years old and she pulled Shiro close again and said to her < "What are you poor thing doing in this forest and then unconscious. You must have been through a lot. I'm here for you if you need anything." >

Shiro said, daydreaming to himself < "I enjoyed this moment so much because it was the first time someone hugged me with so much love and care. That one moment felt like time stood still. She then took care of me for a while until she learned from me that I was from the village and had fled from my father. Then she smiled at me and put her hand on my head and asked me < "You are welcome here as long as you want." >. From that day on, she taught me a few things. For example, she was very talented in martial arts and taught me how to defend myself. She also taught me how to survive on my own, including cooking and other skills that I still use today. I was probably with her for about 5 years, but I knew nothing about her. Not even her name, which is why I started calling her Grandma at some point over time. As I said, it went well for about 5 years until I was in a phase where I thought I could take on the whole world. So I decided to make my way to the village. I left a message for grandma explaining that I was going to talk to my father to save my, no!, all the women in the village. I was ready to threaten my father and thought that if I showed him my skills, he would give in. I was 15 years old at the time and naive. I had been away for about 5 years and thought that I could just turn up and he would listen to my request. But when I stood in front of my father, he didn't even recognize me, even after I had taken off my veil, which I had made into my main outfit." >

< "I'm your daughter" >, I told him, but he was surprised at first and then started laughing and said < "My daughter disappeared about 5 years ago and I'm not sure, but you don't even look like her" >

< "I could tell he hadn't missed me and didn't even begin to recognize me" > Shiro said, disappointed and slightly angry.

She continued her story < "I proved to him through certain events from the past that I was his missing daughter, whereupon my father screwed up his face and asked < "Why did you come back? You tarnished my pride, my honor and my reputation by just running away. People looked at me like dirt for not keeping my daughter under control. Why are you back? I don't need you here and never come back because you're not my daughter anymore." >. " >

< "What did I expect" > , Shiro said with a depressed face.

< "However, I wasn't here for him, but for the women. So I told him with tears in my eyes that I wasn't here for him. " > Shiro continued as her eyes began to water.

He then told her < "If you want to help the women, you can sacrifice yourself for them. I'll get my honor back and you won't have the problem with the women anymore. " >

< "He came up to me and grabbed me firmly by my clothes and wanted to pull them off me and did so violently, but I tried to fight back and reflexively I punched him in the face and told him in a frightened voice that from now on he shouldn't harm any women including me and should treat them better." >, Shiro told him.

Shocked, Shiro's father held his hand over his face and walked towards me.

She said she was afraid of how he would respond and when she expected a slap or something similar, the father held her hand and told her < "Forgive me, I've been trying to change since you disappeared and it has hurt me a lot. I had always wanted a second chance. Now I have a chance to make up for what I did and I'm messing up again. Please forgive me and help me become a better person and a better father." >.

He did so with tears clearly visible in his eyes.

Shiro, as kind-hearted as she was, believed him immediately and answered him by saying < "I will help you as much as I can. Together we can do this. So if there's anything I can help you with, just tell me." >

< "I have a small request so that I can change something in this village. Could you give a speech in front of the village, telling them that you were kidnapped and that I finally found you after years of searching, so that people will show the same respect as before. That way I can persuade them better, as they no longer take me seriously since you simply disappeared without me being able to do anything about it. " > , her father asked her, taking her in his arms.

Shiro was able to refuse her father, who had never given her such affection in her life, and agreed.

< "Please give me one more day because I have something to do" > , Shiro asked his father, who agreed and let her go.

< "When I got back home to Grandma, she asked me angrily where I had been and hugged me with a mixture of anger and sadness. " >, Shiro said as her face became sadder.

I was surprised, because it was a nice result, but then she continued and said < "Grandma was skeptical and didn't want me to go back at first. But after she saw how convinced I was, she knew that no one could have changed my mind at that moment. So she looked me in the eye and told me < "No matter what I say to you now, you'll still do it. Your heart beats for good and that's a good thing. Never lose hope, because those who truly try to find the right and good way will find it sooner or later, but those who try to find the evil in themselves will find it sooner or later. " > . What I didn't understand at that moment was that it was a farewell. It was a piece of wisdom that would support me on my future path. We then spent the rest of the day together and the next morning I wanted to set off early. I hugged Grandma one last time beforehand and this hug felt like a beautiful eternity. Then I set off. When I got there, my father welcomed me and showed me to my room. My old room was empty and there was nothing left of my things in the whole village, as if I had never existed." >

Shiro continued < "The announcement of my return was to take place in the evening and I prepared myself for it. I kept my clothes covered, just with a more appropriate outfit for the occasion. When the time came and I went out, everyone in the village was watching. After my speech, where I had fulfilled my father's request, I expected his part of the deal. But he had a platter brought instead. I was excited because I thought it had something to do with our deal." >

Shiro then told me that her father spoke aloud in front of the people < "I found and rescued my daughter again and of course I gave the filthy kidnapper a just punishment." >

< "I thought of Grandma, of course, but my father didn't know Grandma's whereabouts. At that moment, I realized why my father had let me return again and why Grandma had behaved so differently the night before. In the moment of realization, I died inside. My face turned pale and my eyes radiated complete doctrine because I had killed my grandma." > Shiro told me as tears streamed down her face.

She took a moment to continue the story and continued < "He lifted the lid on the platter and out came Grandma's severed head. While I was devastated, he proudly said to the crowd < "Look how scared she made my daughter." >. I then fainted without being able to say or do anything. " >