Daybreak Realm

Thea was as shocked as Ayhan when they stepped inside the house of her friend. It was not new to her that the interior looked more like a clinic rather than a home. Beds lined near the walls and the scent of medicinal herbs lingered in the air. Though Gia loved healing fairies, her place was often empty. However, at that time, she had two patients that had burns all over their bodies and terribly damaged wings. They were unconscious but already recovering. And the most surprising of all was that Ayhan knew those patients.

"Juliann and Calix are here?" Ayhan carefully placed Asuren on an empty bed, not far from his other friends. "You saved them."

"Sel also helped," Gia went to the kitchen and immediately brewed medicine for Asuren.

"I heard my name," Sel entered the house through the backdoor. She was holding a basket filled with freshly harvested herbs. Her eyes widened with shock upon seeing Thea and Riz. "You're back. What happened? Did you really cross the Deadly Barrier like those patients?"

"We did it twice," Thea smiled and settled on an empty bed near Asuren. "We look terrible, but we will be fine. We just need some rest."

"You just came out of that chrysanthemum bud," Sel let out a sigh of annoyance. "Do you want to sleep for another century?"

"Sel, let's scold them later," Gia stepped out of the kitchen with a smoking bowl in her hands. "Our friends need medicine and plenty of rest. Can you give them the same remedy we brewed for Juliann and Calix? I need to focus on this patient."

"Okay," Sel glared at Thea before brewing medicine for their burns and damaged wings.

"I've never encountered this kind of potent poison." Gia was meticulously cleaning the stab wound. "Is Nightfall Realm really that dangerous?"

"It is," Ayhan admitted with a sigh and then glanced at Thea. "Thank you for saving not only Asuren but also Juliann and Calix," he bowed low to Thea, Riz, and Gia.

"You also saved us," Thea glanced at Asuren.

"He almost killed you back then but there was no fear in your eyes. Why?" Ayhan curiously asked.

"I already told you," Thea smiled. "I met him before. Despite his injuries, he still saved me."

"This is the fairy that you met when you came out of the chrysanthemum bud?" Gia was surprised.

"He is," Thea beamed wider.

"Wow," Gia carefully poured powdered medicine on the stab wound before wrapping it with a bandage. "I guess fate really wants you to meet."

"Fate wants all of us to meet," Thea sat on an empty bed and watched Gia mend Asuren.

"He still pricked your neck," Riz glared and rested her back on a bed near the front door.

"My friend can get possessed at times," Ayhan revealed with another sigh. "When his eyes turn purple, you should be cautious. He will kill anyone without hesitation."

"Possessed?" Riz was shocked. "Is there a demon in Nightfall Realm?"

"I heard rumors about the Evil Witch," Gia said. "That she is worse than any demon."

"That's true," Ayhan let out another sigh. "She is worse than any demon and one of her goals is to make Asuren suffer."

"The silhouette that stabbed Asuren had purple eyes. Was it sent by the Evil Witch?" Thea asked as she remembered how terrified Asuren was when he asked about the silhouette.

"Yes," Ayhan gazed anxiously at his unconscious friend. "The Evil Witch made him suffer for thousands of years. Now that we are here in Daybreak Realm, I hope that my friend can have a short break from all of her wickedness."

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"Aren't you tired?" Gia asked Thea because everyone else had already fallen asleep but she remained awake and watching over Asuren.

"I just woke up from a hundred years of sleep. That must be the reason I'm still wide awake," Thea was curiously staring at Asuren.

"You can't sleep because you are worried about that fairy. Asuren, right?"

Thea nodded and said, "Have you ever looked at someone and felt like you have seen them before but the memory eludes you?"

"You think you've seen him before?"

"I don't know," Thea shook her head. "When I was fighting those silhouettes, I also felt the same. As if I encountered them a long time ago. Was this because I slept for a century? Everything seemed familiar yet different."

"What is this place?" Juliann woke up and looked around him. He was shocked when he recognized the other patients around him. "Asuren… and Ayhan? Is this Nightfall Realm? Did Calix and I make it back alive? But… who are you?"

"I am Gia and this is Thea. You are here in Daybreak Realm. That is Sel," Gia pointed at the fairy sleeping on the bed next to Calix. "She is the one who intercepted the monster that brought you in our domain."

"Gia mended your wounds. This is her house. You are safe here. Get as much rest as you can."

"Have you seen the fairy with long blonde hair? He is not a seal bearer but he works for him. He said his master is here in Daybreak Realm and wants to see Asuren. I guess their message reached him and he came here with Ayhan," Juliann sighed and then shook his head. "I can't believe we are all alive after passing through the Deadly Barrier. Thank you, Gia, for taking care of me and my friends," he bowed low to her. "I don't want to bother you any further. I can brew medicines for us."

"This is what I want to do. Leave the healing to me. Just focus on your recovery."

"Asuren is wary when receiving food or medicine from strangers. I know you saved us and welcomed us to your home but Asuren will remain cautious."

"Once he wakes up and needs to take medicine, we will wake you up," Gia promised.

"Thank you," Juliann said before returning to sleep.

"Is it because of poison?" Thea glanced back at Asuren. "When I first saw him, his chest wound was reeking with poison. This time, he had been stabbed by a poisonous blade."

"When I was examining him, I sensed his low resistance to poison. I don't know if the cause is one of the curses within his body."

"Curses?"

"Yes. He had been cursed too many times that it began to damage his body. I need to further examine him and see if I can lift those curses."

"Thank you, Gia."

"Get some rest. I will wake you up once he awakens."

"You sleep first. I'll wake you up if I get drowsy."

"Okay," Gia placed a mug of smoking medicine on the bedside table right next to the bed of Asuren. "He has to drink this medicine every three hours."

Thea nodded and Gia rested on one of the remaining empty beds.

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