The House

Alphi made her way out of the cave, determined to return to her aunt's house.

Hunger gnawed at her as she wandered through the forest, searching for anything edible. She managed to find a few wild berries and ate them quickly, unable to stop herself—but it wasn't nearly enough.

A part of her silently prayed she wouldn't run into her father.

He's probably out getting drunk, she thought bitterly. Like always.

Eventually, she arrived. Just as she had hoped—he wasn't there.

She slipped past the familiar trees and made her way quietly to her aunt's house. A strange comfort washed over her as she stepped inside. For a moment, it felt like her aunt's presence still lingered in the walls, in the air.

But reality struck her again—her aunt was gone.

Her skin crawled. The dried blood still clung to her body like a curse. She rushed to the bathroom, turned on the shower, and scrubbed herself raw—as if trying to wash away the memory of what had happened in the cave.

As the warm water poured over her, the images came flooding back.

The blood.

The bodies.

Her scream.

Tears rolled down her cheeks, mixing with the water, but no amount of washing could make her feel clean.

After drying off, she stepped into her aunt's room and opened the wardrobe. It was still filled with beautiful long gowns, each one neatly arranged. She smiled faintly, remembering how she used to admire her aunt when she wore them—so elegant, so graceful.

But her smile faded.

Her aunt had always worn a scarf wrapped tightly around her head.

Alphi had never once seen her without it.

The mystery still lingered—where had she gone, and why?

Alphi reached for her necklace and clenched it tightly. Her reflection in the wardrobe mirror stared back at her—not the girl she once knew, but someone changed, scarred.

She whispered to herself:

"I will find the truth.

Then She rushed to the kitchen to find something to eat, and luckily for her, the kitchen was stocked. She ate a good amount of bread and felt satisfied

She began to search the house, starting from her aunt's bedroom, leaving no stone unturned. From the wardrobe to the cupboards—nothing. From the living room to the kitchen—still nothing. Now Alphi was beginning to feel a sense of frustration. She was certain she had seen the name Leniva somewhere.

All that was left was the library. Her aunt loved to read, and Alphi enjoyed listening to her aunt's stories. She sat on the huge couch at the center of the library. The nostalgic feeling hit hard, but she had no idea what to do.

Standing up, she began to pace the room, glancing at the books one by one. The library was huge—not too bright, not too dark—well-designed and, in all, a work of art.

As her thoughts wandered aimlessly, something caught her attention. All the books in the library had a specific arrangement pattern—yet one book stood out. It was alone, sitting on the topmost shelf with no other books beside it.

Suddenly, she remembered. That was where she had seen Leniva before! She used to ask her aunt to read her the story from that very book, the one on the top shelf, titled History of Leniva. But her aunt would always smile and say, "Story for another day".

Remembering her aunt's words sent a strange shiver down her spine. Night had already fallen—what a day it had been. She decided to stay at her aunt's house for a while, hoping to find some sort of clue. It was her only lead.

She made her way to the room and switched off the light. Just then, she heard the front door slam. That loud, familiar bang—her father was back. He always slammed the door after his usual drinking routine.

Alphi planned to stay as unnoticed as possible. Still, a part of her longed to question him. She believed he must know something.

Lying on the bed, she felt an unexpected sense of comfort wrap around her. She had almost forgotten what it felt like to lie in a real bed. Hugging the pillow, she silently thanked whoever had invented it. Before long, sleep pulled her in.

By morning, she awoke refreshed and full of energy. Sitting up, she whispered to herself,

"Today, I must find a clue—anything. A photo, a letter, something.

Alphi returned to the library and climbed the ladder to reach the top shelf. Though she hadn't been formally educated, her aunt had taught her enough to navigate books on her own. With careful steps, she descended the ladder, clutching a large, dusty book to her chest. She walked over to the massive couch in the center of the room and sat down.

There was something about the book—something magnetic. It drew her in like nothing else ever had, as though it were calling out to her. The cover was a deep blackish-blue, worn at the edges, with the title History of Leniva etched in bold, cursive letters. It looked ancient, as if it had been written centuries ago.

She flipped open the cover, and a cloud of musty air escaped from the pages, making her cough softly. Then she read the first line aloud:

"Leniva, a land of witches and wizards."

Her breath caught. Her heart skipped a beat. For a moment, she didn't know whether to feel joy or fear. At last, she had a name for what she was. But with that truth came a flood of questions:

What happened to her mother? Was her father a wizard too? Was there more to her past than anyone had told her?

The hours slipped by unnoticed. She read deep into the book, unable to pull herself away. Every page seemed to bring her closer to something—answers, perhaps, or something even deeper.

For the first time in her life, Alphi felt like she was truly making progress. Slowly, but surely, the pieces were beginning to fall into place.

Alphi took a short break to eat, then quickly returned to her reading. By noon, she was done—her body sore and stiff from sitting in one position for hours. She stood up and stretched, her joints cracking as she moved.

She had learned a little about her roots. Leniva, a land once hidden, was home to witches and wizards and had existed for centuries. In the beginning, it was believed that only magical beings walked the earth. They lived in seclusion, unaware of humans—just as humans were unaware of them.

But that changed.

The human population grew rapidly, spreading across the world, and eventually, they stumbled upon the magical folk. The people of Leniva were just as surprised to discover humans as the humans were to find them. At first, the witches and wizards welcomed the idea of coexistence, trying to accommodate the newcomers. But that dream was short-lived.

Fear began to fester in the hearts of humans. Caution turned into suspicion, and suspicion into hostility. The people of Leniva tried to stay peaceful, but everything changed when one of their own was killed.

War broke out.

It lasted for decades—bloody, merciless, and filled with pain. There were battles, torture, kidnappings, and unimaginable violence. The humans, determined to overpower magic, began developing weapons specifically designed to counter magic.

At this point, Alphi felt a deep sadness for the witches. What had they done to deserve such cruelty? She could understand the humans' fear, perhaps, but fear alone wasn't a reason to attack. And now, she didn't know whose side she should be on. Was she a witch? A human? Or something in between?

The humans hadn't stopped at fear—they had built weapons designed to destroy magic itself. One such weapon, the Magic Drainer, did exactly what its name implied: it drained a witch's power completely, leaving them dead. Another, called the Magic Canceler, created a zone where no magic could be used at all.

Despite everything, many witches and wizards were soft-hearted. They tried to spare mortals when they could. But eventually, there were no choices left.

After decades of war, a ceasefire was finally declared. The Queen Witch and the leader of the humans came to an agreement: they would live separately, and neither side would trespass into the other's land. A massive wall was built between them, and a powerful spell was cast to ensure it would never fall.

The land of magic was named Leniva, after the acting queen at the time. The other side, where the treaty was signed, became known as Briggs Kingdom, named after the human leader who stood across from her.

Now, Leniva rests at the farthest end of Briggs Kingdom—out of sight, and almost out of memory.

Years after the death of Queen Leniva, a power ranking system was adopted. At the age of sixteen, every witch and wizard was tested, and based on the results, a mark appeared on their shoulder.

The full details of the rankings were never explained, which left Alphi curious. Then it hit her—she was sixteen.

A mix of excitement and fear bubbled up inside her. Would she get a mark too? What would happen if she didn't take the test? Most importantly—what even was the test?

Questions raced through her mind, each one louder than the last. Her hands fidgeted with the edge of her sleeve as she tried to steady her breath. The whole thing was too much—too many unknowns, too many secrets.

It was already night, and she was tired. She set the book down on the library table, headed to the bathroom for a quick bath, and then went straight to bed.

As she lay down, her father crossed her mind. Had he known about all this the entire time? A small part of her began to doubt if he was really her father at all.

Her imagination ran wild. What if I was kidnapped from Leniva? What if I'm actually the child of a noble?

She giggled a little at the thought. It felt like a logical explanation. Why else would a father treat his daughter so badly?

She tried to push the thought away—and soon, she drifted to sleep.