Zero glanced at the fortune teller. She would be an easy opponent to dispose of, given that she has no power right now. But he no longer has any intention to kill her. He just wants to get back the lost ring, and now that he found it, that's all that matters to him right now.
He glanced at the shapeshifter girl inside the cage and the amethyst ring on her finger. He had a positive feeling that he finally found the one that he's been looking for all these years.
Menedelia looked at the young man. "A-are you going to kill me just to get out of here alive?" she asked him point-blank, trying to gauge the inner workings of his mind.
Zero picked up the knife and released a deep sigh. He looked at her. "Honestly, if there is another way to get out of here alive without killing you, then that would be much better. But you heard it yourself, no one can get out alive from this place if we don't kill each other. Only one of us can stay alive!" he answered.
Menedelia sighed heavily. "Alright, give me a little bit of time. I will try to figure out how to leave this place," she requested.
"Sure! Take your time. We only have to fight to the death when the deadline is near. For now, let's relax a bit," he said and shifted his attention to the girl.
The girl looked at the two strangers. Curiosity was flashing in her eyes. "Who are you people?" she asked.
Menedelia and Zero looked at the girl.
"How old are you?" Zero asked.
The girl shook her head. "I have no idea! I was locked up in a room since I was young, then transferred to this cage just a while ago. I grew up alone all my life, and no one told me how old I am. I don't even know what is my real name," she said casually. "The nanny that took care of me when I'm still a young child gave me a nickname though, she called me... Nini! But she told me that it's not my real name," she said.
"So, how did you survive?" Zero asked.
"After my nanny died, servants come and go to bring food to my room. They're my companion through the years," she answered.
The girl shifted her attention to the old woman. "And how about you? Who are you?" she asked.
"I'm a fortune teller," Menedelia said.
The girl's brows furrowed. "What exactly is your ability?" she asked curiously.
"I can read people's past and their future as well," Menedelia responded.
"Cool!" the girl smiled. "Can you read what's my future is going to be like?" she requested.
"Sure, but I'm scared to come to you because you have the ability to transformed! You might turn yourself into a lion or tiger and bit my hand," Menedelia said.
The girl laughed, amused after she saw the raw fear leaping from the old woman's eyes. "Don't worry, I never hurt anybody yet. Besides, you haven't done anything wrong to me, so no reason to hurt you," she said in a convincing tone. "I just want to know what is my future going to be like? Should I continue being imprisoned in a room for the rest of my life, or I'll be able to explore the world outside? I'm excited to know my future!" she said in a thrilling voice.
Convinced by the girl's sincerity and enthusiasm, Menedelia walked towards the cage. "Okay, I'll read your palm, give it to me. But I have to tell you that there are some instances that I can't read people's future. I have to tell you that first so that you won't be disappointed," she said.
"No worries, bring it on!" the girl said.
The girl extended her palm outside the cage.
Menedelia reached the girl's palm, covered it with her own, and closed her eyes to start her palm reading.
A few minutes later.
Menedelia opened her eyes and looked at the girl.
"So... what's my future going to be like?" the girl asked excitedly.
"You will have a bright future ahead! You will be meeting new people and going to different places. And the person who is responsible for the change in your life is that guy over there!" Menedelia replied, pointing her hand to the other prisoner.
The girl looked at him. "Are you willing to take me out of this place? I'm willing to follow you. I will serve you as long you take me away from here!" she told him.
"Sure!" Zero smiled. "I'll bring you with me to the other side!" he said.
The girl's bright smile illuminated the entire area. "Yes! I can finally leave this place!" she gushes.
Menedelia walked back to her place.
Zero glanced at the fortune teller. "Did you see her past life?" he asked wanting to know if the girl was telling the truth about her origin.
Menedelia nodded her head. "Yes, I do! She was telling the truth," she replied.
"And how about her future? What's going to happen to her?" he asked.
"Her future is going to be bright. She will meet new people and explore new places," Menedelia repeated the truth. But she withholds something vital, something about the tragedy that's going to take place after the girl settled into her new surrounding.
Zero smiled. "Do you think that she's the missing baby that I've been looking for all these years?" he asked.
"Yes, she is the one... 100%!" Menedelia assured him.
"Good! Finally! I found her!" Zero said happily. "Don't worry, if you can find a way to get us all out of this place alive, then I will give you the 1000 coins and more. I promise you that," he said.
"Why would you give me the 1000 coins? I didn't find the girl. The ring brought us here," she asked quizzically.
"Just stop asking questions, Grandma! I'm usually generous to others every time I am this happy," Zero replied.
"Okay, as you say so," Menedelia said. She retreated into the corner and start brainstorming on how to get out from this dark place safely before that guy can kill her.
A few minutes later.
Menedelia's stomach was already rumbling, she's hungry! When was the last time she had a proper meal? Ah, it was a light snack with Rebecca when they were about to close the shop for the day and go home, then the guy entered the door, showed her the ring, and BAM! The blinding light abducted her and brought her to this place.
Suddenly, the door opened, and three people wearing black ensembles entered the area carrying a wooden serving tray filled with food. They went to the prisoners' side and delivered the food to each of them.
"Excuse me, can I talk to your master?" Menedelia asked.
"You are not allowed to talk to my master," the guy replied.
"I want to make a bargain with your master," she said.
"Our master doesn't want to see you..." the guy responded.
Menedelia sighed. "Tell your master that I know his or her plan," she said.
The guy glared at her. "Whatever is it that you have discovered today, it's worthless because you're going to die here anyway, so keep it to yourself and bring it with you to your grave!" the servant said and took his leave after putting the wooden serving tray in the ground.
Feeling hopeless, Menedelia took a deep breath. She watched the three men exited the place. Dang! Her plan is useless!
"Grandma, what did you and that man talk about?" Zero asked curiously.
Menedelia released a deep sigh. "I told him that I want to see their master and beg for our freedom. But he didn't listen to my plea and ignored me," she replied sadly.
"Ah, okay. Let's eat and worry about our escape later. Right now, my stomach is already screaming for food!" Zero said.
The trio eats their meals in silence.
Half an hour later, they finished eating their food.
The men returned to take away the dirty dishes.
Menedelia retreated into a deep silence. She was kind of hoping that Rebecca will find a way to help her by using the candles. She knew that the girl was not interested in her stuff when she mentioned their importance to her. But right now, the candle was her only chance of getting out of this place alive! She looked at the clock worriedly, its hands were moving continuously. 'Rebecca hurry up, child! Do something for me! Just this once!' she prayed desperately in her mind.
She doesn't want to die yet! She wants to see the twins coming to this world!
A lone tear emerged from her eyes. It's the sign of desperation of her impending doom.
Zero glanced at the old woman, he can feel her desperation. Between the three of them, the woman was the weakest of them all when it comes to physical strength. He looked at the knife lying on the ground beside him. Within the last 15 minutes of the deadline, he will have to make the final decision and kill the fortune-teller without hesitation and mercy.
He took a deep breath and stood up. He walked to the cage where the girl was sitting quietly. "Girl, can you tell me what is the name of this place?" he asked.
The girl shook her head. "I have no idea. It's my first time seeing this place. I'm always locked up in my room. It's the first time that they had taken me out of that room and put me in this cage."
"How about the servants? They didn't tell you or mentioned even once what kind of place is this?" he asked again.
"I did ask them several times, but they were warned by their master not to tell me anything. I don't even know who my parents are. There are so many things that they had kept hidden from me," she said with a pout.
Zero's brows knitted together. The girl was taken away when she was still a baby and imprisoned inside a room all her life. Who is the mastermind of the tragic event that happened a long time ago? He needs to dig deeper into the girl's history to connect all the dots. He cleared his throat. "You mentioned of a master, have you seen his or her face?" he asked wanting to get a visual image of this unknown enemy lurking in the dark.
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