Out of surprise, Salome halted, her spoon halfway to her mouth.

  Sori looked as though she'd slept at least three whole days. Gone were the sunken cheeks and shadows beneath her eyes. Her face had regained some color, and any remaining paleness could well have been due to the dim light of the room. Though still clad in the white woolen garment reserved for the sleeping, her movements appeared strong and confident—quite different from what Salome would have expected, given how weak and famished Sori had seemed only hours ago.

  The children danced around her, giggling and squealing, while Sori playfully pretended to catch them, making them scatter, laughing.

  At that moment, Sori noticed Salome and Van at the counter. A joyful smile brightened her face, and she waved cheerfully at them. Kneeling down so that she could look the children in the eyes, she whispered something to them. All three nodded eagerly before clamoring noisily back up the stairs.

  Wasting no further time, Sori gracefully danced through the room and dropped herself lightly onto a stool beside Salome, propping her elbows on the counter and studying her with curious, wide green eyes.

  “Sori!” Van exclaimed, astonished. “You look... good. What happened?”

  “Oh, nothing much,” the girl replied, waving dismissively. “That man with the pointy beard gave me some strange medicine. It tasted absolutely horrible—like grass and earthworms—but then I slept for a bit, and look at me now: I feel fantastic!”

  “Well, that’s wonderful,” Van said. Sori nodded but abruptly shifted her attention from him, as if she'd suddenly forgotten he existed, turning instead toward Salome.

  “Your name is Salome, right? I dreamed about you,” she began. “Strange, isn't it? We just met today, but in my dream, it felt like we'd known each other forever.”

  “R-really?” Salome replied uncertainly, leaning away involuntarily as the girl moved closer.

  “Yes! And that's not all! The plump man—Master Lom, that's what they call him here, right?—he was also in my dream. But then he suddenly turned into—” She paused, frowning down thoughtfully at the floor. “Turned into what exactly? It's on the tip of my tongue... but what was it?”

  Alarmed, Salome shot a quick glance toward Sileil, who was busy behind the counter, cleaning glasses with a cloth, and quickly interjected, “Does it matter? It was just a dream, after all!”

  Sori hummed to herself, then shrugged casually. “You're probably right. Still, it was strange!” She grinned.

  Trying to steer Sori’s thoughts away from Master Lom, Salome swiftly changed the topic. “By the pillars, how did you recover so quickly? I mean—I'm glad for you, obviously, but surely it can't just be the medicine?”

  “Hard to say. It's possible,” Sori answered lightly. “But maybe I'm just someone who recovers quickly. Who really knows?”

  “Shouldn't... shouldn't you know that?” Van asked, puzzled.

  “Hm. Yes, I suppose so,” said Sori, beginning to sway playfully on her stool. Van glanced at Salome, his expression communicating clearly how strange he found this girl.

  Salome wasn't satisfied either and pressed on. “What exactly do you mean by that? You must have been injured or ill at some point, right? Like, when you were younger maybe. Did you recover this quickly back then, too?”

  Sori swayed in thoughtful silence for a few moments, staring at the ceiling before answering. “Well, that's the thing... I really don't know. Honestly, I can't recall at all.”

  “You… can’t recall your childhood?” Salome asked.

  “No... actually, I don't remember anything,” Sori admitted. “Everything feels fuzzy, blurred somehow. My head spins, and I get horrible headaches whenever I think too hard about the past. My thoughts only clear up from the moment I woke up here, with all these strangers staring at me.”

  “Does that mean... you've lost your memory?” Salome slowly asked, her eyes widening. “But that's horrible!”

  “You think so? I don't find it all that awful,” Sori said, shrugging. “This place is nice, isn't it?”

  “What? But—”

  “Besides, the people here are very kind! And if my first clear memory involves a warm meal, I'm fine with that,” she said, flashing a wide grin toward the tall woman behind the counter.

  Salome stared at the girl incredulously. She couldn't remember anything, and yet she behaved so casually, as though it was just a minor inconvenience?

  “So you really have no idea where you come from, or how you ended up in this city?” Van asked, astonished. Sori merely shrugged and turned her head to the side, not seeming troubled in the least.

  Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  “How tragic! I'm truly sorry,” Van said sympathetically.

  “Oh, it’s not so bad,” Sori answered nonchalantly. “Master Lom also said my memories would probably come back. He seemed quite certain. And for some reason, I believe him—though honestly, I have no idea why. Can you imagine? I don't know the man, yet I trust his every word!” She was about to say more, but suddenly paused, becoming thoughtful again. “Actually, now that I think about it... what he turned into in my dream definitely wasn't human. It was more like—”

  Suddenly, the front door burst open with a bang, and Kiran stomped inside like a thunderstorm. With a dark scowl, he approached the counter and towered over Salome and Van.

  “We're leaving tomorrow night. It has to be dark when we exit the city. Rest and prepare yourselves until then. I don't want any delays because you're dawdling, understand? Sileil will give you enough provisions to last for a while. I'll pick you up tomorrow, so be sure you're here in time!” He cast a quick glance at Sori, then spun around and stormed out as abruptly as he'd arrived, vanishing before anyone could respond.

  “Someone’s in a foul mood,” Van remarked. “I'd been wondering where he'd disappeared to.”

  Sori tilted her head slightly, watching the door thoughtfully. “Where are you headed?” she asked, addressing Salome.

  “I'm sorry, but Master Lom has forbidden us from talking about it,” Salome replied with an apologetic shrug, stirring her now lukewarm soup.

  Suddenly, Salome became aware of the odd silence that had fallen over the common room. Glancing around, she quickly understood why. Kiran’s brief but dramatic appearance had attracted the attention of everyone present. Now some of the elderly stole furtive glances in their direction, while others stared openly, almost unabashedly. It seemed as though they were waiting for something—but what exactly?

  Just then, Salome felt a hand gently touch her shoulder. She turned and looked questioningly at Sileil, who leaned across the counter toward her.

  “Do you remember our first conversation in this room?” the tall woman asked quietly. “Since then, my guests have done their best to contain their curiosity. But to these people, you're still something of a living fairy tale. They have many questions.” She straightened back up and resumed cleaning dishes. Salome glanced again at the elderly, swallowing nervously.

  “Excuse me for a moment,” she murmured to Sori and Van. She stood hesitantly, scanning the room until she chose a table where two old men with rough faces sat playing cards, observing her from the corners of their eyes. Their crooked horns and pale skin still unsettled Salome more than she cared to admit.

  They're just people, she told herself. Ordinary people carrying heavy burdens.

  In truth, she understood the curiosity of the elderly quite well. How often did one meet someone from another world? If their roles had been reversed, Salome would have long since abandoned restraint and peppered them with questions.

  “May I… join you?” she asked cautiously. One of the men looked at her wordlessly before pulling out the chair beside him and gesturing toward it with a nod. She took her seat awkwardly, and then the man across from her leaned forward in a conversational tone. “Tell me, girl… I’ve heard you're not from around here…?” From the corner of her eye, Salome saw an elderly man nearby, who was clearly listening in, cover his face with his hand and shake his head.

  In the end, Salome spent the remainder of the evening in the company of the elders.

  One by one, they gathered around her table, and she soon discovered that these horned elders were incredibly kind, warm-hearted people who enjoyed laughter, jokes, and a good story. As Salome answered their questions and spoke of Fundament, they hung on her every word, so fascinated by her tales that she quickly began to enjoy herself. Although she didn’t have many pleasant memories of her homeland and described the world beneath the clouds accordingly, this did nothing to deter her audience. To them, Fundament was a mysterious, unknown world that belonged only to fairy tales and old songs. Her description of the ocean, stretching infinitely around Fundament, elicited amazement and wonder; the idea of so much water in one place was utterly incomprehensible to them.

  Salome didn’t usually enjoy being the center of attention, but tonight, surrounded by these friendly, encouraging elders, she didn’t mind. How could people carrying such heavy burdens be so cheerful? Not for the first time, Salome wondered if it had something to do with the hidden city. Sileil had described this place as a safe harbor, a refuge. It was as if people's hearts could heal here.

  Salome wasn’t accustomed to talking so much. Her voice grew hoarse, and she had to clear her throat repeatedly, occasionally suppressing a yawn.

  Eventually, she was relieved when Sileil joined them and kindly but firmly told the elders they’d questioned Salome enough for one evening. As the mildly protesting horned figures slowly dispersed, the tall woman leaned toward her and whispered, “Thank you. Your honesty means a great deal to these people.” Straightening up again, she added more loudly, “You’ve had a long day. Come, let me show you something.” She turned toward the exit, signaling to Van—who was sitting off to the side, quietly watching—to follow as well.

  Sileil led them to a room in the basement, its entrance situated at the back of the house. Inside stood two large round bathtubs embedded in a long, tiled structure.

  Beneath it, a small opening revealed a glowing fire that heated the water. Warm steam rose invitingly from the baths, a thin wall of red bricks separated the tubs. Beside each of them, neatly folded on the floor, lay a fresh shirt and a soft woolen towel.

  “I thought you might want to relax a bit after a day like this,” Sileil said with a smile, leaving the two of them alone.

  “You don't have to tell me twice,” Van declared, immediately beginning to shed his clothes. Naturally, he wasn't the slightest bit bothered that Salome was standing right next to him.

  “Van!” Salome exclaimed in embarrassment, quickly turning away. “Couldn’t you wait until I’m gone?” With flushed cheeks, she hurried around to the other side of the brick partition. A brief splash sounded, followed by a long, relaxed sigh.

  “Ahhhh... there’s really nothing better,” Van murmured blissfully.

  Salome glanced at the steaming, inviting water. It was faintly greenish and carried the scent of herbs. After a moment’s hesitation, she began undressing as well, carefully folding her clothes and placing them neatly on the floor. She also removed the thin bandage from around her ankle. Carefully, she climbed into the tub and slowly lowered herself into the wonderfully warm water. It felt heavenly.

  “Almost feels like home,” Van remarked in a contented voice, muffled slightly by the brick wall and the rising steam. Salome heard him shifting slightly, the water gently splashing around him. “That Sileil… she really does run a tight ship around here. Have to give her that.” A soft tapping against the bricks suggested he’d leaned his head back against the partition.

  Something he just said made Salome curious. She cleared her throat. “Hey, Van… what’s your home like?”