The two trolls overshadow the single witch – one in front of him and one behind him. Their skin blends with the white snow, with strong looks of intimidation in their face showcasing the cruel intentions they have for the man in front of them. Amneal doesn’t show any sign of worry.

  The troll behind him makes the first move, drawing a large knife out of its back pouch. The knife matches an abnormal size, resembling the forearm of the troll in length and width as the large opponent cocks its arm back before swinging. And then it happens.

  The large knife cuts through the air at a forceful speed. Amneal quickly turns around with his bow instantly forming in his hand. With a single crackle of red lightning, a thin line of red makes its way through the troll’s head. A thin opening is left going through the troll’s forehead and exiting out of the back of the large creature’s head. The troll is shown frozen in place at first, before dropping to the ground on its stomach.

  The opposing troll watches the death of yet another one of its brothers come to reality. Its blood stains the snow beneath its head. This brings the troll to reach for its blade as well. But before it can draw its blade from its pouch, a quick line of red lightning channels through its chest, leaving a guided hole through its heart. This brings this troll to a standstill as well, as the speed of the attack has not yet registered.

  The troll suddenly coughs up a pile of blood on itself, before landing on the ground as well. The snow is stained with both trolls’ liquids.

  Amneal’s bow disappears once again - the speed of his lightning attacks was still shown to be unmatched. Amneal continues to walk deeper into the snowy forest without much care afterward.

  ***

  Amneal shows up in the mini town, going straight for the merchant that sold the spices his wife needed. This merchant resided outside with his mini shop setup like all the other merchants. He smiles as the familiar witch approaches him.

  Greeting Amneal, the forty-year-old man asks Amanel how he had been. Amneal smiles back, something he hadn’t often done. But seeing Lenard’s joyful spirit often gave him a joyful feeling. Amneal answers him, telling him that he could complain about a few things in his life, though he wasn’t going to do so. Lenard quickly got the joke.

  The tones shift to a serious one, with Lenard asking him how Niavi’s health was. This question slowly took the smile off his face, but I prepare to answer it as well.

  Lenard comments that it feels like forever since he saw her, as Niavi usually came to the market side of town. I disliked shopping.

  Amneal gave him a straight response, informing him that her health had taken a turn for the worst, with everything that could go wrong with her health, going as sickly planned. The fatigue. The coughs. The paleness of her skin. Amneal couldn’t be more graphic with her sickness, if he wanted to be. He was certain Lenard got the picture.

  Lenard gives his own apology towards her status. Amneal accepts. Amneal notes to him that he had been able to slow down the curse immensely, simply by sharing his mana with her on a daily basis.

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  Amneal further states that he has paid close attention to the disease itself. The curse appears to eat away at the host’s mana, using this form of method to further spread throughout the body, as it devours. Once it consumes all the host’s mana, the host dies. I was literally the one keeping her alive.

  Only walking around with half of my mana hadn’t been the best of ways to handle things, but I was able to get by. If I had at least seventy percent of my mana, I would have killed that other witch last night without much of a sweat. But buying Niavi more time was much more important to me.

  The merchant looks as if he wants to play a sad violin for Amneal and his background story. He tells his customer that he will say a prayer for Niavi tonight, before he goes to bed. Amneal believes him and sincerely tells him thank you, paying for the spices that Niavi usually ordered from Lenard. He knew what Amneal was going to order without asking. Niavi was his number one customer, before her sickness.

  ***

  Amneal returns home, Niavi still in good health as she is seen on the couch reading another book. Not the novel he had given to her before, of course she had already finished that one yet again. This was a different one. The cover looked to be more fantasy related than the last book she held, which was closer to a dark romance theme. It wasn’t often that Niavi strayed outside of dark romance.

  Niavi places the book beside her on the couch, leaving the book behind as she approaches her husband. She helps him with the groceries, further showcasing the high levels of energy she has once again obtained. These were the small moments that Amneal wanted to keep.

  She seemed so happy when she was healthy. Such a small appreciation meant so much to her. Things that others often took for granted until it was too late.

  Niavi was getting ready to start dinner early. Amneal follows her into the kitchen, leaning against the counter as he simply watches her take over the cooking area. She stops for a moment to kiss her husband, but notices something. Upon releasing his lips from a quick peck, he can barely make eye contact with her. This could only mean one thing.

  Niavi asks him what it was that he has done. He tells her nothing. She questions him again, her tone showcasing that she was aware that he was actively lying. He gives in, starting off by telling her that there were two trolls in the woods. Niavi doesn’t even allow him to finish his words – she already knows what he is about to tell her. He’s done it again.

  She alludes to him having killed them. He informs to her that he had no choice, as they wanted him dead for…he stops his answer. Instead of the two murders that she would scold him for, he would accidentally bring up a third that she hadn’t known anything about.

  Niavi appears frustrated by this point. She demands for him to finish his sentence. Amneal hesitates, wanting to think more clearly before saying anything else.

  Niavi drills harder into her husband, asking him why did kill again, after promising her that he wouldn’t kill anymore.

  Just as another set of words leave her mouth, she begins to release a series of coughs. These coughs are so serious that she drops down to a knee, as if standing was only making things more uncomfortable for her. She was becoming sick again.

  Amneal rushes down to her side, taking his own knee beside her. Her coughing doesn’t seem to be letting up.

  Amneal rubs her back, embracing the helpless moment that he is now in. He tells Niavi that he is sorry, and that they should change the subject – as the added stress isn’t good for her body. He reinstates his promise, telling her that he will not kill anything else – no matter what.

  Amneal can feel it as the words come out of his mouth. He has just lied again. But he believes this to be for the greater good, as he has to kill the other woman witch, in order to save Niavi’s life.

  Niavi looks in her husband’s face as her coughs cease. She believes him, as she always does. Even when she is unsure, she sticks to what feels easier to deal with…her feelings for Amneal.