As Elifero listened to Olian's story reach its end, the space between them felt unbearably heavy.
Neither of them spoke.
The firewood cracked softly nearby, the sound too small to break the silence that settled over them like ash after a burn. Elifero stared at the ground, his chest tight, his thoughts tangled. What he had just heard wasn't something one simply responded to.
After several long moments, he finally spoke.
"Look..." His voice came out quieter than he expected. "I can't say I understand what you've been through. I really can't."
Olian didn't look at him.
"But I don't think a goal like that is something you should be chasing," he continued, choosing his words carefully. "I get that she ruined everything for you, for your family, for the village. I do. But it's not worth it."
Olian's jaw tightened.
"What if one day," Elifero said gently. " That revenge turns into you? What if you're the one who disapears next? Have you thought about how that would make your make feel?"
His tone wasn't accusing. It was soft. Honest.
For a moment, Olian stayed silent, her shoulders stiff, her breathing uneven. Something in her expression shifted ~ anger bubbling just beneath the surface.
Elifero didn't notice. He kept talking.
"In my opinion," he said, looking off into the distance. "You should let the past be. I don't think anything good ever comes from chasing revenge. It just wastes your life running around, searching for someone who may not even exist anymore."
Her fists clenched.
"What if one day you find out she's already dead?" he added, his face serious. " What then? Will you chase after her children instead?"
The words hung in the air ~ sharp, careless.
"Try fixing things at home with your mother," Elifero said quietly. "Try living a better life."
He opened his mouth to say more ~
"Shut up."
The word cut through him.
"Shut up!" Olian shouted, her voice trembling with fury. "Would you just shut up!"
Silence fell.
She stood there, clutching the front of her dress, her chest rising and falling rapidly. Her eyes burned.
"What do you know?" she demanded,, her voice cracking. "What do you know about losing people who actually mattered to you,huh?"
Elifero froze.
"You keep talking about 'what ifs' like i haven't thought about them," she continued, tears threatening to spill despite her effort to hold them back. "You think I didn't consider all of that?"
She inhaled sharply.
"Yeah, sometimes my emotions get the better of me," she admitted. "But I'm not stupid. I don't rush blindly into things and let my feeling destroy my life."
Her grip loosened. Her voice dropped, colder now.
"Just mind your own business."
She stood up, not sparing him a single glance, and walked toward the house. Julie tried to say something, but Olian brushed past her, climbed the stairs, and disappeared into her room.
Julie stood there, stunned, watching the space her daughter had left behind.
****
Elifero remained on the porch, staring at the floor.
Was I wrong? he wondered.
When Olian passed him earlier, he had seen it ~ tears slipping free despite her effort to hold them in. The image lingered in his mind, heavy with guilt.
For the first time since arriving at the village, Elifero didn't know what to do.
***
The door creaked open.
Julie stepped outside.
He straightened immediately, bracing hiself for a scolding ~ for anger, for disappointment.
But Julie only looked at him gently.
"Please," she said softly, "Don't blame yourself."
He looked up, surprised.
"She's not angry at you," Julie continued. "And even if she is.... she'll come around.That's what JJ used to say whenever Olian stormed off."
She smiled faintly.
"Just give her time."
Relief washed over Elifero, leaving him weak with it.
Julie asked him to come inside and wait for the right moment to speak with Olian again.
***
Time passed.
Morning arrived quietly.
Julie moved through the kitchen, preparing food before work. The sound of something hitting the door broke the stillness ~ a newspaper tossed by the delivery boy. An envelope was attached to it.
Julie noticed the crest immediately.
She placed both on the table.
Later, Elifero and Olian came downstairs to eat. While picking at her food, Olian noticed the open envelope and the letter beside it.
"What's that?" she asked.
Julie hesitated. "It's the head of the village," she said. "It concerns you."
She added that after breakfast, she wanted both Olian and Elifero to go at the temple.
Olian frowned. "Why does he have to come? They asked for me, didn't they?"
"I can't leave him behind," Julie replied calmly. "And he's been inside this house for days. Seeing the village might do him some good."
Olian sighed, clearly unhappy.
But with no better option, she agreed.
Julie rushed out of the house as quickly as she could, already late for work. The door creaked open, then shut behind her in a hurry. Just before leaving, she turned back and called out Olian, telling her to be a good girl and not cause trouble.
The house fell quiet again.
***
On their way through the, the air between Elifero and Olian felt heavy, thick with words neither of them knew how to say. They walked side by side, yet it felt like there was a distance stretching between them. Elifero's thoughts raced. He searched for something ~ anything ~ that could break the silence, but nothing felt right.
Noticing his unease, Olian was the first to speak, her voice calm but distant.
"The old lady lives in a big house," she said. "There's a statue in front of it. It's not far... but if you're not used to this place, you can get lost easily without noticing it."
Her sudden words caught Elifero off guard. He hesitated for a moment, then gathered what little courage he had.
"Sorry," he said softly, almost afraid his voice would disappear into the air. "I shouldn't have said those things to you. You were right.... I should've minded my own business."
Olian slowed her steps. After a brief pause, she admitted that her reaction hadn't been fair either especially blaming him for things that had nothing to do with him. The tension between them loosened, little by little, as they continued walking.
As they moved deeper into the village, Elifero's eyes wandered. Children around their age ran through the streets, laughing without a care. Adults passed by, some chatting, others scolding their kids or trending to their work. It felt... normal. Too normal.
For the first time in a long while, Elifero felt something warm stir in his chest. He looked around like a tourist seeing a new world, taking everything in ~ left, right, up, down. The sight alone made him smile.
Suddenly, Loud cheering echoed ahead.
Elifero stopped in his track, curiosity pulling him forward. A group of three boys stood in the open, holding wooden boards with words painted across them ~ change thelaw. They shouted as if they were leading a rally. One boy older than them, climbed onto a chair and joined in, his voice louder, more defiant.
An adult rushed over, shouting angrily. The three boys scattered instantly, clutching their as they ran, but the older one stayed behind, standing his ground with rebellious glare.
"Who's he?" Elifero asked quietly.
Olian didn't answer. Instead, she grabbed Elifero by the arm and pulled him along.
"Don't mind him," she said firmly. "And please stop leaving my sight. If you get lost, the blame will be on me."
The village wasn't large, but Elifero understood what she meant. The paths twisted strangely, streets branching off in ways that felt intentionally confusing.
"The people here seem to be enjoying themselves, don't they?" Elifero said with a small smile.
She hesitated for a second before adding, her voice low, "There's nothing normal about this village," she replied. "Those smiles you're seeing are just masks. That's what that boy was shouting about."
Elifero's smile faded. He didn't understand what she meant ~ not fully ~ but the certainty in her voice unsettled him. He said nothing, only nodded, and followed her as the village paths closed in around them.