Salvation

I am Maya, I'm called with my first name alone as I have never known my family name.

A few years ago, I was but a mortal roaming the streets outside of the central region. It was where the Sapiens Empire ruled all of humanity.

Unlike demons the empire had an emperor who stood above all humans, be it in strength, smarts, and power. All humans had to bow down before him.

There were great sects too, their status was just below the royal family of the empire and had a lot of influence.

However, there was also a ranking between the great sects located in the empire. The rankings were decided by the strengths of their disciples.

That was where the Sapiens Royal Academy comes in the fray. The sole purpose of that academy was to decide the rankings of the great sects. As such they send their most talented disciples there to compete.

It was unlike a real academy where you will be studying with teachers but instead it was a competition.

I have heard of these stories from people I've passed by and there was only admiration in their faces as they spoke about it.

Thus, I became curious, I was just a mortal girl but I have always wished to become a cultivator.

Wealth, fame, power, it is said cultivators had these things as long as they were strong.

But as I've said, I was just a normal girl with no parents.

I had lived my life in starvation and even a piece of bread was a treasure to me. So the hopes of becoming a cultivator was a far fetched dream for me.

Days passed by and there was a time where I was starving to death as I wasn't able to eat for a few days.

My stomach rumbles and each time it hurts, it feels as if something was eating my insides making me weaker by the second.

I've wandered the alleyways looking for food and the people who've seen me all but ignored me.

It was to be expected, they didn't want anything to do with me much less give me their food, after all they all thought they might get a disease if they come in contact with me.

So, I starved and endured, hoping....

Water... Food... I wanted to eat. Then, suddenly my body gave out. I had no strength left to move my starving body.

I was weak and I didn't want to risk my health eating garbage. But now it seems I have to.

Right now.... I just want to eat... I want to survive....

I wanted to cry from this suffering but I can't as I was in a state of dehydration, crying wasn't an option for me.

If I had the strength to do it, then I would rather spend it on finding food. So I mustered up all my strength... My will power to crawl towards the streets.

Each time I reached out to crawl, I felt my energy draining along with my life. But I endured and successfully reached the streets.

Yet... All they did was stare at me as if I was some dangerous disease.

My clothes were those of rags, my skin was pale as white, and my body was extremely malnourished.

I looked like someone suffering from sickness with an incurable disease.

However, I didn't stop crawling and reached out to a man who walked over me. He was eating a piece of bread. Then, with the strength I had left, I weakly asked.

"P—Please.... Food.... Please give me food...."

My voice was hoarse from dehydration and it was barely audible for him to hear yet, all he did was mockingly smile at me before he kicked away.

It hurts... It really hurts.... My insides feel like they were squirming and the last bit of strength I had left my body.

"How cruel! To think he would kick a dying child."

"Yeah, what an unpleasant man. Though, maybe I would've done the same. After all, we don't know what kind of disease that 'thing' is carrying."

Hearing the people looking at him with discontent, the man clicked his tongue and threw his bread to the ground next to me.

So, I'm now called a thing.... Am I not even human to others anymore?

Yet, I didn't mind it for too long, I was about to die from starvation and so I reached out for the bread next to me.

Slowly but surely....

My hand fell to the ground before even reaching it.

Ah... I'm really going to die this time...

I couldn't blame this to anyone, not even my dead parents, after all this was ultimately my fault.....

"How horrible to think that he would kick a dying girl and not even help her. How this world works is really terrible."

A voice sounded in my ears, it belonged to a woman but I had no strength to see what she looked like.

I only stared at the beautiful blue sky instead of this rotten world.

Step... Step... Step...

I heard her steps even though my mind was already dazed, each step she took she got closer and closer to me.

Then, finally she stopped before my dying body and kneeled to look at my face. I saw her face but it was blurry and my mind was on the verge of fainting.

"Hmmm, were you trying to eat this bread?" She said and threw away the bread that I was desperately trying to reach.

"There is no need for you to eat that garbage, sleep and do not worry. I will save you and bring you to my place."

My head turned towards her ever so slightly. Hope then filled my mind and I felt like crying from happiness hearing her words.

I wanted to thank her.... My mouth moved and trembled but now words came out.

My eyes were getting blurrier by the second and I was getting close to becoming unconscious.

"Are you trying to thank me? What a kind girl. But I am not the one you should say your thanks."

"For which I am only saving you because of my master's orders."

Her words sounded like she couldn't care about me if she wasn't ordered to but to me her words sounded like salvation and I was grateful.

To her... And her master....

I had a chance to live because of them....

That's why her master.... I want to thank her master if I get the chance.

The one who brought me salvation because of his words.