18 Chapter 18 : Truce

"Ok, fine. I believe we both got off the wrong foot here. Let us stop our quarrelling and start this all over for everyone's sake. What do you say, Lisa?"

Snow decided to make peace with Lisa so they could continue their journey and not be stuck at the constant conflict between them. She really wished Lyte had listened to her and not strayed from the path she had pointed for him. Maybe all these would not have happened then and things would go smoothly as planned.

Lisa looked at Snow as she considered the rationality of agreeing to Snow's terms. She looked to Lyte in hopes he would side with her, but she was met with a Lyte who looked like he aged from the stress from worrying about the two ladies. His mentally exhausted and pleading look moved her and she finally gave in and agreed with Snow.

"Ok, Snow. But know that I'm only doing this for Lyte. If it wasn't for him, I would never ever for a split second in my short enough life trust in a reapress's words,"

"I am absolutely fine with that. Let us start with introduction then. We both have yet to be acquainted to each other. Why not you start, Lisa? "

"Of course I will start. Ladies first after all, not reapress first. Anyway, as you know, my name is Lisa. I am an 18 years old female witch and I lived alone until Lyte came along and saved me from the ogre who had been terrorising me. Lyte invited me to follow him on his journey after she rescued me so now I'm here. Now your turn,"

As she finished her sentence, Lyte who was standing at the side stirred and wanted to say something. Lisa noticed and immediately gave him a look that said she would cut his tongue off if he was to say a word. In Lyte's mind, he could hear Snow said to him telepathically : It is okay, Lyte. I know she is hiding the fact she had a sister and the fact that she was the one who persisted to join you but I will let it slide this time. He decided to shut his mouth and let the two settle the issue on their own.

"I see. Okay, my turn. My name is Snow. I am a 20 years old part time reapress. I met Lyte in the Dead F-"

"Yeah, yeah. I know. Lyte already told me. You met him sleeping at night in the Dead Forest and invited him to your mansion to provide him with shelter and being kind to him and stuff. Moving on,"

"Well then, I guess there is nothing else. Pleased to meet you Lisa. Now Lyte, where to?"

This statement shocked a Lyte who had begun to tune out the noises around him in hopes that the problem would be over soon. He was imagining a world where Snow and Lisa got along and were not at each others throats all the time. Lyte's behaviour was like what a little kid would do when his or her parents were yelling at each other. Lyte had trained himself so well to imagine a better world for himself that at times, he could not differentiate imagination and reality. That was why he was so confused about the current situation.

"What? What happened? Did you just call my name, Snow?"

"Indeed I did. Were you daydreaming just now? Must be a nice dream since you were so dazed,"

"Yeah, sorry about that,"

"It is alright. Considering the situation, I would have done the same too. Anyway, can you tell us the destination of our journey?"

"Oh, we are heading to the Smiley Mansion located in the Forsaken Land, where the cursed Wind Goddess Statue is hidden according to many rumours,"

"Rumours? Then are you sure that it really is there?" Lisa piped up, wanting to be part of the conversation.

"I'm pretty sure it is, since there's so many mages that said so. It must be, right?" Lyte looked between the two ladies, feeling unsure himself now that Lisa said it out.

"It is there," Snow stated bluntly.

"How do you know?!"

Both Lyte and Lisa exclaimed at the same time. Snow's confidence and matter of factly tone while saying that had caused their current question to fade away, but more new questions started to emerge. Lisa was certain she was bluffing to look impressive and decided to challenge the reapress, again.

"How are you so certain?" Lisa asked while she looked at Snow cautiously yet again.

"Because as a reapress, I have travelled almost everywhere. When I go near the mansion located in the Forsaken Land, I had always sensed something that did not belong. The smell of fresh air could be detected emitting from the mansion itself. I have never given much thought about it but I had a feeling in my guts that something was wrong. Something there that did not belong,"

"So? That doesn't prove shit,"

"It actually does. If you are not dumb which I hope you are not, sylphs are the only source of fresh air. However, no sylph could exist in the Forsaken Land. That is why there were never any breeze in that place, making the ground as hot as coal that just got extracted from inside a burning furnace,"

"And?"

"And I have come to know from the sylphs that the cursed Wind Goddess Statue that was stolen from them was the only magical item that could emit fresh air aside from sylphs themselves. So I have concluded that the statue might be there,"

"So you are unsure, just like Lyte,"

"I am more sure than Lyte. I am not a hundred percent sure since I did not see the statue there with my own two eyes, but through gathered information and some rational considerations, I have concluded that there is a high chance that the statue will be hidden there. Which I must add is quite a safe place to hide a stolen relic since few creatures could walk the soil there and those creatures who are capable are evil ones that would not give a damn about the sylphs. And since sylphs cannot go near there at all, they could not get their stuff back. It is the perfect crime if I do say so,"

"Very suspicious, Miss Snow. It seemed that you know a lot about the plotting and planning for the stolen cursed Wind Goddess Statue,"

"What are you implying, Lisa?"

"I'm just saying, maybe, just maybe, you are somehow involved in the theft,"

Oh dear. Lyte thought in his head. The whole quarrel between Snow and Lisa was about to start again as he felt the tension reforming between them. He needed to calm them down before someone gets hurt, either emotionally or physically he did not know but he did not want to take the risk of finding out.