In her eyes, the subcaptain was her perfect ideal, as the girl wanted to become a bounty hunter through her own merit and effort, to one day become a knight of the faction within the division that protects people.
Then, the subcaptain began to inspect the boxes. One of the other guards, following protocol, wanted to start searching what Miriel and Don had in their bags, but she told them it was not necessary. It seems she did not distrust Don, but she did distrust the old man. When she narrowed her eyes, she immediately gave a single order upon detecting an illegal component inside the old man's bags, in addition to him carrying herbs.
"Subcaptain Veyra, we found tattoos that confirm this vegetation user is part of the Imitators of the Crying Snakes gang," said one of the guards.
"Yes, I know. I found jars of blue tears hidden here. Take him to the headquarters and interrogate him, but try not to kill him," she responded firmly.
"As you command, subcaptain," they replied in unison.
"But that can't be… This man accompanied us throughout the entire journey, we were even attacked by thieves…" protested the young Don, incredulous.
"Miriel, where did you find this kid this time? You never travel with decent people," asked the subcaptain, directing a critical look at Miriel.
"What can I say? It seems I'm cursed," replied Miriel with a resigned tone.
"Look, kid, whether you believe it or not, it's highly likely that the old man you're defending set up his own robbery. I hear the same story every time I'm sent to this island," explained the subcaptain to Don.
"And what did you find?" he asked, curious.
"He was carrying an illegal product that many criminals deal in, a product derived from a trafficking network of hydroïds, specifically mermaids," she clarified.
"I've never seen one. Mermaids? Why do they do this?" insisted Don, surprised.
"The question is: where did you find this boy?" said the subcaptain, looking at Miriel confused. Then she turned, sensing something strange coming from Don. "Hey, I can't sense any ether from you at all. How do you hide your true power so effectively? You must be very strong…"
"Because he has none," interrupted Miriel.
"What doesn't he have?" asked Veyra, frowning.
Don remained silent.
"He doesn't have an ether point?" she asked, surprised upon realizing from the silence.
"Miriel, that's none of your business," said Don angrily.
Without hesitation, the subcaptain, who no longer wanted to waste time, bid farewell to Miriel and continued her patrol through the city. As she walked away, disgusted, she muttered, "What a disgrace. Such a useless fellow," and ordered that everything be confiscated except the travelers.
"Hey, he took my money!" shouted Don after the impostor old man, to no avail.
Just then, Miriel looked at the girl with the same regretful look that had been haunting her for hours, even when she got off the cart. But the girl admired the subcaptain. Miriel, with her sharp gaze as always, noticed how the girl's eyes lit up when she saw Veyra patrolling.
Then, she stood in front of Don and told him to come closer to hide her hands. She said, "Paper," and a clean, creamy-colored paper formed from the small sparks that illuminated the center of her hand until she had a complete sheet.
Then, she positioned herself behind Don, using his back as a makeshift desk, and wrote a message for Veyra on it. She folded it, licked the edge to seal it. She took the girl's hand and placed the envelope in it, saying, "Hold it tightly to your chest. This is your only ticket out, little girl, if you want to do things right again. But if your true desire is to be killed or to bear a child at 15 or end up sold in the slums before you turn 17, go back to those rats. I don't care in the least about your presence or your future. But if you want to reach Seraphina—" pointing with her finger at Veyra, who was now dozens of meters away—"give her this letter and do me the favor of not making me regret this. Understood?"
Although none of them were aware of it, for the first time, the girl smiled with excitement, with happiness. And in a selfish way, without thinking much, without saying thank you, she just ran off at full speed without looking back even for a second until she caught up with the subcaptain. She handed her the letter, and although Veyra was annoyed that a brat was insisting on giving her the letter, out of curiosity, she agreed to read it. When she finished, even though the letter was not signed, she immediately recognized the handwriting and turned her head to look at Miriel. Veyra simply took the girl's hand and continued walking with her.
Then, and only then, the girl, hundreds of meters away, already mentally preparing for a new life, looked back. Her lips murmured a "Thank you" along with a grateful smile that radically changed her downtrodden attitude, which she had carried all her life, submissive to everyone mistreating her, wanting to be part of something or a family that would welcome her with open arms and without conditions.
And Don asked curiously, "Why did you let her go?"
"I gave her a chance I never had," Miriel expressed distantly, reducing the past into seven fragments that serve as words.
"And what was in that letter?"
"Let's go, alright? Night is already falling," she replied, cutting him off.