Peri was grinning from ear to ear as she sat with her mother under the bright, golden sun, her mama's gentle hands weaving through her hair.
These past few days had been so blissful that the long, lonely nights she once endured without her mama felt like they were slowly fading away, as though they belonged to someone else.
Samaran City, too, was changing. The air no longer carried the same heaviness. Families who had left were starting to return after hearing the good news, and those who had stayed never stopped thanking the Goddess and the Queen for such a miracle. Word had spread far and wide—the curse that had haunted Samaran City was finally gone.
Her mama always reminded her that it would take time before people truly came back to the city, but Peri's heart was hopeful. She believed things would return to normal much sooner than her mama expected.
