Mai hurried over to help Long up, as if she could easily lift a boy bigger than herself. But Long just smiled, brushed Mai's hand away, dusted off his knees, and stood up straight, his smile as bright as if he had never fallen. Indeed, these injuries were nothing compared to the years of playing with his friends and training with Mrs. Huong in Hope village.
Kiet suddenly ran over and hugged Long's leg, burying his face in his knee and then looking up, a big grin on his face, his eyes sparkling as he looked at Long as if he were a superhero who had just saved the world - his attitude was completely different from yesterday.
"Are you okay? Do you need me to take you to the hospital?" Mai asked.
Long shook his head, his eyes fixed on Dreamy and the white AI Witch cat:
"I'm fine. I was on my way to meet Kiet at the address you gave me and saw it being captured, so I stepped in to help... I'm just worried about the cat and Dreamy... I don't know if they're hurt."
Just then, Mimi let out a long "Meooo" cry. Her blue eyes flashed with an odd pink glow. A gentle light spread out, and the pain in Long's body vanished as if it had never existed.
Long was surprised: "What is this…"
Mai nodded, her voice calm yet warning Long: "Mimi is an AI Witch with the ability to control neural sensations. You've only had your pain reduced, but the wound still needs care."
Indeed, the wound on Long's leg was still bleeding, but he no longer felt any pain.
Kiet gave a subtle gesture with his small hands. Mai understood immediately, smiled, and said:
"Kiet really likes you. He wants to invite you and Mimi to his place. It's safer there… Witchiecoop rarely comes around."
Before Long could respond, Mai turned to Ms. Phan:
"Ma'am, I'd like to ask you and Noddy for help. We'll go to the Manualee area, where Kiet lives."
Ms. Phan nodded. Noddy – the AI Witch owl – shuddered, his eyes flashing. Immediately, the space around them seemed to warp, as if viewed through a thick layer of water. Houses and streets flashed in and out of view, rushing by in a stream of light. The group stood still in the spatial bubble, letting the world pass them by.
Just a few seconds later, they came to a stop.
Long's eyes widened, his heart pounding in surprise. Before him was not a normal neighborhood, but a wasteland. There were no proper houses, only ruins and makeshift huts. In the distance, columns of smoke rose – it was unclear whether they were from fires or explosions.
He shuddered. The eyes of the people around them turned toward them. The cold, hostile stares made Long swallow hard. No one here seemed friendly.
A harsh voice rang out from the crowd:
"The nobles… and they're even with the AI Witch!"
The atmosphere immediately grew heavy. Hatred spread like an invisible smoke, enveloping the entire group. They were all confused when suddenly someone in the crowd spoke up:
"Kiet, Mai,…and Ms. Phan too, what are you all doing here?"
Mai breathed a sigh of relief. It was Uncle Lam – Kiet's foster father. His appearance was like a breeze that dispelled some of the tension. Mai and Ms. Phan hurriedly explained, asking Uncle Lam to help calm and disperse the crowd that was looking at them with suspicious eyes.
Uncle Lam turned to Long—the boy who was still dazed, not fully understanding what was happening. He asked gently, his voice deep but not harsh:
"Who are you…?"
Long took a deep breath, then answered decisively and loudly, as if he were explaining the situation to the head of his fishing village:
"I'm Long, from Hope fishing village. I came to the city to meet AI King Witch. When I saw Mimi in trouble, I stepped in to help. I just met everyone... And this is Dreamy – the AI Witch who travels with me."
The entire Manualee area fell silent. When Long mentioned the AI King Witch, everyone was surprised. It was a legend, something that seemed impossible. Ms. Phan smiled gently, her kind eyes seeming to give him strength:
"It's a very difficult journey… but keep going, kid"
"Thank you." Long bowed his head, his voice sincere.
But then he couldn't help himself and turned to ask Uncle Lam:
"Uncle… why do people here have such strange attitudes?"
Uncle Lam sighed, his eyes reflecting sadness:
"This is Manualee area. The people here used to be laborers, living and working alongside AI. But when the AI Witch appeared, all their jobs were replaced by magic. They lost their jobs, lost all hope. Now they only do menial tasks to earn a little EN to survive each day… So they're resentful toward the nobility and our AI Witch…"
He paused for a moment, then spoke in a solemn tone:
"I was the same. I used to operate AI flying bats to transport goods. But then the AI Witch could use spatial magic to teleport objects. Ordinary people like me had no work left, and so I became a Manualee, living in this place."
As he spoke, Uncle Lam led the group to his makeshift home. His voice grew solemn, but his eyes brightened as he looked at Kiet:
"In my desperation, I once considered doing something foolish... but I found Kiet among the ruins near the Witchiecoop company. At that time, the child was born deaf."
He gently bent down, his affectionate gaze fixed on Kiet, who was sleeping peacefully on his shoulder.
As soon as everyone arrived, Uncle Lam hurriedly laid Kiet down on the old straw mat. The boy lay there, his mouth moving as he slept soundly, his face smudged with dirt. Ms. Phan stepped closer, her eyes flickering with a hint of thoughtfulness. Her gentle hands wiped away the dirt on Kiet's cheek, as if wanting to erase all the hardships the child had endured. Ms. Phan was full of kindness and also full of contemplation.
Long stood silently, suddenly seeing the image of Mrs. Huong in Ms. Phan's appearance. In the old days, he often acted spoiled so that she would hold him in her arms. Once, when teased by his friends for being an orphan, Long shouted that Mrs. Huong was his real mother, just to hide his pain. Then, when he got home, he hugged her and cried for hours.
Now, looking at Kiet, Long felt a strange sense of kinship. Both of them carried within themselves empty spaces, wounds that no one else could see. Perhaps that was what had connected them from the moment they first met.
Long quietly stepped outside. The sky over Manualee was darkening. Without modern electric lights, the stars were unusually clear.
He and Dreamy approached Mai. She sat there with Miki and Mimi, her golden curls flowing in the wind, her gaze distant. In that moment, Long saw the city of Puresight far away, leaving only them and the endless starry sky.