"𝐌𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐦," softly uttered the doctor.
The diagnosis is clear; Alessia had lost the ability to utter a single word for nearly a month. Her parents, initially unconcerned, grew tense upon hearing the news, overcome by a blend of emotions that the...
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•━━ ❦ ━━☠━━ ❦ ━━•
"We're getting closer, kid."
Alessia furrowed her brows as she spotted the mouth of Reverse Mountain.
Well... if one could consider a mountain range split into two slopes, swallowing saltwater and rising to a peak, only to cascade down on the other side of the world as a mouth.
In the distance, a ship sailed ahead, and the child noticed a black flag with a Jolly Roger flying atop its mast. It was a garnet wooden vessel with two sails, displaying a simple Jolly Roger surrounded by two colorful revolvers.
"Stop," Faidan said.
Without any objection, Alessia put down her oar inside their boat, gently massaging her arms. She had barely helped her uncle steer the boat, yet her muscles were already sore.
Afterward, the little girl turned to him.
He wore a stern expression and never took his eyes off the pirate ship, as if waiting to see what would happen or rather, as if he already knew but wanted to witness the event unfold before his eyes.
Alessia followed his gaze to the horizon.
Their boat seemed sturdy, but that was before the ocean currents jostled the hull. The rapids engulfed the vessel, hurtling it toward the rocks at an astonishing speed. Alessia could already imagine the bow thrashing about as the crew struggled to correct their course, aiming for the first torii.
The men's cries echoed against the cliffs, reaching the top and reaching Alessia's ears out at sea.
Then, their sails folded, and inexplicably, the boat managed to pass through, even though the girl could hear the side of the ship scraping against the rock during the rising.
They won't make it, she thought.
Faidan squinted as the boat disappeared between the two sides of Red Line before grumbling discontentedly, observing the way it had entered.
