The toad woman gulps when she sees the change in Ai. The boy looked like an ordinary human who has turned into something more and different. His eyes gleam red and bright as the whites of his eyes turn moss green. His wavy spring green hair, a few shades lighter than Cina's hair, grows to his shoulder's length.
Brown and dry cork grow on his pale skin, reaching his jawline. He lowers his head, eyeing the toad woman whilst he clutches Misaki closer to him.
"As if we are afraid of you!" The toad woman huffs at him. She turns to the crowd. "If anyone can get that cub back, I will let him choose any item from my shop."
"This woman is keen on dying," Ai whispers to Misaki who is smiling at him. Based on his knowledge about humans, an infant shouldn't be able to smile. But Misaki is a demi-god. "My sister wants to see me fighting?"
Misaki lets out a laugh.
He takes it as a 'yes'. A pair of roots sprout from his back and wrap themselves around Misaki, sticking her safely to his chest. Molten flames rise from the fissures of his arms. Being a child of a Starfire, he's born with an affinity of star fire just like his brother and mother.
After absorbing the essence of Belan Spirit, he has evolved into a demi-spirit. Between him and Misaki, there's not much difference. One carries a part of the spirit in him and the other one is born with a part of god.
Ai's red eyes sweep over the creatures around him. The visitors in the toad valley are watching him in anticipation. The toads are moving closer to him. Sound of their breathing is clear to his ears. He closes his eyes, spreading his arms wide. Thorny branches shoot out of his arm as he spins around. Misaki's laughter resonates with the sound of toads' screams.
The ground is covered with wounded toad-men, burned at several places. Stray arms and legs are lying around them. A few toad-men take their last breath. Seeing that, the toad-woman grabs whatever she could grab in that moment and darts away.
"Haha!" Ai guffaws as his right arm extends further. His claw curls around the toad woman's waist. Heat seeps into her flesh and her pitiful screams pierce the surrounding. His fingers dig into her like a blade, breaking her torso away from her hips.
The onlookers gasp, scream, and whispers among themselves. Some of them leave in a hurry. Ai doesn't chase them. He looks down at Misaki's face. She's watching him with dark eyes.
He exhales, "Mother would be angry if she finds out that I let you see that."
Misaki gives him a toothless grin. Ai turns back to his 'human' self. His red eyes turn brown and his green hair becomes black. He picks up a piece of cloth from the toad woman's shop and cleans his hands. "Let's keep this a secret between us, Misa."
His sister lets out a cheery squeal.
"Need to look for our Mother." Ai places his hand on her head and runs his fingers through her soft black hair. His fingers brush against two small horns hidden under the black mass of her hair. "What's this?"
He parts her hair and sees the pointy black horns. Ai releases his breath. Halflings are often born with inhuman traits. Misumi looks completely human but Misaki is a little different.
And he wasn't born as a demi-spirit. He was a human once, turning into something else when Belan sent his essence to his body.
"Mother will be surprised." Ai gives her a smile. "But they are cute."
The child blinks her eyes happily.
"You are smart, aren't you?" He gives a peck on her forehead. "And mischievous. I remember now. You were the one who wanted to make Cina your pet."
Misaki responds with a peal of light laughter. At the moment, Ai can't understand her.
"Let's look for our Mother." Ai wraps his arms around her, retracting the roots back to his body. He looks around, wondering about their mother's whereabouts.
"Where could she be?"
****
Her flesh has eaten away. Bones are slowly corroding at the bottom of the river. Her soul is clinging to her skeleton as the forsaken creatures chew her soul and bones.
Takayama Ari stares at the faint light gleaming in the dark water. It's too far. No matter what she does, she can't rise and grab that light.
Her life flickers in her mind: being born in her family; her loving mother and father; their separation; her grandparents; learning how to cut hair; her pet cat Kyo who died in an accident; the people she started to distrust after her parents' divorce and innocence that she didn't believe in anymore; pushing people away and turning into a socially inadequate woman, and dying for her laptop; her transmigration; meeting so many people; meeting her Adira who taught her how to love selflessly; Deia who became a close friend; dying without any regrets and being reborn again in a loving family who gave her the love that she didn't receive in her first life; meeting Adira again and falling for him again; having a boy who called her Mother with such a bright smile and daughters whom she couldn't hold to her heart content.
Life seems to be lost in the light that is shining on the surface and death has abandoned her long ago.
Why is she feeling regrets? She has always done her best.
"Adira." She whispers, "Will you…"
Her voice fades in the gurgling sounds of the forsaken ones. Ari loses the last of her will.
A tornado rises in the water. A bright violet light glimmers in the midst. The last of her flesh, bones, and her soul are gone. The forsaken ones scream as they begin to twist together in the tornado, dissipating away as another creature seems to be precipitated in the centre, taking a human form slowly.