Chapter 65; Mayel

The village was called Mayel.

It was a remote village with not more than two thousand inhabitants; according to the signboard on the outpost, 2 miles from the village gate.

It was said that a long time ago, this village used to be the homestead of the Viedanise.

Who were the viedanise?

The Viedanise was a family of powerful witches and wizards and the most prominent and powerful of the five origin magic families that vanished without a trace.

Because the Viedanise were farmers, the Mayel of that time was big farmland that catered to the needs of government officials and every prominent family in the capital.

Back then, there were neither vampires nor werewolves and humans. There were just Turakies with magic and Turakies with no magic.

In those days, the Turakies with magic were the elites and the five families with the most powerful witches and wizards were the elites of the elites.

When the Viedanise were still alive and flourishing, it was said that they would come to Mayel to holiday or relax. Their sons and daughters would randomly organize parties and orgies on the farm and there were also a lot of sacrifices and blood baths.

When the five families vanished, their servants from back then stayed to manage the farm. But soon, after others discovered that the bastards of the Viedanise family were among the sons and daughters of the servants, they started attacking them to capture those innocent children, born out of wedlock for their bloodline.

Because it was believed that they did evil and were the sinners of Eplica, the authorities looked the other way as their bastards were turned into slaves and bloodline cultivation resources.

The ones that were captured would be drained of their heart blood and their heart blood would be refined and devoured by their captors.

It was even said that the bastards of the Viedanise were like bargaining chips at underground auctions where they were either sold for money or used as a means of exchange.

Even though slavery was never a thing among the Turakies until the fall of the Viedanise. By the time they were completely wiped out, it had found a stronghold among mercenaries and didn't stop.

It was never legal but nobody was doing anything to stop it.

This was what eventually led to the destruction and abandonment of Mayel.

Gradually, as the years passed and the Turakies lost their identity and powers, Eplica got slashed up and Mayel fell into the hands of humans.

Even then, only the fearless could stay in Mayel for it was said that due to the massive killings that happened during the time of the Viedanise and the one that happened when their bastards were targeted, Mayel had become a ghost town and every house in it was haunted.

Yet, it has a population of 2000.

This town was the birthplace of Kulan and the place where she grew up. It was where Ellicott ran to when he was being chased by Lord Cendric's mercenaries.

Most importantly, it was where Kurt and Kulan met. One can say that every important event in KuLaa's life happened in Mayel.

For KuLaa, Mayel was a special place. Therefore, it was her main base in the human realm until Kurt betrayed her.

Coincidentally, it was also the place where a young but powerful witch called Fie was discovered and captured a couple of months ago.

To be able to follow her trail, the moment Kulan arrived in the human realm, she traveled down to Mayel with her crew to investigate what led to the girl's capture.

From the nearest human settlement to Mayel would take a normal car or bus at least four days of constant travel while for a supernatural being and a witch with good movement spells, it would take less than half a day. That was how far out it was.

The condition of the road to Mayel spoke of the good taste of the long-forgotten Viedanise. The tar was intact and from the last town to the village entrance, there was no sign of damage to the smooth, black tar that glitters on sunny days.

The road started out on a straight line that disappeared into the horizon, but soon turned to a curve here and a bend there.

Then there was the endless swirl around several mountains before it turned to a sharp descent that led straight into a dark and thick jungle that never failed to give people an ominous feeling.

For humans who dared to come this far, the jungle was where most of them managed to get to before deciding that their lives were worth more than their curiosity…

Before Kulan left Mayel with Kurt years ago, on that life-changing journey to the werewolf realm, she had enchanted the walls surrounding the homestead so that it would always look good and sturdy.

After so many years, the spell had worn off and the walls had seen decay. It was broken in places and it was clear that nobody cared for the place.

After coming out of the jungle this was what Kulan saw.

As they approached the rusty gate, Kurt held KuLaa's hand and said to Ryan, "This is where I met your mother."

"What? You have been here before?"

Ryan asked in surprise.

Everyone with them on this mission was also surprised. Kulan had never made mention of knowing this place in all the several meetings they held while planning this journey.

"This was where my father ran to when he was being pursued by mercenaries. This was where I was born." Kulan casually confirmed Kurt's words.

The tension between Ryan and Kulan was still there and they hardly spoke to each other unless it was absolutely necessary. Therefore, Kurt was a little surprised when he heard KuLaa's words. A smile broke out on his face and he gently squeezed her hand in appreciation.

Kulan rolled her eyes and transmitted to him, "That's all I am saying, Mr. Historian."

"What were you doing here, Kurt?" Ryan asked his father while ignoring his mother's words.

At that question, Kurt gave the gate a faraway look. He felt nostalgic.

"Back then," he began. "I had just turned 18 and was chosen as one of the princes of Silver Crest.

As part of my training, I was assigned a wizard who took me around the world, showing me things and teaching me about everything.

When we got to the human realm, we heard of this place and insisted on coming to see it.

Adolph had been here before and he insisted that there was nothing here but decay and rot. But I still insisted.

When we arrived, the first person we saw was KuLaa. She was seated in a lotus style, meditating by the gate."

That day, the moment Kulan saw Kurt and Adolph she had walked up to them and said "You are here. What took you so long?"

Kurt and Adolph were surprised and suspicious.

"You know us? You know we were coming?" Kurt asked with excitement.

"Yes. I have been waiting for you for four days."

Adolph gasped and gave her a deep look. "Are you a witch?"

"Yes. I am a witch and I know you are a wizard." She confidently replied to him.

"But how did you know we were coming?" Kurt asked.

"Madam Su told me. She is a ghost witch."

"Ghosts, are there really ghosts here?" Kurt had exclaimed in excitement.

The reason he wanted to come was because they said Mayel was a ghost town and only those who felt no fear could survive there.

Kurt's smile became bigger as he recalled the sight of a fair, young, and pretty girl in white and the curiosity in her eyes. No wolf ever dared to check him out so blatantly or look him straight in the eye.

Yet when she circled him as if he was some item on display, all Kurt could do was smile.

"Do you like what you see?" He had asked. And in response, she shrugged and said, "Not that I have a choice. You will just have to do."

"Why did Madam Su ask you to wait for us?" Adolph interrupted them.

He was suspicious and wary of KuLaa. She claimed to be a human witch but for some reason, he didn't feel like she was really a human and when he secretly tried to find out, his spell was ineffective.

Also, the ghosts of Mayel were known to be very hostile to other supernatural beings, Including witches and wizards.

That was the reason he didn't want to come in the first place. The last time he came here, he nearly lost his small life.

The ghost of Mayel does not tolerate any supernatural being be it witches, vampires, or werewolves. The only people who can survive in Mayel are humans and they must be humans who do not feel fear.

It was a high condition to demand from these fragile creatures and that was why Mayel remained almost empty despite its abundant resources and natural beauty.

That day, Kulan didn't provide an answer to Adolph's question.

Rather, she grabbed Kurt's hand and dragged him into the dead town.

For the next three days, she would take them around the town, showing them places and telling them things she was not supposed to even know.

She cast a spell on Kurt that made him see Madam Su, an elegant, tall, and slim woman with an aristocratic flare, who was always dressed in a full-flowing ball gown with golden and purple trimmings. It was the clothes she died in.

Because Madam Su refused to let Adolph see her, he was always left out of their conversations and he soon stopped following them about.

Kurt fell in love with Kulan and what started out as a simple visit lasted for two years.

In those two years, whatever Madam Su taught KuLaa, she would teach them to Adolph. And when it was time for Kurt to go back home, He insisted on taking Kulan with him.

Kulan followed him because Madam Su said it was the right thing to do.

When they got separated, Kulan came back alone but the town rejected her. Madam Su met her at the gate and said unless she was with Kurt, she would not regain entry. Kulan was devastated but had no choice but to return to the werewolf realm as instructed by Madam Su...

Just as Kurt was telling their son the story, Madam Su slowly and gracefully appeared beside the gate of Mayel. Only Kulan could see her.

"Madam Su! " She cried out like an excited child and ran over to the gate.

"Child! It took you long enough." Madam Su opened her arms and allowed Kulan to hug her.

Madam Su broke the hug and gave Kulan a curious look. "I smell Adolph on you."

"Yes, I devour him." Kulan had no remorse at all.

"Good." Madam Su nodded.

In the past, she had warned Kulan not to trust Adolph because she could smell evil on him. What Madam Su actually smelled was the bloodline of her family's enemies but it was not yet the right time to tell Kulan about it. Now that Kulan had taken care of that danger, it was all for the best.

The crew stopped and watched from a distance as Kulan appeared to be hugging empty air. It was a strange sight. But then magicians have always been strange people.

"Let's hurry." Kurt tried to run after KuLaa. He was eager to meet Madam Su for the first time in such a long while.

But all of a sudden, he felt his body become heavy. Even though he could move, it was at a very slow pace. Kurt scoffed in self-deprecation.

After so many years, nothing has changed. For Madam Su, Kulan comes first and their time together was always exclusive.