"What?" Kamila was flabbergasted.
"The mana crystal is small but powerful and I bought the silver ingot at market price. The healing only took me some mana, so dinner will suffice." Lith explained.
"It's too little money! I can't accept that." She said.
"Sorry, miss. Healers make their own fares." Vastor and Quylla nodded at those words.
"Besides, you should worry more about Zinya's accommodation. Your apartment is good for two people but cramped for three. Also, we're both often away for work and your sister needs guidance." Lith said.
Kamila bit her lower lip in stress. Zinya could indeed move into her home, but there was only one bedroom, so either she had to take a break from their relationship or they would be forced to go to a hotel every time.
Changing the apartment wasn't possible. With a debt on her shoulders, Kamila couldn't afford a new one with just her savings. The one she lived in was provided by the army for a reduced fee, but they wouldn't help her pay for a bigger house since she was officially single and without any family member.
To make matters worse, Belius was a horrible city for someone as inexperienced as Zinya was. Public transportation required to be able to read, there was almost no green area, and people were paranoid of newcomers.
To not leave Zinya alone all day, Kamila would need to hire a caregiver to keep her company and teach her everything she might need.
"Don't worry, Kami. You've already done too much. I can't let you give up on your life for my sake. I'm still Fallmug's wife, I have a home and duties to attend to. Maybe now that I'm not blind anymore, he might change his ways.
"He hasn't always been a bad man." Zinya's smile trembled just as her whole body did. Despite all of her efforts, she was terrified at the idea of seeing her husband or even hearing his voice again.
"No way! It's too dangerous." Kamila, Lith, and Vastor said at once.
"Lady Sarta, according to my experience, things can only get worse now that you aren't helpless anymore." Vastor said. "On top of that, in your condition, a single blow to the head could ruin everything we did today. Your body needs time to heal and adapt."
"I have an idea." Lith said. "Zinya could stay in Lutia with my parents until the end of my leave. They have plenty of free space and could use a hand with the kids. I can Warp you there whenever you want and when I have to go back to work, she can move into your apartment."
Kamila couldn't decide what to do. Lutia was much better than Belius for her sister's recovery, but she felt like she was once again relying too much on Lith.
"Zinya has only experienced an abusive relationship. Maybe seeing how the marriage of my parents and sister work could help her to make up her mind about the divorce." Lith whispered in her ear.
"Lutia it's a perfect solution." She sighed. Her pride was a bit wounded, but Zinya's well-being came first.
***
Fallmug had just recently started to walk again after being unconscious for several days. Lith had been true to his word. Ever since Fallmug had woken up, Lith would kidnap him, blind him, and beat the crap out of him until his body collapsed.
Fallmug Sarta had been living in terror the whole time. There was no place he could hide where the demon wouldn't be able to find him. He used the unexpected respite Zinya's intervention had given him to run to the authorities and expose the evil mage.
The desk clerk of the Mage Association, listened to all he had to say, before dismissing everything for the ramblings of a madman.
"I'm sorry, sir Sarta, but your story is really hard to believe. If you did make an enemy of the strongest young mage of the Kingdom, how can you possibly be still alive? Also, you failed to mention why he would have a beef with you."
Even the clerk of a medium sized city like Xylita was sick and tired of all the lunatics blaming Ranger Verhen for everything. Pregnant girls claimed he was the father and demanded compensation, nutjobs said to have been cursed by him or that he had taken credit for their achievements, like restoring Kaduria.
Fallmug realized to be in a pinch. He had been so anxious to get rid of his torturer to forget about making up a believable lie. He thought far and wide how to explain why someone like Lith was tormenting him, but unless Fallmug confessed the abuse on his wife, his story wouldn't make any sense.
Yet if he did, Lith would become the last of his problems. Despite his constant pain and suffering, Fallmug was still a respectable man with consistent income. If the truth about his home were to be exposed, he would go to jail, and Zinya would be entitled to everything just by asking for a divorce.
"He is after my wife!" His words made the clerk chuckle.
"Sorry, sir. I don't mean to disrespect you, but if I ask your wife, will she confirm your story?"
"Of course not! She's on his side."
"Enough wasting my time!" The clerk had run out of patience.
"If your wife wanted to be with him, she would just ask for a divorce. A Great Mage has plenty of money, she wouldn't need anything from you. What proof do you have of your claims?"
Fallmug was taken aback. Now he understood what Lith meant when he said that he would turn Fallmug into his wife. He was now alone and with no one who could help him. There was no witness of the aggressions nor proof of his injuries aside from his words.
Just like his wife until a few days ago, he was trapped in an inescapable cage.
"None? Well, then I hope you'll forgive me if I don't believe a word coming from a man accused by three Healers of repeatedly beating his wife." As the clerk was filing Fallmug's statement for the record, his name had triggered a flag.
"Not to mention that according to the army records, at the time of the alleged assaults, Ranger Verhen was still at his home. I don't know what your problem is, sir, but maybe a night in jail will help you clear your mind."
"What about Verhen?" Fallmug asked while the guards dragged him towards the dungeon.
"None of your business. In your place, I'd worry more about being charged with slander of a state mage and wasting the Association time, because those are two crimes I can testify about."
***
Lith's parents knew all about Zinya's situation, so they were glad to offer their help. In their eyes, she was the embodiment of what could have happened to Tista if Lith had never been born.
Zinya fell in love with Lutia, with the Trawn woods, and with the closest thing to a real family she had ever had. Learning how to read, write, and count together with Leria and Aran was embarrassing, but after a while she stopped worrying about it.
Elina also taught her how to cook and sew, so that once she moved back with Kamila, she could at least help her managing her home. The days passed, and soon Lith's leave was about to end.
