Sioux, Illy, and Plum departed Lindworm without incident.
The entire town came out to see them off. When Tisalia said goodbye to Illy, there were tears in her eyes, as if her own child were leaving. The two of them had been through a lot, but Glenn knew that they both would be all right.
“Phew…”
That day, the sun was as hot as midsummer again. Spring was almost over, the heat was as unbearable as ever.
Sapphee was running all over the place to prepare for the wedding. She knew exactly what she wanted for their special day, and Glenn figured he’d leave the planning to her. His only regret was that it looked more and more likely they’d be married while Sioux was away.
“Marriage.”
It didn’t feel real. But thinking about spending the rest of his life with the woman he’d always admired put Glenn in high spirits. He only hoped he could make her half as happy as she made him.
He and Sapphee had overcome so many difficulties together. Now they would face the future as husband and wife.
I’m sure it will be fine.
Glenn truly believed that.
Even so…
“There aren’t many people here today.”
The normally full clinic was all but empty. It was strange. Glenn tried to remember if there was a specific moment when it had slowed. In the morning? The afternoon?
“Wait…”
What time was it right now?
It hurt his head to think about it. What had he just been doing? He’d thought he was working, but he couldn’t remember. He felt dazed, as if there was a fog closing in on him from all directions.
What was happening?
When he came to, the fairies were gone. He couldn’t hear any noise from the busy road. An unsettling silence surrounded him, accompanied by suffocating heat, which seemed to cloud his thinking even more.
“Er…”
As he tried to collect his wits, the clinic bell rang.
“Yes!” Glenn answered, feeling relieved that a patient had arrived, as if things were normal.
But when he got to the waiting room, a woman in a nun outfit was standing there. He only knew one person who dressed like that.
“Miss…Molly?”
She looked a lot like Molly Vanitas, manager of the graveyard district, but her appearance was different. Her upper body was clad in what looked like armor, and there was a deep slit in her skirt. Her shoes boasted sparkling wings. Glenn had never seen Molly wear clothes like these.
Most striking of all, this person’s head wasn’t connected to her body. It was tucked under her arm.
“Er!”
The eyes of the head were closed. Glenn couldn’t tell if she was alive or dead…or even what this being was.
Headless… Could she be a dullahan?!
He recalled an extremely rare species from the far west. They were thought to be related to fairies, but there was very little documented about them. Glenn had never come across one, so he couldn’t even be sure this was a dullahan.
A fluorescent flame flickered above her neck where the head should have been. Upon closer inspection, the flame formed butterfly shapes that flew off as soon as they were far enough from her body. In the east, butterflies were said to be spirits of the dead.
And according to legend, the dullahan appeared in front of people who were about to die.
“Err…”
Glenn couldn’t move. He felt like he was chained in place.
She took a step forward.
“Uh?!”
Goosebumps prickled Glenn’s entire body. He couldn’t flee, and his brain was still hazy from the heat. He knew he should do something, but there was nothing he could do except watch as this creature moved closer to him.
The headless nun stabbed Glenn in the chest with a shovel-shaped spear she held in her hand.
“Umph!”
Ahh! I’m going to die!
With this final thought, Glenn plunged into darkness. The creature in front of him—the headless woman who looked like Molly—betrayed no emotion as she looked down on Glenn.
“Ah!”
He tried to call Sapphee’s name one last time, but only a gasp came out.
Sapphee would return to the clinic soon to find Glenn without a heartbeat. And it would be less than a day before the news that Glenn had died spread throughout the town.