"What!? You are nine?" Arna exclaimed with a slight jerk.

  "Hm...yes...I am nine, and like I said...I transmigrated...into Siku." I said with a quiver in my voice.

  "Don't need to repeat yourself, I heard you clearly, and don't lie."

  "Trust... me, I am telling the truth. I am really nine; I just transmigrated here."

  "I told you to stop fu*king repeating yourself!...Oops, sorry, sorry, I shouldn't have cursed in front of you and uhm"

  …"

  "..."

  "Uhm, sorry for hitting you, alright? and calling you names, I didn't mean it."

  It did look that way miss.

  "You know, I thought you were another con man, and I despise anyone who tries to impersonate my siku."

  "It's...okay..."

  "..."

  "..."

  "Uhm, what are you waiting for? Continue telling me the whole story."

  "Like I said, I trans- "

  "Have you lost your hearing? What did I say?"

  "Uhm...sorry...so yeah, that's it. I transmigrated into Siku an—"

  "Stop saying the same things, dumbass."

  "Let me finish first, you are cutting my sentence off." I yelled back

  "Oh, am I? Now tell me what else you got to say except being transmigrated?" she said in a mocking tone.

  "This morning when I woke up, I was in Siku's body."

  I can't say to her that I transmigrate across time whenever I die, that would be too risky.

  "Hmm, I see...then why don't you just go back to your own body, you brat?"

  "Well, uhm...I don't know how to control it."

  "You didn't go to swirl control classes?"

  Swirl control classes? Is this Evercold's way of controlling class abilities?

  "I awakened it late."

  "Oh, you are a late bloomer like me, huh? I awakened it at seven, and at the time I didn't go to classes since everyone was younger than me," she said with a small chuckle, brushing the hair strands back.

  "When did you awaken it?"

  If the King James words are correct, I was the first person in Ocean of ever history to not awaken an ability even after eight and a half years, so I can't say when I was nine.

  "I awakened when I was eight."

  "Ha, you are even later than me, must be tough, right? but hey, you got one...though you can't control it yet."

  "..."

  "What's your caste and swirl count?"

  What's my swirl count? I should tell what Leo had.

  "I am a hearth…and I have eighteen."

  "Eighteen? Damn, you got more than I have."

  Is she a grime or a blight?

  "Oh...what's your swirl count, miss?"

  "It's a secret, but don't worry, I am not a blight or a grime...wait, did you just call me 'miss'?" she screeched.

  "Yes? You are a lot older than me, so I called you 'miss'."

  "Oh my god!!! Do I look that old? When did I become a hag? I should have listened to my friends and taken care of my skin, if I did, I would be a young girl, not a hag." she said massaging her skin

  "..."

  "You brat, don't call me 'miss', okay? I am just, uhm, one, two...eight years older than you. I am just seventeen, So don't call me 'Miss', it makes me feel old."

  "Uhm, sure, Arna."

  "Arna?? When did I say you could call me by name? Didn't your mom teach you how to respect elders?"

  Does it actually matter what I call you? You said you will help me.

  "Uhm, sorry, then wha—"

  "Just call me Sis, okay? it's more or less fine."

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  "Sis? Okay," I said in a low tone.

  "Anyways, back to you, so tell me, what's your name?"

  "It's Alyss."

  Oh my god, why did I reveal my name to her? What if she finds the truth?? Gosh, how will I cover it up?

  "Alyss?"

  "Uhm, no, it's Alice."

  That was dumb.

  "Alice? Hmm, that's a nice name, and you are a girl? Oh my god, it must be so weird to be in the body of the opposite sex, I mean gender" she ridiculed.

  "Uhm, no, I am a boy."

  "Boy? but Alice is a girl's name, right?"

  "Oh, is it?"

  Thank God Mom named me Alyss and not Alice.

  "So, uhm, so let me get this straight, Alice."

  Why do I feel like a girl all of a sudden?

  "So you are nine, and you are a late bloomer like me and didn't go to swirl control classes, and you ended up in my siku's body? Why exactly did you try to use your ability, Alice?

  "Uhm, it was an accident. I tried to show it off to my friends to transmigrate into someone else and accidentally ended up here."

  Damn, that's the best lie I've said.

  "Oh, is Siku the first person you transmigrated into, or is it random since when you cried, you said that you are somewhere else each time or something along those lines?"

  When did you blurt that out? What should I tell her?

  "Hello, are you listening, Alice? Someone's talking to you."

  "Oh, uhm, no, back when I was showing off to my friends, I transmigrated into someone else, and then after a few hours, I was able to transmigrate back into my body."

  "Hmm, so this is your second one?"

  "Yeah, and when I went to ability control classes, I tried, and I ended up in here."

  "Didn't you try to go back?"

  "Uh, I did, but I couldn't."

  "Oh, and you opted to impersonate Siku instead of getting help? suits a kid," she laughed and hit my back.

  "So what are you planning to do now?"

  "Oh, me, I don't know. I couldn't go back, so I guess I will just stay like Siku."

  "NO!" she yelled, startling me for a moment.

  "Uhm, sorry for yelling, but no, don't stay in Siku's body, okay? The faster you leave, the better it is for him and me, so like I said, I will help you to get back into your own body."

  "Why are you offering me help, sis?"

  Can I trust her?

  "Well, I think I am a good girl. Second, I want my boyfriend back, and I am disappointed that he isn't here to greet me with hugs and ki—let's not talk about that. Third, you are a late bloomer like me, so I could understand your situation, Alice, so I will help you," she said, her face slightly flushed.

  "Thank you, Sis."

  "Don't mention it, but you do owe me one, okay? No two, one for reassuring you when you were crying like a kid and two because I am helping you, so don't forget to pay me back."

  "I don't have any money."

  "Hah, just kidding. I don't want money. All you have to do is just leave Siku's body as fast as possible and remember me when you are able to master your swirl, got it?"

  "Yes, I will."

  I don't want to leave you, sis. This is the only time I've been alive for long, this is the best life for.

  I would be here instead of going somewhere else.

  "Well, let's get started," she said, standing and straightening out her skirt.

  ~grr~

  "You haven't eaten all day, have you? Well, let me treat you to dinner at my home."

  Is she treating me to dinner at her house because of pity?

  "Uhm, can I come to your house? What do Siku's parents think?"

  "Meh, don't worry about it. Siku often sleeps over at my place, and it's the weekend. It's better if you stay at my home, I could help you go back within two days, and my parents are on a business trip. I could use some company, and Siku's parents are not the type to care," she smirked, giving me a wink.

  "If you say so," I said as I stood up, and we started to walk towards her house.

  "Just promise me one thing, okay? I know it's been hard for you being a kid, having everyone shame you for not having an ability, for being a late bloomer, and for transmigrating into a random person. But don't think dying is a way out, got it? No matter what happens to you, don't try to die. Dying only makes things worse. You don't know what comes next. It might be the end, or it might not be. And think about the people who care about you. If you died right now, imagine the pain your mom and dad would go through. Imagine me losing my Siku because you died. So don't go around trying to kill yourself, okay? No matter how hard things get, don't die. Reach out for help. It's not wrong to depend on others. We humans are made to rely on one another to survive. And most peacekeepers aren't corrupt or evil like they are in movies."

  If they aren't, why did they have to smash my toes and torture me? Oh, those are knights, not peacekeepers.

  "Oh, okay, Sis." I reluctantly agreed.

  "I am going to be cooking tonight, so don't complain like Siku does, okay?"