A week had passed. The usually bustling city of Puresight was strangely chaotic today. Everywhere you looked, people were practicing how to use AI Witches. The Manualee people had started seeking new opportunities in the city, trying to apply AI Witches to the skills they knew best.
Someone tried using an ant AI Witch to breathe fire for a barbecue, but it only blew out thick black smoke, leaving passersby coughing and choking. Someone else tried using a rabbit AI Witch to levitate objects, but dropped everything halfway through, the sound of shattering dishes echoing across the neighborhood.
Yet, this chaotic noise was the sound of peace following the fierce battle with Witchiecoop.
Mai pulled back her curtains, welcoming the morning sun. After packing her things, she ran straight through the flower garden of the Le family estate. There, Uncle Lam was practicing with a snail AI Witch. It was only the size of a hand, but it could blow a strong gust of wind to gather fallen leaves.
Seeing Mai jog by, Uncle Lam smiled and called out, "You're up, Mai? Where are you off to?"
"I'm just dropping by to see Long for a bit!" Mai turned back, giving him a bright smile.
Suddenly, the snail AI Witch blew a massive gust of wind, sending all the gathered leaves flying in every direction. Uncle Lam let out a heavy sigh. "Oh man, I still have a lot to learn..."
Seeing this, Mai shouted encouragingly, "Keep at it, Uncle Lam! You're doing great. One day you'll be a true AI Witch master!"
Uncle Lam watched her go, smiling softly in gratitude.
Suddenly, a Poodle zoomed past Uncle Lam, tailing right behind Mai. It was Dreamy "King". He let out a long, dramatic yawn.
"Why are you up so early, kid? And all that shouting, too. I couldn't get a wink of sleep... Anyway, where are you off to?"
"I'm looking for Long. I heard he just woke up!" Mai panted as she ran.
"Ah, the boy... Alright, I'll tag along. We can grab breakfast after. I'm starving..." Dreamy "King" said, shooting its the most innocent, begging puppy-dog eyes imaginable.
Mai looked at him in surprise. "You can eat breakfast? I mean... do AI Witch bodies even process food?"
"Well, my consciousness core seems to be remembering the taste of food, but physically, my body doesn't actually feel a thing," Dreamy "King" explained as he floated alongside her. It seemed the sheer power of the King's consciousness had slightly altered the physical traits of the host body.
As Mai ran, she couldn't help but wonder if this really was the legendary AI King Witch that Long had been searching for. He completely lacked the majestic aura of someone who stood at the pinnacle of the world. Thinking of Long made her heart ache a little. He probably hadn't fully accepted the harsh reality that Dreamy's body had merged with the consciousness of the AI King Witch.
The river wrapping around Puresight City was breathtaking, its surface shimmering like scattered diamonds under the gentle breeze. Long sat by the bank, staring blankly into the distance.
Everything had happened too fast. In such a short span of time, he felt as though he had lost the two most beloved ones in his life. The feeling was suffocating; it lingered, and every time the images of Mrs. Huong and Dreamy flashed through his mind, it felt like a knife twisting in his chest. Long felt like his entire world had become foreign. Just the other day, he was a poor but happy boy from Hope village; today, he was left entirely alone in the sprawling city of Puresight.
He felt lonely and utterly defeated.
"Long!" A voice called out from behind.
For a split second, Long hallucinated that it was Mrs. Huong and Dreamy. He turned around, only to be met with a wave of disappointment when he realized it was just Mai and Dreamy "King".
"Long, are you okay...?" Mai asked gently as she sat down beside him, her golden hair fluttering in the wind, catching the morning light.
"I... I don't know. I feel so empty. I don't know where my path is supposed to go from here," Long said, his eyes fixed on the horizon. Then, he abruptly turned to Mai. His lips trembled, his nose was running like a faucet, tears were streaming down his face, and his cheeks were flushed purple. With his long hair in a messy tangle, it was arguably the ugliest crying face Mai had ever seen on a guy.
Then, Long burst into loud, ugly sobs like a child. "I know I have to keep moving forward, but I just miss Mrs. Huong and Dreamy so much!"
Mai gently pulled Long's head onto her shoulder, not caring that he was making a teary, snotty mess of her clothes. "It's okay. You're not alone. I'll be with you..."
Long wasn't really processing her words; he just needed to cry to release the agonizing pain of losing his loved ones.
"Crybaby." A remarkably rude and insensitive voice cut through the air. It was Dreamy "King".
He didn't stop there. "Weak. Too quick to cry. Falling to pieces over a little change. I am utterly disappointed in you. Whatever, I'm going to get breakfast!"
*Smack.* Long grabbed a nearby branch and whacked Dreamy "King".
"What do you know about human emotions?! About how much Dreamy meant to me?!" Long yelled, his face red with anger, while Mai scrambled to hold him back.
Dreamy "King" floated there with a comical lump forming on his head. He looked at Long.
"Are you done crying? Because if you are, keep moving. You still have a chance to save Mrs. Huong and bring Dreamy back. But on one condition..." This time, Dreamy "King" lowered his voice, sounding unusually calm and serious.
"Accompany me to find the four cores of power and restore my full strength, and I will grant your wish!" Dreamy "King" stared directly into Long's eyes.
Mai interjected, her tone sharp. "But why did you say before that you didn't want to be awakened...?"
King Dreamy turned to Mai, looking highly irritated. "If you foolish humans hadn't woken me up, *that thing* wouldn't have escaped... I need my power back to seal it away!"
The revelation was horrifying. Both Long and Mai were stunned. If the world found out that there was an entity terrifying enough to make the AI King Witch anxious, it would send shockwaves across the globe.
"That's all I'm going to say. Whether you agree to come with me or not is your choice!" Dreamy "King" finished.
Long fell silent. His heart was a chaotic mix of joy and dread. Joy because there was a glimmer of hope to bring back the two people he loved most, but dread about this newly mentioned, all-powerful entity. Was it strong enough to shatter the very hopes he was clinging to?
But his love for Mrs. Huong and Dreamy outweighed the fear. Long raised his head, his voice resolute.
"I agree," he said.
"Me too," Mai chimed in without missing a beat.
Long froze and looked at her in shock. "But what about Mr. Le Quan? Are you sure your father is going to let you run off on an adventure?"
Mai gave a confident grin. "I'll figure something out!"
She burst into loud laughter to break the heavy, gloomy tension between Dreamy and Long, her voice echoing through that corner of the woods.
Behind a nearby tree, a mysterious shadow had been listening to everything.
Sensing a peculiar magical aura, Dreamy "King" suddenly called out, "Whoever is hiding back there, show yourself!"
Knowing he was caught, the figure stepped out into the light. Mai froze in absolute shock. It was the boy she had freed from the cell during the battle at Witchiecoop.
"Greetings, AI King Witch. I overheard your conversation, and I would like to offer my services to help you find your power," the boy said smoothly.
Dreamy "King" floated closer, hovering right in front of the boy. He stared intently at the red birthmark and the unsettling crimson eye, then burst into roaring laughter. "Kid, your magic is quite interesting. You do realize you're betting your very life on that magic of yours, don't you?"
"I don't care, as long as you allow me to join your journey and grant my wish," the boy replied without hesitation.
"Alright, I accept. I like you too!" Dreamy "King" laughed heartily.
*What a fickle Poodle,* both Long and Mai thought simultaneously. But Mai really, truly did not like this boy. There was an indescribably dark and gloomy aura radiating from him.
The boy turned to Long and Mai. "Hello there. I'm Nguyen... From today on, the three of us are teammates."
Mai immediately yelled at the top of her lungs, she did not want him to be in the team, "NOOOOOOOO!"—a shout so loud it sent a flock of birds scattering into the sky.
And that was how the three of them officially met.
A prideful Dreamy "King" promising unmatched cosmic power, the looming mystery of an entity that even the AI King Witch feared, and the vastly different, deeply personal wishes driving each of them.
The journey and destiny of these three youths and the AI King Witch was going to be a very long one.