029. Interdimensional

With agility, his left hand caught the metal shaft adorned with strange patterns and pulled it with all his might. A humanoid figure emerged from the lake, accompanied by the splashing sound of water droplets, disrupting its calm surface.
As the body soared through the air, Jalu's right hand pushed the spear he held to the side, causing the creature to be thrown a few steps from the edge and tumble onto the wet grass. The creature's relatively light weight allowed it to roll for a moment under Jalu's force until the spear in its grasp slipped away.
Finally, Jalu could see the form of the entity terrorizing the area. A wet and dirty woman, covered in soil from the grassy ground where she fell, quickly stood up and attacked Jalu with a dagger drawn from an unknown place in her clothing. Despite her agile movements, the woman was not a threatening opponent for the young man.
Calmly, Jalu sidestepped and delivered a powerful kick that swept both legs of the woman. The strong kick caused the woman to spin in the air before landing flat on the wet ground. Without hesitation, Jalu stepped on the woman's right hand, which gripped the dagger and pointed the spear's tip at her throat.
"*Kallärkem*!" Jalu uttered firmly, even with a half-whispered voice.
Hearing a word in the Eldest Tongue uttered to calm her down, the woman immediately ceased her resistance. Her entire face was covered by clinging wet hair, leaving only her right eye wide open in surprise.
"You'll get into more trouble if someone hears you!" Jalu continued, realizing the woman understood the Eldest Tongue, the universal language across dimensions. "I'll release you now. It would be wise not to attack me again!"
True to his words, Jalu lifted his foot from the woman's right wrist. He also moved the tip of the spear away from her neck, which was covered by her long hair. Jalu smiled in relief as the creature in front of him showed no resistance whatsoever.
"My name is Jalu," he introduced himself. "What's your name?"
"How can you speak the Eldest Tongue while the others cannot?" the woman ignored Jalu's question. Her voice sounded incredibly soft and melodic, as if she were singing, despite the clear firmness in her tone.
"The others? Do you mean the five men you killed over there?" Jalu pointed towards the villa, quite a distance away from where they were.
The woman remained silent. No response, no movement.
"I am a member of the force that deals with beings from other dimensions like you," Jalu half lied while firmly planting the spear into the ground. "It's my duty to assist you in returning home. But if your arrival is meant to cause chaos, then I will be the hand that eliminates you!"
"They were trying to harass me!" the woman said with an angry tone that still sounded like a melodic singing.
"You'll be in big trouble if you stay in this area when their friends arrive."
The woman was taken aback by Jalu's words. She gazed at him in confusion.
"I can't stay away from water for too long," she revealed, her voice now much calmer than before. "What should I do?"
Jalu thought deeply. Normally, he would either eliminate every interdimensional being he encountered or let them go. He believed that assisting them was no longer his responsibility. Nevertheless, he felt compassion for the dirty woman standing before him. She was merely trying to preserve her dignity. Whether he liked it or not, the woman had incidentally finished his job. Upon realizing the fact, Jalu sighed.
"How long can you stay away from the water?" Jalu asked, returning the woman's spear.
"Not longer than the time it takes for the sun's shadow to shift from one pole to another," she replied.
From her answer, Jalu understood that her civilization still used the shadow of the sun as a time indicator. One hour was the time the woman had to be away from the water. Jalu recalled his journey to Situ Cukul.
"First, you need to hide and wait in the lake," he instructed, gesturing with his hands to illustrate what he was saying. "When I start leaving this place, follow me discreetly. Don't let anyone see you! I will unlock my vehicle, a large, black object with four wheels on its sides, down there." Jalu pointed towards the footpath leading to the parking area. "Quickly get inside it, and I will take you to a safe place."
The woman nodded before submerging herself in the lake again. However, her head reappeared moments before Jalu turned to walk towards the tent.
"My name is Liriénka," the woman said. "Thank you for your help, Jalu."
"You can thank me after successfully returning to your world. Coincidentally, the men you killed were criminals I was chasing. So, thank you for doing my job," Jalu replied, then smiled as he walked away from the lake.
The female creature known as Liriénka observed Jalu's movements. She watched as the young man dismantled the tent, folding it with precision. Aware of being observed, Jalu turned, smiling, and stood with the neatly folded tent now transformed into a portable bag.
The anticipated moment had finally arrived for Liriénka. Jalu began to tread the winding path, disappearing down the descending road. The woman emerged from the lake, swiftly chasing after the man with silent, agile movements that would undoubtedly evoke envy from even the most skilled hunters.
In a brief span, the woman discovered Jalu engaged in conversation with four young men near a large black object that caught her eye for the first time. She recalled the man referring to it as his vehicle. Liriénka observed as Jalu's right hand opened the rear door of the vehicle while maintaining the conversation. The man proved true to his words. Now, it was up to Liriénka to seize the opportunity to enter!
Before she could take a step, two of the youths surrounding Jalu moved towards the ascending path leading to the lake. Subsequently, one of the remaining two briskly headed towards a settlement quite distant from the location. Jalu was once again engrossed in a serious conversation with the last young man who stayed by his side. Witnessing the pale and frightened expression on the man's face, Liriénka hesitated momentarily.
Yet, observing Jalu's gradual shift, causing the unsuspecting young man in front of him to unknowingly turn away from the rear door of the vehicle, Liriénka realized that what she witnessed was part of Jalu's plan. Thus, she swiftly moved to enter the trunk of the black SUV. With caution, she inserted her spear diagonally from the upper right to the lower left of the vehicle's rear section. Liriénka then lay sideways, resembling a sleeping cat on the trunk floor.
As Jalu's voice drew nearer, Liriénka was jolted by the sudden closure of the rear door. The sounds of the front door opening and closing, along with the jolts as Jalu entered the vehicle, didn't startle her as much as when Jalu ignited the engine. And, as the car began to move, the terrified girl panically reached for anything she could grab.