After separating them from Erica, the nonis treated Liliana and Arturo's wounds and offered them food, new clothes and soft beds to sleep in. There was still a long way to go before nightfall, so the two set out to learn all they could about the castle and Tur. Although they were treated as honored guests, neither could so easily trust someone who had sent his troops to invade their world.

They parted ways. Arturo headed for the library, while Liliana went everywhere she could to talk and hear what the people who served there knew. The girl talked to everyone from soldiers to maids. She spent hours learning names that she would surely never have to use again, making conversation and charming people. That was something she was good at, charming people. With the nonis it was somewhat difficult for her because they admired strength, but she had learned to get around that problem most of the time.

After much talking, she came upon a small garden, somewhat hidden from the rest of the spaces. It had hardly any access and could barely be seen from upper areas. Liliana thought it would be a refuge for people like Erica and Arturo, who felt uncomfortable with strangers around. However, for her it wasn't bad either; there were several flowers of all colors, a couple of small trees in the corners and a path of flat rocks so that people wouldn't step on the plants. Still, it wasn't perfect enough to be the work of a professional.

Liliana was contemplating the strange flowers of Nudo, when suddenly Brontes alerted her to a nearby threat. Quickly the girl tensed and moved to the widest area, to the middle of the garden, to have room to use her munima, and waited with her hand on her chest. She looked everywhere, but found nothing.

—Where is it?— she asked him, daunted.

"Nearby."

—But where?

"I don't know. Close. I feel the same way I felt that time that ghost appeared and also that orange girl."

—Mr. Ghost and Fir? Just the two of them? Why the two of them?

But it didn't take her long to come up with an answer; the munimas. They both had munimas. More tense, she looked around again, but saw no one. That meant that whoever put Brontes on alert could only be a ghost with a munima.

—Mr. Ghost? —She called out to him, hopeful.

But she got nothing but silence for an answer.

"That guy may not be the only ghost with a munima" Brontes pointed out.

That was exactly what Liliana feared. She could no longer stand the tension. She extracted Brontes from her chest and assumed a fighting stance. She tried to think of a strategy, one of those that Erica drew from experience and Arturo from intelligence, but her mind immediately clouded over and left her paralyzed. She didn't know what to do if a ghost decided to approach and attack her.

—Relax— she reminded herself— I have Brontes with me, I can defend myself to some extent.

She waited on alert. The seconds passed, no one attacked. Liliana began to calm down on her own, her muscles to relax. Then, someone blew in her ear.

She screamed with fright. She immediately turned around and put Brontes in front to defend herself. Her attacker was laughing her head off at that moment. Still frightened, Liliana took a step back to get some distance and get a better look at her. Before her stood a tall woman, perhaps taller than a common noni, attached to a snake tail, long and powerful. The woman had short white hair, a huge mouth, a long tongue and a torso covered in scales.

She needed several seconds to calm down and breathe normally again, seconds that Liliana also needed to recover from the surprise.

—I'm sorry. We don't even know each other, I shouldn't play jokes on you— she admitted.

Liliana told herself that there was no way such a big person could go unnoticed, it had to be a ghost; she was the one who had been stalking her.

—Vikala— she introduced herself— that's my name. I'm a naga, I bet you've never seen one before, have you?

Víkala reached out a fist to touch Liliana's chest, who barely reacted at that moment.

—Ah?

Vikala waited a moment.

—Ah! It's... nice to meet you— Liliana replied.

She took a step back, uncomfortable to have her chest touched even for a greeting.

—Don't worry, I'm not here to kill you or anything— the naga assured her— I was already here, I just disappeared when you approached.

—Ah.

It did not seem to her that Vikala was lying. She relaxed a little, but only a little.

—I've seen you before— the snake said— You showed up a few hours ago, with the terrorists, didn't you?

Liliana nodded.

—But I'm not one of them— she hastened to clarify.

This made the naga laugh.

—Don't worry, I know. But I'm curious anyway, what's an anchor doing here?

Before she had a chance to answer, Vikala disappeared again and reappeared behind her, glued to her back. In that position she brought her mouth close to the girl's ear.

—You're not a spy?

Liliana immediately moved a few steps away.

—No!— she exclaimed— Why are you asking me that?!

—Mmmh? I don't know— she licked the air— you smell suspicious.

—Sus... What do you mean I smell?! — Liliana shrieked.

—And besides, even though you've been fighting all this time, you haven't stopped to rest. All you do is go around the castle gathering information. Do you think that's not suspicious?

Liliana froze. She didn't know how Vikala could have found that out, and so quickly. Seeing her surprised face, the naga smiled mischievously.

—What's the matter? Did you think you could get ahead of us, find some weakness, threaten us, blackmail us? Haha, you're so sweet!

Liliana stepped back further and held Brontes in a fighting stance again. If Vikala was revealing all this to her it was because she was planning to kill her, for sure. She had to run away, though she doubted she would make it, but she had no other way out. She did not want to die. However, the snake woman downplayed the matter with a relaxed pose and a wave of her hand.

—Relax, child, there's no need to get defensive. After all, you are a guest. My boss had already contemplated that one of you would go snooping around.

—Boss?— Liliana repeated— So... you're...?

—Ah? Ah, right— the naga pointed to her chest with an open hand— I am Vikala, leader of the First's spy corps. At least in theory. In reality I'm more like his shadow: I watch his back and all that.

Liliana was surprised at the nonchalant way Vikala revealed she was a spy. She played it down with a giggle.

—How...— she wanted to know— How did you know I've been roaming the castle?

She already had an idea, but she wanted to hear it from the naga herself.

—How, you say? My agents saw you everywhere. Don't tell me you were trying to go unnoticed.

Liliana wondered how many eyes would have followed her throughout the castle. She covered her ear as she remembered the surprise Vikala had given her. She was toying with her, cornering her into saying what was on her mind. Liliana understood this and resigned herself.

—Are you a ghost?— she asked at last.

Vikala nodded.

—I am.

Liliana gasped, it was the first time she had ever seen a ghost other than Mr. Ghost. Perhaps Vikala could show her how to see him again.

—How...?— she wanted to ask— Where did you learn how to do that?

—To do what?

—To become invisible.

Vikala stared at her with her huge smile for a long time.

—I have an idea: I'll answer anything you want, as long as you can find me.

—What?

—Yes, a game! —What do you think? We'll play hide and seek. All right, close your eyes and count to ten, I'll hide.

—But... Wait! How can I...

But at that moment Vikala disappeared and reappeared behind her and covered her eyes with her hands.

—No looking for ten seconds— she said in a singsong voice— if you cheat, I'm leaving. But I won't leave the garden until we finish the game.

Liliana closed her mouth, she had no choice but to play along. Resigned, she covered her eyes and indicated to the naga with a hand gesture that she could now go hide.

"This is a bad idea, she could kill you at any moment" warned her munima.

—She could have killed me a long time ago. Now I need answers— Liliana reminded him.

She quickly and loudly counted to ten. Then she opened her eyes and began to look for her.

—How am I supposed to see her, if she's invisible?— she growled inwardly.

"She's still close" Brontes pointed out.

—Yes, I can imagine. I seem to amuse her in some way, but I don't see how we'll make any headway if...

In that moment, however, she stopped, for as she swept the garden with her eyes she came upon a green tail peeping out from a bush.

—It can't be— she mumbled.

Wondering if Vikala could be so foolish, she approached the bush, yet just as she turned she contemplated another possibility; that she was being tricked. Just as she looked behind the bush, she noticed that the tail continued to wrap around the plant to the other side.

—It was a trap!— she realized too late.

Before she could turn around, a long tongue slipped through her ear and filled it with drool. Liliana jumped out of fright, covering her ear while Vikala laughed out loud.

—Aaaah!— she shrieked— Stop doing that, please!

The naga put her hands to her belly from laughing so hard and wiped away a tear.

—It's okay, it's okay. You found me anyway. I'll answer whatever you want.

Liliana stared at her, not knowing what to say. Suddenly she realized that this was an opportunity to know everything she wanted to know about ghosts, at least everything Vikala knew about them.
She had to ask carefully.

—I could ask her where she learned to disappear — she thought — or maybe who taught her... but no. It has to be a question with an answer that works for me, otherwise I'll have just wasted my chance.

"How about the how?" suggested Brontes.

The how; a general question for a specific answer. It could work.

—How do you become invisible?— she asked at last.

Vikala seemed to be puzzled by this.

—Invisible?— she repeated, as if she hadn't heard correctly— What are you talking about? I've never been invisible.

Liliana froze in her tracks. Seeing her face, the naga laughed again.

—But... How can you... But I can't see you!

However, Vikala extended an arm and waved her index finger back and forth with an attitude of superiority.

—I think you're wrong. Ghosts don't "become invisible", they just disappear from the sight of others. Try to pay attention.

Vikala disappeared again before Liliana's astonished gaze, who protected her ears just in case.

—What's the difference between being invisible and disappearing?— she asked in her mind— What do you mean, paying attention? That's what I've been doing all this time!

But then something strange caught her attention; in front of her passed a flower, floating through the air as if it were an insect looking for a place to land. Liliana stared at it, dumbfounded, until she realized that something was wrong; flowers didn't float, at least not that she knew of. But that flower was making strange twists and turns. Even if it could float, it didn't look like something it did by itself.

—It's because Vikala is holding it— she understood.

Then she looked at the space around the flower. Vikala had to be there, she had to be holding it, even with her tail, there was no other explanation. Liliana looked carefully, she made an effort to see it, it had to be somewhere. And suddenly, to her surprise, she saw a large and long silhouette on one side of the flower. Eagerly, she reached out her hand to touch it. As she made contact with her scaly skin, the image of the snake woman returned before her eyes. She smiled complacently at her.

—Very good, you were able to find me even though I had disappeared.

—You had to be close— Liliana guessed— Flowers don't fly by themselves.

—Hehe. No, at least this one didn't— she said, and ate it— the flower was a help for you to find me. I never stopped being visible, I simply blocked your attention from me.

This struck Liliana with surprise and doubt.

—What do you mean?

—That ghosts can manipulate the attention of others around them, that's what being a ghost is all about, that's the big trick, you know? When I disappear you don't stop seeing me, I don't trick your eyes, I trick your mind. It's like a sleight of hand, only more advanced.

Liliana put her hands to her head. That changed everything she had thought about ghosts. She remembered when Mr. Ghost saved her from the patty vendor, when he stole another noni's sandwich from his very hand, and when he appeared next to her in her cell. In none of those cases he had become invisible, he was just avoiding people's attention.

—How can I do that?— she asked.

However, Vikala disappeared again.

—No, no, no. First you must find me again— she said, though she could not be seen— this time it will not be so easy, you must feel me beyond your skin.

—Agh! For Father!— she exclaimed.