Chapter 121 – Chapter 4: Three Steps
Like that…
A blizzard passed that covered the whole world in white.
The storm, which seemed as if it would be swept away by the wind as soon as one step outside, calmed down as if it had never happened.
As if the harsh winter was over, the sun was so bright that I couldn’t open my eyes properly.
Icicles fell from the eaves of the general store, snow accumulated on the roof melted, and water flowed non-stop.
Trudging. Truly.
Tia and Posao walk together on the moist ground.
Posao took the lead, Tia followed behind at a little distance, and there was a stretcher between them.
Tia’s red eyes were empty as she looked down.
The person on the stretcher… Because it was ‘me’.
He didn’t say anything as he looked at my face shaking back and forth with my steps.
There were no more tears to come out.
Because I cried so much all night, my eyes were swollen, and my lips were dry.
Sabak.
They arrived at the hillside of Brisden.
Posao limped towards the village.
“S-there’s no one… ?”
It was true.
The village of Brisden was the same, but there was not a single person in sight.
Now that the weather has cleared up, everyone will probably go outside to shovel snow or start a fire.
Like an empty ghost town… There was just silence.
“I guess… “I guess they all went down to Taildon.”
It seemed that the people who had been taken to Taildon had not yet returned.
Still, I thought there would be some elders left in the village, but even they were nowhere to be seen.
“Let’s go… T, Tia.”
Sabak. Sabak.
The two men carried me down the hill again.
Originally, I planned to bury it at night while the villagers were asleep. However, now that the ground had briefly thawed was a good time to dig, and more than anything, Tia insisted that I should not be buried when it was cold, so it was decided to do the work during the day.
I don’t know if I should call this a blessing… Thanks to the absence of villagers, I was able to cross the hill comfortably without worrying about noise.
The two people placed my body under the resting water that had ‘Ritz’ written on it.
Then I picked up the shovel I brought and started digging.
Pop! Pak!
My body was wrapped in a thick blanket.
Even though I was about to be buried, Tia dressed me thickly, saying that I shouldn’t be cold until the end.
There was nothing said.
Posao, who was usually mumbling something next to him, was silent at that moment.
That’s how much Tia is… Because it seemed like nothing.
Her face, which was silently digging into the ground, looked faint, as if it would scatter like dust if you touched it.
A coffin was revealed beneath the dug ground.
It was the coffin I was lying in.
Two full weeks have passed since Tia took me out of here to try to save me. Even at that time, Tia had a difficult look on her face, but her hope still remained.
But now there is not even ‘hope’ in sight.
The girl looking down at her coffin… Like soft snow piled up everywhere. She just seemed fleeting.
“Open it…”
Posao opened the coffin lid.
Clutter.
An empty space appears.
Even though it was broad daylight, the inside of the coffin seemed pitch-black. It’s like a space that disappears forever the moment you enter.
It was the moment when Posao lifted my body without hesitation.
“… “I will do it.”
In a voice without any emotion. That’s what he said.
It seems as if she is the only one responsible for letting go of the man she loved so much. He slowly grabs my body and drags it into the coffin.
Slurp.
The legs are slowly submerged in the black shadow.
Eventually, even her head fell completely, and she passed away in the darkness.
“…”
Tia looked down at my face.
Whisk.
The girl who didn’t seem to cry broke down. Until the end, her heart, which had held her up in danger, was shattered.
She would rather have cried.
Her withered back, sitting on the ground completely helpless, like a doll whose strings had been cut… It was so pitiful.
“Ritz.”
The voice calling me was buried in the sound of the wind.
“… I liked it.”
Confessions that were not yet conveyed are falling.
“… “I loved you.”
What more do I need to say?
I like it.
I love you.
Our relationship was destined to be formed with those two words.
It was a story about a boy and a girl in a rural village living happily together for a long time.
For sure… We pledge eternal love at a sacred baptism ceremony blessed by everyone.
It must have been a story full of love and hope, where we pursued each other’s dreams together.
But.
… Ah.
You are the merciless divine dragon of Dragonez.
Why are you putting me through this ordeal?
The woman I love… The face that kills itself so as not to forget me.
Finally… The face that slowly erases my existence from my heart.
My face sleeping peacefully even in those moments full of sadness, tragedy, and futility…
How can I be saved from my fate that I have to watch over?
Clutter.
The coffin lid was locked.
My face disappeared from Tia’s sight, who was watching until the end.
The girl didn’t move.
He knelt down on the coffin lid and did not move as if he were dead.
Before long, he picked up a shovel and started filling the top of my coffin with dirt.
Pop! Pak!
It was Posao’s voice that broke the suffocating silence.
“… T, Tia?”
“…”
Move the shovel without saying a word.
Before we knew it, the dull color of the spruce tree was buried in the black dirt.
After filling all the ground, Tia lifted her waist.
Hwieeeeeing-!!
The wind that blew from afar slightly scattered the red hair.
The guy said.
“… It’s all over.”
Looking down on Brisden.
“It’s all over… Everything…”
Now an infinite world unfolded before me.
Tia looked at the horizon of the endless mountain range in the invisible distance.
“What’s left… “No more.”
The little breath that escapes rises into the sky.
It was a poem for my buried soul, and a lament for the broken heart of a girl.
Tia and Ritz.
The two people who shared a fresh and affectionate love are no longer there.
However, there is only one person who can prove that they existed and who can tell about her life that has been struggling so far.
“… T, Tia.”
Posao hugged the faint being as if it was about to leave.
It looks like it will hold on to Tia’s breath, which has already disappeared. She held on tightly to prevent it from flying into the sky.
“Let’s go back…”
“…”
Tia looked behind her.
[Ritz]
I looked blankly at my name engraved on the water of rest, and entered the pulling hands of Posao.
Far away… Red hair disappears.
That was my last funeral.
* * *
Tia became weak.
She said nothing, but lay there like a pale corpse. Nevertheless, she did not show any sign of pain.
It was just as quiet as a sick person waiting for death.
“Tia… Well, try it.”
Posao scooped up a spoonful of stew and handed it over.
Tia, who was looking out her window, did not react.
“Tia?”
“…”
Dalgak.
In the end, she had no choice but to clean up the stew bowl.
“Well, you have to eat to survive…”
“…”
“If… Is there anything you want to eat or drink? I’ll save you…”
“…”
After wondering where he was going for a moment, Posao brought another food.
He also left the place for me because I thought it would be a burden if he was around.
If the dish becomes cold due to not eating, the dish is removed and new food is placed. When the water cup cools down, I always fill it with warm water.
That was when time passed.
Clink!
There was a sound of something breaking in the room where Tia was.
Posao, who was taking a nap, was startled and hurried up to the second floor.
Crash!
“Naaaaa- Tia?! W-what’s going on?!”
When I opened the door and went in, the room was littered with food.
“Ha… Ha…”
Tia fell to the floor and was holding a broken plate.
Red blood is dripping down onto the floor, as if he had already scratched his wrist.
“Tia!”
Uddangtang!
Posao rushed over and suppressed Tia’s hand.
“Why, why are you doing this… !”
The girl, who had no strength left to resist, was crushed by her huge body.
“Weird… Bird, don’t think about it! Tia!”
“… Why?”
Tia asked with dry mouth.
“Uncle… What’s wrong… ?”
“Why?” .”
“I am… I killed it…”
Posao pressed Tia’s thin wrist tightly to prevent any more blood from leaking out.
“I am… The village chief… The Ritz… I killed it. Everyone in the world… They insult me. However… Why did you…”
“..? Tia!”
“Why… You won’t let me go… ?”
“Well, you can’t do that!”
Posao shouted.
“Who what… Whatever you say, it doesn’t matter! T-Tia must live!”
“…”
“Please. Me, I… I want Tia to live… !”
“Now… “I don’t want to live.”
Posao grabbed her limp wrist and lifted it up.
“Then I…” I! Furthermore, I’ll be your reason for living!”
He lightly lifted Tia and threw her down on the bed.
Uddangtang!
Posao ran to the corner of the room and started rummaging through the drawers.
Finally, he took something out.
Taken from my pharmacy… It was a bandage.
I hurriedly brought it in and wrapped a bandage around Tia’s wrist.
Red blood spread, but I didn’t care and held on tightly.
Tia made a noise of pain.
“… Ah!”
“Hold on!”
Posao rummaged through the drawer again.
This time, a medicine containing a decoction of Rubes herb was released. I wet a brush with it and started applying it to the cloth.
It was a completely wrong method without any systematic learning about treatment methods.
However, Posao felt that Tia would die if he did not do this, so he applied the medicine so stickily that it covered her entire arm.
“…”
Tia, who was quietly watching, stopped Posao.
“… “Stop it.”
“B-but… !”
“Like that… “I’m not doing it.”
Tia wiped the dripping medicine with her fingertips and placed it on her wound.
“Bandage…”
“Uh, huh? Yes!”
I brought one more bandage. Tia took it and wrapped one more layer.
It was flawless and correct treatment.
“… That’s it.”
“Thank goodness… ! Let’s start with cleaning first!”
Posao cleaned up the food scattered on the floor. And I carefully swept up the broken glass.
It was a look you couldn’t see from him as he didn’t usually clean.
Tia asked.
“Cleaning… Are you doing it?”
“Huh! “I don’t want Tia to get hurt!”
After cleaning it up, they brought in a carpet from the first floor and laid a new one.
If you think about it, the second floor suddenly became Tia’s bedroom, and Posao was sleeping on the first floor.
If there were no carpet, cold air would just rise.
Posao consistently said it was okay.
“T-Tia’s body comes first. I’m fine.”
Tia pulled up her knees.
Then she quietly looked down at her bandaged wrist.
“Oh, I’ll stay by your side tonight. Because it might hurt…”
“It’s okay.”
Her red hair shook her head slightly.
“Sorry. From now on… Doing something like this… “I won’t do it.”
“Really?”
“… Yes.”
“Yes. Well, should I eat something then? Strength… Let’s set it.”
There was silence.
Posao waited for Tia to answer.
That night after a very long time.
… Tia is very small and feeble.
She nodded.
