Chapter 0 – Chapter 1: Brisden – 1
It is difficult to know the wind blowing here.
Winding mountain valley.
Dense cool fog.
Mud crushing under feet.
A simple smile that can be found when you part the shy curtain of leaves and go down the stream following the path that the deer passed.
Eventually, when the traveler reached the village and raised his head while shaking off his boots.
Brisden.
You will be able to see the name of my hometown engraved on the walnut tree sign.
There may be some travelers who are curious about its meaning.
In that case, it would be best to quietly prepare to leave this village.
Because the moment you ask, you won’t see anything good.
…
To tell this story, I must first tell the anecdote of Uncle Joseph.
Would you believe me if I told you that the quiet, small country town of Brisden could become the ‘center of the world’?
Of course I didn’t believe it. Uncle Joseph spoke about this topic seriously every time.
The logic was like this.
The Dragonez Mountains were named so because they resemble a dragon lying face down.
As the name suggests, it is a high mountain valley with steep mountains.
Well, if it were just like that, we would still be holding ancestral rites praising Shinryong, the mountain god.
The problem was that the location of this damn mountain range was so damn wrong.
Due to the fact that the middle of the continent was completely blocked, people have been using the sea route to travel for a long time.
We, mountain villagers, had no connection to the sea, so we lived quietly without much thought.
It is said that a group of pirates began to run rampant two years ago.
As the number of pirates increases, the navy will increase, quarantine will become more stringent, tariffs will increase, and merchants will turn to the ‘land route they had long forgotten about.’
That land route is…
Here.
Brisden sits next to the gentlest hill in the Dragonez Mountains, and Uncle Joseph’s argument was that in preparation for this, it must clear the mountain path and actively accept outsiders.
‘Her. That kid is talking more and more bullshit.’
Of course, the villagers didn’t even pretend to listen.
The initial reaction was whether it was even possible.
But I thought it made some sense.
Uncle Joseph was once a mercenary who wandered around the world.
At least, I thought they would know a lot more than us who lived trapped in the mountains.
And my uncle’s prediction was exactly right.
One day, a foreigner from the Far East whom I had never seen before suddenly appeared.
The next day, sweaty peddlers came all at once and quickly looked for a place to stay.
The next day, a donkey came rolling in, pulling a cart.
The next day… Don’t even talk. It was so crowded that I even had to give up the shed of my herbal medicine shop.
I swear to Shinryong, it was the craziest month of my life.
As they watched the merchants and travelers pouring in, the villagers realized that Uncle Joseph’s words were no longer gnawing on grass.
We ran to the village chief and started persuading him to quickly widen the mountain road and start a road ranch business.
It was a pretty good flow up to this point.
At that time, it really seemed like Brisden would become the center of the world.
But the village chief shook his head resolutely.
I just answered, ‘Your heart shouldn’t be shaken by a moment’s wind.’
I still don’t understand the relationship between the great joint wind and the mountain road expansion project, but the village chief was adamant anyway.
The fight continued for a long time.
As always, the ending was not good.
Uncle Joseph, overcome with fever, left a message wishing the chief a long life and disappeared, and the Arndorf extended family also went down to the village below. Aunt Robetta, who lived across from me, also left.
‘You have an opportunity right in front of you, and you kick it!’
‘If this continues, the village will disappear!’
‘Let’s protest!’
People attacked the village chief’s house.
Although he did not sleep for three days and tried to comfort the village chief—in fact, it was almost like torture—the poor old man insisted, ‘We have to block the wind…’ ‘ Was all he said.
Maybe everyone realized it then.
Where the wind stays. Brisden.
Just as it is meant to be. Our fate is caught by the wind.
…
This is the unfortunate meaning behind our village’s name.
So you shouldn’t ask Brisden’s intentions.
Unless you want to see friendly villagers suddenly frowning.
Well, I don’t know if it’s a blessing or a misfortune.
In the end, Uncle Joseph’s claim was concluded to be wrong.
Merchants preferred the familiar sea route to the unfamiliar mountain road, and when the pirates quieted down, they returned to the sea as if they had always done so.
But what seemed like a midsummer night’s dream brought the villagers out of the narrow well called Brisden and made them see the world.
So much so that I completely forget the quiet daily life of cutting down trees, picking mushrooms, digging grass, fetching water, plowing the fields, and tending the shepherds.
Because I had a powerful experience that made me feel like I could gain great wealth and live like the nobles of the city.
To become a village in the world rather than just a village among ourselves… It was as fast as the wind sweeping the foot of the mountain.
Even now that I have returned to my peaceful daily life.
There are still many people who are curious about things outside the mountains.
“Ritz-!”
The same goes for this guy who is calling my name right now.
“Huh?”
“Bandage. “I came to get it.”
It’s a confident voice, like someone looking for something they left behind.
“Ha.”
I sighed and looked up at the uninvited guest in the early morning.
It has beautiful red hair every time you look at it.
Hair that looks like it was made into wine by melting the bright red sunlight that has just risen on the mountainside into a stream.
I grabbed a handful and tied it lightly to the left.
Ruby-like eyes with a mischievous smile.
The day before yesterday, while chopping firewood saying he was going to help the old men, a piece broke out, and he ended up putting a bandage on his white cheek. A troublesome guy who requires a lot of work.
Tia.
… He is my childhood friend.
“Bandage? “Are you hurt again?”
“No-!”
The answer is clear.
He speaks so lively that I am speechless.
“Hey, the bandage doesn’t just pop out…”
“Yes, yes-. I know. Know. You’re saying that it’s difficult to soak a cloth in water and do something with the Rubes Herb for 7 days, right? “I heard it so much that now I can make bandages even in my dreams.”
“I know. “Starting tomorrow, you will interfere with the herbal medicine.”
“No. “I hate boring things.”
Tia crossed her arms and plopped down in her rocking chair.
It’s really amazing. When guests sit on that chair, it always makes a crashing sound, but this chair doesn’t produce a single spec of dust, perhaps because it’s light.
“But why does a guy who won’t get hurt keep taking bandages?”
“Just in case? You may break your bones while practicing. I’m preparing for anything just in case. I feel reassured when I have it…”
I stretched out calmly while hearing the scary words that my bones would break.
Really, I can’t help but laugh.
Don’t be surprised. This guy is a girl.
I’m embarrassed to say this, but I’m an immature girl who doesn’t know anything about the world.
But what happened to the world?
Tia was so healthy and lively that it was hard to believe that she was a girl.
She wasn’t just brute, she had explosive physical strength.
Is it because the only girls in the village are Tia and Marie, or is it because I learned from the male elders?
She wears short pants instead of a skirt, wears a short sword hanging on her belt instead of carrying a bucket, and lives as a girl who ‘rips off bandages in her medicine shop.’
“Let’s see. The bandage…”
Zek-.
Boy. Good luck too.
When I opened the storage box, there were a few bandages left that could be used right away.
I chose the cleanest one and put it on.
“Here, take it.”
“As expected, it’s Ritsu! Thank you-!”
Tia grinned and gathered her bandages, then suddenly she did something out of the ordinary.
Jinglang.
A gold coin.
My embarrassed face was reflected in the coin that quietly landed on the desk.
“What?”
“The cost of bandages. And – my apology for taking it without permission? It’s the same.”
And Tia smiled awkwardly.
Well, I guess she knew by now that what she had done was tantamount to robbery.
“…”
However, it is a ‘gold coin’.
To be honest, I couldn’t believe it, so I quickly touched it.
Had she been in Tia’s pocket since morning? It was quite warm.
I heard that a few days ago, she happened to help a lost traveler and received a large reward in return.
I think it was this.
Was the reason why he suddenly came to my pharmacy as soon as the sun rose to give me this as a gift?
A gold coin that is hard to even see.
Even if you calculate the price, you would have received several times more than what you already took.
Tak.
I put the gold coin back on the desk and pushed it back.
“It’s okay.”
“Huh? Don’t you accept it?”
“Is there anything like that between us? “I just took care of it because I cared.”
“… I really don’t have to take it?”
“That’s right. “I don’t even have any change to give you back in the first place.”
“Um, really?”
Tia took the gold coin without saying a word.
Now that we’ve defeated the noisy guy, let’s quietly go about our business…
Chin!
Suddenly, he snatched my arm.
Ouch-!
Aren’t you trying to force me to open my fist?
“Aaaaah!”
Now, wait a minute. Why is this guy’s grip so strong… ?
Tia warned.
“Open your hands!”
“Evil-! Ouch!”
“Open it quickly!”
No, my bones will break before that!
As soon as she stretched out her fingers, a gold coin landed in her palm.
After leaving it like that for a while, I took it off and a bright red mark was left, as if it had been branded.
“I told you I wouldn’t accept it.”
This person was grimacing in numb pain, but Tia was smiling brighter than ever.
“But what do I want to give you?”
“This is too much…”
“Okay, okay! Umm-. Then let’s do it like this. “If Ritz buys a lot of snacks today with this…”
She glanced at her outside window, came close to her, and whispered softly in my ear.
“We’re having a party by ourselves at night. How do you feel?”
“Ugh.”
This is a rather tempting proposition.
“… Huh. Okay. “It’s been a while since I had a look at the village below.”
“Yeah-! Then I’ll go!”
Tia excitedly stretched out her fists and ran outside.
Bang!
It’s a bonus to open the door forcefully on your way out.
I guess I’ll have to ask Uncle Marvin to make a new door for her sometime soon.
“Ugh-!”
Not long after Tia left, I heard a scream.
Again? What kind of accident did she get into this time?
She looked out the window.
I see her nodding her head in front of the collapsed firewood pile.
Madrina, the unfortunate victim, seemed to have no power to be angry because her opponent was Tiara.
Everyone is treated like that.
She doesn’t even listen to the village chief, who is by far the best person in the village. No matter what she says, she only hurts her mouth.
Still, no one hates him.
A liveliness that brightens up the whole town. Because that’s Tia.
After tidying up her pile of firewood, Tia disappeared back down the hill.
“Ha.”
Her sigh comes out.
It is a great burden to even briefly capture the hot sun in this dark and quiet medicine room.
Like the rubes leaves hanging from the ceiling, I have dried up.
Rattling-.
I rolled the gold coin around on the desk.
Lying in an armchair like this, leisurely rolling gold coins, I feel like a wealthy person living in an elegant mansion in Deseo.
… And that only lasts a moment.
“Let’s move slowly.”
There is no time to relax.
It takes half a day to go to the village below. You should finish work a little earlier than usual.
Because I have reservations tonight.
