Chapter 179 – Chapter 5: Crossing – 3
Shootaaa-.
Rainwater flows down my cheek.
We must avoid this heavy rain that is only getting heavier. I have to avoid it.
I am… I hated this humble cabin even more and felt afraid.
The inside was covered in dark shadows and nothing could be seen. I have never visited this place in my life, and this place has nothing to do with me.
Nevertheless, the feeling of ‘familiarity’ weighs heavily on my shoulders.
When you don’t dare to move your feet. Marie opened the door of the hut first.
Clutter.
From the back, heading into the darkness without knowing anything, a fleeting memory came to mind.
[Ha… Ha…]
The back of Tia entering, shivering from the cold. The appearance overlapped with her Marie.
Couldn’t stop it. At that time I… I was lying in a hospital bed. Even when Posao’s gloom was eating away at Tia’s heart, she was just sleeping like a sleepyhead.
I had to hold on.
If only I had snatched Tia’s arm as she entered the cabin.
We wouldn’t have ended up like this.
“No!”
Kwaaak-!
“Hyaaa?!”
I came to my senses when I heard an unfamiliar scream.
My hand was holding Marie’s thin arm so tightly that it felt like it would be crushed. He squeezed it so hard that the crush marks on his delicate skin are clear.
“Ri, Ritz oppa… ?”
Marie looked up at me with a scared voice.
“Oh, sorry.”
She hastily removed her hand and stepped behind her.
Something…
Something is strange.
Have you lost your cool? Tia’s back is a vision of her memory. And the person in front of me now is Mari, not Tia.
And, yet I…
He tried to grab her arm.
Confusing memory with reality? Me?
No. I’m not crazy. The degree can be distinguished.
Marie said.
“Let’s rest here. You look like you’re having a hard time too.”
I had to admit it.
Right now, this was the only place to safely escape the rain.
“… Yes.”
I went inside with my wet boots.
As I got used to the darkness, I began to see the inside little by little.
Items that are neatly organized but left unattended for a long time. A floor with a shallow layer of dust. The subtle passage of time was accumulated here.
Even though it seems as if no one has lived there for a long time. There are traces of people coming and going for a very short time here and there.
Marie said while looking at the dry firewood piled up in the corner of the kitchen.
“I guess someone came and went.”
“Yes.”
It was left behind by Tia and Posao. It’s the same as when the two last left the cabin.
When I saw this place from memory, I didn’t feel anything. It feels real to be here in person after such a long time.
Tia was crouching right there.
She took out her cloak from her bag and gave it to Marie.
“Take off her clothes and cover her body with this.”
“Yes.”
I went into the kitchen.
It was warmer than ‘back then’ and the wind wasn’t blowing as hard. In order to dry wet clothes all night and ward off animals, you had to first make a fire.
I took out a flint wrapped neatly in cloth.
Good!
Hit the rose saber’s sheath with a stone to create a spark. Next, he lit the tinder and moved it to the pile of firewood he had gathered.
Grumbling-.
“Marie, come here and warm up.”
Marie, who was covering herself with a cloak, approached me awkwardly and sat down. Her wet clothes were hung around to dry.
“It looks like you sprained your foot earlier. How do you feel?”
“It’s okay.”
“Lift your legs.”
It was obvious that she would always say it was okay even if there was a problem, so she needed to see it with her own eyes.
He grabbed her slender legs and took off her boots.
“Is this really okay?”
“…”
Red, swollen ankles. I can see that I have blisters here and there because I walked for a long time.
I sighed without realizing it. If you leave these wounds alone, something big will happen. If something goes wrong, the foot may rot, and the entire leg may have to be amputated.
It’s more of a disaster than that. There is a long way to go, and if Mari is already in this condition, it will be very difficult to pass the Charrak Mountains.
When I gently grabbed her swollen ankle, Marie screamed like a baby bird.
“Hah!”
“Look at this. “How is it okay to be okay while hurting?”
She immediately took out her medicine bag from her bag. Find some grass and chew it in her mouth to help reduce her swelling. Then she spat the sticky paste onto the bandage and soaked it.
As she bandaged her ankle, she repeated her request.
“Don’t use this foot until tomorrow. Moving… I will decide based on your condition. So today, lie down and get plenty of rest.”
“Yes.”
I became speechless again.
I wanted to rest a bit, so I sat in front of the warm fireplace. And I stared blankly at the crackling flame.
Flame.
Flames as bright red as Tia’s hair.
Warm heat slowly washes away the rain-soaked body.
He too fell asleep at that time, intoxicated by this warmth.
In the end, I thought about Tia when she was having such a hard time. I’ve never been able to let such a kind flame shine.
Really sick…
“Ritz oppa.”
“Hmm?”
Marie’s voice suddenly cut in.
When I came to my senses and turned my head, he was holding my collar with one hand.
“Can I have some water? “I’m sorry for bothering you.”
“No. It’s here.”
After drinking water, Marie leaned her head on my thigh. It was so light that I didn’t even feel like my head was resting on it.
I thought this was the end of the day. So, I relaxed my shoulders, slowly closed my eyes, and was preparing to fall asleep.
“… “I was six years old.”
But so suddenly. The guy broke the silence.
“When I was very sick, so I was home alone. A white butterfly sat on my lap. I guess they thought my knees were hills. It folds its wings for a long time, rests, and then flies again. I got curious. How far can a butterfly fly? So, I disobeyed my brother’s warning and left the house, following the butterfly.”
“…”
“But the butterfly was so fast that I couldn’t follow it. It was so hard that she sat down on the ground, and the stones scratched her knees and bled. I didn’t cry. “I was more afraid that my brother would get scolded if he found out.”
“Surely. If it were Ruev, I would have scolded him.”
“But Ritsu oppa was passing by and saw me. When he saw the wound on his knee, he carried me to the pharmacy. Then I applied medicine and wrapped a bandage. Also, she asked her older sister Tia to lend her some of her pants and told her that she could wear them, so her brother wouldn’t find out.”
Was it like that? I don’t remember. If Marie was six years old, then I was also quite young.
But when I heard the story, I secretly started laughing. What I came up with as a child to hide Marie’s scars was ‘Tia’s pants’.
“Because I’m here with Ritsu oppa… “It reminded me of that time.”
“I see.”
Marie was weak from an early age and suffered from many illnesses. Before I started working at the pharmacy, I used to come to my house, that is, the village chief’s house, every day for a checkup.
It is common for young children to get sick. There were many instances where she suddenly became ill and died. To be honest, the villagers also thought that Mari would become one of those ‘common children.’
However, contrary to everyone’s expectations, Marie grew up fine. She said to everyone in unison. It is said that Ruyev survived because he took care of him with utmost sincerity.
It’s a great thing.
“…”
So I still had doubts.
‘Why’ did Marie follow me?
I don’t think I followed after you, enduring the arduous four-day journey that made your feet swollen, just to share these memories.
“Don’t you regret it?”
“Yes?”
“You walked non-stop. My feet were also swollen. Don’t you think I should just stay in Brisden?”
Marie blinked her blue eyes. And I asked back.
“Ritz, do you regret allowing me to follow you?”
“… !”
I felt like I was caught.
The one with her feet naked is Marie wearing a cloak over her naked body.
Rather, I felt like I was naked wearing wet clothes.
Hastily she shook her head.
“… I don’t regret it. However, it will become more and more difficult in the future, and I am worried about whether you will be able to keep up.”
“I won’t hold you back like I did today. If you still think I’m in the way… Please leave me and go.”
“Then Ruyev will come with an ax and cut my head off.”
“Lol…”
There is a moment of silence.
Now I wanted to listen honestly without laughing. What are Marie’s thoughts?
“So… “Why did you follow me?”
I asked seriously in a low voice.
Did my thoughts deepen due to the changed atmosphere? The answer did not come back for a long time.
I waited calmly for quite a while. Still, Marie remained silent and did not open her mouth.
“Marie?”
When I turned to her side, I saw that Marie had her eyes closed. She must have fallen asleep before I asked, wrapping herself in her cloak and sleeping peacefully.
“…”
Well, if you don’t know, just find out.
All you have to do is extend your hand and lightly grasp any part of Marie’s body and read her memories. A secret I didn’t tell Ruev. Even thoughts that don’t speak to me.
… But.
I couldn’t do that when I saw the girl sleeping so innocently in front of me.
Because I painfully realized that this ability is not omnipotent.
Just leaned her head against the wall and closed her eyes.
* * *
The next day.
We left the cabin and walked back into the mountains. The weather was clear, the clothes were dry well, and Marie’s feet were noticeably better, so it was decided that she could move.
I climbed several mountain peaks. The silence remained as always. Instead, if there was a slight change, it would be that we decided to look behind Marie sometimes and take enough breaks so that she could follow along.
Around that time when I was walking down the long and boring road of Charrak.
“Stop!”
Finally, we were able to arrive at our destination.
Marie and I raised our hands in front of the tip of the spear that flashed menacingly. The opponent is a boy. It was a kid of similar age to Marie.
But the voice was loud, and the force was great.
“Who are you?”
“I’m a passing traveler.”
For some reason, I thought it would end up like this, so I said what I had in mind beforehand.
Just like that guy did. I loosened my belt, placed the rose saber on the floor, and asked calmly.
“This is Charrak, right?”
“Uh. That’s right.”
“I want to meet the village chief. “Can you help me, Fache?”
“Uhm-.”
Charrak’s boy, Fache, looked down at me as if he was thinking.
His eyes widened when he belatedly realized his name was called.
Whistling!
The tip of the spear, which had fallen slightly, rose again in front of my face.
“W-what! You! How do you know my name?!”
Instead of answering, he pointed to the rose saber he had placed on the ground with a wink.
Fache will definitely remember it.
The unique blade of this sword.
“Uh… ?”
I immediately recognized it in the boy’s shaking eyes.
You came.
… Charrak.
