Chapter 71 – Shadows Under Feet (4)
I stared out the window blindly. I was wondering if I could hear the cries of some flying beast somewhere far away. But the sky was still quiet, and only a cute blind girl was crying beneath it.
“Anyway, I like the texture. How do you like it? It’s pretty.”
“Yes. It’s pretty.”
“Try to be sincere.”
“It’s pretty. It’s really pretty.”
Haru frowned as if he was dissatisfied with my indifferent reaction. However, he quickly turned his head and stretched out his arm toward Saya.
“Then it would be nice to get a new one even if you don’t know what happened like this. Saya unnie. Isn’t there something like that here?”
“I don’t have anything like that…Or would you like me to draw eyes on it?”
“Yes?”
“Wait a minute.”
While looking around the store, Saya picked up the pen that was on the table as if she had a good idea. Then, suddenly, he started painting over Haru’s eye patch.
“Uh…Wait. What are you doing right now? Can I just draw like this?”
“Would you like to draw the other side of Lope?”
“Is it so?”
“No, can I do this? Is there anyone who can stop me?”
As if he didn’t like being treated like a toy, Haru waved his hand and resisted. However, we ended up drawing two pupils. And, of course, the results were devastating.
“Hmm…”
“Hmm.”
“…Forcing yourself to laugh is more annoying, so why don’t you just laugh?”
“Sorry, Haru. But it was drawn pretty well.”
“Please shut up.”
Haru said something harsh for the first time in a while, and Saya forced herself to laugh as even her ears turned red. Then he stabbed her in the side and begged me for my consent.
“It’s cute. Isn’t it Lope?”
“Yes.”
“…Other people’s kids are so cute, right?”
“Huh? Yeah…”
The last words were so low that only I could hear them. I nodded, not knowing what that meant. In the meantime, Saya’s gaze scanned my body meaningfully.
I wanted to ask what the hell that meant, but it was time to go. I took a deep breath, carved this brief moment of peace into my heart, and picked up my backpack and weapons that I had set down on the floor.
“Then let’s move now. Let’s go to the government office and see if there is any food.”
“I wish I had a real cake this time.”
“Yes. I hope so.”
For the first time, I agreed with the bullshit of the day. It seemed that I was somewhat in love with this guy without even realizing it. As we headed out the door again with the two of us, the warm soil greeted us. One day, as soon as he stepped on the ground, he vomited his displeasure.
“Sir. Come to think of it, I need to get a new pair of shoes. Maybe because the ground is like this, the shoelaces keep coming undone.”
“Can I help you, Haru?”
“No, sister. You can do it even if you can’t see it.”
Haru shook his head and started tying his shoelaces with a familiar hand. Seeing that, I pressed my foot on the dirt floor for no reason.
“…”
No matter how you think about it, the ground was too soft. I didn’t know what kind of phenomenon this would lead to, but it was certain that it was at least a bad omen.
I walked towards the government office and looked around several grocery stores, but unfortunately there was no clear harvest. It seems that it was unreasonable to expect the same luck twice as at a clothing store.
Rebecca, on the other hand, was sitting on the steps of the government office with a backpack that had become noticeably heavy. She looked at us and awkwardly raised her hand.
“I got some bandages and antiseptic stuff, just in case. How was that?”
“I packed some clothes, but I couldn’t find any food. I’ll have to look for more.”
“Right.”
She was about to say something but then shut her mouth. I couldn’t find anything to say, so I just scratched my head. Then she shook her head and took out one of the overcoats she had folded and held in her arms.
“And this is Rebecca’s clothes. She doesn’t know the size, so I only brought her outerwear. Is that okay?”
“Mine?”
“Yes. It’s going to get colder.”
“That…”
Rebecca was speechless. Her attitude seemed to be completely unexpected. However, she soon smiled lightly and accepted the coat I handed her.
“Thank you, Lope.”
“Then let’s move. Where do we go?”
“This way. Follow me.”
She followed her path with a lighter step. And this time I stood next to him and moved with him. Anyway, we can’t stay in this mood until we reach the port.
Of course, this alone cannot solve everything. It was still awkward between us and the problem still remained. The footsteps that kept sinking deep into the ground seemed to represent Rebecca’s situation.
“Mistress. Shoelaces really.”
“…”
“Hmm…”
In the midst of the silence, Haru tried to break the mood somehow, but it was of no use. In the end, I shut my mouth for a day, and an ominous silence came over me. And that was never a good thing.
If this continues, I don’t know where the sloppy steps will lead.
“…Lope.”
“Yes.”
In the end, it was Rebecca who spoke first. After much hesitation, she spoke in a cautious voice.
“It seems like I heard horses neighing somewhere earlier. If I look for them, there might be a few.”
“It’s lucky. We can shorten the time to the port.”
“Do you know how to ride a horse?”
“I did learn it as part of experiential learning at the academy.”
“Yes. I see.”
The conversation that had barely begun was over too quickly. Because that wasn’t the story I wanted to share in the first place. And until the story was brought up, this moment of silence could not end.
So Rebecca struggled to open her mouth again.
“Lope. What happened before was…”
“What are you talking about?”
“The thing that happened on the train then.”
“The one that pushed Erica.”
I dig up the metaphors and bring out the naked truth. I hadn’t looked at Rebecca’s expression, but it was clear that she was darker than before.
Meanwhile, her feet continued to sink. I could feel the heat rising from the ground getting stronger. Rebecca-san’s heavy voice came from the muddy sensation.
“Yeah. About that time.”
“It wasn’t a mistake, was it?”
“Rope.”
“If it’s not, tell me no. If it did, I’ll have to apologize. If it’s really a coincidence, it’s just an unfortunate tragedy. No one should feel guilty about that.”
“…”
“Is that so, Rebecca?”
“No. It’s not.”
“Is that so?”
“I am…”
The answer she had been hiding from her eyes lingered in her mouth for a long time. However, since everyone already knew the truth, there was no point in hiding it any longer. So, her lips were parted by fate rather than sincerity.
“I did it on purpose.”
“Okay.”
And I calmly nodded. I didn’t induce her to answer by expecting some other twist. I just wanted to hear it. That alone ended the value of this conversation.
But Rebecca was in a position to add something. So, unlike her, I dragged her story along.
“The reason must be the reason you think. I don’t want to ask you to understand. I don’t deserve it. I just couldn’t deny it anymore.
“Rebecca, you can stop.”
“Rope…”
“There’s only one thing I want to ask you.”
It was at that point that I looked into Rebecca’s face. She was my teacher who was always upright and cold like a machine. But now her face was mangled by the haze rising from under her ground. My idol was only blurred by the overlaid illusion.
There was only one answer she had to receive now.
“If only. Assuming that the very first time in a while the same situation would come back…”
“…”
“Can you be sure you won’t do the same thing again?”
“That…”
…
At that moment, Rebecca and I stopped at the same time. Both of their feet were simultaneously submerged under the dirt floor. The hot energy had now dug up to her ankles, spreading unpleasant heat all over her body.
Meanwhile, a cold wind from the west ruffled his sweaty bangs. When I realized it, my whole body was drenched in sweat. Rebecca was also wiping the sweat from her forehead with a cool metal prosthesis.
She gazed at the scenery around her for a while. Then he brought up another story that did not answer my question.
“The ground is too soft.”
“…I mean.”
And I had to agree. No matter how you think about it, the ground was too soft. The frozen ground simply wasn’t leveled by the heat of the melt. It was definitely different from the feeling I felt in the village earlier.
Only then did I raise my head and look at the scenery around me. Without realizing it, we were walking in the vast wilderness, quite far from the village. No matter how much I turned my gaze, all I could see was the distant horizon and noticeably smaller buildings.
As I moved my foot once more, a mound of soft dirt trickled down. The feeling of stepping on it was closer to a sandy beach rather than hardened dirt. However, it is absurd to say that the land turns into sand, so what should I say instead?
It felt as if someone had turned the ground over.
…
And there was a strangely strange reality in that home.
Suddenly, a story we had shared before came to mind. Where did the hatchlings come from? At that time, there were two possibilities presented. Or have been sleeping on this land for a very long time. Or it was born from a dragon egg that was attacked not too long ago.
But now that I think about it, there was no reason to divide it in such a dichotomous way. If both. Eggs that have been dormant in this land since long ago. And the eggs the dragon planted. If both of those types are in the ground.
Come to think of it, the dragon that was said to have arrived at that time was peculiarly small in size.
“…”
Suddenly, a series of processes came into my mind. One of the dragons flying to this land escaped from the herd and arrived on the continent first. Since he was the smallest and weakest of the group, he would have needed to preoccupy a spot in order to lay eggs safely.
That’s why it ran first, laid eggs all over the continent, and created an environment where it was easy for the chicks to hatch. He was then chased away by humans, but he would have achieved his goal.
But there was one thing he overlooked. That there were already eggs laid by a certain dragon on this continent. After their mother died, they did not find the time to be born and cooled down in the cold earth.
They should have died like that, but unfortunately they were strong. Like plant seeds, they waited for the time to hatch and accidentally opened their eyes thanks to the efforts of other dragons. And I was the first to break out of the egg and enjoy the moment of liberation I finally met.
And the rest, the eggs the little dragon laid now…
“…!”
Only then did I realize that the assumption I had made this morning was wrong. The reason why I didn’t notice a single hatchling on the train. It was never because they couldn’t catch up with us.
That…
“…Not yet. They haven’t hatched.”
Because I’m not mature enough. Because I can’t find the time to hatch. Eggs that were still asleep in the ground.
Maybe we ran on top of those eggs.
Waking them up from their long slumber with the sound of a huge train.
When I remembered that thought, I looked back.
Rebecca was standing next to me so I didn’t have to check. Saya was always by my side, so there was no reason for that. But a day. The damn troublemaker didn’t catch my eye at once.
“Day!”
“Yes? I’m here.”
I hurriedly turned my head to the voice, and fortunately, Haru looked up not far away. He sat down on the floor, tying his shoelaces that had come untied again. At least seven steps. It was only that far away, but I hurriedly moved on.
And at that moment, the ground exploded.
As soon as Haru stood up, a pile of dirt gushed out and blocked his view. Arrogantly, the touch of the earth that flew up to the sky covered the sun. I gritted my teeth and raised my head, and the impurities mixed between them came into my eyes.
It was a piece of pure white egg that I saw in the field one day. Then it was dry in the cold winter air, but now it was full of slime. When I caught that fact, I urgently called her name.
“Miss Rebecca!”
“Damn it…!”
“Keeeee!!!”)
As she answered, the monster’s cry erupted. As soon as it hatched from the egg, it roared wildly as if claiming ownership of the land.
And it became a kind of signal and started to shake the whole sleeping land.
“Lope!!!”
“…!!!”
With a huge earth quake, the soil started popping up here and there. Although the density was not dense, it was cramped enough considering the size of the guys to be awakened. White egg fragments scattered in the air. And the resounding sound of birth. It was a moment that the mother of the boys would have been thrilled with.
The only downside was that they had no food to eat, but our presence more or less offset that shortcoming. Although it may not be enough, it should be good enough for at least one person to enjoy the pleasure of a first meal.
The moment I realized my situation, I cried out with all my might.
“Haru! Run!”
