Chapter 8

Xiaoming stood at the classroom door, took a deep breath, and firmly gripped the secret letter from his mother.

---

As cherry blossoms danced in the wind, Misaki opened the old diary and read the words of promise written there.

---

"Are you already exhausted? You're not even running."

"I am running! I can't do it anymore. Please let me take a break."

The girl, panting heavily, asked for a break.

For Margin, walking at a brisk pace was no problem, but for the girl, it felt like a marathon. After about an hour of continuous running, the girl finally gave up.

"Damn, there's nothing I can do. Take a five-minute break."

"No, no, no, I can't do it. Five minutes is impossible."

"It's just a little further to the town."

"That's impossible."

Margin's "a little further" was about 10 kilometers. At this pace, they would arrive at dawn.

But Margin thought that even if he hurried from here, it wouldn't make much of a difference, so he decided to let the girl rest, who couldn't stop panting.

*Gulp* *Gulp* *Gulp*

While resting, Margin drank water from a cup.

"Can I have some water too?"

"Can't you take out your own water bottle?"

When Margin tried to take out the water bottle from the items he was carrying,

"My water bottle is empty. I drank it all."

*Huh?*

"What were you planning to do if I wasn't here?"

"I was thinking of finding a water source when I woke up."

"You... There's no water source on the road from where we camped to the next village. You'd have to go deep into the forest to find one."

"There must be a water source nearby."

The girl smiled brightly.

No way... If I hadn't happened to pass by, you would have been eaten by wolves or attacked by something in the forest and died.

"Go find a water source nearby."

Margin said this and tossed the water bottle to her.

"What?"

"It's not a 'what.' You said you could find a water source quickly, right? Go find it."

"It's too dark to find anything."

"Then I'll lend you this."

Margin handed her the magic light he was holding.

"Are you really telling me to go now?"

The girl looked bewildered, wondering if he was serious.

"You said you could find it quickly, right? This magic crystal might run out soon, so you should hurry."

Margin said this with a serious face.

"Are you really telling me to go?"

The girl started to pale, feeling that he was serious.

"You said you could find it quickly, right? I don't even know if there's a water source. I'm too scared to take such a risk."

Margin answered with a serious face.

"You're telling me to die."

"Look, you underestimated traveling alone. Ensuring safety and securing water are the basics of travel. Do you understand that you could have already been dead?"

"It's not my fault... I didn't have enough money for a carriage, and I didn't know the way."

The girl said this with a huff.

"Then you could have earned money for a carriage in Lionel or checked the route to the capital and the best time to leave. Thinking that everything will be fine once you reach the capital is naive. You're underestimating life too much."

"I'm not underestimating anything. What do you know about what I've been through to get here?"

"Of course, I don't know. But no matter what you've been through, it doesn't change the fact that you've made a foolish journey."

"You don't have to be so cold."

"It's not about being cold. The carriage fare from Lionel to the capital is about 10,000G. You don't even have that much money. How will you get food when you reach the next town? Do you have enough food to last until you reach the capital?"

"I still have some dried meat left..."

"Then eat it carefully. With your pace, it will take at least two more days to reach the capital. I hope you don't starve to death before then."

Margin's cold words made the girl cry.

"It's not my fault..."

Damn...

"500G."

Margin said this to the crying girl.

*Sniff* *Sniff* "What do you mean by 500G..."

"It's the cost of the water."

"It's too expensive!"

"If you don't want to pay, you can take a chance and look for a water source in the forest."

The girl glanced at the forest. It was already dark, and the forest was even darker. She sniffed and threw five copper coins at Margin.

What a rude way to pay, really.

"Here, 500G of water. Drink it carefully."

The girl took the cup, grumbling about the high price, and drank the water.

"Keep this for yourself."

Margin filled the water bottle and handed it to her.

"Oh, the contents..."

"Let's go after you drink."

"Are we going now?"

"If we stay here, your body will get cold and you won't be able to move."

It was early December, and it was quite cold at night.

Margin started walking at a slightly slower brisk pace without further ado.

---

They finally arrived at the town in the early afternoon.

"Listen, set up your tent in the square here today. There will be others setting up tents, so set yours near them, but not near the men's tents, only near the women's tents. It's better to be in a place where people can see you. Tomorrow, you can help unload the merchant's carriage and ask to ride with them to the capital."

"What?"

"It's not a 'what.' With your pace, you might not reach the next village by sunset even if you leave in the morning. Make sure to secure water before you leave."

Margin said this and returned her belongings.

"What about you?"

"I'm leaving now."

"Are you leaving me behind?"

"Of course. You're safe now, so there's no need for me to stay. See you."

"Ah..."

Margin quickly left the town. He wanted to visit the old couple who ran a potato farm in the next village and bring them some dried fish as a gift.

---

Margin arrived at the old couple's house before sunset.

"Hello."

"Oh, you're back already?"

The old woman greeted him.

"I got what I wanted. I have a lot of gifts for you to eat."

"Really? That's great."

"I know a fisherman. He gave me a lot. I can't eat it all alone, so you should enjoy it."

"Thank you. Dried fish is expensive, so I'll enjoy it. You can stay for the night."

"Sure, I'll stay. Where's the old man?"

"He's delivering goods to the capital and will be back soon. Come in."

The old woman said she would cook dinner, and Margin started preparing duck hot pot. When the old man returned, he was happy to see Margin.

"Ah, you're here. Welcome back."

"Thanks for the delivery. We're having duck hot pot tonight."

"That's a feast. Can you bring out some wine, old woman?"

"Sure, I can do that."

"I have some alcohol, so let's drink that. I think it goes better with tonight's hot pot."

Margin was making duck hot pot. Soy sauce doesn't go well with wine, so he had developed some alcohol with Misty during the hero party days, like sweet potato shochu.

He mixed the sweet potato shochu with hot water and gave it to the two of them.

"Wow, it has a unique flavor that can make you addicted."

"I think it goes well with the hot pot. Eat, eat."

The two of them, puzzled by the black pot, took a bite.

"Wow, it's delicious."

"Really, it's sweet and savory, and the duck and scallions are delicious."

They were very happy. Duck is delicious but expensive, and hunting it is quite difficult.

After that, Margin started eating, and the three of them enjoyed a late night together, saying it was delicious.

---

The girl left behind in the previous town

The girl, grumbling about being told to set up her tent near others, decided to set it up away from everyone else. She made a fire in front of her tent, boiled water, and ate the remaining dried meat for dinner.

I'm not full at all...

The growing girl swallowed the dried meat reluctantly, and her stomach growled.

"You're eating a lonely meal, aren't you?"

A man approached her.

"Do you need something?"

"If you're still hungry, why don't you come and eat with us?"

"What?"

"We still have some stew if you want it."

"But... I don't have any money."

The girl, who had been asked for money by Margin for water, thought she would be charged again.

"Idiot, it's not a meal you have to pay for. You don't have to pay."

"Really?"

"Of course. A chance encounter is a bond. I felt sorry for a young girl eating a lonely meal. Come with me."

"Okay."

The girl, happy to be offered food, followed him.

From a tent set up a distance away, loud voices could be heard.

"We're noisy, so we set up our tent away from others. Come on in. Hey, I brought someone. We still have some food left, right? Feed her."

"I'm intruding..."

"Come in, come in. Here, eat and warm up."

Inside were two men, who seemed to be in a good mood from drinking.

"It's warm and delicious."

"Right? Eat, eat."

They encouraged her to eat without hesitation. Unlike the cold man earlier, these were kind people. The girl, feeling at ease, started chatting happily.

"Are you cold? Have a drink."

They offered her alcohol.

"I don't drink... I'm still a minor."

"Come on, we started drinking when we were 10. There's no law against minors drinking."

The girl, encouraged by the three of them, took a sip of the alcohol.

"I feel a bit dizzy."

"See, alcohol is great."

"Hehe, that's right..."

The girl, feeling dizzy from her first drink, swayed.

"Let's have some fun now."

"What kind of fun?"

"Obviously, what do you think when a man and a woman are alone?"

The men, who had been kind until now, started to take off her clothes.

"What are you doing?"

"Stop struggling. I'll make you feel good soon."

"No, don't touch me."

The girl, whose speech was slurred from the alcohol and who couldn't move well, was slapped across the face by one of the men.

"Stop struggling, I told you."

The girl, terrified, froze.

"I brought her, so I get to go first."

"Damn, hurry up."

The men, ignoring the trembling girl, decided who would go first.

"No!"

The man covered her, and the girl screamed.

"What are you doing?"

A woman opened the tent at the last moment.

"What do you want? You're ruining our fun. Do you want to join in?"

"Shut up. If you don't want to be cut, let go of the girl."

The woman drew her sword. The men, who thought about fighting back, saw two other women with daggers and bows. They were at a disadvantage, being drunk.

"Damn, fine. Just so you know, we were just trying to get her to repay us for the free meal."

The girl, trembling, hugged the woman who saved her.

"You're an idiot. Come with me."

The three women took the girl to their tent.