Chapter 3

"Ethan, today we're going to dig up the potatoes in this row."

"I know!"

It has been three years since Ethan and I came here. I am eight years old, and Ethan is six. Despite our lack of strength, we work in our family's garden.

Pulling out potatoes is a tough but enjoyable task. It's fun to see the various sizes of potatoes, big and small, emerge from the soil, showing their clean skin.

In my older sister role, I check again with my hands after Ethan has dug to make sure no potatoes are left behind.

"There aren't any left! I already checked properly."

"No, look, there are still medium-sized potatoes left like this."

Ethan looked disappointed. Whether in running races or field work, Ethan can't match me, who is two years older. I'm even taller than him. But that's just the way it is.

Eventually, we got tired from harvesting potatoes and decided to take a break. We picked and peeled the sweet and sour ponka fruits, eating them while juice dripped from our hands and chins. The sweet and sour ponka serves as our drinking water. We can eat as many as we want.

"Still, it's strange. Alesia has lived here longer than I have, but she hasn't seen the rain even once, right?"

I find this topic difficult.

"Of course, it rained a little during the day the other day."

"No, I mean the rain that falls every night. It's fine and gentle, and it's a really wonderful rain."

"Hmm."

My parents' faces, who were listening to our conversation nearby, were slightly tense.

Two years ago, on my sixth birthday, I was told about my power. I was strictly warned not to tell Ethan about the secret of the rain, in case he accidentally mentioned it to someone else.

"Because it's so tiring at night. I can't stay awake, so there's nothing I can do about it."

"Sometime, if we can stay awake at night, let's go out into the night rain together. It feels really good."

I didn't respond.

This conversation has been repeated many times.

I've asked my mother a few times to wake me up at night, but the rain always stops just as I get out of bed and go outside. So I've given up.

After the break, we cleaned the mud off the potatoes and lined them up in the shade. That's the end of today's work. We returned home and washed our hands and feet at the large barrel where rainwater is collected.

We use the rainwater directly to wash our hands and feet, and we drink filtered water from inside the house. We pour rainwater into a barrel layered with sand and charcoal from the top and drink the water that comes out from the bottom. It's surprisingly delicious water.

Ethan apparently often told his parents, "If we sell the water, we'll definitely make a fortune," but the adults don't do it.

Ethan's parents, Uncle Nathan and Aunt Benita, realized my ability after living here for a while.

When I take a nap and it's sunny, it starts raining, and the night rain starts at a fixed time even when the moon and stars are out. It stops when I wake up. It would be strange not to notice.

So Uncle Nathan and Aunt Benita don't call relatives they want to bring here and don't sell the water. They are afraid that if someone finds out about my power, I won't be able to stay here. If I leave, it means the end of this garden.

"If it gets out that there's a girl who can make it rain in a desert country, Alesia, you don't know what will happen. I can't imagine a happy outcome."

Aunt Benita treats me like her own daughter.

Our garden, centered around two houses, spreads out in a circular shape with vegetable fields, orchards, wheat fields, and pastures. The camels in the pasture are too big to be attacked by foxes or desert cats, but chickens are attacked. So we raise chickens next to the house, and camels are raised next to the chickens when they are young.

Various animals enter the garden seeking the precious greenery in the desert. We want to build a fence, but it would be expensive to encircle the entire garden with wood. Even if we could afford it, buying a large amount of wood would cause rumors. So the pasture is connected to the desert. My father has set traps in various places around the perimeter, but it's not a perfect defense.

That day, the four of us—me, Ethan, my father, and Uncle Nathan—went to the orchard to pick necta fruits. Necta is red, with a thin skin and yellow flesh. It's a delicious fruit filled with sweet juice.

Ethan and I walked along, picking the necta fruits that were lower on the trees. We were a bit away from my father and Uncle Nathan, who were harvesting the fruits higher up. Then we saw a wild stray horse enter the orchard and start munching on the necta fruits.

"Ethan, let's tell the adults right away."

Wild horses don't get along with humans and can be aggressive. But Ethan wasn't afraid of the wild horse he was seeing for the first time.

"Why not! Let's catch it and bring it home. We can get a horse for free."

"It's impossible for us. That horse hasn't been trained."

Six-year-old Ethan hasn't been listening to me lately. He ignored my warning and approached the horse.

"Come here! Over here! Come home with me!"

Ethan approached the large horse. I didn't want to startle the horse by shouting, so I ran up to Ethan and tried to pull him back by his arm.

"What are you doing! Stop it!"

*Whinny!*

Ethan's loud shout startled the horse, which reared up and turned around. It was about to kick Ethan. If he were kicked by such a large horse, he could die.

I tackled Ethan and covered him. Immediately, a violent impact hit my body, and I was thrown away.