Chapter 8
Arilleti bowed her head immediately.
“Thank you for the food and rest. I’m leaving now.”
Since she saved Sir Dunken, let’s consider the debt she owed from her past life paid.
“It seems you have a knack for scurrying away.”
Glenn Hezeite strolled alongside Arilleti, matching her tiny steps.
Arilleti hardened her heart. No matter what he said to persuade her, she absolutely would not give in.
“Where are you going? Should I take you there?”
Gasp, she was tempted. She was just worrying about how she would find the faraway White Forest.
However, the path to the White Forest was unknown to any outsider. The only ones who knew the exact route were the Sages themselves, and speaking of it to others was strictly forbidden. Arilleti herself only became aware of the path after awakening her Sage abilities. The only exception was those sanctioned by the Forest, but ordinary humans did not qualify.
‘This is a path I have to navigate alone. I can’t be tempted like this.’
Glenn looked down at the tight-lipped Arilleti and offered again.
“It’s cold outside. If you don’t want to tell me your destination, I can at least take you partway. How about it?”
He was a young man who had just shed his boyishness. His eyes and mouth, smiling sweetly, were clear and handsome.
But the princes were also deceptively handsome.
“I’ll just take the thought.”
Arilleti scurried out the castle gate. And was immediately blown back inside the gate by the wind.
“Ouch!”
“Oops. See, I told you it was cold outside.”
Glenn skillfully snatched Arilleti from the air and playfully chided her. Arilleti’s vision spun from doing a somersault in mid-air. Her cheeks stung as if she’d been slapped by a gust of wind.
“Uuugh.”
No, I can’t even get out?
“It’s like this every day during this season. Because of the snowstorms that rage two or three times a day, you can’t leave the fortress during the extreme cold. I don’t know where you want to go, but it would be better for you to accept my help. Only the territory people know the timing of when the blizzards subside.”
“Th-then just partway…”
Before Arilleti could protest, Glenn began walking with long strides. The main gate quickly receded.
“Arilleti. I’m pretty good at reading people.”
Did he mean he was good at discerning character?
He had refused the greedy 1st Prince and the cowardly 2nd Prince, so his claim wasn’t entirely wrong. But his credibility plummeted in light of his choice of the 3rd Prince, which led to self-destruction.
Glenn, who had slung the bag he took from Arilleti over his shoulder, spoke cheerfully. “In my opinion, you seem to be a rare and noble person. You don’t seem like an ordinary child.”
“I am, though…”
“Even so, since you’re five years old, you need to eat properly if you’re going on a long journey. Don’t you think you should grow at least three more handspans?”
Arilleti was speechless.
They barely had enough bread for themselves, but he was telling her to grow three handspans? Why is he giving away so much? Is he a pushover?
No.
The family members of Hezeite were not pushovers; they were shrewd foxes.
As proof, Arilleti was imprisoned in the Lord’s castle that very day.
“Little Lady, how are you today? Does your throat still hurt? Hmm?”
“It doesn’t hurt today. I can go out.”
“Little Sage, be patient for a little longer, even if you feel stifled. The doctor said you shouldn’t walk around yet. When you’re all better, shall we go horseback riding with Uncle again?”
She didn’t know why they started calling her ‘Little Sage’ either!
Tanesa bathed Arilleti in warm water, dressed her in fluffy cotton clothes, and took good care of her, distributing food. Among the knights, Dunken visited frequently.
Arilleti clung to Dunken, the most familiar of them, and put on a desperate display of affection.
“Uncle, I want to go out. Please let me go out.”
“No, Little Sage. It’s too cold outside. Shiver-shiver. Oh my, it’s cold.”
“It’s not cold. I want to go home. I have a home…”
Dunken suddenly looked teary-eyed.
Arilleti realized her mistake too late.
‘Oh right, my family was purged.’
In the eyes of others, Arilleti was an orphan who had lost both parents and been abandoned in the snow just a few weeks or months ago. Everyone knew she had no place to return to.
Not only Dunken but also Tanesa and the knights who were gathered outside the door, peeking in, all sniffled together.
There was no need for all that…
‘They definitely aren’t going to just let me go.’
A feeling of helplessness washed over her.
Truthfully, if she were them, she would also immediately seize a five-year-old child who tried to leave, clutching a single bag, to cross the snowy fields.
Dunken wiped his moist eyes, covered his mouth with his hand, and whispered.
“You know, Little Sage, we know you saved us.”
“…!”
“I remember everything you said that day.”
“I didn’t say anything!”
Cold sweat broke out, but Arilleti adamantly denied it.
Dunken, who resembled a simple potato, grinned and pinched Arilleti’s cheek.
“Thank you, Arilleti. I haven’t properly thanked you, have I?”
“Thank you…?”
“If you hadn’t been there, we would have been annihilated at the Gringen Bridge. I don’t have a family to support, so my death would be the end of it for me, but Roel has three children. Tanesa also has a grandmother living with her.”
“…”
“Thank you for saving us. I will certainly repay this debt of gratitude.”
Arilleti’s assertion that she hadn’t done anything was lightly ignored.
But she didn’t feel bad at all.
A person who had never survived up to this point in her past lives was perfectly alive and expressing gratitude.
I am not a person worthy of receiving thanks. Quite the opposite, in fact…
A strange, burning sensation pricked at her heart. Hot and stinging…
“We look forward to working with you in the future, Little Sage!”
Uh, uh, this isn’t supposed to happen…
‘This is a disaster. My debt of gratitude is steadily increasing.’
Arilleti stared seriously at the Pané (bread bowl) on the table.
‘It’s troublesome if they keep adding to the debt. But…’
Ever since she received Dunken’s thanks, she had illogical fantasies whenever she saw these people.
In fact, the others were no different from Uncle Dunken. Although the timing of the tragedy varied for each person, the Hezeite Count family was wiped out in both previous timelines. By the Bertel Empire Imperial Family, whom Arilleti served.
Ultimately, by herself.
‘Then, the only person who can change that future is me.’
Is there anyone who understands both the 1st Prince and 2nd Prince factions as thoroughly as I do?
Arilleti’s expression darkened.
‘But I… I really don’t want to get involved in the succession struggle anymore.’
Since the end was never good, she hesitated. Moreover, she wasn’t yet certain that she could trust these people.
Meanwhile, an irresistibly savory scent wafted up from the Pané.
A child’s body is highly inefficient. Arilleti sniffed instinctively, following her cravings.
‘It smells delicious…’
It looked very appetizing. It was a dish made by hollowing out a loaf of rye bread, cut horizontally, and filling it with creamy pasta. The removed bread inside was neatly cut and placed on a plate for dipping in the sauce.
“Are you just going to stare at it without eating?”
A voice suppressing a laugh. It was Glenn Hezeite.
“You’re drooling, baby. Eat quickly. That way, you’ll regain your energy to scurry away again.”
Indeed, saliva was streaming down Arilleti’s mouth. After days of feeling weak from using her power, she now automatically salivated whenever she saw warm bread and soup.
But aside from its appetizing appearance, the quality of the bread was not very good. The same was true for the one on Glenn’s plate.
‘It’s by no means a high-quality meal.’
They typically use stale bread that has become hard over time as a bowl like this. It can be softened by soaking it in sauce.
‘They probably thawed it from a frozen state.’
Ultimately, it was the best dish they could make with limited ingredients. She was raiding a moth-eaten pantry because there was nothing else to take. She felt pity for her own situation, but she was more astonished by the territory’s financial state.
‘They’re either going to starve to death or freeze to death before the princes even get to them.’
