Chapter 95: Chapter 2, Episode 20
Translated by KaiesV
Edited by KaiesV
As Keith-dono said, there was an old hut at the end of a short walk.
I opened the door with a dull creak, and the dusty smell made me cough.
「I know it’s a tough place for you, young miss, but bear with me.」
「No, it’s fine. You don’t have to worry about it. This is not the time.」
The hut looks as if it will collapse at any moment, but I can’t afford the luxury. It is not necessary to weigh it against my own life.
I entered the hut and looked around. Sure, the whole place is in shambles, but it seems to have the bare minimum of what I need, I thought as I looked at the cluttered items on the shelves. If I can hide and equip myself, there is nothing wrong with that.
「Dry your clothes first. You don’t want to catch a cold.」
I spread out a large piece of cloth from the hut that had probably been used as a blanket by the villagers. It was used and smelled a little, but the size was just right.
「Okay. Please take off your clothes and wrap yourself in this.」
I handed the cloth to Keith-dono, and then extended my hand to him to give me what I had taken off as soon as possible.
「…Huh?」
Keith opened his mouth and then shook his head in disapproval.
「Wait, wait. You should dry yourself first, and I’ll do it later.」
In response, I shake my head no, not to be outdone.
「No, you should go first, Keith-dono. You have to run to the village to get some clothes, so I’ll go after you.」
Dresses are not so easy to dry. Given that we couldn’t make a fire for fear of being detected, I decided that it would be faster to dry his shirts and pants first and have them go to the village to get clothes.
「You’re a lady, right?」
I understand the idea that if you are a lady, it is natural to put yourself first. I understand what you are trying to say, especially if you are a knight, from the standpoint of protecting the knight, but to be honest, it’s a hassle to ask and answer questions.
「There is no time for rattling on. I won’t hear any objections. Take it off quickly!」
My tone has become abusive along the way, but I don’t care anymore. I wouldn’t want to wear a wet dress forever either, and if there was a change of clothes, I’d be the first one to change. Even though I understand in my head that it is an emergency, I inevitably resist the idea of being in my undergarments in front of a man. I don’t mean to be so presumptuous as to think that such a manly man would attack me, but inevitably, fear prevails over shame. I don’t have time to go to the trouble of explaining it in detail.
「But…」
「But what is the point? Or what? Shall I undress you with my own hands?」
「!!」
It is a threat, in a way. I say so with my mouth, but I know I can’t do it. However, pushed by my swordsmanship, Keith-dono reluctantly put his hand on the uniform of the Red Lotus.
「Good. Now, please hand me your shirt so I can squeeze it. I’ll leave the trousers to you.」
「Understood……」
I’m glad he’s given up on the idea. The shirt he handed me was naturally soaked. When I squeeze it as hard as I can, it makes a chattering sound and is sucked into the ground.
「Okay, this much will dry out while you’re moving around.」
“Pang” and spread his shirt, popped the last of the water out and I said,
「What about the pants?」
「…No problem there.」
While I was frantically wringing water out of his shirt, Keith-dono was quickly putting his pants back on. It’s so quick when a man squeezes out the water with his own strength, isn’t it? I handed him the shirt, thinking so in my mind.
「Well then, Keith-dono. I’ll be hiding here waiting for you, so please run along.」
Full speed ahead if possible, I smile.
「………You… No, it’s nothing.」
Nhhn?? What’s with that implied tone?
「Understood. I’ll be right back.」
I am sure he had something else he wanted to say, but Keith-dono seemed to have second thoughts and said that to me,
「Yes. Take care.」
That’s why I didn’t pursue it and let it go. I’m curious, but that’s not my priority right now.
As soon as Keith-dono left the hut and I was alone, I quickly pulled up my dress. Even though I know no one is watching, I wrap myself up in the blanket that Keith-dono used for the time being.
「I never thought this would come in handy…」
I muttered and pulled out a pouch under my tucked-up dress.
「Thank you, Douglas-sama.」
A parting gift from Douglas-sama at Anemone Jewelers. It was this pouch that could be attached to my thigh with a belt. Inside is a small folding knife, some pills wrapped in oiled paper, a lighter, and a common coin.
When Meari and I opened the box that day and saw this, we were quite stumped. It was a choice that would never have been made as a gift to a woman.
As expected, Meari laughed hysterically and I couldn’t do anything but twist my head. Well, on the day when Douglas-sama gave me a gift that would make a woman happy, I was surprised in a different way as to what was going on, but at that time I wondered what that man thought I was all about.
I don’t know what Douglas-sama was thinking when he gave me this pouch as a parting gift, but it is in fact this. I have a feeling that it will be very useful from now on.
I undid my tattered hair, tucked away all the jewelry I was wearing in my pouch, and prepared for the return of Keith-dono at any moment. All I have to do now is to change into the clothes that Keith-dono will bring.
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Then, I waited patiently for a few moments, keeping my breath under control.
「………?」
I was beginning to feel uneasy about the fact that Keith-dono, who had said he would be back soon, was not coming back soon.
The sun, which was high when we arrived at the hut, was beginning to slowly fade and night would be upon us in a few more hours. If Keith-dono didn’t come back, I would have to wait in the dark. I hoped that would not be the case. I never thought it would take this long, and now I feel a twinge of regret for having driven Keith-dono away as if to tell him to get a move on.
「Don’t tell me, something happened to him…?」
I didn’t even want to think about that. If Keith-dono had been found by our pursuers, he might not come back no matter how long I waited. In that case, what happens to me? What should I do? Should I leave the hut before the sun goes down completely to search for a village I don’t know the location of? Or should I wait in the dark overnight, believing in the possibility that Keith-dono will return?
In the midst of my anxiety, my mind returns to the few days I spent trapped in the half-underground of the mansion.
I’m not a prisoner like I was then, nor is my dignity as a woman in danger. There is no proof that my life is in danger. And the fact that the bandit might be looking for me is just a guess.
Going out to look for them is easy. Just leave the hut and find your way to the village. But I can only do that for a few moments before the sun goes down. If I can’t find my way, I will have to stay out in the dark night.
「…Arrgh, dammit!」
All that comes out of my mouth is frustration at what I can’t control.
No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t make up my mind to take action, and the sun was setting rapidly, resulting in a situation where I had no choice but to wait in the hut. Fortunately, the moonlight was brighter than I had expected and it was not pitch black. This made me feel a little less anxious. I had no choice but to make up my mind.
However, no matter how long I waited, he never seemed to come back to the house. Should I be worried or should I be heartbroken that he may have abandoned me? For now, I just keep waiting.
I was in a corner of the hut, where the moonlight didn’t reach, with a blanket over my head and a small, shrunken body, trying to hide my breath. If anyone other than Keith-dono were to break in, it would be in the faint hope that I might be able to hide in the darkness in the cluttered hut.
The sound of insects could be heard outside the hut.
If I waited like this, I wondered if the knight accompanying me from Gran Kingdom would come to pick me up instead of Keith-dono. But I don’t know how much was washed away and how long it would take to get here from the place of the attack. It is sadly too unlikely to have such hope.
How long had I been doing so? As the minutes ticked by, I cowered at the faint sound of footsteps coming from outside the hut. Slowly, slowly, but surely, there were signs of people coming toward the hut.
It was not Keith-dono. I realized that instantly. Because if it was him, there was no need to be so careful.
「…!」
My heart began to beat horribly with nervousness. I clutched a small knife in my hand and prayed in my heart, shouting in my mind, please let this bad idea work.
The door opens with a creak, and a tall man emerges from the doorway. The silhouette of the man shows that he is wearing a hood, but his face is unrecognizable.
The hood swung as he looked around, and then, with a snap, his sights were fixed on me.
「…Hiee!」
A drawl spilled from my throat, no doubt giving away my location. With a quiet movement, the man drew the sword at his waist and slowly pointed the tip of it at me.
「You, what’s your name?」
The man asked me in a muffled voice. He must have covered his mouth with a cloth or something. I guessed he was covering his mouth with a cloth or something because he didn’t want me to see his face.
「…And who are you?」
I say this back in a trembling voice.
「Speak your name.」
A man stubbornly searching for my identity. The fact that he didn’t cut me down without questioning me is because he still wants proof that I am Marshallie Gracis.
「You first identify yourself. First things first.」
I stand up, prepared and fearful, with the tip of the sword pointed at me. Calmly, I keep my eyes on the man who is slowly approaching and wait for the right moment. The chance to escape is surely fleeting.
「Your name… ah?」
I was waiting for the moment when the man stepped on the foot bellows, when he was caught by something.
「Hmph!!」
I threw the blanket I was wearing to block the man’s view and pulled with all my might on the rope I had prepared. It is an old shelf that immediately attacks the man. This is a trap I made while waiting for Keith-dono.
「Wha–!?」
Ignoring the rattling sound and the man’s panicked stomping, I slipped past him and ran out of the hut.
「Wait!!!」
No one waits to be told so. I shook off the restraint and fled into the woods at full speed.
It was a good thing I had prepared for such an eventuality. The dress had been torn to the knee with a knife to make it easier to run in, and a piece of rope had been made from the remnants of the dress and tied to the shelf so that it would fall down. It was a battered shelf, so it could be done. I’m glad it worked. Thanks to that, I’m still alive.
But it is still too early to be relieved. The man will be coming after me soon. The sound of him running through the woods should give away the direction I am. So I have to hide somewhere before they catch up with me. But where should I hide? I couldn’t find anywhere to hide, and that left me at a loss.
The sound of the man’s footsteps approaching from behind. When I was waiting in the hut, I was relieved to see the bright moonlight, but now that moonlight makes me completely visible to the man. I had escaped to the woods, but perhaps it was after the trees had been cut down, but they did not protect me from the moonlight.
「Hyah…!」
My legs tangled in fear as the man approached, and I fell forward with all my might. I tried to stand up in a panic, but the blade of the sword that struck me in the back of the neck made my body go rigid.
「Haah, haah, you’re doing it, aren’t you?」
They finally caught up with us. I had managed to escape once, but now I was back to square one. The word “desperate” passed through my mind.
I gulped and slowly turned around and the man’s figure came into view. The man’s figure, illuminated by the moonlight, made me feel a bloodthirsty despair.
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