Chapter 48: A new leg
The next morning arrived quietly.
Soft sunlight filtered through the trees outside the tent while birds chirped somewhere deeper within the forest.
For a few peaceful moments, I simply laid there staring upward while listening to the crackling remains of the campfire outside.
Then I felt movement beside me.
Lillith slowly lifted her head from my chest before blinking sleepily several times.
The moment her eyes focused on me—
She smiled.
"Good morning."
"...Morning."
She immediately wrapped herself tighter around me.
I sighed quietly.
"At this point I’m convinced you’d fuse us together if you could."
"That’s a wonderful idea."
"...Please don’t."
Eventually we packed up the campsite and continued traveling once again.
Well—
Lillith traveled.
I spent most of the time sitting in the back of the carriage while she guided the horses through winding forest roads.
Every so often she would glance back toward me just to make sure I was still there.
Which was slightly concerning considering the fact I physically could not go anywhere.
Around midday, the dense forest slowly began thinning until small wooden buildings finally appeared ahead.
A village.
It was relatively small, probably only a few hundred residents at most.
Smoke rose from chimneys while merchants and villagers moved calmly through the muddy streets.
The moment the wagon entered the village, several people glanced toward it curiously before quickly looking away again.
Probably because Lillith unintentionally radiated the kind of presence that made normal people nervous.
Eventually she stopped the carriage near the edge of the village beside a small market area.
Then she turned toward me.
"I’m going buy food."
I nodded slightly.
Before I could respond further, she leaned closer.
"And I’ll be nearby the entire time."
"...Okay?"
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"Even if it doesn’t seem like it, I’m still watching."
A very ominous statement.
Then her expression became strangely serious.
"And the second you step outside this carriage, I’ll immediately abandon everything and sprint back here at full speed."
"...That sounds excessive."
"It’s not."
Before I could argue further, she leaned down and kissed my cheek softly.
Then finally she stepped out of the wagon.
A few seconds later she disappeared into the crowd.
Silence settled afterward.
For the first time in days—
I was alone.
Well.
Mostly alone.
Technically Lillith was probably lurking somewhere nearby like an overly affectionate predator.
Still, the temporary quiet felt strangely nice.
I leaned back slightly against the wooden wall of the wagon while staring out through the small opening near the rear.
Villagers moved throughout the streets carrying baskets and supplies while merchants shouted about prices nearby.
Everything looked... normal.
Peaceful.
It almost felt strange after everything that had happened recently.
War.
Kidnapping.
Dungeons.
Bloodshed.
And now suddenly—
A quiet village.
Eventually my eyes drifted toward my missing leg again.
The empty space beneath the blanket still felt deeply wrong.
I flexed my hands slightly before quietly exhaling.
Honestly—
I hated feeling helpless like this.
Back in the dungeon, not even being able stand properly had driven me insane.
And now even outside of it, I still relied entirely on Lillith carrying me everywhere.
The thought irritated me more than I wanted admit.
After another few minutes passed, voices outside the carriage slowly caught my attention.
"...You hear about what happened east of here?"
Immediately my attention sharpened slightly.
The first man lowered his voice.
"You mean the mansion?"
"Yeah."
Even from inside the carriage, I could hear the unease in his tone.
"They say the whole place got wiped out overnight."
Another villager scoffed nervously.
"People exaggerate stories."
"I’m serious."
The man continued speaking quietly.
"My cousin saw soldiers heading there afterward."
"And?"
"They came back pale as corpses."
A pause followed.
"One of them kept saying the same thing over and over apparently."
"...What?"
"That a demon walked through the fortress asking for someone."
My chest tightened slightly.
The second man laughed nervously.
"Sounds like drunken nonsense."
"Maybe."
The first villager hesitated.
"But apparently every body they found was crushed."
Another pause.
"...Crushed?"
"Like someone stepped on them."
I slowly looked downward.
Yeah.
That definitely sounded like Lillith.
Eventually the conversation drifted away while the sounds of the market continued outside.
A little while later, another figure approached the carriage.
At first I assumed it was Lillith returning.
But then an unfamiliar older man carefully peeked through the opening instead.
He looked around nervously before noticing me.
"Oh."
The old man blinked in surprise.
"...There’s actually someone in here."
I immediately straightened slightly.
The old man wore simple brown clothing stained heavily with soot while thick leather gloves covered both his hands.
A blacksmith maybe.
His eyes slowly drifted downward toward my missing leg.
And his expression changed instantly.
"...Gods above."
For a moment neither of us spoke.
Then awkwardly, he scratched the side of his head.
"Sorry lad, didn’t mean to stare."
"It’s fine."
The old man hesitated briefly before speaking again.
"...War?"
I quietly nodded.
His face tightened slightly.
"Lost my youngest brother to the war last month."
The way he said it sounded tired more than emotional.
Like grief had already settled too deeply into him.
Then after another pause, his eyes shifted downward again.
"...You got a prosthetic?"
"Had one."
"What happened?"
"Kidnapped."
The old man blinked several times.
"...That’s rough."
A very large understatement.
Then suddenly he frowned slightly.
"Wait."
He leaned closer toward the wagon opening.
"You said had one?"
I nodded.
The old man rubbed his beard thoughtfully.
"...I might’ve still got an old temporary prosthetic back at my workshop."
My eyes widened slightly.
"What?"
"It belonged to one of the soldiers passing through a couple years back."
The blacksmith shrugged.
"Crude thing. But functional."
For the first time all day, genuine excitement flickered through me.
"Could I buy it?"
Before the old man could answer—
The atmosphere suddenly changed.
A pressure filled the air.
Cold.
Heavy.
The old blacksmith immediately stiffened.
Then slowly—
Very slowly—
He looked behind himself.
My stomach dropped instantly.
Lillith stood there smiling.
She held several bags of supplies in one hand.
And despite the softness of her expression—
The air around her felt terrifyingly still.
"...Leo."
Her voice sounded calm.
"Who is this?"
The old man looked like he was seconds away from dying.
I answered quickly before she could misunderstand anything.
"He was helping."
Lillith’s eyes slowly moved toward the blacksmith again.
"...Helping?"
The old man nodded so aggressively I thought his neck might snap.
"Y-yes miss!"
Lillith remained silent for several seconds.
Then finally the pressure vanished instantly.
"Oh."
She smiled warmly again.
"Thank you."
The old blacksmith nearly collapsed from relief.
Then after another moment, he nervously cleared his throat.
"I mentioned maybe having a temporary prosthetic."
Lillith froze.
Slowly—
She turned toward me.
"...You still want one?"
I hesitated briefly.
"...Yes."
For a moment she looked oddly conflicted.
Then after a long silence, she quietly sighed.
"...Fine."
The amount of reluctance in that single word was incredible.
A while later, the old blacksmith guided us toward a small workshop near the edge of the village.
The building smelled heavily of smoke and iron while tools covered nearly every surface.
Eventually the old man disappeared into a storage room before returning carrying a rough wooden prosthetic leg.
It looked far simpler than the one I originally had.
The blacksmith carefully handed it over.
"It’ll need adjusting eventually," he warned. "But it should work for now."
Lillith silently helped attach it afterward.
The entire time, she looked deeply unhappy about the situation.
Not angry.
Just... unhappy.
Eventually I carefully pushed myself upright.
Then for the first time since being kidnapped—
I stood on my own again.
It felt awkward.
Unbalanced.
But possible.
Slowly I took one step.
Then another.
The old blacksmith smiled slightly.
"There you go lad."
Meanwhile Lillith stared at me silently.
Something complicated flickered through her expression.
Then quietly she asked:
"...Do you really hate relying on me that much?"
I immediately looked toward her.
"What?"
She lowered her eyes slightly.
"When you couldn’t walk..."
Her voice became softer.
"...You looked upset every time I carried you."
For once—
She didn’t sound possessive.
She sounded hurt.
That realization immediately made my chest tighten.
So after a moment, I slowly walked toward her.
Awkwardly.
Poorly.
But on my own.
Then I reached out and gently held her hand.
"It’s not that I hate relying on you."
Lillith slowly looked back up at me.
"I just don’t want become helpless."
Silence filled the workshop briefly.
Then quietly—
Very quietly—
Lillith squeezed my hand back.
"...You could never be helpless."
Her smile looked completely genuine.
The old blacksmith quietly pretended not to notice the sudden emotional atmosphere inside his workshop.
Instead he awkwardly cleared his throat before turning back toward his tools.
"Well," he muttered, "you should avoid putting too much pressure on it for the first few days."
I nodded slightly while carefully testing my balance again.
Even standing still felt strange after spending so long unable to walk properly.
Lillith remained beside me the entire time like she was afraid I might suddenly collapse.
Every small stumble made her tense instantly.
At one point she even reached both arms out dramatically when I slightly lost balance.
"I’m fine."
"You almost died."
"I leaned slightly."
"You leaned dangerously."
The old blacksmith quietly snorted trying hold back laughter.
Lillith immediately looked toward him.
The poor man almost had a heart attack.
"I-I mean the fit looks excellent miss!"
Lillith stared at him suspiciously for several seconds before finally turning back toward me again.
Eventually after paying the blacksmith, we left the workshop and returned toward the carriage together.
This time—
I walked beside her myself.
Slowly.
Awkwardly.
But still walking.
The village streets bustled quietly around us while people moved between market stalls carrying baskets and supplies.
Several villagers glanced toward us curiously.
More specifically—
Toward Lillith.
Actually, staring might’ve been the better word.
Even dressed simply, she still looked far too elegant compared to everyone else around her.
And honestly, after everything that happened recently, the sight of normal villagers gossiping and shopping almost felt surreal.
Then suddenly I noticed Lillith looking down at our hands.
At some point during the walk, she had quietly intertwined her fingers with mine.
The moment she noticed me looking, she smiled happily.
"You’re walking beside me."
"...Yes?"
"With your own leg."
"Well technically it’s someone else’s leg."
"That’s not the point."
She somehow looked genuinely emotional about it.
Then softly, almost to herself, she murmured:
"...I missed seeing this."
Something about hearing that made my chest tighten slightly again.
A while later we finally reached the carriage.
Before climbing back aboard, I glanced once more toward the village around us.
Children ran between buildings laughing while merchants shouted over prices nearby.
For a brief moment, everything looked peaceful.
Untouched by war.
Untouched by nobles.
Untouched by monsters powerful enough erase fortresses overnight.
Then I slowly looked toward Lillith beside me.
Long black hair moving gently in the wind.
Deep purple eyes watching me softly.
And suddenly the earlier stories about the destroyed fortress resurfaced in my mind again.
The melted walls.
The crushed soldiers.
The fear in the guards’ voices.
It was strangely difficult connecting those stories to the girl currently holding my hand so carefully.
Lillith noticed my expression immediately.
"...What?"
I hesitated slightly.
Then quietly asked:
"When you attacked that fortress..."
Her eyes narrowed faintly.
"...Mhm?"
"How many people died?"
Silence followed.
The wind drifted softly through the village road while distant conversations echoed around us.
Then finally—
Lillith answered casually.
"Lost count."
And somehow—
The fact she genuinely didn’t know felt far scarier than any number she could’ve given me.
