episode_0029

The rain that had been falling for half a day has stopped, and as the clouds clear, the setting sun appears beyond the wide open plains in the distance. As soon as you leave the southern wall of Frauah, a wide open plain immediately opens up before your eyes.

“Wow…it’s wide.”

When a wide plain like that seen in America appeared, Ray, who was from the mountains, rolled back the hood of his raincoat and let out a rustic exclamation. Mila smiled as she looked at him.

“Look back. If you keep going south until you can no longer see the high walls of Fraua, there will be endless plains. If you don’t follow the signs properly, you’ll get lost.”

“Aha… It’s so high…⋯⋯.”

Ray says this while looking up at the outer wall of the Fraua castle that he just passed. Then, as soon as he turns his head back to Mila pulling the cart, he is startled by the sight of her having taken off her shirt and exposed her bare back. Mila nonchalantly rolls up her shirt, squeezes out the rainwater, shakes it out, and hangs it on the cart handle.

“⋯⋯!”

“Huh? Oh… Just dry it and I’ll put it on right away. Okay? ”

Rather, she turned her head with an apologetic face and asked Ray for understanding. Even if it was the bare skin of a tall, ugly woman like her, Mila felt a little resentful at the thought that why would she hide her eyes with her hand like that, even though they were lovers. Ray tried hard to calmly accept the sight before her in order to adapt to the common sense of this world in her own way, but every now and then, when she saw a lump of fat swaying to the side that could not be hidden by the area of her back, she would blush with embarrassment and not know what to do.

“What if I catch a cold? At least wear this.”

“Ah, thank you.”

Mila, who had been absentmindedly accepting the cloth that Ray had handed her from behind, realized after walking about ten steps that it was the same thing Ray had been wearing around his waist. She quickly looked around and was startled when she saw a group of people gathered somewhere in front of her.

“Who⋯ Who would make a pervert out of someone!”

Mila turned around and threw the cloth at Ray. Whether this rascal was trying to seduce her on purpose or was just doing it out of sheer innocence, it was obvious that she would look much weirder if she were to show others wearing it. Ray held the cloth with a puzzled expression, as if he couldn’t understand why wearing his outer garments was more perverted than walking around half-naked, then he let out a small sigh and unfolded it again, tying it around his waist.

As I walked along the road, keeping a reasonable distance from the line of porters ahead, the sun that had been hanging on the edge of the horizon completely disappeared. Somewhere in the front of the line, someone shouted something, and the long line of people stopped and began to briefly unpack their luggage.

Mila and Ray get closer to them, who are still, and the noise of them preparing dinner grows louder.

“Hey, sis. Are you going to work too? In the transportation business? Have you eaten? ”

A woman, shaking a cooking utensil with her hand, approaches me with a typically Southern accent that is characterized by a sing-song intonation.

“Not yet. It’s almost time to eat.”

Ray tilted his head, unable to understand more than half of what was being said because all the j’s were pronounced as h’s, and Mila greeted them with a bright expression, meeting them cheerfully.

“Really? Then let’s eat together! Don’t you work to eat and live? After all? Huh? Right?”

This time, the man next to her starts talking to Mila. He makes a gesture with his palm facing down and ends his speech with an excessive number of questions, which is also a typical Southern trait.

“Oh, is that so? Ray. Are you hungry?”

“A little?⋯And now I’m wearing this. I think it’s a little dry.”

Even though they are the smallest men in the world, Ray felt a little uncomfortable showing his woman’s naked body so casually, so he handed her the shirt he had hung on the cart handle.

“Then let’s grab a quick meal here and go. Those people may be noisy, but they make incredibly delicious food wherever they go. Trust me.”

Mila, still wearing a shirt with damp sleeves, lowers Ray down from the cart. Then she lifts the cart’s tent slightly and takes out a sack of groceries.

“Where are you from? Fraua? What is that? Something to eat?”

A woman comes up to me, mumbling, carrying a basket of food at her side, and starts talking. Like everyone else in the long line, she has an innocent smile on her face, seemingly without a care in the world.

“Yes, can I borrow a light?”

Just as Ray was thinking to himself that her tone was a little irritating, Mila pointed towards the sizzling sound of a large cast-iron plate being placed over the campfire.

“Then! See that line over there? If you stand there, it’ll be your turn. If you ask Chef Hermi*, he’ll fry anything for you. It’ll be delicious! Maybe?”

“Jermie?”

Ray whispers, clinging tightly to Mila’s back, one eyebrow furrowed.

“People here call him that. Jermie is Huermi, Julep is Julep. Something like that.”

Mila tilts her head toward Ray and whispers in return, then takes his hand tightly and walks towards the line in front of the fire.

A man walking towards her after receiving the cooked food glances at Mila and slaps her buttocks.

“⋯⋯! What, what are you doing!”

Ray shouting from the side and Mila looking around.

“You’re soaking wet! Your luggage isn’t wet? It won’t get damaged if it gets wet, right? It’s a shame!”

“Yeah… It’s okay. Ahaha.”

Mila scratches her head and responds nonchalantly.

“Milla, do you know this guy?”

“No? This is my first time seeing this.”

“But why⋯⋯.”

“How come you have such a pretty face? Your eyes sparkle? You’re pretty. I think this is the first time I’ve seen someone this pretty?”

The man turns his head towards Ray and speaks to him again in a friendly manner. Ray half-hides behind Mila with a wary expression on his face.

“Then enjoy your meal! Okay?”

Then I walk three steps and look at him in bewilderment as he chats with the people next to him.

“You’re touching my body without permission! I told you to tell me clearly. Are you stupid, Milla?”

“They’re just like that. It’s not that they have any malicious intentions, they just like talking to people.”

“⋯⋯.”

Mila glanced at Ray with a blank expression, wondering if he was jealous, and then chuckled.

***

Christie, with her hair down, walks down the busy night streets of Frauen, along the river that surrounds the palace, in civilian clothes.

Shops selling luxury goods and valuables were destroyed under the Eastern Army’s military boots, but small shops selling small snacks suffered no damage and continued to operate as before.

Traitors, tyrants, and the public’s assessment of the organization he was a part of, the ordinary citizens of this city were living their lives no differently. Rather, the troublesome landowner who had been collecting rent might be excited by the loss of his life. Like the store owner who is grilling skewers while humming a tune over there.

“Eight. Don’t sprinkle any spices.”

Christie stopped in front of the store and spoke to the owner.

“Okay! There’s room inside⋯⋯.”

The owner turns around and looks around the store.

“To take it.”

“Ah, then I’ll only take seven values!”

She thought that the rustic street food had a barbaric yet surprising charm, with raw meat roasted over a smoky fire. She could somehow bear the fact that it was made by a nameless, low-class cook in the dusty outdoors, but she didn’t want to eat while rubbing herself against such drunken fools. She would just buy enough to drink that day and drink alone in her lodgings.

In the first place, in order to fully enjoy the taste of food, there is absolutely no need for conversation with others. Talking to others while eating was a kind of work for her. Now, she had already gotten off work, and she would not do such a troublesome and annoying thing on her own unless someone asked her to.

“Ahahahaha! Order another drink. More. Ssup⋯. This guy. I said I’ll buy it all.”

After throwing herself into alcohol to the point of unconsciousness, with her face reddening, wouldn’t she be able to hold on to even the slightest bit of reason? Christie could never understand how someone could reveal all of their shortcomings to others.

“I’m… Shut up! Do you know what I’ve been given? Don’t you know how much the chief of the household trusts me?”

“I think you’ve said that six times already.”

“You guys! Keep your eyes wide open. The day when I, who’s only been eating rice my whole life, will stand tall as a hero of the country is not far off! At this banquet, there will be food that will kill two people if they eat it. Ahahahaha! ”

Christie didn’t think it was necessary to knock down the drunkard and break his fingers one by one to hear the details. Even if her boss really did foam at the mouth and collapse on the floor on the day of the banquet, she probably wouldn’t feel anything special. And above all, it was after work. Since she had already heard it, she would remember it anyway.