Chapter 108
We stood in front of the estate . The door flung open before Wolf’s outstretched hand could have reached it .
The chief was sitting inside just as I had expected .
“Thank you for your hard work . ”
I was temporarily taken aback after being invited so formally and tilted my head ever so slightly . When I entered the room, the unique scent of various medicinal herbs hit my nostrils .
The inside was full and cluttered .
Three rows of shelves formed a perfect grid on one side of the wall . On the top row, multiple glass bottles tidily sat, arranged in a neat line, while the second was stuffed full of paper scrolls . The third shelf was a drawer so I couldn’t see what was inside .
On the opposite wall, a bunch of dried plants were being hung upside down . The desk directly below the plants had old books stacked up high around the edges . In the middle sat a tool that looked similar to a rolling pestle and mortar .
“Excuse all the mess . Please, have a seat . ”
The chief pulled out a chair from a far corner of the room and started dusting it with his hand . When I was invited to sit down, I turned to Wolf in worry .
Wolf walked up to me and gently nudged my shoulders forward . I obediently sat down with Wolf standing next to me .
“At least try to clean it up a bit, you shitty father . This is no place to invite a cute girl over . ”
“You should have seen what it was like before I cleaned it . ”
“Seriously, I can’t sense an ounce of effort from you . ”
They both had serious expressions on their faces while arguing over a silly topic . Their tone didn’t match their words and the air around them was surprisingly gentle .
I had only known of their first exchange when I first arrived in the village so I expected their relationship to be more bizarre, but if we remove the chief and successor titles, they were no different than your run-of-the-mill parent and child .
I am scared to the bone, but this is the time I overcome my fears .
*Fuuuuu~* After a small breath, I met my eyes with the chief . Once I promptly corrected my posture, his natural honey-coloured eyes faintly narrowed . But it narrowed because he was laughing .
“Have you gotten used to life in the village?” He said as he tipped a jug of water before pouring me a glass .
“Yes . Though I’m not very adept at working in the fields and failed a bunch of times, Lily was always there for me, so I’ve managed somehow . ”
“Lily is a good girl, isn’t she?”
“Absolutely . ” I nodded after receiving the glass from him .
Lily was a very good girl . I didn’t really get how she expresses herself, but she was a wonderful young lady that was kind, caring, and always gave her all .
“It seems she took a liking to you too . So please be her friend from now on . ”
‘Yes’ . I was about to nod in agreement but I hesitated .
It wasn’t that I didn’t want to be her friend or anything like that, but I just realised it might be irresponsible of me to agree to his words .
“…You shitty father . That’s playing dirty . ”
Putting his hands on my shoulders once more, Wolf gave a piece of his mind, “Quit trying to test her . ”
Looking up, I saw Wolf’s eyes seriously glaring at the chief with a sharp glint . The other party didn’t lose his ground, however, and simply picked up another glass from the tray and poured himself some water . He lifted the cup to his mouth and casually took a sip .
“Look who’s talking . ”
“…What do you mean by that?”
“I don’t believe that someone as twisted as you would trust others so easily . Are they trustworthy? Are they suitable for me? You would blindly keep testing them over and over again until they pass the tests you set out for them . ”
‘Am I wrong?’
Wolf bit his lip at the question implied by the chief . Seeing Wolf cornered, the chief heaved a sigh .
“…But that’s probably also why my rudeness continued until now . ” The chief placed down the cup before lowering his head in apology .
“Such a thing…” I shook my head in denial and clasped my hands on my knees . “I’ve also been rude… No even worse than that . What I’ve done was far crueller . ”
“What do you mean?” Wolf asked in a bewildered voice . The chief said nothing further and only observed me from a distance .
“I can’t become the Kua Clan’s master . ”
‘Haa~ . ’ There was a sigh from the other side, but I kept talking without noticing it .
“I’ve caused you all so much trouble, and even though I’ve been wreaking all of this havoc, I must leave . I know I can never seek your forgiveness for my thoughtless actions . However, I cannot remain here any longer . ”
“…Even if I ask why?” After some time had passed, the chief finally opened his mouth .
Just when I thought he would object with ‘you’ve got to be kidding me!’, he instead betrayed my expectations and didn’t even raise his voice . He seemed more upset asking me the question .
“Why, you ask . Is it as in ‘why don’t I want to become the clan’s master’, or was it ‘why don’t I want to stay’?”
“Honestly, either one . But let’s start with the former . It might be funny to tell you this now, but our village is quite skilled and talented with what we do . There are a fair number of aristocrats willing to pile gold at our feet . But are you saying that we’re not even worth that much?”
“No . On the contrary, I think your worth is even more than all of the gold combined . ” I answered him without averting my eyes .
“It’s not that don’t want to, but more that I can’t become the Kua Clan’s master . ”
The chief’s eyes widened as my words caught him thoroughly off guard . Up until now, I had never seen him make such a face . It was as though his calm demeanour was beginning to crumble .
“If I wish for your cooperation, gold and silver would all be meaningless . What I need is a long time to build sincerity, understanding, and trust . But I can’t even offer a day of my own time for that cause . ”
“…Is this related to the reason you can’t stay?”
“Yes . ” I nodded at his question .
“There’s an epidemic spreading through the southwestern part of the Kingdom of Wind . It must be stopped before it spreads throughout the rest of the country . ”
Crow’s message woke me up from the tranquillity of daily life in the village . An epidemic broke out . One of the flags I was afraid of finally came up .
I could no longer allow myself to lose my way any further .
The one who talked up the idea of saving everyone was me, and yet here I was, pointlessly dawdling around doing nothing . If I keep this up, I wouldn’t be able to save anyone . I had to act now or everything I’ve done so far would end up all in vain .
“Epidemic…?”
Wolf’s shaky voice overlapped the chief’s . Come to think of it, I had never told Wolf anything regarding the disease . He may have been keeping secrets from me, but he wasn’t the only one to do so .
I’m very sorry .
My gaze remained fixed forward as I murmured quietly in my heart .
I’ll have to apologise to them later .
“I realise that this is very selfish of me, but would you please consider selling me your medicine?” I said so as I deeply lowered my head .
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