As time passed, the surroundings became quiet again.
The man who cleared away all the noisy people entered the carriage.
Dorothea was surprised to see his blood-covered face, but she spoke calmly.
"Thanks for your efforts."
“Well, yes. Good job.”
The man grinned and sat down in his seat.
Blood splattered from his clothes and smeared Colin's cheek.
Although he is said to be a messenger who guides souls, even though he has seen countless deaths, he has probably never been directly hit by soggy blood. Even as he was losing consciousness from the fishy smell, his face crumpled.
The man who was looking at Dorothea asked in a quiet voice.
“Aren’t you curious about the identity of those who attacked us?”
“Not really.”
“I was pretending to be a bandit, but it was very clumsy. The way they held their swords clearly showed that they were skilled.”
The man's sparkling eyes watched Dorothea's reaction as he continued.
“They were looking for someone.”
“...”
“From what I heard, she was a young girl who ran away from somewhere.”
'Ah...'
Dorothea's narrowed eyes glanced at Colin.
She never thought that the number Colin had 'prepared' would be lurking here.
Of course, the person they were trying to find and destroy was Dorothea herself. That too, at Colin’s request.
'Eventually again.'
This was already the third time she was indebted to the man in front of her.
Being in debt to someone was not very pleasant.
Dorothea opened her mouth with an uncomfortable expression.
“Thank you for your help.”
“Yes, even though it wasn’t last night, it looks like you are the guest this time.”
The man rolled his eyes happily and he turned his head without saying a word.
Every time he took a breath, the fishy smell of blood flowed in.
***
Dorothea, who had been tossing and turning for a while, eventually fell asleep and a hidden shadow appeared.
“What did you find out?”
“It’s mercenaries. These are not those who are active in this area, but those who come from outside the area. It took a while because there was a lot of confusion, but we also found out about the client.”
The seal on the crumpled request form looked familiar.
Colin Highclere.
The person lying in the carriage with a pale face was the person who requested Dorothea's death.
'It wasn't like I didn't notice.'
On the contrary, the child looked at Colin with an annoyed expression upon hearing that he had found a young girl, so he clearly knew that he was the one who had instigated her death.
'It's getting more and more interesting.'
He was also concerned about what she said.
The statement that she could give something better than knowing her own history was certainly not just thrown around.
“What can you do for me?”
He muttered out of curiosity, but the sleeping girl seemed to have no intention of waking up.
As the carriage rumbled, her white-blonde hair fell and covered her face.
He reached out his hand to straighten her hair and inadvertently frowned at the dull hair that touched his fingertips. The skinny wrists and dented cheeks got on his nerves.
He muttered as he checked her pulse by grabbing her wrist, which was less than a handful.
“I guess you’ll have to eat some healthy food along the way.”
The child was unusually thin and sickly.
A heartless uncle who points a sword at a child who will soon suffocate even if left alone, and the family who neglected the child to end up like this.
'It's strange to even bother to go into that tiger's den.'
His heart ached at the fact that this child and he were no different from living an uneven life.
***
A grand dinner was prepared in front of Dorothea, who was wrapped in a soft velvet blanket.
Her pink eyes blinked as she stared at the steaming food.
On the other side, her benefactor with playful eyes was looking at her and moistening his mouth with alcohol.
'It's all just food that sizzles.'
She missed neat Korean food. The greasy, greasy food that kept coming onto the table did not whet her appetite but rather discouraged her.
“Eat. Is it because it’s unfamiliar with what you eat at home? How can one eat so much birdseed and endure the arduous journey?”
“It’s not tiring. It’s just a carriage ride.”
The man, looking at her blood-soaked pale complexion, snorted.
She asked, ignoring the other person's reaction.
“Where is my uncle?”
“He’s sleeping soundly in the next room.”
A full day has already passed. Colin, who should have woken up a long time ago, stayed asleep the entire time.
Dorothea's eyes narrowed.
'Did he get a good night's sleep, or did he get drunk?'
It was most likely the latter, but questioning it would be useless.
If he weren't doing any harm and was just trying to get Colin to sleep before he started crying, it would have been right to be lenient.
“Is it because of your uncle that you don’t eat? If I prepare a meal like this for your uncle, will he eat it?”
Dorothea, who didn't care what went into Colin's mouth, shook her head.
“I will eat it if my benefactor eats it.”
The man who was pouring alcohol on an empty stomach laughed at her words.
“If I eat, you will eat too? Why? Are you afraid I got something in your food?”
“Because I have no appetite.”
The other person ended up laughing out loud at the honest answer.
Dorothea, who was looking at the other person blankly, reached for the grilled vegetable that looked the least greasy.
When she tried to use the fork with her small hands, she noticed that it kept slipping.
The poor man used his fork to pick up food and thrust it into Dorothea's mouth.
"Here."
“...”
The food he brought fell into her small mouth. The man, who was looking at her plump cheeks, this time cut the meat into small pieces and offered it to her.
“You live and live and sometimes serve meals.”
Dorothea was accustomed to being waited on by him.
The man observed her with even more interest.
He never grumbled despite the harsh environment, and he remained fine even after seeing cruel scenes. This shows that he was not a good size.
However, he is used to being waited on and has no hesitation in manipulating others...
'This is an unknown child.'
Dorothea, who was chewing her food, suddenly looked at the man.
"Why?"
“What is your name?”
“...”
The man raised his eyebrows as if he was surprised by her question.
“Aside from eating, did you suddenly become curious about my name?”
“It’s convenient to know the name of the person serving you.”
"Yes? Why?"
“That way, I can call you when I need you.”
“...”
I was speechless at the unexpected answer.
Dorothea was calm.
If something happens, such as waking up in the dark of the night, shouldn't you call someone to solve the problem?
“I feel uncomfortable calling you my benefactor and asking for a favor.”
“Is it okay to ask for something by name? As you said, am I not your benefactor?”
With a helpless laugh, the man stretched out his hand and lightly pinched Dorothea's cheek before releasing it. Then he seemed to have given up.
“Okay, eat a lot. I’ll tell you my name after you’ve had your fill.”
“Please give me that.”
The man obediently followed the instructions while looking at the white flesh of the fish.
Beautiful hands that looked like they had never filleted a fish for someone before were moving busily.
After a while, he knew what she wanted to eat just by looking at her without saying a word, and quickly gave her food.
Dorothea acknowledged him.
'I'm quite good at serving people.'
Seeing the hands skillfully helping her reminded her of Jane.
Dorothea thinks they're probably stamping their feet and chasing after me right now.
Wood, who was grumbling next to her, and her father, who was pale and restless.
It's a strange thing.
It's been a while since she woke up here and were together, and the relationships from her past lives have already become a blur of the past.
Instead, her heart was filled with the relationships she had filled in her new life.
Like a deep well, it never ran dry and filled Dorothea's heart with serenity.
'I miss you.'
For the first time, I thought about something like that while drawing someone.
When her stomach was full, her eyelids began to close. When she stopped eating, the man's hand stopped.
The man, who probably had nothing to eat because he was busy serving her, patted her dozing back.
“Even if you’re sleepy, you should sit a little longer. If you lie down right after eating, your stomach may hurt.”
“You don’t want to listen to music tonight?”
The friendly hand patting her back stopped.
“It’s time to stop making others suffer for something that is of no use.”
Dorothea was convinced as she looked into the man's dark eyes.
She had already noticed that the faint scent of sleep, the singing, and the musical sounds she heard every night were all efforts to help her sleep.
That's because she could see very clearly in her eyes that there was a crack in his soul.
'This is my first time seeing such a large crack.'
Perhaps because he was born strong, the man looked quite fine despite the rash that had seeped through the cracks. A normal person would have gone crazy right away.
“I may not be able to solve my benefactor’s long sleeplessness, but if you want to fall asleep right away, there is a way.”
His head was raised.
“You can hug my uncle and sleep.”
“...”
The man blinked at the unexpected remark. Dorothea closed her mouth again as if she had finished speaking.
Her fatigue was ultimately due to the unstable vessel.
Now she's just rolling around on the bottom of a carriage, but she was once a messenger between this world and the afterlife.
Just by putting his body next to Colin, the energy around him would naturally stabilize.
A soul as cracked as a dry rice field may not recover immediately even if it spends a few nights with the reaper, but he will be able to sleep right away.
He was listening just in case, and when he smiled and touched her forehead, Dorothea spoke seriously.
“You will sleep soundly as long as you are by my uncle’s side.”
“You seem to sleep well when you hug your uncle tightly.”
The man didn't seem to be listening to her very carefully.
'I can't do it. I already gave you the solution, so there's no need to spoon-feed it to me.'
Whether he listens to her or not, the matter is already out of her hands.
The man changed the subject and explained his future plans.
“I’ll help you get through the gate. But after that, you will have to go to the mansion on your own.”
Dorothea nodded obediently.
“Sleep soundly. There will be another forced march starting tomorrow morning.”
After reading the slight worry in his eyes, she once again advised the man who was turning away.
“If hugging him is too much, try sleeping nearby.”
Even if he does that, the effect will be good.
The man glanced at her and left the room without a word.
Dorothea, who had been following him, slowly went to bed.
It was a quiet and peaceful night.
Support Novellate!
Comments
Post a Comment