I saw the woman I had been watching with a light in my eyes for the past few days, walking silently between the tents.
I watched her with narrowed eyes, and then cautiously followed her.
The woman seemed to be learning how to move naturally without attracting people's attention. Her gait was so quiet and agile that if I hadn't been accustomed to their unique movements, trained by the Taren family, I would have missed it quickly.
In the blink of an eye, the woman slipped through a long line of wagons across the camp.
After a moment of pause, I crept up behind the large wagon and peered into the narrow gap between the wagon. However, the woman had already disappeared.
I looked around my head in bewilderment and squeezed through the large wagons. At that moment, something caught my feet.
'This...'
I bent down and frowned when I found a small vial under the wheel.
As I picked it up and tried to examine it closely, I felt a few drops of slippery liquid in the mouth of the bottle wet my fingers.
I threw the bottle away in surprise. When I put my hand close to my face and sniffed it, I could smell the strong scent of flowers and the fishy stench that seemed to come from animal bodily fluids. The smell was so disgusting that it made my head dizzy. I frowned, wiping the strange liquid off my handkerchief. However, the strange smell did not go away.
'It's the worst.'
I threw my dirty handkerchief on the floor and stood upright when I saw a dark shadow over my head.
I raised my head and screamed, and slumped to the ground. Barcas was looking down at me with a cold face.
"What are you doing in a place like this?"
I, who had been staring up at him in a daze, jumped to my feet.
How long have you been watching me?
Even though I hadn't done anything yet, my heart was pounding. I tried to pretend to be nonchalant and spit out my sharp voice.
"I'm surprised! What are you doing without pretending to like a rat!"
"You haven't answered my question yet."
Listening to my vitriol, Barcas untied his arms in front of his chest and took a step closer
I, who had been hesitant, immediately raised the corners of my eyes.
"Why should I answer your question? Whatever I do or where I do, it has nothing to do with you!"
I was about to leave, as if to run away, when Barcas moved his long legs to block my path.
Trapped between the wagon and his slender body, I looked up at him with an anxious look.
"Why, why are you doing this?"
"I know you're going to see some kind of filth if you let it roam by itself."
I shrugged my shoulders at the sharp tone.
Barcas, who had been staring down at the figure, let out a faint sigh and gestured with my chin.
"I'll take you to your place, so take the lead."
"Uh, I don't need it. I... alone."
"Is there any reason why I shouldn't escort you?"
I unconsciously gripped the hilt of the sword I had kept in my pocket. It was a stupid act. Didn't I openly tell him that I was hiding something?
Seeing his eyes narrow, I pressed my hands violently against his chest.
"What do you know? Get out of the way!"
I pushed him away with all my might, but he wouldn't budge. He looked slim, but his body was as hard as iron.
I hid my fears and raised my chin proudly.
"Don't you hear my word?"
Barcas looked down at her and slowly pulled back.
I did not miss the opportunity and quickly squeezed through the narrow gap between his and the carriage. I hurried away, but a strong hand grabbed my arm and turned me around firmly.
As he goes, his hand reaches into the pocket of my gown and pulls out a sharpened knife.
I looked up at him with a blue face. Barcas brushed the blade lightly with graceful hands, then looked down at me with expressionless eyes that could not read his emotions.
It was enough to say that I just kept it for self-defense. But when I met his keen eyes as if he was looking into my head, my reason was shattered and scattered.
I rushed at him like a child who had been robbed of my only toy.
"Give it to me!"
He raised his knife hand high.
I stood with my tiptoes up, tugging at his uniform and stretching out my hands.
"Give it back! Turn it around!"
Barcas, who was staring down at me with a stern face, threw down the knife.
I scrambled down to pick it up. But before I could grab the knife, his feet wrapped in the golden savathon kicked it away.
I watched blankly as the knife slid under the carriage and leaned down to crawl underneath it. But before my body could touch the floor, long, firm forearms wrapped around my waist and forced me to stand up.
My face contorted viciously, glaring at him as if to kill him. But Barcas had a scratched face just as much as I did.
"I won't ask you what you were trying to do with it."
Barcas, his face close to my face, chewed on each word. His voice was like a fierce blade.
"From now on, you will always be by my side. So, destroy all the useless and stupid plans that fit into that little head."
What are you talking to me about?
What are you doing, taking away mine?
What are you?
You were going to be another woman's man.
You're going to leave forever.
Why can't I do anything about it when you make me want to kill her?
The words tightened in my throat.
I wanted to spit out an insult, but if I opened my mouth, I would cry and scream Iike a ten-year-old sissy, so I closed my chin tightly.
Barcas, who had been staring down at me, straightened himself up and made a chin gesture as if to take the lead.
I glared at him with hateful eyes and walked quickly between the wagons. As if it weren't an empty statement to say that I would be under strict surveillance in the future, Barcas followed him like a shadow.
The people I once missed unbearably felt terrible. I didn't want him to be by my side, but I made the decision of a lifetime in an instant and tried to disturb him.
"To protect Ayla..."
Do you know... Maybe he is doing it to protect Gareth.
He will not fully understand why I am carrying a knife in my pocket. I don't care about my half-brother who beats me up every time I get a chance, and I can't even guess why. I only gnash my teeth at my half-sister, who endures me silently.
I turned my head to look at the camp where darkness had begun to fall.
Ayla should be having a good time by now. Surrounded by people who love her, she should be contemplating the happy future that is about to come.
When I thought of that red face, I felt a mess inside. An abominable woman. When I looked at a subject who had everything, I was horrified, from the pitiful eyes to the unhappy faces.
I want to kill her after all.
As I thought about it, I squeezed my bloody lips, and Barcas, who had been quietly following behind me, suddenly snatched me up and pushed me back violently.
I looked up at him with sweeping eyes.
For a moment, my heart sank as if this man were looking into me. But he wasn't looking at me.
I turned my head to follow him, staring at the sky with a serious face, and took a heavy breath. Something the size of a house was falling down at a terrifying speed. Before I could recognize it, it was dusty with a loud thud.
"It's a monster!'
Starting with someone's yelling, a piercing scream erupted everywhere.
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