“From the entrance earlier, you and I saw each other... You were saying really bad things...”
She followed Leila all the way to the entrance, but on the way, she sensed the soldiers' bad vibes and couldn't go back alone, so she came here in fear and only called out her name. Penny wondered if she had made a mistake, but the look in her eyes sent shivers down her spine.
Leila thought for a brief moment.
It wasn't a new thing that soldiers, regardless of age or gender, committed crimes. It would take about 15 minutes to run from here to her house. Besides, if she ran all the way home, those soldiers wouldn't have to follow her all the way and do bad things.
But Leila couldn't go home.
She felt so scared that she almost cried, but she still couldn't go to the house where Aaron was. If those soldiers ran into Aaron, something bad would happen. Aaron always told her, "Don't tell people. Not yet. I'll try to be honest someday." She wasn't so young that she didn't know why he did that. Leila tried to calm herself down, breathing evenly and looking around. To the right was the river, and to the opposite side, it was forest all the way until the fields.
“Penny, pretend to walk to the left, toward the woods.”
Penny followed her obediently. In the meantime, the distance between them had narrowed enough that she could hear the soldiers laughing. She pretended to turn left, and they followed her like shadows. It was terrible. She checked the position of the sun. Now that she thought about it, it was the time when her father would have come back.
Leila said, holding Penny's arm tightly.
“Penny, you can’t get back into town through those people right now... so run straight to my house and tell my father. Only tell him, and don’t tell Aaron where I am, that I’m being chased by soldiers. Only tell him that I’m being chased by soldiers. When he’s with you.”
“Aaron?”
Penny sniffled and chewed on the unfamiliar name, and even said, "Oh, the one your father took in," but couldn't finish.
“He’s my husband.”
Penny's eyes sparkled with curiosity, miraculously overcoming her fear for a moment, even if it was just for a moment. If you really look closely, she's no joke. Leila was secretly impressed by Penny. Then, she heard the voices of the men talking, "Did those bastards notice?" and came back to reality.
“He’s the one I really love. I don’t want him to be in danger. Please, promise me, Penny. Just to Dad. Just to Dad. I’ll run over there and buy some time. Promise me. My dear friend, Penny Rosie.”
With a face that seemed to have many questions, Penny nodded steadily.
“Once you pass that tree, run towards the forest first. Don’t run away from the opposite direction I’m running, but hide still. When those people start running after me, right away. Got it?”
“I’ll bring Collie too.”
“Yes, Penny. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. I’m okay.”
It was a very scary time with so many soldiers. Leila was just as scared as Penny, but she tried not to show it and smiled. Penny whispered, sobbing.
“Wh, you have to be safe. I really, really will be back soon. Me.”
As the two headed into the forest, the soldiers hurried their pace, swearing. Their boots mercilessly crushed the wet autumn leaves and branches. Unlike Penny, who was dressed in dark clothes, Leila stood out. As soon as Leila saw that Penny had hidden behind a large tree trunk, she started running with a loud noise.
“Why the hell are you following me? You damn Ramrock soldiers!”
She tried using a swear word her father often uses.
“Hey, they already noticed! Get those bitches!”
“How funny, this guy? What the hell is a Ramrock soldier? Can someone explain it to me?”
“Shut your mouth and run, you were lured here.”
“You lured me in? You said you wanted to go with me so I could get fucked. You piece of shit. F**k, you’re putting people’s lives on the line. We have to get back before the general arrives.”
“I told you he's not coming today.”
“Don’t you know, if I get caught like this, I’m screwed? Wouldn’t it be better to just go back?”
“Why are you going back? I told you he’s not coming today anyway.”
“Captain, are you really following me?”
“I came this far...”
She felt the soldiers' leisurely pace gradually quickening. Penny's heart, curled up and hiding, seemed to sink in with it.
Penny held her breath and waited for them to pass. Heart pounding. Heart pounding. The tears that were falling soaked the back of her hand. The sobs that she couldn't stop were drowned out by the sound of Leila's commotion in the distance. The soldiers ran toward Leila.
Aaron was trimming the fence and turning the tree he had just finished cutting. His grandfather was a famous art enthusiast, and he was particularly fond of sculpture. He was so passionate about it that he even held a chisel and a hammer, which was considered vulgar. Aaron learned how to carve over his shoulder at that time. He didn't know that it would be helpful now.
When Aaron was a child, his grandfather was the only one who acknowledged—if indifference can be called an acknowledgement—that he had an interest in astronomy. His grandfather was a man of considerable sensitivity, as he was deeply interested in art.
As a boy, he would often hide in his grandfather's sculpture studio, avoiding the eyes of other adults, reading astronomy books, or he would make fun of his grandfather and go to the observatory to look at the sky. The two elder sons of the most famous political family in Eastern Rocks were modest and secretive.
“Grandpa, why don’t you say anything when I look at the stars?”
“The sky is beautiful. It is not a bad thing for people to be attracted to beautiful things. Ignore your mother and father. The most respected things in the world are beautiful things. It is not the money that your mother or uncle talks about, or the power that people look up to.”
“Grandpa, then you got divorced by Grandma.”
“This kid, you take after your father and have no dignity in the way you speak. No dignity. Sylvia and I have been together for a long time, we know each other well enough, and we ended it by agreeing that we don’t fit together!”
“I heard it’s because you had an affair with Madame Lambrand, who is twenty years younger than you?”
“That’s... Anyway! Listen!”
The most frequent sermons were about beauty.
“After all, money and numbers are just money, so money can only grease people’s throats, and power cannot buy people’s fear and give them true resonance. The greatest thing is beauty. Beauty changes people, just like the stars in the sky you are looking at now resonate with you. A painting can restore hope to someone who is heading toward death, a novel can soothe the heart of a mother who has lost her child, and a piece can awaken passion for the great ancient culture that we have forgotten and lived with. Beauty is like saving people.”
“But my grandfather fell in love with Madame Lambrand and was completely rejected by her...”
“You idiot! How long are you going to keep talking about that? You’re still so young!”
At that time, his grandfather added a remark that was not so special, like a playboy's excuse. But now he understands a little.
The grandfather's behavior was clearly wrong. Nevertheless, he sympathizes with the feelings of a man who is fascinated by beauty. Beauty itself has the power to save people from tragedy. No, this may be one of the instincts that everyone has, regardless of gender.
When Leila came back, he wondered if he could make dinner for her today. If the current were a little weaker, he could put a fish trap in the river. His heart warmed as he thought about these things. His desire to do one more thing for her grew stronger with each passing day. But then, there was a loud crash.
“Sir, sir...!”
Collie started barking in surprise at the sight of Penny running in, covered in tears. Aaron frowned for a moment at the woman's sudden rudeness, then stood up when he saw Penny's frightened face.
“Miss Penny?”
“Mister, ah, mister. Mister... Where is he?”
Ben had just gone out with his rifle in response to Mia's words that a lynx had appeared nearby. Aaron answered, wondering whether he could show himself sitting calmly in Leila's house or not.
“Mr. Ben isn’t here right now.”
He doesn't know why Penny came crying to Leila's house and called Ben, but he had a bad feeling about it.
“Sir... I have to find him. Leila, ugh, huff, huff.”
“What's going on?”
“Sir, sir, I have to find him first. Hey, where is he?”
“At Mrs. Mia’s house for a moment.”
Penny went out to find Ben, tears streaming down her face. Leila had warned her never to tell this man named Aaron. Never. The fact that she had repeated that repeatedly despite the danger she was in was almost like a hint that if he found out, there would be another problem. She was clueless, but not that clueless. After all, there was a military police force, and if Aaron, known to be a soldier from Dublin, got involved, things would only get worse. Penny didn't think this man named Aaron could beat Ramrock's soldiers. Didn't you see him get beaten up badly last time?
Penny ran into the yard and screamed.
“Mister Ben!”
Collie circled around her, who was still crying and jumping around, as if wondering. Penny, who had been pacing around like a crazy person, started running towards Aunt Mia's house. She has to find Ben, Uncle Ben, Uncle Ben. But before she could even get out of the fence, she was caught by Aaron, who hurriedly put on his shoes and followed her.
“I asked what was going on.”
“Let go, let go! Huh! Let go, hurry, let go, we have to go to Uncle Ben, Leila. Leila, to Uncle Ben... Huh!”
“What’s going on?”
Aaron shouted, his face distorted.
The scream was so loud that it echoed along the entire road and even down to the river flowing along the mountain in the distance.
“Leila told me not to tell you, she told me not to! Let go! There’s no, no, no time for this! Heh, ugh, hurry!”
“I told you to speak.”
“Leila, you, to you, words... Heh, save her, Leila... There’s no time for this, so let go quickly...!”
Penny, who was trying to push him away, fell to the damp floor without realizing it. She had never understood the expression “a chill in a person’s eyes” until then. Penny felt dizzy as he looked at her with eyes that were cold enough to feel murderous. It made her wonder if she had run into a place where she would be in trouble again. Regardless of appearance and nationality, all soldiers seemed to have something similar.
Previous Next
She followed Leila all the way to the entrance, but on the way, she sensed the soldiers' bad vibes and couldn't go back alone, so she came here in fear and only called out her name. Penny wondered if she had made a mistake, but the look in her eyes sent shivers down her spine.
Leila thought for a brief moment.
It wasn't a new thing that soldiers, regardless of age or gender, committed crimes. It would take about 15 minutes to run from here to her house. Besides, if she ran all the way home, those soldiers wouldn't have to follow her all the way and do bad things.
But Leila couldn't go home.
She felt so scared that she almost cried, but she still couldn't go to the house where Aaron was. If those soldiers ran into Aaron, something bad would happen. Aaron always told her, "Don't tell people. Not yet. I'll try to be honest someday." She wasn't so young that she didn't know why he did that. Leila tried to calm herself down, breathing evenly and looking around. To the right was the river, and to the opposite side, it was forest all the way until the fields.
“Penny, pretend to walk to the left, toward the woods.”
Penny followed her obediently. In the meantime, the distance between them had narrowed enough that she could hear the soldiers laughing. She pretended to turn left, and they followed her like shadows. It was terrible. She checked the position of the sun. Now that she thought about it, it was the time when her father would have come back.
Leila said, holding Penny's arm tightly.
“Penny, you can’t get back into town through those people right now... so run straight to my house and tell my father. Only tell him, and don’t tell Aaron where I am, that I’m being chased by soldiers. Only tell him that I’m being chased by soldiers. When he’s with you.”
“Aaron?”
Penny sniffled and chewed on the unfamiliar name, and even said, "Oh, the one your father took in," but couldn't finish.
“He’s my husband.”
Penny's eyes sparkled with curiosity, miraculously overcoming her fear for a moment, even if it was just for a moment. If you really look closely, she's no joke. Leila was secretly impressed by Penny. Then, she heard the voices of the men talking, "Did those bastards notice?" and came back to reality.
“He’s the one I really love. I don’t want him to be in danger. Please, promise me, Penny. Just to Dad. Just to Dad. I’ll run over there and buy some time. Promise me. My dear friend, Penny Rosie.”
With a face that seemed to have many questions, Penny nodded steadily.
“Once you pass that tree, run towards the forest first. Don’t run away from the opposite direction I’m running, but hide still. When those people start running after me, right away. Got it?”
“I’ll bring Collie too.”
“Yes, Penny. Don’t cry. Don’t cry. I’m okay.”
It was a very scary time with so many soldiers. Leila was just as scared as Penny, but she tried not to show it and smiled. Penny whispered, sobbing.
“Wh, you have to be safe. I really, really will be back soon. Me.”
As the two headed into the forest, the soldiers hurried their pace, swearing. Their boots mercilessly crushed the wet autumn leaves and branches. Unlike Penny, who was dressed in dark clothes, Leila stood out. As soon as Leila saw that Penny had hidden behind a large tree trunk, she started running with a loud noise.
“Why the hell are you following me? You damn Ramrock soldiers!”
She tried using a swear word her father often uses.
“Hey, they already noticed! Get those bitches!”
“How funny, this guy? What the hell is a Ramrock soldier? Can someone explain it to me?”
“Shut your mouth and run, you were lured here.”
“You lured me in? You said you wanted to go with me so I could get fucked. You piece of shit. F**k, you’re putting people’s lives on the line. We have to get back before the general arrives.”
“I told you he's not coming today.”
“Don’t you know, if I get caught like this, I’m screwed? Wouldn’t it be better to just go back?”
“Why are you going back? I told you he’s not coming today anyway.”
“Captain, are you really following me?”
“I came this far...”
She felt the soldiers' leisurely pace gradually quickening. Penny's heart, curled up and hiding, seemed to sink in with it.
Penny held her breath and waited for them to pass. Heart pounding. Heart pounding. The tears that were falling soaked the back of her hand. The sobs that she couldn't stop were drowned out by the sound of Leila's commotion in the distance. The soldiers ran toward Leila.
***
Aaron was trimming the fence and turning the tree he had just finished cutting. His grandfather was a famous art enthusiast, and he was particularly fond of sculpture. He was so passionate about it that he even held a chisel and a hammer, which was considered vulgar. Aaron learned how to carve over his shoulder at that time. He didn't know that it would be helpful now.
When Aaron was a child, his grandfather was the only one who acknowledged—if indifference can be called an acknowledgement—that he had an interest in astronomy. His grandfather was a man of considerable sensitivity, as he was deeply interested in art.
As a boy, he would often hide in his grandfather's sculpture studio, avoiding the eyes of other adults, reading astronomy books, or he would make fun of his grandfather and go to the observatory to look at the sky. The two elder sons of the most famous political family in Eastern Rocks were modest and secretive.
“Grandpa, why don’t you say anything when I look at the stars?”
“The sky is beautiful. It is not a bad thing for people to be attracted to beautiful things. Ignore your mother and father. The most respected things in the world are beautiful things. It is not the money that your mother or uncle talks about, or the power that people look up to.”
“Grandpa, then you got divorced by Grandma.”
“This kid, you take after your father and have no dignity in the way you speak. No dignity. Sylvia and I have been together for a long time, we know each other well enough, and we ended it by agreeing that we don’t fit together!”
“I heard it’s because you had an affair with Madame Lambrand, who is twenty years younger than you?”
“That’s... Anyway! Listen!”
The most frequent sermons were about beauty.
“After all, money and numbers are just money, so money can only grease people’s throats, and power cannot buy people’s fear and give them true resonance. The greatest thing is beauty. Beauty changes people, just like the stars in the sky you are looking at now resonate with you. A painting can restore hope to someone who is heading toward death, a novel can soothe the heart of a mother who has lost her child, and a piece can awaken passion for the great ancient culture that we have forgotten and lived with. Beauty is like saving people.”
“But my grandfather fell in love with Madame Lambrand and was completely rejected by her...”
“You idiot! How long are you going to keep talking about that? You’re still so young!”
At that time, his grandfather added a remark that was not so special, like a playboy's excuse. But now he understands a little.
The grandfather's behavior was clearly wrong. Nevertheless, he sympathizes with the feelings of a man who is fascinated by beauty. Beauty itself has the power to save people from tragedy. No, this may be one of the instincts that everyone has, regardless of gender.
When Leila came back, he wondered if he could make dinner for her today. If the current were a little weaker, he could put a fish trap in the river. His heart warmed as he thought about these things. His desire to do one more thing for her grew stronger with each passing day. But then, there was a loud crash.
“Sir, sir...!”
Collie started barking in surprise at the sight of Penny running in, covered in tears. Aaron frowned for a moment at the woman's sudden rudeness, then stood up when he saw Penny's frightened face.
“Miss Penny?”
“Mister, ah, mister. Mister... Where is he?”
Ben had just gone out with his rifle in response to Mia's words that a lynx had appeared nearby. Aaron answered, wondering whether he could show himself sitting calmly in Leila's house or not.
“Mr. Ben isn’t here right now.”
He doesn't know why Penny came crying to Leila's house and called Ben, but he had a bad feeling about it.
“Sir... I have to find him. Leila, ugh, huff, huff.”
“What's going on?”
“Sir, sir, I have to find him first. Hey, where is he?”
“At Mrs. Mia’s house for a moment.”
Penny went out to find Ben, tears streaming down her face. Leila had warned her never to tell this man named Aaron. Never. The fact that she had repeated that repeatedly despite the danger she was in was almost like a hint that if he found out, there would be another problem. She was clueless, but not that clueless. After all, there was a military police force, and if Aaron, known to be a soldier from Dublin, got involved, things would only get worse. Penny didn't think this man named Aaron could beat Ramrock's soldiers. Didn't you see him get beaten up badly last time?
Penny ran into the yard and screamed.
“Mister Ben!”
Collie circled around her, who was still crying and jumping around, as if wondering. Penny, who had been pacing around like a crazy person, started running towards Aunt Mia's house. She has to find Ben, Uncle Ben, Uncle Ben. But before she could even get out of the fence, she was caught by Aaron, who hurriedly put on his shoes and followed her.
“I asked what was going on.”
“Let go, let go! Huh! Let go, hurry, let go, we have to go to Uncle Ben, Leila. Leila, to Uncle Ben... Huh!”
“What’s going on?”
Aaron shouted, his face distorted.
The scream was so loud that it echoed along the entire road and even down to the river flowing along the mountain in the distance.
“Leila told me not to tell you, she told me not to! Let go! There’s no, no, no time for this! Heh, ugh, hurry!”
“I told you to speak.”
“Leila, you, to you, words... Heh, save her, Leila... There’s no time for this, so let go quickly...!”
Penny, who was trying to push him away, fell to the damp floor without realizing it. She had never understood the expression “a chill in a person’s eyes” until then. Penny felt dizzy as he looked at her with eyes that were cold enough to feel murderous. It made her wonder if she had run into a place where she would be in trouble again. Regardless of appearance and nationality, all soldiers seemed to have something similar.
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