The Great Lie (Part 1)

It was already afternoon when the traveling trio entered the Novobrod village.

“I hope they have an inn where we can sleep over,” Mira said.

“Of course, they have an inn,” Kasian answered.

“Are you sure?” Leonard asked him. “It doesn’t look like a big place.”

“Novobrod looks like just a small remote village, but it has a steady number of visitors.”

“Because we are close to the borders?” Leonard asked.

“You’ve guessed it. If someone has to sneak over, they usually go to Novobrod village,” Mira said.

Generally speaking, both Silgorod and Lunaria kingdoms were not happy with the migration of their people. The big roads were strictly monitored and checked. Therefore, the people engaged in shady dealings traveling to Lunaria were using this village to slip across the border.

“Villagers here are used to strangers, but let's keep our profile low, just to be sure,” Kasian said. “Let's go to the market now. I need to know how much money I will get for that fox fur you found, Mira. Then we will find out how long we can stay.”

“Sure,” Mira answered, pulling the hood from her cloak lower to her face.

“Should I do the same?” Leonard asked her.

“I don’t think they will recognize you as a summoned hero,” Mira answered. “This village is too far from the capital, and if a few young men left this village for the siege, they probably didn’t survive to tell the tale. I am just hiding my silver hair. They will immediately make me suspicious whenever I go.”

“Right, it is not usual to see a young woman with an old lady's gray hair.”

While they were talking, Kasian was already many steps ahead of them. He stopped near the center of the village, where there was a big wooden platform built. In the middle of it, two pairs of small booths stood.

“It is really a very small village,” Leonard noted.

“The smaller and farther, the better,” Mira answered.

They did not even have time to check out those booths on the market. Kasian was right back with a few additional silver coins clinking in his palm.

“We should go,” he said. “The man who bought the fox fur from me said, this village has only one inn combined with the tavern. We should settle down before others take it.”

They found the in quickly. It was the biggest building in the village. They opened the heavy wooden door and stepped inside. The tavern was on the bottom floor of the house, and the inn rooms were on the first and second floors. During the afternoon, the tavern was full of people snacking on fruits with cheese and drinking beer or even strong liquor. They were sitting on wooden benches behind the big tables, talking and shouting over each other.

The big hearth at the end, which was usually warming up the whole room, but now, in the middle of the summer, was put out and properly swept.

A young maiden was serving the guests, her long hair in a braid, her long skirt flying around her ankles. The white linen blouse was properly tied at the top with the string, but the full bosom was threatening to spill over.

An old innkeeper, probably the father of the maiden, was just standing over the counter, drafting another glass of beer for a guest. His wife, a woman with broad shoulders, just brought out from the kitchen next door another plate of fruits and cheese.

Leonard stopped before the counter.

“Greetings,” he said, “do you have a free room?”

“How many?” the man asked him.

“Three rooms,” Leonard said.

“Two rooms,” Mira corrected him.

“Pardon me,” Leonard turned to her. “Two?”

“We need to save as much money as possible,” she whispered to him. “And Kasian is not sleeping during the night anyway. So let's not waste silver coins when we don’t have to.”

Leonard turned back to the innkeeper. “Two rooms.”

The inkeeper sized them up, his big mustache twitching. “Five silvers,” he said to them.

Kasian put on the counter one more: “We will eat now.”

He nodded and took the coins.

The trio found the last empty table with the wooden chairs and sat down. Although they were new in the village, almost nobody paid any attention to them. The locals were indeed used to new faces in the village. They did not care about anything. Some of them were discussing the harvest, others their businesses. Leonard listened to them a bit and then turned to Mira sitting next to him.

“What will we do now?” he asked.

“You are so annoying,” she grumbled. “Just let me sleep properly one night, and I will tell you later. I am too tired to think.”

“I can go inquire,” Kasian said immediately. “Once we have more information, we can make the decision. But I would rather not stay too long in one place.”

The innkeeper's daughter appeared beside them with a big glass of beer.

“Good day, travelers,” she said with a broad smile on her face. “You must be new, I did not see you here before.”

Kasian turned to her, taking one of the glasses. “I thank you. We are travelers, looking for a brief rest before continuing the road ahead.”

After her bright eyes met his, she went quiet. Her rosy colored cheeks were suddenly fiery red. She licked her full lips, smiling even brighter. She leaned closer to him while putting the other two glasses of beer on the table.

“I hope you may stay awhile,” she said to him.

“I’d be glad to, especially with such a charming host,” Kasian replied.

Leonard rolled his eyes. This was the Kasian he remembered from his original world. He always knew what to say to women. Not to mention, even in this body, he looked fairly attractive. At least it looked like that, according to the reaction of that young waitress.

Mira looked at Kasian, her eyes glowing slightly. “Know your place,” she said.

A soft gush of wind flew over Leonard, landing on Kasian. His head lowered instantly, as he clutched his chest. It looked like it was hard for him to breathe. A sweat started forming on his temples.

“Mira, stop it!” Leonard caught her wrist lying on the table.

She snapped out of it and turned her head to him.

“We need to keep a low profile, do you remember?” he scolded her. “Why are you making such a ruckus? Don’t you know, he is always like that?”

“You speak like you know him,” Mira said.

He let go of her hand. “I mean,” he scratched his neck, “he is that kind of guy. You know those types. The flirty ones.”

Now it was Kasian who rolled their eyes. “Do you want me to find out more or not? Who else will know the most, if not the girl working in the tavern? Drunk people have loose tongues, don’t you know?”

“Stop oggling that girl,” Mira said to Kasian. “It is irritating.”

Leonard did not understand why Mira was so angry with him. Kasian was always like this, and during their previous lives, she never showed any hint of anger or annoyance. Why now?

“Wait,” he said. “Are you two in fact dating?”

Mira spilled the beer she was just drinking. Wiping off her mouth with her sleeve, she looked at him.

“Are you crazy?” she said. “I would never–“

She went quiet. Something just flashed before her eyes. Leonard could see as her pupils dilated. A soft gasp left her open mouth. Then she blinked, and her brows furrowed. She rubbed her eyes, moving her fingers to her temples.

“Mira, are you okay?” Leonard asked her.

“Y-yes,” she said, almost in a whisper. “My head just started hurting. I think I am going blind from the pain.”

“That does not sound okay at all,” Leonard said, concerned. “They do not have any painkillers here, I suppose. Should I go ask for at least some cold rag?”

“It will pass soon,” Kasian said.

“Do you know what is happening to her?” Leonard turned to him.

“Her mind is trying to remember something.”

“Oh.”

“But it is hard. But her memories were wiped out, her brain cannot remember something that is not there. This is why it hurt her so much each time this happens.”

“Why is it happening now?”

“You said something which triggered the missing memory.”

“How can I trigger something that is not there? If her memories were really eaten by dead souls, then this shouldn't be happening at all, no?”

“I do not know,” Kasian shook his head. “I still did not find out how that forbidden magic of hers works. Sometimes, I have a feeling certain memories are still hiding deep inside her head, but I do not know how to check that. She usually does not react to any story or memory I tell her about.”

“I see.”

Leonard wasn’t sure how to feel about it. It is their memories and experiences that make people who they are. When someone loses all their core memories, does not that make them a different person?

Sitting next to him was Mira, his dear friend, but at the same time, it was another Mira he did not recognize. Even though she was in the same body, she was different inside now.