Noral Village III

"Hey kids, why don't you come with us? That way, you can know as soon as Atla's finished showing me around the village, so you can play with her."

"You sure, Lyn?"

"Yes. I don't mind some extra company."

Carolyn's suggestion drew a look of surprise from Atla and joy from Alan, but the reactions of the other kids weren't as favourable.

"Hmph, if you think we'll do whatever you want like Atla, you can forget bout it!" Ryan shouted.

"Is that so? Then, what about you, Alan?" Carolyn asked.

"Yes!"

"Then I guess it'll just be you and Atla."

"Me too!"

"No fair! I'll join too."

Once Alan expressed his approval, the other kids were quick to throw away their hesitation and join him. Even Ryan quietly joined them at the end. Although she was an only child, Carolyn was often given the task of watching over the younger village children, so she knew how to handle them.

The children continued into the village square and quickly attracted the attention of the nearby villagers. Similar to the way here, only a few villagers greeted them, despite most taking at least a few glances in their direction. She knew that there was nothing she could do to change this atmosphere, so Atla introduced the shops in the area as cheerfully as she could.

"That's the bakery! Some of us grow wheat, but Uncle George and his apprentices are the only ones who know how to bake with it, so we all leave it to them. Tyler's father works there."

Perhaps influenced by her determined cheer, the other children also made an effort to chime in.

"Yeah, I remember when he got his butt beat for snacking on extra bread."

"You're the one that told me to get it!"

"That's the smithery! We get all our metal tools there from Ol' Man Roger. He can be grumpy, but he's a nice guy."

"Nice? Are you sure you're talking about the right Roger, Atla?"

"Of course! Didn't he stop your parents from kicking you out the house for stealing?"

"He's the one that told them!"

"Well, you're the one who stole. Anyway, that's the bar. I've never been inside, but it always seems so lively at night."

"You've never gone inside? Must be because you're still a brat."

"Shut it, Ryan."

Carolyn had been worried that Atla was forcing herself to be hyper, but through her exchanges with the children, Carolyn could tell that there was nothing to worry about. Atla continued introducing the various places with commentary from the other children until they reached the village chief's house.

"Thanks, Atla. I'm going to have a talk with the village chief so you can go play with your friends."

Carolyn had initially planned on visiting the river that she had laid her mother in, but she figured that she could always visit it another time.

"But how are you gonna return home?"

"Don't worry. It was a simple route, so I memorized it."

"But..."

"She said that she'll be fine, so let's go sis."

"That's right. She's older than us too."

Atla didn't seem completely convinced, but the children dragged her away while she hesitated to make a decision. Carolyn was grateful for her company, but she didn't want to take her away from her friends. As the children in her village were also about the same age as Atla's group, Carolyn didn't have a friend who was in her age group. She never felt lonely because of this, but she did think that it was a bit of a shame.

Once she saw Atla's group leave the village square, Carolyn looked at the village chief's house once more. Most of the village houses only had a single storey, but this house had two and was still around twice as wide as the other houses. The village chief of Carolyn's former village lived in a house that was little different from the others, but apparently this was the norm among most villages. The main reason for the difference was so that the village chief could host travelers of high status, but based on the map Carolyn read, there shouldn't be any major roads near this area of the river, so she wondered if Noral Village still saw its occasional visitor.

While still pondering, Carolyn knocked on the door and waited for a response. She didn't have any particular matter that needed Hanson's advice, but she was in the area, so she figured that she might as well thank him for his help. She didn't have to wait for long before the door opened, but the one who opened it was an unfamiliar face.

"Yes?"

It was a young woman with a cloth tied over her hair, cradling a baby in her right arm. Her eyes seemed to widen once she saw Carolyn, and she slapped her left hand on Carolyn's shoulder.

"Oh, you must be Carolyn!"

"Uh, yes. And might you be the village chief's daughter or sister?"

"Haha! I'll leave that to your imagination." The woman removed her hand and took a step back. "Please, come in."

"Thank you."

Right after the door was a path that led further inside and a staircase that went to the second floor on the right side of the path. Once Carolyn was inside, the woman closed the door and then approached her.

"Are you here to see Hanny?"

"Hanny?"

"Hanson. The village chief."

"Oh, yes. Is he free?"

"Well, let's have a look see. He should be in the study, so let's head there."

The woman then began climbing the stairs. Carolyn was flustered by how active she was despite holding a child, but she still remembered to follow her. Unlike Hanson, the woman strongly fit the image of a village housewife, but she also possessed a strong confidence that made Carolyn think she was special.

Once they were upstairs, the woman went to the second door on the right and knocked.

"Hanny, are you there? You have a guest."

"Hmm? Ah, send them in."

After receiving Hanson's response, the woman waved at Carolyn as a way of telling her to come closer. Carolyn obeyed, and once she was near the door, the woman opened it and led her inside. Hanson's study had a bookshelf on the right, left, and back walls, and a small space between them where his book-laden desk faced the entrance. When he looked up and spotted Carolyn, his eyes widened, but he didn't show any other sign of surprise and took up the books that were placed on the chair in front of the desk. After placing those books on top of another pile on his desk, Hanson addressed them.

"Miss Carolyn, please sit here. Rilis, thanks for bringing her. How are the children doing?"

"Everything's fine. Don't worry about the kids, and take good care of Dear Carolyn, okay."

"Naturally."

With her task complete, Rilis left the room. Her mind was still lagging behind the situation, but Carolyn took the seat Hanson presented.

"Um, this may sound a little rude, but could Miss Rilis be...?"

"She's my wife. She can be a bit forward, but I hope you can forgive her."

"No, no no, I was simply surprised because she looked so young."

"I'm sure she would be very glad to hear that."

Hanson maintained a polite smile, but love poured out of his eyes when he talked about Rilis. It was much like how her mother was when she spoke about her father.

"You must really love her. I hope that my staying in the village hasn't caused you two any trouble."

"No, you don't have to worry about that. My wife was the one who initially insisted on letting you stay in Doctor Teri's care. You're welcome to stay here as long as you like."

"Thank you for the offer, but I don't plan on freeloading for much longer. Once Mister Teri gives me the go-ahead, I plan to start helping out in the village."

"Is that so? Are you that unwilling to accept my aid for free?"

"Uh, I..."

"I'm only joking. When that time comes, feel free to seek me out. I can always use a literate assistant."

"Is being literate really that special? I heard from Atla that you have a class where the villagers learn how to read and write."

"Yes, but I've only recently implemented it, and the adults are rather stubborn, so it'll take some time before I get any returns."

"I see. I'll consider it then."

"I'm glad to hear that. I've been busier than usual handling that matter you told me about."

"You mean, the bandits?"

"Yes. We found their traces along the river, but they've passed by our location. As for your village, everything was either burned or buried. There were traces of a battle inside the forest, but we couldn't find anything belonging to your father."

"Does that mean he's..."

"I, can't say for sure. But I believe that if they knew who he was, then they would capture him for information."

"I see. So those bandits really were after my family. Was the village just, collateral damage then?"

"All I can say are speculations. Only those involved know the full answer."