4. Breaking (1)
I climbed the mountain trail in search of the yellow flowers. The day had warmed up and the snow had melted, making the climb much easier than when I had to dig for herbs.
However, the melted snow had altered the landscape I remembered, causing some confusion. But with some fumbling, I managed to find my way. After passing Nae’s hunting ground and crossing a ridge, just as Nae had said, I found a place where yellow flowers were blooming profusely.
A cluster of yellow flowers poking their heads out over the snow-covered field. The frost that had fallen overnight had made them sparkle so beautifully that it was almost blinding.
“Wow….”
I was mesmerized as I approached and examined the flowers. I thought they were just herbs that resembled flowers, but they were real flowers.
“Flowers bloom even in winter….”
How strong must their vitality be to bloom through this cold? Is that why they’re used as herbs?
Yes, with these, Nae’s leg should be able to heal. Once Nae’s leg is better, I’ll come back here and we can admire them together.
We’ll eat together, and go hunting together. Just imagining it made me happy, and I slowly descended the slope with a big smile, picking the flowers.
Carefully holding onto the trees to avoid slipping, I descended down the slope. As I did, I noticed a part of the snow field had been unnaturally dug up. At first, I thought it was a tree root, but it was just the ground that had been dug up.
I swallowed dryly, wondering if a wild boar had dug it up, but the hole was too large for that. It looked as though it had been dug up with a large shovel.
A badger, perhaps? No, badgers hibernate in winter… Or maybe a rabbit hole…? Or could it be… the monster that Nae warned me about?
I made several assumptions, but none seemed right. After pondering for a while, I cautiously approached the dug-up ground.
‘It would be more certain to check it out myself….’
As I approached, I could tell that the ground had been dug up by someone’s nails. The frozen ground had preserved the nail marks.
“Nails….”
As I blankly stared at the hole, I tentatively placed my hand inside. The hole and the nail marks were three times larger than my hand.
I shivered at the eerily familiar feeling.
“Nae…?”
Why had Nae dug up the ground here? And when?
Did she know I would come here? How?
Questions piled up one after another, and I began to rummage through the dug-up soil. After a while of digging, I felt something other than soil.
I immediately reached out and pulled out the object. Buried in the soil was a neatly folded piece of paper and a leather pouch filled with money.
“A paper and… money, why are they here…?”
An inexplicable anxiety crept up on me. It couldn’t be. It shouldn’t be. It couldn’t possibly be.
Unpleasant thoughts refused to leave my mind.
I couldn’t unfold the paper, fearing that those unpleasant thoughts would become reality. I turned my back on it.
I returned to the hut on the hill where Nae was, clutching the crumpled letter so tightly in my hand.
My breath was at its limit. I slipped and rolled on the ground in my haste.
I was scratched by outstretched branches and scraped by rocks. I was covered in wounds.
Surprisingly, I didn’t feel any pain.
All I could think about was returning to the hut where Nae was.
I ran and ran, crossed the ridge, passed Nae’s hunting ground, and arrived at the hut.
“Haa…. Ha ha…. Haa….”
The door of the hut was open.
And there, a trail of crimson red blood, stemmed into one place, like a flower.
“No… No…!”
I smacked my trembling legs that refused to move any further.
“Move…! Move!! Ahhh!!!”
I screamed and hit my legs, but they refused to move. I gritted my teeth and crawled on the ground. My arms hurt, my elbows were scraped, and my shoulders felt like they were going to dislocate.
I endured all of it and crawled like a bug.
As I got closer to the hut, the smell of thick blood became stronger.
The fact I had been denying was becoming clearer.
When I reached the stairs, I put my hand on them to get up.
A sticky sensation and a cold liquid soaked my hand.
I ignored it and used the pillar of the stairs to stand up.
My thigh, which I had hit with my fist, was throbbing, and my calf felt like it was going to burst.
My knee was sore, and the soles of my feet were burning.
“Nae…! Nae!! Answer me, Nae!!”
I shouted, but there was no response.
The moment I leaned on the open door, it pushed in, and I lost my balance and fell into the hut.
“Ah!?”
The inside of the hut was filled with a terrible smell of blood.
“Nae…?”
There was still no answer.
Only my voice echoed.
I could have looked around the inside of the hut just by lifting my head, but I couldn’t.
All I did was call Nae’s name over and over again.
I could only hope that she was just asleep, that she was dozing off and couldn’t answer.
But contrary to my hopes, no matter how long I waited, there was no response.
“Ah…”
The only thing that came back was the bright red blood soaking the floor.
The world cruelly crushed even my small hope.
In the end, I had no choice but to lift my head.
As I slowly lifted my head, I saw Nae sitting on the bed.
Nae, with a spear in her chest, her warm and large hand cut off, was dead.
“Ah… Nae… Na, Nae… Your hand….”
I crawled towards Nae.
Her body was covered in blood, but it was far from warm; it was utterly cold.
I leaned against the bed and checked Nae’s face.
Her empty pupils no longer reflected me.
“No…! Don’t do this, stop playing…! Huh? I, It;s my fault…! I’ll bring more herbs…! Please…!! Please!!”
No matter how much I screamed, no matter how much I threw a tantrum, there was no way that warm words could come out of her already cold lips.
My world was falling apart.
My sun had disappeared.
“No. No, it’s not… There’s still a way.”
If it was the person that gave birth to me, if it’s the power of the saintess, she can save Nae, she can save mom.
Yes.
Let’s go back to the mansion.
I forced my trembling legs to move and wrapped Nae’s body in cloth.
The pure white cloth was dyed red in an instant, but I didn’t care.
I tucked the letter that Nae had written into my chest and put on thick clothes.
After briefly looking at the blood-stained hut, I picked up Nae and left the hut.
After that, I just walked.
I walked mindlessly until the village appeared.
After spending two nights in the forest and walking.
After crossing the ridge and getting out of the forest, the village finally appeared.
“What’s that, isn’t that blood?”
“Is that a person he’s carrying…?”
There were no guards in the small village, so there was no one to stop me, so I ignored the shocked stares and walked.
While I was walking, someone blocked my path.
“Child. Where are you going alone?”
“…I’m going to the saintess.”
“The saintess… Are you talking about Lorelai, who married the hero?”
“…Yes.”
The person who didn’t say anything for a while after hearing my words cautiously opened her mouth while looking at Nae, who I was carrying.
“Child, can you… tell me who the person wrapped in that cloth is?”
The eyes looking at me were full of compassion, sympathy, and sorrow.
Those emotions were so vivid that they dug into my wounded heart.
I originally intended not to say anything, but when I came to my senses, I found myself opening my mouth wide.
Don’t say anything. Just, just pass by.
Despite thinking that, my heart yearning for warmth unknowingly answered.
“…She’s my mom.”
“My goodness…!”
Upon hearing my answer, she covered her mouth and her eyes welled up with tears.
She hugged me tightly on the spot.
The warmth, different from Nae’s, was so warm that I felt like I was going to go mad.
Guilt, guilt tore my body to shreds.
“I’m a cold-blooded creature, so it’s hard for me to maintain my body temperature. That’s why I like the warmth.”
At the sudden recollection of Nae’s words, I nodded.
The place I followed the nameless lady to was a brightly lit hut.
The structure reminded me of Nae’s hut, and I choked up, but I managed to hold back my tears.
The lady who was leading the way told me to wait for a moment and went into the hut first.
After a brief wait.
The lady brought out a sled made of wood from somewhere.
“Carrying her like that will be hard. Lay her on this sled and take her with you.”
“…A sled?”
“My husband is a hunter. It’s a sled he uses whenever he brings back a boar or a large wild animal.”
“Can I take this…?”
“He hasn’t been using it much lately because of the winter, so go ahead. I’ve told him about it, so don’t worry.”
“…Thank you.”
As I bowed my head in gratitude and laid Nae on the sled, the lady smiled faintly and spoke.
“Right. I know it won’t be easy, but why don’t you leave your mother outside for a while and come inside?”
“My goodness… You’re as cold as ice. It’s late, let’s go to my house for now.”
“…But.”
“You need to spend the night warm at least. Your mother would want you to stay in a warm place rather than shivering in the cold.”
After contemplating her words for a while, I followed the lady into the hut.
Inside the hut was incredibly warm.
My cheeks itched.
My arms, hands, and feet were twitching.
It’s strange.
This didn’t happen at Nae’s house…
As I was scratching my wrist unable to enter the house, the lady gestured for me to come in.
Pushing the strange feeling aside and entering the house, there was a man sitting at the table.
“Who’s the kid?”
As soon as my eyes met the man’s, my whole body twitched.
It felt as if bugs were crawling all over me.
“I’ll explain everything later, just let her stay for tonight.”
“…Alright. Just for one night. We had a harvest today anyway.”
“Are you talking about the monster?”
Monster.
At the sound of that word, my stomach churned.
No.
That can’t be.
“Yeah. I finally killed the monster I’ve been talking about.”
The man who said that looked proudly at the wall and laughed.
My instincts were screaming not to look, but I turned my head towards the wall, as if entranced by the man’s gaze.
“I reported it to the guild today, so an investigator will come to check it tomorrow.”
There, hanging on the wall, was Nae’s severed hand.
I heard something inside me break.
Thanks.