I walked slowly under the sun that mercilessly bombarded me with a ray of light that caused me to sweat profusely. My stomach had been ringing out violently as I searched for places that sell food. As I walked the path of the village, I approached an elderly couple.
They seemed surprised, but still greeted me with a smile which was a refreshing sight after dealing with the attitude of those merchants. I asked them where I could buy some food for lunch, and they pointed me to a two story building with a sign in front of it that I couldn’t read.
I walked towards there to find a table outside the house and a teenage girl sitting on the chair at the terrace, seemingly waiting for something. She was wearing an apron and her eyes were looking outwards somewhere outside. I walked towards her.
“Excuse me… Do you sell food here?” I asked the teenage girl.
Her eyes looked at me with a rather tired and fatigued expression. She looked at me for a while before opening her mouth, “oh, sorry. You’re… Miss Mashiro, right? My little sister told me so much about you.”
I thought for a second at the implication of her words. After looking at her closer, I finally realized what she meant, especially after the conversation I had with the children this morning.
I asked, “Are you Elise’s older sister?”
“Yes. I’m Lisa, nice to meet you,” she answered. Her complexity didn’t seem better as her short hair swayed a bleak color. She looked around the outside once more. “I’m sorry, I asked my sister and her friends to get the ingredients from Sir Cyrus for today, but she still hasn’t come home so I can’t open the restaurant.”
I sighed in disappointment as my stomach kept on rumbling coercively. Without knowing what to do, I sat down on the terrace next to Lisa. She seemed rather distressed as she waited impatiently while I watched in silence.
“I’m sorry, my little sister should’ve been home long ago. She’s probably out there playing, I’ll go get her.” Lisa stood up from her chair. But as soon as she did, her hand shot out to grab the table, her knees buckling underneath her. I immediately left my seat and grabbed her just before she would fall even more.
“Are you okay?!” I panicked as I steadied her.
She managed a faint smile, clutching her chest tightly as if trying to steady herself. "I'm fine, really," she said, her voice trembling slightly. "It's just... I have a heart condition. I'll be okay. Promise."
I instinctively grabbed her arm and guided her back into the house without waiting for her permission. Her face was ashen, and she looked far too weak to protest. She leaned heavily against me as I half-carried, half-led her toward the first room I could find. Frantically finding a bed inside the room, I let her lay down.
I stayed by Lisa's side for a little while longer, watching her shallow breaths gradually deepen as her chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm. The faint sheen of sweat on her forehead had begun to dry, and her complexion regained a hint of color.
"Lisa," I said softly, not wanting to startle her. She opened her eyes weakly and managed a faint smile.
"I'm really fine, Miss Mashiro," she murmured, her voice still carrying that same reassuring tone, though it was underscored by exhaustion.
"You're not fine," I countered gently but firmly. "You said it’s a heart condition. How long have you been dealing with this?"
She sighed and averted her gaze, as if reluctant to burden me. "Since I was a child," she admitted after a long pause. "It’s nothing new. I’ve learned to live with it, but... lately, it's been harder to manage. Especially with Elise still being so young and me having to take care of the restaurant alone."
"Shouldn’t you be resting more? Or at least getting someone to help you?" I asked, with a concerned tone.
"I don’t have that luxury," Lisa replied with a faint, bittersweet smile. "This village isn’t exactly full of people who can spare the time, and Elise… Well, she’s just a child. I can’t burden her with my responsibilities. She already helps more than she should."
Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author's preferred platform and support their work!
“Is… there anything I can do?” I asked.
“I’m.. sorry for inconveniencing you,” she said between shallow breaths, her voice weak but steadier than before. Her breathing, though still labored, seemed to be stabilizing little by little. I didn’t know what to do, so I was only sitting next to her while she was lying down. She grabbed my hand and smiled at me, “Miss Mashiro, can you find Elise for me? I need to scold her for being late.”
----------------------------------------
“Excuse me, do you know where Sir Cyrus’ house is?” I asked hurriedly to an elderly couple that were walking in front of Lisa’s house. They pointed to a direction and I said “thank you,” as I sprinted towards that direction.
Without any shame, or caring about the blazing heat from the sun, I kept on running the straight path the couple pointed. I could see some weird stares from the people looking at me, but I paid them no attention as I kept on running.
Lisa seemed fine after she rested and slept in her bedroom, still, I wasn’t about to waste any time to do what she requested me to do. The path I was running towards coincided with the place I met the children this morning, so I figured they were close to the hill.
The more I ran, the less houses I saw. It seemed like this Cyrus person lived in a pretty desolate place near the forest, no, the path I was running continued towards the middle of the forest. Still, without thinking too much, I kept running until I found a lonely house inside a forest.
The house was simple, made of sturdy logs with humble decorations that gave it a cozy, rustic charm, but I was in a rush to care much about it. Without wasting any time, I kept banging the door until I finally got an answer.
Finally, the door creaked open, and a rough-looking old man stepped into view. His snow-white hair was unkempt, and his broad, muscular frame gave him an imposing presence. His weathered face frowned slightly as his sharp eyes scanned me, clearly not expecting a visitor.
“Is there anything I can do for you, Miss?” he asked, his tone polite but tinged with curiosity as his eyes widened slightly in surprise at the sight of me.
I took a moment to catch my breath, steadying myself before asking, “Do you know where Elise and her friends are?” My voice came out a little shakier than I intended, but I forced myself to meet his gaze.
“Ah, those kids? They immediately left after I gave them the usual boar meat for Lisa’s restaurant,” he said, his deep, gravelly voice carrying a casual tone. His expression was one of mild confusion, as if he couldn’t quite understand why I was asking. There didn’t seem to be any hint of deceit in his words—just straightforward honesty.
“I see… thank you,” I murmured, unable to hide the disappointment in my tone. Without waiting for a response, I turned and walked away from the house, my steps feeling heavier with each passing moment.
I started walking back to the village. But just as I was about to leave the forest, a blood-curdling scream shattered the stillness, echoing through the trees like a warning.
My heart skipped a beat. Without thinking, I summoned my sword in a flash, the familiar weight of the hilt grounding me in the moment. I sprinted toward the source of the scream, my pulse racing and every instinct urging me to move faster.
The familiar sound of the children calmed my nerves for a second as I sprinted towards them closer. I could see them panicking and cowering from something.
I observed the situation and saw a slow walking skeleton from the distance trying to chase the children. Its bony frame moved with unnerving persistence. It was about fifteen meters away, its slow, jerky steps giving the impression that it had all the time in the world. I immediately used the Identification skill that Catherine taught me.
<
Health Points: 2,372/2,372 [100%]
Defense: 287
Attack: 78
Category: Undead
Description: A slow-moving pile of calcium with a grudge against the living. Despite being literally skinless, it somehow manages to be a headache. Just don’t trip over it—it might take a full minute to catch up.
That’s too much for me, I’m only level 1! I cursed in my head as I ran towards the children. I could see a scraped knee on one of them, which might be why they stopped and cower there. They were all carrying a leather bag of something. It was probably the ingredients for Lisa, their small hands gripping them as if the bags were their only shield against the fear around them.
“Elise, Roy!” I yelled as I positioned myself between the children and the incoming slow moving skeleton. The children noticed me and all of them heaved a sigh of relief after seeing me. There were five children, three boys and two girls, including Roy and Elise, being close together as they watched me.
“Miss Mashiro…” Elise muttered, her cheeks turning pink as her eyes darted away from me. The other kids quickly followed suit, suddenly avoiding my gaze.
“Um… your button… it’s, uh… showing your chest,” Elise finally blurted out, her voice a mix of embarrassment and poorly suppressed amusement.
I froze for a split second, then glanced down. To my horror, one of the buttons on my dress had come undone during my frantic sprint, leaving my bra fully visible. My face flushed crimson, and I instinctively clutched at the fabric.
“It’s not the time for that!” I yelled, desperately trying to refocus their attention—and mine—on the shambling skeleton closing in on us.