3 – BANDIT AND CARAVAN CLICHE?

Eve sprinted through the night kicking a trail of sand behind her. She has been running for a few hours as she raced through dunes and swatted a few more sand worms that occasionally harassed her.

Ever since the sun has gone down eve has slowly been feeling tired as the hours passed.

Looking again Eve sees how close she is to the cliff-side.

Eve: "Almost there!"

Eve suddenly notices that near the river there is a small cart being pulled by what looks like camels ahead. the cart seems to be stopped and surrounded by people.

Eve:"Is this the typical bandit and caravan cliche you read about in Isekai stories?"

As she runs closer she makes for the cart, hopefully she will not be too late! Eve puts her head down to dash faster and when she feels she is close she glances up then skids to a stop. All of the people surrounding the cart seem to have spears pointing her direction.

It does not seem like they are bandits. There is no fighting, opposing forces, no one injured and everyone looks human.

Eve slowly raises her hands in surrender.

Eve: "Woah! easy there!"

Man:"λλλλλ λλ, λλλ λ!"

Whatever the man said does not seem to be spoken in English. Suddenly Eve is wondering where her translate skill is? What Goddess forgot to add the language skill when they Isekai'ed her here? Then She remembered she is the one who Isekai'ed herself... Well perhaps she could get to know their language in a similar manner? hmm... maybe if she could lay a hand on his head and focus she could read his mind and learn the language somehow? If he would even let her do that!

Man:"λλλ!"

Eve:"Easy! I'm not going to hurt you. how about you let me close so I can try something!"

Eve takes a slight step forward.

Man:"λλ!!!"

Then she takes a step back

Suddenly a red-haired loli steps out from the cart.

Eve: "Loli!"

Loli: "λλ λλ!"

Everyone is no longer as cautious but they still keep their guard up

Loli: "λλ, λλλ λ. λλλλλλ."

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the girl steps out in front of her guards and offers out her hand.

Loli: "λλλλλλ."

Slowly Eve approaches and eventually she is close enough she touches a finger to the girls hand and closes her eyes

Loli: "λλλλ?"

Eve: "Yes loli, yes touch!"

Focusing her mind she feels the energy in the girl and slowly reaches the girls mind slowly she sees a few images and memories but ignores them and she finds what she is looking for.

Eve: "Hello! my name is Eve!"

Everyone looks at eve shocked!

Loli: "You could not speak before how... are you speaking now?"

Eve:"Oh, I just borrowed it from your mind!"

The girl looks slightly disturbed, she can read minds?

Girl:"My name is Neesha, that... you can read minds? That's kind of scary... what are you? you don't look human. Are you a beastkin?"

Eve:"Don't know! hehe. I am just Eve! Sorry about looking into your mind its the only thing I could thank of to learn the language. This is my first time doing it so I was not sure it would work."

The sun begins to peek over the horizon lighting up the valley. as it happens a stout man and a woman come from the front of the cart around to see the commotion the solders all stop pointing their spears at Eve but remain cautious.

Man:"Young Miss! you shouldn't take such risks! that thing is not even human!"

I smile hearing that, nope! not human anymore I let out a giggle.

Man: "What?"

Eve: "Oh its nothing! I just thought of something funny!"

Neesha: "Harkin! you're being rude... I am sorry for Harkin's behavior.

Harkin: "Young Miss!?"

the stout man and woman approach and first make sure Neesha is safe before examining me.

Stout Man: "Greetings, I am Marsh the Peddler and this is my Wife Claret and my Daughter Neesha and also my regular guards Harkin, Rex and Alma"

Rex and Alma both nod to me as their names are called and i smile to them both, but they both seem unnerved.

Eve: "Hello Rex and Alma! hello Neesha's Mom and Dad!"

Rex: "Hello..."

Alma: "Hello, your eyes... are kind of... strange. You are not looking into our heads like with Neesha are you?"

Eve: "No no! I can't do that unless I touch someone and focus on doing that you have no worries about that. Please don't worry that was a one-time thing!"

Rex and Alma look a bit more relieved and Harkin just snorts in displeasure.

Neesha: "Well I think your eyes are pretty!"

Eve smiles

Eve: "Neesha is such a charmer hehe! So why is everyone stopped here? Did your cart break down?"

Harkin: "Well we were camped for the night at the entrance to the valley when suddenly something starts charging at us like some Desert Racer!"

Eve: "Whats a desert racer?"

Harkin gives eve a bit of a stare as debating whether to respond to her.

Harkin:"it's a large human-sized frill-lizard that usually runs across the desert on 2 legs... with how much sand you were kicking up it looked like there would have been about 8 of them. They are usually harmless but they still can make a mess of our cargo before running off, they mostly like to snatch food from whatever they find in the desert. bunch of pilfering menaces!"

Marsh frowns.

Marsh: "Already lost several crates to desert racers on the way to Ingrian. Even though we keep to the Cliff walls"

(Eve: "hmm desert racers huh? I wonder why I had only run into those worms on the way here?") Eve gives a look into the desert then points into the distance

Eve:"Don't look now, but it looks like there are about 10 desert racers headed here!"

The caravan people all look out into the distance.

Neesha: "hmm... I can't see anything..."

Eve:"Its right there."

Harkin:"what are you pulling there is nothing there."

Eve sighs.

Eve: "I guess you don't have as good of eyesight as I do. don't you have any binoculars?"

Neesha:"bi--no.. what? oh a spyglass? Daddy wheres our spyglass?"

Claret: "ill go get it little Nee."

Claret runs off to the wagon, pulls out a spyglass and looks into the distance.

Neesha: "... ah! she is right! I see them!"

Harkin firmly snatches the spyglass to look into the distance while being careful not to harm Neesha.

Harkin: "... Rex Alma get ready! We got some Desert racers coming our way!