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People gathered around, starting to beat and kick the two unconscious thugs. Some even tore open their sleeves and, upon seeing a black snake mark on their arms, became even more furious, stomping on them viciously. Others surrounded Mengdie, offering their clothes to cover her and constantly expressing their concern. However, Mengdie paid no attention to this.
"Whistle—!"
Suddenly, a sharp whistle sounded from the direction of the town. Hearing this, the crowd's expressions changed dramatically! They scattered like birds and beasts from around Mengdie and the thugs, running far away. Mengdie, puzzled, looked up to see a troop of riders dressed as knights approaching from a distance.
"Ha... these guys, only sending people over after everything's over? Ugh... I'm so tired..."
Seeing how afraid the people were of the knights, Mengdie didn't want to cause more trouble and stood up to leave. But as she stood, her legs weakened from fatigue, and she was about to fall again! At this moment, a small figure ran from behind a nearby tree to support her.
It was the little girl with orange-red hair.
The girl smiled at Mengdie, helping her quickly into the woods. Mengdie nearly stumbled a few times, but the girl supported her and hurried into the forest.
A group of about a dozen armored knights galloped along the road. They gathered around the two thugs, shouting loudly, seemingly inquiring something from the crowd, but no one dared to answer. The knights, seeing no response, huddled together, kicked the snake-shaped tattoos on the thugs' arms, and appeared quite pleased. After a brief discussion, they placed the two thugs on horseback and headed back towards the town.
Watching the knights depart, the girl retreated into the bushes and let out a soft sigh of relief. She sat next to Mengdie, looking worriedly at her injuries. After inspecting a few scrapes, she took out some bandages from a small waist pouch and began to dress Mengdie's wounds.
"※☆№§★‰?"
The girl breathed a sigh of relief, pointing at the opening in Mengdie's chest area, and took out a needle and thread from her pouch. Understanding her intention, Mengdie smiled at the girl and began to unbutton her shirt.
"#@￥###@￥％&!!"
The girl, panicking, shook her head and hastily grabbed Mengdie's shirt, rebuttoning the buttons Mengdie had undone. Then, with a sigh, she indicated for Mengdie to stay still and began to sew the tear.
Her hands were nimble, and her orange-red hair reminded Mengdie of the sweet fragrance of tangerines. Mengdie no longer objected and let the girl finish sewing her shirt, thanking her with a smile.
"&@￥#."
This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
The girl smiled back, but the unclear language still puzzled Mengdie. After some thought, Mengdie pointed to her nose and said "Mengdie", then gestured towards the girl, inviting her to share her name.
After a couple of attempts, the girl understood and pointed to her nose, saying, "Nia."
Mengdie nodded, stood up, and stretched, feeling a bit less tired. She patted Nia's head, warning her to be more careful in the future, and then moved to leave the thicket.
"￥#@&％?"
Seeing Mengdie about to leave, Nia stood up and asked something. Mengdie, not understanding, didn't respond, but Nia seemed insistent, pulling at Mengdie's arm, pointing towards the town, and then at herself and Mengdie. It seemed she wanted to take Mengdie somewhere familiar to her.
Mengdie's smile faded. She gently freed herself from Nia's grasp, reluctant to escalate the situation. However, her refusal didn't seem to reach Nia, who again took hold of her hand and pointed towards the town.
"Sorry, girl. For your own good, I hope you let go right now."
Suddenly, Mengdie's expression turned icy, causing Nia to pale and involuntarily step back. Mengdie let out a snort, grabbed the girl's arm, and rolled up her sleeve. There, in the same spot as the thugs, was a black snake tattoo, identical in shape and size!
Nia was stunned and quickly pulled down her sleeve, backing away. Mengdie said nothing, allowing her to do so. Discovering this tattoo, Mengdie became highly alert. It was clear Nia belonged to the same organization as the thugs, although their reasons for conflict were unknown. Mengdie didn't want to get further entangled.
"You can go. No need to thank me."
Mengdie waved her off, ready to step out of the thicket. She thought her refusal, even without shared language, would be understood and that the girl, regardless of her schemes, would know to back off.
Mengdie thought so, but unexpectedly, after just a step, Nia grabbed her again! Her eyes showed immense regret and sincerity.
"Is she... really inviting me? Or is there some other trick?"
Mengdie pondered, looking at the girl. Unfortunately, something else wasn't following her wishes—
"Gurgle~~~"
Loud, this stomach growl was really loud... No matter how much Mengdie tried to maintain her composure, her cheeks turned as red as ripe persimmons at this loud noise! Similarly, upon hearing it, Nia first looked surprised, then covered her mouth and giggled. Holding Mengdie's hand tighter, she no longer had any doubts or fear.
"Well... alright! Do you have anything to eat?"
Blushing, Mengdie asked. Nia tugged at her clothes and nodded firmly.
As they slowly walked towards the town through the woods, Nia seemed reluctant to walk on the smooth road, possibly due to the snake-shaped tattoo on her arm. The knights didn't seem to be inviting the thugs for drinks.
Approaching the city walls, Mengdie fully realized the chaos and disarray. A huge hole appeared in the massive white rock wall, as if blown open by a powerful explosive. Knights and soldiers were constantly shouting at everyone, their faces stern and tense. Looking through the cracked wall, a straight line of buildings appeared ravaged by a storm, severely damaged. Although Mengdie didn't understand their thoughts, she felt quite embarrassed.
"Seems like I got too angry earlier... Could it be that I used up all my strength in the destruction?... Impossible..."
As they approached the wall, soldiers were on high alert, refusing entry to everyone. The soldiers seemed tense, but the civilians were even more so. In uncertainty, inside the city was always safer than outside.
Mengdie pondered how to enter. In the past, she wouldn't have cared about such security, but now, she had to think twice.
Nia, too, seemed at a loss. She looked at the soldiers, then back at Mengdie. When she noticed Mengdie's hair, she made a troubled pout, took out a scarf from her pouch, and handed it to Mengdie.
"What's this for?"
Mengdie took the scarf, asking. Nia gestured, seemingly wanting Mengdie to cover her hair. Mengdie smiled, appreciating the thought, but returned the scarf.
"I'm a man, why should I hide? I understand your kindness."
Seeing Mengdie's refusal, Nia grew anxious. She scrutinized Mengdie's face and hair, examining her from top to bottom, but still decided to give the scarf back to her. Not for anything else, but for Mengdie herself! Even without martial law, walking on the street would surely attract much attention!
Mengdie, however, grew irritated at the repeated offer.
"What, do you see me as a woman too? I'm a man, a real man! Why should I hide if I'm a man? If I do that, wouldn't it be admitting I'm now a woman?! Keep your scarf! I, Mengdie, have always been open and upright, a true gentleman, unafraid to show my face!"
Nia couldn't understand Mengdie's rant, simply finding it strange that such a beautiful 'sister' would be so opposed to wearing a scarf. She sadly shook her head and put the scarf back in her bag.
They waited outside the city wall for nearly an hour. The chaos continued, but eventually, entry began, albeit with stricter searches. Under Nia's almost tearful plea, Mengdie finally agreed to disguise herself. They smeared their faces with layers of dirt from the woods, stuffed branches in their clothes to appear bulkier, and hid Mengdie's hair under a dirty hat made of mud. After the disguise, Mengdie could hardly recognize Nia, looking like a dirty beggar, and she likely looked no better.
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