Carefully I clenched the halved stick. It wasn't much of a weapon anymore.
"W-We don't want to fight. W-we don't need to fight.", I forced myself to speak, "We will just g-go away!"
At first the soldier didn't say anything. He just started at me with unsure eyes. It was obvious that he was thinking about all possibilities, that he didn't know what to do.
Slowly the young man lowered his sword. He had made a decision.
"Fuck.", he muttered, running with his hand through his red hair aggressively.
The man stated with a pained expression:
"I am bound by an oath to protect the laws of the Human Empire but I... I just can't kill kids..."
Releasing his frustration he kicked a tree in half.
"FUCK!", he shouted out into the forest.
'I would have never survived an attack from him.', I just thought as I swallowed hard, 'I also want this strength.'
Instantly I was reminded of the one-eyed woman.
'Could he have stopped her?'
"Go.", he uttered, "There are other patrols blocking the paths to the nearest cities. I suggest you take the longer route towards Four Rivers boy and demon, you should go to Northport."
Seeing us unable in confusion and fear to move he screamed:
"I SAID GO!"
Not letting him a chance to reconsider I rushed over to Livinia and grabbed her hand. We couldn't have been more lucky. Still, I wanted to never need to rely on luck again.
Like prey from a hunter we needed to run once more. It irked the entirety of soul to be unable to act. Back in the village I never felt this helpless.
Only after we had covered a considerable distance I pulled out the silver amulet.
"I found it. At least our trip wasn't for nothing.", I pressed through my teeth.
Still shocked from her earlier encounter the green-haired girl asked:
"W-Where do we go? Four Rivers or Northport?"
"Can we trust him?", I voiced my concern.
"D-Do we have an alternative? He p-probably wouldn't let us escape just to drive us into a trap later on, right?"
Scratching my head I resigned: "You are right. We have no alternative… I know a farmer around Four Rivers. My fath... My father and I visited him to trade some of his work for food because of the crop failure a year ago. Do you know anyone in Northport?"
"I never left the v-village."
Hearing her stutter I knew that she felt the same way I did. Talking about what happened hurts. It is like rubbing salt into a fresh wound. It just was just yesterday that my parents and I laughed together. Still, I am already missing them.
"Ok, then it is decided. We will move to Four Rivers."
<=========~*~=========>
Wearing the artifact Livinia's horns disappeared and her ears lost their sharpness. Otherwise she looked the same.
Three days and three nights we travelled through the Evergreen forest that functioned as a natural border between the Human and Demon Empire.
In between Livinia's white dress was no longer white but took on a muddy brown, showcasing the journey we have been through. While we could get some river water from time to time, it was always coupled with the insecurity where the next source would appear.
Furthermore, finding anything to eat aside from some berries was practically impossible. Afterall we had no gear and we needed to constantly keep on moving. Any additional day we spend in the forest just increased our risk of dying of malnutrition and dehydration, encountering patrols or even worse: monsters.
These monsters were the only reason the Evergreen forest wasn't filled to the brim with soldiers and the only reason our village could survive so long. I have heard stories of monsters as tall as trees and as heavy as mountains.
While they always meant danger, if you stayed out of their territories you were relatively safe.
On the fourth morning of our journey we started to be met by real roads and left the forest. Most caravans just looked at us in disgust. Probably thinking we were beggars or something before a lanky, old female merchant started to slow down besides us.
"What is driving two young souls to Four Rivers?", the old woman asked with a hint of worry in her eyes.
"Monsters. They destroyed our village.", I decided to tell a lie Livinia and I designed together.
Greenhills – a neighbouring village of Haven – was destroyed a week prior. The rumour that nobody survived is going around, making this the best lie we could come up with.
Hearing my emotionless voice the old woman just seemed even sadder. After a short moment of hesitation she said:
"Come. Jump on my wagon. I can drive you to Four Rivers."
Unsure I looked at Livinia, wanting her opinion. Swiftly she whispered into my ear: "I think we can trust her."
"Thank you ma'am.", Livinia and I said in unison.
"Don't call me ma'am! That sounds like I'm a hundred years old! Call me Moira."
"Yes madam Moira."
"That's not what I meant-", she tried to inform us when Livinia curiously asked:
"What brings you here?"
"Me? Did you ever hear the story of the Wandering Madman?"
In unity we shock our head.
"What?! Kids, these days are getting stupider and stupider!", she disclaimed while shaking her head in disappointment.
"Then let me tell you his story:
Once upon a time, a man grew up in a countryside village…"