Belinda wiped her forehead with a sleeve. She felt like she was breaking out in a cold sweat, but her skin was dry. Her grip on the reins only kept on tightening.
A large windmill appeared beyond the hill, surrounded by a field of wheat that gave way to a stream winding around the peaceful and still village.
Belinda was faced with her hometown. A precious yet scary place, holding memories of her mother but still giving her nightmares.
The long grass brushed her calves.
Aymon looked back from his spot on Daisy’s head and, for the first time in a while, scooted up to Belinda.
「Breedee, give me a hug.」
She quickly obeyed, and though it was her holding Aymon rather than the other way around, she instantly felt comforted.
She knew that Aymon had figured out how she was feeling, and for once, he just comforted her with warmth instead of making a weird comment.
My hot-tempered, thoughtful little cat.
She sighed.
Daisy also slowed down when he sensed Belinda’s fluctuating emotions. Animal instincts really were that great.
Belinda closed her eyes as the once faraway field of wildflowers got closer and closer.
Everything was the same. The strange longing and fear in her heart, the stream flowing by, the sound of the grass rippling in the wind. Just a quiet-looking small village.
Before she knew it, they were standing at the entrance. A massive oak tree stood at the end of the intermingling fields of flowers and wheat. Riding under its shadow really made Belinda feel like she was back in her hometown.
The sound of a horse nearing caught the attention of a man working in the field. His face was filled with wonder – in such a small village, visitors were a rare sight.
“Hello there! You must be a traveler!”
He said in a cheerful voice.
Belinda stopped Daisy and pulled up the hood of her robe.
The man’s expression changed slightly as he examined them. The visitor wasn’t a girl but not quite a woman either. Simple, neat clothes, a thoroughbred horse but no attendants, and… a cat.
They were a rather curious sight.
Belinda immediately recognized the man.
It’s Hans. The boy from the shoe store at the end of the alley.
The mischievous kid who would drop frogs down her collar.
Now that she thought about it, the stupid jokes and offers of sharing food were probably just his misguided way of saying he liked her.
If she’d known back then, she probably would’ve cried like an idiot, thinking everyone hated her.
Either way, she couldn’t believe that he’d become a grown man. It made her realize how long it had been since she left.
She wanted to say “It’s me, Hans”, but she decided not to. He wouldn’t recognize her.
“Hello.”
Instead, she responded with a simple smile.
Hans flushed for some reason, then readjusted his straw hat and wiped his hands on his pants.
“Are you here to visit a relative? Or just for a trip?”
“Just for a trip.”
She couldn’t exactly say she was visiting a relative – there weren’t any of them left for her here.
“You’re looking for somewhere to stay, right?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll show you around, then. The inn is a bit hard to find.”
“…..Thank you.”
Belinda started to worry a little.
The town only had one inn.
It was the place where she washed dirty blankets and scrubbed grease off plates every day, the root of the trauma that still plagued her.
Hans grinned and took Daisy’s reins. The proud wild horse wasn’t too pleased by a human trying to drag him along by the reins. He tried to resist.
「Hold it. You can’t even take this much?」
…But he had no choice but to suppress his impulse with Aymon laughing at him.
Observing the conversation between Hans and Belinda, however, soon put Aymon in the same mood.
“That’s a nice horse you have there.”
“Thank you. He looks even better running with the wind blowing into his mane.”
The compliment to Daisy made Aymon flinch.
“The cat is really cool, too.”
“I know, right? Head to tail. The little fangs, the soft fur, the shivers when you touch their tail… All so cute.”
Belinda’s raving about his cuteness made him feel a little embarrassed.
“And you are beautiful, miss. More beautiful than the daffodils that are the pride of our village.”
After buttering her up, Hans finally started to be more direct.
「What?! What did you jus– Hngphm??」
Aymon shouted angrily.
Hans turned around in surprise and saw the cat with its hair standing on end, furious, next to Belinda. She quickly covered the cat’s mouth and smiled awkwardly.
“Didn’t you hear someone shouting?”
“That was just my cat. He must have seen a sparrow flying by.”
“It sounded like a human voice, though….”
“You must have misheard, then.”
Belinda replied calmly.
“Ah…”
Hans nodded. Seeing Belinda’s smile made his ears red again. He turned around, pulling along the horse.
Aymon fumed at him.
Did I really just tease Daisy about his patience?
Aymon’s own patience seemed to be nonexistent right now.
Belinda had no time to be immersed in the sentiment of having returned to her hometown. She was busy soothing Aymon all the way to the inn.
She gently rubbed his pouty nose and smoothed down his fur.
In the meantime, Daisy had already crossed the village to the inn.
….Should I be the one thanking Aymon?
The heart-wrenching anxiety she felt at the entrance of the village was gone. Focusing on Aymon left her no time to think about it.
“We’re here, miss.”
Hans stopped in front of a large wooden door. Belinda tensed up at the familiar sight. As she got off Daisy’s back and stepped onto the ground, an unpleasant agitation washed over her.
“Thank you for your kind guidance.”
Hans chuckled at the conventional phrase.
“Don’t mention it. By the way, if you need anything, don’t hesitate to come to find me at the shoe store. I’m here to help.”
“I will.”
Hans hesitated for a moment, as if he was looking for the right thing to say, and eventually left with a gaze of lingering affection.
“It’s a small village, but still a nice place in its own way. I hope you have a pleasant journey.”
“Thank you.”
“Sweet dreams, miss. Good night to your cute cat, too.”
He smiled at Aymon, only to be met with a blank stare.
Did he just call me cute?
It was a disgraceful surprise.
When Hans disappeared from sight, Aymon finally came to his senses.
He wouldn’t be happy even if he got to sink his teeth into his neck.
「Breedee, can’t I just get rid of him for good?」
Aymon’s voice was very calm and quiet, perhaps because of how angry he was.
“No.”
Belinda shook her head firmly.
“Daisy, come back in the evening, and I’ll give you an apple.”
She sent the horse off and pushed open the inn’s door. The rusty hinges complained with a loud squeak.
She used to oil the hinges very often, but seemingly no one bothered with it anymore. The bell that once hung on the door was also gone. She wasn’t the only one that had grown older.
Behind the corner at the end of the narrow passage was a large desk.
Belinda bit her lips tensely and wiped her palms on her dress.
There was a big man right in front of her. Not just anyone, either – he was the cause of all the accumulated fear and anxiety, all the traumatic memories. Nordi.
Even she couldn’t explain all the emotions that were passing through her head at that moment.
“Welcome.”
Nordi looked up from the stack of money he was counting.
“Ahhhh…!”
Belinda froze. Her heart was racing nervously.
The man was a little older than she remembered, with a scruffy beard, but the exact same stubbornness and pride in his eyes.
He doesn’t recognize me.
He couldn’t recognize her. Hans didn’t. She must have looked very different from the tired, skinny young girl Nordi knew her as.
Even if he did somehow remember, how would he know how to react? Was he supposed to say, “You’ve grown up, you’re not the weak kid I used to hit anymore?”
She looked at his bulging belly and calloused hands. His sturdy body, which had looked like an imposing tree to her as a child, was covered with fat. His broad shoulders were slouched.
Was this the cause of all that fear?
It felt very insignificant now. She wanted to cry.
Tears started to well up.
All this time, I…
She felt all the emotions that had been suppressed were flowing out now.
Aymon looked up at her.
Her expression hardened, she bit her lips and unconsciously started to brush through her hair with her trembling hands.
It was a simple reaction, but the emotions she was feeling were nowhere near simple. If they were, she’d have slapped Nordi right away. The weight of her emotions made it hard to do anything.
「Breedee, I can kill him right now, if you want.」
Aymon whispered, rubbing his face against her neck.\n