{TN- Sexual assault scene has ended. To give a basic idea the FL is now running from two people that are brothers.}
“She’s like a rat. She’s gone”.
“She wouldn’t have been able to go far, I think she’s somewhere around here.”
The sound of their footsteps and voices got closer and closer.
No, please.
Afraid that the sound of her breathing would leak out, she covered her mouth with her hands and closed her eyes. The sound of her pounding heart was too loud.
Thud, tick, tick.
“…”
The sound of footsteps changed direction and soon faded.
Did I get caught?
“Hey! Hey! Didn’t you see a girl passing by?”
It was the voice of men again. And soon an unfamiliar voice intervened.
“A woman? Why are you bastards looking for a woman? What trick are you trying to do?”
She opened her eyes in surprise at the sound she heard. Someone was standing in front of the bushes where she hid. It was low and husky, but the voice was definitely a middle-aged woman.
“What, is this also a bitch?”
“So, what?”
“We don’t care if it’s an old girl. We haven’t eaten for years… Aghh!”
A clear metal sound rang, the swish of a blade.
“Sword? Do women use swords?”
“Hey, what are you doing?”
“Argh!”
The sound of cutting through the wind was heard a couple of times, and the men’s screams gradually grew farther away. Dana watched all of this from the bushes, breathless.
“Come out.”
“…”
After hesitating for a while, Dana crouched and escaped from the bushes. Hair and clothes were full of twigs and leaves.
“Hah, so clumsy.”
The woman shook off Dana’s body. Dana looked at her with a slightly surprised look. She was much more normal than Dana thought. Her red hair was braided randomly and stretched long, with an apron wrapped around her. There was a basket on the floor that she seemed to have brought.
Except for holding a sword in one hand, it looked like a woman from a commoner’s family.
“Things stick well when you pass this road. You should be careful too.”
“Yes.”
Dana unexpectedly answered and lowered her gaze. She sighed automatically because she was frustrated with her situation.
“Thank you for your help.”
There was a moment of silence. Dana was now thinking about where to go, and the woman stared at Dana.
Her stomach was growling
Hot.
Dana quickly covered her stomach with both hands and glanced at the woman with an embarrassing look.
“What? Are you hungry?”
“That’s…”
Come to think of it, she hadn’t sipped water since she was kicked out of the castle. The woman picked up the basket.
“If you don’t mind, will you follow me? You have nowhere to go right now, right?
“Oh.”
Dana hesitated for a moment and followed her.
Since I can’t go into the castle right now anyway. I don’t think she’s a bad person…
“I…”
She was going to ask where she was going, but she stopped. With her poor memory now, it was highly likely that she would not know where she was.
“My name is Lisa. What about you?”
“It’s Sarah.”
Dana said the name Leon gave her because she couldn’t remember her real name at all.
As she walked, she saw the gate that she was kicked out of earlier. Although it was less than during the day, people were still sitting or lying down along the wall.
Some people roughly picked up dirty lumps and slept well on the bare floor with nothing.
There was no disturbance and it was quiet now. Whether it was powerful or not, hope could not be found in all of their eyes.
Lisa was far away from them and circled around.
“Who are those people?”
“Oh, those?”
Lisa looked away and looked forward again.
“They’re not the people from here. They’re all outsiders.”
Unlike the hateful tone, Lisa’s eyes showed some sympathy.
“The majority of people must have escaped from the surrounding land. They ran away, but they have nowhere to go, and if they get caught, they will have the death penalty.”
“But why are they gathered here?”
“It’s near the Grand Duke of Tertius.”
Dana looked at Lisa with an expression that she couldn’t easily understand.
“What if another nobleman grabs them and drags them when they’re near the Grand Duke?”
“Hmm, what will happen?”
“We’ll regard it as a civil war and a war will break out. The ones who sent them will be devastated.”
“I see…”
Dana walked next to her and blinked curiously. She was a person who knew a lot.
“That’s why they’re gathered like that because they know their lord can never touch this place. The closer it is to the castle, the safer it is.”
“Then they’re not going to chase them away from the Grand Duke?”
“You’re supposed to catch them all and execute them or send them back…”
Dana nodded lightly to her omitted explanation. Lisa went to the side of the road and stopped the public carriage passing by.
She said she was in charge of kitchen work at the shop near Tertius Square.
Wearing a sword, something like this doesn’t suit her.
Dana thought so, but sat next to Lisa with her mouth closed and looked outside the wagon window. She thought it was not polite to ask what the other person didn’t say. Furthermore, she was sufficiently disturbed by her work alone.