“I thank you from the bottom of my heart for helping my granddaughter. Mr. Traveler.”
There were no attacks from any wary villager.
Rather, I was quite welcomed and allowed to safely enter the village. The girl whom I helped in the forest, Liscia, was the granddaughter of the Village Chief. I was invited to a relatively large house and given thanks.
“Don"t worry about it. I was just pa.s.sing by.”
“You are just being humble, Yamato-dono.”
The middle-aged Village Chief had a welcoming expression as he said those words of grat.i.tude. The clothes he wore were unique and colorful, like those of the mountainous tribes, and he was a very polite person.
“I think you heard from Liscisan already, but I"d like to borrow some place to shelter from the rain and wind for just one night.”
I confirmed with the Village Chief about the place to sleep I asked to Liscia before.
At the same time, I handed over half of the Big Rabbits that I killed, as a lodging fee. It"d be nice if I could spend just this night here.
(I"ll gather some information and leave the village tomorrow.)
I wasn"t planning on staying in Urd village.
What I wanted was information about this different world. I wanted to know the directions to the nearest town, the caste system, and the economic situation.
I understood it by speaking with Liscia and the Village Chief, that in this world my words were comprehended. If that was the case, then I should soon move to a bigger city. I could earn for my daily necessities so long as I find some place where physical labor or miscellaneous duties were needed.
(This village is too isolated. It"s safer to be in a large city.)
I was obviously a foreigner to this world. Also, my black eyes and hair were too conspicuous, bearing the peculiar features of an oriental person. Larger cities were safer and easier to live in.
“There is an empty house on the outskirts of the village. Feel free to use it tonight. Hey, Liscia.”
“Yes, ojii-sama.”
Liscia opened her mouth as the brief talk with the Village Chief came to an end.
She had now changed from the hunter-style clothes she wore when I met her in the forest. She was now wearing a colorful costume similar to the Village Chief"s one. I don"t know the aesthetic standards of this world, but in my eyes, she was a beautiful enough girl.
She then led me to the place I was going to rest.
“It may be rude for me to say, but this seems like a very lonely village.”
As we walked along the road in the village, I spoke about the impression I got from it. I chose my words careful so as to not anger Liscia, who was walking next to me.
“It used to be a lively village. But recently, misfortune kept falling on us…”
“Misfortune? Is that why there"s only children and old people?”
“So, you noticed that…”
“Yeah, it was pretty obvious.”
There was a sense of discomfort from the time I entered the village, and walking thus far, it changed to conviction. There were only old people and children in Urd Village. Even now, as we walked, I could only see the occasional curious glance of a child or the wary and sharp gaze of some thin, old people.
“It began a little while ago…”
Liscia began to briefly explain the unfortunate situation in which the village was placed.