Chapter 6: A Moment of Rest

Nolan knew wild beasts could eat people.

He wasn’t sure if it was just boasting, but he’d heard the village’s old hunter talk over drinks about killing a man-eating tiger in his youth.

According to the hunter, after days and nights of tracking and fighting, the tiger was finally slain.

When they hauled its carcass back to the village and cut it open, they found an undigested human hand in its stomach.

Nolan looked at the blood-soaked figure, thinking this might be a similar case—some poor soul attacked by a bear, meeting a gruesome end.

“Diya, it’s okay. The bear’s dead,” he said, slightly relieved, standing up and calling toward the front of the house.

“Huh? Really?”

Diya peeked cautiously around the back door, saw the mess in the yard, and gagged.

“Ugh—it stinks!”

Nolan suppressed his own nausea, forcing a wry smile.

Thankfully, they hadn’t been attacked by the bear.

But even if it was just a false alarm, dealing with such a massive, rotting corpse was a headache.

Wait a second.

If that’s the case, why would a bear carcass, already decomposing, end up in their yard?

“Diya, were you home when this happened? How did this thing get into the yard?”

“Uh… I was chopping wood in the front yard when I heard weird noises from the back…” Diya said.

“Then I saw a bear lying there, and I got scared and ran out.”

That’s strange, Nolan thought, turning his gaze to the human figure spilling from the bear’s belly.

“It looks like a child… so tragic. Can a bear even swallow something that big whole?”

He looked closer and heard a faint “hiss-hiss” of breathing.

Something’s off.

Not a corpse… could it be a living person?

Nolan was startled by his own thought.

A living person inside a bear’s stomach?

Impossible!

Yet the faint breathing grew clearer in his ears.

To confirm, he cautiously approached and gently touched the figure.

Sure enough—still alive!

Nolan decided saving them came first, no time to ponder how or why.

He stepped into the foul blood and muck, pulling the slender body from the bear’s belly.

“Hey, hey, are you okay?”

Nolan held the figure in his arms, lightly patting their cheek, wiping away the crusted blood with his sleeve to reveal a delicate, pale face.

“Brother, if you’re cleaning up, at least grab some tools first…”

Diya, lifting her skirt, stepped forward cautiously, then yelped at the sight beside the bear.

“Ah! It’s a girl!”

Nolan noticed the girl’s clothes were nearly shredded rags, her lips blue from the cold, her exposed body coated in pus and blood—left in the winter wind.

“Diya, quick, grab a blanket!” Nolan shouted.

Diya nodded frantically and rushed into the house.

“Don’t panic… she’s still breathing…”

Nolan glanced over, seeing the girl covered in dark red blood, unable to tell where she was injured or not, though her limbs seemed intact.

Diya returned with a blanket, and the siblings worked together to wrap the frail girl in it.

They hurried into the house, settling her on the bed.

Nolan was about to rush out again when Diya called, “Brother!”

“I’m going to get Mr. Berly. Keep an eye on her,” Nolan said hastily, dashing out.

Diya understood—there was no doctor in the village, only a church scribe named Berly who, while unable to perform healing miracles, knew herbs and could treat wounds.

Nolan ran to the village, spotting Mr. Berly, who’d just finished dinner, hammering a broken fence outside the modest church.

“Mr. Berly! I found a kid in a bear’s stomach—please help her!” Nolan shouted over the fence.

“In a bear’s stomach? A kid?”

Berly looked puzzled but, seeing Nolan’s urgency, followed him.

***

“No obvious wounds, but she’s very weak.”

“Mr. Berly, what should we do?”

“Well… I’ll get some herbs. You cook some oat porridge, and when she wakes, mix them in and feed her…”

“I understand. Thank you so much.”

Faint voices reached her.

Kritiya opened her eyes, seeing a girl with light blonde hair wiping her body with a damp cloth.

“Mmph—”

The rough burlap grazed her skin, and Kritiya let out an embarrassed whimper.

“Ah, Brother, she’s awake!”

Diya stood quickly, calling out, but got no response, realizing Nolan was likely tending the fire to make porridge.

She turned to the gray-haired girl lying flat on the bed.

“I’ll get you some clothes.”

Diya tossed the cloth into a wooden basin and hurried out to the yard, soon shouting.

“Brother—where’s the shirt I washed a couple days ago? It was hanging outside!”

“What? You didn’t take it in?” Nolan’s voice came from the kitchen.

“Oh no, the wind was strong at noon—I thought you grabbed it!”

“What, you didn’t take it in?”

“No choice then… we’ll look in the woods later… Brother, I’ll grab one of your shirts for now…”

With that, Diya returned to the house, digging through a chest for a faded white shirt, then entered her brother’s bedroom.

“Here’s the shirt…”

Diya’s words cut off as she froze.

The gray-haired girl, fresh from the bear’s belly, was curled up in the corner, clutching the bloodstained blanket, her eyes vacant.

Kritiya looked up, meeting Diya’s gaze.

“Uh… you okay?” Diya asked.

Kritiya didn’t speak, lowering her head again, hugging the blanket tighter.

“I… I am… an heir of Airandil, courage is with me…”

Her hoarse voice mumbled dreamily.

Diya didn’t catch it but saw Kritiya’s face change, her hand flying to her mouth.

“Wait, you—”

Diya panicked, stepping forward to comfort her.

“Urp—”

Kritiya clenched her teeth, swallowing back the bile and acid rising in her throat.

She froze for a moment, then hid her face.

“It’s okay, it’s okay, you’re safe now…”

Diya hesitated, then gently patted Kritiya’s back, taking her arm to slip the shirt onto her.

It was Nolan’s, so it hung loose, covering down to her thighs.

“I cleaned your hair with water. It’s winter—get under the covers so you don’t catch a cold.”

“And this blanket’s filthy… it needs washing.”

Diya tugged at the blanket Kritiya held, expecting resistance, but it came free easily.

She carried it out, only to meet Nolan coming her way.

“Is she awake?”

“She’s scared, won’t say a word.”

“That’s understandable…”

“So, Brother, what do we do?”

“Let’s… wait for her to come around, then ask what happened,” Nolan said after a moment’s thought.

“Alright, I’ll check the porridge. Brother, cover her with a blanket, then rest a bit yourself…”

At that, Nolan felt the day’s exhaustion hit him.

His sister suddenly turned back, silent for a moment, then spoke.

“Brother, so…”

“What?”

“Grandfather’s sword… you sold it?”

“Yeah… seems like it,” Nolan said with a wry smile.

Diya lowered her head, lightly thumped his chest, then headed to the kitchen.

Nolan entered the bedroom and saw Kritiya.

Unlike the chaotic glimpse earlier, she was now cleaned up, sitting motionless in the corner, hugging her knees.

Her pale skin and silver-gray hair made her look about ten, her deep green eyes downcast, dull and lifeless.

She looked like a doll, Nolan thought, recalling his sister’s instructions.

He grabbed a quilt, approaching cautiously to avoid startling her, but she neither spoke nor moved, her hollow gaze suggesting she’d seen something horrific.

He gently draped the quilt over her, tucking in the edges, then sat by the bed.

“You… don’t need to worry. Mr. Berly said you’re just weak, no serious injuries.”

The gray-haired girl stayed silent.

Nolan thought, though he was full of questions about this girl from the bear’s belly, pressing a patient with questions felt too callous.

She must be terrified, he figured, to be so mute.

“There’s no danger here… rest well,” Nolan reassured.

To his surprise, the girl murmured softly.

“Rest…”

“Huh? Uh, yeah, you can rest now.”

Before Nolan finished, Kritiya looked at him blankly, her green eyes meeting his.

He froze, and her small frame tilted, fainting again.