Chapter 8: Village

Yiluo, who was once again on the road, looked at the girl in her arms and removed the cloak covering her hair.

The shadows of the trees danced in the forest, and the afternoon breeze blew through her pale golden long hair, gently swaying behind her shoulders.

She lifted her head to look at the road ahead, her delicate lashes trembling slightly beneath her refined features.

It was clearly the best time for a noon nap, yet she did not feel the slightest bit sleepy.

Instead, she felt unusually awake, and both the forest sunlight and the breeze were so comfortable, so real.

Yiluo raised her right hand, slightly tilting her head back, turning her wrist to look at her pale jade-like hand.

It was delicate and smooth, flawless like a crafted artwork.

She clenched her fist and could feel the power contained within it.

In a moment.

Yiluo took out a few coins from the black pouch tied to her sword hilt.

The craftsmanship was a bit rough: the front bore the portrait of an elderly man, and the back had the same symbols as those embroidered inside her cloak—sun, sword, shield, and flowers.

The pouch had been conveniently taken from Ousy.

During the battle, the bulging money pouch on his waist was far too conspicuous.

Yiluo felt that not taking it would almost be an insult to such brazen flaunting—not to mention the obvious importance of money.

Gold coins, silver coins, copper coins—quite traditional.

She simply didn’t know their exchange rate.

Anyway, the pouch only held two gold coins, the rest were mostly silver.

Because Yiluo had intervened in Coco’s matter, she didn’t want to run into trouble.

So she didn’t let Tuotuo take the obvious main road; instead, she let it continue weaving through the forest.

Finally, before nightfall, she saw several ancient European-style stone houses scattered through the woods.

Kitchen smoke curled upward; it was dinnertime.

Yiluo planned to take a look and ordered Tuotuo to move forward.

“Stranger! Stranger!”

“What a beautiful tuo-beast! Much bigger than Uncle Wang’s!”

“What a pretty big sister!”

A golden short-haired girl playing at the village entrance spotted Yiluo, waving and shouting without the slightest fear.

Holding Coco in her arms and pulling her cloak with one hand to avoid exposure, Yiluo lightly jumped off the tuo-beast.

She walked two steps forward, bent slightly, and greeted the girl.

“Hi, hello. Are you playing by yourself? What’s your name?”

“Vivian. Grandma is cooking. It’s too boring at home.”

Vivian thought for a moment before quickly replying, her eyes fixed on Coco.

“She… is she hurt?”

“It looks very serious… Did you meet a magical beast?”

“Her ears… why… are they kitty ears…?”

Because of Coco’s injuries, Vivian frowned, her little face scrunching as she leaned sideways trying to look closer, but too hesitant to approach.

“She was injured by bandits, but she’ll be fine. As for her ears…”

“She was naughty and ran around too much, so a kitty bit her—then they grew like this.”

“Even if she’s a little different from others, isn’t she still cute?”

Yiluo told a small lie to sate Vivian’s curiosity.

“Bitten by a cat? That must have hurt a lot!”

“Vivian is very obedient! I never play too wildly!”

Vivian looked a little panicked—she found Coco’s cat ears cute but definitely didn’t want to become different from everyone else.

“Vivian, I’ve walked a long way and need to rest. If I go to your house, will it bother your family?”

Yiluo liked talking to well-behaved children.

They tended to speak truthfully, which made it easier to get information.

“No, no! Grandma will be very happy.”

“Big sister, big sister, what’s your name?”

Vivian’s fondness and trust in Yiluo were high—mostly because of her beauty.

“Just call me Yiluo. But everyone must be busy, so let’s not disturb anyone.”

“It’s fine, Yiluo-sister! My house is on the west side of the village. We can go around so we won’t bother others.”

Yiluo smiled naturally, placed her finger gently before her lips, and nodded.

Vivian understood and mimicked her gesture, placing her finger on her lips and nodding with a bright, innocent smile.

Ah. How nice.

Such a pure smile.

Yiluo felt no guilt for deceiving Vivian; instead, watching her lead the way, she silently praised the advantages of cute little girls.

The village had only a dozen or so households, the houses not too close together.

And with Vivian understanding her intentions, they met no one on the way and arrived smoothly at her home.

“Huh? A guest? How rare.”

“Come in, come in.”

When Yiluo met Vivian’s grandmother—Granny Vini—the old lady was sitting outside, seemingly having finished preparing dinner while waiting for Vivian.

Upon seeing Yiluo, she greeted warmly.

“Oh my heavens, where did this young lady come from? So beautiful! Praise the Goddess of Light, Eos.”

“This is… a demi-human?”

“She looks injured. Do you need help?”

Seeing Coco, Granny Vini grew tense, glanced outside cautiously, then closed the door and offered Yiluo a cup of hot water.

From Granny Vini’s careful, nervous manner, Yiluo could tell she was not a bad person—and she also understood that demi-humans were apparently not very welcome in human lands.

“Thank you. You can just call me Yiluo.”

“We do need help. I’m from the Elva Empire. Our caravan encountered a large group of bandits. The guards and mercenaries were no match… most were killed. My brother… mm…”

Yiluo’s voice choked slightly, her expression sorrowful.

“Coco was a servant of a wealthy merchant in the caravan— I saved her before escaping. We’ve been circling the Sealed Demon Mountains for almost two days.”

Granny Vini’s heart ached when she saw Yiluo’s grief-stricken expression.

She gently touched Yiluo’s head, held her hand, and comforted her.

“Oh, my poor child… don’t be sad. If your brother knew you were safe, he would surely be happy.”

“You are such a kind girl, Yiluo. Your family must be worried. It’s safe here—our place is too poor for those vile bandits to bother with.”

Yiluo’s acting was successful—she easily won Granny Vini’s sympathy.

“Yes… I will stay strong.”

“The Goddess of Light will surely bless you and your family too, Granny Vini.”

Yiluo repeated the information she’d learned, coating it with honeyed words.

Soon, she and Granny Vini were chatting like close relatives, while Vivian—who had led them all the way—could hardly get a word in.

She stared curiously at Coco but didn’t dare approach.

Dinner consisted of black bread, goat milk, and a local wild vegetable.

The taste wasn’t great, but definitely better than eating unknown possibly poisonous berries by the roadside.

During the meal, Yiluo learned much: this region lay on the outer edge of the Sealed Demon Mountains, at the border between the demi-human nation and human lands.

The mountains were steep, with many magical beasts.

Only a small number of ancestral natives lived here, and most of the younger generation left to seek opportunities in the nearby Elva Empire or Arkanthi Empire.

Vivian’s parents had left when she was two and never returned.

After dinner, Yiluo asked Granny Vini for two sets of clothes—left behind by her former daughter-in-law.

Yiluo offered a few silver coins, but Granny Vini refused.

Yiluo planned to leave them secretly before leaving.

Yiluo and Coco were placed in the empty adjoining house.

The furnishings were simple but warm; it was clear the previous residents had lived a peaceful, fulfilling life.

Granny Vini occasionally cleaned the room, so it wasn’t dusty—ready to live in.

Yiluo carried the still-unconscious Coco to the bed, sat by her side, and looked at Coco’s small swollen face.

She planned to wipe her body clean.