novelraw Chapter 41 : Chapter 41
Chapter 41 : Chapter 41
Volume 2, Chapter 10. The Rumors Heard
“Have you heard? That woman has appeared again!”
“What? You mean that widow?”
In a dark alley, two skinny men, already drunk even though it was broad daylight, huddled together, chatting about all kinds of nonsense.
“Yeah, yeah, ever since her husband died she’s been strange. She doesn’t even live in the town anymore, just ran straight off into the forest.”
The first drunk’s tone was still muddled, clearly not yet sober. “Lots of people say she sold her soul to a demon!”
“Don’t say that carelessly!”
The other man still retained some sense, hurriedly covering the drunk’s mouth. “Even if the church here isn’t that big, the power those people wield isn’t something folk like us can compare to!”
“What, always with the church this, the church that...”
The drunk was still not clear-headed. “Did I insult the Church just now? No, right? I was only talking about that widow! Tsk tsk, such a pretty face, yet she has to cover it with a veil. That man of hers wasn’t any good when he was alive either—imagine pouring acid on such a jewel of a woman, ruining her throat. Hey! If not for that, I bet men would be breaking down her door to marry her right now.”
“Sigh...”
The other man sighed softly, then looked around. Seeing no one, he finally relaxed a little. “Enough, stop talking about that woman. Even if she lives alone deep in the Black Forest and barely interacts with the town, as long as the Church hasn’t declared her a heretic, we don’t need to meddle!”
“Eh, didn’t think you’d still be so timid even after drinking.”
The drunk chuckled. “We’re just gossiping behind her back, what’s the harm?”
“You... you still think there’s no harm?!”
The other man grew anxious, his voice rising slightly. “Joey! Do you remember him? The tailor’s son, the one we were close with—Joey, have you forgotten?!”
“...”
The drunk’s cloudy eyes stirred for a moment, a hint of clarity returning, making him fall silent.
The other man kept speaking, his face full of fear, sweat covering his brow. “You know what his old character was like, right? A useless bum, idle all day, only ever squandering his father’s money on debauchery. Last time, didn’t he get drunk and speak just a couple of words against the Church, and then the very next day he was taken away?!”
“Enough...”
The drunk’s face sank. “Don’t say anything more.”
“But!”
The other man couldn’t hold back, shouting, “After coming back from the Church, Joey wasn’t the same! It was like he became a different person—suddenly ambitious, devout beyond belief, going to services every week. The way he looked when we spoke with him, you saw it too!”
“Hey...”
“I know!”
Clutching his head tightly, the man shouted, “I know I shouldn’t be saying these things! But I’m scared! This should be a good thing, but... I just... can’t let it go!”
“Really now... just now it was me spouting nonsense, now it’s your turn.”
The drunk helplessly grabbed his messy hair, spat into his palm. “If someone overheard us, we’d be in deep trouble... that would be bad...”
The two lingered for a while longer before calming down and leaving the alley.
They had their own lives to live. What they’d said just now was only a venting of emotions. Nothing would happen, nothing would change, nothing at all—as long as no one had heard them.
Yes, as long as no one noticed the two of them.
But if—just if—someone happened to overhear their conversation by accident, coincidentally, miraculously... What would happen then?
Well, who could know? (laughs)
What could be known was that about two minutes after the two men left the alley, another person walked out. With a strange smile, he slipped into the crowd and disappeared.
The only one who had noticed all three of them was a small, shabbily dressed figure sitting on a pile of haphazardly stacked crates.
“Heave-ho~”
She hopped lightly down from the crate. Her little body wasn’t tall enough to reach the ground directly, and even that slight jolt left her thoughts briefly stunned.
Truly a bothersome thing.
“But sometimes, you do overhear some interesting things.”
Leticia whispered to herself. “Things related to the Church... and that person who appeared after, he didn’t seem like one of the Church...”
Judging by his clothing, he was a fairly typical hunter, someone who lived by hunting animals. His face was young too. But out of caution, Leticia had only glanced briefly, then ignored him, treating him like any passerby.
If she were noticed, whatever happened would be nothing but trouble for her.
“The Church actually does such things?”
This voice didn’t come from Leticia—it was Stano’s, sharing her vision and hearing.
The boy’s tone carried faint surprise, as though he couldn’t believe it.
“You didn’t know such things?”
Leticia’s heart stirred. “Shouldn’t nobles be clearer about the kind of power the Church wields?”
“Well, that’s true, but still...”
Living alongside Leticia hadn’t left Stano unaffected.
A person from a free and open world in her previous life—her manner of speaking, no matter how carefully concealed, couldn’t be completely hidden. All the more so since they weren’t talking face-to-face, but heart-to-heart, in a supernatural way.
Compared to typical nobles, he was more open and easygoing, more tolerant toward commoners’ perspectives.
But only slightly.
“I’ve only just started touching on adult matters. How could I know about things like this?!”
“Ah~ ah, that’s true. After all, you and I are both just brats.”
Leticia sighed helplessly. “Not knowing is natural.”
“You little... show some respect!”
“Yes, yes, young master, future lord noble.”
Halfheartedly humoring him, Leticia patted the dust from her clothes and left the spot.
She had already obtained a portion of Tranquil Incense from Rona. The effect was decent—it could keep her calm while it lasted, though the side effect was drowsiness.
Rona had said it was originally used as an anesthetic, later slightly altered.
But...
“The effect isn’t enough, the duration’s too short, and worst of all, the side effect is unbearable...”
What she needed was a sedative, not a sleeping drug!
On this front, Leticia had asked Stano to search the study for pharmacology books, in exchange for her helping him retrieve and deliver that information. Once she’d gathered enough intelligence, she could also consult Madam Yemi Ai. That one would surely be delighted to aid a child already half-stepping into hell, even if her motives weren’t pure.
Meanwhile, Leticia often visited the village. Taking advantage of her small size, she frequently hid around the pharmacy run by Nicola, Rona’s father, quietly observing and taking notes.
Pharmaceutical practice in this era and world was far less advanced than in her previous life. Many medicines were made fresh. Because of this, Leticia’s idea of secretly learning had a chance to succeed.
Which medicines were used, their effects, their ingredients, and the methods of preparation, the order of steps.
Although too much thought and memorization still gave her a bit of dizziness, it didn’t matter—she could remember.
She started by focusing on the making of Tranquil Incense. Since villagers also needed such medicine due to fatigue and other reasons, it was easy to observe. Then she learned about other medicines as well, as a byproduct.
In ancient times, Kuang Heng bored a hole through the wall to borrow light. Now, Leticia was secretly learning medicine through the wall.
Yes, inspirational, moving!
She avoided Joey and Rona as much as possible, but sometimes Ilo still spotted her.
That girl, who gave her a strange feeling, had eyes that seemed to speak, and thoughts unlike any ordinary child. Every time she saw Leticia, she merely blinked at her, smiled silently, then turned away.
Very curious, but now wasn’t the time to look into her.
Survival came first.
Only after solving her constant dizziness could she tackle the more important, more troublesome, most crucial step.
How to stop this damned loss of vitality.
As Leticia pondered what to do today, she suddenly heard a noise not far away.
It was the Church.
Two clerics were approaching, holding something like a proclamation in their hands.