novelraw Chapter 782: The Road
Chapter 782: The Road
Across the vast expanse known as the Wastelands, island-like cities are scattered far and wide.
The ceaseless storms make this sea of land dangerous, and only caravans, like ships of the wastes, can traverse it to reach those islands.
Most of them follow fixed, proven routes, carrying goods and passengers between the cities, preventing them from becoming completely isolated patches of civilization.
The Prisi Caravan is one such entity.
Unlike other caravans that typically operate on more than two routes, the Prisi Caravan follows only one: from Midnight City to the Port of Storms, passing through just a few villages and towns along the way.
Professor Wayne's recommendation was sound: the Prisi Caravan was the fastest and safest route to the Port of Storms.
Much like the caravan that had been attacked before, the Prisi Caravan also had a wagon that emitted the aura of an anomaly. The difference was that the ambushed caravan consisted of only that single wagon, leaving them powerless against anomalies that saw through the disguise and attacked.
The Prisi Caravan, with its contingent of guards, could fight back.
...
The long caravan, composed of hundreds of wagons and stretching for nearly a kilometer, made its way along the edge of the Gloom Wastes."You smell so lovely, Miss Katerina," Prusius couldn't help but comment from his spot in the wagon.
The scent of Katerina's perfume was torture for Prusius's sensitive nose, and he was constantly sniffling.
"I washed my leather armor," Katerina said, gently stroking the old, worn-out leather.
"I didn't even realize how filthy it was until I washed it."
Aside from the excessive amount of perfume, Katerina now looked much fresher and cleaner, not at all like the dust-caked hunter she had been before.
"Are you hoping to become the companion of a hero from the legends, too?" Prusius asked.
"Legends... what legends?" Katerina only understood what Prusius was talking about after he explained, and she shook her head slightly.
"Maybe... I just didn't know what to do, and when I thought of Lu Li, I impulsively followed him."
Katerina was lying; the faded state of her leather armor suggested her return was anything but impulsive.
As they moved farther from Midnight City, Elder Sister stopped hiding. She clambered onto Lu Li's shoulder and slipped into his hood, settling in as if it were a lounge chair.
Lu Li gazed out the window at the black earth. The vast plain seemed endless. If the visibility were better, one might have been able to see the distant World's Spine Mountains.
The Prisi Caravan's first stop was the village of Shelter, located half a day's journey from Midnight City—a village without a divine entity.
In fact, it was less a village and more of an offshoot—Shelter itself was an extension of the subterranean Old Sewer.
On the surface, there was only an empty plot of land enclosed by a low fence, with an underground passage leading to the Old Sewer in its center.
Therefore, Shelter required no protection from a divine entity. Such villages existed only in the vicinity of Midnight City.
The Prisi Caravan would stop here for thirty minutes to sell and purchase supplies, as well as take on new passengers.
Prusius eagerly ran off into the distant wastes to relieve himself, while Lu Li and Katerina followed, leaving the stuffy wagon.
"Mr. Lu Li, we're about to leave the Gloom Wastes!" the returning Prusius announced, his voice a thrilled whisper.
"When I was digging a hole, I saw yellow earth underneath."
The Gloom Wastes earned their name from the black, silt-like soil. Beyond the wastes, the earth returned to its usual color.
This also made the Gloom Wastes feel more oppressive and somber than other places; it seemed as if even the wind there was silent.
"Beru? Beru... you're here."
Suddenly, an elderly voice sounded from behind, and a withered hand grasped Lu Li's black cloak.
Lu Li turned his head, looking at the elderly woman who had mistaken him for someone else. Her eyes were bound with a black cloth.
"I am not Beru," Lu Li said.
The old woman let go of his arm, realizing her mistake. "I'm sorry, I'm looking for my niece..."
Leaning on her cane, the elderly woman turned awkwardly, preparing to leave.
"Does she have any distinguishing features?" Lu Li suddenly asked.
"Beru can't speak..." the old woman briefly described a girl with a braid.
They were residents of Shelter and had bought tickets to the Port of Storms.
"Beru said she was going to get some water, but she still hasn't come back..." the old woman said with concern.
"If we see her, we'll let you know," Lu Li told her.
"Thank you..."
As they watched, the old woman shuffled away, continuing to search for her niece among the wagons.
"That girl named Beru wouldn't just leave her elderly relative and wander off," Prusius said, looking up at Lu Li. "Mr. Lu Li, should we go help look for her?"
"Mmm."
There were still about ten minutes before the caravan was set to depart.
"Wait," Katerina stopped them.
"Aren't you afraid this is a conspiracy? Don't forget what happened in Midnight City."
"We won't leave the caravan," Lu Li said.
Leaving their wagon, they headed toward the center of the caravan, closer to the wall of Shelter.
As they approached the wall, they could hear a faint commotion.
"I just stepped out of the wagon... Please, at least let me pass her the water flask," a woman pleaded.
"I'm sorry, you can't enter without a ticket."
The men from the Prisi Caravan stopped her.
"Are you Beru?"
A calm voice cut through, and the pleading woman froze for a moment before instinctively answering.
"Yes! I'm Beru."
The woman looked in confusion at Lu Li in his cloak and Katerina in her hunter's gear, not remembering where she might have seen them.
"...Do you know me?"
"An elderly woman asked us to find her niece," Lu Li replied.
"That's me!" the woman pointed to herself and, with a relieved expression, handed Lu Li a heavy water flask. "Please help me give this to Aunt Carolina!"
Lu Li's black eyes fell upon the flask in the woman's hands.
"You're not coming with us?"
A flicker of confusion crossed the woman's face. "...I don't have a ticket."
Lu Li calmly watched the woman who called herself Beru.
His black eyes, as placid as a pond, made it impossible for her to meet his gaze. She lowered her head and told the truth.
"Actually, I'm not Beru..."
Katerina pressed a palm to her face, her other eye staring intently at the woman.
"A girl named Beru asked me to do this..."
What seemed like a complicated story turned out to be quite simple. The reason was that Carolina and her niece Beru, who lived alone together, wanted to travel to the Land of Dreams, Vinnelag.
But they didn't have enough money, so Beru came up with a "good idea"—she sold herself to raise the money for her Aunt Carolina's wagon and ship tickets.
With the remaining funds, she hired this woman to impersonate her today, just until Aunt Carolina was safely aboard the caravan.
Due to contamination, Aunt Carolina was not lucid for most of the day. And with her poor eyesight, she wouldn't be able to tell that her niece had been replaced.
After listening to the story in silence, Lu Li asked the woman where they could find Beru. The woman said it was already too late.
The real Beru was probably already dead somewhere in the wasteland.