novelraw Chapter 958: And Return Gifts
Chapter 958: And Return Gifts
"Mama, I'm so hungry..."
A quiet, weak voice cut through the sound of ragged breathing.
The woman curled up in the corner was roused by her daughter's call. She pushed herself up with great effort, her weed-like hair obscuring her face, and held her daughter tightly.
A rustle...
The woman unfastened her clothes and turned slightly, her body concealed in shadow. She quickly lowered her head and bit down on her finger.
A faint sucking sound followed.
"Why is the milk salty?"
A naive, bewildered child's voice asked.
"So you'll grow up faster," the woman said, stroking the child's coarse hair.
The breathing all around them gradually grew more distinct; the other townspeople, who had been passing the time in sleep and hunger, were slowly waking up.Then they heard faint shouts coming from beyond the iron bars of their "homes."
The shouts grew clearer and clearer, like an approaching tide.
Oil lamps illuminated bewildered faces. The noise unsettled them, reminding them of the spreading plague and the invasion of anomalies... But as they listened, they realized the shouts contained no pain or fear, only excited cries, as if Mayor Matteus himself had arrived.
The anxiety of the townspeople huddled in their "homes" gave way to curiosity. They crawled across the straw to the enclosure, pressing their faces to the bars to peer in the direction of the clamor.
Soon, they heard the familiar, sharp, and chaotic clatter of boots, muffled by the shouting.
Soldiers in anti-magic armor forged in Midnight appeared in the corridor, dragging two enormous wooden barrels, each half the height of a man.
One by one, emaciated hands shot out from the cages, open and waiting.
A soldier took two items from the barrels and placed them into the nearest pair of palms.
The owner of the hands impatiently snatched them back, then froze at the sight of the food: a piece of bread the size of a palm and a portion of cooked meat the size of a fist.
"Captain, is this..." one of the townspeople asked, his voice tight with hope.
"It's from the mayor and Mr. Lu Li. Eat in peace," a cold, steely voice replied from beneath a helmet.
At that moment, one of the soldiers unlocked the iron gate, and the captain continued:
"For the New Year, you are free to move about until nightfall."
After handing the last two portions to the woman and the little girl, the captain of the soldiers glanced at the faces around him, their numbness giving way to elation, and headed for the next room.
"Eat quickly... After we've eaten, we'll go outside..." the woman said, her hands trembling as she hid one portion of the food. She broke the remaining bread and meat, completely ignoring the blood that seeped from the pale wound on her index finger, staining the food.
...
"They're keeping us like prisoners!"
"The plague in the north is spreading here!"
"The vibrations from the digging in the walls are getting closer again! They might reach us soon, maybe they're in the next room already!"
"No one cares about us, no one needs us! To survive, we can only rely on ourselves!"
"We're just animals being raised by the noble officials in the center of the shelter."
"They have warm beds, ever-burning lamps, delicious food, and clean water!"
Thump!
A fist slammed against the wall, splitting the skin.
Just then, they heard footsteps approaching from the corridor beyond the tightly shut iron door, growing steadily louder.
"The soldiers... they're coming for us..."
Click!
The iron door was suddenly thrown open. Light from the corridor flooded the room, and the man's exclamation died in his throat.
The captain of the soldiers glanced at the townspeople clenching their fists nervously and nonchalantly distributed the bread and meat.
"This is New Year's food, from the mayor and Mr. Lu Li."
And the doors were left unlocked.
"Be back in your rooms before nightfall."
After the captain had gone, the townspeople, clutching their food, were still staring in shock at the open iron door.
"Maybe... maybe Mr. Lu Li isn't going to abandon us..." someone murmured.
Michael, his fist still bleeding, gritted his teeth and declared:
"They're letting us out... Let's go see for ourselves!"
...
In the gloom, Mitra fumbled for the last stone and plugged the gap.
The piercing cold wind of the harsh winter and the roar of the ocean waves were left outside.
His steps unsteady, Mitra rushed back toward the bright, warm campfire as if fleeing for his life.
The cave flickered between light and shadow with the dancing flames.
"Careful, Mitra!" the others in the cave cried out.
Mitra said nothing, moving closer to the fire and holding out his hands, desperate to warm his body as quickly as possible.
It was terrifyingly cold. He could hear a crackling sound carried on the sea wind—the sound of ice being cast ashore by the frozen sea. Perhaps after today, Winnelag would become the Port of Wine.
"How many more days do we have to wait here?"
Potter looked toward the edge of the fire, at a figure curled into a ball and covered with all the clothes they had.
"Gayle's fever won't break. If this keeps up, he'll die here."
"That's why we got him out of there," a middle-aged man said.
Potter rattled on, "Does the Land of Light really exist? Maybe it's all a lie. Maybe Andrea is a monster that devours people without a second thought, and everyone who boarded her has already been eaten..."
"Shut up! That's Mr. Lu Li's steed."
"But we haven't seen Mr. Lu Li. Maybe he's already..."
"Who's there?!"
The middle-aged man stared warily into the darkness beyond the campfire.
A figure slowly emerged. As the others looked on in fear, the middle-aged man recognized him.
"A Merchant...?"
"Andrea will be back soon. These are your New Year's gifts." The Merchant set down several pieces of meat.
"Did Mr. Lu Li... give these?" the people by the fire asked, swallowing hard as they stared at the food.
"Yes."
The Merchant stepped back into the misty darkness.
"Wait!" Mitra suddenly shouted.
"Someone here is sick! Can you bring us some medicine?!"
"15 shillings."
Mitra and his companion exchanged a look. Then he said suddenly:
"We're on our way to the Land of Light. We'll soon be Mr. Lu Li's subjects... and Mr. Lu Li sent these New Year's gifts, didn't he? Could you... give it to us on credit? We'll pay him back when we reach the Land of Light..."
The Merchant didn't answer, disappearing once more. He soon reappeared, carrying the medicine they needed and a few eyeballs.
...
Thump-thump-thump-thump—
A stumbling figure burst into the cabin.
"I saw it! I saw it!"
His cry drew the other passengers from their quarters.
"I saw... the light..."
He collapsed to the floor, his voice growing fainter. With a look of satisfaction and anticipation, he stopped breathing.
Remb touched the man's neck and said grimly:
"He's dead..."
The passengers scattered in fear. Remb, remembering the man's last words, looked toward the passage leading to the deck.
"I'm going to take a look..."
As the others watched, he started up the steps. Just as he was about to emerge onto the deck, he froze.
"The Land of Light... it really exists... We... we've arrived!"
Amid disbelieving whispers, the excited passengers swarmed onto the deck. In the cold gloom, they saw colors beyond the distant darkness.
Woooooo—
Andrea's horn echoed across the Sea of Darkness.
In the distance, across the dark sea, beautiful golden rays of sacred light spilled from the clouds, falling upon what looked like the long-lost old Belfast—the Land of Light.
The people bathed in the sunlight, feeling the warm radiance on their skin with a mix of nostalgia and curiosity, their ominous premonitions dissolving...
A little over ten minutes later, Andrea was moored.
Like pilgrims, the people who were to become subjects of the Land of Light stepped onto a road that stretched before them like a staircase, leading toward the summit of Sugard.