What? He spoke?!
Violet whipped her head around, eyes wide, only to realize that Nainai too was gazing upward.
His round eyes reflected the countryside sky—soft, drifting white clouds gliding lazily across the blue.
“Yes… It really is beautiful…”
Taking one last sip, Violet tucked the canteen back into her bag, adjusted herself, and leaned her back against the thick trunk.
The two remained silent, each lost in their own thoughts, until gradually Violet’s head sank against the bark, her eyelids growing heavy… and finally closing.
A sudden noise!
Above them, the squirrels had abruptly gone wild.The one farther away leapt at the poor fellow holding the acorn, trying to rip the prize from his paws—sparking a frantic little brawl.
The two rodents, tumbling and twisting, slipped from the branch and fell right onto Violet’s head. Half-asleep, she jolted awake and screamed.
“Aaahhh!!!”
The critters bounced off her and landed a little farther ahead, immediately going back to clawing and biting each other with ridiculous ferocity.
The squirrel that had been attacked managed to wriggle free. Its long ears—pulled mercilessly during the fight—were now swollen and bright red.It rubbed them furiously, wincing as they throbbed.
After a moment of intense glaring… the little beasts lunged at each other again, resuming the chaos.
Violet shot to her feet, horrified.
The squirrels were completely out of control—scratching, biting—tufts of fur flying everywhere.
Yanking the rope hard, she tried to pull the dwarf up.“Come on—we’re leaving! Right now!”
They hurried away from the tree and back onto the path, fleeing that absurd scene.
“This is insane! A girl can’t even take a nap in peace?!”
Violet kept grumbling for quite a while, and without realizing it, the pair had wandered onto a trail that left the fields behind and gradually sloped upward.The scenery changed, becoming rocky and barren.
Climbing between uneven stones and scattered debris, they finally reached a flat plateau.Before them yawned an enormous, impossibly deep ravine.
“…And now what?!”
Violet pulled the map from her bag and scanned it desperately.
“There’s nothing marked here!!!”
The canyon sliced the land in every direction, and there wasn’t a hint of how to get across.
What now? We can’t seriously go all the way back!
“Damn it! Come on, Nainai—let’s try to find a way over.”
Violet began following the crack in the earth, glancing down into the abyss—a chasm of darkness stretching endlessly below.
We’ve barely started this journey and we’re already stuck…Maybe I should have stayed on the plains…
Walking slowly, Violet kept her eyes fixed on the crevice.The area around them was wide open, the trees far behind, and the sky stretched endlessly overhead.A knot of anxiety tightened in her stomach.
This is bad… we’re way too exposed!If a griffon came swooping down from above—or worse, a wyvern—we wouldn’t even see it coming…
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Her fear had old roots.When she was little, playing with the neighborhood kids, she’d accidentally disturbed a flock of crows nesting in an abandoned building.They’d chased and scattered the birds for fun, but Violet had pushed too far. She got too close——and paid the price.
The enraged crows had swarmed her, pecking and scratching until she finally managed to hide inside an old shop.
“You must be careful, Violet. The world out there is full of sudden dangers…”Those had been Célene’s words as Violet sobbed in her lap, vowing revenge on every last feathered menace.
Continuing along the edge of the ravine, Violet noticed something up ahead.
“What’s that?”
Approaching cautiously, she realized the dark shape was a long wooden bridge connecting the two sides of the crevasse.
But there was… something else.
A chill crept up her spine.
From the bushes near the bridge, a man stepped out—clad in light leather armor, a hood drawn low over his face.
Violet froze.
Nainai, who hadn’t stopped walking, bumped straight into her back, squashing his nose flat against her shoulder blades.
Violet stared at the stranger for several long seconds.
“Is that… a man?”
What do I do?? Should I run?
She glanced at the dwarf tied to her waist.
No… dragging him along, I’d never get far.Maybe he’s just a traveler… I hope…
She approached with slow, careful steps, gripping her staff tightly, praying the man was harmless.
“Good morning…”
The hooded man gave a polite, swift bow.
“Good morning to you…”
“Who are you?” Violet tried to catch a glimpse beneath the hood, but failed.
“My name is Ghis, miss. Adventurer, part-time mercenary… and above all, thief.”
Thief?!
“What an interesting sight…”The man’s tone remained casual and confident as his eyes examined both her and the dwarf behind her.
“…A girl and a dwarf tied together with a rope.The world truly never runs out of strange sights.”
“What are you doing here?” Violet tried to stall, hoping to figure out the man’s intentions.
“Well, I’m waiting! I was waiting for someone just like you two to come by.”
“Like us? What’s that supposed to mean?”
Damn it…
“Well, as I mentioned… I’m a thief.”
The moment his words registered, Violet began to step back.
“…So I was hoping you’d be generous enough to share some of your coins with me.Let’s say… all of them.”
I knew it…Now what do I do?!
“Coins? I—I don’t have any coins…”
After all the work I did to earn them, why should I hand them over to him?!
“Oh, that’s fine. There are other ways you can satisfy me…”The man lunged forward with startling speed, grabbing at her.
“You’re cute, you know? Just my type…”His hands slid along her clothes, reaching her pouch—clink clink
“And what do we have here?” He feigned surprise with a crooked grin.
No! My money!
He yanked the pouch free, then lifted a hand to her chin, tilting her face up toward him.Up close, Violet could finally see him clearly—young, dark-haired, dark-eyed. Human.
“Pretty little liar… definitely my type.How about we—”
The moment his fingers touched her chin, Violet reacted on pure instinct.
She lunged forward and bit down on his hand with all the force her jaw could muster.
“AAAGH!!”The man screamed, thrashing until he tore himself free.Blood dripped from the crescent marks of her bite.
“You’re insane! Look what you did to my hand!”Raging, he turned back toward her, fist clenched and trembling.“You brat—!”
It happened in an instant.
As soon as he stepped toward her, Violet swung upward and kicked him straight between the legs.
The man went pale——and collapsed to the ground wheezing, curling in on himself as he struggled for air.
“I… I’ll kill you…!”His hand shot toward his belt, fingers brushing the hilt of a knife.
Violet didn’t wait.
Raising her staff, she brought it down hard on his head.A solid THUD echoed across the ravine as the thief slumped unconscious.
“I grew up in an orphanage with six older brothers…”Violet stood over him, eyes sharp and unshaken.
“It’ll take more than some two-bit thief to scare me.”
After releasing the force of that last strike, Violet stepped closer and glared down at the man with pure disgust.
“Pervert.”
She picked up her pouch and tucked it back under her clothes, then kicked his knife—sending it spinning off the edge of the ravine and down into the depths below.
Behind her, Nainai watched with an expression of surprise and genuine admiration.
“What?” she asked, noticing his wide-eyed stare.
“How do you think I’ve survived all this time in an orphanage? By letting people do whatever they want?Do you have any idea how hard it is being the only girl among a bunch of older brothers?”
Nainai didn’t answer, but his eyes remained fixed on her, impressed.
“Come on…”Violet stepped past the unconscious thief and tugged on the rope to get her companion moving again.“Let’s get out of here before he wakes up!”
Once she had regained her composure, Violet and Nainai headed onto the bridge.
She cast one last look back at the unfortunate man, still sprawled motionless on the ground.
Maybe I went a little overboard…But he deserved it!
Crossing the bridge, the two continued along the trail.The path narrowed as it slipped between thick vegetation, and soon the pair vanished into the shade of the forest.
