Alice and I are still on the way towards the village.
It was already getting dark before we knew it. The sun is setting and the clouds are turning purple while the grass we're walking at is changing its color to orange.
Diana-san has told me back at the guild that I could actually rent a carriage to take me to the village, but I, of course, declined because I like to take these kinds of things slowly.
Adventures are supposed to be taken slowly, and since I also want to try to camp outside, I had no other choice but to decline her offer.
But now, I'm thinking if I actually made the wrong choice -
Now that there's a little kid sitting behind my back.
But thinking about it, I do enjoy her companion.
At first, I was really scared about her condition, but it seems that she's already okay. Alice is actually a very tough kid.
With her with me, I have at least someone I can call a companion.
[ Alice, Why did you want to go with me? ] I asked as I was curious about what her reason is.
[ Yuki...? Go? ]
[ Un, you could've easily get treated if I took you to the guards or the healers, right? ]
[ Mn...? Guards don't help Alice... Healers... they say Alice needs to pay money first... ]
[ ...oh...? ]
I wasn't expecting her to answer with that...
From what she has said, it seems like going with me was really is the best choice...
[ Yuki... was first to help Alice... ] She said while hugging my head.
[ ...I won't be able to look at the road if you do that, Alice... ]
Really... Alice acts really cute sometimes...
While having our conversation, the sun finally left the sky.
[ Okay, let's take a camp here. ]
[ Kam-pu...? ]
[ That's right. We're going to rest, eat, and sleep here. ]
***
And just like that, I have already set the camp.
It's already night and the moon is high up in the sky.
Sitting beside me on top of a log is Alice.
[ Kimochii~... ]
Putting her arms in front of the campfire, Alice felt the warmth of the fire.
As I watch Alice warm her self up, I also started to do my thing.
I took out a piece of meat from my magic then I took a knife from my bag.
I cut the meat in tiny pieces and pierced it on the sticks I just took out from my bag.
[ Hold this, Alice. ] I said as I hand over Alice a stick.
[ We'll cook it like this. ]
Saying so, I put the stick with the pieces of meat on top of the fire of the bonfire.
[ ...Un... ] Alice then nods.
And after a while, the little pieces of meats were now cooked.
I took a bite and -
[ Uhh! It's delicious! ] I exclaimed.
[ but... ojii-san's is still better... ]
That's right, I tried to imitate that onii-san's recipe but it seems like it was really his secret sauce that I have no chance of copying.
But still, it was close enough... -
While having these thoughts, I looked at Alice who's beside me.
She's just looking at me with drool on her face.
[ ...You can eat it now, Alice. ]
Immediately after I said that, Alice's face brightened up and she took a large bite on her stick.
[ Uhn! Delicious! ] Alice exclaimed with a huge smile on her face.
As I saw her cute expression, I instinctively patted her head.
[ You can have more if you want. ]
[ ...Nn...! ]
[ Let's eat lots okay? ]
And so, both Alice and I ate all of them without leaving any leftovers.
After that, I laid two small futons on the ground.
It was already time to sleep.
***
[ Yuki... ]
Alice muttered the name of the person sleeping beside her.
After he offered her lots of food to eat, he then gave her a nice bed to sleep in.
As Alice laid her small body on the futon, she looked at the bright night sky.
There were no clouds and the sky is only filled with small twinkling stars.
To Alice, this day was the best day of her life.
Of course, she got beaten up, but because of that, a certain person has found her.
She saw how Haruto has tried to help her the best he can this morning.
He took her to many places to get treated but she chose to stay with Haruto because she was afraid that he might leave her and never come back after she gets treated.
[ ... ]
That's right, she was afraid that the only person who treated her nicely might leave her and then never come back again.
She doesn't want that to happen. She wants to stay with him.
She never experienced being loved by anyone. Her parents that are supposed to love her had abandoned her before she could even recognize their faces. The people living on the streets like her have treated her like a nuisance while the rich and middle-class have treated her like trash.
And now that she has found someone that treats her nicely like no one else has, she wants to stay with him. She wants to get treated nicely even if it's just by one person. All the pain and the suffering she experienced then, she has already forgotten by just one act of kindness.
[ Yuki... ]
This time, she muttered his name while looking at his sleeping face just beside her.
[ ...Un... ] she nodded her head.
She then stood up and leave her futon.
After that, she sneaked up inside Haruto's futon and hugged his body with her small arms and legs.
And she immediately thought -
[ ...Warm... ]
While she hugs Haruto's body, she also wobbled her head on his chest.
[ Yuki... Yuki... Yuki... ]
...
...
...
She muttered his name repeatedly...
But what she didn't know was...
Haruto was awake the whole time.
**
The next day ~
After walking for a while, Haruto and Alice finally reached the small wooden gates of the village.
The village was gray and its atmosphere was dark.
[ We're here... ] Haruto muttered with disappointment as he was expecting the village to be more lively.
[ Un...! ] Alice nodded with the same enthusiasm as ever.