"Calm down, Marni," said the man. "Your husband just fainted. Hey!" he turned to some of the grown men around them. "Help me carry Munra."
Then, two adult men immediately approached. The three of them picked up Munra and carried Munra into his hut.
"Over here," said Marni, pointing to a bamboo divan.
The three men laid Munra on the divan carefully.
"Th-thank you," said Marni to her's three neighbors.
"All right, Marni," said the first man. "We will leave you with your children and husband. Wipe the blood from his nose and mouth."
Marni nodded, and the people left.
"That's enough!" said one of the three men to the people trying to peek at Munra's condition in the front doorway. "Go back to your respective homes. Let Munra rest!"
And the people, one by one left Marni's hut. Now, only Marni, Aryan, and Munra are still unconscious in the hut.
"Aryan," said Marni. "Please, close that door, son."
Aryan nodded, the boy closed the front door of the hut. Meanwhile, Marni adjusted the position of Munra's legs, rubbing her husband's forehead with deep sadness.
"You go to sleep first, my dear," said Marni to Aryan who came back to her.
"But, Mom…"
"Sweetheart," Marni rubbed her adopted son's head and back, she tried to bring a smile to her lips even though her heart was crying right now. "Please go get sleep, Aryan, let me take care of your father."
Once again, Aryan looked at his father's injured face before finally walking towards the middle room.
With the feelings that were also very worried about his father's condition, Aryan climbed onto the bamboo divan, lying down.
"Gods and Goddesses," Aryan muttered with tears rolling down from his eyes. "Please, save my father…"
And after that, Aryan tried to close his eyes.
In the front room, Marni got up and then headed towards the kitchen. She took the time to glance into the middle room. Marni smiled looking at Aryan who was lying on his side with his back to the bedroom door.
After that, Marni continued her steps. In the third room which is also their kitchen, Marni reaches for a small clay jug. She filled the jug with the water from the larger jug. She also grabbed a worn-out piece of cloth and put it in a small jug in her arm.
With the old cloth that she had wet first, Marni wiped her husband's face. Clean the dust and bloodstains on the husband's face. With very tender and loving care for her husband.
All parts of Munra's body that are not covered by clothes are cleaned by Marni very carefully.
While cleaning her husband's body, tears were always rolling from Marni's eyes. Marni suppressed her cries so as not to wake Aryan. She suppressed deep sadness seeing her husband's condition.
The Gods and Goddesses of Swargaloka, Marni screamed in her heart. What kind of punishment did you give to my husband? What sin have we committed?
Marni knew, without their cart, without the female buffalo, the worst thing Marni could think about was bandits and robbers.
Yes, that female buffalo belonging to a noble family in the Irisana Kingdom must have been in the hands of those bad guys. And their cart, of course, Munra wouldn't be able to pull it all the way to their hut.
Oh, the Gods… Marni screamed even louder in her heart, thus, the body trembled violently. What will happen to our family the next day? The noble will punish my husband. Oh, Great Gods… don't let this happen to us. Don't let them hurt my husband.
Tired of all the sadness that befell her family, Marni finally fell asleep beside her husband.
Marni fell asleep in a sitting position, her back against the bamboo wall, one hand bent beside her husband's head, and the hand became a crutch for Marni's head.
*
Right in the middle of the night, Munra woke up from his stupor. The first thing he saw was Marni sleeping sitting beside him.
Munra didn't move an inch. Only his eyeballs moved, and over time they became teary. Not only because he realized that he no longer had the female buffalo, which meant that he would receive a punishment from the nobles in Irisana, but also because he found weariness on his wife's face.
The middle-aged man knows for sure, his wife must be very sad about the condition he is suffering now.
Munra's gaze shifted to the thatched roof that overshadowed their hut.
There was nothing he could do now, nor later. Sooner or later, the punishment from the noble owner of the female buffalo will surely come.
Slowly, the tears finally rolled down his ears. Silently, but it was clear that Munra was wailing in his heart.
There was nothing he had that he could use to prevent the punishment from coming to him. Not power, let alone possessions.
None.
And now, Munra imagines the life that will be even more pathetic for his wife and adopted son must live. Yes, all this time, the punishments from the nobles always ended in death for the person who received the punishment itself.
This is what Munra was afraid of. Not about his own death, but rather about the fate of his wife and adopted child after his death. Marni and Aryan will surely suffer even more.
Without the presence of an adult male figure in their hut, Marni and Aryan will certainly have difficulty living their lives later. In fact, for just a bite of food, they may not have a chance.
This made Munra's tears roll even more.
Munra kept on praying to the gods and goddesses in Swargaloka. Asking forgiveness for their families. Asking for protection for Marni and little Aryan.
Munra didn't care about his own life, all he cared about was making his wife and adopted son happy.
I surrender to you, O Gods and Goddesses, rulers of the universe. Protect my wife and children. Save them. Don't let them have a life that's even more difficult than what they're going through right now.
I'm begging all of You…
***
TO BE CONTINUED ...