'Did she just make up her name?'
Dyed in confusion, I tried to read her face to see if she was lying, but then I remembered that I would have a stable job in the city's barracks than scavenging in the wild if I was that talented.
She was just a 12 years old girl, the same age as me, so I discarded my suspicion.
She was just a child and wouldn't be capable of lying with such a straight face, right?
It is also proven that she was not a villainess and had nothing to do with the villainess family either. Though I didn't know from which family she belonged. Although Flareottems is just a rip off of Russia, I had never heard of any family with 'Nikolaevna' as a surname.
"I am Ivan. 12 years old."
I also had a surname, according to my memory. It's 'Whitedeer', but I had stopped using that name since I could be put on the wanted list for all I know. It was still unclear why my predecessor's tribe was hunted down.
"If we are of the same age, why were you calling me little girl?" She scowled.
Because I was a freaking adult from inside who died pathetically after slipping on a banana peel in my previous life!
"Need I to remind you how you acted as a noble?" I glared back.
Her cheeks turned rosy, and she looked away. Though she didn't cry like any child or complain about her needs, she nonstop cursed me and called me a dirty commoner.
I did endure for a while, but my 12 years old body also had its limit, so I scolded her a few times.
*GROWL*
It was then our tummies rang with a howling growl. Ann blushed and turned away, trying to hide her embarrassing face.
I chuckled lightly and took out a pouch filled with jerky and nuts.
In Flareottems, snacks like jerky and nuts are primary consumption since the temperature is always cold.
I took some pieces for myself while giving the girl rest and some nuts. She was reluctant to eat something out of a commoner's dirty bag, but one bite let her fall for the tasty jerky.
"Hmm, yummy~! How did you get such delicious jerky?" She wondered. Though she was enjoying herself, her manners of eating did captivate me. It was clear that she was already in training to act like a proper noble.
"I used olive oil to cook for a minute and some seasonings before drying." I didn't need to share my Gordon Ramsey level recipe, but I started to like conversing with someone my age.
"Is that so…?" She rolled her eyes, then added, "Share the recipe with the head chef of my family. You will be handsomely rewarded."
She was only 12 and already acting like a noble. I was impressed by her offer but too bad; I didn't intend to ever see her again after handing her over to authorities. Several hundred or thousand gold coins are suitable as a reward, but those mean nothing if you are dead.
I would have loved to get rewards for saving nobles from other regions but not in Flareottems.
"By the way, what kind of treasure you were looking to common- Ivan?"
I see, calling by my direct name without any honorifics to her saviour like 'My lord Ivan, Ivan the handsome or Ivan-sama'. Not that I was complaining.
I looked at her and thought if I should tell her about it. I lost my chance to find it anyways, so I didn't see a reason to hide it. Maybe she could help me find it.
"It is a purple crystalline rectangular gem that could act as a catalyst to awaken magic powers."
It was not wrong, though, since it could also awaken Magic, i.e. ability to wield an element.
The magic system in the game is pretty generic. 40% of the world population either awaken magic powers through birth or before 11 or 12.
And don't you dare ask me why I was idling like an idiot till now. I tried that cultivation shit for months, but all I received was back pain because of sitting for hours. I was still trying to find methods, but I had no luck.
"Wait, does that mean you can't use magic?" She put her hand on her lips and smirked.
I stared at her dryly, "Can you? If so, I wonder why Miss Ann got a beating from those assassins? If I remember correctly, nobles possess pretty hardcore abilities."
"I-I can use it, okay…." She asserted and then solemnly said, "I don't know why but my ability isn't working…."
Come to think of it, those assassins also didn't use any magic skills or spells. If they were sent to kill a noble, they should at least be strong enough to face at least Ranked D monsters. If I could chase them away, they came prepared, knowing she would be weakling without her magical abilities.
"Wait, did you consume something unknown, or do you have some accessory like the gem I described? It can also possess side effects like shutting down some magical abilities."
'The Predictor' can also block some special kind of magic powers. In the game, the villainess' ice powers also stopped working along with Slave Merchant's Target Lock when they had that Treasure.
"N-no, I don't think so…" She said as she started looking around while playing with her fingers and rolling her eyes nervously.
I didn't know why but she was lying this time.
I wanted to ask her some more, but I saw an expression I hadn't seen since transmigrating.
The expression of someone being betrayed… again and again.
Living in the US, especially in the army, let him see many things, including betrayal several times where they were my colleagues or innocent lives with a single purpose of living peacefully.
A betrayal that you wanted to forgive.
"I came here on vacation… No, just to run away from 'that' place."
She must be referring to her home. Yeah, children at her age are usually going through a rebellious phase. I didn't know how many times I tried to run away from the orphanage I grew up in my previous life.
"William was the coachman with whom I came here and her wife and his six-year-old child. They looked like kind people. I was happy that they agreed to take care of me for this tour, but…."
Her expression grew grave as she clenched her fist, "My carriage was left alone in the woods when I woke up from my untimely sleep. The knight who came with me had his eyes rolled up, the tail of blood flowing from his mouth. My magic ability also stopped working.
I knew that I was probably getting assassinated or kidnapped since it happened a couple of times before…."
Her eyes started showing a glimpse of redness as she gritted her teeth, "I knew that commoners are worthless, but I didn't know they are also filthy dishonest creatures!" She then looked at me with her flaring red eyes, "I will ask you again, you commoner, can you forgive them if you were in my position? If not death, then what is the right atonement for them?"
I washed in confusion when I saw her eyes turning red. Did she have some eye power like a particular tragic red eyes ninja clan?
However, I had to give her an answer that I was firmed with.
"Miss Ann, you can crush insects all you want with your foot, but they will not stop bothering you. You will only dirty your feet with their blood. Until or unless you remove the infestation from its root, their end will never come." I spoke and yawned, "Every problem comes with its respective treatment. If not, then you have to make one. Besides, letting them live doesn't mean forgiveness. Living could be far more brutal than a simple end called death."
I answered and yawned again. I started to get sleepy and could barely keep my eyes open. I might have good stamina for a boy my age, but I need equally hard rest. It was my time to sleep too.
She widened her eyes before frowning, "I don't get it." She then sighed and asked another question, "By the way, the Treasure you were talking about. What else it could do?"
I didn't have the energy to answer her any more questions. I yawned as I replied, "Yawn* It could glow brightly at full moon…Yawn* It can only be activated if someone puts it in their throat…."
I didn't know why I uttered the last line, but I was way hazy to think correctly.
That's it; I placed my head on her soft and cosy coat and added one last line before sinking into slumber, "Wake me up in the morning and guard us. ZZZZZZ"
She had already slept while I was carrying her around. So I could only count on her to guard the place. For now, her soft shoulder brought me to my dreams.
---
"What the, hey!" The girl named Ann complained and tried to shake away the dark-haired boy but saw him sleeping so soundlessly.
She then looked at the full moon in the sky. It was beautiful, and so was the purple gem beaming with a purple glow just like the eyes of the boy.
It was a farewell gift from the coachman's wife. Who would have thought that a simple-looking gem would cause her loss of magic power and the fate that connected her with this commoner boy called Ivan?
According to the description, Ivan was looking for the same gem she was holding in her hand.
Should she give it to him?
She hid it since the gem was her possession, even if it left her almost killed. But now, she was thinking of awarding the Treasure to him as a gift for saving her.
She wanted Prince Arthur to come and save her, but she had no choice but to stick with this stinky boy.
For now, she tugged her head on Ivan and continued to stare at the starry night.
---
"van…"
My head was spinning as I felt quivering pain on my whole body. Somebody also seemed to be calling me. It was Ann.
"Ivan! Watch out!"
It was then I heard her cry, but before I could respond, a dark claw pierced my chest.
I was stunned as I spat a mouthful of blood. It was evident that I would die, and the cause of my death was something that I had never dreamed of seeing in this life.
It was 2.3 meters tall bipedal creature covered in long silver hair, but it was tainted with blood, just like its blood-red glowing eyes and sharp fangs drenched with blood.
"!!!!!"
Its skin shivering roar did nothing to me as I was already drifted into the afterlife.