The three found a fallen tree and rested while enjoying the meat jerky. Lara gathered wild berries that she recognized. There were also a lot of bananas, some of which were ripened, and some were already rotten.
One of the reasons she chose to traverse the mountain range instead of walking along the dusty road was the abundance of food there. Additionally, who knew if they would encounter another human trafficker after escaping from one group if they walked along the road?
After resting for some time, Lara removed her skirt and ripped a narrow strip from the hemline. Next, she made a precise cut down the center of the skirt, splitting it from the hem all the way up to the midpoint of her thigh. She punched holes in the cut side of the skirt, and, using the strip of fabric she had just torn, she expertly threaded it through the holes, fastening the skirt together and transforming it into makeshift, crude, loose trousers.
Reya has her mouth opened wide. She wanted to ask Lara why she had ruined her skirt, but the words stuck in her throat.
"The skirt is getting in the way. It restricts movement. You can do the same for yours so we can travel faster." Lara explained before passing the smaller knife to Reya.
While Reya was fixing her and the child's skirt, Lara went to the nearby bamboo groove and cut down a big bamboo the size of her thigh. She then cut the bamboo into nodes, tied six of them together with hemp, and filled six with water from the river.
While the forest must have abundant water sources, Lara was used to always being prepared. Her moves and steps were calculated, and she did not want to leave anything to chance.
Since they decided to stop following the river, Lara led Reya and the little girl deeper into the mountain. The little girl was obedient. Even though her feet were full of small wounds and bruises, she did not complain.
Sometimes, Reya carried the little girl on her back when she was too tired to move her legs. When Lara noticed that Reya was too exhausted to take the little girl, she offered to carry her on her back and passed her bundle to Reya.
The six bamboo tubes were slung on Lara's front, and the little girl was nestled on her back. Lara had taken only one step when a frown appeared on her smooth forehead.
"You are a boy!" It was not a question but a firm statement.
The little girl trembled.
"What is your name? Why are you dressed as a girl?" Lara bent and put the boy down.
"What? She is a boy?" Reya asked in confusion. How did her Miss know she was a boy when it was only the second time she carried her? The first was when they crossed the river. She carried the child for so many times but did not notice anything.
"I felt it. He is a boy." Lara looked at the boy sternly.
"What is your name, and why are you dressed like a girl?" she asked a second time.
Tears started streaming down the little boy's eyes, and Lara felt her heart ached. She remembered her younger brother, who would cry like that every time Lara scolded him. She only disciplined him because her father and stepmother spoiled him too much. She did not want him to grow up a brat.
"My ... my name .. is .. Sandoz. Sandoz Arces." The boy stammered.
"Arces? Are you from the House of the Arces? The son of Duke Lukas?" Reya asked.
"Yes." The boy tightened his grip on the hem of his upper garment. With a hint of vulnerability in his eyes, he continued, "My mother always dressed me like this, as a girl. She believed that if people discovered I was actually a boy, they would seek me out to harm me."
Lara cast a questioning look at Reya.
"Miss Lara, the Duke of Arces is one of your father's closest friends. He had been to the general's house several times. His principal wife has been pregnant twice but has given birth to daughters. I also heard that his second wife has borne him two daughters." Reya cast Sandoz a fleeting glance before continuing. "It seems that the first child of the second wife is not a girl after all."
Lara's eyebrows raised. She understood. The principal wife could not allow the second wife to bear the Duke, his firstborn son. She remembered that in the olden times, it was legal for men to have more than one wife.
"Does my father have other wives as well?"
"No, Miss Lara. Your father loves your mother so much. He only has eyes for her."
Lara did not know, but she felt relieved.
"How did you fall into the hands of those human traffickers?" Reya asked the little boy who had stopped crying.
"My nanny accompanied me outside to play. And then I got separated from her, and a man grabbed me."
"It is not as simple as you are thinking, Reya. The first wife must have known that he is a boy." Lara glanced at the boy with a complicated look. "How old are you?" she asked.
"Five and a half." Sandoz would normally answer that he was seven years old. It was believable because he was taller than most children his age.
"What?" Reya's eyes widened. "I didn't know you were so young! But of course, you are a boy after all."
The three continued their journey. Lara had difficulty because the forest was denser than the one she knew by heart. She did not recognize the trees, so she could not establish their location. It was already mid-afternoon, and she needed to find a shelter soon. Otherwise, they would face nothing but trouble when evening comes.
She climbed a tall tree to check her surroundings, using the Ourea peak as a reference. Halfway down the tree, she heard a growl.
When she looked down, her hand almost slipped.
A massive boar with two pointed tusks was about to attack the two people leaning on the tree and trembling.