Here is the next chapter of Kiguze no Yaiba, please enjoy!
I hefted up the beams that supports the entire cart and lifted it up to the level of my hips. Pulling on the wood brought down a small contraption that hooked itself onto my shoulders and around my hips. Letting go of the beams to test the balance, and returned to holding them once I was satisfied with the results.
I began pulling on the heavy cart and walked slowly down the stone pathway towards the village, being careful not to speed up. The sun was beginning to move to the west, and I looked onwards to my destination, staring at the farmland below.
"Enji! Going to the village again, are you!?" I was greeted by a nearby farmer who was tending to some rice crops. He helped us for quite some time now, especially after he repaired my home after the recent storm passed through the countryside.
"Not much, Jiko-san! I just needed to deliver some logs to the woodwork, Oto-san told me that there were a few congregated trees!" I replied back, which made the somewhat elderly man pull a face.
"You should take a break sometime! That father of yours is really putting heavy work on your shoulders for the past few days now!" He shouted back. I shrugged my shoulders and nodded in his direction, which he seemed to accept as an answer.
I took a deep breath as I neared the village, greeting all the other farmhand the same way as other villagers passed beside me to do their work. Staring at the entrance to the village, I stopped, waiting for the guard to assess my cart, before dropping the beams on the ground, massaging my arms as I did.
The guard finished inspecting a visiting merchant before turning towards me. I saw him sigh before shaking his head in an apprehensive manner and walking towards my cart. I stepped away and waited for him to finish his inspection.
"Another one huh, Enji?" He spoke after a bit of time taking a gander at my pile of wood. He wrote something on his logbook before gesturing for me to get back to my cart.
Taking heed of his order, I pulled the cart back up and wandered into town, surprising some merchants and scaring away a few stray animals. All the other villagers stared at me as I continued my gait towards my destination, making sure not to destroy anything in the process.
I passed through a few buildings, stopping by some to eat since I wasn't able to earlier, and almost hit an onlooker as I went, although nothing of note happened during my trek down the beaten path towards the woodwork buildings. Thankfully, they managed to widen the path enough for me to cross. At the very least, they remembered, if anything.
As I neared the building, a young girl came up to me, probably about a year younger than I was. She huffed and gathered her breath for a few seconds, before gazing her eyes towards my face with an exhausted expression as she was slouching over. I smirked and her face turned red as I dropped the cart by the door.
"So… what do you need, miss…?" I started to ask before I was cut off my one of the workers that just came out of the yard.
"Tadakoro-chan! What brought you here?" A relatively young man ran over towards her. He tried to help her up, but she held up a finger and composed herself, pushing her body up off her legs with her arms and looking towards the pile of logs, now being handle by a few workers who were brought outside by the commotion.
"Kaa-san and To-san- gah -needed some wood for repairs and for woodwork. I- guh -heard from the others- the others from the village- huff -that the wood person was here." She managed to bring out inbetween gasps of breath. She must've ran over when I came here. Must be far, since it took me about 15 minutes to head over.
"Steady yourself, Tadakoro-chan. Kobashigawa-kun, can you deliver a wooden log to her home? Me and the other workers kind of got our hands full." He put a hand on the girl's shoulders before turning towards me and pleading for my assistance. I scratched my head and pulled out a purple braided hair ribbon and tied up my hair in a high ponytail.
"Sure. Where so, Tadakoro-san?" I asked as the young man pumped his arms in success and heading back into the building. The both of us stared at his retreating form before she turned towards me.
"Well, our estate is over to the northeast. But your cart is still being handled, I think I could-"
Before I even let her finished her statement, I had already hefted up a decently sized log with ease. She stared at me silently before continuing.
"-wait for them to finish… Well then, I suppose that we could do that right now. Just follow me, I guess. Oh, and try not to trip." She spoke out before walking towards our destination. I followed suit and we started trekking through the thick foliage, making sure not to bump into the nearby trees up ahead.
We walked quite a fair amount, going through a patch of grassland when we got out of the small forest, passing through a small river and walking out over a hill before reaching her estate. Over the course of the walk, she conversed with me and asked me what my name was, since her family only knew me as 'The wood person'. Of course, I was inclined to answer and she told me hers in return. We finally reached her estate after about 20 minutes.
She knocked on the door and waited beside me, and we stood still until the door opened and a man and woman appeared from the doorway. Tadakoro greeted them and they turned towards me in gratefulness.
"Thank you for delivering the wood to us. We hope that our daughter didn't give you too much of a hard time… did she?" Her father thanked me for doing his daughter's errands. Stepping in to save Tadakoro's hide, I responded quickly.
"No, she was very well behaved throughout our walk. Though I must say, she tends to ask quite a number of questions. Not that I mind." I waved my hands in earnest, before dodging a jab from the relatively short girl. I smirked in confusion as she began reaching out for me like a beast, being held back by her mother.
"I'm not a dog you-" she screamed out loud before her mother slapped her hand over her mouth. She gazed apologetically at me and clamped her hold on Tadakoro's stomach even tighter.
"Ah, so that's what you meant by trouble. Well then, I won't hinder you any further. Goodbye, Tadakoro-san!" I mumbled before saying my farewells. As I was turning to leave, a hand placed itself on my shoulders and turned me around forcefully to face them. The blank face of Tadakoro graced my features and he opened my hand and placed a bundle of coins on it.
"I can't take this, Tadakoro-san." I uttered out as I sweated nervously. He then closed my hands and smiled venomously.
"Please take it."
"Yes sir."
I waved towards them as I finally left, and it seems like Tadakoro-chan got over the early accident, although she had a red face. Ah. She's definitely embarrassed. No matter, it's probably nothing. However, as I stared at the purple colored trees that littered their estate, I couldn't help but feel a sense of unknown comfort.
It's probably just the trees.
I walked back to the woodwork and found that my cart had already been emptied. Those people definitely work fast. As I was heading to my cart, the young man from earlier ran up to me and handed thirteen coins to me.
"Thank you for handling Sumi-chan! I pray that she hasn't given you much trouble? Are you wounded? Is your manho-"
I smacked him on the neck and brought him down. A tough looking worker stared at the limp body and nodded at me, before dragging him over to the inside of the building. I put the coins in the leather bundle from earlier and walked over to my cart, hefting up the cart and silently pulling it out of there. What a weird group.
As I passed through the village again, I have noticed that mostly everyone had left the streets and only a few were still wandering around. It's still pretty early in the morning though, so I don't understand the state of the village. Must be preparation for something. I exited the village and was greeted by the guard yet again, who made one final inspection on my cart.
"So… what's the event?" I asked him after he went back to his station. However, after he didn't answer, I turned back, confused, before heading on my way across the path towards the mountain.
I walked silently on the dirt path, taking measures to examine my surroundings, just to pass the time. In the corner of my eye, I saw the forest, the hills, and the farms, as well as a massive creature staring at me from the darkness of the trees.
What?
"What?" I uttered out as I stared at that location yet again. I didn't see the figure in the trees, so I chalked it up to be a result of overwork. I rubbed my eyes and headed up the mountain, scanning the mountainsides as I went. Only when I got to my home did I drop my guard and my cart. There was light coming from inside the wooden house.
"I'm home." I stated as I removed my sandals. However, I didn't find anyone inside. Strange. Father and mother would usually be inside at this time of day. Something must've happened, I thought to myself as I entered the bedroom and unrolled my futon.
"Whatever it is, I'll take care of it tommorow…" I silently mumbled.