Chapter 41
The pharmacy door opened, and an old woman peered out, her gaze scanning Roel from head to toe with apparent disapproval.
“What do you need?”
“I need ointment for bruises. Someone fell and got quite injured rolling down a rocky slope.”
“….By the way, who are you? Who got injured?”
Roel clammed up at the old woman’s question filled with suspicion. In a small village like this, everyone knew each other’s business. A woman with a hidden face was sure to raise doubts.
“There’s someone sick at home…”
“Where’s your home?”
“Around here!”
“But why are your shoes so wet? You look like you’ve been up the mountains… Did you come from the mountains?”
As the old woman pressed sharply, Roel found it difficult to continue her lies and swallowed hard.
“Yes, from a hunter’s home.”
“Ah, that gentleman.”
The old woman’s mouth opened slightly in realization. She remembered the hunter who suddenly appeared and charmed the village women.
“There was a woman with him.”
That explained why he had been so indifferent to the flirtations of the village women. The old woman chuckled, amused by the juicy story she had pieced together.
She muttered as she walked back into the pharmacy, with Roel following and sitting down in a corner. It was a familiar space where Roel had once run errands for Roniti.
“Let’s see, for the bruising?”
“Yes. There’s a lot of bleeding, and some of the wounds are pretty bad.”
“Hmm. Some pain-relieving herbs would be good too.”
She packed ointments and pain-relieving herbs. Just before handing the medicine to Roel, the old woman raised her eyebrows.
“But you seem familiar…?”
“What?”
“Your voice, it sounds familiar.”
“No, this is my first time here.”
“Hmm…”
A skeptical gaze followed. Roel quickly shook her head, grabbed the medicine bag from the old woman’s hand, and handed over all the money she had without asking the price.
“Here you go! Thank you!”
Roel hurried out of the pharmacy as if escaping.
Dawn was breaking. By morning, people would start roaming the village streets. She needed to get out before the village bustled with activity.
Wisps of smoke curled up from several chimneys in the village, signaling that early risers were already up and preparing breakfast.
As Roel hurried away, the old woman clicked her tongue in disapproval.
“Such rudeness…”
Suddenly, as she was about to close the pharmacy door, the old woman’s eyes widened in realization.
“That woman…!”
* * *
Roel had successfully purchased the medicine, but it was too early to relax. She quickly made her way out of the village, her skin prickling and cold sweat on her brow until she was well beyond its limits.
The fear of encountering Roniti made her heart race; she didn’t even glance in the direction of her relative’s house, despite her curiosity about their fate. Her fear was greater.
Once Roel entered the foothills, her tension eased, and she slowed her pace.
“Oh, it hurts.”
The pain in her ankle went unnoticed while she was running. And it was now throbbing painfully. Fear had driven her to overexert her injured ankle.
She limped up the mountain path.
The climb became even more challenging as her ankle began to hurt.
Could she make it back by noon?
Though her body felt unbearably heavy, Roel was elated. A sense of accomplishment and pride welled up for having managed to secure the medicine for Kyden. Even panting from the effort, her face was flush with joy.
‘It’s okay if Kyden gets angry. I’d rather he scold me than suffer.’
Kyden’s recovery was more important than anything else. It cleared her mind of worries.
The morning sun rose over the ridge, bright like the new hope Roel had in her heart.
‘Let’s hurry. I need to get back before lunch.’
Quickening her pace, she worried Kyden might have skipped breakfast.
She needs to get back so they can have lunch together. She would apply the medicine and maybe even nap in his arms.
This pleasant thought helped her overcome the sore ankle and the difficult path.
Perhaps she was halfway up the mountain.
“Ah!!”
“You murderous wretch!!”
Someone had grabbed Roel by the hair. She screamed and fell backwards as vicious insults lashed at her.
“It’s you! You’re the one who killed my son and fled, aren’t you?!”
It was Roniti who had followed her. Her face livid with rage, she trembled uncontrollably, her eyes fierce with anger.
She seemed to know all about that day’s events while glaring at Roel with venomous fury.
“Answer me!! It was all your doing, wasn’t it?!?”
Roniti’s contorted face invaded Roel’s space as she screamed.
In that moment, Roel pushed Roniti with all her might. It was as if a survival instinct, desperate to live, had surged from within her. Roniti staggered backwards.
“Ah!!”
Losing her balance, Roniti tumbled down the steep incline, rolling down the slope due to its steepness.
Roel, having barely escaped Roniti’s grasp, scrambled to her feet.
‘Run!’
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