"... I was still living in the far northern region," she said quietly, "my father was a great knight. Not a famous one—but strong. Strict. He always ca ho wounded... yet smiling as if it were nothing."
Lucas did not interrupt.
"My mother," Silvara continued, "was a good woman. Too good, even. She tended our small field, took care of the house, and always believed my father would return safely, no matter what happened."
Her hand slowly clenched on her knee.
"The land there was fertile. The winters were harsh, but the soil was alive. People worked, laughed, endured. That was... ho."
She paused.
Then her voice dropped a notch.
"Until one day, the Dark Dragon Myolvidaraz appeared."
Lucas felt a chill creep up his spine.
"There were no signs. No warnings," Silvara said flatly. "The sky darkened. The wind stopped. Then fire fell like rain."
She closed her eyes.
"The village was destroyed in a single night. Fields burned. Houses collapsed. People... died before they even had the chance to scream."
Lucas swallowed.
"My father stepped forward," she continued. "Using his wind-based defensive magic."
Silvara opened her eyes.
"He told to take my mother and run south. He said, ’Don’t look back.’"
Her lips tightened.
"I looked back."
Lucas clenched his jaw.
"My father held the dragon off for several minutes. Just a few minutes," she said. "But it was enough for us to escape."
She drew a deep breath. "I still rember the gusts of my father’s wind magic as he tried to hold the dragon back..." Her head dipped slightly. "And my mother..."
Lucas turned toward her.
"She was injured. Too badly," Silvara continued, her tone devoid of excess emotion—making the weight of it even heavier. "I buried her with my own hands, at the edge of a forest that didn’t even have a na."
Silence fell again.
"After that," she said, "I was alone. I sharpened my sword, learned to control my mana, and lived with only one purpose: to survive... and to beco strong enough so that it would never happen again."
She turned to Lucas.
"The Voss family found several years later. Half-dead, stubborn, and filled with anger," she said shortly. "They gave a place. Not as a child... but as a knight."
Lucas remained silent for a long ti.
Silvara gave a slight nod. "Even so, the Baroness always treated kindly..." Her chest rose as she steadied herself. "I still rember how she would always brush my perpetually ssy hair... she..." Silvara let out a soft breath. "She reminded of my mother..."
Lucas stared at the tomato field ahead of them.
No wonder she’s so loyal to the Baroness, Lucas thought.
---
At the sa ti Silvara began telling her story, elsewhere—at Healer Mae’s place.
Healer Mae was arranging bottles on a wooden shelf when the door slowly opened.
Lina stepped inside.
Her movents were hesitant. Her shoulders slumped. Her head hung low.
Mae turned imdiately. "Lina? You’re ho early from work?"
Lina stopped near the door, her fingers clutching the hem of her skirt. Her shoulders trembled slightly.
"...I," her voice broke. "I was dismissed."
Mae fell silent. "Dismissed?"
Lina gave a small nod. Tears dropped onto the wooden floor.
"Liria said... I’m not needed anymore," she said softly. "She said I’m slow. A burden."
Mae closed the bottle in her hand and stepped closer. "Lina..."
Lina quickly bowed. "Could Miss Mae give a job?"
Mae was slightly startled and was about to speak, but Lina continued again.
"Please," she said quickly, almost desperate. "Any work is fine. Cleaning, grinding herbs, carrying water—anything."
She bit her lip.
"I don’t ask for wages," she went on. "Just... dicine. For my grandmother."
Mae lowered her gaze. She knew Lina’s situation all too well. And she also knew her own—the small clinic was barely enough to survive as it was.
Mae slowly clenched her hand. "...Alright," she said at last.
Lina was startled, imdiately lifting her head. "R-really?"
"Yes," Mae replied softly. "You can help here."
She let out a sigh. "I can’t promise anything beyond dicine and simple food," she continued. Even as she spoke those modest words, she knew this would only make her own life more difficult.
Lina shook her head hard. "That’s fine. That’s more than enough."
She bowed deeply. "Thank you, Healer Mae."
Mae turned her face slightly away.
"...Get so rest first," she said. "You’ll start tomorrow."
"I can start helping right now..." Lina said eagerly.
Seeing how eager the young girl want to work, Mae let out a quiet sigh.
"Alright, then—just don’t be a bother," she said in a teasing tone.
Lina smiled and nodded softly.
----
Silvara turned her face away.
For a brief mont, her eyes looked slightly watery—but she wiped them away with the back of her hand at once, quick, as if it had never happened.
Lucas saw it.
And this ti, he knew better than to say anything.
Silence settled between them again.
Silvara drew a short breath, then asked in a tone that had already returned to neutral,
"...Is it ti to water the field?"
Lucas gave a small nod. "Yeah."
He summoned the Loticentra.
Before he could say anything, Silvara was already moving. Her hand swiftly took the object, and she walked straight toward the middle of the field.
Lucas watched her back.
"...Still working, huh," he murmured softly.
The evening watering finally ca to an end.
Rows of tomato plants settled back into stillness, the soil damp and dark.
Silvara let out a long breath.
"...So, we’re going ho now, right?"
Lucas shook his head. "To Healer Mae’s clinic first."
Silvara turned to him. "For what?"
"I already promised to pay for the potion," Lucas replied casually. "Might as well do it now. Less hassle."
Silvara studied him for a mont, then nodded. "Alright."
—
Mae’s clinic was unchanged—quiet, simple, the sa scent of herbs in the air.
Lucas opened the door.
Inside, Lina—who had been helping Mae, lifting a bottle from the table—froze on the spot.
Her face went pale.
Her hand stopped midair.
In her mind, a single mory struck hard.
Young Master...
The poison...
Lina’s breath caught.
She stared at Lucas without blinking, her body rigid,
as if ti itself had stopped.
Lucas glanced at her. "Oh... you—"
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