Chapter 31 We Desperate Travelers

Chapter 31 We Desperate Travelers
🌜Seraphina🌛

We began to create another moment travelling through the narrow clear road leading us out of the bush. The air smelt of damp air and it left a clean sharp scent on our clothes. I tightened my hands on the reins of the horse as I guided the horse forward.

After we left the bush, Elias rode beside me, we were silent all through. It was always silent between us as we always rode. His eyes kept darting ahead, alert, his posture rigid with that same impossible mix of control and restlessness.

I could still see his reluctance to go to the village I mentioned earlier. But I was deathly hungry and I could weaken down if I don't eat any minute from now.

As we got nearer, I scented the meat from the village we hadn't even entered. “We're close,” I informed excitedly. I bet he'd be as hungry as I am upon perceiving the nice aroma of food.

“The village should be ahead, just past that ridge.”

Elias didn’t reply, only gave a curt nod, his expression unreadable. Yet, every so often, I caught his eyes flick toward me, as if to ensure I was still steady on the saddle. That small, unspoken concern twisted something inside me I didn’t want to name.

That's nice for a King who's only known to kill from childhood. Or was he still seeing me as a tool? Hehehe, he dare not.

Somewhere in the bush we just left, a bird shrieked and took flight. My horse snorted and shifted nervously, but I patted its neck gently.

“It’s alright,” I murmured. “Just keep going.”

I can't afford to take another fall from the horse. Because I wasn't sure if Elias would be willing to save me this time around. He would simply take the village as a bad omen. Those were what humans believed in,but that's not the same with us. We rely and act on other things.

I sighed and dragged in a heavy breath.

Then Elias spoke, his voice low and rough. “You’re sure about this village?”

“Yes.” I turned to meet his gaze. “I saw it from the ridge. There were sunlights — fires, smoke, movement. It’s there.”

He studied me for a heartbeat longer, then exhaled through his nose. “If it’s a trap—”

“It’s not,” I said sharply, before I could stop myself. His brows rose, but I didn’t back down. “We need help, supplies. And you need rest, whether you admit it or not.”

For a second, the corner of his mouth twitched.. not quite a smile, but close enough that it made my pulse skip.

“Bold words,” he muttered, eyes returning to the road. “For someone who nearly fainted before noon.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “I fainted once.”

He didn’t answer, but I caught the faint sound of laughter,it was soft, fleeting before he spurred his horse a little ahead.

“There,” I breathed, pointing ahead. Rooftops emerged , though thatched, uneven, but real. “See? I told you.”

Elias slowed his horse beside mine, eyes scanning the distance. His expression softened almost imperceptibly. “You were right,” he said finally.

Something about hearing that — you were right — sent an odd warmth through my chest. It felt like a reassurance that I was right with my choice.

We rode onward together, toward the small cluster of houses waiting just beyond. As we proceeded forward,my heart seemed to beat uncontrollably for no reason. As we got closer to nowhere, my heart only fluttered even more, and I seemed to realize that I allowed it.

To prevent myself from getting caught,I just smiled silently as if I had seen heaven ahead. The kind of Peace that engulfed me was different from the one in the inn. I hope this Village wouldn't be as traumatic as the inn. It's already been a day filled with drama and I was exhausted.

I know this place would offer food, water even if it's by stealing.

As the village came into full view, children ran barefooted across the narrow dirt path. Smoke curled in the air like magic being wielded. Women carried baskets filled with ingredients, herbs, and grain and I couldn't help but get more excited. My throat dropped to have those in my mouth.

We rode further, and people began turning towards us. To give us a glance or two. They lifted their heads from the chores they were doing, hands froze in mid air. They whispered to one another, still staring at us.

But their gaze didn't hold hostility, they had the kind of look which tells their curiosity and wariness of the strangers stepping in their land and I couldn't help myself from getting curious also. I smiled beyond anything.

It was a small village and it was easy to tell if a new person was visiting.

Elias didn’t seem to mind. He rode tall, his face composed and unreadable, the faint aura of command clinging to him even here, among farmers and traders. I could feel it…the weight of who he was, of what he used to be… even if the people couldn’t name it.

I tried to appear calm, nodding faintly at a woman who offered a cautious smile, though she quickly turned away when Elias’ shadow crossed her path.

We kept moving slowly down the main path, the sound of our horses’ hooves muffled by the dirt. My stomach growled again, louder this time, and I winced.

Then a man’s voice called out, rough but warm.

“You two there!”

We both stopped, at the same time and then turned.

A middle-aged man stood beside a small cart piled with firewood. His hair was streaked with gray, his sleeves rolled up, his face lined with sun and labor. He studied us for a moment — then his gaze flicked toward the satchel tied behind Elias’s saddle, where the faint scent of blood still lingered.

“I can smell raw stag from here,” he said, lifting an eyebrow. “You’ll need fire for that.”

I looked sideways at him. Elias's jaw had tightened, his expression cooling into that dangerous stillness I’d learned to recognize. His stare locked on the man, cold.

I could practically feel the tension crackling between them. But the man didn't flinch at his glare, he simply held that friendly smile.

With Elias's gaze, I've been with him enough to know what he could do and say.

Before it could spiral into something unfriendly, I quickly leaned forward and spoke, my voice softer but clear. “That’s very kind of you, sir. We could really use some fire — and maybe a place to rest for a while. We’ve been on the road since dawn.”

The man’s gaze shifted to me. For a moment, he seemed to study the exhaustion in my eyes, the dirt on my cloak, the faint tremor in my voice. Then — a smirk tugged at his mouth.

“Desperate travelers, then,” he said lightly. “Alright. You’re lucky I’ve got a hearth big enough for two more.”

He glanced between Elias and me, his eyes narrowing slightly — not in suspicion, but in quiet amusement. “You can follow me. My family’s home isn’t far.”

Elias said nothing. Just inclined his head once, curtly. But I caught the flicker in his gaze — that silent warning he always gave before trusting anyone.

Still, we followed.

The man led the way down a narrow path lined with fences and drying herbs. The smell of woodsmoke thickened the deeper we went. Children’s laughter echoed faintly somewhere nearby, mixed with the clatter of pots.

We rode slowly behind him, our horses’ hooves crunching against the gravel. The village thinned slightly near the edge, and ahead stood a modest but sturdy house surrounded by a wooden log gate. Vines crawled up its walls, and chickens pecked idly in the yard.

The man pushed open the gate with one arm and turned back toward us.

“Welcome to my home,” he said, a trace of pride in his tone. “Name’s Garin.”

Through the open doorway, I could already see movement — a woman wiping her hands on an apron, two boys running past her, a little girl peering shyly from behind a post.

A big family.

Elias dismounted first, landing lightly on his feet, his expression unreadable. I followed, brushing my cloak free of dust.

For a heartbeat, the man — Garin — looked between us again. “You two are… travelers, I take it?”

“Something like that,” I said with a small smile. “We don’t mean to impose. Just a fire and maybe some water would be more than enough.”

He chuckled, shaking his head. “You’ll have more than that tonight, miss. My wife doesn’t let anyone leave hungry.”

My stomach gave another small, traitorous growl, and I felt heat rush to my cheeks.

Garin laughed outright this time. “Aye, sounds like we’re just in time.”

Beside me, I saw Elias glance at me, the corner of his mouth twitching in something that looked like disgust and utter displeasure.