Incompatible Interspecies Wives chapter 174

174 – The Passage of Time(6)

Sien and I, just as in the past, quickly began to get close again.

Having returned to our original point, there was nothing left for us but each other’s presence.

I was in a state of losing everything.

Sien had surrendered her title of saint, throwing away all the power and honor that followed it.

She was the one who had severed all her ties and power that came from her position.

I understood the immense depth of emotion that lay behind that decision.

Now, I didn’t have to ignore that feeling.

After our embrace on the festival day, we began retracing our appearances from the past.

We often walked hand in hand, and often leaned on each other.

We spent time looking out at the plains, and proceeded to eat together.

Step by step, we slowly approached each other.

No one forced the pace.

We filled the gap with our own strides.

In this way, dozens of days have passed.

When I was not managing the territory with Gail, I was with Sien.

I talked with her, played light-hearted pranks…and sometimes we went to see Adam.

The emotions that were mixed up and disordered seemed to be settling down one by one.

It was over a month since I said goodbye to Ner and Arvin.

There were no more letters from Ner.

Just letters from her were over fifty.

Each of them was thick and heavy.

Each one seemed emotionally difficult to check, so I put them all in the drawer.

I knew about her unfortunate childhood.

I have not forgotten her plea that only I was her ally.

The time I shared with Ner, and the memories of happiness we had together were still in my heart.

So before regretting reading the letters, I just put it all away.

I suppressed my emotions before pitying her.

One didn’t rule out the thought that her not sending any letters might be a good sign.

She might be trying to forget me now.

While I spat out a lot of words without meaning, tearing Ner and Arvin away, one thing was true.

Maybe we couldn’t mix with each other.

Perhaps it was better to find a partner within our own kind than to continue this interspecies marriage.

Regardless, we have parted ways, each remaining pure.

There would be no obstacles in searching for a new future.

It might be best to think of this as a relationship that happened due to war and to move on.

One day, the messengers of Blackwood came to our place under Gibson’s orders.

They came with the intent to support our newly formed household if we needed something.

That help could include connections with other nobles and even abstract things like medical knowledge.

I didn’t need anything at the moment and had the Blackwood’s messengers stay the night before sending them back.

I was consistently distancing myself from Blackwood.

I struggled to erase traces of Neru.

At least Arwin was able to bury Neru’s memories easily.

Things were relatively calm on Arwin’s side.

There were neither letters nor visits from Celebrian’s family.

I had heard nothing of her since we said our goodbyes.

Ultimately, it’s my assumption that time had led to a correct judgement.

There had been no benefits for her to be entangled with Arwin and myself, short-lived races.

In the end, Arwin gained freedom.

Wouldn’t she gradually overcome the breakup while traveling through the world?

Perhaps she is happily living her life by embarking on the journey she had always wanted, rather than staying by my side.

…Maybe that is the path we all must walk.

…

…

…

– Thump! Thump!

The members of Red Flame now laid down their swords and picked up their tools.

They began to clear the endless forest in front of them.

Felling and toppling trees, they were laying the groundwork for farming.

It was an operation that had to be completed before the next spring.

“It’s falling!”

I watched the tree fall at Baran’s shout.

Looking back at where we came from, many trees had already been knocked down.

Even the task of uprooting the deep roots of the fallen trees was underway.

The felled trees were becoming the foundation for our village development.

As we were able to mold the land as needed, we expanded the size of our village.

For members who wanted houses, we built houses. We were re-establishing the base facilities of the village.

Merchants also gradually visited our territory in Stockfin, and tribes who heard the news started to gather in our village.

We were continuously progressing.

“Let’s eat!”

Thus during the ongoing work, the women from the village brought out food for us.

Bread and meat. And some light alcohol.

As this was not a life-or-death task, and as we felt ourselves progressing together, laughter filled the room.

When I saw the villagers continuing to interact, a smile formed on my face.

This was the legacy that Adam left for us.

“Belle!”

Xian was naturally by my side.

She regained her smile from the past and laughed more often.

The expression I liked was now so easily displayed on her face.

If I collected my thoughts, I found myself smiling in response to her expression.

“Come on, Belle. Sit down and rest a bit. You’re sweating a lot.”

As she wiped my sweat with a dry cloth, she said.

Nodding, I seated myself nearby.

It seemed like the fact that Xian used to be the Holy Maiden had gradually spread throughout the village.

And everyone knew that she and I were childhood friends.

We had become an attraction in the village.

There were more than a few people anticipating how our relationship would unfold.

Although Xian seemed to perceive those gazes, she just came closer to me as if they were not obstacles.

“Drink water.”

She held the water skin to my mouth and tilted it for me to drink.

I refused her assistance, saying.

“I can do it myself.”

“Ugh…!”

Xian made a playful face.

I laughed quietly at her reaction, and she responded by holding the water skin for me with a smile.

I simply opened my mouth to accept the water she offered.

Next, she handed me some bread she had brought and said,

“I made this, Belle.”

“You did?”

“Yeah. I made it with help from the ladies… hehehe. Try it.”

I accepted Xian’s bread with a hint of surprise.

Did I ever think that I would eat something she made?

She was the one who had been chosen as the Holy Maiden, but she remained simple.

Seeing her like that reminded me of old memories.

I put the bread that Xian had handed me into my mouth in preparation for the afternoon’s work.

-Crunch…

“…?”

Suddenly, I looked around.

“…How is it?”

Xian, unaware of my gaze, asked.

“…”

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I wondered if bread was originally this hard.

The surrounding agents were all quietly chewing on soft bread.

“…So, how is it, Bell?”

“…That…”

Taking my slight hesitation as a sign, Cien quickly blinked, trying to snatch away the bread.

“This…it tastes bad. It…it must be weird because it’s the first time. Give it here, Bell, do…don’t eat it.”

Reacting reflexively to her action, I pushed her hand away.

“…No, I was just surprised.”

“…Surprised?”

Enjoying Cien’s baffled reaction, I answered,

“Because it was delicious.”

And then, however stiffly, I continued eating, tearing off pieces of bread.

Looking at me exerting unnecessary force while eating, Cien seemed to realize belatedly that the bread was too hard. She tried to stop me, saying,

“It’s…it’s hard… No, this won’t do. I’m so, so sorry, Bell. Please stop eating and wait. I’ll get another-“

“-No.”

I cut her off firmly, continuing my meal.

“I like it this way.”

Cien gave in and fell silent in response to my stubbornness. Continuing to eat the dry and chewy bread, the rustling sound of her was heard next to me.

As tears welled up in Cien’s eyes,

I asked, staring at her in bewilderment,

“…Crying?”

Was there something she was upset about? She felt so guilty, for what? Watching her like this, Cien managed to smile and answered me,

“…because I’m happy.”

“…”

“I never imagined…that such a life would be given to me. More than any imaginations on the battlefield…I’m much happier.”

“…”

“It’s all thanks to you, Bell. Thank you…”

Tears rolled down her cheeks, while saying this fervently.

There was genuine gratitude in her voice.

Silently, a smile spread across my face.

Thanks to Cien, my smiles were returning…slowly.

Gently, I wiped away her tears.

Cien let out a soft laugh at my touch.

“Oops.”

I blushed, realizing belatedly that I had dirtied Cien’s face with my grubby hands.

The smut-streaked face, a mark from my dirty hands, was amusing that I ended up laughing for a while.

“Why are you laughing, Bell?”

Even when Cien asked me at my laughing,

“You don’t have to know.”

I never told her the reason until the very end.

Everyday life with her continued.