The Adventure of the Light-Bearer

CH. 12 - A Full Heart

Levin walked out holding the sleeping woman on his back. It seemed like the medicine given to him was so powerful, that he was still soundly asleep. Levin asked some people around him about an inn. Someone then told him, he pointed towards a building that was an inn as well as a tavern. The building was located not far from the home of the convert, because the village was a small village.

Levin walked towards the inn, his body was very heavy because his energy was so drained that day. It was getting dark, Levin entered the inn which sounded very noisy even outside, so when he entered he saw many people inside.

"Oh look who's coming? A little boy with his girlfriend asleep!" shouted someone who looked drunk inside the tavern. Everyone looked at Levin. A person who was sitting then stood staggering and pointed towards Levin. The person's face was extremely disheveled, his hat was slanted and his bushy mustache was wet from the drink.

"Afa do you makfut bofoh? He is a wizard! He's all a phony with a hoblin!" the drunken man shouted while falling to the floor. Everyone there laughed. Someone opened the door, he was the bartender. He then approached Levin.

"I'm sorry for their behavior, sir. I'm the owner of this shop, can I help you?" ask the bartender. Levin then smiled.

"I was looking for an inn to rest. I'll pay two gold pieces for last night" Levin said. The bartender was surprised, and he pointed to a door in the room.

"A lodge? Hmmm, alright, go to that door, then go straight ahead down the slightly dark hallway and then turn to the white door on the left. It's been a long time since the last time someone came here to stay overnight, so the room was a little dirty" the bartender said.

"All right, thank you." Levin then walked towards the door, some people there observed Levin's movements, some of them looked at the woman with a ignorant face. Levin realized all that and walked faster.

Levin then opened the door to a dark hallway, the room was only lit by a slight spot of candlelight there. After that he stepped forward, he moved his hands up to get rid of the cobwebs that swarmed the roof of the room. He then turned to the left, the sound of drunken people began to fade, after which he opened the door to his left and went in there.

The room did not match Levin's expectations, which was a dirty and dark restroom. The room turned out to be bigger and cleaner than he thought, the room also had three beds, maybe it was an exclusive room for people who paid more or maybe for special guests.

Levin put the woman in bed, she was still asleep. Levin lit the candles in the room with a match that had been provided on the outskirts of the room, making the room brighter than the hallway and the tavern was dark terrible. Levin then locked the entrance of the room and jumped towards his bed in the middle.

"A.. Gosh darn. I didn't expect it to be this exhausting, but it was only a day" Levin said as he yawned. He closed his eyes and fell asleep.

At dawn before dawn in the room, the woman who had fallen asleep awoke, her face fresh and energy restored. He looked to the left right in confusion, he looked at the dimly lit room, he then saw Levin who was soundly asleep.

"O.. This guy! Wasn't he the one who saved me in that cage? And.. Who's treating my wounds?" ask the woman to herself in the heart. He then tried to move his injured leg, but his leg still could not be used for walking.

"Dam. Why did he save me in that cage? What does he really want? I think he's hiding a crime, I'm sure of it." said the woman, forcing herself to stand up, her still-injured leg unable to hold her heavy body, saying, so he fell to the floor and made a loud enough sound that made Levin wake up. He woke up surprised, he rubbed his still blurry eyes and saw the woman lying on the floor.

"God! What are you doing there?" levin shouted as he stood closer to the woman.

"I'm sleeping here! Of course I fell stupid!" the woman yelled back at Levin, he was holding her thigh in pain.

"You shouldn't move. Rest first. You still need time to fully recover" Levin said as he lifted the woman back into her bed.

"I won't let you go until you've fully recovered. You can't leave under these circumstances, can you? But if I have to, I think I can take you to your house" Levin said. The woman then fell silent, agreeing with Levin's words.

"Sad... O.. Someone like me has a home. Family only I don't have" he said, bowing his head. Her eyes were teary, she recalled the memories of being with her father and mother as a child. His throat then felt cramped, his eyes blurred as tears that tried to plunge flowed from his eyes. Then he tried to talk.

"I have been poor since I was born. I was born into a simple family, even though we and our family were able to live happily. Not only was I poor, I was also living in a harsh environment." the woman paused her words, she scrunched her face withstanding the pain in her chest. Levin then sat in his middle bed, trying to listen to the story of the woman who was in grief.

"When I was four years old, and my little brother was a baby, a group of red-clad bandits plundered my town in Dreemor, New Vamor kingdom. They slaughtered my mother and father, the bandits killed him right in front of me, they slit his throat and forced me to watch. It was the most horrible thing of my life and I will never forget it. Then my sister, unfortunately I don't know what they did to her, probably kept it in our wooden house and set it on fire. After that I was kidnapped and taken to their big boat, at that time they enslaved me and my body was injured by them."

"I was sold in the slave market of bandits. The bandits in the other clans bought me and did the same as the bandits before, they hardened me, and then sold me back to the other clans. I wasn't alone there, I found some people who fared just like me, most of them women. But none of the women had a heart, some of them tried to get close to me and just use me for their benefit. They are nothing but impostors, their brains and morals destroyed by slavery. I used to be invited by people I thought were my friends to make a hole in the ship and run away. But we got caught, the woman***** was then accused me with negligence, thus making the bandits believe and punish me. They tortured me by drowning, forced to eat carcasses, and pelted by hot stones on my back causing scars until now" said the woman, trying to hold back her tears.

"One day I managed to escape, I actually escaped several times from their ship, but finally they were able to find me again, I was then tortured afterwards. Until that time, I saw bandits in red uniforms, just like I saw when I was a kid. At that time I tried to run away and follow them, but the bandits on the ship saw me and chased me. I was trying to hide in the cave, and that's when you came, but your clothes were different and I didn't shoot you with the arrows I stole on the ship. But when I left, the burly bandits saw me and managed to catch me, they were furious with me who was unceasingly trying to escape, and trying to kill me in that cage." the woman said, she then covered her face with her hands and cried. Levin walked up to him, put his hand on the woman's head and stroked her. The woman then looked at him in surprise, she was curious about Levin's motive for doing all this to him.

"In that case, I think I'll help you find a place to stay. I can't leave you alone in the middle of nowhere like this, can I?" levin said while smiling at him. The woman scrunched her eyes.

"Ke.. Why are you doing all this? What do you really want from me?" asked the woman while wiping her tears.

"Why am I doing all this? There are many reasons for someone to do evil and harm others, but is there a need for a reason for us to do good?" levin said, he stood up and stretched his body.

"Rest, no one will dare to hurt you now, I will take care of you until you recover. I'll be out for a while, you sleep and relax here" Levin said with a smile on his face. He walked to the door, and the woman took Levin's hand to stop him.

"Tu.. Hold still. Si... What's yourname?" ask the woman in embarrassment.

"I am Levin, Levin Awaru. What's yourname?" ask Levin.

"I'm Clea Violeta, pa.. Just call Clea." said the woman as she turned her eyes away.

"Ta.. But don't think that we're friends now, you idiot! You're still a baggy boy I don't know." said the woman as she pretended to be embarrassed. Levin then nodded.

"Well, a chatty female" he said as he stroked Clea's head, and went out.

end of Chapter :)