Early in the morning of the second day. Before the dew on the leaves had fallen to the ground and the air was still a little cold, the whole convoy woke up one after another, packed up the camping tools, stuffed the luggage back into the wagon, fed the horses the sun-dried pasture, and prepared for the day's advance.

Not long after the convoy was active, Romeo, who was in the cabin, also woke up. Yesterday she and Lulunaka talked for a long time, until the sky was full of stars. After being urged by Olga, she asked Lulunaka to leave. Lulunaka is a funny girl, cheerful and always able to say something funny or unexpectedly thought-provoking, as she herself says, "It's the wisdom that grandma left behind". In just one night, the two girls became friends and got along quite happily.

With the help of the maid, Romeona did some light washing, and when she left the hut, she saw Lulunaka coming this way, as if she had just returned from outside. Lulunaka was still at her feet with the dehaired dog Ward. Romeona thought the dog as amusing as its master, Lulunaka, and she had never seen the dog bark at strangers, as if all were acquaintances of its little master, and did she not know that it could not protect her own master, but seeing that the dog's eyes were bright and bright, it was evident that it was not a stupid dog—that lazy look, as if he were disdainful of everything.

"Miss Romeona, are you ready to leave?" Lulunaka saw the commotion on the other side of the convoy, and then saw the two maids and Olga both carrying large bags and small bags, and immediately understood what was going on.

Patin approached from the convoy and shouted to the other side not far away, "We should go, if we don't leave, we will probably have to rest at the edge of the forest tonight, and we won't be able to make it to the next town." ”

"Miss, it's time for us to go. Olga said to Romeoona, seeing that Romeoona was a little reluctant, of course he knew what the young ladies were thinking—she didn't want to say goodbye to her new friend she had just met. And he knew that it was more than that—that the poor girl was just trying to stop, not going any further from her homeland, and that this mood would grow stronger with time and distance. Even if the place where she was born and raised was not a happy place for her.

All Olga had to do was to keep her young lady away from the King's Castle, over the mountains, to the other side of the sea, to a place that was too far away to miss her homeland.

Romeo nodded, she understood what Olga meant. No matter how reluctant she was, she still had to leave after all.

Olga walked over to Lulunaka and stuffed her with a handful of silver coins, a bit too much, enough to accommodate the most expensive room in a comfortable inn for days, rather than a cabin in the forest. "Alchemy girl, thank you for your help. Thank you for making Miss's mood much better. ”

Olga saluted Lulunaka and led the maids to the convoy first. He didn't want his young lady to have any resentment towards him, and she could still have this goodbye time.

Romeona walked up to Lulunaka, "I should go. She spoke very succinctly, as if saying one more word would make her feel bad, and at the same time she was afraid that she would say something superfluous, which would make this parting even more difficult.

Lulunaka took an item out of her waist pocket and placed it in Romeona's hand. "Miss Romeona, please take this. ”

Luluna gave Romena a small cloth bag, rough and not beautiful, but clean and strong, and tightly sewn, as tight as a kneaded dough. The thin fabric seemed to contain something that allowed Romeona to smell a fresh scent.

"Some dried flowers and grass seeds, and wild spices from the forest. Lulunaka said, "I know it's not something that will catch your eye on Miss Romeona, but it will be effective in keeping bugs away, and I think it will be useful for your journey." If there is no aroma left, just throw it away. ”

"No, I'll cherish it. Romeona clutched Lulunaka's gift to her, "Thank you, Lulunaka. ”

At this time, Olga's voice came, "The carriage is ready, Miss, it's time to leave." ”

Lulunaka also heard Olga's call, "It's time to say goodbye, Miss Romeona." She patted her hands, presumably trying to get the dust off her hands, but her hands were clean and there was no need to do so. "Can I shake your hand?" she said cautiously, as if she wanted to say a formal goodbye to Romeona.

"Absolutely. Romeona held out her hand and shook it with Lulunaka's hand. She could feel the touch of Romena's hand, a little rough, but warm. It was completely different from her delicate and white hands that had not done heavy work.

The two of them clasped hands together, and were speechless for the time being. Then Romeona said, "Goodbye, Lulunaka." ”

"Goodbye, Miss Romeo. Lulunaka smiled and said goodbye to Romeona, "It's nice to meet a friend like you—I always thought that nobles were all high, and I didn't expect to meet someone as kind as you, Miss Romeona." Hopefully, one day, we will meet again. ”

Romeo smiled as well, squeezing Lulunaka's hand back, "Me too." It would be great if we could meet again. ”

"Have a good journey, Miss Romeona. ”

"I wish you a safe life, Lulunaka. ”

The two let go of their hands. Romeona walked in the direction of the convoy, leaving Lulunaka where she was. When she walked up to Olga, she looked back and could see Lulunaka looking at her. Lulunaka, who noticed Romena's gaze, waved her hand and gestured goodbye to Romeona.

"Let's go, miss. Olga said.

Romeo waved at Lulunaka and turned away, no longer looking at Lunaka. "Let's go. ”

Olga caught in Romeoona's look of loss. Having served Romeona for several years, Olga understands how Romeona feels. She had no friends of the same age, and the only maids around her were women who were more than a decade older than her and couldn't speak, and now that she met a girl as friendly, simple-minded and smiling as Lulunaka, it was not surprising that Romeo Nana was so quick to consider her a friend. But one is a commoner alchemist who lives in the forest, and the other is a noble girl who wants to marry far away from the West, and this friendship comes and goes quickly. As for meeting again, that's probably just an unfulfilled wish.

Olga helped Romeo Ona into the carriage and sat her down securely, "Miss, I am dozens of years older than you, and I have been to many places. I have traveled all over the Yilan Continent, to the north of the Dark Sea, to the Giant Beast Plains in the north, and to the Desert Sea further east of the Yilan Continent...... I've known a lot of people and said goodbye to a lot of people, most of them people who never saw each other again. ”

Romeo Ona did not speak, and listened quietly to Olga.

Olga continued: "Encounters may only be a fleeting thing, and many times they cannot go on forever. But the friendships and memories that come with encounters can last a lifetime. ”

After listening to Olga's words, Luo Miona smiled a little more and looked a lot brighter, "Thank you, Olga. ”

"My pleasure, miss. Olga said. There were some things that he didn't say all at once. When he traveled, he most often met people with bad intentions instead of friends.

Friendship can last forever, and hatred is also unforgettable.

Olga took her horse, got on it, and followed by Romeona's carriage, "You will make more friends in the future, Miss Romeona—you will get more friendship, even love, in that rich and free country." ”

"With a betrothed person who has never met at all, who doesn't know whether he is old or young, beautiful or ugly?"

Romeona's words made Olga a little embarrassed, and she didn't know how to answer, so she could only cough a few times to cover up, "I think at least he must be a good person." ”

"I hope so, too. Romeo said. Then she asked the maid to lower the curtain, and became the unmarried aristocratic girl who had a noble reserve and could not show her head.

The convoy moved slowly, and the sound of horses' hooves, wheels rolling, and the shouts of mercenaries rang out. The voices mingled with the flying dust and swept away the way forward.

Lulunaka watched the convoy leave until all she could see was smoke. "Good luck, Miss Romeona. ”

Ward, who had been looking sluggish, looked up and looked in the direction of the road. Its dark eyes did not actually fall on the road, but on the bushes on the side of the road.

"A little tail. Lulunaka suddenly said this, and I don't know who she was talking to. She went back to the nursery in front of the hut to check for borers in the flowers and plants she had carefully cultivated.

Ward's eyes didn't move, his head didn't move, as if he had been transformed into a sculpture, and he continued to stare at the bush.

The bush shook as if it had come to life—probably because it could not bear to be stared at by the eyes of a dehaired dog that did not move at all—and the tiny branches and leaves broke to the ground, and a man crawled out of it.

It was the teenager of the village, Julius. Obviously, Pattin's warning only frightened him for a moment, and did not really dampen the young man's courage, enthusiasm, and recklessness. If Patin was still here, and to see Julius emerge from the bushes just beside the road, he would have been astonished, and then angry: neither the knights, nor the mercenaries, nor himself seemed to have noticed that the boy was near. If this is an Assassin, then they are grossly derelict and incompetent.

Ward's head fell back on his stomach, no longer looking at Julius. Lulunaka crouched on the edge of the flowers and greeted Julius, who was kneeling on the ground at eye level with her, "Hello." ”

Julius did not reply with the same greeting, he stood up and dusted himself off, "It's strange that I've never seen you in the forest. I have been here many times, and although it is very remote and few people choose this road, many more people or caravans will choose the road closer to the sea to the east...... But I have never seen or heard from anyone passing through the village that there are any cabins in the vicinity. He looked at Lulunaka with a suspicious look, "The village chief said that there are child-eating witches in the forest who use witchcraft to hide their dwellings...... Could it be you? ”

"I'm an alchemist. Lulunaka said, "If I were a witch, I would have thrown you into the pot and cooked and eaten." She looked at Julius, "But even a witch wouldn't like a skinny like you." Go get some wolf ribs and roast them, I think it's better than eating you. ”

Julius touched his stomach and then his head, "It's not meaty, it's not worth it at all." After saying this, a strange sound came from his stomach.

"Wait a minute. Lulunaka said to Julius, and went back to the cabin, where she soon came out. When she came out, she had some jerky and bread wrapped in large leaves, "I can't finish these things, and they're about to spoil, so I'll give them to you." ”

Lulunaka's kindness made Julius not react for a moment, and although he had doubts in his heart, he still took it. He came with him in the middle of the night, secretly followed the convoy for half the night, had nothing to eat, and was really hungry. And this girl who is suspected of being a witch has said that she doesn't eat any meat and has no children.

Maybe he wanted to fatten him up and then slaughter him? Julius shuddered at the thought of this possibility. But the food was already in his hand, and he didn't plan to return it. And he wasn't going to stay here, but he was going to continue to follow the convoy and think if there was any way to please the knight and teach him a trick and a half. Besides, he had forgotten how long it had been since he had eaten meat, and he had already asked about the salty smell of the jerky, which caused the worms in his stomach to continue to scream.

Julius, who had such a small calculation, took the food that Luluna handed him in his arms. "Thank you. He knew how to be polite, and he knew how to thank others—and he was bold enough to take food from someone he suspected of being a witch.

"You're from the village on the edge of the forest, aren't you, why are you following the convoy?" asked Lulunaka. Before Julius could reply, Lulunaka continued, "I see, you're following the young lady. This is not a story to be told, a beautiful girl is to be worthy of a valiant knight, not a commoner child of a village. ”

Julius blushed, not because he was shy, but because he was annoyed, "I came with me to learn martial arts!" he shouted.

"Martial arts?" Lulunaka looked interested in hearing something unfamiliar. "Why? to defend against wild beasts, or to destroy robbers, or to be a soldier under the Crescent Moon, to fight for a share of the conqueror's wealth?"

Julius shook his head, "These goals are too small, too narrow. He said this with a look of concern, and raised his head as if it would make him great. "I will hunt wild beasts, and make the dragons of the valleys tremble because of me, and I will destroy the robbers, and let all the bards sing my deeds, and I will be the general who commands thousands of armies, and will make the enemy tremble, and all the people will admire...... I'm going to be a hero!"

A child who is still a minor, malnourished and emaciated to the point of being skinny and bones, in front of another child, talks about dreams that are too far away to reach...... Or rather, dream talk. Julius often said this in the village, and was ridiculed and ridiculed by his peers or the villagers.

Now, Lulunaka, who was in front of him, didn't show mockery, let alone make fun of him for his ignorance. She just looked at Julius with her head up.

After saying this, Julius remembered that he was not here to idle around, "I should go, or it will be difficult to keep up with the convoy." He turned and burrowed back into the jungle, shouting thanks to Lulunaka before leaving, and vanished completely.

"What a rude person. Lulunaka still had a smile on her face, and she didn't look surprised. Ward lay on his stomach, his nose puffing, as if to agree with his master.

Lulunaka crouched on the edge of the nursery again, with a small shovel in her hand, turning over the soil and fertilizing the plants. She had been busy in front of the hut, returning to it from time to time to find something, and she was busy until noon.

Romeona left, Julius left, and four more came. Four mercenaries clad in inferior leather armor with short axes, swords, and maces. They had a malicious look on their faces, and their dirty eyes wandered over Lulunaka. "Little girl, do you have anything good here?" said the mercenary led by the leader with an ugly smile on his face, grinding his teeth and making an ugly sound.

Lulunaka stood up, still holding a plucked plant in her hand. Her smile was still as bright as a flower.

"Masters, what can I do for you? Do you want to treat herbs, or do you want to eat and drink to fill your stomach...... Or are you kind enough to send me fertilizer?"

Lulunaka's words stunned the mercenaries, who didn't understand why Lulunaka mentioned such a thing as fertilizer. And Lulunaka's reaction was not panicked at all, as if she had no idea what was going to happen next. They were just stunned for a moment, and then laughed. "I'm sorry, but we just left everything that could be used as fertilizer on the road. The mercenaries slowly approached Lulunaka as if they were hunting a bunny.

"It's okay, there's a lot of stuff on you that can be used as fertilizer, you just don't know it. ”

Lulunaka laughed.