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Local Village Girl's Experiences with Otherworlders
Originally written from November 20, 2025 to November 21, 2025, 1 day



Chapter 1 – Arrival
With a small decisive hop, Minnie skipped over a log and walked far down the forest aisle. Flanking her, long lines of trees stood about with heavy, thick heads of leaf. 
In the distance, a clouded-up mountain peeked above the trees. 
The closer she got, the higher it loomed.
Small-voiced, almost bird-like, she drew her hands over her face and said, “Hello?” A window in her fingers opened, exposing her right eye. 
The darkness whistled through her lull.
In the sky, the sun slipped below the mountain, snuffed. Each stride she made stretched the rocky giant wider across her vision. Her figure crossed the cliffside green.
As night approached, her eyes flitted from left to right. The rising moon threw the leaf-covered objects around her into relief.
She gasped, and the air in her throat stopped. 
For a moment, everything stared back at her.
But after squeezing her eyes shut, she placed a hand on her chest, her breathing slowly recovering. After fishing out her pendant from her pocket, she squeezed it in her hand. 
Once she calmed down, she turned around and headed home. 
As she was walking, a movement on the ground drew her gaze.
Dust was slowly moving. Beside it, a hole abruptly formed. From the edges of the road, mud rose, broke apart, and drained into it. 
From the muck, a figure materialized with a puff of dust, and it stared back at her. 
It was a person.
“Who are you?” she said, with a quiver.
The person tilted his head to the side, eyes glazed over. “‘You’? I am… Wait, who am I?” He snapped his head behind him then back to her. “Who are you?!”
“I’m… I’m Minnie!”
He stopped and looked down, his focus receding. “I can’t… remember.”
“It’s okay. But are you okay? Do you want to come back with me? Oh, I live in Sen Village! It’s a nice place to stay. If you want, I can ask Mom if you can stay with us. It’s okay!”
“What? Sorry, I can’t think straight right now. Let me… let me sit down.” He cautiously settled down on the ground. 
He looked around for a moment, his eyes flickering. “You were saying?”
Their eyes stayed on each other for a moment.
“Where’s the way out?” He stood up, swiveling his head, stepping over a puddle of mud. He grimaced. “Can you give me something to clean with? I need, like, a towel or something. Plus, what are you wearing? You look like a fantasy peasant.”
“I, I, I…”
“‘I, I, I.’ How about you eye yourself a new pair of clothes?”
She looked about to cry.
His brows furrowed. Pity and regret flashed through his eyes. He switched up with a mischievous grin. “Okay, I’m kidding.” He put an arm around her shoulder and walked her forward. “Now, buddy, show me the way. I remember now. I’m supposed to save the world! And I’m proud you’re in it! Good job, laddie.”
Bristling, she slowly came to a stop, staring at the ground with furrowed brows. 
His arm slipping off her shoulder, he took a while striding along by himself before he angled his head to her. “Yes? What’s the prob?”
She mumbled what she was trying to say several times before enunciating. “I’m a girl.”
His brows raised. “Guess you’re right. Good job young lady!” He beckoned her along. “Let’s go!”
“That’s… not the way.” Her finger lamely pointed in a direction a little off to the left.
He put a hand on his chin. “Okay then! But aren’t we following the path?”
“Y-yeah.”
“Then let’s go!” He threw his arms up. 
“I’m saving the world!” he shouted.
She stared in disbelief but followed along.
The longer they travelled, the more gloomy his expression became.
She glanced at him. “Uh, is there anything…?”
“Oh, I’m just now realizing that I died.”
“Died?”
“Yeah, I died and came here. Funny, right? It never hits you until you realize, ‘Yeah, you just died.’ It’s crazy. Everything that I know is gone now. I’m all that’s left of everything I knew. And now, I’m gonna save the world, but it’s not mine. It’s just a world full of people that I don’t care about and don’t understand. I mean, Earth was bad, but it was my bad. At least that I can explain or just be shocked about. But what am I doing here? I guess I get to be a hero, and that sounds great, but what’s the point? Even if I do save the world, what does it matter?”
She compressed her lips.
Once they reached her village, he looked around him with dull eyes and a polite smile, bowing his head. “Morning.” He tipped his invisible hat. “I’m Michael. If I can do anything to help, please give me a chance.” He met Minnie’s eyes briefly with a sorry downward smile.
While Minnie stood on the side, her expression vacant, an older man stepped forward. “Where are you from?”
“Far, far away. I don’t think I can go back.”
“What are you in these lands for then?”
“I’m here because…” he said. Minnie nodded when their eyes met.
“Because there’s nothing left for me back there,” he continued, chuckling with a gasp.
Ten days later, Minnie noticed him trying to knit something, carrying a basket full of clothes. “Do you need help?”
“Yes please. I gotta up my needlework. Should help me get more levels overall so I can dump all my points on strength.”
“Just yesterday you were trying plowing.”
“Yeah, it was very slow. The proficiency level barely moved. I respect farmers! The idea of that much manual work for so little gain is crazy.”
She remained expressionless. “So are you going to stick with knitting this time?”
“Who knows! I just need something that gets me up quick. If not, I’ll be wasting my life on level 5, which is the average here I’ve noticed.”
She paused, setting down the basket. “What are you going to do next?”
“I’ll get as high as possible then move on to the next XP grinder. Gotta stay on top of the game, but early game has been hard! So.. yeah…”
“You’re leaving?”
“Not necessarily, but yes, eventually—Ow!” He pricked himself by accident.
“The city…”
“Yep. Should be lots. You think there are other people like me? You know, travelers.”
“I don’t know what you mean. There are travelers everywhere. But if you mean coming out of the mud, no. This is my first time. I’ve seen magic from afar, but only as bright colorful explosions in the distance during festivities.”
“Oh okay. I’ll just ask around then… once I’m in the city.” He started humming with a cheeky smile.
Minnie looked away.
Eying her, he pretended to clear his throat. “Why don’t you come with me?”
She ejected a sigh. “Why?”
“I don’t know. I guess you could level up as well and get stronger. This way, we’re basically unstoppable and we can live freely.”
“I don’t get it.”
“I mean, don’t you want a life like that? Peace?”
“Traveling isn’t peaceful.”
“It can be.”
“You would have to give me a thousand gold coins if you wanted me to come with you.”
“Okay then! I’ll come back for you then?”
“I was exaggerating. There’s no way anyone can get that amount so easily.”
“It’s possible! Anything is! I mean, I’m here! I’m a miracle. I’m still alive! Isn’t that crazy?”
“I don’t know. ‘If.’”
“‘When’!” he corrected.
“If something happens to you, don’t blame me.”
There was a serious, undaunted look in his eyes. “I won’t disappear.”
“Whatever.”
He stopped knitting, smiling with a distant look.
“What?”
“Nothing.” He met her gaze.
“What?” 
“I have to make you believe.”
Chapter 2 – Departure
Minnie grew up in a small southern village. The nearest market town was northeast from there, a two-hour walk away. And the closest city was even farther at two days.
She spent most of her time helping around the farm, weeding, herding sheep, and spinning wool. Once a week, she made the trek to town to sell eggs and buy salt.
When she met Michael, she was an hour east of home, supposed to be tending to a shrine that sat in the shadow of the mountain. But she was late and it was already dark.
She lied to Michael about her being new to travelers. She had seen eight of them since she was born. Michael was only the ninth to appear near the shrine. But this was her first time meeting one since substituting for the role of shrine keeper while Donya was sick.
“So you’re leaving?” she said. He was throwing rocks at a boulder. 
“Status.” His eyes grew vacant for a moment. Then he pumped his fists. “Nice! A little XP!”
He turned to her. “You asked me multiple times already. Yes, I am going.”
“I don’t get it.”
“You don’t have to. I don’t get why you don’t want to come either. But that’s alright. You don’t know the gifts I’ve been given, so it makes sense. I guess I was being presumptious when I asked you. So yes, I’ll have to give you concrete evidence.”
“What if?” Her lips shifted.
“Look, the numbers here at the very least prove that I won’t be killed by one of you. So if I meet any goblins along the way, hopefully, they should be around your level. So trust me. I’ve prepared myself. I’m not going in blind.”
Her face lit up as a translucent blue-glowing tablet appeared in her vision. It had numbers and text, with Michael’s full name.
“I don’t understand.”
“Oh. Wait.” 
Next to the first, another tablet appeared, with her name.
“Compare the numbers between you and me. I’ve got thrice here on STR and twice here on AGI. Basically, that means if I go out there, I have to hope I’m not fighting anything many times stronger than you. You get me?”
“Okay?”
“Sorry. It’s a lot, I get it. But I’ve devoted so much into this. I’m prepared. I know it sounds crazy, but just remember my face for next time we meet. Don’t forget me.”
“It’s not that hard to remember.”
“That’s not what I mean. Just keep me in your prayers or something. I’m serious. You have a deity you pray to? Ask him for help for me. Is that okay?”
“I don’t know. I go to the shrine every day if that’s what you mean. So if you want prayers, you can go there yourself.”
“Wait, I can?”
“Yeah. She will bless you according to your conscience.”
“Conscience? What does that mean?”
“She knows your heart.”
“Who? Who knows?”
“Marelia, Goddess of Worlds.”
“Oh, I know her. She and I talked about what gifts I should get. Nice lady.”
Her eyes widened imperceptibly.
“So I’ll just go where we were before?” he continued. “Where’s that again?”
She took a breath. “I can go with you.”
He clapped once, interlaced his fingers, and stretched them overhead. “Okay!”
Upon reaching the shrine, Michael went on his knees. Minnie stood behind him, hands folded in front of her. “Goddess Madam,” he said, “thank you for your gifts. If you don’t mind, please bless us on this day as I head out to the city and Minnie goes on with her day. Amen.”
She raised her brows with a slight shake of her head.
A light fell on him.
Her jaw dropped.
Right as Michael stood back up, she reset her expression. “What was that?”
“What? You don’t know what your own goddess’ blessing looks like?”
“That doesn’t… Yeah, sorry.”
She held back a reaction, touching over her brow.
Once they returned to the village, he shook her hand. “Goodbye, Minnie. It was lovely knowing you, and it’ll be fun knowing you more once I’ve gotten over this first hurdle. The learning curve can be a… well… a not-so-awesome thing sometimes. But that’s what makes it fun.”
He set off.
As he get farther, he kept waving goodbye.
She frowned, her eyes blank. Her hand stiffly waved back.
“Michael…” she muttered, out of his earshot.
She recalled the tablet with his name.
It had a line that caught her eye.
[Quest: Slay the World Eater.]
“Are you sure?
“That you’re not going to disappear?”
A tear tickled her face.
As the first light touched her village three years after Michael’s departure, so came another rod of light streaking across the sky. It struck where the shine was.
“Minnie,” said her mother, standing over her. “You’re up.”
She nodded and stepped out the door, rubbing her face and yawning. She swiveled her head toward the rising sun.
When she reached the shrine, a woman stood there, running her fingers along a wooden post. “Who are you?” said the woman.
Minnie smiled weakly. “I’m Minnie.”
“Where’s the village?”
“An hour from here. Follow me.”
“I’m going to the city. Where is it?”
“2 days from the village.”
“Let’s go then.” The traveler started away.
“I can’t go with you. I can bring you to town, but not the city.”
“Let’s go to town then.”
“You need food.”
“It’s fine. I just need a little. You got bread?”
“Yes.”
As soon as they reached town, the woman waved goodbye. “See ya!” She had only barraged her with questions about the world.
Minnie sighed. This was her fifth traveler as shrine keeper.
Right as she turned to leave, a shout carried across the road behind her: “Minnie! Hey! How’s it going!”
Minnie froze, turned away, standing there until the clanking and stamping came close. 
She tilted her head awkwardly. “Yes?”
The sunlight flaring off his shiny pauldrons, Michael grinned. “I was wondering what you were doing nowadays! Hey, I’m back!”
“Haha,” she said humorlessly. “How are you…”
“Minnie. I wouldn’t miss our reunion for anything. Look!” He turned around and gestured toward the light-armored men, women, and horses behind him. “Some people I met along the way.”
She rubbed her sweaty brow. “Wow.”
“Oh, why don’t we find a place to sit? Wanna go to the city? There’s a nice place there we can stay.”
“Can we go back first? I need to tell them if I’m going.”
“Sure!”
When they returned to the village, Minnie smiled weakly, standing in front of the families of her village. Behind her stood Michael and all his companions and horses.
“Is this a raid?” one of the villagers asked.
“I don’t think so,” said another villager. “Minnie’s with them.”
Minnie waved. Her fellow villager waved back.
“I was just going to say that I might be leaving, maybe permanently.”
Michael widened his eyes and sought hers. He looked about to speak, but she continued, “So if possible, can someone replace my role as shrine keeper? And talk to my parents about this. I told them everything.” One of Michael’s companions handed Michael a bag with a thousand gold coins inside. He gave it to Minnie. 
Minnie glanced at him and looked down on the bag, then back at the families. 
Drawing Michael’s curious gaze, she brought it to one of the village elders. “This is… compensation.”
Oohs and aahs spread among the families.
The village elders came close and took turns shaking his hand. 
“Please take care of her for us.” 
“She has done more than enough.” 
“Treat her well.” 
“Give her what we couldn’t.”
Minnie averted her gaze.
Michael clapped his hands up in the air. “Okay, everyone, we’re heading back!” His band of companions trickled off.
The families came over to Minnie, bidding her farewell. “Thank you Minnie for everything.”
She nodded and waved, smiling her best for them one last time.
“Goodbye everyone.”
Chapter 3 – Onboarding
In the middle of a vast wilderness, a band of thirty people inched along a ragged dirt road winding through woodland and sodden, jungly hills.
Michael stopped, slowly mouthing his next words as he looked up. 
He turned to Minnie. “Minnie, wait. I was just proving I could earn it. The gold was for you, not the village. Keep it to boost your stats, invest, or ease the families’ burdens for a few months. A stronger you protects your village. I need you self-sufficient, not camp-following, so take this dimensional bag. Join us to grind XP and loot until you’re invincible, but don’t feel obligated.”
She kept walking, eyes on the road, but now holding the bag he gave her with a tired look.
“By the way,” he said, “we’re not going to face The World Ender yet, so don’t worry.”
She stared at him with flat unamusement.
He paused at her reaction. “Oh we’re going to get to him soon! Don’t worry.”
She closed her mouth tight, eyes back on the road.
He made a polite, awkward smile.
“Please… Speak freely!”
She shut her eyes for a moment, then turned to him. 
“What are you saying?” she said. “I meant of course we’re not going to face him yet. You seriously think you can just run at him with ten, twenty, thirty people and get done with it?”
His voice shrunk. “Oh, I mean, I just wanted to clarify.”
She slowly sighed, turning away and walking off.
After she gained some distance, he scuttled along behind her.
The longer they travelled, the more stressed she looked.
She abruptly slowed to a stop. “Michael, seriously, thank you.”
“What? For what?”
“For being different.”
“What do you mean?”
“Just whatever. Thanks for the gold.”
“It’s fine. No need to thank me. We can get it back easily anyway. The point is that you’re here. You’re my main priority right now. So please, speak freely. If you don’t want anymore, it’s fine. You don’t owe me anything.”
She looked off to the side as they continued walking.
Her eyes gradually flickered. “By the way…
“It’s World Eater, not Ender.”
He laughed warmly.
For the duration of their journey, Michael’s companions gave her and Michael space.
Once they arrived, they went straight to an eatery.
Minnie watched from the edge of the long table in her simple clothes. Among the members, the women scrutinized her scuffed shoes and fraying hem, chewing and sipping demurely. The men feasted, blabbered, and guffawed. Michael sat with his knees together between the women and the men, keeping his motions inward. His eyes were distant, glimmering with lines of white script on blue. His expression smoldered with certainty, the look of a man keeping himself among the ruck. After the blue lights in his eyes went out, he turned his gaze toward the ceiling corner but snagged on Minnie’s face. “Minnie, are you okay? I’m sorry for not attending to you. Did you finish your food? How about water? Did you drink?”
Minnie nodded softly.
“This is the best time to explain to you where we’re going and what’s happening from here on out.” He stood up and sat on an empty table near the corner. He beckoned her, and she sat opposite him. He glanced at the table and went back to get his untouched second water refill. “Here.” He set down his cup. “Drink lots of water, okay?”
Minnie drank again. “Thank you.” She waited.
“Right. Okay? So you know how I told you I was going to get a thousand gold?”
“I told you that.”
“But I agreed. So, as for how I got that, it was very simple. I joined a mercenary group, and we fought monsters and bandits alike. After a while, I got strong enough to go out on my own. And I started taking on dungeons by myself. That’s when I started actually making cash. But it took a while to get used to. I travelled more than I actually did anything. And food, water, sleep, heat, and cold prevented me from doing much. So I stayed around a few towns and cities and worked slowly from there. Most of the time, there was nothing to do since most of the quests were too far away for me or had progressed to such a level that I would have to be much, much more powerful. So I loitered among merchants most of the time for food and water and around people who got me easy cash. I did end up buying a place. But that was after pleasing Lord Sargoth. It took a while for me to get a band for myself. But even now, as you can see, they’re expensive to keep and train. So if you’re wondering why we’re not that close, it’s because it’s strictly professional.”
“What’s next?”
“We’re heading to take on a contested dungeon, and I mean contested as in we’re going to fight other groups seeking to control it. Conquering a dungeon can mean a stream of money because you have all the monsters in it for yourself. And if it’s close to town, even better.”
“How about me?”
“Well, you’re not going to fight yet of course. But on the way, I want you to try doing one thing that gets your XP up. Hold a shield up and try to tank as many hits as possible with it. It’ll increase your Blocking, and that means level increases as well. You’re currently stuck on five, but that’s alright. This will break you out.”
“Wait, I can’t fight. How can I block them?”
“This is only for training, so I’ll do the hitting. Just block. Don’t worry. This benefits you much, much more than me, since the XP gain on my One-Handed is very low unless it’s against a tough enemy. But your Blocking will skyrocket as long as I have the high-mana mages take turns healing you constantly.”
“That sounds painful. Can I do something else?”
“Sure! How about you hit us instead? I just realized that’s so much better. If you upgrade your One-Handed or Two-Handed, it’s just the same, but without the pain. I just thought blocking would be more your style.”
“That sounds… gruesome.”
“We’re armored and we have a shield. Don’t worry. We’ll just let you use something that isn’t sharp. How about a bludgeoning mace?”
“Can’t it be something like knitting? Like you did.”
“Oh, that didn’t work. Combat skills for some reason go up much, much faster. But I do know people with high proficiency levels on a non-combat skill. It’s just that it takes very expensive training with masters.
“But you know what would be perfect? I almost forgot. Here.” He handed her a tome. “Learn what’s on this. It’ll make you a healer. But I honestly would hate for you just to be a healer since that role’s useless on its own. But since you prefer non-violent methods, this is it. You do need an injured target though, so we’ll just have to find opportunities for you to squeeze yourself in and get a level. This will be slower, but very much faster than a completely non-combat skill. And fortunately, leveling healing will level you and your stats overall, so you can switch to something else as soon as you get the chance.”
She reached for the tome.
“Wait.” He placed his hand on the tome. “Are you sure about this? We all have to fight, but it doesn’t have to be this way. You can live somewhere safe, and I can make sure you and your village are protected. But eventually, you will have to be strong enough to face things on your own, things far beyond you.”
She opened the tone, and immediately, her body glowed. And a corona of light fell upon her, surging through her body.
“Good choice,” he said. “And here’s another one. What you got was for others. But this one is for yourself.”
He gave her a second tome.
She opened it, and the same process happened.
“Now. Ready to join us?”
She nodded firmly.
The second tome contained a self-cast magic barrier. 
He moved the blue tablet with her name over to her vision.
[LVL 5 Human Villager "Minnie": Mana: 110 / Health: 140 / Energy: 160 | STR: 13 / AGI: 11 / CON: 14 / INT: 10 / WIS: 12 / CHA: 10 / LUC: 11 | Unused Points: 0 | Spells: Healing, Personal Barrier | Skills: Farmwork (LVL 5) | Quests: None]
Chapter 4 – Work
In the aftermath of the dungeon capture, smoke rose from inside the rocky entrance. Lines of trees covered the land.
Inside a camp some distance from the dungeon, Minnie raised both hands and healed the injured brought to her one by one. Beside her, fifteen empty medium mana potions were strewn all over the ground. Only several full ones remained.
Michael wiped the sweat off his neck and forehead as he entered the tent. “You’re still new to this, so it’s going to be slower. But please bear with it. We pre-healed them, so they’re out of critical condition. You’re good.”
After she healed everyone and they streamed out of the tent, he got her to high-five him.
“Your Healing’s at level 4! That’s good!”
She lay down, panting for a moment before settling into a calm breathing rhythm.
“Is it supposed to be this hard?”
“Not always. But yes. Do remember though that you’re new to this. What you did in that village I can’t do. But you’re here now. Things take time, but I promise it’ll be worth it.”
“Haha,” she tried. “You think?”
“I do.”
She closed her eyes and rested on her side, while he sat down and looked out the tent entrance at the world outside in silence. 
“I don’t get it,” she muttered, opening her eyes, her back to him. “Why fight? Why care about all this and that?”
He swiveled his head to the side, eyes on the ground. “Because the world is a fight for life. We’re all trying to survive and live a life. We have to fight, or else we’ll never truly find our own, become ourselves.”
She sighed through her nose. “I know that.” She propped herself up on one elbow. “I just wish it didn’t have to be this way. It’s confusing to me.” She gave her nose a rub. “Always has been.” 
He looked back in front of him and drew his knees up.
They went on silent for a while before he got on his feet and started stretching with his arms.
“Minnie. Everything we’re doing now is a fight for life. If you forget for a moment the importance of every single thing you do, you lose sight of the power of the moment. There is a time for everything, and soon, you’ll get your reward.”
“I get it. I do. But that doesn’t stop me from wanting otherwise.”
“You’re right. You wanting something else is your fight. Hold onto that.”
One of Michael’s companions came up, eying Minnie. “They’re coming.”
“Oh.” He rushed out of the tent and called everyone to leave.
“What’s happening?” she said as soon as Michael returned to the tent.
“Army coming right up. They’re gonna take it.”
“A whole army? Why?”
“Well, it happens!” He grabbed a cloth, headed to the entrance, and turned around. “Come on, let’s go.”
Minnie rose and pulled herself along.
As soon as the band finished breaking camp an hour later, they left.
“Where are they?” Minnie said. “I thought they were coming.”
“I have eyes in good places,” Michael said.
“Wouldn’t an army surround us?”
“No? We’re just 34, including you. Plus, it’s easy to know when they’re coming. They take time to move along the road. It’d be a waste of time investing to stop us when we’re hands-off already, even if they formed a small detachment just to hunt us. They want to secure this place and set up a whole thing here, which is why they brought an army in the first place. Time’s on their side.
“But if you want to fight them, it’d be through fighting everything other than them as a unified unit themselves.”
“What else can we do that doesn’t come close to fighting an army?”
“Everything’s protected. And I mean that if you want to get something, you’ll have to fight for it. No such thing as a free lunch.
“For now, we’ve plateaued, so we’re hand to mouth. So you’ll have to trust me on this. But we’ll be heading back to the city. We already got what we wanted anyway.”
“What? I thought you were going to capture it.”
“No, no. That was just what we would have wanted, but just like we have eyes, they do too. For now, let’s just be happy with the loot we got from the dungeon. This will be enough for upkeep.”
“Why not just go for something where the army won’t go?”
“Well, this dungeon was it, we thought. We’ll just have to look for something else we can compensate ourselves with.”
“Wait? So what happened to being blessed? What happened to The World Eater?”
“We gotta be patient. I do want to fight an army, but I’m more concerned with being alive and growing, slowly but surely.”
“When?”
“I don’t know. But I do know is that as long as we keep our heads straight, we’ll find ourselves somewhere brighter soon enough.”
“What’s next?”
“The next thing. The city. We’re selling our loot. The sooner you forget that things will ever get better, the faster and the more they will.”
“What can I do? What am I here for? Is there a point to all this fighting?”
“I told you. To get stronger. But you have to forget… Take this next step.” He stamped his foot on the ground.
“I want to do something. I want to help at least. I want to understand what you guys are doing so I can tell you how I see it.”
“With time. For now, please continue to trust me. Focus your efforts on getting your stats up. This will make it easier for you to be more involved since we don’t have to tiptoe with you. Once you’ve become a full-fledged member, I’ll show you the wider world we’re in, and you’ll show me how you see it. So I apologize if the others don’t really treat you as an equal. They sacrificed a lot to get here. And I brought you here on the grounds that I knew you personally. Since you came because of me, they expect that you’re someone like me or you have similarly high potential.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah… 
“Thank you for being here, Minnie.”
“Haha,” she said humorlessly.
“But you don’t have to do this. You can wait in the village until I’ve already grown much, much stronger.”
“You think I can just go back,” she muttered. “I can’t. Not anymore.”
“Sorry. I should’ve waited.”
“No, no. You didn’t know. But still… haha…”
His eyes glistened with tears. “I’m sorry, Minnie. I just wanted you to be free from me and everyone else.”
“Stop.”
He held back his sobs, and the two were silent the whole way.
Once they arrived, he ate with a distant smiling expression. She looked down on her food with a blank expression and ignored the glances from the other members in her direction.
He awkwardly sat opposite her. “I know you’re not my project, my reason. So I will not apologize anymore because that makes you that. You’re a person, so please do what you need to do.”
“I don’t know.” She sighed. “But… if it was anybody else, I know things would be much, much worse. So at the very least, thank you. But now, I’m stuck in a mire. What do you want me to do?”
“I don’t know.”
“Well, you’ll have to know.”
“I mean, I don’t know anything that wouldn’t be wrong.”
“Just do it. Just level me. I’ll keep doing it. The healing and everything. I’m done fighting this.”
“Are you sure?”
“Well, what else is there for me to do? You put me here.”
He winced.
“I’ll find something.”
“Will it cost a lot?”
“Well… a little.”
“Then no. Just let me do what I’ve been doing.”
“Are you sure—”
“Yes I’m sure.”
“Okay.”
“I just have to get strong, right?”
“Yeah.”
“I’ll go then.”
“How about your parents?”
“I’d rather do this a hundred times over than go back, after what I did.”
Chapter 5
As soon as Michael’s band encountered a bandit camp straddling the main roadway, Michael grinned.