Elqueeness [EN]: Chapter 44

44.

“Excuse me, but you need money to buy water.”

“So?”

“We’re poor and don’t have any money. We can fetch water, but we’ll definitely be chased away if we go like this.”

“Tsk, just say Count Setnio sent you.”

“But what if they don’t believe us?”

“Hmph, this kid’s quite bold. Here, take this.”

The soldier rummaged through his pockets and tossed me something shiny. It was a copper coin with the empire’s emblem and the number 1 on each side.

“…One shilling?”

I stared at the soldier in disbelief. In this empire, copper is used to make the lowest value coins. These coins are called shillings, and five hundred shillings are barely worth one silver. In other words, one shilling is practically worthless. I didn’t know the exact price of water, but it’s definitely not something you can buy with this amount.

“What? I gave you money. No more complaints, right?”

“But with this…”

“So, you don’t want to go?”

“Ah, no! I’ll go! I’ll be right back! Let’s go, Rye!”

Seeing the soldier’s menacing look, I quickly dragged Isana away. Even as he was being pulled along, Isana looked bewildered. He cautiously asked once we were a safe distance from the soldiers.

“El, why did you do that? You didn’t have to take the money, right?”

“I heard water is quite expensive. They might get suspicious if we go too easily.”

“Ah, I see.”

Nodding, Isana looked at me with admiration. Feeling a bit embarrassed, I immediately changed the subject.

“Now that we’re here, should we check out the stream? To see what’s really going on.”

“See what’s going on?”

“I only took a quick look last time, so I didn’t get a good look.”

A little later, we arrived at the stream, where a line of people had already formed to fetch water. Instead of joining the line, I first checked the sign with the prices. The words written there were enough to shock me.

Drinking water per container – 20 shillings

Utility water per container – 5 shillings

(Minimum purchase of 10 containers for utility water)

‘Wow, the price is different depending on the use?’ I thought.

They even set a minimum purchase amount for utility water, probably worried that people would lie about the intended use to buy it cheaper. Isana was also surprised and couldn’t say anything.

Armed soldiers stood in front of the sign, collecting money from the people. As I watched them closely, I noticed something strange. Occasionally, some people were drawing water without paying. Some even brought laundry and used the stream freely.

But the soldiers, who should have been stopping them, acted as if they didn’t see them. The people who came to buy water also seemed to ignore it.

“They’re servants of noble families,” Isana muttered bitterly.

I questioned his confident tone. “How do you know that?”

“You can tell by their clothes. There are set outfits depending on your job and status. Their clothes are what servants employed by noble families wear.”

‘Is it like students wearing school uniforms?’ I wondered.

Come to think of it, I heard that people used to distinguish jobs and status by their clothes back on Earth. It must have been easier to distinguish, especially since there weren’t as many different occupations as there are today.

After explaining, Isana bit his lip.

“They take money from the poor but let the wealthy use it for free… What’s been going on that I don’t know about?”

“It’s bitter, but that’s reality. That’s how the powerful are. The world always revolves around the strong.”

“But that’s not the world my father wanted and was trying to create. What should I do, El? I… I can’t forgive myself. If I hadn’t lived such a pathetic life back then…”

I lightly patted his trembling shoulder and said, “Isn’t it enough that you realized it now? You can fix it from now on.”

“But…”

“Think of it positively. You might not have ever known the truth if this hadn’t happened. Buckle up. It means you have that much more to do.”

At my words, Isana nodded with a determined look. I was glad he seemed to have cheered up a bit.

Just then, a loud noise echoed from the stream. Turning around, I saw the soldiers arguing with someone. It was a woman in shabby clothes with a baby strapped to her back. She was desperately clinging to the soldiers.

“Please, sir, I beg you. My husband is dead, and I’m raising this child alone. How can a woman living alone come up with twenty shillings in one day? Please, have mercy and let us have some water.”

“I’ve told you, it’s no use! Bring money if you want water! I can’t give it to you until then!”

It seemed the soldiers were chasing away the woman who came to get water because she couldn’t pay.

“Please, sir! Just one sip is enough. We haven’t had a single drop of water in three days. Please, just for this child…”

The woman grabbed the soldier’s pants with her thin hands. The soldier frowned as if he had stepped in something unpleasant and pushed her away roughly.

“Ugh!”

“Damn it! What’s this beggar doing, causing trouble? Get lost before I send you and your brat to the afterlife! There’s no merciful water to wet your dirty mouth!”

My fists clenched involuntarily. I felt like my eyes were burning with the anger that had taken over my mind.

“E, El?”

“Wait here for a moment, Isana.”

I left the bewildered Isana behind and strode forward.

The fallen woman coughed repeatedly from the impact of being kicked by the soldier. Even so, she was worried about the child on her back and quickly hugged it.

The child, too weak to cry, was breathing faintly. It looked like it was about to stop breathing at any moment, and suddenly, it tilted its head back and its eyes rolled back. As the child’s condition worsened, the woman began to grab the man’s pants again.

“Please, sir! Please, have mercy just once! Please, for the sake of this poor child! Please, sir!”

“Oh, you still?”

The soldier raised his foot again. Expecting to die this time, the woman closed her eyes tightly, hugging the child.

At that moment, I turned my gaze to the stream. The calm stream rose like a giant wall at my will. People nearby began to scream at the sudden phenomenon.

“Gasp! Wh, what is that?”

“Aaaah! Everyone, run!”

The wave quickly swept over the people. The place where the line had been waiting was now a shallow pool. Some of them were swept into the stream, but since the water wasn’t deep, they wouldn’t drown.

Taking advantage of the chaos, I rescued the woman and child and quickly moved to where Isana was waiting.

Isana, who had watched the whole situation from afar, had a dumbfounded expression on his face.

“El, just now…”

“Ah— the scenery is nice. You shouldn’t live with sin. Right?” I asked with a bright smile.

At those words, Isana, who had been blank, burst out laughing.

“Hahaha! That was really cool. You’re the best, El.”

“Hehe, really?”

I looked at the woman and child in my arms. She looked terrified by the sudden events. Seeing her wary, holding the child tightly, I spoke cautiously.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?”

“Wh, who are you? Why are you…”

“Don’t be afraid. I’m just trying to help.”

Just then, I saw soldiers rushing over from the other side. The person in charge had arrived after hearing the news.

“What the hell is going on here! Why is it like this here?”

“Ch, Chief! Suddenly, the water…”

“Victor and Wayne fell into the water!”

“You idiots! What are you doing? Find the ones swept away by the water first! Hurry!”

The soldiers who received the order scattered in all directions. Even in the midst of all this, the people who had kept their wits about them were busy filling their water containers, taking advantage of the weakened surveillance.

I exchanged a brief glance with Isana and then said to the woman.

“Let’s get out of here for now. To a place where people can’t see us.”

* * *

The place we moved to was a shabby vacant lot behind the village. Even then, the woman was still huddled up, holding the child tightly.

I awkwardly exchanged glances with Isana. It was good that we had rescued her, but the woman was too wary, and I didn’t even know how to start talking to her. Well, she had almost been mistreated by the soldiers, and now she had been brought here by strangers, so it was natural for her to be scared.

‘Ah, right. I should give her water first…’ I thought.

Looking around, I found Isana holding a wooden container. It was the very wooden container that Count Setnio’s soldier had thrown to us to fetch water. I filled it with water and held it out to the woman.

“Here you go.”

“…Yes?”

“You said you needed water.”

The woman’s eyes widened as she looked at the water in the container I held out.

“Re, really? You’re giving this to me…?”

“Yes, I’ll give you more if you need it, so don’t hesitate to drink.”

“Th, thank you! Thank you, sir!”

Only then did the woman come forward and start gulping down the water in the container.

“Drink slowly. You can get indigestion if you drink water too fast.”

But the woman nodded and continued to drink the water quickly. I wondered how thirsty she must have been to be like this.

After quenching her thirst to some extent, the woman began to pour water into the mouth of the child she was holding. But the child didn’t seem to have as much energy as its mother. Most of the water that went into its mouth couldn’t be swallowed and flowed back out. As the child couldn’t drink the water, the woman became anxious and began to sob.

“Rye, drink this. It’s water. Our Rye, you said you wanted to drink water, right? It’s water, water! Look, there’s so much. Please… baby? Please, just one sip… sob, baby…”

I bent down in front of the woman and examined the child.

It must have been only about three years old. Usually, children of this age should have chubby cheeks, but the child, named Rye, was just skin and bones. In contrast, only its stomach was abnormally bloated. It was clear that it had ascites [fluid accumulation in the abdomen], as is common in children in extreme starvation.

I clicked my tongue inwardly and placed my hand on the child’s bulging belly. Then, the crying woman tilted her head with a puzzled expression. I smiled softly to reassure her.

“Wait a moment. It’ll be okay.”

At the same time as I finished speaking, I cast healing magic. Then, a white mist rose from my hand and covered the child’s entire body. The woman looked surprised, but fortunately, she didn’t drop the child or scream.

The mist disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. But the scene before and after was clearly different. The abdomen, which had been swollen as if it would burst, had shrunk to the size of a normal child. The woman’s face trembled as she confirmed it.

“H, how…?”

“Mommy…”

Then, the child’s eyes narrowed as if it had regained consciousness. The woman seemed almost lost when she heard the child calling her. She hugged the child tightly and began to shed tears.

“Rye! Oh, baby! Oh my god! My baby, Rye! Are you awake? Do you recognize your mom?”

“Mommy, I want water…”

“Yes, yes! Mommy will give you water right now! God, thank you! Thank you!”

‘Hmm, is this a case of having my credit stolen by God…’ I thought.

I smiled inwardly, remembering something Trowel had grumbled about once. Come to think of it, where is he having fun? It’s been quite a while since I’ve seen him. Since I haven’t been back to the Spirit Realm since I was summoned, there’s a good chance he doesn’t even know I’m here.