We return to the village, and I rush to tell mister Dongu and miss Lan about the two people we saw. Mister Dongu looks serious.
Who are those two? What are they bringing here? I get worried thinking something might change again.
“…I think it’s safe to say that the kingdom of Fairytrof realized Alice is not the miko. If the priest you saw was wearing the same outfit as the priests that took Alice, that means he came from Fairytrof.”
Miss Lan says the kingdom of Fairytrof knows that my sister is not the real miko.
“And then, they probably found out about you and are looking for you. Still, I didn’t expect for them to come looking this deep into the forest. Under normal circumstances, no one would expect a girl that was seven years old at the time to go into the forest by herself.”
“You say so, but you also entered the forest to look for Lerunda…”
“…I did so because I spoke with people who saw her enter the forest, but it was still a gamble. That led me to find out that Lerunda was safe and to stay with her, so I would go as far as to praise my decision to go into the forest alone.”
Responds miss Lan, who then continues.
“Still, if their goal is to secure the miko, it’s strange that they only sent two people into the forest. They should surely send more for something this important. Even if they were to send people on a secret mission to secure the miko, they would put together a party with at least five or six people…”
Miss Lan thinks it’s strange that only two people were sent to the forest to look for the miko.
That word, secure, gives me a feeling I can’t describe. I’m happy living here in this village, so I’m scared of the idea of people coming here to take me to that country of humans. I like my life here, and I don’t want to go back.
“Don’t look so scared Lerunda. If you really don’t want to leave, I highly doubt they will ever find this village. We will also do our best to make sure you can stay here.”
“Yes…”
“First of all, we should try to understand why exactly this priest and swordsman are here in the forest. We are worried about them coming to take Lerunda, but they might actually have different intentions.”
“…Yes.”
“I want miss Freinet to help us with this. They can’t see her, so maybe we can get some insight on what they are thinking if she listens to their conversations.”
“Yes, I’ll do that.”
Miss Lan says our number one priority should be to know what they’re thinking. We assume they’re here to take me away, but we really don’t know why they’re here in the forest.
“Also… They probably won’t find this village, but we should be concerned about the possibility that they find the other village.”
“That’s true…”
There’s a chance that they might get to Phyto’s village, even if they can’t find ours.
“Lerunda, can you consciously wish for them to not get close to them or their village?”
“Wish?”
“Yes. We do not know if that will work, but I believe that will bring some sort of effect even if you just keep that thought somewhere within your heart.”
I do as miss Lan says. Not everything I wish for comes true, so I don’t know what will happen, but I hope it has at least some effect.
I also ask Freinet to keep an eye on the other two, and she agrees.
When I tell Gaius about them, he says he won’t let them take me away. I’m happy that he feels that way.
It’s decided that we shouldn’t leave the village until Freinet comes back, unless we really have to. They probably won’t find the village, but they might find people that leave it.
I spend some time in the village, not doing much, until Freinet comes back that very same day. What she says surprises me.
“I think that priest can see me.”
She reports.
—Girl and report
(The girl that is probably the miko talks to the adults about the two people she saw, and the spirit that went out to gather information says something unexpected.)
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Woah.