TNGDH 40
The carriage ran without rest.
The barren land of the North had more areas untouched by human hands than there were that were touched.
The road was barely wide enough for the carriage to pass. If it turned to the side a little, the wheels would get caught in the wild vines or bushes.
That was why the carriage moved rather slowly. And the ground was so uneven that if the wheel hit a rock, my butt literally lifted off from the seat.
ââŠâŠHup.â
Damn it, motion sickness.
I never felt motion sickness as Bae Soohyun. Is it because Iâm just not suited for riding horses? How is it that Iâm always feeling sick whenever I ride one?
I leaned against the wall with a pale face, then rolled my eyes towards the main sitting across from me.
Even when the ceiling and floor was shaking, Kyle was steadfastly processing documents. It was as if he was sitting in a separate space than me.
As if I was sitting on top of a moving tortoise while he was on the flat ground.
ââŠâŠDo you not get motion sickness?â
I couldnât contain my curiosity and asked. After going through a few more documents, he raised his head and looked at me.
âNot at all. Is it very bad?â
ââŠâŠI feel like Iâm dying.â
âYou should sleep.â
ââŠâŠ.â
Of course, I wanted to sleep. I would rather faint and ask them to wake me up when we arrive at the palace. But I couldnât do that. I didnât have enough time left for âSummonâ.
It would take three days to get from here to the palace, but I only had two hours each day for âSummonâ. Not even half a day would pass before I end up turning into a hamster. Iâve been surviving until now by eating the store-bought cookies.
I rolled my eyes and glared at the system window next to me. 3 hours and 30 minutes before âSummonâ was canceled.
âNoâŠâŠ. itâs alright.â
âThereâs a village close by. Iâll wake you up when we arrive, so take a nap for now.â
âUghhhhâŠâŠ.â
I wanted to be a bit more stubborn and stay up, but I didnât have the stamina to do so.
I crossed my arms above the hamster house and leaned against them. I called the system quietly. Hey, come out.
[_:(ÂŽàœ`ăâ ):_ ]
ââŠâŠ.â
âŠâŠYou also get motion sickness?
Is that even possible?
I stared at the emote for a moment with a puzzled expression on my face, then closed my eyes as the carriage started shaking once more.
âHeyâŠâŠ systemâŠâŠ. sound out an alarm for me after two hours. PleaseâŠâŠ.â
At this rate, Iâll really die of motion sickness before I could even do anything.
After sending out a nodding emote, a 2 hour timer appeared mid-air. As the time ticked away, I took out the [Emergency Toffee Nut Candy] out of my inventory and put it in my mouth.
I didnât know if anything would happen, but I wanted a temporary measure. I didnât want Kyle breaking into the hamster house while I was asleep.
The hard and sweet candy melted in my mouth. I felt the sweetness of caramel syrup melting into syrup and went to sleep.
In my fading consciousness, I felt the wind blowing through my hair.
Hopefully, when I wake up, Iâll be at the villageâŠâŠ
*
Beep beep beep beepâ.
A familiar sound rang in my head.
As I continued to ignore the constant beeping noise, it began to change into different variations. After an intense vibration, I even heard an obnoxious voice saying âgood morningâ.
âLet me sleep for 10 more minutesâŠâŠ. no, 5 minutesâŠâŠ.â
I frowned and turned my head the opposite direction of where the noise was coming from. I found a more comfortable position to sleep in. Yes. If I could sleep just a bit more like thisâŠâŠ.
Suddenly, I felt a chill run down my spine.
I raised my head in shock. When I opened my eyes and looked straight ahead, I saw Kyle just a few centimeters away from my face.
âWhaâŠâŠ wha, wha- what is it?â
My words came out like a broken radio.
I reflexively moved away and held onto the hamster house tighter. Kyle watched me quietly and opened his mouth to speak.
âYou seemed to sleep uncomfortably, so I was going to put it down.â
His eyes landed on the hamster house I was holding.
Wrong. Whatâs uncomfortable isnât the hamster house but the carriage.
âIâm quite alright. More importantlyâŠâŠ we stopped?â
The carriage was no longer shaking.
I looked out the window. People were out gathering themselves into groups of twos and threes.
âWe thought it would be best to rest for a bit, so we stopped momentarily. There were quite a few servants besides you who got motion sickness.â
âItâs more incredible that you donât get motion sicknessâŠâŠ.â
ââŠâŠIf youâve woken up, letâs go out.â
I sighed in relief and nodded. As I slowly pushed myself off while hugging onto the hamster house, Kyle reached out his hand again.
âYou cannot!â
ââŠâŠ.â
Before he could say anything, I quickly got off the carriage.
Since we got further away from the castle, I felt an unfamiliar spring breeze blowing. Of course, when I looked around, it was still covered in snow.
âMore importantlyâŠâŠ.â
The strange feeling I felt earlier seemed to be from the effect of the toffee nut candy.
Even if there was a ghost behind my back, I wouldnât have felt this way. Aside from being surprised, it felt rather unpleasant. No wonder they gave 5 candies for 0.5 Miracle PointsâŠâŠ the remaining 4 shall remain unused forever.
âI guess Iâll have to start making a move.â
It was impossible to keep eating cookies and holding onto the hamster house.
At this rate, my Miracle Points would run out dry and I would turn into a hamster inside the carriage.
Then, all the trust I gained until now would shatter to piecesâŠâŠ
âThey would definitely think itâs magic.â
And would think I lied to them.
From Kyleâs point of view, itâs natural that he would think that way. A person turned into a hamster. What reason would there be besides magic? Actually, I donât know if even magic could even transform people into hamsters.
On top of that, he met me as both Cashew and Shu. He could think that I was trying to use him. He wouldnât believe me if I say that thatâs not the case. After all, the evidence would all be right in front of his eyes.
I inspected my surroundings. I must find a way out of here and transform back into a hamster.
âThe village is pretty close from here, right?â
âThatâs right. It was half destroyed after being attacked by demonic beasts in the past, but it has been recovering well lately.â
âIt mustâve been due to His Highness Kyleâs efforts.â
âYes. Heâs truly an amazing person.â
I perked my ears as I listened to their conversation.
A village. And one thatâs been attacked by a demonic beast at that?
Just then, a brilliant idea popped into my mind. I walked up to them to join their conversation.
âItâs good to hear that the village recovered. I havenât heard any news about it after losing all my family members.â
âFamily? Is your hometown that village?â
âYes. Itâs been a while since Iâve left.â
âWhen you said you lost your familyâŠâŠ.â
âItâs a long story. An unlucky accident. âŠâŠNo one would be there to welcome me, but I still want to visit my old home. I want to greet my parents and walk around to relieve my memories.â
âThenâŠâŠ.â
âIf you tell His Highness, he would definitely help you!â
âDefinitely! You know how His Highness is!â
The eyes of the servants sparkled.
I glanced over to Kyle. He was talking with a knight and was too preoccupied to look over me.
The servants stuffed snacks into my mouth, stuffed them into my pockets, and stacked them on top of the hamster house. Holding them all, I got back into the carriage. In that time, Kyle mustâve finished speaking with the knight and got back onto the carriage too.
âWhat are all those?â
âSnacks. Would you like some?â
He sat across from me and only laughed.
Heâs been like this once in a while. He would just look at me and laugh with no reason. And when I would turn towards him, our eyes would meet right away.
ââŠâŠMakes me feel a little embarrassed.â
I avoided eye contact and opened the package filled with biscuits. I offered a piece to Kyle.
Just when I thought Kyle would accept the biscuit, he leaned over and bit it. Use your hands will you? Grab it with your hands.
âDoes it taste better to eat it from my hands?â
âVery.â
ââŠEat wellâ
The carriage began to move again. The horses mustâve rested well, because the carriage ran fast despite the rough road.
Thus, I felt like dying once again.
Watching me grow pale, Kyle offered me his laps. Otherwise, I wouldnât be able to tell if Iâm still on Earth or the afterlife once we reach the village.
I wondered how much further we had to go.
When I started to think the ride would never end, the carriage began to slow down its pace.
âAhhhhhhhâŠâŠ.â
I got down the carriage while making a zombie-like groan. In front of me was a village.
âItâs a lot larger than I thought.â
I heard it was half destroyed due to the attack, but besides a few collapsed buildings, it looked not much different than the Blake estate. It was a little smaller, but it was still quite lively.
After confirming that all the servants and knights were present, they took a 10 minute break and said they will start moving again. It seemed the palace was still quite a long way off, so they wanted to hurry.
Upon hearing that, I raised my hand. Everyoneâs gaze turned towards me.
âI will stay here for a bit.â
âWhat do you mean?â
âThis is my hometown. Since Iâm here, I want to look around.â
âI cannot allow that for whatever reasons.â
âPlease donât worry. Iâll follow afterâŠâŠ.â
âHe said itâs his hometown, Your Highness!â
One maid shouted out loud.
âThatâs right. His family all passed away and somehow ended up in the Blake estate. Look how scrawny he is! It mustâve been tough to travel all the way to the estate.?â
âHe doesnât talk about himself, and yet he brought up about his hometown. It mustâve been on his mind a lot.â
Everyone began to speak up for me. Some said I was too pitiful. Few argued that I could catch up with a single horse and a map.
As long as you werenât a combatant, it seemed that stopping by your hometown was somewhat acceptable.
Kyle looked reluctant but eventually nodded with a sigh.
âShu.â
He held out a heavy-looking bag in front of me. I struggled to accept it with the hamster house in my hands, so he put it on top of the cage.
âWith this amount of money, you could catch the best carriage in this village. Donât hesitate to use it all.â
ââŠâŠThank you.â
âWill youâŠâŠ really be alright alone?â
It was a voice filled with concern. I kept my mouth closed for a moment, then mumbled awkwardly while avoiding his gaze.
âIâm not a child. Since itâs been a while since Iâve been here, I want to see everyone. My family.â
âAlright.â
His held my cheek and the nape of my neck with his hand. The leather tickled my skin, and I slowly walked away as if I was feeling a little regretful.
I unconsciously opened my mouth. I didnât want to make anymore promises, but it felt like I had to at the moment.
âI will follow after you soon.â
So, please go first and wait for me.
Kyle smiled. I turned my head around slightly and our eyes met again. It was as if he had never taken his eyes off me.
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