A peaceful night quietly passed in the small village of Rosti.
The next morning, inside her simple wooden house, Cashew slowly sat up on her familiar bed. The soft light of dawn slipped through the small window, illuminating the quiet room.
She stepped down from the bed and scooped some water from a wooden bucket beside it to wash her face.
After that, Cashew walked over to the old mirror hanging on the wall. Looking at her reflection, she smiled brightly before slipping into her familiar pink dress.
Like every morning, she brought out flour, sugar, and a few eggs, placing them on the wooden table as she prepared to bake a fresh batch of bread.
But the moment she put on her brown apron, an unpleasant smell immediately rose from it. The apron was still covered in dried flour and egg from yesterday.
Cashew frowned slightly.
She took it off and tossed it into the basket of dirty laundry, planning to change into another one. But when she looked inside the basket, she could only sigh.
There were no clean ones left.
In fact, the laundry basket was already overflowing.
Cashew stood there staring at it for a moment before finally deciding to change out of her pink dress. She put on a simple white outfit instead, fastening a red corset around her waist.
Picking up the basket of dirty clothes, she pushed the door open and stepped outside.
The village of Rosti was as peaceful as ever.
Villagers were busy with their daily tasks. Some were tending to their fields, while others repaired fences in front of their homes. In the distance, a group of children laughed as they ran past, heading toward the mountains to play.
Just as Cashew stepped out through the gate, she saw Heartman walking toward her.
She happily waved her hand.
"Good morning, Mr. Heartman! Where are you going?"
Heartman was carefully supporting his wife as they walked. Agnes was pregnant, so she moved slowly and cautiously.
"Oh, good morning, Cashew," he replied with a warm smile.
"I'm taking Agnes to the mayor's house for a checkup."
Cashew walked closer.
"Good morning, Mrs. Agnes."
Agnes smiled gently.
"Good morning, Cashew. And where are you heading?"
Cashew lifted the basket slightly.
"I'm going to the stream to wash these clothes."
"Be careful on your way."
The couple waved goodbye before continuing down the path.
Cashew then headed toward the small stream at the edge of the village.
As she approached the water, she suddenly noticed a familiar figure sitting by the bank.
It was Fenna, a village girl and one of Cashew's friends.
Fenna sat by the stream with a bored expression, absentmindedly plucking blades of grass and tossing them into the water.
Cashew jogged over.
"Fenna! What are you doing sitting here?"
Fenna startled and quickly turned around. She stood up and brushed the dust off her dress.
She wore a red dress over a simple white outfit.
"Oh, hi Cashew. You're here to wash clothes too?"
Cashew nodded, then noticed the beautiful orange flower in Fenna's hand.
"Fenna, what's that flower for?"
Fenna didn't answer right away. Instead, she glanced around as if searching for someone.
"What's going on?" Cashew asked, looking around as well.
Suddenly, Fenna's face lit up.
"There he is!"
She quickly ran toward the road leading out of the village.
From a distance, a soldier was running toward her. He wore heavy iron armor, with a red chainmail plate across his chest.
The moment he arrived, he pulled Fenna into a joyful embrace.
"Daniel! I've been waiting forever!"
Fenna scolded him lightly, though she hugged him even tighter.
Daniel removed one of his metal gauntlets and gently patted her head.
"I'm sorry. I had to sneak out of the barracks without getting caught."
Fenna turned back and waved at Cashew.
"See you later, Cashew! Daniel and I are going for a walk!"
Cashew watched them leave before calling out.
"Fenna! Have you seen Tess?"
Fenna looked slightly awkward. She glanced at Daniel for a moment before answering.
"I'm not sure. But she dressed up really nicely this morning and even asked me to help braid her hair. Maybe she went to meet someone."
With that, Fenna and Daniel walked away hand in hand.
Cashew was left alone by the stream.
She walked to the water's edge, set down her basket, and began washing the clothes.
Inside the basket was an old straw hat. Cashew picked it up and stared at it for a moment.
"I think… this used to belong to Mom."
She placed it gently on her head to shield herself from the bright sunlight reflecting off the water.
After washing for a while, Cashew suddenly stopped.
She turned her head toward a distant hill, where two gravestones stood side by side — the resting place of her parents.
Cashew remained silent for a long moment before murmuring softly.
"That's right… ever since then… I've had to eat alone."
She placed the freshly washed shirt back into the basket before picking up a blue dress decorated with delicate patterns.
"This dress… Mom made it for me… right before she left."
Cashew looked at it quietly before carefully placing it back in the basket.
Meanwhile, at Mayor Heguel's house.
He sat on a wooden rocking chair on the front porch, enjoying the peaceful morning while eating a piece of bread.
"Delicious," he muttered.
"Good thing I asked Cashew to bring this yesterday."
Just then, Heartman and Agnes arrived.
"Good morning, Mayor."
Heguel turned his head.
"Oh, Heartman. What brings you here?"
Heartman helped his wife step onto the porch.
"I brought her here for a pregnancy checkup."
"I see. Go ahead and have a seat."
Heguel went inside and returned with a comfortable chair covered in soft fabric.
Agnes sat down and offered her wrist for him to check her pulse.
Back at the stream, Cashew had almost finished washing her basket of clothes. Only a few items remained, along with a small pink handkerchief.
She dipped the handkerchief into the water to wash it.
But accidentally, it slipped from her fingers.
The current carried it downstream until it caught on a clump of grass near the bank.
Cashew stood up to retrieve it.
But at that moment, she noticed a figure approaching from the distance.
"Who is that…? Tess?"
Cashew squinted to get a better look.
The figure gradually became clearer.
A large man was walking toward the stream.
When Cashew finally recognized him, her entire body turned cold.
Almond.
The very man Mrs. Johanna had warned her to stay away from.
In his hand was a massive iron mace stained with blood.
Most of his armor was gone, revealing countless scars and fresh wounds across his body.
A broken arrow was still embedded in his arm.
Cashew panicked.
She quickly looked around before darting into a nearby patch of tall grass to hide.
In her haste, the straw hat slipped from her head and caught on the grass.
Cashew crouched low in the bushes, trembling.
She tried her best to remain completely silent, praying that Almond wouldn't notice her.
But then she suddenly realized something.
Her basket of clothes was still sitting in plain sight by the stream.
And the handkerchief was still floating in the water.
Cashew was about to crawl out and retrieve them.
But Almond had already arrived.
He dropped his heavy mace onto the ground and slowly sat down by the stream.
Cashew was so terrified that she nearly burst into tears. She could only press her hand tightly over her mouth.
Almond seemed completely unaware of her presence.
He leaned forward, washing the blood from his body in the stream before letting out a long sigh.
"How annoying… those pieces of trash."
Hearing that, Cashew grew even more frightened, believing he was talking about the innocent people he had killed.
But then Almond suddenly turned his head.
His eyes landed on the basket sitting by the stream.
Then on the pink handkerchief caught in the grass.
And finally, on the straw hat hanging from the tall blades of grass.
Almond abruptly stood up.
He grabbed his mace and pointed it directly toward the bushes where Cashew was hiding.
"Who's hiding there?"
His voice was low and cold.
"Come out now, or I'll beat your ass down."