[Episode 1]
The boundaries of Ragopa Village were low and gentle. Rahi never wondered what lay beyond those gentle ridges. Though she had never left this small village in her entire life, it felt more like a sense of peace than a feeling of confinement.
The void left by her parents was filled with the warmth shared by the villagers. Some shook their heads in pity, while others, praising her for her resilience, pressed potatoes into her hands. Rather than responding to every single gaze, Rahi quietly bowed her head.
Ragopa Village. Nestled beside the great river to the east, this small village held a gentle warmth throughout all four seasons. Though material wealth was scarce, the people knew how to live gratefully, content simply with the winding river flowing by their side.
Today, too, Rahi energetically smoothed out her clothes, picked the fruit she had tended with care, and headed toward the village. Selling the fruit that filled her basket would provide enough food for the day. The scent of the fruit, ripened red by the sun, tickled her nose. Rahi quickened her pace, imagining the warm soup that would grace the dinner table.
"Hey, Rahi! Don't pretend you didn't hear me—I said stand still!"
Alec's voice cut through the air, sharp as a knife carried by the river breeze. Rahi pretended not to hear him, adjusted her grip on the basket, and quickened her pace. She knew full well that answering him would only lead to trouble.
True to his upbringing as the son of a noble knight's family, Alec had a booming voice and the stubbornness of a bull. The habit he'd had since childhood—pulling Rahi's hair or putting bugs in her basket to torment her—had remained, albeit in a subtly different form, even now that he'd grown into a burly young man.
"You really…! You're just going to walk away when I call you?"
Before she knew it, Alec had run up and blocked her path. Panting heavily, he stomped his feet as if showing off his well-polished leather boots—looking every bit the sulky teenager. Rahi stopped and looked up at Alec with a blank expression.
"I have to go. Move out of the way."
"What's the big deal about a few measly pieces of fruit? I'll give you a whole bunch of stuff way better than this from my family's warehouse, so just listen to me for a second."
Alec pointlessly tapped one of the fruits in Rahi's basket. Even when he wanted to compliment her, a sarcastic tone always slipped out first—it was his chronic habit. Rahi's eyebrows twitched ever so slightly.
"These fruits I picked with my own sweat are more valuable to me than the free ones you're offering! And Alec, calling someone else's precious food 'just a few' is rude."
Rahi's calm voice stung Alec between the eyes. Alec flushed, looking flustered. In truth, he had come to warn her about the strange visitors who had appeared in the forest behind the village today. He had overheard the elders of his knightly family, deeply concerned, discussing countermeasures.
"Ah, okay! I'm sorry! But that's not the problem right now. In the village forest… right now—"
Alec hadn't even finished speaking.
Ding. Ding. Whatever had appeared in the village forest, nothing was more important than buying the flour to bake tonight's bread. For Rahi, the sound of the evening bell in Ragopa Village was an absolute rule.
"Alec, if it's not urgent, we can talk later. I have to hurry down now."
"Hey! Aren't you listening to me? I'm telling you, it's really dangerous!"
Leaving Alec standing there dejectedly, scratching his head, Rahi headed toward the village square, focused solely on getting a fair price for her fruit.
Fortunately, the fruit sold quickly at a fair price. Rahi felt the weight of her now-heavier purse and bought a handful of salt and some flour.
"Rahi, the hunt went really well today! I'm going to make porridge with the meat my husband caught—come eat with us."
"Thank you, Madam. I'll be right over."
Rahi stopped by her house to brush the dirt off her clothes, then picked out three of the fruits she'd saved and placed them in her basket. The house, with her parents absent, was quiet, but the laughter drifting over from the neighbors' house quickly filled the void.
On the lady's dining table sat a bowl of meat porridge, steam rising from it. The scent of freshly baked bread mingled with the savory aroma of the meat. The hunter burst into a hearty laugh and piled a generous helping of meat onto Rahi's bowl.
"Rahi. I saw Alec acting all flustered around you earlier."
"Oh, come on, Sir. Alec is just a friend."
"He's a friend, all right. But he likes you."
"You're such a tease. The porridge is getting cold. Eat up."
Rahi deliberately changed the subject and scooped a spoonful of porridge into her mouth.
It was common knowledge among the villagers of Ragopa that Alec was a man of good standing.
Broad shoulders befitting a knight's lineage, a tall stature, and even the clumsy affection he couldn't hide when looking at Rahi. Lately, the village girls would blush whenever they saw Alec exuding a distinctly manly air. But to Rahi, Alec was nothing more and nothing less than the mischievous boy who used to put bugs in her basket when they were children.
'They say there's no tree that won't fall after being tapped ten times, but from the tree's perspective, it's just exhausting.'
Rahi thought to herself as she chewed a piece of meat. The lady and the hunter's mischievous laughter floated around the dining table. Their jokes were still hard for her to stomach.
"Alec's a decent guy around here, isn't he?"
"Well, I suppose Alec's not bad."
Encouraged by Rahi's lukewarm response, the lady chimed in excitedly.
"Why don't you take Alec out on a date while you're at it? How about going to the festival together this time?"
"That's right. That guy's ears turn red whenever he sees you—he doesn't know what to do. When on earth are you going to accept his feelings?"
The hunter gave her a mischievous wink. To the adults, it must have looked like nothing more than a sweet, innocent lovers' quarrel. But Rahi felt uncomfortable under their gaze and quietly set down her spoon.
"I'm not thinking about marriage yet. I'd rather eat delicious food like this and chat with you than anything else."
"Oh, come on! You say that now, but what if Alec catches the eye of some girl from another family later on?"
The lady chuckled and scooped another ladle of porridge into Rahi's empty bowl. Rahi let out a small sigh instead of answering. Even though she knew that keeping quiet was the way to keep the peace, sometimes situations like this made her feel suffocated.
"Then we'll just congratulate him. Alec's an adult now; he'll find his own match."
At Rahi's firm reply, the hunter laughed heartily and waved his hand dismissively.
"If only you'd keep your mouth shut! That's why Alec's always flustered."
It looked like they'd be talking about Alec all night if she let it go. To quickly change the subject, Rahi brought up the warning she'd heard from Alec earlier that day.
"By the way, I heard you say to be careful in the woods today."
"Ah, look at me. As it happens, I went hunting today and saw some strange footprints."
"Footprints?"
"They were way too big to be from a bear, and the shape of the toes was a little different. It was definitely an animal, but they looked just like human palms."
"Oh, honey. It's probably just a big bear living deep in the mountains. Don't make it sound so scary."
The woman scolded him lightly, trying to smooth things over, but Rahi already had a strange chill running down her spine as she recalled Alec's terrified expression from a few hours earlier. Animal footprints that looked like human palms. Listening to the conversation, Rahi quietly swallowed her meat porridge.
"It must be a massive beast."
"Oh my, why are you being so scary? Really, Rahi, you shouldn't go picking fruit near the forest for a while either. You have to be especially careful at night. Understand?"
"Yes, I'll be careful."
The girl replied and glanced out the window. The night in Ragopa was still quiet, and the sound of the river flowing in the distance was as calm as ever.