The leader cleaned me after the accident. He didn't say much, but you could see that his mind was troubled.
"I'm sorry about the incident earlier, it shouldn't have happened," he then threw me some fresh clothes. They were oversized, but it was better than nothing. He told me to go lay inside his tent, inside were laying two leather sleeping bags.
"I'm gonna have a feast with my men, and don't worry, this tent will be guarded by one of my most trustworthy subordinates. Say hello to him."
A young man came to us and introduced himself.
"Hi there young lady, the name's Daryl," he held out his hand and smiled. I didn't want to look rude so I grabbed it and tried to give him a firm handshake. His hands were huge compared to mine. They were big but surprisingly soft. They didn't have the roughness you would expect from a bandit. He looked at me and asked me a question, "Would you mind if I entered your tent? It's kinda cold out here and it makes me feel less lonely."
The leader frowned his eye when he said that, clearly being uncomfortable by his proposal.
The young man saw the worry in his leader's eyes, so he quickly made an assurance to put me and his leader at ease.
"Don't worry I won't touch you," he said with a friendly smile. The constant screaming and moaning of the women in the background didn't make it sound quite convincing. I wanted to decline his offer, but he looked quite handsome and didn't have that killer look in his face that the other bandits had. He seemed quite young and looked like a fifteen-year-old boy.
The leader saw the hesitation in my eyes, "I trust him, and if he does something funny to you I'll kill!" He said.
"Ok then..." I said.
The young man must have been really happy to hear that because he jumped a hole in the air when he heard my answer. The leader bid his farewell and went to feast with his men. I, on the other hand, prepared for the night and entered the tent. Daryl followed soon after.
I lay in my sleeping bag and tried to sleep. I didn't really trust Daryl so I didn't let my guard down, prepared to scream the moment he touched me. I constantly moved and couldn't sleep. My mind was troubled and the screams in the background didn't really help me fall asleep. This continued for about an hour until Daryl broke the silence.
"Can't sleep, can you?"
"No..."
"I see you're troubled, wanna talk about it?" He kindly asked.
"Ok..." I replied.
"So what's your name? I believe you've never told anybody."
"I wanna keep it that way."
He smirked at my reaction. "Don't worry I won't hurt you, I just wanna know you better."
"Why?" I asked.
"To make you feel more comfortable," he said. "And besides, you're really cute..." his cheeks became as red as a tomato after he said that. I became embarrassed and tried to avoid eye contact.
"Lena . . ." I said quietly.
"Lena huh? That's a really cute name!"
"Shut up, idiot!" I replied. I was quite happy actually, nobody really complimented me, except for my parents. Why did he have to be a bandit? I thought. He would be quite a cute boyfriend actually, he had stunning blue eyes and his blond hair only added attractiveness to his looks. Wait why am I thinking this? I'm a guy for god sakes... Stupid female hormones taking over my body!
He laughed at my reaction and we soon talked a lot. He turned out to be a really nice person. It was a really fun time and for a few hours, it made me forget the awful situation I was in.
"What are you doing in this group, anyway?" I asked. "You don't seem like a bandit to me."
"I used to be a noble actually, but I had a fight with my family so I ran away from home. I lived on the streets and almost died of hunger, but the leader saved me."
"You had a fight with your family? What happened? Wanna talk about it?"
"I want to, but it's quite complicated..."
"That doesn't matter, we've got enough time anyway."
"Maybe another time," he said.
It became quite awkward for a few minutes, but I decided to ask something.
"Daryl, can I ask you a sensitive question?"
He looked quite confused at my sudden request, but he made a kind smile and said, "Sure."
"Have you killed somebody before?"
"Never, and I'll never will. I've also never touched a woman before."
I felt relieved to hear his answer, he was a nice person! The happiness didn't last long, because I heard the screams for the women getting r*ped again. He saw my reaction and said with a concerned voice, "Spit it out, I know something is troubling you, I'll try to help if I can."
"It's my mother, I know she is suffering right now and I want to help h-"
"There's nothing I can do, sorry . . ."
"Please, I beg you, Daryl, she is my mother and I'm sure some men are r*ping her right now! There must be something you can do! Please . . . "
Daryl saw my reaction and he seemed to hesitate for a bit.
"There's maybe something I can do." He then showed a vial of poison.
Kudos to the author for actually writing a warning in the summary
YES, with the mind of an adult in her last life, i believe she can make the hard choice. While it is a sad choice to make, it would be worse to leave her to suffer more and more and more. Would she condem her mother to a life of more suffering? Has she forgotten the words of the goddess: " Born as a begger", aka her life was always meant to go towards suffering. Now her mother suffers for her own past life's choices. She has no options to save her mother and only chance can save them, but with that statement from the goddess, it is highly unlikely, and the mother would have become too traumatised to even survive on the streets.
End it. Life is harsh, even more so when a goddess decides to curse you with misfortune. Be a "man" and make the right choice. <.<
Thanks for the chapter
I felt relieved to hear his answer, he was a nice person! The happiness didn't last long, because I heard the screams for the women getting r*ped again. He saw my reaction and said with a concerned voice, "Spit it out, I know something is troubling you, I'll try to help if I can."
Is that guy for real? Asking what troubles her...
Also to suggest poisoning her mother... I mean I get she is suffering and death might be preferable but letting her choose between her mother getting raped or killed is just cruel.
He's mean, but there's nothing else he can offer.
@KinksterBanana Of course, pouring that in the food solves the entire issue. Patch up things with the family.... then the real story can start.
@Dreslief ...that'll get them ALL killed, and there's no way he would do that, he pretty much got adopted by the bandits.
Poisoning thy mother... while cruel... is probably the best outcome, atleast with what's on hand.
Thanks for the Chapter!
Thanks for chappy!
thanks for the chapter