Chapter 14: 14 Tailing.

Jin’s heart leaped when he saw the translucent panel hovering in front of him. For the past nine years, there has been no single indication that the thing appeared, and with just one small encounter and his meddlesome self, Jin unlocked another kind of quest.

The quest itself is pretty much straightforward, with no exaggerated filler or even cryptic code that will split his skull. He was told to save the little girl who recovered from her choking state from her perilous state.

Seeing her dirty clothes and the situation she was in, that was enough for Jin to guess what kind of life she had been living. As much as he wanted to help, he must know the root of the problem before taking some action. ‘But, to think she would be such a fearsome being in the future, that was clearly unexpected!’.

After being satisfied with the meal, the little girl hopped from the bench and bowed her body to express her gratitude to the boy.

“Thank you, sir! That was delicious”.

“Ah, don’t mind it. Are you going home? The place is almost dark!”.

When he mentioned going home, Jin faintly caught the grieving expression on the girl and the basket in her hand. She contemplated the choice in her head, unsure what she should do.

“Hey, how much for the herbs?”.

“Eh?” the little girl’s head jolted up after hearing the boy’s offer. She bit her lips and hesitated to say the price, but if she couldn’t sell the herbs, she knew that someone dear to her would be suffering.

“…It’s, …one gold coin!”.

Jin’s face stiffened, but luckily, he held back his jaws from slacking off. He was sure that herbs in the guild could only be sold for over five copper coins, and Jin had dozens of them in his bracelet, so that would make six silver coins looking at the still-fresh plant.

‘No wonder the Herbs is already withering. Probably she couldn’t get herself a buyer!’. He looked toward the girl’s saddened face and then toward the Quest panel beside him. Jin slid his hand into his chest pocket and took a gold coin from his bracelet.

“Here, a gold coin”.

“?!”. The girl’s body jumped to see a shining gold coin for the first time in her life. She gulped her saliva before giving Jin the basket she was holding and taking the coin.

Feeling the weight of precious gold on her palms, the girl could only stare dumbfounded at the glittering coin that seemed out of the world. Suddenly, tears started to accumulate and she couldn’t hold the joy that flooded her heart. “…Mother, with this…!”.

Out of nowhere, her tiny muttering entered Jin’s ear; he looked toward the basket in his hand and spoke his concern.

“Are you okay?”.

“Um, I’m truly thankful for this. I have something urgent to do. So, I will take my leave!”.

“…”.

Jin didn’t respond and saw the little girl’s silhouette disappear through a small alley in the market district. He mulled over what to do before scratching his head.

“Can’t be helped then…!”.

Leaving the basket on the benches, Jin sprinted toward the same place. He saw the girl’s silhouette taking a left turn and entering a residential area that seemed old and hidden beneath the shadow of the bustling market.

Jin leaned his back toward a wall, observing the little girl while feeling something horrible inside. ‘This is the worst feeling I ever had. I’m sorry, little girl!’.

The little girl looked around wary before approaching a wooden house that seemed worn down but still held its foundation well. She barged through the door several times before an angry shout replied, making her body shrink.

“So noisy, who dares? Hah?”. A lanky man with an ugly appearance that even put goblin to shame appeared.

When the door opened, a disturbing scent filtered through the girl’s nose, making her face cringe in disgust. The smell also came from the lanky man, but she held up and showed the gold coin in her hand.

“This! I got it, so please give me the medicine for my mother?”.

“Ohoho, a gold coin”.

Without a proper reply, the man snatched the coin, and the girl yelped in fright.

“Khahaha, with this, I can play in some cheap place and enjoy booze for a while.”

“…Um, the medicine?”.

“Ha, you are still here? Medicine, what is that? I didn’t have it; move aside, brat!”.

“Kyak!”.

The lanky man pushed the girl aside, and she was slammed to the ground. He storms off from the place, leaving the hurting girl and her sobbing appearance.

Jin, who witnessed everything from the start, clenched the Katana tight, almost ready to slash the guy any time. This was his first time feeling this furious and feeling no shred of aversion for killing.

As he was planning to comfort the girl, she abruptly stood up and walked off from the place, holding on to the sobbing and pain that gnawed at her bloody knees.

Following the girl’s step from behind, Jin glared at the house of the man, etching it deeper into his brain and promising to pay this debt later.

It didn’t take long for the girl to stop in front of a wooden house. It was slightly bigger than others, and the environment was clean and comfortable. Jin saw the little girl inhale deeply to calm her beating heart before unlocking the key and pushing the door inside.

“Mom, I’m home!”.

It pains Jin to hear the little girl had to force her emotions to not worry her mother. He is deep in thought before lurking away toward the back house, sneaking around a window.

“Mom, I’m home!”.

Hearing the little girl’s words, Jin stopped in his tracks and slowly peeked through the gap in the wooden window.

“…Aah, Nina, welcome home. Where have you been?”. A hoarse voice coming from another woman echoed.

“Mm, I was just trying to help you”.

“…Nina, are you perhaps going to the market alone again?”.

“…Yes, I’m sorry”.

Her deflated voice after being scolded by her mom was hurtful to bear. Jin himself almost bursts open the window and screams at the girl’s mother. ‘Calm down, me! I have to figure out what sort of trouble she had!’.

As the mother and daughter exchanged some silly banter, Jin’s patience was running out because of the guilt and nervousness swirling around in his chest.

“…Nina, take this money and buy some bread for dinner. I’m sorry for asking you this”.

“Don’t worry, Mom. I will be back soon!”.

A pitter-patter sound faded, followed by a door slammed shut. Jin planned to bail out from the scene, but a dignified and cold tone stopped him in place.

“Who is there?”.

‘Hm?!’. Jin’s heart skipped a beat, hearing those words that seemed pointed to him. He carefully dismissed his silly thoughts and planned to take a step away when a chill pierced his spine.

*Bam!

The window blasted open, revealing a shocking reveal that would almost hit his face if Jin had not been fast enough to duck down. His head was sweating; he never thought that the mother’s girl was someone capable of handling magic.

“I’ll ask you again! Who are you? *cough…”.

Her cold tone soon turned to a pained cough. Jin, who was already caught bare, stood up and revealed his figure to the woman sitting on the bed.

Jin was stupefied to see a beautiful woman in her late teens glaring with her fierce emerald eyes. Her green wavy hair reached her waist, and her slender body was covered by a thin veil of white gown that was almost see-through.

However, all of those features faded, and seeing her lethargic gesture and deathly pale face buried her beautiful appearance. Jin noticed that her body lacked some nutrition, and it seemed she had been bedridden for a pretty long time.

As he was admiring the woman’s appearance and beauty, his vision suddenly shot up, and he felt a throbbing sensation that pierced his forehead. He clutched his head and heard a chill tone that woke him up.

“Any last word, you pervert bastard!”.

His body flinched, feeling a tremendous amount of mana begin to gather in one place. A swirling tiny cyclone began forming on the woman’s palm, aimed at Jin’s unguarded face.

Unsure of what to do, Jin racked his brain and soon raised his hands upward, revealing his purpose for coming to her house.

“Wait, please, I have no ulterior motive! I just want to know that little girl, um, who was it again? …Yeah, Nina, I just want to help her. Please believe in me”.

“…”. Instead of answering, the tiny cyclone on her palm began to intensify and leaked out something dangerous.

“I am sorry, but please. I was curious how such a child had to undergo that painful experience at such a young age”.

The swirling wind that gathered around them began to dissipate as the woman had bloated eyes, clearly shocked to hear Jin’s words.

“…Painful? What exactly?! *cough… *cough…”.

Jin’s face hardened upon seeing a trace of blood around the corner of her lips. She wiped the blood using her sleeves, but it still left its mark, which made Jin curious.

“…Tell me everything!”.

“Understand!”.

He began to tell his earlier event when meeting Nina. Jin carefully chooses his words so as not to rouse her sickness and also explain his reason for sneaking into someone else’s house.

“…I see, so it was like that. …*cough”.

“Are you alright? What sort of sickness have you caught?”.

“…That…”.

Silence descended between the two, filling the entire place with a rather gloomy and awkward mood. Jin waited for the woman to speak, but she was rather doubtful about whether the boy in front of her could be trusted.

Jin flinched when her sharp emerald eyes glared at her. Within her blink, Soma faintly saw a hue of golden color before it returned to normal. ‘What is that? Was it just my hallucination playing me?’

“…Huuf, fine. I will believe you, for now!”.

“…Well, thank you”. Jin breathed a sigh of relief, but soon, his body jolted upon hearing a creaking door echoing within the place.

“Mom, I’m home”.

“Nina is coming, hurry up and leave this place!”.

“Yes, but your sickness?”.

“…Kuh, so persistent. It’s poison, alright, I was poisoned. Now leave!”.

“Alright, I will try asking for help”.

The woman exhaled, feeling all her energy being drained for exchanging talk with the black-haired boy. ‘I’m tired…*cough’.

“Mom, I’m back!”.

Holding a paper bag filled with bread, Nina opened the door before being startled by the opened window.

“Eh? Why is the window opened?”.

“…Ah, that. Mom was feeling hot and needed some little air. Can you please close it? I think my body has cooled enough”.

“Okay!”.

Seeing her daughter wearing a long dress that covered even her feet, she stole a glance at her right leg, the place where she was injured. However, knowing Nina, she couldn’t help but swallow back her tongue and wallow in grief. ‘I’m sorry, Nina. Because of me, you had to go through such things…’.

“Mom? What is the matter?”.

“Nothing”.

The woman could only harden her heart and hold back her emotions as they enjoyed their warm dinner, even with the simple bread and hot water that Nina had brewed. ‘That boy earlier, can I put my faith in him?’.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep