Chapter 288 – Drive
“No, I don’t know how to do it.”
“Then, it’s the perfect opportunity to learn. I’m sure it’ll be useful in the future. This road is one of the safest in the region, and it’s paved well. See these soldiers?”
I pointed to an armed group still far away from us, coming in our direction.
“They’re patrolling the road on behalf of Geola’s army. This is the best road to actively learn about driving. I’ll teach you well.”
“I got it.”
He took the reins with a mix of apprehension and excitement. I started teaching him when Erin asked a question from the back.
“Is it normal for soldiers to patrol the roads?”
“Yes and no. They do it on other roads, but this one is special because it leads to the bunnies’ village.”
“What about it?”
“That village is producing a large chunk of the food eaten in Geola. More importantly, bunnies have a sad history of being kidnapped and enslaved.”
“Ah…”
“Speaking of which, do you want me to teach you how to become friends with bunnies?”
“…Do we have to do that?”
“It’s up to you, but at the very least, you should never look at them like they’re weird or cursed. I’ll be upset if you do so. Bunnies are gentle by nature, hard-working, and loyal. I hope you can become friends with them.”
“Hmm.”
“Alright, here’s how to do it. It’s easy. Bunnies are sensitive to how people look at them. That’s why getting them to open up to you is easy. You just need to approach them without any prejudice. If you see them for what they are and not for whatever random stuff you’ve heard, they’ll immediately notice it and become good friends with you.”
“I’ll try.”
“Me too.”
“Good. Let’s continue with the driving lesson.”
Erin interrupted us again.
“I want to learn too.”
“You can switch when Aren becomes confident enough. It’s not hard, so it shouldn’t take too long.”
Just like that, we moved forward with Aren driving as best as he could. After a while, I told him to have the horses trot to reach our destination faster. Since the road was well-maintained, it wasn’t a problem to increase our speed, and the horses were happy to gallop lightly.
Around halfway to your destination, Aren went to take care of Orun while Erin sat next to me. She purposely sat as far as she could from me, but still listened well to my advice. Around twenty minutes before getting to the village, Orun seemed to finally manage to get rid of some of his fear of the horses.
“I want to drive too!”
“Are you not afraid anymore?”
“I’m not afraid!”
“Good. Come sit on my lap, and we can drive together.”
We arrived at our destination with a combo driving of Erin and Orun, who enjoyed pulling on the reins randomly, confusing the horses. There, we were stopped by the guards.
“Tila. Who are these kids?”
“They’re children I’m sponsoring. You can consider them as my employees, or future employees.”
“To think you’re doing well enough to sponsor others… You were still pulling a cart by yourself just last year. Maybe I should’ve become a merchant.”
That revelation seemed to surprise the children since it was about the same time I initially met them in the slums.
“Haha, business went well, I’ve been lucky.”
The second guard cut us off in our small talk.
“We still need to ask the kids a few questions. You three, answer as best as you can. What do you know about him?”
He pointed at me, and I wondered if this was another sort of cross-reference, like they did to me a long time ago. This made sense, in a way. Their answers could reveal a lot about our relationship.
Aren nodded with confidence.
“I can answer. He’s Tila Urtek, a trader in Geola. He comes here to buy food to sell in his shop in Geola. On top of that, he sells selnic items, raw materials, and cooked meals. His store has three floors and is situated not too far from the city hall. He likes to joke a lot and…”
“Stop. That’s good enough. You can go. Don’t cause any trouble inside the village.”
“Thank you, warriors.”
Erin drove the carriage forward, and we finally entered the premises. At this time of the day, most bunnies were in the middle of farming. Still, a few were around, cleaning the streets or chattering among themselves.
They noticed our arrival and soon came to meet us.
“Tila, welcome back.”
“You’re coming often these days.”
“Who are these kids?”
“Hello, Mrs. Fitak, Mrs. Olen, Mrs. Caob. You’re radiant today, just like every day.”
They rolled their eyes at my usual praise.
“Just answer the question.”
“They’re children I’m sponsoring. They wanted to visit the village. Please be nice to them.”
“Oh…”
They stared at the kids, ascertaining the situation as they always did with new people. Unfortunately, their reaction wasn’t as positive as when I first came here a year back. I wasn’t certain what they saw, deciding to stay neutral in this situation.
“This is Erin, the eldest. This is Aren, the second child, and this is Orun, the youngest. Say hi, kids.”
“Hello.”
“H-Hi.”
“Hello!”
The two older siblings were a bit awkward, while Orun was his usual self. The women instantly redirected their attention to him. As expected, they knew who was best.
“Oh my sel, what a cute one!”
“Such a nice black fur and pure eyes!”
“Your name’s Orun? Do you want some snacks?”
Orun was soon gifted with a lot of tasty food, which made him jolly. His smile broke the last restraints the bunnies had toward him, and if not for Erin, they would have taken him to their houses to pamper him.
The older siblings tried their best to interact positively with the villagers, more of them coming toward us at each moment. Soon enough, a scenic view was created, with a patch of black fur surrounded by a sea of white.
For me, this was just another day in the village, but the children were baffled, frozen in place at this weird situation.
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