Chapter 23 - Teaming With Humans Part Two
After some tit for tat, Kana finally gave Ceilie half of her last roasted rabbit. Only because she was already full and she did not want to waste any of the food. "You two have become quick friends." Renne said as she sat down next to Ceilie.
"Who's friends with a stinky human? I just didn't want to waste food!" Kana protested. She did not like humans. She was only getting along with these guys in order to fulfill her part of the deal. She wanted her fishing rod, hooks, bag, and bedding.
"Humph! Whose friends with this lizard!" Ceilie crossed her arms across her chest and turned away from Kana. Everyone seeing this was speechless because they were happily chatting away no more than a few seconds ago.
"Alright, whatever. We will be setting up camp. Kana, was it? Do you mind if we set up camp here?" Thane asked.
"Yeah, but a little further away from me. I don't want the smell of humans ruining my sleep." Kana replied as she scooted further away from Ceilie.
"You can sleep without worry Kana, if they make a move on you, I will wake you up." Lysairth replied. Since she was nothing but a soul, she did not need to sleep and could feel any hostile presence around her. So Kana sleeping with these five humans was perfectly safe.
"Mmm… Thanks, Lysairth. I was starting to feel tired as it was. Um… Lysairth… Do you think we can trust them?" Kana asked. She felt that maybe Ceilie was okay, but she could feel a bit of indifference towards her from the others. But even Ceilie, she would not trust all the way.
"You can never fully trust a human. But as far as I can tell, Ceilie doesn't seem to harbor any kind of ill feelings. As for the rest, I would keep a close eye on them. But still, be careful of Ceilie as well." Lysairth had no trust for humans, not after what had happened to her. You could say she hated them, but she had no issues with using them when she needed something. Like right now where Kana was gaining a few things she needed for helping these adventurers out.
The next morning light shined down as Kana slowly woke up. She stretched her front legs then her hind legs before taking a look around her. It seemed all the humans were sleeping except for Ceilie. She was busy waving around a short dagger a little ways away. Kana walked over to where she was and watched her wave the dagger around. "I thought you used a bow?"
"Hmm?" Ceilie froze and turned to see Kana sitting there watching her. Seeing it wasn't anyone else, she continued to practice her swings. "I do, it is my main weapon of choice, but if I am going to be solo after this quest, I need to get my skills back with a dagger. I haven't practiced my swings in a long time. If I did not know how to fight with at least a dagger like this, then I would be dead, real quick."
"I see. Why are you doing a job that can cost you your life?" Kana asked out of curiosity. She wondered what kind of life Ceilie had. For some reason, she could see a bit of herself in Ceilie's eyes.
"Because I have no other choice." Ceilie said, stopping her practice and walking over to sit next to Kana. She took a look at the camp of her teammates, after seeing no movement, she continued. "You see, I do not have a family. They were killed by a noble who had fallen in love with my mother, or so I have found out anyway. At the time, I was twelve. That noble sent his men to my house to drag my mother away. My parents hid me in a trap door beneath the floorboards, which was used for storing foodstuff.
"I heard arguing, and my mother scream. The smell of iron quickly filled my nose. Then I heard one of the men who came saying something about let's play with her first. What I heard next was something I wish I never heard at all. After that, those men laughed as they walked out of my house and lit it on fire. As the flames quickly spread, I had no choice but to exit the place I was hiding and try to escape. But when I ran into the front room. I found my father's headless body lying in a pool of blood. My tears that were already flowing flowed even more. I tried to drag my father's body out of the house many times, but I was too weak to move him. The flames grew too hot, forcing me to run out of the burning building. I have no idea if my mother is even alive. The only thing I know from all the information I have gathered thus far is that it was a noble who took her. His reason was because he fell in love with her. Sometimes I wish I wasn't human; then I could just…"
"Ceilie?" A voice came from behind, interrupting Ceilie. The two turned to see Renne standing by the fire, looking around.
Kana looked back at Ceilie and asked one simple question: "Do you hate humans?"
Ceilie looked at Kana and smiled a true smile for the first time in a long time: "If I could, I would kill them all." She patted Kana on the head before getting up and walking to where Renne was.
Kana sat there for a while, lost in thought. She knew humans were disgusting. They were greedy and selfish. They only cared about themselves. Ceilie was like her. Except she was able to make a living as an adventurer in this world. Kana wondered if she was human in this world if she would have done the same. No, she was sure of it. She would use her life to secure her food every day, just like she did in her past life. It was just that between her and Ceilie, this world had an adventurer guild while hers did not. Because of that, she suffered much more. Kana sighed as she whispered: "She's like me…"