As trust in Ashu’s village deepened, the situation became more complicated, and Sharti even had a seizure, so it was natural for Ren to react sensitively to her safety.

Sharti was not without concerns either.

‘But as long as he doesn’t forcibly take me along, it should be fine.’

Despite the somewhat careless thought, Sharti became calmer as Ren reacted sensitively even to her concerns.

‘I’m not unarmed like Ren.’

Sharti pointed to her bag, still being held in Ren’s uneasy hands.

When she rummaged through the bag and showed him small pouches, Ren let out a small sigh.

He knew how effective the weapons Sharti carried on her agile body were.

“I’ll try to be back as soon as possible.”

Ren intentionally raised his eyebrows and sent a sulky look.

Sharti suddenly smiled foolishly at Ren’s expression and attitude, thinking, ‘Not a sulky one but more like…’

Sharti’s diligent and sensitive reactions to her daily activities resembled those of a large dog with separation anxiety.

‘Some say dogs with separation anxiety act like that…’

The turquoise eyes that whined only in front of her looked somewhat similar.

Of course, comparing a person to an animal, especially a dog, wasn’t polite, so Sharti maintained her expression.

‘…Or not? With that size, could he be a wolf?’

While seriously contemplating Ren’s breed, Sharti quickly dispelled her whims.

Sharti left a handshake for the bewildered Ashu and the indifferent Ren, then followed the village chief.

‘Are they going to imprison me?’

Arriving in a tense state, the place was unexpectedly an ordinary house.

In the middle of the room, Ashu’s grandfather was sitting at a small table, waiting for her.

As Sharti sat down across from him at the village chief’s gesture, the old man began to speak.

“I heard my grandson met the doctor at night, and since then, he has been involved in absurd deeds. It’s truly lamentable.”

“…”

The old man clicked his tongue.

The sight of his grandson being excited all night turned out to be an act to deceive everyone in the house and engage in mischief. The disappointment was more than just that.

After a while of silence, the old man brought up the main topic.

“Do you know why the hidden village is hidden?”

The reason the hidden village exists.

“Because it hides a secret.”

The old man answered his own question, then glanced at Sharti, signaling to the village chief.

As the village chief moved behind her, Sharti stiffened.

Faint sounds echoed continuously.

‘What, what is it? Are they preparing to drag me away?’

Due to the meaningful flow of the interrupted conversation, Sharti tensed up.

While anxiously listening to the pounding heartbeat, Sharti was fidgeting with her sleeve when the village chief seemed to have finished his task and approached her.

“Drink this.”

“…?”

In front of her, who was visibly frightened, there was a rough-looking cup instead of the expected delicate one.

And it was filled with warm milk, complete with froth.
“I don’t have to drink it if I’m afraid it might be poisoned,” Sharti tilted her head.

Conscious of the gaze of the old man and the village chief, Sharti held the cup with both hands.

The warmth spread in her cold hands.

‘Already thirsty.’

Recoiling at the scent of rich milk, Sharti quickly emptied the cup.

“…You really have no fear.”

The village chief mumbled with a slightly troubled expression.

Although Sharti’s face was hidden under the hood, she seemed carefree to others.

To them, Sharti seemed to take a long time exploring the opponent with hesitation, but once the choices and suspicions were presented, she boldly made decisions without hesitation.

It looked more like expressing trust in them.

Of course, Sharti didn’t particularly trust them.

‘Since I have an antidote in my bag.’

The only thing to trust was her thorough preparation.

Nevertheless, contrary to Sharti’s intentions, the atmosphere of the old man and the village chief slightly softened.

“Doctor, there are secrets more important than life in this world. And if you lose your life to protect that secret, it can be considered destiny. It might seem like cowardly destiny to the doctor, but to us, that destiny is the truth, an unavoidable fate.”

“…?”

As the tedious conversation topic seemed about to repeat, Sharti felt resignation and surrender in the old man’s tone.

A fleeting bitterness and pain passed through the village chief’s face.

“Doctor, the fact that this village is in a state of concentrated saturation of mana isn’t a secret to us. It’s not important. Do you know why?”

The old man’s eyes, smiling sarcastically, glistened.

“Because we have no choice. Choosing this village, leaving this village, it’s all.”

“…?”

Sharti heard a warning sound in her head for a moment.

Reacting reflexively, Sharti squeezed the empty cup and swallowed her dry saliva.

“But Doctor, as an outsider, you dared to create choices for us as you pleased.”

Simply reaching out, offering a choice where you would be saved if you asked for help.