High & Half and the Town of Wheat (10)

"Heave-ho..."

Win, whom I was carrying in my arms, pressed his face against my shoulder and cried.

I rubbed his back with one hand, but no words of comfort came to me.

When I looked back, the town of Jampemon was already on the other side of the wheat fields.

But I set off once more—yes, toward the Kingdom of Rudoria.

It was about a year and a half after we had begun living in Jampemon when a letter arrived from Airena informing me that we could now enter the Kingdom of Rudoria.

After staying this long, naturally, the Blacksmiths' Guild's initial request—the repair and replenishment of the guards' equipment—had long since been completed, and I was now making farm tools such as hoes and sickles, along with weapons for soldiers being sent to defend North Zaire.

It wasn't that I had run out of things to do, but I had fulfilled all the work people had asked of me, and I had no particular lingering attachment.

But that was only true of the blacksmithing work—or, more accurately, of me alone; Win had spent this year and a half forming deep connections with many people, especially Nonna, and gradually opening himself up, so he was bound to have lingering feelings.

The day I told him we would be leaving, he clearly said that he didn't want to go, and then cried and wailed terribly.

Ah, surely that was proof that this environment had been very good for Win's growth, and I ought to have been happy about it.

However, no matter how much he resisted, I had already decided that we would leave.

Naturally, there was no way I could leave Win behind on his own.

I had considered remaining in our current environment several times.

But the answer was no every time.

I needed to go to the Kingdom of Rudoria at least a few times and provide assistance, including thinning out the monsters.

Airena would surely try to keep her reliance on my strength to a minimum, but that was precisely why, whenever she asked me for help, it would be because the situation was truly beyond her ability to handle.

In other words, if I failed to act, somebody would pay the price in one form or another.

I didn't want to—and couldn't—turn a blind eye to that simply because life with Win in this town was enjoyable.

If Airena were the one to pay that price—if she suffered a serious, irreparable injury or even died—I would bitterly regret it, and Win would surely be affected as well.

While I was away in the Kingdom of Rudoria, Nonna would look after Win.

But she didn't have the strength to protect a young Half-Elf if someone with ill intent ever targeted him.

Jampemon was a peaceful town inhabited by good people, but many travelers still passed through it.

The reason the gazes directed at a young Half-Elf remained mere curiosity was the presence of an adult elf nearby with a sword at his waist—in other words, me.

In fact, if anything happened to Win in town, the wind spirits would alert me and I'd rush to him.

That was why I decided to leave this town with Win.

It was a decision I would not budge on.

Regardless of whether he continued traveling or not, Win would experience many farewells in the years ahead, so I wanted him to become accustomed to them starting with the gentler sort—ones where he could hope for a reunion.

For Win to become aware of the difference in the passage of time between the races, ideally he should be surrounded by understanding adults—my acquaintances, in other words.

That was one reason, but the most important thing was still his safety.

I used every word I could to persuade the crying Win.

I slowly told him, again and again, that we could spend time together without my taking on blacksmithing work, that his parting from the people of this town would not be forever, that new encounters awaited us, and that I would remain by his side.

Yes, it was what you'd call a battle of wills.

Seeing Win cry pained me, but at the same time, watching him cry was so adorable and heartwarming that the two feelings canceled each other out, leaving me with no net damage.

If anything, I was even happy to see Win asserting his own will.

In other words, there was no way I could lose this contest.

Eventually, after crying himself exhausted, Win quieted down and accepted my proposal.

I told him that someday, the two of us would definitely visit Jampemon again.

That was the promise we made to each other.

Of course, that would only be after Win realized and accepted that the passage of his own time differed from that of other people.

The following day, I left town with him and went to the riverside to collect stones.

Though it wasn't simply a matter of picking up stones from the riverbed.

Win and I listened to the earth and water spirits for guidance as we searched for stones polished as they flowed down from far upstream—treasures from the riverbed.

In short, we were hunting for gemstones.

Quartz, garnet, and jade could occasionally be found along the river.

Of course, under normal circumstances, they were by no means easy to find, but perhaps when a young child searched for them so desperately, even the earth and water spirits wanted to lend a hand.

Before sunset, Win found a beautiful garnet.

Then we went to the Blacksmiths' Guild, and I even brought Win into the forge, though he was normally never allowed inside, and used silver and gold to make a pendant with the garnet set into it.

Yes, it was a gift from Win to Nonna—a thank-you for spending all that time with him.

When we returned to the inn, Win reached up with all his might and put the pendant around the neck of Nonna, who had crouched down for him.

Then Nonna—ah, she must have been unable to hold back any longer.

Tears overcame her, and—as expected—Win began crying too.

The innkeeper and his wife, and for some reason the other guests too, all began crying along with them, until everyone but me was in tears.

As for me, well, when everyone around me cried first, I somehow became strangely calm, you know?

It's not that I'm heartless, I suppose, but I'm used to farewells.

On the day we left, Win held himself together remarkably well until we were out of town, but when he saw Jampemon receding into the distance, he ultimately couldn't hold back and cried.

But I think that's all right.

Cry until you're tired, then sleep.

Cry as much as you want, and let your tears flow.

After all, I won't let go of Win while I'm holding him, and his tears will never run dry.

From here on, Win will cry plenty, find even more joy, perhaps get angry, experience all sorts of things, and grow—grow and grow.

Without saying a word, I walked along the road toward the Kingdom of Rudoria, simply listening to Win's sobs.