Chapter 1 - Of All Things, Why Did it Have to be About Revenge? (1/2)

Chapter 1. Of All Things, Why Did it Have to be About Revenge?

The dense darkness settled outside the opaque window.

The moon rose above my head, as I heard the sporadic cry of a small owl in the distance.

Underneath the flickering light of my lamp, I wrung the washcloth with all my might.

*drip, drip, drip*

The sound of water splashing into the washbasin seemed to be unusually loud.

I placed the damp washcloth on my young nephew Luca’s forehead.

His fever was so high that I could almost see the water from the washcloth evaporating in front of my eyes.

Never in his life had Luca received such proper care, so this situation seemed quite awkward to him.

Luca was so uneasy that he was at a loss for what to do.

I forced him to lay down and then tried to calm him down by patting his shoulder for hours.

Luca was breathing lightly, his chest barely rising.

His throat swelled up to the point that he could barely speak.

He struggled to open his eyes and when he looked towards me with those frail eyes, my heart ached for him.

If it were up to me, I would have already carried him to the 24-hour emergency room, but there was nothing even close to a hospital around here.

I tried my best to keep his fever down by continuously changing out his washcloth.

Even though I was frustrated at this situation, I gave my best effort to soothe his nerves.

“Luca, hang in there. As soon as the sun comes up, I’ll get you some medicine.”

*cough, cough* “I’m alright. What medicine… We have no money.”

“There’s some money I stashed away. Besides, no kid should have to worry about money.”

A small child like that worrying about our finances didn’t sit well with me.

What’s more unsettling is Luca’s concern about the lack of money around the house.

I didn’t have enough money to pay for the medicine, so as soon as the sun rises, I’ll head into the forest to gather some medicinal herbs and somehow barter with the village doctor to take the herbs as partial payment.

While I was calculating how it would all pan out, he must have read my mind, as his face turned dark.

“You can go have fun at the May Day Festival. You said that you’ve been really looking forward to it.”

Even after saying that, he rolled his eyes at me as he sensed my facial expression.

If I actually went to the May Day Festival, he really would have been disappointed.

Why is he beating around the bush like that?

I simply grinned as I replied how silly that was.

“Pah, what about the May Day Festival? Stop saying such nonsense and focus on getting better faster instead.”

He kept on insisting that he was alright, which was hard to believe.

I wonder how much time has passed. I’m not sure when he fell asleep, but his breathing became more steady.

Nodding on and off, a small sigh escaped from Luca’s lips as he muttered in his sleep.

“……Mama.”

It would make sense that he would miss his mama.

Out of empathy, I gently patted his small hand that was rested on top of the blanket.

Luca’s fingers slightly twitched then swiftly latched onto my fingers.

As if his life depended on it, he refused to let go.

I have to change his washcloth though…

I let out a small laugh of bewilderment, but I didn’t want to let go of his hand.

That’s fine, I guess I’ll just let it be then for a little bit.