LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 15: Chapter 15
"How near is that 'near place'?" I asked the cabbage seller.
"We'll arrive soon," he said.
For the last few hours, he had been saying the same thing whenever I asked him this question.
It's no wonder the Avatar had a beef with him. This man was pure evil.
Also, what kind of man is he, to get into places where the Avatar would reach by flying bison while still dragging a cart?
"Cai," I called. "By your definition, what is near, and what is far?"
*Bump*
"Shit," Cai cursed. As we had been talking, there was a hole we hadn't paid attention to. It was around 40 cm deep. The stall fell in.
"Forget I said anything," I said.
"Let's try pulling it out," Cai said, pulling with all his strength. But it was to no avail.
I tried to help him too, but we couldn't do it.
"Seems we have to empty it, and then reload it," he said.
I turned to the cart and shook my head.
That was a lot of work, unpaid work.
"Forget it. I'm tired already," I grumbled as I sat down on a nearby rock.
"Young men nowadays are lazy," he grimaced. "Ryuk, we haven't been walking for that long."
I pointed at the sky. The sun was about to set.
"Not long, my ass. When I met you, the sun was there," I pointed at the middle of the sky. "And now it's about to set."
I didn't know what this old man's definition of laziness or hard work was. I didn't know what the word 'near' meant to him, but I knew that I was tired.
"There's no use in grumbling. Let's empty it, push it up, and then reload it," he said. "You won't even feel the time passing."
"Excuse me," said a voice. "You guys sound like you're in big trouble."
We turned our heads to see a young, handsome man in his late teens or early twenties. Long hair, tanned skin, and green eyes. A native Earth Nation citizen.
"Great," Cai clapped his hands. "Why don't you help us, young man?"
I turned my head toward the cabbage guy. 'Does he impose on people directly? No introduction, no courtesy. Just 'help me.'? I guess the only thing this guy cares about is the cabbage.'
The young man smiled and replied, "Looks heavy, though."
"You won't feel the flow of time," Cai said. "Besides, if you don't help me, I won't be able to feed my poor family."
'Poor my ass. Your stall has been wrecked by the Avatar multiple times across the nations, and you still manage to sell fresh cabbage every time. Forget it. I wonder how he's faster than a flying bison,' I thought to myself, but I didn't say those words.
The young man seemed to believe his story. A sympathetic expression took over his face as he said, "In that case, I can't let your family starve. But you have to promise to keep whatever you see here a secret. Swear on your poor family."
Cai rolled his eyes. "I swear on my family, if you help me, I will tell no one about it."
"Very well," the young man said, raising his hand toward the hole and squeezing as if he were holding a lemon in his hand, slowly raising his arm. The wheel was lifted and the hole was closed in an instant.
"You're an earthbender?" Cai said.
The young man put his index finger to his lips. "Remember, you promised."
"I know," Cai said. He turned to me. "Earthbenders are taken to jail to be held."
"I promise I won't tell them. Happy?" I sighed. I was soon to be an archenemy of the Fire Nation anyway—well, not the Fire Nation as a whole, but the Fire Lord and his followers. I had no grudge against their civilians or soldiers, just the invaders and the supporters of the massacres.
"Just one more thing," I turned to the young earthbender. "How near is the nearest village?"
"It's pretty near. If you walk for an hour, you'll make it there."
"Just an hour," I replied after him.
In my previous life, just an hour meant 'hail a taxi.'
"Two hours, dragging that," he said. "But if you want help, we can make it faster."
"What a young gentleman you are. Your peers should learn from you," said Cai. It was needless to say that he was talking about me.
'He's just an old man,' I shook my head. 'I've always wondered why this world was full of assholes. I guess there's a good reason for that. Being nice isn't helpful.'
"Thanks," smiled the young earthbender. "What's your name, by the way?"
"Cai."
"Ryuk."
"I'm Haru, by the way."
The three of us dragged the stall then.
Not long after, as the sun was setting and the sky turned red, we arrived at the entrance of one of the villages of the Earth Nation.
At the gate, there were two soldiers dressed in familiar armor.
Two Fire Nation soldiers with long mustaches and sabers around their waists stopped us. They let Haru in as soon as he showed his identity plaque.
The cabbage guy was allowed in since he had a reason for his visit.
When it was my turn, the fire soldier said, "Your identity?"
"Left it at home," I said. "It's very far from here."
"Turn back then," he said.
"What if I have a very good reason to come here?" I replied, thinking that Cai didn't have to show an identity plaque. It may be obvious that he's a merchant, or maybe he's just that famous in this world.
"And what might that be?" the fire soldier asked.
"Spend money to rest for a few days, and then I'll leave," I replied, taking his hand and placing two silver coins in it.
"Very good reason indeed," he said.
"I'm not convinced, though," the other fire soldier interrupted, extending his hand toward me.
"Isn't it though?" I replied, placing two silver coins reluctantly into his hand.
'Lesson learned. Next time I want to bribe someone, I'll divide the intended money according to the number of guards and put it into their hands.' I thought.
"How long are you willing to stay?" he asked.
"Two weeks at most. One week at least," I replied, not being entirely honest. I might stay less, I might stay more.
"Wait a moment, I'll write you an entrance permit," he said. "What's your name?"
"My name is..." I began, thinking of names for earthbenders, so I wouldn't get exposed as coming from another nation.
Definitely, my name wouldn't be Jeff.
But I had already exposed my name to Cai and Haru, so I needed to come up with a different name, yet keep my real name as a nickname to avoid suspicion.
"My name is Bumi," I said. "But my friends call me Ryuk."
"Alright," the fire soldier said, going inside to write a permit for me. When I held it, it was a wooden plaque.
[Permit: Bumi, AKA: Ryuk.
Duration: 2 weeks.
Starting Date: ]
As I was about to enter, I saw a carriage being pulled by many monster beasts coming our way.
From the carriage, a group of soldiers, lifting one injured soldier, entered.
I resisted the urge to widen my eyes. The injured person, his face, somehow looked familiar. It was the survivor.
"Sir, one of our soldiers survived the South Pole. He has to make a report, but he lost consciousness. We need to treat him immediately," said one of the soldiers to the gate guard.
"Get him in!" the gate guard yelled. "Call the doctor!"