Chapter 36
Two Sides of a Coin
The sun was still behind the ridge. Thin frost lay on the road. The three of them dropped onto the dirt track south of the foothills and turned southeast.
Foothill's green fell away stretch by stretch, leaving only thin scrub. Dry yellow grass cracked underfoot.
The barrens wind came up again. Nova tugged his old felt hat lower.
Past noon they finally came on a flat cart—bundles of dry wood and half a sack of mountain goods on the bed, rolling south.
Lila went ahead and asked if they could hitch a ride.
The driver was a thin man around forty, burned the same color as the roadside dirt. He looked them up and down once and left it at that.
"South fork, eight kilometers. Three of you—three Crystone coins."
Lila paid and waved the other two over.
Eren climbed on first and hauled Nova up. Lila followed, and they wedged in among the wood and sacks. The cart rocked along; wheels ground over gravel with a long squeal.
The driver talked plenty. Between cracks of the whip he kept a loose chatter going. "Heading south—where to?"
"Rusak. Looking for work," Lila said.
He snapped the whip empty in the air. "Rusak's a big town—lively as they come. Jobs enough, if you want 'em. Mining, hauling, deliveries, trading…"
He warmed to it and piled on a few more. "Food and fun both. Kid'll go wide-eyed. Fellow from my village knocked around there half a year—came back spinning stories like he'd seen heaven."
Nova listened hard and said nothing. A little more hope edged into his eyes.
Lila asked a couple more questions. His answers stayed vague—all hearsay.
The cart rocked on into the afternoon; the sun burned off a little of the cold. Ahead the road split. He reined in the mule. "South fork. I turn west here—can't take you the Rusak way."
They jumped down. Lila thanked him. He nodded, shouted once, and the mule cart headed west.
A broken roadside marker stood at the fork, letters blurred, one arrow still readable—southeast, for Rusak.
The track ran wider than the mountain path, cut deep and uneven by ruts. Only a few red willows and hard thorn bushes along the sides. The view opened at once.
They pushed southeast along the ruts. Mr. He had said you could still find villages along here to put up for the night. Lila watched for smoke and fences the whole way. By evening a stretch of gray roofs finally showed ahead.
At the village edge a low house hung a faded signboard. Inside was one big shared bunk, cheap enough. They washed dry rations down with plain water. Eren and Lila didn't sleep deep—half an eye on the door crack and whatever stirred outside the window. Nova squeezed in against the far wall and was out soon enough.
Early next morning Lila settled the bill and pushed the door open. The sun was just climbing the eastern slope; the southbound dirt road looked brighter and wider than yesterday.
Plenty of people heading south—shoulder poles, wheelbarrows, mules on leads—in twos and threes, all the same way. Now and then a roadside stall: dried fruit, pickled turnips, a few small bags of rice on a hemp cloth. Nova stared at a spread of candied fruit a beat too long.
"Keep moving," Lila said, pulling him on. "Pick some when we hit town."
After a while the sun climbed higher. A fair-sized yard opened by the road—wooden fence around an empty lot, several mules and two lean horses tied inside, a few covered carts under a shed. Drivers squatted in the shade with water bowls, smoking. The board at the gate said RENTALS, rates listed neat underneath.
Lila left Eren and Nova outside and went in alone. A short, stout clerk sat behind the counter.
"Excuse me. Three of us headed for Rusak—any chance of a ride?"
He flicked a look up and rattled the rules off in one breath. Outskirts of Rusak, ten Crystone coins a head. Counted from four seats—three people still paid as four. Ten down as deposit, settle on arrival. Rockfall detours extra.
Lila did the math: forty just for the ride. Yesterday's cart had been three coins for eight kilometers. They still needed lodging in Rusak, and other business after that. They couldn't dump it all on the road.
"Can you come down any?"
"No. Guild business. Fixed rates." He grinned, showing a few yellow teeth.
Lila nodded. "All right. Sorry to bother you."
She went out and ran the prices by Eren.
He frowned. "Steep for out here."
"Not worth it." Lila tugged her hood a little lower over her face. "We walk. Plenty more places we'll need the coin."
Nova pressed his lips together and said nothing—he'd probably hoped for less walking today.
"Let's go," Eren said. "Won't cost us much time."
They took the road again.
A few dozen paces out, hoofbeats came up behind. A Guild convoy rolled past the mule yard—eight or nine wagons in a string, canvas laced tight. Drivers' collars buttoned to the chin; eyes only on the road ahead. Eren eased Nova onto the shoulder while the wagons swept by one after another, kicking up a thin line of dust.
"Guild wagons," Lila said, tapping Nova's shoulder. "No freeloaders."
Nova nodded.
The sun sat overhead. Whatever warmth it put on the skin vanished the moment the barrens wind cut through.
The road stayed busy: porters with twin baskets of sweet potatoes, peddlers with cloth rolls, clerks dozing on muleback—all heading the same way in twos and threes. Every few hundred meters, a tea stall under a torn umbrella: one Crystone coin a head.
"So many people going south," Nova muttered.
"Yeah." Lila passed him the waterskin. "Should make it by tomorrow."
They walked on through the afternoon. Their shadows stretched longer and longer behind them.
Around a gentle rise, a man sat by the road.
Eighteen or nineteen, broad in the shoulders, nothing special about the face, skin baked dark—someone used to hard work. An old bundle at his feet.
He saw the three of them coming and spoke first. "Pardon—stay south on this road, that's Rusak up ahead?"
Lila looked him over, then said, "It is. You headed there too?"
"You as well? Fancy that!" He stoppered his waterskin and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "I'm from Riverbank Hamlet. Nearly two days on the road."
"Figured I'd catch a cart, but nobody'd take me. Asked at a rental yard—forty right off the bat. Where would I get that?"
Lila tipped her head at him. "Same here. Can't afford it, so we walk."
"Tell me about it." He smiled, stood, and brushed the dust off his pants. "Name's Meng Xiangyang. If you don't mind the company, mind if I walk with you? Safer with a few more on the road."
Eren glanced at Lila. She didn't object.
"Eren. This is Lila, Nova." He kept it short.
Meng Xiangyang didn't press. He swung the bundle onto his shoulder and fell in step with the three of them.