Narlyd blinked after listening to a long speech from Richard, feeling that what she understood was about as much as what she didn’t. However, she really did feel her body heating up rapidly, as if on fire, uncontrollably breaking into a sweat. Her clothes stuck to her body, uncomfortable and terribly wrinkled.
The next moment, she hesitated no longer, got up from the bed, supported herself against the wall, and walked outside to the bathroom.
With a "plop," Narlyd stepped into a bathtub filled with clear water, the intense heat suffusing her body subsided.
After a good while, the burning sensation on her skin dissipated, but the distress inside her heart only grew.
Narlyd realized she faced a problem that seemed almost unsolvable: if she wanted to be responsible, she had to repay the life-saving favor. But in such a short time, she couldn’t possibly repay it all. Staying until she repaid the favor before returning to the Jungle Hut was out of the question. To just leave without a word also wasn’t something she could accept in her heart.
Was her name really meant to be spelled backwards?
That sounded awful. She didn’t want that.
Narlyd thought long and hard while hiding in the bathtub and finally came up with an idea: she decided she would return to the Jungle Hut and still be responsible.
The next moment, Narlyd called out, addressing the outside, "Hey!"
As Richard was considering the best way to extract the metal from Molybdenite, he suddenly heard a voice from inside the bathroom: "Hey, hey, hey!" calling out several times.
"What’s the matter?" Richard responded.
"Uh, that..." The voice from the bathroom went silent for a moment, then said, "There’s something, come in for a moment."
Standing in front of the bathroom door, Richard confirmed, "Do you really want me to come in?"
"Yes." came the definitive answer from inside.
"Okay, then." Richard pushed the door open and saw Narlyd soaking in the bathtub.
"Do you feel unwell? Or is it something else?" Richard asked.
"No." Narlyd shook her head as the water in the bathtub rippled slightly, making a "whoosh" sound. She then looked over very seriously, "I just want to clear up something with you."
"Clear something up? What is it?"
Narlyd took a deep breath, "You should know that I’m someone who repays my debts, right? No matter what, I take responsibility."
"So?" Richard watched Narlyd’s head and collarbones rise above the water. "You aren’t going to blame me for saving you when you fainted earlier and thus owing me a favor, are you?"
"Of course not!" Narlyd frowned, "How could I be that kind of person! You saved me, and naturally, it was for my own good. I should thank you, not blame you. Nevertheless, I owe you a favor and I must repay you."
"You really don’t need to do this."
"You got hurt because you were fetching the Gray Moonstone for me, right? So, it’s only right that I saved you."
"No, that’s not how the account should be settled." Narlyd’s thoughts were clear, "I retrieved the Gray Moonstone for you because you saved me the first time. I managed to get it back on my own, so that clears the favor I owed. Your second rescue constitutes a new favor, which can’t be offset."
"So you’re just giving yourself troubles?" Richard couldn’t help but say, "You should leave Florence today, right? With your logic, how will you repay the favor, how will you be responsible?"
"I’ve already found a way to be responsible," Narlyd said earnestly.
"Found a way to be responsible?" Richard grew curious, "What way?"
The sound of water erupted as Narlyd suddenly stood up in the bathtub, completely naked. Her wet hair cascaded behind her, numerous silvery droplets sliding down her wheat-colored smooth skin and trickling back into the tub with a pleasant "ding dong" sound, like music.
Richard’s eyes beheld a sight:
On the vibrant fields, two small hills rose up, with pink blossoms emerging from the bushes at their tops, quite adorable. Below the hills was a golden paddy field, radiating a faint aroma of rice, with smooth lines forming neat furrows, making it look exceptionally delicate and beautiful. Beyond the paddy, there lay a pond where sparse reeds swayed, a few teal fish swimming leisurely, occasionally blowing bubbles, then, as if startled, quickly diving deep beneath the surface, out of sight...
"Hmm..." Richard vocalized, slightly surprised, but not shocked. To be honest, Narlyd’s behavior, though somewhat unexpected, was far from inconceivable.
It was still somewhat odd, though. Richard spread his hands, asking, "What is this supposed to mean?"
Narlyd sat back down in the tub and looked up seriously, "Just now, that was my guarantee to you! You saved my life, but I can’t repay your favor. However, it doesn’t matter, I can marry you.
You’ve just seen my body; that’s my way of being responsible to you—according to the traditions of my clan, only the man I am to marry can see my entire body.
I can’t marry you right now because I have many things to do back at the Jungle Hut and I have much to learn from my master, and I also need to help a cat junior learn. So, I propose a three-year wait. Three years later, when I’m almost an Official Wizard, I’ll come and marry you. You must wait for me."
After a long silence, he asked a question, "Are you sure ’marry’ is the right word? What’s with your clan’s traditions?"
Narlyd answered seriously, "I am from the Assyrian Clan. Among us, women hold a much higher status than men. It’s usually the women who engage in everything external—war, diplomacy, and so on, while men are responsible for cultivation, farming, and herding.
Thus, a woman must take on more responsibility to be worthy of bearing everything. Therefore, in our clan, it is the women who marry the men.
In fact, according to some legends, at the beginning, our clan had no men, only women. When they needed to bear children, they would buy male slaves from slave traders. After giving birth, if it was a girl, she’d be raised, if a boy, he’d be discarded.
Of course, we’ve changed now, we wouldn’t do as the legends say. And I won’t be like the other women in my clan—marrying several men. I will only take responsibility for you—one person—three years later, I will surely come to marry you. This is my promise, how about it—it’s okay, right?!"
Richard: "..." Once again silent, he couldn’t help but think, does this count... as a three-year promise???