The Villainess Will Live a Good Life

36. Moving Is a Pain

The road to freedom was a bumpy, sweaty, and overall miserable one. It was the worst time of the year to be doing this. They had to stop often to avoid overheating. Sometimes they had the convenience of villages, but most times they did not. They often had to camp out under the stars. That sounded dreamy, but it was far from it given the circumstances.

Most beastmen that they ran into did not try their luck. They were often more surprised to run into them than the group was. That wasn't to say some rouges did not try because they did. Things did not end well for those foolish beasts.

Their biggest problems were the heat, the rain, and the gigants. The giant creatures were almost always hostile no matter what species they resembled. The group was diverted several times thanks to them.

Four days into their travels, Elizabeth caught a flu causing them all to stop at the nearest village. Nana was actually happy to have an excuse to take a break, though she did feel sorry for Elizabeth. The poor woman was pregnant and ill. Nana threw Kaito the tiniest life kon she had. He gratefully accepted and swore to pay her back. Nana didn't argue.

Maybe it was due to the main character being the center of the world, but Nana met the second male lead and the novel's Elizabeth's first mate. They weren't in his village, but he was visiting the neighboring ones looking for herbs. Sensing the opportunity, Nana sold him some herbs in exchange for food. Nana and her mates were exhausted, so the break from having to hunt was nice.

The light-skinned wolf male thanked them profusely with moist eyes. The main lead then dropped the food before running away to his sick mother. It wasn't a sham. His mother really was dying. Nothing short of the strongest life kon could help and Nana wasn't using it on a someone she did not even know the name of. Her family would always come before a stranger, and there was no telling when they'd need it.

They rested until Elizabeth recovered. While they were waiting, Nana and her family sat down with the harpy male, the newly elected boss of Awa's group. They discussed traveling together for the rest of the way to Nana's destination.

However, the village they were going to was not on the way to the City of Rain. Awa's home was south-west from the City of Gold and almost dead south of the village they were heading to. They still insisted and Nana wasn't going to complain about the extra protection.

During their days together, Awa mellowed out a little. She no longer looked liked she'd bite Nana or Kaito, though Nana would still say the young female did not like her at all. Awa had also come to like Elizabeth and Dakotah quite a bit. Those two were able to pacify the wild child much to the group's collective relief.

Fortunately or unfortunately, both Nana and Elizabeth gained admirers from the group of males that traveled with them. Nana was too occupied to consider it and Elizabeth was definitely not in the mindset or health to think about it. For both of them, that was a consideration; rather, a concern for another day.

For the duration of the trip, Nana kept her boys together and always slept by Zen's side. They hadn't had a chance to discuss what has happened, but she had missed him too much to not seek his comfort. When Elizabeth was up and ready to move again, they got on their way.

It took them 16 days to reach their destination from start to finish. There were injuries, but no casualties from the group. When they reached the home Amil and Karan prepared for them, Nana rejoiced. She allowed Awa and Elizabeth to sleep there with her once her mates cleaned it out. Kaito went to secure a den for him and Elizabeth, but there was no rush.

The villagers were familiar with Amil and Karan, but seeing the whole group arrive together shook them up. A meeting was had with the patriarch of the village to confirm their intentions. Nana left that up to the males to address and crashed. While she wasn't sick, exhaustion had hit her and her cubs hard. Elizabeth and Awa were not doing great either.