The king and queen, and the two princesses. It was obvious that their lives as captives would be miserable, so Makedes could only carefully bring up the question to Eutostea. Their current well-being is unknown. However, he did not assume the worst and instead calmly spoke with a comforting tone for her.
“If we achieve a great victory and completely sweep away Marean nation’s power, we’ll be able to safely rescue the royal family members. There’s a possibility.”
“…”
“If only they can hold on until then. At the same time, we can reclaim our country.”
“…”
“Then, we won’t have to send anyone precious away anymore.”
“…Yes.”
The two people’s eyes met. The reason they could boldly spit out such inescapable words was that they all desperately wanted it.
***
After the men were conscripted, all that remained in the village were children and women. Eutostea encountered the women who had come to help with work in the village upon hearing that the army had returned. They each carried a basket full of dirty laundry.
Those who were distributing food were gathered together separately. The women, who all had similar attire with their hair curled up and tied across their foreheads with X-shaped hairbands, stood out. Eutostea’s priestess outfit was particularly conspicuous among them. Rumors about the drinks she produced seemed to have spread quietly, as the gazes directed towards her were filled with curiosity.
One woman, who had a nursing child hanging at her hip, stopped Eutostea.
“Priestess, you should change your clothes. They’re stained with blood.”
Eutostea looked down at her clothes. Was it from the patients when she gave them drinks? When she was in the Temple of Dionysus, she didn’t feel her clothes getting dirty, but once outside, her priestess outfit had various stains on it.
“I don’t have any spare clothes, so could you lend me a set?”
“Of course. I’m actually on my way to do laundry now. Would you like to join me? We have to wash the soldiers’ bandages, cloaks, towels, bedding… There’s a mountain of laundry.”
“Yes, I’ll help.”
And so, she naturally joined the group of women. She could easily spot the place Macaedes had pointed out as a private home. As they descended from the rugged hill where the fortress was located, a long stone oak forest spread out, with humble houses appearing behind the naturally formed cover.
The small stream flowing through the forest was where the women fetched water and did laundry. On the way, they saw sporadic cl**ters of wild camellia trees. The modest red flowers buried in the snow caught their eyes. The children with red noses, who had been playing and shaking the snow off the trees, stared at the newly appeared Eutostea with curious eyes and followed her like a flock of geese.
“Kaseos, it’s dangerous, remember not to leave the village!”
A woman, who appeared to be the child’s mother, scolded him and pulled him back behind her.
“Mom, who is she?”
A small head peeked out from behind the hem of her skirt.
“She’s a priestess. Oh dear, look at your hands. They’re all frozen. How long have you been playing without dressing properly?”
The small hands were red and swollen. The mother brought them to her mouth and blew on them to warm them up.
“A priestess? She’s wearing strange clothes and even has a crown like a princess.”
A girl with braided hair, who had been glancing at Eutostea, spoke. Her nose was running, and the woman who seemed to be her mother wiped it away with a rag. The girl walked through the forest holding her mother’s hand.
The other children carried the loads to the stream, going around the group of women. As they set down the baskets at the partially melted stream, the women soaked the blood-stained bandages in a deep pool that reached their forearms. The water was freezing cold. Eutostea tried to imitate them nonchalantly, but was startled and pulled her hand out.
“It’s cold, isn’t it? Still, you have to remove the bloodstains with cold water. The rest of the laundry will be boiled after warming the water.”
A woman, who had a newborn baby tied to her side, explained with a giggle. Eutostea repeatedly dunked her hand in the pool as if punching it. Bubbles formed in the pinkish water and floated away. Meanwhile, the others busily started a fire and filled a cauldron with water. They sat the children near the fire to warm them up.
“Are you the priestess who distributed the vitality drink? I was surprised to see people who were bedridden yesterday and today suddenly get up and move around after going to the fortress. How do you possess such a miraculous power? The soldiers said it’s because you’re a priestess of Dionysus, is that true?”
A woman named Letia asked Eutostea. In her brown eyes were pure curiosity and gratitude for healing the soldiers.
“Yes, I serve Lord Dionysus.”
“It’s my first time seeing a priestess who serves him. Actually, it’s rare for me to see a priestess at all. Since they’re usually tending the sacred fire in the temples, people like me who can’t offer sacrifices find it difficult to even catch a glimpse from a distance.”
“We only get to worship the gods briefly during the harvest season. We can’t constantly visit the temples and offer prayers like the higher-ups do.”
The one who spoke was Anemone. She was still unmarried, and among the women, she was the youngest and most beautiful. She appeared to be the same age as Eutostea. For that reason, she seemed to approach Eutostea most warmly and strike up a conversation.
“I’m from another town. When I heard the war broke out, I hastily packed up and fled here, only to realize I left my unfinished harvest behind. I left perfectly ripe peaches and olives, and when I saw the fire, all I could do was roll away in a panic. But I’m not the only one like this. Those who lived on the outskirts of the city, like me, managed to avoid trouble, but I heard that people who lived near the main city center, where the large agoras are, were the first to be attacked and dragged away as war prisoners.”
“I came here because my younger brother joined the army.”
The woman sitting next to Anemone chimed in.
“We all gathered here, one by one. There were originally fewer than five families before the army arrived, but now we’ve tripled in number.”
They praised the holy troops, who had become the center of their displaced lives. They said if it weren’t for them, they would have crossed the Styx River long ago.
They finished rinsing the blood out of the bandages. After washing the stiff, grass-like fabric in water, they put it in a pot of boiling water mixed with lye. While the others washed the remaining clothes, Eutostea was in charge of watching the fabric being boiled in the pot.
The king and queen, and the two princesses. It was obvious that their lives as captives would be miserable, so Makedes could only carefully bring up the question to Eutostea. Their current well-being is unknown. However, he did not assume the worst and instead calmly spoke with a comforting tone for her.
“If we achieve a great victory and completely sweep away Marean nation’s power, we’ll be able to safely rescue the royal family members. There’s a possibility.”
“…”
“If only they can hold on until then. At the same time, we can reclaim our country.”
“…”
“Then, we won’t have to send anyone precious away anymore.”
“…Yes.”
The two people’s eyes met. The reason they could boldly spit out such inescapable words was that they all desperately wanted it.
***
After the men were conscripted, all that remained in the village were children and women. Eutostea encountered the women who had come to help with work in the village upon hearing that the army had returned. They each carried a basket full of dirty laundry.
Those who were distributing food were gathered together separately. The women, who all had similar attire with their hair curled up and tied across their foreheads with X-shaped hairbands, stood out. Eutostea’s priestess outfit was particularly conspicuous among them. Rumors about the drinks she produced seemed to have spread quietly, as the gazes directed towards her were filled with curiosity.
One woman, who had a nursing child hanging at her hip, stopped Eutostea.
“Priestess, you should change your clothes. They’re stained with blood.”
Eutostea looked down at her clothes. Was it from the patients when she gave them drinks? When she was in the Temple of Dionysus, she didn’t feel her clothes getting dirty, but once outside, her priestess outfit had various stains on it.
“I don’t have any spare clothes, so could you lend me a set?”
“Of course. I’m actually on my way to do laundry now. Would you like to join me? We have to wash the soldiers’ bandages, cloaks, towels, bedding… There’s a mountain of laundry.”
“Yes, I’ll help.”
And so, she naturally joined the group of women. She could easily spot the place Macaedes had pointed out as a private home. As they descended from the rugged hill where the fortress was located, a long stone oak forest spread out, with humble houses appearing behind the naturally formed cover.
The small stream flowing through the forest was where the women fetched water and did laundry. On the way, they saw sporadic cl**ters of wild camellia trees. The modest red flowers buried in the snow caught their eyes. The children with red noses, who had been playing and shaking the snow off the trees, stared at the newly appeared Eutostea with curious eyes and followed her like a flock of geese.
“Kaseos, it’s dangerous, remember not to leave the village!”
A woman, who appeared to be the child’s mother, scolded him and pulled him back behind her.
“Mom, who is she?”
A small head peeked out from behind the hem of her skirt.
“She’s a priestess. Oh dear, look at your hands. They’re all frozen. How long have you been playing without dressing properly?”
The small hands were red and swollen. The mother brought them to her mouth and blew on them to warm them up.
“A priestess? She’s wearing strange clothes and even has a crown like a princess.”
A girl with braided hair, who had been glancing at Eutostea, spoke. Her nose was running, and the woman who seemed to be her mother wiped it away with a rag. The girl walked through the forest holding her mother’s hand.
The other children carried the loads to the stream, going around the group of women. As they set down the baskets at the partially melted stream, the women soaked the blood-stained bandages in a deep pool that reached their forearms. The water was freezing cold. Eutostea tried to imitate them nonchalantly, but was startled and pulled her hand out.
“It’s cold, isn’t it? Still, you have to remove the bloodstains with cold water. The rest of the laundry will be boiled after warming the water.”
A woman, who had a newborn baby tied to her side, explained with a giggle. Eutostea repeatedly dunked her hand in the pool as if punching it. Bubbles formed in the pinkish water and floated away. Meanwhile, the others busily started a fire and filled a cauldron with water. They sat the children near the fire to warm them up.
“Are you the priestess who distributed the vitality drink? I was surprised to see people who were bedridden yesterday and today suddenly get up and move around after going to the fortress. How do you possess such a miraculous power? The soldiers said it’s because you’re a priestess of Dionysus, is that true?”
A woman named Letia asked Eutostea. In her brown eyes were pure curiosity and gratitude for healing the soldiers.
“Yes, I serve Lord Dionysus.”
“It’s my first time seeing a priestess who serves him. Actually, it’s rare for me to see a priestess at all. Since they’re usually tending the sacred fire in the temples, people like me who can’t offer sacrifices find it difficult to even catch a glimpse from a distance.”
“We only get to worship the gods briefly during the harvest season. We can’t constantly visit the temples and offer prayers like the higher-ups do.”
The one who spoke was Anemone. She was still unmarried, and among the women, she was the youngest and most beautiful. She appeared to be the same age as Eutostea. For that reason, she seemed to approach Eutostea most warmly and strike up a conversation.
“I’m from another town. When I heard the war broke out, I hastily packed up and fled here, only to realize I left my unfinished harvest behind. I left perfectly ripe peaches and olives, and when I saw the fire, all I could do was roll away in a panic. But I’m not the only one like this. Those who lived on the outskirts of the city, like me, managed to avoid trouble, but I heard that people who lived near the main city center, where the large agoras are, were the first to be attacked and dragged away as war prisoners.”
“I came here because my younger brother joined the army.”
The woman sitting next to Anemone chimed in.
“We all gathered here, one by one. There were originally fewer than five families before the army arrived, but now we’ve tripled in number.”
They praised the holy troops, who had become the center of their displaced lives. They said if it weren’t for them, they would have crossed the Styx River long ago.
They finished rinsing the blood out of the bandages. After washing the stiff, grass-like fabric in water, they put it in a pot of boiling water mixed with lye. While the others washed the remaining clothes, Eutostea was in charge of watching the fabric being boiled in the pot.
