Dali gazed into the distance.

Dali said to me, “I don’t want to.”

It was the answer I’d expected, but the problem was, I hadn’t even asked yet. She suddenly appeared behind me and blurted it out.

Three days had passed since Orchid and I entered the underground passage. I was just preparing to go out scavenging, so I could only reply, “I’ve already promised Father.”

Dali said, “I never agreed! Please, can you refuse him? Since we were children, you’ve always looked after me, but I don’t have feelings for you. No, that’s not it, you’re my best friend, but I don’t… I don’t feel that way about you.”

I knew. The feeling was mutual. But my foster father didn’t have much time left. I couldn’t let him down, nor could I let Dali know that the only reason I planned to marry her was because he had asked me to.

I couldn’t let her know I didn’t love her. She already had little affection for me; if she learned the truth, our marriage would only become worse.

I said, “I’m sorry, but I will marry you.”

Dali retorted angrily, “That will only make me hate you more! Why won’t you let me go?”

I replied, “It’s for your own good.”

Dali said, “You’ve always been despicable, always scheming, always finding ways to interfere between me and Milsay! Now you’ve finally gotten your way?”

Why should I have to endure such accusations from her? There was no one else around, but what if someone overheard? Wouldn’t I become a laughingstock?

I said, “If Milsay were here, I’d give you my blessing, but he’s gone, do you understand? He’s gone!”

Dali looked up and said, “If you still value your friendship with Milsay, then take me to find him!”

I could hardly believe my ears. I asked, “What?”

Dali replied, “Take me to find Milsay! Take me to the Sword and Shield Society to find him!”

I thought she was being utterly unreasonable. She was already my fiancée, yet she wanted me to defy Orchid’s orders and my sworn oath, and send her away to another man far off in the distance!

I shouted, “What makes you think I’d agree to that?”

Dali said, “Because I trust you, because I know you’d never betray Milsay. You may be clever, but I know your brotherly affection for him is genuine!”

I could no longer restrain myself. I said, “Do you think I want to marry you? I don’t even like you at all!”

Dali was stunned. She actually said, “You’re lying!”

She was trembling all over as she spoke.

I said, “Dalia, if it weren’t… if it weren’t for Father’s plea… Enough—let’s not talk about this. I gave Father my word, and I’ll never go back on it! I advise you not to cause him any more distress.”

She probably still didn’t know about Orchid’s illness. She was a sensible girl—if she knew, she wouldn’t be so unreasonable. Since Orchid didn’t want her to know, I wouldn’t go against his wishes.

I held out my hand to her. She thought I was trying to make peace and, with tears in her eyes, angrily slapped it away. Remembering that Orchid’s time was short, my eyes reddened and I forgave her rudeness.

I said, “Give me the token, I’m heading out.” As scavengers, we had special tokens for leaving the settlement, but they had to be issued by Dali and the other administrators, and returned upon coming back.

She gave me the token and ran into the village.

This time, I intended to go farther and faster than ever before, to find something truly valuable, because my days as a scavenger were coming to an end.

I avoided the scattered bandits along the road, slipping through grasslands and woods as silently as possible, mapping out the area in my mind. Whether or not I ever planned to leave, maps were always useful. Someday, I would chart the surroundings with precision. If I couldn’t reach the skyscrapers, then I would build something just as magnificent here.

I killed a few mutated giant rats, skinned and butchered them, and scavenged some medicine from a few convenience stores. Then I saw someone I knew coming from the south. His name was Pam, an old, quick-footed scavenger.

Pam said, “I found the ocean. Want to take a look?”

My heart leaped for joy. The ocean? Did the sea truly still exist in this world? If it was real, this would be the perfect way to commemorate the end of my scavenging days.

“Of course!” I shouted. We quickened our pace, walking nearly twenty kilometers, and then I saw it: a great red bridge spanning the sea, cerulean waves churning beneath the broken structure, endless and wild. The cool sea breeze swept away the oppressive heat and dryness—it felt like paradise, as if nothing could surpass this joy.

This must be the Golden Gate Bridge, something I’d seen in magazines.

Pam and I felt our spirits soar, and we shouted toward the shore. Beneath the water, I saw a dark fish, as enormous as the bridge itself, glide by. In that instant, a chill ran down my spine, but Pam seemed not to notice.

Pam asked, “What’s wrong?”

I said, “Nothing, I… must have imagined something.”

Checking the time, I was sure we could make it back to the village. We found a rock to sit on and took out our rations. Pam said, “I haven’t seen that old chatterbox for days now.”

I laughed, “I saw him dancing in the mushroom field just the other day.”

Pam said, “Maybe, but no one else has seen him since. No one’s at his place, and he hasn’t even come to eat.”

I thought for a moment. “That’s strange. The village isn’t big, and he isn’t a scavenger, so he can’t leave. Where could he be hiding?”

Pam said, “His friends are worried—terrified, even. People went to Orchid, and Orchid promised he’d be found.”

A shadow passed through my heart.

Pam went on, “Before he disappeared, that old chatterbox told everyone in the association that Orchid was the one who broke the mushroom field’s pipes, angering the guardian spirit. He said he’d get to the bottom of it, no matter how powerful Orchid was. Do you think he offended Orchid because of this...?”

Annoyed, I said, “Are you suggesting my father killed him?”

Pam quickly replied, “No, no, that’s not what I meant. It’s just… too much of a coincidence.”

I said, “Father isn’t that kind of person! His character is beyond reproach!” My foster father wasn’t like me—he could never be so ruthless.

Pam said, “Right, right.”

I no longer felt like watching the sea, and we started heading back.

A few kilometers from the village, in the light of the setting sun, I saw Dali, carrying a cloth sack, running for her life. Two white demons were closing in behind her. She saw us too, but gritted her teeth and kept running, away from us.

White demons were the most common kind—about six feet long, muscular as tigers, with long horns on their heads and sharp claws and fangs. They usually hunted in packs.

Pam shrieked, “Good heavens, what’s she doing here?”

I said, “Hide!” I tossed aside my bundle and sprinted toward her, drinking a vial of viper’s blood as I ran and smearing it on my dagger.

Viper’s blood was my ace in the hole, the crown jewel of my concoctions. It could make my dagger deadly with a single scratch, and turn my own blood into venom. Yet I wouldn’t die from the poison—that was the strangest thing.

I managed to intercept her and the white demons. One of them lunged at me; I grabbed its horn, leapt onto its head, and plunged my dagger into its skull. It collapsed. The other demon knocked me down. I felt its fangs sink into my side, nearly tearing out a chunk of flesh, but the venom instantly paralyzed it. We both fell, and as it slowly died, it wouldn’t let go. Its jaws clamped onto my bones like iron shackles.

By then, Dali and Pam had run over. Pam shouted, “We have to bandage him!”

Dali looked stricken with guilt and sorrow. She tried to force open the demon’s jaws, but I yelled, “Careful—my blood is poisonous.”

Together, they pried its jaws apart. Dali wanted to treat my wound, but I said, “I’ll do it myself. Otherwise, you’ll die from the poison, just like the demon.” Dali covered her face, wiping away tears. “It’s all my fault,” she said.

Pam said, “Lucky for you, you ran into Longinus. If it’d been me, I wouldn’t have been enough to fill that demon’s teeth. What the hell… Why are you out here, rich girl?”

I asked, “You’re trying to find Milsay?”

Dali’s tears fell even harder. She said, “Yes.”

Pam slapped his forehead, looked at me, then at Dali. “I didn’t hear a thing,” he muttered, skulking away.

I was frustrated. “This is madness! You don’t even know where the Sword and Shield Society is!”

Dali said, “Milsay’s letter gave a rough location. I… I thought there wouldn’t be any demons before dark. Maybe I could… find somewhere to hide…” She clutched a crumpled letter, clearly one she had read over and over.

Maybe she was right. Maybe I should take her to the Sword and Shield Society, reunite her with Milsay. She’d be safe at their headquarters, and I would still be fulfilling my promise to Orchid to protect her…

To hell with it! How could I even have such a thought? She’s my fiancée! Am I really going to hand her over to another man? What am I, some kind of cuckold?

I got to my feet and was amazed to find I hadn’t injured any organs, nor broken any bones—just a nasty flesh wound. I bandaged myself and the bleeding slowed.

I said, “Follow me and Pam. Don’t stray from the path.”

Pam led the way. Dali supported me from behind; she was no longer crying, lost in her own thoughts.

I whispered, “Stay here in the village. Even if you don’t want to marry me, I won’t force you. I’ll help persuade Father to change his mind.”

Dali replied, “Thank you… for saving me. I shouldn’t have snapped at you this morning.”

I said, “I’ve gotten used to it over the past year.”

Dali looked deeply apologetic. “I thought if I acted that way, you’d dislike me and give up on marrying me. I often wonder why I can’t control my own life. Why can’t I even choose my own marriage?”

I said, “Because marriage isn’t something you do alone. At the very least, it involves two people. For example, you want to marry Milsay, but he couldn’t escape being taken by the Sword and Shield Society.”

And my marriage to you is about Orchid’s wishes—and the future of the entire village.

Another gatekeeper let us back into the village. I went to the main hall, but Orchid wasn’t there. In fact, the old chatterbox was sitting among the crowd, looking healthier than ever, laughing uproariously at someone’s joke.

I shot Pam a glare. Pam looked sheepish. “Isn’t this better? Better than… you know.”

I kept Dali’s attempted escape a secret. Doctor Olai treated my wounds, marveling at my luck.

When I returned to my room, I saw the white fish—Purity—reduced to nothing but a skeleton.