"Kayo...?"
What is happening...? Suddenly, my head feels so heavy, as if the pressure is about to force my body down onto the floor.
My body is lying sideways near the entrance, both of my legs still bent... What exactly happened?
I try calling out to Kayo with my weak voice, though it probably sounds no more than a whisper.
If I remember correctly... I'm in this room because Kayo brought me here... Since when did I fall asleep—
"Lin, are you okay? You made all of us worry, you know."
When I blink my eyes again, Kayo is there. He bends his body down to look at my face that has just woken up.
From his expression, Kayo's face carries a deep sadness. I do not want to sound too confident, but... is he worried about me?
Slowly, I gather strength throughout my body to sit up on the floor. It feels almost the same as when I first woke up earlier... Seriously.
The pain in my head quickly spreads, forcing me to hold my forehead to ease the ache. Ugh... Why do I always wake up with a headache?
"Don't force yourself yet, Lin. You should stay lying down until your condition gets better," Kayo insists while touching my back. He is truly worried about me.
I do not answer him immediately. My eyes instantly wander across the entire room. I try to remember as much as I can, even though it is extremely difficult.
"You suddenly fainted earlier. I intentionally left you here because I thought your body would suffer if I brought you back there."
"...Well? What do you remember?"
Kayo looks at me with the same expression as before, trying to figure out the condition of my mind after I lost consciousness.
...The reason why I ended up here is... The more I try to remember, the vaguer it becomes. I almost managed to remember everything, but...
When I stay silent without answering him, Kayo lets out a short sigh before extending his hand toward me.
"It's okay, Lin. At least you woke up again. That alone is already enough," he says.
I immediately accept his outstretched hand and stand before him, the distance between us now close after receiving his kindness.
"Will everyone here finally rest peacefully in the afterlife...?" I ask.
Kayo said earlier that he wanted to tell me something, but perhaps I fainted before I could hear it.
The reason why so many people died because of those strange suicidal symptoms like the man before... It is truly horrifying.
Kayo quickly averts his gaze from my face, looking in the same direction as me.
"Of course. All of us who are still breathing right now should be grateful that we can still move. I'm sure... even though they unconsciously killed themselves, their souls will rest in a peaceful place."
Then, he looks back at me again. Naturally, I end up staring back at him.
"For example, maybe their souls are enjoying their time watching over all of us from within ourselves, following the instincts they once had before they can finally reach heaven someday," he says.
If possible, I want to ask him again about what he told me earlier, but I do not have the courage to do it.
On one hand, I feel like I would only trouble him, because he already explained everything to me, yet I cannot remember a single thing.
"So... what are we going to do now...?" I ask.
"First of all, we'll gather together again after everyone who fainted wakes up. After that... perhaps it's finally time for us to think about a way to leave this place."
I nod my head after hearing his answer, and a sense of conviction forms within my heart that we will soon leave this city.
Hearing the statement that our people could finally be free from this place... it feels like hearing a dream that had always been buried deep inside our hearts finally becoming reality in the near future.
——
A week after that incident, it turned out that Lin truly had lost her memories of what Kayo told her.
As if Kayo had erased all of those horrifying memories and returned Lin's innocent personality, even though she still knew that she herself was the Lady Princess.
Throughout the past week, Kayo told Lin many things. Starting from their childhood, to their relationship as Prince and Lady Princess.
Because of Kayo's words, Lin began to feel that Kayo was someone very close to her. Romantic feelings slowly began to grow within her heart.
Slowly, but surely. Even though Lin did not notice those feelings when they first appeared, Kayo could sense Lin's emotions without her saying a single word.
—
Today, Kayo once again leads all of us while organizing the plan that we will carry out in the near future.
Once again... I can only stay beside Kayo without being able to help him. He truly stands in front of all of us as if we are following the trail he leaves behind at the doorway.
He... looks so cool, leading all of us like a true King. Even though he is indeed a Prince, I cannot become the Lady Princess he told me about.
I do not know why, but ever since I woke up, most people have looked at me with narrowed eyes. I can even faintly hear their insults directed at me.
Perhaps it is only the result of their overflowing emotions because of the mistakes I made back when I was the Lady Princess. I guess...
It's okay.
I'm sure of it.
Even though they cannot accept my presence, Kayo always protects me from all those insults. I wonder... in the past, did I also look at Kayo the same way I do now?
"Everyone, what do you think? After understanding our condition, this is the only path we can take to survive for the future of our people."
Ah right... Right now, we are inside a city that serves as a massive prostitution center unknown to the outside world.
Our foxfolk survive by constantly moving from one place to another. We never truly had a homeland, but Kayo cleared up that confusion.
Yesterday, he reassured us by saying that there exists a continent whose inhabitants are beast-men, people of the same family as us.
With that in mind, we could travel to the continent located south of the continent of Londerg and live peacefully there.
All of us believed him because... the one who said it was Kayo. The only person we can truly rely on right now.
During our journey there, we will travel together in a large group. Crossing the frozen continent before finally arriving at the continent of Nakuso, the place Kayo described as our true home.
Many people seriously considered that plan, yet they feared we would never reach that continent because of our current condition.
Quite a lot of us chose to stay here instead, working as slaves to perform dirty labor and live here forever with a guaranteed future.
Just this morning alone... nearly ten girls had already been assigned to work. They would return next weekend after fulfilling the market's demands with their sales targets.
In this situation, it is only natural for them to feel conflicted and uncertain about which path they should choose.
Today became the turning point. After Kayo explained the plan he had prepared, we split into two groups.
One side chose to follow Kayo, searching for the continent we longed for because we still had faith.
The others chose to stay behind. Even though they knew they would only become slaves here, to them, that was still better than freezing to death or getting lost during the journey.
I... have no right to force them to follow us. Their faces looked truly miserable, and I did not have the courage to destroy the beliefs they chose to hold onto.
"We'll stay here, Kayo. We won't stop all of you. This is the choice we've decided upon."
"That's right. Don't worry about us. You only need to follow your own path and find a different future for the sake of our foxfolk."
"So go. Carry the name of our people and protect the pride we still have."
——
The next morning, Kayo and the people who planned to follow him had already prepared themselves with complete clothing and large bags carried by everyone.
The contents of those bags varied, ranging from food and drinks to firewood that would definitely be needed later.
As for Lin, someone asked her to carry a bag filled with firewood that should normally be carried by the men. Lin was deceived.
She accepted it because at first she thought it was a direct request from Kayo. But in reality, the person who asked her to carry it was merely irritated by the truth they knew about the other side of the Lady Princess standing before them.
—
All of them quietly followed Kayo's instructions, taking advantage of the silent building as they sneaked through every corridor to escape through the back door.
No guards were stationed there, which was why they chose to leave through the back rather than pass through the main entrance that was surely being watched.
To keep watch, Kayo allowed the group to leave before him. At the same time, he checked whether anyone had been left behind or not.
They had to race against time before someone realized that they were trying to escape without informing the owner of this building.
——
!!
I try to run like everyone else, but instead it leaves me exhausted, my breathing becoming ragged. It seems my body is not very strong after all.
"Lin!"
...Kayo? What is he doing? Why is he still standing near the door and letting everyone else leave first?
"What is it?" I ask while standing before him after stepping out of the group. I cannot possibly block the path just to speak with him.
"Don't worry, Lin. We'll stay together, okay?"
"There's something I want to warn you about. We'll continue moving for a very long time, so make sure you keep eating properly. If you starve, the effects will start spreading throughout your body."
I simply smile after hearing his warning. It feels as though I alone am receiving his attention, even though that is not truly the case.
——
The two of them become the last people from the group attempting to escape from that place. Lin chooses to stay beside Kayo because she worries that some of them might get caught.
From that moment on, Lin begins living the life she believes to be beautiful and wonderful.
Even though... the reality is the complete opposite. Like ants crawling across a giant piece of wood, they continue living only to disturb it, even though the wood itself cannot feel their existence.