Jobless Transmigration: I'm the only one who loves monsters.-Chapter 49: What to do, What to do.

Chapter 49: What to do, What to do.

It was easier to attribute the girl’s quiet detachment to exhaustion than to dwell on the unsettling, ancient stillness that sometimes lingered in her eyes. Now the backyard was quiet again, except for the soft, slicing sounds of their knives.

Emma who had gone inside, walked to Adrian’s room before slumping onto the bed, her eyes blinked at the sight of his pillow. Her arms unconsciously reached for it and pulled it into her embrace, she took a deep whiff, her body trembling from the familiar scent of him, a strange smile on her face that slowly disappeared as she closed her eyes and descended into slumber.

*****

Contrary to what Snow believed, Adrian really didn’t want to stay out in the cold, anymore than he needed to, which was why his gait wasn’t slow nor was it too fast either since he’d rather not trip and toss the meat on the ground.

His first target was non other than the very man who’d done a great deal to help his little family.

His walk to Mr. Miller’s house was a short one, the packed snow of the village path crunching under Adrian’s boots. He would occasionally run into some villagers or two, but like always, Adrian would entertain them in a brief conversation or greeting before continuing on.

Eventually, he reached his target destination.

The doctor’s home was a sturdy, clean looking one-story wooden structure, with a few neighbouring houses near it but they all paled in comparison to the doctors, even though it was originally him and his daughter that were living here, it seemed the man wasn’t the one to skimp on his possessions. It always had a quiet, almost stern air about it, much like its owner.

" I wonder if anyone’s home."

Adrian knocked firmly on the front door, the sound echoing in the natural morning silence. He waited, shifting the meat from one arm to the other. Yet after waiting for awhile, no answer came from within.

’Of course...’ he thought to himself. ’ He’s probably already at the clinic with Amy.’ Adrian groaned, blaming himself for forgetting such a crucial detail.

’ They’re always working.’ he sighed.

’ Wait, shouldn’t Leo be at home then?’ he thought to himself.

He was just about to turn and head for the clinic, when a voice called down from above.

"Adrian?"

" Huh?"

He looked up. Only to see that Amy was leaning out of an upstairs window, her usual bright orange pigtails looked a bit more messy, as if she’d just woken up. Her face was flushed, and she looked surprised to see him. "What are you doing here?"

He held up the leaf-wrapped package. "We had some extra meat from a hunt. It was far more than we expected, and my mom didn’t want them to go to waste. I thought I’d leave some for you and your father." He gestured to the doorstep. "I can just leave it here for you."

" This isn’t the only bit, I’ve got more to deliver." He smiled lightly.

"Wait!" she said, her voice a little too quick and high. "Just... wait right there!" Before he could reply, she disappeared from the window.

Adrian stood there, confused. He heard the sound of frantic, hurried footsteps from inside the house, then a quick thumping down a staircase. In what felt like less than two seconds, the front door was wrenched open. Adrian stiffened.

’ Just how fast did she....’ He felt a strange fear all of a sudden.

Amy stood there, breathing heavily, her cheeks bright red. She was trying to smooth down her rumpled dress with one hand.

"You... you don’t have to leave so quickly," she said, her words tumbling out in an awkward rush. She stepped back, pulling the door wider. "Do you want to come in?" she asked, looking every bit eager towards his company.

Adrian offered a polite smile but shook his head. "That’s alright, Amy. I shouldn’t intrude. I really should get the remaining meat delivered before it starts to freeze."

The eager light in Amy’s eyes dimmed instantly. Her shoulders slumped just a little. "Oh. Okay."

Adrian saw the change in her expression and immediately felt a pang of guilt. She had clearly rushed down to see him but he was in such a rush to leave. "I’m sorry," he said, his tone softening. "I didn’t mean to be rude."

"It’s fine! It’s totally fine," she insisted, waving her hands dismissively, though her own embarrassment was still plain on her face. " You shouldn’t blame yourself, I’m sure you’re not lying, well I’d rather not keep you here any longer."

"Well... thank you," Adrian said, feeling the awkwardness thicken between them. He turned to leave but something made him pause. He glanced back at her. It was a weekday morning, and the sun was well up. "Why aren’t you at the clinic today? Is everything okay?"

Amy blinked, then looked down, scuffing her boot against the doorstep. A deeper blush spread from her cheeks down her neck. "I’m, uh... I’m dealing with something today."

Adrian, genuinely concerned now, raised an eyebrow. "Dealing with what? Are you sick?"

She looked up at him through her lashes, her expression a mixture of reluctance and shyness. She twisted her fingers together. "It’s... it’s my... my moon time," she finally whispered, her voice so soft he almost didn’t catch it.

Adrian blinked. Then the meaning of her words sank in. His own face flushed a hot, deep red. He suddenly felt incredibly stupid for making her run down the stairs. "Oh! Oh, gods, Amy, I’m so sorry! I shouldn’t have made you come down like that. You should be resting."

She managed a small, reassuring smile, touched by his flustered concern. "It’s really okay, Adrian. It’s not that bad. I just... my father insists I take it easy on the first day." 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

His embarrassment began to cool, replaced by a different thought. "Where’s Leo, then?" he asked, a hint of annoyance creeping into his voice. "If you’re not feeling well, he should be here to help you, not leaving you alone."

Amy’s heart gave a little flutter at his protective tone. She tried to keep her expression neutral. "He went out early with my father to help at the clinic. Since I couldn’t go, Papa needed an extra pair of hands."

Adrian was taken aback. "Leo? Helping at the clinic? Is that a good idea?" The image of the nobleman-turned-refugee handling medical supplies was a strange one.

Amy shrugged. "I don’t mind. Plus, we both know who my father is, I doubt he’d let anyone run a mess of his clinic."

" He’s probably having Leo mostly just fetches things or organizing shelves. he’s definitely not doing anything to complicated." She saw the skeptical look on Adrian’s face and didn’t press it further.

An uncomfortable silence fell. "Right," Adrian said finally. "Well, I should let you get back to resting." He gave her a nod and turned to go.

"Adrian, wait!" Amy called out.

He stopped and turned back. "Yeah?"

She took a small, hesitant step forward, her earlier shyness returning. "About... about you leaving with Leo."

" Mr. Miller already told you?" Adrian chuckled awkwardly.

" Yes.." Amy smiled back before continuing, her voice softening once more.

"When you go to the capital..." She took a deep breath, gathering her courage. "Do you think... would it be possible... for me to come with you?"

Adrian was silent for a long moment. He looked at her hopeful face, at the genuine longing in her eyes. A complicated knot of emotions tightened in his chest. He gave her an awkward, strained smile. "Amy... that’s not really my decision to make. You’d have to ask Leo about that." He decided to avoid the question completely.

Instead of looking hurt, Amy’s eyes lit up with a new, fierce excitement. "So, if he says yes, you’ll let me come? You won’t try to stop me?"

’ ...What have I done.’

Trapped, Adrian could only shrug reluctantly. "I... I suppose not. If he agrees, then... I guess you can come."

A brilliant, triumphant smile broke out across Amy’s face. "Okay! Okay, good!" She beamed at him. "Get home safe, Adrian!"

He gave her a final, slightly bewildered wave before turning and walking away, the parcel of meat felt strangely warm in Amy’s hands or maybe it was just the effects of her accelerating heart rate and rising temperature due to excitement.

Adrian on the other hand, had a feeling he’d just made a promise that was going to complicate his life in ways he couldn’t even begin to imagine.

*****

Adrian pushed open the cottage door, and walked inside. He rubbed his hand together to get rid of the residual frost on his fingertips. The heavy parcel of meat was gone from his arms, leaving him feeling a lot better, it was actually quite strange to carry around a slab of meat like that.

His mother was in the main room, carefully hanging the last of the thin-sliced meat strips in her hand, near the fire place to dry, creating a curtain of dark red that would slowly transform into jerky over the coming days if given the time.

"There you are," she said, not turning around, her voice calm yet warm. "I was starting to wonder if Thomas had recruited you for patrol duty. You were gone a while."

" I wasn’t with Thomas mom." Adrian chuckled.

"I went to the Miller’s place first," Adrian explained, shrugging off his coat and hanging it by the door. "I dropped off the venison at his place."

Melissa finished adjusting a strip of meat and turned, wiping her hands on her apron. "Oh? shouldn’t they be at the clinic by now."

" Yes but surprisingly, Amy was at home so I gave it to her instead." Adrian smiled sheepishly.

A knowing, gentle smile played on her lips. " And how was Amy, dear. Since she didn’t join her father, I hope nothing is wrong with her."

Adrian let out a soft chuckle, shaking his head at the memory of his own flustered embarrassment. "She’s fine, Mom. A little tired, but she’s okay." He didn’t elaborate further, the image of Amy’s flushed face at the doorway and what she’d told him was still a little too vivid in his head.

He then glanced around the quiet room. Noticing that it was a bit too spacious than he expected. The feminine energy was absent. The house was peaceful, almost unnervingly so. "Where is everyone? It’s quiet."

"Emma went up to lie down not long after you left," Melissa said, returning to her task. "She looked worn out. Then, maybe a few minutes ago, Snow decided she was feeling sleepy too and went to join her." She then gestured with a knife toward the backyard. "And Grey... well, Grey took one look at the dwindling woodpile and decided she was going to fix it."

" I tried to tell her it could wait, that you would do it later, but she got this look in her eye." Melissa chuckled, a warm, fond sound. "She was so determined to be useful that she marched out there before I could stop here. If I didn’t know any better, I would’ve thought that she was trying to single-handedly replenish the entire village’s firewood supply."

Adrian chuckled, this time his laugh was genuine. He could easily picture it, Grey sometimes was a bit more hardworking than he’d like, he just hoped that she didn’t end up tiring herself out one day.

’ It’s good that the little troublemaker is asleep.’ he thought inwardly, a wave of relief washing over him at the temporary reprieve from Emma’s chaotic presence. His mind then drifted to Snow.

’ And Snow... why is she sleeping in the middle of the day?’ He pondered it for a moment, then a theory formed.

’ Maybe it has something to do with her being part snake. Maybe she needs to conserve her energy, or the cold affects her because she’s no different from a cold blooded reptile?’ he wondered. It was as good an explanation as any in his strange new world.