The tenth day.
The backpack was nearly empty.
Kyle let out a quiet sigh as he checked their remaining supplies. There was one piece of rock-hard bread, a little dried meat, and a few sprigs of herbs. This was everything.
"It will be gone by tomorrow," he muttered to himself.
The food Margaret had packed ran out days ago. Since then, they had survived on berries and moss scavenged from the forest, but even that had reached its limit.
"Kyle."
Alicia approached him. Her face was much more haggard than it had been a few days ago. The shadows under her eyes had deepened, and her cheeks had lost their fullness.
"I'm hungry."
It was a simple statement. If it had been the Alicia of ten days ago, she would have screamed, "Why isn't there any real food?!" But things were different now. She simply stated the fact.
"Please bear with it a little longer. I can see a village up ahead."
Kyle pointed toward the distance.
Smoke was rising over the hill. It was the sign of a small settlement.
"We should be able to get food there."
Hope flickered in Alicia's eyes.
"Really?"
"Yes. Let us hurry."
When they arrived at the village, Alicia could not hide her disappointment.
The village where Margaret lived had been small, but this place looked even poorer. Shacks that were an embarrassment to be called houses were huddled together, and the clothes of the people passing by were little more than rags.
Children were barefoot. Adults watched them with hungry faces and wary eyes.
"What could we possibly get here?" Alicia whispered.
"We must do what we can."
Kyle walked toward the center of the village.
He approached an old man and asked him something. The old man glanced at him for a moment and then pointed toward a small hut.
A short while later, Kyle returned holding a small bundle.
"What is that?" Alicia asked.
"Food," Kyle replied.
He opened the bundle.
Inside were a few pieces of bread, a little cheese, and some dried beans. The bread was hard and stale, and the cheese had spots of mold on it.
Alicia's face contorted.
"What is this?"
"I told you. It is food."
"This is food?!" Her voice rose. "This is practically rotten! Do you see the mold? And the bread is as hard as a rock!"
Kyle watched her in silence. Then he closed the bundle.
"Then do not eat it."
"What?" Alicia's eyes widened.
"If you do not want to eat it, you do not have to." Kyle's voice was flat. "It is at least two days to the next village. You can choose to starve until then, or you can eat this. The choice is yours, My Lady."
Alicia was speechless.
Until now, Kyle had accommodated her complaints to some extent. He let her rest when she was tired and found whatever he could when she was hungry.
But this time was different. There was no sign of compromise in his eyes.
"Fine!" Alicia turned away. "I won't eat it. I don't need to eat stuff like that."
"Very well." Kyle put the bundle back into his pack. "We will rest near the village for today. We leave early tomorrow morning."
That afternoon.
Alicia ate nothing.
Kyle did not offer the food again. He simply handed her some water that the villagers had provided.
She was hungry. She grew hungrier and hungrier.
But Alicia refused to give in.
"I'd rather starve than eat something that filthy," she told herself, trying to stay firm.
But as time passed, the hunger grew unbearable. Her stomach screamed, and her head began to feel dizzy.
By evening, Alicia could no longer hold out.
She sat leaning against a tree, clutching her stomach. Her face was pale, and her lips were cracked.
Kyle watched her from a distance.
"Hunger is the greatest teacher of humility," he thought.
Born and raised in Valencia Castle, Alicia did not know what real hunger felt like. Anything she wanted was given to her, and there was never a lack of food.
Because of that, she did not know that many people in this world died of starvation because they couldn't even get "rotten" food like that.
"But she will know by tonight," Kyle thought as he walked toward her.
Night fell.
Alicia could no longer take it.
"Sniff... sob..."
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
She wasn't just crying because she was hungry, though that was part of it. There was a bigger reason. She felt so pathetic.
She was hungry. She was really, truly hungry. It felt like her stomach was being wrung out.
But what was harder to deal with was her own stubbornness.
"Why did I do that?"
She thought back to her refusal of the food earlier that day.
"It's rotten. We wouldn't even give it to the dogs," she had said.
But now that she thought about it, what must the villagers who gave them that food have felt? They had shared what little they had with strange travelers, even though they had nothing themselves. To them, that food must have been precious.
And yet, she had rejected it, calling it rotten and filthy.
"I'm really the worst..." Alicia cried, hugging her knees.
Just then, she heard footsteps.
"My Lady."
It was Kyle.
He knelt before her and held out something in his hand. It was a piece of bread. The same hard, stale bread from earlier.
"Eat."
Alicia looked up at him. Her face was smeared with tears, her eyes were swollen, and she looked miserable.
"Can I... can I eat it?"
"Yes."
"But I said I wouldn't eat it earlier."
"It is fine," Kyle's voice was gentle. "You may eat now."
Alicia took the bread with trembling hands. It was hard. It was as hard as a stone.
But she put it in her mouth. She bit down.
Her jaw ached and her teeth hurt, but she kept chewing.
"Sob..."
The tears wouldn't stop. She cried as she ate.
"Sob... sniff..."
It didn't taste good. It just tasted like flour. It had a musty smell because it was old.
But it was strange. It felt like she was eating the most delicious thing in the world.
"Why..." Alicia sobbed while chewing the bread. "Why does it taste so good?"
Kyle said nothing. He simply sat beside her until she had finished every crumb.
The next morning.
Before they left the village, Alicia walked around for a bit.
The morning sunlight illuminated the poor village. She saw things she hadn't noticed the day before: children with hungry faces, adults in tattered clothes, and shacks on the verge of collapsing.
And then.
"Big sister!"
She heard a small voice.
Alicia turned to see a young girl running toward her. She looked to be about seven years old. She wore worn-out clothes and was barefoot, but her face was full of a bright smile.
"Sister, take this!"
The girl held out her hand. It was a small piece of fruit, a half that had been split in two.
Alicia blinked.
"What is this?"
"It's fruit! My mommy gave it to me! She told me to share!" The girl laughed brightly. "Mommy said that sharing food brings good luck!"
Alicia stared at the fruit in the girl's hand. It was small. It was such a tiny piece of fruit.
But to this child, it must have been something precious. She knew how rare even a single piece of fruit would be in a village this poor.
And yet, she wanted to share it?
"Why... why give it to me?" Alicia stammered. "We've never even met before."
"That's okay!" The girl nodded. "You looked like you were having a hard time yesterday, sister. You didn't eat anything. That's why I'm giving it to you!"
Tears welled up in Alicia's eyes.
Did this child know what she had done? Did she know that Alicia had rejected the food given by these villagers, calling it rotten and filthy?
And to someone like her, this child was trying to share her precious food.
"Take it, sister!" the girl urged, thrusting the fruit forward.
Alicia took it with trembling hands. It was a small piece of fruit, but it felt as heavy as a mountain.
"Thank you..." Alicia whispered.
Then, without realizing it, she pulled the girl into an embrace.
"Thank you... thank you so much..."
The tears poured out again. The girl seemed startled for a moment, but she soon hugged Alicia back with her small arms.
"Don't cry, sister. It's okay."
Alicia cried for a long time. She had learned from this tiny child what true sharing was. She learned what true kindness was and just how lacking she had been as a person.
As they left the village, Alicia's steps were heavy. But it wasn't her feet that felt heavy; it was her heart.
"Kyle."
"Yes, My Lady."
"Was I... a bad person?"
Kyle looked at her for a moment.
"From the time I was little... until now... was I a bad person?"
Kyle was silent for a while. Then he answered quietly.
"You were not a bad person."
"Liar," Alicia said, shaking her head. "I know how I treated the servants. Complaining about food, getting angry, ignoring them..."
"..."
"That girl just now... she had nothing, but she still shared with me. For no reason at all." Tears rolled down her cheeks. "But what did I do? I had everything my whole life, but did I ever share anything with anyone even once?"
"..."
"No. Not once. I only took. And even while I was taking, I only complained." Alicia clenched her fists. "I was really the worst."
Kyle listened in silence. Then he spoke slowly.
"You were a spoiled child."
It was a direct statement. Alicia looked up at him.
"But you were not a bad child. You had simply received too much love and did not know the world."
"..."
"It is different now." Kyle looked at her. "Now you are learning. About the world. About people. About yourself."
"Learning...?"
"Yes. And the fact that you can learn means that you can change."
Alicia blinked. "Change...?"
"Yes. A bad person does not know they are bad. But you have come to realize it. That difference is what matters."
Alicia was silent for a long time. Then she slowly nodded her head.
"You're right." She wiped away her tears with the back of her hand. "I'm going to change. Truly."
"..."
"I won't act like that anymore. I won't complain about food or look down on people." Alicia looked at Kyle. "And... thank you."
Kyle's eyes widened slightly.
"For what?"
"For teaching me. About hunger, about humility, and about the real world." Alicia gave a faint smile. It was a lonely smile, but it was sincere. "When you didn't give me food yesterday, I was actually angry. I thought, Why is he doing this? Why is he treating me like this?"
"..."
"But now I know why you did it." She lowered her head. "Because I could only know by being hungry myself. I would never have understood if you had just told me."
"..."
"Thank you, Kyle. Sincerely."
Kyle watched her for a moment. In the eyes of this thirteen-year-old girl, he saw that something had changed. The arrogance of a week ago had vanished, and something else was growing in its place.
It wasn't complete yet. She still had a long way to go. But she was definitely changing.
"I am also grateful to you, My Lady," Kyle said quietly.
"For what?"
"For not giving up."
Alicia blinked.
"Most people would have given up long ago. They would have said it was too hard or asked why they had to suffer like this. But you endured."
"..."
"Your strength... even I am surprised by it."
Alicia's face turned slightly red. "I just didn't have a choice." She turned her head away. "If I give up, I die. That's all it is."
"Even so," Kyle smiled faintly. "It is still impressive."
Alicia didn't answer, but a small smile appeared on her lips as well. For the first time. Sincerely.
That night.
Before falling asleep, Alicia looked up at the sky. It was full of stars.
"Father, Mother," she whispered. "I'm changing. Little by little."
The wind blew as if in response.
"When we meet again... I will be a daughter you can be proud of."
A single tear fell. But this time, it was not a tear of sadness. She closed her eyes.
She wondered what she would learn tomorrow. She was both afraid and expectant. She was changing. She was definitely changing. That was enough.
Kyle watched her from a distance.
"You are doing well, My Lady," he muttered to himself. "Count, Countess. Are you watching?"
The stars in the sky twinkled.
"Your daughter is changing. The child you loved."
Kyle lightly touched the Dragon Soul Stone in his bosom. It wasn't the time to speak of it yet. But one day, when she was ready, he would give it to her. The final gift from the Count and Countess.