Chapter 37: Twin Rivers Village

That day, Kaito and the others packed up all their belongings and, after a ten-kilometer trek, successfully arrived at the village before nightfall.

The village wasn't large, but it was considerably more spacious than the small hamlets they had seen before. A simple fence enclosed its perimeter.

Two crystal-clear rivers flowed past its edges, neatly cradling the village between them.

Perhaps because the land was vast and the population sparse, the houses were not built close together, each separated by a path at least two meters wide. A network of roads, large and small, crisscrossed the village, giving it the appearance of a chessboard, with the houses serving as the pieces on the squares.

The first person they encountered upon entering the village was an ordinary farmer's wife. Seeing a group composed entirely of what appeared to be children, the villager was quite friendly.

"Are you looking to live here? I'd advise you to give up on that idea."

"Why?" Kaito asked, puzzled.

"Never mind. I'll take you to see the village chief. He'll tell you all about it."

"Okay, thank you for your trouble."

After just a few steps, the auntie couldn't contain her gossipy spirit any longer. "Look at the nice clothes you're all wearing," she said to Kaito. "Shouldn't you be living in a city? Why come all the way out to this remote backwater?"

"Our big sister caught the eye of a powerful noble in the city who wanted to force her into marriage," Kaito spun a tale, earning a glare from Ruri. "But he's a sixty-year-old geezer! Of course, we couldn't agree to that, so we sold all our property and came here."

The auntie glanced at Ruri and nodded. "Your sister really is a great beauty. Even I'm smitten. No wonder someone would want to marry her by force."

"Of course! My sister is widely known as the number one beauty in the Land of Rivers!"

"Hehe."

Amidst the back-and-forth between Kaito and the auntie, they reached the center of the village.

"See that? The nicest house over there is where the village chief lives."

Calling it the "nicest" was a stretch; it was simply enclosed by a mud wall. It did, however, occupy a large plot of land and likely had a courtyard inside.

"Alright, thank you, sister. We'll treat you to a meal sometime," Kaito said with a grin, seeing the auntie off. He glanced back at Ruri, and with her encouraging nod, he stepped forward and knocked on the large wooden gate.

Before long, the gate opened, revealing a kind-faced, middle-aged man.

He looked surprised to see a group of children, each one younger than the last.

"Excuse me, are you the chief of this village?" Kaito spoke first.

"Ah, yes. I am Daisuke, the chief of Twin Rivers Village. And you are?"

"My name is Kaito." He repeated the story he had just told the auntie, and at the end, he asked, "So, would it be possible for us to live here? We've traveled a very long way, and the children are exhausted."

"Well…" Village Chief Daisuke hesitated, a troubled look on his face. "The woman who brought you here probably didn't explain the situation clearly. It's not that I don't want to take you in, but recently, a lot of strange things have been happening in the village. Many villagers have already left to find other places to live because of it."

"Strange things?" Kaito asked, his interest piqued. "What kind of strange things?"

"If you want to hear about it, come inside. The children must be tired of standing."

"Okay, thank you."

Kaito and the others followed Village Chief Daisuke through the gate. As expected, there was a small courtyard inside, planted with various flowers and plants.

Once inside the house, they took seats and waited for the chief's story.

"Starting about ten days ago, the poultry we raise—chickens, ducks, geese—have been mysteriously disappearing from time to time. Someone personally witnessed them vanishing into thin air. So, the villagers are all saying it's the work of ghosts or gods. They say that after the spirits finish eating the poultry, it'll be our turn."

"Oh?" Kaito said, surprised. "Didn't you ask an expert to come and help, Chief?"

Village Chief Daisuke sighed. "I've already sent someone to look, but this place is very remote. It's a three or four-day journey to the nearest large city. I'm afraid it will be another two days before they return."

Kaito glanced at Ruri, who gave a slight nod in response. He cleared his throat and said, "Chief, it's getting dark. Perhaps we could just stay here for the night?"

"Aren't you afraid?"

"We are, but traveling at night would be even more dangerous, wouldn't it? Besides, didn't you say only the poultry has been disappearing? Maybe the spirits don't intend to harm people."

"Hmm, you have a point." Village Chief Daisuke's expression relaxed a little. "In that case, you can stay here. The family in the house behind mine has already moved away. You can stay there for the time being."

"Great! Thank you, Village Chief!"

Following the village chief's directions, Kaito and his group moved into a house behind the chief's residence.

Similar to the chief's home, it had a small courtyard and was in a rather pleasant environment.

After a quick tour, they got a general sense of the house's layout.

The main hall was directly opposite the entrance, with two bedrooms on either side. A kitchen, bathroom, and toilet were all included.

"This isn't bad at all." Ruri nodded in satisfaction and assigned sleeping arrangements. "There are two bedrooms, so we can split them by gender. It might be a little crowded, but let's bear with it for now."

"I think it's fine. We'll get used to it," Kaito said, ruffling the two little boys' hair. "Come on, let's go get our room sorted out."

"Okay!"

The previous owner had only left a few days ago, so the room was still relatively clean. It lacked beds and blankets, however, so they would need to go shopping.

After a simple tidy-up and dinner, the children, exhausted from the day's journey, fell asleep on their makeshift beds. Kaito and Ruri were left sitting in the living room, chatting.

"Big Sis Ruri, what do you think of this house? Could we live here permanently?"

"We could. I'm already very satisfied with it."

"Then I'll go see the village chief again tomorrow and ask if we can buy this house directly. It'll prevent any disputes later on."

"Mm, you're right. I didn't even think of that," Ruri sighed. "I'm so envious of how you arrange everything so perfectly. Compared to you, I'm just a big idiot. I'm not qualified to be your big sister at all."

I lived for more than twenty years in my past life. How could I not be mature after being forged in the crucible of society?

Kaito let out a soft laugh. "Heh, Big Sis Ruri, you just need to be responsible for being beautiful. Oh, and for teaching Kushina and the other kids. Your main job is being a teacher. I'll take care of all the other trivial stuff."

"You're just a child, too. You don't have to bear so much."

"It's alright. I'm used to it. The children of the poor have to grow up fast, right?"

Looking at Kaito's cheerful, joking demeanor, Ruri felt an inexplicable wave of sympathy.

"In any case, from now on, I will do my best to take on the responsibility of being the big sister," Ruri said, looking at Kaito earnestly. "You can rely on me more in the future."

"…Alright."